Things Learned this Fall

We have learned a couple more new things this fall from doing them and I thought I'd share them with you. They're not anything new to the gardening world or the internet, but they were exciting for us. And they're appropriate here, since part of the purpose of this blog is to show and tell how my family is learning and improving in our efforts to be healthier and become more self-sufficient.

Last weekend my husband and two of our children harvested our first potato crop and the rest of our carrots.

It was like a treasure hunt, and our girls enjoyed the search and the time with Daddy. Of course, in addition to learning where vegetables come from, they are learning more about the importance of hard work, and the joys and secrets of growing our own produce. I'm so glad my husband likes to garden, too, and is a hard worker!

A few weeks ago, after online research, speaking with experts in our area, and making a couple visits to our local nursery, we planted five fruit trees in our backyard--something we've been wanting to do since we moved here a little over a year ago. I learned that the fall is actually the best time of the year to plant trees here, but they have to be containered trees (in other words, no bareroot). That means they're more expensive, but they tend to become established easier, since the air is cooler than the ground and they don't get dried out so quickly.

They're not much to look at right now, since they're so small and it's fall (as well as the fact that we have a lot of work to do yet before our yard looks the way we want it to), but one day, hopfully in the next few years, these trees will bring beauty and value to our property, and provide lots of good, healthful fruit for our use.

Root Cellaring

I have been learning about root cellaring lately and recently read this book by Mike and Nancy Bubel.  It gave me ideas about how to better store my fall produce in our basement, and what options we have for building in the future.  I would love to have my own root cellar and be able to fill it with our own produce to last through the winter. Imagine not having to rely on the grocery store at all for fruits and vegetables...

I hadn't thought much about root cellaring until I saw this book and started contemplating why this method of storing fruits and vegetables might be important.  One answer is obvious: If the electricity went out for any length of time, all the fruits and vegetables I have in my freezer (which is mostly what I have in there) would need to be used quickly or go bad.  The other answer is that, while home canning is an important skill to know and use, and that is a great way to build up food storage, it also takes a lot of energy (physically and electrically) to put up food that way--so it's not actually the most environmentally friendly option.  Besides that, eating your produce fresh (or fresh-cooked) is more nutritious than eating bottled goods anyway.

Do any of you have a cellar or had one growing up?  Memories? Do any of you have aspirations, like I do, to build one?

The Many Uses of Baking Soda

Two weeks ago I posted an article about using baking soda in place of shampoo.  Last week I tried baking soda as a face cleanser and exfoliant.  W.O.W!  Why didn't I try this before?!

I know baking soda has lots of other home uses (besides baking)... What do you use it for?

Rethinking How to Make Yogurt

A few days ago a friend of mine brought us some homemade yogurt.  I've made a lot of yogurt for my family in the past, but I stopped a while ago, partly because I was discouraged by how runny it kept turning out.  My friend's yogurt, on the other hand, is as thick as cottage cheese!  I asked her how she makes hers (without a yogurt maker, like I have) and learned a couple things.  Then when I saw this video online by YogaMama, I learned some additional things I can try.  Now I'm more excited about trying yogurt-making again!

Speaking of probiotics and promoting healthy guts, YogaMama also has an interesting article about gut bacteria  and how it influences early development in infants.  Fascinating stuff!  (I'm repeatedly amazed at each new evidence that shows vaginal births are best for babies and why.)

Freeze-Dried and Dehydrated Meals

Our family has recently been working on getting our 72-hour kits up-to-date, and in the process my husband found a food storage company online from which he ordered a sample.  I was skeptical to begin with, just knowing that these meals are supposed to have a shelf-life of 25 years.  I've heard ads from a similar company on the radio and have wondered about their preserving technique and why those foods taste so good, according to all accounts.  My reasoning was how could something manufactured and pre-prepared that lasts that long possibly be good for the human body?  And is MSG the reason these foods taste so "delicious"?  But I was willing to give it a try, since we needed to figure out what our options are, beyond the regular staples of food storage.

Well, we received that sample in the mail last week and tried it over the weekend.  I haven't made Rice- or Pasta-Roni for so long (it all contains MSG) that it was weird to just boil water and pour the stuff in.  It also didn't smell very palatable to me as I was stirring it up.  And as I read the ingredients I found four MSG ingredients: hydrolized soy protein, disodium inosinate, disodium guanylate, and disodium phosphate.  There were also three probable others: yeast extract, "natural flavor," and spices.  As I complained about what we were about to eat, my husband teased me about it, so I stopped talking and just tried it.  I wasn't a bit surprised that it tasted better than it had any right to or that I wanted more after my first helping.  I knew that both sensations were fake.  After a small second helping I had to have a helping of some real food to stabilize myself, which helped me feel better.  My husband, on the other hand, was looking a little green around the gills.  It tasted good to him too and he had a hard time not eating more of it, but even before he finished eating he could tell it wasn't making him feel good.  Then he was the one complaining--and no more teasing.

Thus, we have learned an important lesson: Prep-prepared freeze-dried or dehydrated meals really are packed with MSG (which also acts as a preservative).  I suspected as much, but it took this experience for us (my husband especially) to realize that we would rather have food storage staples with which to make simple meals that don't make us feel gross, than have "gourmet" pre-prepared meals that have lots of flavor.  Of course, in the case of our 72-hour kits, we may have to fudge a bit, but as that is a limited amount of meals, I'm okay with that.  If it came down to it, I'd rather eat some MSG-laden food than die of hunger.  But not for the long term!

Interesting note: The owner of the company who sent us the free sample called for feedback and when I told him about the MSG thing, he acknowledged unfortunately that will always be the case with such foods.  I wonder if a brilliant person down the road will discover a way to prepare and preserve foods for very long term without the use of harmful additives and chemicals...

Fresh Salsa Revisited

Where I live we have already had our first freeze (*sniff*), which means that all the corn and tomatoes were harvested before that. I ended up with a plethora of tomatoes others had given us (since our own didn't work this year) and was racking my brain for a way to use a lot of them quickly without canning them. Then I remembered my favorite fresh salsa, which I hadn't made for a long time. So I made a big batch of it, using up almost all the tomatoes, and my husband and I gobbled it up. I just can't get over how yummy it is! (And this time around, I discovered that it really is best made with red wine vinegar instead of white vinegar, which I had never had to be able to use before.)

Ranger Cookies (Healthy Style)

This past Sunday I made cookies with my girls and we had a great time!  And, of course, after we made them, we had a great time eating them. I love having "healthful" cookies around! (Original recipe from my Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook, p. 212.)

Ranger Cookies
Yield: about 48 cookies

1/2 c. butter, softened
3/4 c. honey
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla
1 1/4 c. whole wheat flour
1 c. oats
1 c. coconut
1/2 c. raisins
1/2 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips

In mixing bowl beat butter, then add honey till creamy.

Add and mix baking powder, baking soda, egg, and vanilla.

Add flour gradually, then oats and coconut.  When smooth, add raisins and chocolate chips last and mix only briefly.

Drop dough by teaspoons onto ungreased cookie sheet.  Bake at 375 degrees for about 8-10 minutes or until golden brown.  Cool 1 minute (or more) before transferring to wire rack to cool completely.

Budget Saver Tip #26: Skip the Shampoo

I first heard about the "No-Poo" movement a couple years ago and made some changes then to how (and how often) I wash my hair. Then a couple months ago I watched this video and was reminded of what I'd meant to try long ago.

Video: Skip Shampoo - Use Baking Soda and Vinegar

So I tried it this week and, like the woman in this video, was pleasantly surprised. It didn't even feel harsh, like I thought it might. My thought was, If it doesn't work very well I can always rewash it with my regular shampoo. But my hair hasn't been greasy and my scalp hasn't even been itchy (which it often is in our dry western climate). In fact, my head feels very clean. So I think I may just have to keep experimenting with this. Maybe next I'll try the vinegar for conditioning...

The environmental impact difference between all the chemicals in shampoo and the lack thereof in baking soda is pretty obvious.

As for the economical difference, the shampoo and conditioner I buy are very inexpensive already, but baking soda and vinegar are so cheap and go so much farther that it's laughable! To illustrate: You can typically buy a pound (16 oz.) of baking soda for $1. When you consider that to wash your hair with it you need only a tablespoon (give or take, depending on the length and thickness of your hair), that pound could last a very long time. Similarly, vinegar goes for about $2 a gallon, which would also last a long time. Hmmm, this definitely gets my wheels turning.

Which Sugar is "Greener"?

I found this interesting article about the environmental impact of sugars.  (Of course, honey is the greenest of all, but the article discusses only actual sugars.)  Interestingly enough, of the options we have in the industrialized world (ie, if we're not growing our own sugar cane), raw sugar is the most earth-friendly and brown sugar is the least.  It's sad what our country's sweet tooth is doing to the environment (not to mention our bodies)...

Cinnamon Rolls

Of course these are made with whole wheat flour and honey, and our family sure likes them! The original recipe comes from a recipe book that came with the Oster bread maker I used to have.

Cinnamon Rolls

Dough:
1 c. warm water
3 tsp. yeast
2 Tb. butter, softened or oil
1 egg
1/8 c. honey (although this wasn't quite sweet enough for me, so I would add more)
1 tsp. salt
3 1/3 c. whole wheat flour (or combination of white and wheat, if you prefer)

Filling:

1/6 c. honey
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
2 Tb. butter, softened
Sprinkle yeast into warm water and add butter, egg, honey, and salt. Allow yeast to rise for 5 minutes or so, until soft. Mix well.
Add flour gradually until dough is right consistency.
Roll out dough on lightly greased counter top to about 18x9 inches (will be using 9x12 pan).
Mix up filling ingredients to make a paste. Spread paste over flattened dough.
Roll up tightly to make long roll. Pinch edge of dough into roll to seal.
Cut roll into 1-inch slices. Place in pan. Cover; let rise in warm place 1 to 1 1/4 hours or until double.
Heat oven to 375 degrees. Bake 25 to 30 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from pan.
Allow to cool somewhat and spread my favorite cream cheese frosting over each cinnamon roll (see below), or make your own favorite glaze or frosting.

Cream Cheese Frosting (also posted here with my favorite carrot cake)

4 oz. cream cheese, softened
1/4 c. butter, softened
1 tsp. vanilla
fine cane sugar, to taste (I've also used raw sugar, which is also delicious, but more coarse, so it produces a delightfully crunchy frosting.)

Blend cream cheese, butter, and vanilla with mixer, add sweetener, to taste.