“This year after strawberry picking I made two varieties of Strawberry Jam. The first variety is my All american basic jam, the stuff I ate as a kid. Its nothing but strawberries, sugar, pectin and fresh squeezed lemon juice. The second variety I used a “No sugar needed” pectin packet along with brown sugar and […]
“Jalapenos are abundant right now, but that’ll change very soon, when fall starts to chill the fields. I love the brightness of fresh jalapenos, but pickled jalapenos are a staple. Once I figured out how incredibly easy and cheap it is to make my own, I’ve never gone back. I even learned how to water […]
“A year ago, my husband and I purchased half of a cow to feed our growing family. I was able to speak with the butcher and customize all of our cuts. It was really cool. Anyway, when she got to the round roasts, our least favorite cut, I asked her to just ground them up […]
“One of the biggest arguments dairy-free milk drinkers make for purchasing store-bought milks instead of making it at home is the added vitamins. They see it as a simple and necessary way to prevent vitamin deficiency. Here’s the thing… most (not all) dairy-free milks at the store have additives, preservatives and “natural flavors” in them. […]
“Every time I mention honey wine, someone thoughtfully corrects me. “Isn’t it called mead?” Apparently, wines come from grapes, mead comes from honey, and beer comes from grains. But what about Dandelion Wine? I think these definitions are too strict, and a little leeway is needed for the home brewer. Honey wine just sounds so […]
“Tea is a wonderful thing. Steeping and drinking a cup can usher in feelings of calm, stimulation, centeredness, and more. Maybe you have a few different types of tea in your pantry. Perhaps black or green tea wakes you up every morning. You might reach for mint in the afternoon and kava in the evening. […]
“Get ready for a SERIOUSLY old-school skill. When you make jam or jelly, you need something to make it jell. Most folks use commercial pectin–a product extracted from fruit–usually powdered (although liquid pectin is available). But. BUT. What if it was doomsday and there was no pectin in the stores? WHAT WOULD WE DO????? The […]
“There’s an old-fashioned charm to homemade root beer with its odd array of roots and bark, flowers, leaves and berries. It, like many other fermented beverages, once enjoyed position as a staple of American cookery. Water, as you know, was not always potable and raw milk, small beers, cider, perry and other fermented beverages were […]
“I recently remarked to a sympathetic friend how difficult it is to buy fresh sage around here. Sage isn’t used intensively in French cuisine, so it’s not part of the classic range of fresh herbs sold at produce shops or at the green market. But I enjoy its flavor very much, so I decided I […]
“If you’ve ever bought spices from the store, you probably noticed that they often contain ingredients like “ant-caking agent” or “natural flavor” (AKA MSG). Many often contain trace amounts of soy or other fillers, and sometimes these don’t even have to be listed on the ingredients. Mystery fillers aside, these spices also often sit on […]