Freeze Drying has been a game-changer for us! One of the things we love is that it has given us the ability to really level-up our Care Packages and Gift Boxes to Family and Friends. 
I'm an Air Force Veteran and our Son is Active Duty Military. Recently we had the opportunity to travel to his Base and participate in his Promotion Ceremony. We brought along a big box of treats to share with his Squadron - it was a hit!
Here's our selection of Patriotic Molds if you'd like to make some freeze dried treats too.
I used my Set of Chef Squeeze Bottles to pipe the mixtures into silicone food molds.
Several members let us know how much they've been enjoying the freeze dried treats we've been sending the past couple of years - so nice to hear!
We had a wide variety of treats made with various fruits, vanilla ice cream, pudding, and blue spirulina. I've been experimenting with non-dye, non GMO, natural, plant-based food colorings and they are absolutely wonderful!
Here's the Blue Spirulina Powder we use - it's a natural Blue Food Coloring, Non GMO, 100% Vegan Phycocyanin Extract Spirulina Powder, Plant Based Food Coloring for Smoothies, Drinks, Cakes, Frosting, Cookies, Baking, No Smell https://amzn.to/3SGsKSE
FD Tip: You can use vacuum-sealed jars with OAs to store FD food items temporarily until it's time to build a care package. When the time comes, take out what you need, add a fresh OA, and reseal the rest for later. Jars are great for this purpose since they are reusable.
We use small, snack-sized zip bags to send the treats. They will be eaten upon arrival, and we have successfully used this technique many times.
When possible, I like to arrange a variety of pieces in each packet. This makes them more fun to hand out to everyone since there's a little something different in each selection.
They are a Space Force Squadron so some of the shapes were Aliens & UFOs - they always find these to be hilarious! Here are some fun space themed food molds you can use too.
FD Tip: Making sure that FD food items are Storage-Ready-Dry before you pack them up is critical! You need a proven way to determine dryness. We use the Weigh Method. Our scale measures to the tenth of a gram and we don't consider our batch to be done until all of the trays stop dropping in weight. This indicates that they have no more moisture left to lose.
Need to mail a FD Care Package to Family & Friends in the Military? The post office will deliver a special Military Care Kit TO YOUR DOOR complete with 4 Medium Flat-Rate Boxes, 2 APO/FPO Boxes, Customs Envelopes, & Priority Mail Tape - everything you need to pack things up! The cost is part of the postage you pay later when shipping your Flat-Rate Military Boxes. It's the same cost for a US Address as it is for an overseas APO or FBO Address! Just visit the USPS website and search for "Military Care Kit" or use this link: https://store.usps.com/store/product/military-care-kit-P_MILITARYKIT
Care Packages are such a morale-booster, especially when you're away from home. Good food brings people together!
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