Baking treats, muffins, and breads just got taken a notch higher! I found out how to make vanilla sugar! Here’s all you need: 1 vanilla bean for every cup sugar 1 cup sugar for every vanilla bean jar with tight lid Just slice the vanilla bean down the center, all the way. Gently run the… [read more]
When I was growing up, my father would spend literally days making his famous beef jerky. He would choose the finest beef roast, marinate it in his special blend of seasonings, slice it paper thin, and stick it a warm oven for 24-36 hours. The smell would waft all through the house, and we could… [read more]
Homemade Vanilla Extract I am a big fan of making things yourself, in case you hadn’t figured that out yet. The vanilla you get in the stores is usually full of corn syrup and additives, and isn’t really vanilla-y. So, I found a recipe that I liked, and me being ME, tweaked a bit. Here’s… [read more]
I wasn’t so sure about fennel. I had never tried it before, and wasn’t sure I would like it. But, I was inspired by a recipe from the internet, and thought, “why not”? Here is my take on the original recipe: Sausage and Fennel Casserole 3 fennel bulbs 3cups milk, divided 1 tsp salt 1… [read more]
My mother was Swedish. My grandmother was Swedish. So, I guess that means that I’m Swedish as well. And, Swedish Meatballs is a staple in this family. It’s a hearty dish served with ground beef or lamb, a beefy gravy over a bed of rice. Today, I am going to share with you how… [read more]
I love, love, love our Berkey. We have very hard well water, and it tastes very nasty out of the tap. I purchased our Berkey water filter a year ago, and was immediately impressed! It filters the water in just under two minutes, and we get 3 gallons of pure, delicious, clean water each time!… [read more]
I know it’s still snowing in many parts of the country, and I know that it’s hard to think about being outside and getting all warm and cozy with the dirt, but now is the time to start thinking about planning your garden. First, you want to start with “what do I want to eat?”,… [read more]
![DSCN0269[1]](http://thehomesteadinghippy.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/DSCN02691-300x225.jpg)
Even in winter, my family can consume ice cream by the gallon. The store bought ice cream has really cool reusable buckets, but the ingredients in there are not what I want to feed them, especially on a regular basis. My wonderful hubby helped me solve the problem, and we went ahead and purchased the… [read more]
The best way to save money is to grow your own food. But, lettuce seeds can take several weeks to get started, and to grow big enough to be harvest. And, in the winter, it’s hard to find seeds anyway, right? The solution is to regrow your own lettuce from already harvested heads. Simply cut… [read more]
This falls under the category of “why didn’t I think of this before?”. I have a lot of pint sized jars since I do a lot of canning, and this time of year, many of them are empty. So, one day, I was perusing pinterest and saw someone putting salads into a jar, and it… [read more]