Homegrown & Homemade
When I give a gift, I love it to be thoughtful and from the heart. And homemade when where I can! I also am a sucker for other people’s artisan handiwork, or just plain-old good ideas for things to improve, simplify, or beautify our lives. And I think these things make great gifts. I like to seek out the unique, the different, the handmade, or the-something-you-don’t-see-everyday. And …
This isn’t a post about what to keep in your chicken first aid box or how to treat bumble foot, gape worm or mean roosters. But it is about one powerful tool, the one thing that has the most potential to help you in a chicken-crisis or poultry-emergency. It is something I was reminded of just last week when we lost one of our hens; one …
I love a gift straight from the heart- and this Kissing Ball is just that. I grew up on a Christmas tree farm; the trees were planted when I was about four years old, and for many years- from middle school to college, every holiday season I stood out in the cold Wisconsin weather and sold Christmas trees to happy families. They’d bring their dogs, they’d have …
One thing at the top of our homestead to-do list was to plant fruit trees, especially pears. They grow well in our hardiness zone, they have amazing flavor, are quite versatile, and with the right variety they even store well. My favorite way to preserve pears is to dehydrate them. In mass quantity I slice them into wedges for dehydrating, but sometimes I like to class …
I posted last month, my confession that we had two chickens living in our house. I really enjoyed having them around, but with fall approaching (which means winter is soon to follow) I knew they had to transition to sleeping outside with the rest of the flock. They slept in a sturdy, but slowly deteriorating cardboard box in our foyer. During the daytime they would …
You’ve made all your favorite zucchini recipes three times over. The kids, and even the chickens don’t want to look at another zucchini. And jokes about leaving bags of zucchini in unlocked cars at the local grocery store are no longer funny. Wondering what to do with all that zucchini? Do you want to know the best ways to preserve zucchini- and better yet… What …
Yup, melon seeds. The gloppy, stringy mess that you scoop out with a spoon and throw away. We’re gunna eat it! Part of our journey into homesteading has been to increase our respect for where our food comes from. To utilize every part of the plant or animal and practice a no-waste lifestyle. Well, as little waste as possible anyways… This recipe is a prime …
Do you have at least six mondo-zucchini sitting on your counter at all times during the summer? I love to take all the extras and shred and dehydrate them. I add the dehydrated zucchini to various things all winter long- like soups, sprinkled on salads…and now, this granola. If you are looking for ways to preserve and use preserved zucchini, you’ll want to check out my …
If you’ve followed my chicken journal you know that this past spring we got 20 Red Rangers to raise as meat birds. A handful of them developed leg problems when they were younger, and right about when we moved them from the house brooder into their outside coop, two of them developed a substantial limp. They could barely walk. Being hurt, they were low on the totem pole …
(gluten-free, paleo, grain-free, easy side-dish) And char-grilled it is. Or rather, maybe just charred. Karl and I like our food grilled hard! If you like your food with less flavor black marks, by all means grill it less. You could even bake or sauté the zucchini… In summer, our grill is indispensable. We use it more days than not. It heats up quickly and doesn’t heat …
