Recipes from Ollie J -- Wheat Casserole

1 lb. ground beef
1/2 dry onion
1/4 green pepper
1/2 tsp chili powder
1 cup whole wheat
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp oregano
14 oz. stewed tomatoes
2 cups water

Steam wheat in water for 1 hours, then drain really good.
Brown beef, chopped onion and pepper.
Blend all ingredients and simmer 30 minutes or more.
Pour in casserole dish.
Top with grated cheese.
Bake 10 minutes at 350 degrees.

As the granddaughter of a good Mormon lady, I just had to include this recipe. It's one of the first I've seen that includes the cooking of wheat grain in meals, where we're used to seeing it as a coarsely or finely ground flour for baking.

My grandmother was the oldest of a large farming family, and spent her formative years during the Great Depression. She was frugal, in a very good way, which enabled my brothers and me to pursue our higher education with very few student loans. As one of the tenants of preparation, Mormons often have large supplies of food stores in the home, and wheat is often one of the largest components of the stores. Regardless of whether her faith had preached preparedness, I believe Grandma Ollie J would have had food storage in her house. Not only was she thrifty and saved everything (and I mean everything), she had shelves of canning and freezers full of miscellaneous food items. If I remember correctly, her food storage of grains and legumes were probably in large tins in the corners of closets and under the beds. I don't recall having this casserole, but it must have made its way around the family and/or the Relief Society ladies for my grandmother to have included it in the recipe box.