Abigail's Pantry ~ A Lesson in Opportunity, Pantry & Preparedness

“Then Abigail made haste and took two hundred loaves of bread, two skins of wine, five sheep already dressed, five seahs of roasted grain, one hundred clusters of raisins, and two hundred cakes of figs, and loaded them on donkeys…”

~ 1 Samuel 25:18

Building up our pantry affordably is one of my favorite homemaking hobbies and a responsibility I feel as keeper of the home. To make sure we have provisions through the thick and thin is a part of my job. The Proverbs 31 woman was prepared in her household, she did not fear for the future. Her skills and hardworking hands kept her family warm, well fed and comfortable. The wise Abigail of the Bible even used her extensive pantry provisions to save her household (1 Samuel 25:18)! Which brings me to my story...

A few months ago, I had been processing apples to add to our pantry shelves when I received a call from my uncle offering me a bag of persimmons.

I politely declined as I was in "apple mode" at the time and was not much of a persimmon fan.

But the words that I have type many times before had haunted me, “waste not, want not.”

Here I had an opportunity to fill my pantry with free organic food and I turned it down because the timing wasn’t perfect and the fruit wasn’t a favorite! With the rising cost of food, filling the pantry inexpensively may become more challenging and everything should be viewed as an opportunity. Even the more unconventional foods should be creatively considered to meet the needs of your household.

I quickly responded back with a change of heart and was surprisingly delighted when the persimmons arrived! They reminded me of the kind of fruit you would see illustrated in a Kate Greenaway book. They had a beautiful, bright orange color and the sweetest of green stems!

But, I almost missed them.

Sometimes opportunity presents itself at inconvenient times but this is where the housewife can glean from Ma Ingalls and turn blackbirds into pie!

“During their lifetimes, every man and woman will stumble across a great opportunity. Sadly, most of them will simply pick themselves up, dust themselves down and carry on as if nothing ever happened.” 

~ Winston S. Churchill

Though this example is small indeed, I don’t want to be one of those people!

“Thrift is poetic because it is creative;

waste is unpoetic because it is waste.” 

~ G.K. Chesterton

Being creative with what is seasonally available and multiplying our resources into various blessings is something I enjoy doing as keeper of the home. These items could easily have been discarded but instead have been useful additions to the pantry. Let’s ponder on a few examples of how the homemaker can be intentional with building her provisions frugally:

- apple peels leftover from my pie filling were dehydrated and crumbled and mixed with loose black tea to make a seasonal artisan tea blend. These are expensive to buy but simple to make and would be a lovely gift when wrapped attractively. Also, these peels are enhancing the nutrients of a simple pot of tea! Apple peel is an excellent source of fiber, it boasts vitamin C and antioxidants as well. Scientific research shows that apple peels also provide joint comfort and mobility along with supporting cardiovascular health. The peel of the apple has up to six times the amount of antioxidants compared to the flesh of an apple. So a frugal project is also a health building one as well!

- the remainder of the apple peels will be ground into a homemade fiber powder (yes, they are also very high in fiber!) for smoothies, added to cinnamon oatmeal and eaten as “chips” (more ideas utilizing fruit peels are found in our ebook- 100+ DIY Projects to Make with Fruit Scraps).

- a bag of free persimmons were almost left to rot under a backyard tree (and I almost let them 😞). Instead of being wasted, they have been sliced and dehydrated as a little treat for us (nature’s version of “candy corn”). We have found them to be absolutely delicious this way! I’ve also read that when thoroughly dried, they can be ground into a natural sugar! Though persimmons aren’t something I would normally buy, the gifted fruit has now been transformed into something we all enjoy. And of course, there is always persimmon bread and persimmon cookies to entice even the leeriest of eaters!

“Then Abigail made haste and took two hundred loaves of bread, two skins of wine, five sheep already dressed, five seahs of roasted grain, one hundred clusters of raisins, and two hundred cakes of figs, and loaded them on donkeys…”

~ 1 Samuel 25:18

As an additional lesson from Abigail, if we were to look at this one verse in the Bible, we can see the many homemaking skills that were involved to make this transaction happen (the transaction which saved her household!). To have the skills to do these things is preparedness in itself.

- There was the making of "bread" and the surplus of it (two hundred loaves!) for her large household. We are fortunate enough to have the ability to make large batches of bread and freeze it for the future!

- The "two skins of wine" can be compared to other fermented drinks the homemaker can easily make such as "apple scrap vinegar" and "kombucha". These both have a beautiful shelf life when properly stored and fermenting is one more skill we can add to our learning lists (not to mention the numerous health benefits of fermented food!).

- The "five sheep already dressed" could symbolize a farm setting with food at our fingertips, or for the city dweller, it can mean having a good surplus of meat in the freezer carefully chosen at times of discount. 

- The "roasted grain" can symbolize our ability to store many grains in bulk. It is a reminder to keep building up our pantry.

- The "one hundred clusters of raisins and two hundred cakes of figs" are clearly dehydrated foods. This is yet another item we can all learn to do and is so useful! You can often find dehydrators (this is the one I have and love - affiliate link) in thrift stores if you don't own one. As I age, I am finding I am loving the ease of this type of food preservation as it is quite simple! I like to dice up excess garden zucchini, peppers, tomatoes and any other soupy vegetable and have them all ready for autumn and winter menus. The drying of citrus slices is also a fun seasonal project with many uses!

And that is the beauty of a Proverbs 31-inspired homemaker, she turns trash into treasure. With her care and homemaking wisdom, she turns waste into wealth. With her vast array of skills, she turns everything in her path into a beautiful blessing!

It is a poetic life indeed, Mr. Chesterton.