Homesteading

I know quite a few people who are homesteaders and have the ability to grow and stow.. which is great.. I try to grow what I can, stow what I can, but I do not have the ability to have animals more than chickens(yet).. I will tell you that I am in complete awe of people who have the ability to raise their own meat and dairy..  I am learning the art of cheese-making(December for a class woohooo excited) and hoping to learn how to make soap.. heck home-made soap last longer than store bought, plus it will have better benefits.. The more I learn the more self sufficient I will become!!  The more I can make the less I am dependent upon big stores...Heck I might have to find a local farmer who I can barter with... Canning services for meat.. hmmmm could be something there... now to find the farmer..

 I love to coupon and it definitely saves me money.. I love to grow a garden because it gives me the ability to can all that yummy-ness and put it up for winter months and months where the paychecks do not stretch... Who doesn't like fresh tomatoes from the garden in salsa, spaghetti sauce or just over elbow noodles??? I love baking apple pies with the apples of the season!! of course pears in lite syrup are yummy too.. and who doesn't love pickles or applesauce?? My oldest daughter always grabs a quart or two when she is home.. man I need to get more made if she continues at this pace...  I grabbed tons of green beans and put them up along with some yummy carrots... the only veggie I didn't get was corn.. but its ok.. if I have to force myself to buy 1 veggie all winter I guess I can suffer with corn.. Potatoes I have gotten from a local farmer who sells them for 20$$ for a 50 lb bag.. and some of those are going into jars this week for the winter season as even if they are in my cool basement, they never seem to last long enough before the sprout begins.

Preserving food is not hard to do at all.. Yes it can take time, but it is so worth it when you are finished and you have that food item to use instead of a store bought item!!!  I always practice and use safe canning guides.. Botulism is nothing to play around with... Pressure Canning and Water-bath Canning are the 2 tried and true ways to preserve your harvest... Now  you are probably thinking oh my god not the pressure canner I have heard horror stories of how my grandmothers grandmother blew up her kitchen.. Well not so true these days.. Yes a pressure canner is a piece of equipment that must be respected as with all equipment, but with proper use, you will never have an explosion.  I have 2 pressure canners, one Presto (from Walmart) and one All American Canner, made in the USA and it is pricey, both I use regularly and both are different.. my All American has no gasket, it is a metal to metal seal with 6 pieces that hold the lid in place.  My Presto has a gasket and it twists to lock into place. Both can hold 7 quarts at one time and that is what I mostly do. Each has its own water requirements, but both work with a weighted system for pressure regulation.  If you live around my area and ever want to learn sometime time.. just give me a holler I am sure I will be canning something and will show you the process.. and if you want to learn more about safe practices here is the site I swear by.. of course its a government site, but they have tested and certify that if you follow the guidelines correctly your food will be safe for consumption.  http://nchfp.uga.edu/ The National Center for home food preservation... You can actually download the entire book as a pdf.. heck print it double sided, hole punch it and put it into a 3-ring binder for your reference.

New to canning start small.. try jelly, apple sauce, try anything that used water bath canning.. then start slowly with pressure canning and viola you are a canner and starting your homestead.  Grow it and Stow it.. one of the Facebook Pages I follow always says Grow it Stow it.. and he is right.. the more you grow(or purchase from local farmer) and the more you stow the healthier your family will be and the less dependent you will be on box stores when the Crap hits the fan.. Again if you ever want a hand, have a question ask me!! If I can not find the answer I have good resources and good friends who do!!!

Couponing and Canning.. two of my favorite food things.. Hooking and spinning, crocheting and knitting a few of my favorite crafts!!!  I still keep trying to talk my husband into a few small animals like goats/sheep.. heck even pigs.. but alas I do not have a barn type shed for their housing.. hmmm guess I am gonna have to learn to build... can not be too difficult.. Watch out  you-tube.. I just may come visiting for some helpful ideas.


Happy Homesteading!!

Melissa :)