Wednesday, December 12, 2012

Missy's Homestead: Making Plans

I am currently away from my homestead.  Away from my dog, my winter garden, my not-quite-ready-to-lay-eggs chickens, and everything else that my homestead offers me.  I will go into more details later but for now I am away.  I keep thinking of my homestead. Dreaming about the things I would like to try later this winter early spring.  Here is a little list of the projects I am looking forward to tackling once I am back on the old "farm". (I might even try a few while I am away....)

1.  Make my own bread.  I have made my own pizza dough and also make sourdough pancakes from a starter I keep in my fridge but I have never made bread from scratch.  This would be a perfect afternoon project for a blustery Sonoma County day.  Pair it with some local or homemade cheese and what could possible be better?  I like this recipe and will report back later how it goes:  http://www.recipesource.com/baked-goods/breads/sourdough/sourdough-rye4.html

2.  Work more with winter squash. I have always wanted to work with spaghetti squash, butternut squash and acorn squash.  Unfortunately for me (And the squash)  my husband is not the biggest squash fan so it is often times hard for meto convince him that I should make some.    However, I think if I am diligent about finding recipes I can master that maybe he might give it another try.  Nothing sounds better in the winter months than roasted butternut squash soup.  (Please if you have some delicious squash recipes comment below and share!!)

3.  Make my own sauerkraut.  During the summer I went to a festival that my friend coordinated called the Fermentation Festival and I watched a couple demos on how to make sauerkraut.  I have yet to attempted this project.  I love putting sauerkraut on pretty much anything but I have been a little standoffish about jumping in to make my own.  I just need to bite the bullet and tackle the things that challenge me.  (Have any of you made your own kimchi or sauerkraut before?  Give me a holler in the comments below)  Here is a recipe I think I will try: http://www.wildfermentation.com/making-sauerkraut-2/

4.  Make my own Butter and Cheese.  I made a type of butter awhile back when I was making a fruit tart but it was by accident.  I whipped buttermilk and mascarpone for too long and it turned into a butter like thing.  It was very sweet and not great for any type of real use but I did get me thinking that I could probably try my hand at making my own butter and or cheese one day.  My friend in Sonoma County offers cheese classes so I think I will buy myself the gift of taking a class with her when I get back.  She brought homemade goat cheese to my house one time and it was to die for.  I want to be able to do that!  Maybe I need to get this book for the homestead: http://www.amazon.com/Home-Cheese-Making-Recipes-Homemade/dp/1580174647 or do this recipe for butter: http://www.foodrenegade.com/how-to-make-butter/

Well that is all for now.  I have some other goals in mind to accomplish by the end of spring but we can go into more details about that later.  Please if you have ideas or thoughts about great homesteading projects I would love to hear from you all.
Until next time, Consume More, Buy Less, Set Goals.

Missy

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