Never seen that, nor have I heard of that, but I’m in Ohio, which isn’t known for it’s massive LDS population.
AuntiePam, I’ve been a Mormon all my life. I’ve been in a lot of Mormon homes, and I’ve even been to Utah a few times, but I’ve never seen a home with two kitchens in it unless it had a MIL unit or something. I have no idea what your co-worker was talking about; you’ll have to ask him.
Well, here are a few links, though most of them are either very very general or for doing the whole year’s supply. What I think would be best is if you got my favorite food storage book, Food Storage for the Clueless, out of the library (you should be able to get it through ILL) and read it for a lot of good information and inspiration for beginners and people who don’t know where to start. They’re especially good at recipes and methods for things like homemade yogurt, sprouting various grains, and planning for special needs (like, say, a wheat allergy). The book is written for a general audience that will probably have a lot of Mormons in it, but not necessarily.
The LDS Church’s Family Home Storage is so basic that it’s hard to get a lot of information out of it, because it’s aimed at the whole world, from apartment dwellers to day laborers to Utahns with basements. But it’s worth looking around the site; there are some pdf files with basic information, a FAQ, etc. You will want to pay attention to the 3-month supply, water storage, and financial planning.
This is a well-known, and now out-of-date, list for getting a lot of food storage for $5 per week. Food prices have gone up a lot, and you won’t want to stock 700 lbs. of wheat anyway, but it’s still a good principle. The way you build up food storage is by buying a little extra every week, preferably of something that’s on a loss leader sale.
Here’s some basic information and a food storage calculator.
Here’s a site designed by someone who’s been living largely off food storage for well over a year. She’s now very, very good at cooking and planning. Some good information and recipes, though aimed more at families with small children and gardens. Also some links and resources.
In an apartment, a big issue is where to put all this food. Under the bed, in the back of the closet, in the less-used bathroom, and even “as a support for a side tabletop” are all popular places to stash #10 cans of rice, sugar, beans, and potato pearls. (Mormons frequently store dry goods in #10 cans, which we can ourselves at a local cannery if one is nearby. Canneries are in fact open to anyone who wants to show up, buy the goods (cheap), and do the canning just like the Mormons do, so go ahead and see if you have one in the area. I have taken friends to ours, and they seem to like it.)
Hope this helps you get started. There’s tons all over the web, so look around. Here’s a blog post just for you. 
Doesn’t home canning increase the risk of botulism? I heard from a Bio teacher a couple years back that the decline in botulism infection was largely due to the advent of the canned food industry (ie, canning being done mechanically without the risk of human error).
Canning basics From the site:
We’ve learned a lot about canning, and modern home canning methods are safe. My mom has always canned, and I do as well; it’s not uncommon. I’ve never known anyone to get sick from home-canned food, but of course you should be careful–I’ve also thrown out old food that no longer looked good. (And I’ve thrown out old store-bought cans, too.) But it comes down to that we know a lot more now and have better methods. Don’t use your granny’s canning book.
I was thinking a bit about the difference between modern food storage philosophies and previous attitudes from the 60’s, which were more ‘end-of-the-world disaster’ type of thing. Well, it strikes me that of course they were–the people doing food storage in the 60’s had fought in WWII and were living through the Cold War. They were thinking about nuclear disaster and world wars. In addition, they were remembering that their grandparents had left their homes, starved through winters, and established a new city after walking a thousand miles or so. They were very, very interested in food–especially wheat, which was the big staple crop–and stability. Nowadays everything is different; the LDS Church is worldwide and more urban, and we no longer worry about mutual assured destruction–so the philosophy has changed to fit the times.
Thanks for the info, dangermom!