Even as summer draws to a close, our late season crops continue to produce amazing harvests. After a few soaking rains, I simply can't keep up with my pole beans! We plant the variety Blue Lake Pole Bean and use a cattle panel trellis to support the growth. Because we love fresh green beans (our favorite recipe is a simple sauté with sesame oil, soy sauce, and sesame seeds) we eat most of our harvest fresh from the garden. However, we try to preserve green beans for winter enjoyment with at least one of the following methods: canning, freezing, dehydrating, or fermenting. Four Ways to Preserve Green Beans Harvest Festival: Preserving Tomatoes, Green Beans, & Peppers Preserving … [Read more...]
Living in a Tiny House with Kids
Although tiny houses are often viewed as ideal dwellings for singles or couples, there are many families living in tiny houses with kids. Ours is one of them. We have lived in a 350 square foot house with two children, now ages 5 and 8, for three years. Living in a tiny house with kids has its pros and cons, and I'll tell you honestly that there are days that I adore living in our tiny home, and days that I dream of the addition we may someday build. Living in a tiny house with kids requires an extraordinary amount of creativity, patience, flexibility, and organization. Kids are natural collectors, and love to display their collections prominently. They are also blessed with incredible … [Read more...]
Planning and Planting a Fall Garden
Over the past three years, I've shifted my gardening focus more and more toward planning and planting a fall and spring garden. This is primarily because there is an abundance of fresh produce from July-August available at the Farmer's Market, and to a lesser extent, in our local grocery store. However, the Farmer's Market does not open until May, and closes at the end of October, which means that unless I have been diligently planning and planting a fall garden and preserving food, I will not have access to local, fresh produce for many, many months. If you live in a similar climate, consider planting your own fall garden. Here's how! Planning a Fall Garden My fall garden planning … [Read more...]
How to Hang Onions for Storage
Many years ago, a friend taught me her method of hanging onions for storage. I tried it right away, and was hooked! This is one of the easiest and quickest ways to hang onions, because it only uses a rope, and the onions themselves. What I love most about this method is that you can easily see each and every onion, so you can keep track of any that are rotting. That is much more difficult when your onions are stored several layers deep in a basket! Before hanging, you'll want to make sure your onions are fully cured - I like to lay mine out in a shaded, covered, but well-ventilated location for two weeks or so, until the outer skins are papery and the stalks are fully dry. When you're … [Read more...]
How to Make Shrubs, or Drinking Vinegar
During a recent heat wave, Brian and I found that water was not replenishing our bodies or quenching our thirst. We did not have any of our homemade sodas on hand, so we searched through cookbooks to find a simple, refreshing drink that we could make with ingredients we had on hand. We found shrubs. Shrubs, or drinking vinegar, were popular during the 17th and 18th centuries, and have enjoyed a revival in recent years, not only in home kitchens but also in cocktails. A shrub can refer to a type of fruit liqueur, or a non-alcoholic beverage made from a sweetened, vinegar-based syrup. The addition of vinegar preserves the fruit syrup, and also adds a tangy and thirst-quenching quality. A … [Read more...]
Building an Outdoor Pizza Oven
One of the most exciting projects we have completed on our homestead this summer was building an outdoor pizza oven. Years ago in Oregon, my husband Brian built an amazing brick bread oven, following Alan Scott's plans detailed in the book The Bread Builders. The oven was huge - he could bake 20+ loaves of bread at a time - and it was so well insulated that it held heat for days. Brian ran a "Community Supported Bakery" for almost 9 years, selling organic, artisan sourdough bread baked that he baked in his wood-fired oven to friends and neighbors. When we began creating our off the grid homestead, we knew that we wanted to include an outdoor bread and pizza oven. But another Alan … [Read more...]
How to Make Sauerkraut
One of the easiest fermented foods to make at home is sauerkraut. With only two ingredients - salt and cabbage - it's hard to get wrong, and the results are so delicious that you'll want to make it again and again. Check out this tutorial on how to make sauerkraut, and once you've mastered the basic recipe, try adding new vegetables, spices or herbs to make a more sassy flavored kraut. How to Make Lacto-Fermented Sauerkraut 1) Start with the freshest cabbage you can find. Green or red head cabbage is perfect, but you can also use Napa cabbage. 2) Slice, grate, or food process your cabbage of choice. I like my sauerkraut on the chunkier side, so I use a knife to coarsely chop the … [Read more...]
How to Homestead (and Still Go on Vacation)
A sentiment I read a bit too often in homesteading circles is that once you have a homestead, you can never leave the house again. I'm here to tell you that this is false. In my 17 years of homesteading, I have gone on many, many vacations, including a month-long honeymoon to Costa Rica, a three week road trip, and countless shorter trips. I love to travel and it's a priority for me, so (although it can be stressful), I figure out ways to make it happen. Here's how. How to Homestead and Still Go on Vacation Find a great house sitter Okay, this is probably the hardest step, so let's get right to it. The biggest key to having a successful and relaxing vacation is to have an incredible … [Read more...]
The June Garden and a Homestead Garden Tour
The June Garden is full of promise and rewards. Everything is green, disease and pests have yet to take center stage, and plants are yearning to grow and fruit. My job is to keep up on the weeds (always the weeds!) and harvest daily. It is this time of year when there is enough substance in the garden to begin planning meals around the daily harvest, and the kids and I begin our morning harvest walks. In early June my garden rewards are mesclun mix, beets, new potatoes, mulberries, kale, Chinese cabbage, golden purslane, and the last of the snap peas and lettuce. In another week or so, the broccoli, carrots, and kohlrabi will be ready to harvest. In an effort to smother weeds … [Read more...]
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