Freeze Drying · Homesteading · Prepping · Preserving

Freeze-Drying The Sweet Side Of Cakes And Bread

This was a fun adventure with our Harvest Right freeze-dryer. I made up 2 chocolate cakes, 2 gluten-free pumpkin breads, and 1 of my favorite sugar-free cheesecake to freeze-dry. We run on a Large size unit, with 5 trays. With the cake and bread I replaced all the oil with unsweetened applesauce, to keep the… Continue reading Freeze-Drying The Sweet Side Of Cakes And Bread

Gardening · Herbalism · Preserving

The Fleeting Season of Medicinal Flowers

The past few weeks every time I was in the gardens - or out on walks in the woods, if I saw flowers popped up, I was picking them. This is a yearly thing for me, in late summer as we approach fall. I played it right, and got a lot picked before the rains… Continue reading The Fleeting Season of Medicinal Flowers

Preserving · Recipes

Lower Sugar Plum Jam

A good friend brought me a bucket of Italian Plums she gleaned and so I needed to figure out what to do with them. So it seemed jam was what I was focusing on this week. I had realized it was September and I had not canned a single jar of jam. Now I have… Continue reading Lower Sugar Plum Jam

Preserving · Recipes

Lower Sugar Pear Jam Recipe: A Homemade Healthier Spread

I had various pectin brands around the house, so I decided to make a quick batch of pear jam, that was lower sugar (if you make traditional jam with grocery store pectin, it can be 7 cups sugar for a batch, this way I only used 3 cups. Which was still high for my taste,… Continue reading Lower Sugar Pear Jam Recipe: A Homemade Healthier Spread

Freeze Drying · Prepping · Preserving

Packing Your Freeze-Dried Items Like The Pros

It's National Preparedness Month - and part of that is getting emergency food ready. I had a goal for a long time, and it was to be able to pack my freeze-dried meals & ingredients in commercial grade bags, where I could seal the bags for long-term storage, with the ability to have a zipper… Continue reading Packing Your Freeze-Dried Items Like The Pros