December 2011 Blog Posts (29)

I don't plan on making wild and crazy (or unreasonable) New Years resolutions.  I will continue to eat healthy and exercise.  I will try to stress less about things that I cannot control.  

I will NOT be giving up coffee or chocolate!!!

That's right, SEAWEED!!! It's free and plentiful if you live near the coast.



This morning I got up early (free parking before 8am) and went down to the beach with 2 grocery bags and a big plastic bin. I took my plastic bags down to the shore and picked the freshest seaweed which was just washing up on shore. After just 5 minutes both of my bags were full.***Rinse well so you don't bring home little creatures who need the sea***



Back at the…

Earlier this year I wrote a post on cleaning chicken feet. However, I did not go into the details of why it is important for me to have those chicken feet added to my stock pot. The fact is any variety of properly made stock (whether from chickens, beef, lamb, or white-tailed deer) provides many health promoting vitamins, minerals, and…

It’s so easy to simply hang your shovel on the nail when you hang up your proverbial towel at the end of the growing season, but there are a few simple practices that will help to preserve quality tools for decades of use.  The following tool care steps can also be used during the growing season for routine maintenance.

Many of our garden tools such as shovels, spades, knives, clippers, etc, are constructed of a combination of materials, often metal and wood. And while I have…

Greetings!  Remember back when I told you all about my final attempt at making a sourdough starter?  I never reported back about my progress...mostly because that attempt, like all the others, was a sad, sad failure.  Still, a few failures have never stopped a girl from trying.  So a few months later, I tried again and now I have a healthy whole-wheat sourdough starter.  Today, I baked my first loaf of sourdough bread.  Now that I've discovered how…

Curly Sue is one of our purebred American Guinea Hogs that is pregnant. She was due to farrow yesterday (Dec. 21). As you can see in the photo, her underline is developing. As of this morning, we could not express any milk, nor is her mammary area warm to the touch. This leads us to believe she may be more than a day out from giving birth. But really, who knows? She's…

What a difference a year makes.  Last year at this time, those of us who call west-central Minnesota home had 3 ft of snow on the ground already.  This year we have none.  When we do get snow, it’s only a dusting and the above normal temps, quickly melt it.

Our area has a 90% chance of “enjoying” a brown Christmas.  A white Christmas is defined [by our local TV weather guys] as having at least ½” of snow on the ground (often referred to as snow-pack).  If you view our webcam…

The end of 2011 marks a year of production on Growing Cities for Dan and I (Andrew)!  We feel so fortunate and pleased to be working on this film and can’t wait to have a final product to show everyone.  Although there is a long road ahead to reach that point we’ve really come a long way in twelve months. From dreaming of the open road and planning the itinerary last winter, to the road trip this summer, to a three-month stay in San Francisco transcribing the film – we have experienced and…

Kombucha. Comb-boo-cha. Ever heard of it? It's the hippie, new age, magical "elixir of life". It's actually just fermented sweet tea, but I prefer "elixir of life", don't you? I'd heard about kombucha maybe a year or two ago and had seen bottled…

The holidays are great in so many ways. I'm sure everyone has their own special aspect they especially like. For instance, yesterday, I helped my wife decorate the tree. You can really tell it is one of her favorite things at Christmas time. However, I have always hated anything to do with Christmas lights, especially outdoors. I prefer to enjoy the ones our neighbors put up. She says I NEVER help with the tree, but this year is different.

Not everything at Christmas time is happy and…

Last year, a HOMEGROWNer posted a Christmas Cookie Countdown recipe for chocolate-covered cherry cookies (all the best flavors baked into one). 

This weekend I'll be making dozens and dozens of holiday treats - old favorites like Russian tea cakes and peanut butter Hershey kiss cookies and gingerbread and some new recipes (peppermint bark!).

What are your favorite…

http://thelittlehouseproject.tumblr.com/post/14304194925/little-house-in-the-big-woods

[Originally posted on my blog briciole as salsa di mele arrosto / roasted applesauce]

A little while ago, a friend of mine gave me a case of apples…

Not Dabbling in Normal is hosting this years Dark Days challenge, it's about eating one meal a week (or more!) of SOLE foods. Sustainable, Organic, Local , Ethical. We can do that, right?

I wrote about my first attempt, and why it's important not just to ME, but to all of us, that at least some of us eat local!  I have a new blog, subRural…

I'm sure many of you on here already know about buying apple "seconds" (the apples that have some dings and bruises) to make cheap homemade applesauce. Now that it's winter I absolutely love making lots of baked goods and replacing some of the fat with applesauce!

I recently…

A friend recently gave me 4 gallons of cow's milk. We've always kept dairy goats, but the cream from the Jersey cow was a special treat. I turned that 4 gallons of milk into yogurt, mozzarella cheese, butter, buttermilk, and whey. And, of course, we got to drink fresh, raw milk.

How to make…

hi,my name is divina.I have been knitting for over a year now and absolutely love it. i also crochet among baking goodies.i like to barter my fingerless gloves, scarves,cowls,crochet headbands,bracelets,and clutch handbags in exchange for canned preserves of any kind,sauces, organic preferrably seeds, handmade soaps, and frarant bath salts in pretty jars. as well as some nic nacs for the house. i also sew things like small heart pillows with lace(fillers for the house or gift items for…

The first-ever HOMEGROWN Fair was a huge success! A hearty thank you to all who shared photos, videos, recipes, stories and skills over the past month. What a year you’ve all had – and how wonderful it is to share in your accomplishments and learn something new from each submission. The Fair was a…

I found a recipe last night more out of desperation than curiosity.  I've been a bit distracted lately and even with a trip to the supermarket I was out of eggs.  It seems I just forgot.