Independance Day Update - Week 5

1. Plant something – nothing yet.

2. Harvest something – nothing. Need to either eat the lettuce or start a new crop - still there, still short, hasn't bolted yet.

3. Preserve something – Still working on a full stock of green peppers. Froze venison broth to use later. Need to learn what else I can dry, as dried foods take up so much less space.

4. Reduce waste – Regular recycling. Better meal planning.

5. Preparation and Storage – re-planning what we're canning/drying for winter. The more I learn, the less I want to eat non-organic food (I really don't want to eat anything that's been genetically modified, thanks anyway..) Finding a place to store it all is another matter!

6. Build Community Food Systems – Visited newest farmers market, bought veggies.

7. Eat the Food – Steamed squash for dinner. Ate venison from the freezer.

8. Crafting – Cross-stitch, snippets of sewing.

Market Day

Tomatoes, squash, bell peppers for drying, green beans, goat milk soap, more peanuts.

Canning Stew

I made beef stew over the weekend. The recipe, while very good, stated it would make about 7 quarts. I got 7 quarts plus 8 pints plus Sunday dinner plus another night's dinner. It looks wonderful, and I'm looking forward to having some for dinner on a night I don't want to cook. On the other hand I wasn't planning on canning two days straight - the pressure canner takes a bit. For the pints, they are processed for 75 minutes. At 2.15 the lid went on the canner. At 4.50 I took the canner off the heat to lose pressure, and at 5.30 I put the cans out to cool overnight. One batch, not counting what I did before the lid went on, has taken just over 3 hours. Now that I've timed it, I can add 2 hours + prep to the processing time, and use that to plan the day better.

Moral: Prep everything, and start early.

ETA: While making the pickles, I was forcibly reminded to fully read the directions & double check I have all the ingredients & enough jars before starting. Guess who ran out at the last second for jars, spices, & pickling salt?

Independance Day Update, Week 4

1. Plant something – nothing

2. Harvest something – nothing.

3. Preserve something – Canned Bread & Butter pickles. Finished drying red bell peppers, still working on a full stock of green peppers.

4. Reduce waste – Regular saved fabric scraps & recycled.

5. Preparation and Storage – found another clamp-shut glass storage container at the thrift store.

6. Build Community Food Systems – Visited newest farmers market, bought flowers, meat, & veggies.

7. Eat the Food – Steamed squash for dinner, homemade applesauce, homemade blueberry breakfast bars.

8. Crafting – Cross-stitch. Finished a bit of spinning, knitted it up into a swatch to see what it would look like, and now I'm planning what to use it for when I do finish spinning it.

Market Day

Today was a local Farmer's Market. Peppers for drying and for dinner; bison meat; onions and cucumbers for Bread & Butter Pickles. The yellow squash are already steaming for dinner. The peanuts are yummy snacks, grown locally & processed on her farm.

Non-electric, anyone?

I have a 'game' I enjoy - how low can I get our daily electric usage, living in an apartment? The items that use the most electric - heat, a/c, water heater, and fridge - are out of our control, beyond setting a thermostat. All the lights have been switched to CFLs (compact fluorescent). Windows are opened whenever weather allows.

So, what else to do?

The microwave is gone - we picked up a convection toaster oven instead. We've gained counter-space (the oven is half the size), and small items get baked in the toaster oven, saving us the cost & heat of using the bigger one. Who needs to heat an oven big enough for a turkey, when you're just making six muffins?

We consistently look for versions of items that don't use electric. For example, I have 3 sewing machines. Two of my three are treadles; the third, an old Kenmore, will be converted from electric to handcrank.

We're also learning to use oil lamps, and I'm slowly collecting what I need to make candles. Evenings are much more relaxing by the dancing light of a flame.

Another good post on this subject is at Better Living Daily.


Anyone have additional ideas?

Independance Day Update: Week3

1. Plant something – nothing. Need to look at what I can grow next.

2. Harvest something – Nothing.

3. Preserve something – Made local-farm beef broth. Made Beef Stew.

4. Reduce waste – Used fabric scraps for small project. Regular recycling.

5. Preparation and Storage – Made local-farm beef broth for canning. Planning what we need for winter, so I can get it at the farm market and preserve it.

6. Build Community Food Systems – Visited farmers market, bought meat & veggies. I'm planning menus around what I find there. Beef Stew: about half of the ingredients were locally grown/ raised.

7. Eat the Food – Canned beef stew & beef broth for winter. Trying a new coleslaw recipe with honey and maple syrup instead of sugar. Ate our way through the full fridge.

8. Crafting – Planned out two new skirts and several tops. Picked up the fabric and notions. It's in the 90's already; I need cooler clothing to wear.