By Melissa Norris | Chickens , Livestock , Podcast , Raising Your Own Food
Knowing how to butcher a chicken at home is a skill not for the faint of heart, but one essential if you want to be self-sustainable and raise your own livestock from start to table. We’ve been butchering our own chickens for 6+ years now and have learned a few things over the years to […]
Read MoreBy Melissa Norris | Canning Recipes , Food Preservation , Food Preservation - Canning , Fruit, Jam and Jelly , Recipes
Homemade cherry pie filling is delicious and easy, perfect in pies, cobblers, on top of cheesecakes, ice cream, swirled into yogurt or oatmeal. Make this with fresh or frozen cherries for a treat all-year-round! While cherries can be hard to grow here in the Pacific Northwest, when rain tends to split the skin just as […]
Read MoreBy Melissa Norris | Canning Recipes , Food Preservation , Food Preservation - Canning , Pressure Canning
Making homemade bone broth is a delicious, healthy, and frugal way to extend the value of a whole chicken. Learning how to can bone broth at home means you’ll always have broth on hand for soups, stews, gravies, and sauces. Not to mention you’ll be saving about $4 a quart! Learning how to pressure can […]
Read MoreBy Melissa Norris | Food Preservation , Podcast
Learn how to make fruit vinegar at home with one simple ingredient, a Mason jar, and a bit of time! My guest today, Autumn Rose, lives with her husband on a tiny farmstead in the mountains of southern British Columbia in Canada. She’s a full-time homemaker, whole food cook, avid gardener, food preserver, and lover […]
Read MoreBy Melissa Norris | Food Preservation , Food Preservation - Canning
Learn how to preserve the harvest with these easy home canning recipes. Canning is an excellent way to reduce food waste (no more molding cucumbers in the crisper drawer) and stock your pantry with healthy shelf-stable meals at the ready. The most important thing you need to know about canning is which foods can be […]
Read MoreBy Melissa Norris | Canning Recipes , Food Preservation , Food Preservation - Canning , Fruit, Jam and Jelly , Recipes , Water Bath
A cherry jam recipe is a must in every kitchen and my low sugar no pectin cherry jam recipe is the way jam should be. High on flavor instead of bucket fulls of sugar. This jam comes together easily so you can enjoy the bright taste of cherries all year long. What type of cherries […]
Read MoreBy Melissa Norris | Homestead-Life , Lifestyle , Podcast
Today’s focus is on managing your time in order to get homesteading done with all of your other activities. Especially if you happen to have a day job whether that’s working from home online, commuting, or a busy housewife with kids. No matter what scenario you find yourself in these tips will help you. At […]
Read MoreBy Melissa Norris | Podcast
Learn the 10 things most organic gardeners forget about to help you grow more food in the space you have, even if it’s not ideal full sun! Nicky and Dave Schauder are passionate about helping families grow their own food by using permaculture principals to maximize production in small spaces. With everything that is happening […]
Read MoreBy Melissa Norris | Canning Recipes , Food Preservation , Food Preservation - Canning , Fruit, Jam and Jelly , Recipes , Water Bath
This low sugar no pectin strawberry jam recipe is our favorite. Step by step tutorial for a homemade strawberry jam without pectin and tons of flavor. Every home needs an easy strawberry jam recipe without pectin (specifically store-bought pectin) and low sugar. Because I’m a firm believe your jam shouldn’t have more sugar than it […]
Read MoreBy Melissa Norris | Chickens , Livestock , Podcast , Raising Your Own Food
Chickens are so rewarding but they can be surprisingly aggressive with one another and integrating flocks needs to be done with some care. I’ve gotten lots of questions on integrating your new chicks into existing flocks and if you should keep meat birds with your laying hens. Read on my friend for all these answers […]
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