Free article Archives - Backwoods Home Magazine

Tips for finding your affordable home

By Dave Cournoyer Website Exclusive • February, 2008 If you haven't yet made the move to the country, here is helpful information about the cost and availability of land in the U.S. One factor that is important...

The burglar does far more than steal!

By Dave Duffy Issue #89 • September/October, 2004 "Never mind about stealing the damn stuff! This is the wrong place! We have to leave!" "That's what they were saying Dad, right outside my window," my 12-year-old son Jake told...

Paring down for off-grid living

By Steven Gregersen Issue #93 • May/June, 2005 My first exposure to a home power system came when I visited the remote homestead of a retired electrical engineer. What a set-up. Housed in its own little...

An easier way to cut firewood By Larry LaVan

By Larry LaVan  Issue #159 • May/June, 2016 I've heated with firewood for nearly 50 years. In doing so, I knew my aging back would need...

Stashing Junk Silver for Bad Times

By John Silveira Issue #131 • September/October, 2011 This is a pile containing $100 face value of pre-1965 "junk silver" coins, but it could represent 400 gallons of gasoline or 400 loaves of bread. When I was...

Hypothermia — A real winter danger

By Tom and Joanne O’Toole Issue #84 • November/December, 2003 Hypothermia is a deadly enemy. It steals body heat and kills more outdoor enthusiasts every year than anything else. Hypothermia is the rapid and drastic chilling of...

Install rafters alone the easy way

By Robert L. Williams Issue #35 • September/October, 1995 Anyone who has ever worked on roof framing knows that nailing up rafters is a two-man job at the very best. At worst, the task requires the...

Bean Salad With Fresh Herbs

Recipe of the Week Bean Salad With Fresh Herbs Courtesy of Alicia Abbott Ingredients 1/2 pound string beans 2-1/2 cups cooked or canned navy beans 1 medium pickling cucumber, thinly sliced 1 small red bell pepper, finely diced 2 tablespoons...

Glazed spiced mocha brownies

Recipe of the Week Glazed spiced mocha brownies Courtesy of Richard Blunt You'll find this recipe and over 400 more in Backwoods Home Cooking.Click Here Ingredients soft shortening 5 oz. bittersweet chocolate 6-1/2 oz. unsalted butter 1/8 tsp. kosher salt 1/2 tsp. powdered, instant...

Here’s an Easier (and Cheaper) Way to Make Wooden Beams

By Rev. J.D. Hooker Issue #43 • January/February, 1997 I know that there are a lot of really fine products available for turning logs into lumber, from bandsaw sawmills to chainsaw attachments. I've seen a lot...

Corn and nopalito salsa

Recipe of the Week Corn and nopalito salsa Courtesy of Jackie Clay You'll find this recipe and over 400 more in Backwoods Home Cooking.Click Here Ingredients 1 1/2 cups cooked sweet corn 1/2 cup chopped nopalitos 2 Tbsp. chopped sweet red pepper 1/4...

The Newtown atrocity and “gun control”

By Massad Ayoob Issue #140 • March/April, 2013 In mid-December of 2012, a mentally disturbed twenty-year-old whose escalating aberrant behavior had gone untreated and unchecked murdered his own mother, stole her guns, and entered the Sandy...

Jerusalem artichokes with brown rice

Recipe of the Week Jerusalem artichokes with brown rice Courtesy of Richard Blunt You'll find this recipe and over 400 more in Backwoods Home Cooking.Click Here Ingredients 4 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil 1 medium carrot, peeled and diced small 1 small...