Preserve the harvest naturally through wild fermentation

By Jereme Zimmerman Issue #154 • July/August, 2015 Little hands are ideal for helping to stuff jars with vegetables. Just be sure to "pay" your help — but don't let them eat it all! For a homesteader,...

Colorado Cowboy Cookies

Recipe of the Week  Colorado Cowboy Cookies  Courtesy of Charlie Smith  Ingredients 2 cups all purpose flour 2 cups old-fashioned oats 1 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature 3/4 cup sugar 3/4 cup plus...

Llamas guarding sheep? — Not such a far-fetched idea

By Karen McGeorge Sanders Issue #19 • January/February, 1993 It seems that farmers always need an extra pair of hands, but finding the money to pay the extra help is often impossible. You need the help...

Hoppin’ John with fresh asparagus beans

Recipe of the Week  Hoppin’ John with fresh asparagus beans  Courtesy of Alice Brantley Yeager   You'll find this recipe and over 400 more in Backwoods Home Cooking.Click Here Ingredients 1 cup uncooked rice (not instant) 1 lb. pork sausage broken into...

Tackling the real problems that face us

By Dave Duffy Issue #134 • March/April, 2012 Thank goodness most of the apocalyptic scenarios the doom and gloomers talk about are either founded upon faulty premises or, if based on science, are extremely rare occurrences....

Dorothy Ainsworth update: Out of the ashes

By Dorothy Ainsworth Issue #38 • March/April, 1996 I got the dreadful call from my son Eric at 2 p.m. on June 29th, 1995, an hour after I'd gone to work at the restaurant. "Your house...

Vise Dremel Moto Tool mount

By Dana Martin Batory Issue #84 • November/December, 2003 Sometimes it seems two hands are not enough—three would be nice, four even better. This economical, easy to build jig solves that common workshop problem. Designed to...

Hummingbird Cake

Recipe of the Week  Hummingbird Cake  Courtesy of Beverly Rossman  Ingredients Cake: 3 cups flour 2 cups sugar 1 teaspoon baking soda 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg 1/2 teaspoon salt 3/4 cup unsalted butter 3 eggs 2 cups mashed ripe banannas (3-4...

Baked Spaghetti

Recipe of the Week  Baked Spaghetti  Courtesy of Beverly Rossman  Ingredients 8 ounces thin spaghetti 28 ounces Stewed tomatoes, undrained 1 pound bacon 3 links Italian sausage, meat removed from casings 1 Onion, chopped 4 ounces cheddar cheese, grated Grated Parmesan cheese for...

Don’t discount a generator, especially a diesel generator, as your primary power source

By Skip Thomsen Issue #28 • July/August, 1994 There are three major reasons that wind, solar or hydro-electric systems are impractical for some folks: not enough wind, too many cloudy days, and no stream. In that...

Stuffed Eggplant

Recipe of the Week  Stuffed Eggplant  Courtesy of Skylar Gillam  Ingredients 4 large eggplants 1/4 cup oil 12 ounces ground pork 12 ounces ground beef 3 egg yolks 1 teaspoon garlic salt 1 teaspoon black pepper 1 tablespoons breadcrumbs,...

Beans for Sarah

Recipe of the Week  Beans for Sarah  Courtesy of Richard Blunt   You'll find this recipe and over 400 more in Backwoods Home Cooking.Click Here Ingredients 1 1/4 cups dried pinto beans water to soak beans 3 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil 12 oz....

Some thoughts on growing older in the backwoods

By Marjorie Burris Issue #16 • July/August, 1992 "Just how long are you going to be able to live in the backwoods like that?" my friend, Pat, asked. "You're not getting any younger, you know!" I've known...

Time to Forget About Snail and Slug Bait

By Lyle Dykes Issue #135 • May/June, 2012 Years ago when traveling on business, I looked out of the window of my motel one morning in Newport, Oregon, and noticed a little Chinese lady flipping over...

The attack on Colin Powell prompts questions I’m not supposed to ask

By Dave Duffy Issue #79 • January/February, 2003 What's wrong with black Americans? Provocative question, isn't it, especially when it's being asked by a white guy like me. We white guys aren't supposed to question what blacks...

Woolen winter mittens in minutes

By Anita Evangelista Issue #84 • November/December, 2003 There's nothing so comfy and warm in the snowy dead-of-winter as a pair of thick, soft woolen mittens. Many of us have fond childhood memories of a favorite...