Building David’s Cabin, Part One

By Jackie Clay-Atkinson Issue #172 • July/August, 2018 Like most young folks today, our son David graduated high school, got a job, and went to college (accumulating student loans in the process). After that, he worked...

Build a wood-fired stock tank heater

By Jackie Clay-Atkinson Issue #138 • November/December, 2012 Keeping fresh water in front of our livestock in the winter has always been somewhat of a problem. A long time ago, when we lived on a homestead...

Pheasant and dumplings

Recipe of the Week  Pheasant and dumplings  Courtesy of Jackie Clay   You'll find this recipe and over 400 more in Backwoods Home Cooking.Click Here Ingredients 1 pheasant (or equivalent other bird) 2 Tbsp. butter 2 Tbsp. flour 2 cups broth from cooking 1/2 pint...

Your survival depends on water

By Jackie Clay-Atkinson Issue #167 • September/October, 2017 As you develop your preparedness plans, consider your water supply. You can go without food for weeks but when you lack water for as little as two days,...

Lazy housewife pickles

Recipe of the Week  Lazy housewife pickles  Courtesy of Jackie Clay   You'll find this recipe and over 400 more in Backwoods Home Cooking.Click Here Ingredients 4 qts. small cucumbers 1 cup dry mustard 1 cup sugar 1 cup salt 1 gallon vinegar Method Wash the cucumbers,...

Moving to the wilderness — Turning the dream to reality

By Jackie Clay Issue #36 • November/December, 1995 The Dream — An increasing number of folks are having the same dream today: get a piece of land isolated from the stress and pollution of civilization, and...

Grow Open Pollinated Seeds for Self-Reliant Gardening

By Jackie Clay Issue #56 In the past I've grown hybrid vegetables, mostly the varieties that have been developed to produce early yields. Because of this, I was able to grow things like sweet corn in...

Harvesting the wild: Acorns

By Jackie Clay Issue #79 • January/February, 2003 When I was just a little girl, I used to collect acorns by the boxfull as they fell in the fall. I didn't know why. They just felt...

Garden Seeds — A Great Winter Pastime

By Jackie Clay Issue #67 • January/February, 2001 Start your garden this year while the snow is still on the ground. I start all of my own plants from seeds. One of my favorite winter pastimes...

Our journey to modern off-grid living

By Jackie Clay-Atkinson Issue #177 • July/August/September, 2019 We’ve lived off the grid for decades. Throughout the years, we’ve traveled the path from living a very rustic lifestyle with few amenities to our current off-grid homestead...

A Native American feast

By Jackie Clay Issue #66 • November/December, 2000 When the holidays roll around, a lot of folks get bored with the "same-old meal." You know, turkey, mashed potatoes—the whole traditional meal. But some adventurous families might...

You can safely and easily can your own meat

By Jackie Clay Issue #105 • May/June, 2007 Of all the foods I can every year, the most useful is the wide variety of meats. While we aren't huge meat eaters, these rows and rows of...

Española eggs

Recipe of the Week  Española eggs  Courtesy of Jackie Clay   You'll find this recipe and over 400 more in Backwoods Home Cooking.Click Here Ingredients Shortening to fry 1 medium onion, sliced 8 Anaheim, Big Jim, or Relleno peppers, green roasted If you want...

Emergency planning beyond the bug-out bag

By Jackie Clay-Atkinson Issue #157 • January/February, 2016 In many emergency situations, simply staying home can be your most sensible choice. After all, most of us have stocked up on a good supply of food in...

Pickled nopalitos

Recipe of the Week  Pickled nopalitos  Courtesy of Jackie Clay   You'll find this recipe and over 400 more in Backwoods Home Cooking.Click Here Ingredients 4 lbs. de-spined, sliced fresh nopalitos mustard seed dill seed (if dill flavoring is desired) garlic cloves, halved dry red...

Homemade pizza

Recipe of the Week  Homemade pizza  Courtesy of Jackie Clay   You'll find this recipe and over 400 more in Backwoods Home Cooking.Click Here Ingredients 3 cups flour 2 Tbsp. olive oil 1 Tbsp. mixed spices (oregano, basil, onion flakes) 1-1/2 cups warm water 1...