Fluffernutter Chocolate Peanut Clusters with Homemade Maple Marshmallows

Imagine salty peanuts and bouncy homemade vanilla-maple marshmallows tossed with just enough chocolate to hold them together! These chocolate peanut clusters are hands down my favorite holiday treat. Karl’s too! “Fluffernutter” chocolate peanut clusters are named after the childhood favorite peanut butter and marshmallow fluff sandwich. I’ve actually never had one of those, but I do love the name! And peanuts and marshmallows make a …

Homemade Bone Broth & Stock Hybrid Recipe

Nothing compares to homemade bone broth! And I feel like I’ve unlocked the secret to making the BEST chicken bone broth of my life. I’ve been using this particular method for a couple years now, and I won’t go back to using any other because it so good! So if you find that your homemade bone broth is lacking in flavor, or if your bone …

Gluten-Free Zucchini Bread Recipe: Double Chocolate and Lemon Poppyseed!

When I made these loaves of gluten-free zucchini bread, (actually one is zucchini bread and one is yellow squash bread!) I didn’t intend to post the recipes here… but they were just too phenomenal not to share! I planted seven summer squash plants in the garden this year, and there are only two of us… plus one of us “hates squash.” I won’t say who. …

Veggie-Loaded Homemade Marinara Sauce (Large Batch for Freezing)

Homemade marinara sauce chock full of homegrown veggies and tomatoes is hands down one of the BEST things I’ve ever preserved! And in the middle of the cold Winter, pulling a bag full of homemade marinara from the freezer is like pulling out a bag of sunshine! We’ve been enjoying this sauce immensely, and we’ll be making even more this season! I can’t take all …

Freezing Herbs: “Scarborough Fair” Herb Blend (Parsley, Sage, Rosemary, & Thyme)

You’re singing it now, aren’t you!(If you have no idea what I’m talking about, it’s in reference to a Simon & Garfunkel song… one that easily gets stuck in your head!) Last year I experimented with a new method of freezing herbs, plus a new herb blend and it turned out FANTASTIC! I’ll be making a whole lot more of it this year! If you …

How to Grow, Harvest & Cook Heirloom Beans + My Favorite Snap & Dried Bean Varieties!

You all want to know all about heirloom beans, I hear ya! So I’m spilling them! …the beans that is. Har har. I can’t write about beans and not include at least one cheesy bean joke, come on! No fart jokes, I promise. I’m taking you through the basics of how to grow heirloom beans, from planting to harvesting and shucking, plus which varieties are …

How to Grow Shiitake Mushrooms in Your Own Backyard!

I’ve always been a mushroom-lover… blame it on my upbringing. I grew up in the woods, with two generations of wild mushroom foragers before me. I’ve eaten a lot of really amazing fresh mushrooms in my life- and while I love foraging for them, it’s even better to be able to grow Shiitake mushrooms in our own backyard! Growing mushrooms has been one of our …

Homemade Raspberry Jello Recipe {From Scratch with Real, Healthy Ingredients}

My grandma was a farmer and an avid gardener- she always had a flock of chickens and at least one goose that always chased us down her driveway. She had a gorgeous raspberry patch, and I remember her freezer was always full of Cool Whip containers filled with homegrown raspberries. And she made the best homemade raspberry jello! Now, it was made with raspberry flavored …

Homemade Honey Lip Balm {As Featured in Mother Earth News Magazine!}

Every year when the weather turns cool (the start of chapped lip season!) I make a new batch of homemade lip balm. It always ends up slightly different, but it’s always the best lip balm I’ve ever used. Homemade is best and nothing store-bought can even compare! My goal when I set out to make homemade lip balm was to create a recipe that was …

Cucumber Lemonade Sweetened with Honey

This Cucumber Lemonade is summertime in a glass! It’s the perfect refreshment to cool down with after a long day spent in the garden or doing outdoor chores in the hot sun. Trust me, we have a lot of those around here! It’s incredibly refreshing. Even Karl likes it, and he doesn’t especially care for cucumber, or anyone else in the cucurbit family for that …