http://www.wilderness-survival.net/forums/showthread.php?t=4210
Civil War recipes
http://www.angelfire.com/me/civilian/recipes.html
http://www.civilwarinteractive.com/cookbook.htm
http://www.foodtimeline.org/foodpioneer.html
http://www.geocities.com/pentagon/ba...9/recipes.html
http://laurarebeccaskitchen.blogspot...l-war-era.html
Great Depression recipes
http://www.geocities.com/NapaValley/1918/great.html
http://coveredbaptists.proboards31.c...nt&thread=1426
http://frugalforlife.com/depression-era-recipes/
http://community.tasteofhome.com/forums/t/44025.aspx
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SurvivalTopics.com
http://www.wilderness-survival.net/forums/showthread.php?t=3995
Some time back I made a post with a link to a Mother Earth News article on Wild Yeast. I’ve found another article and this one is even better. How did folks make bread before packaged yeast? They used a starter and you can too. Here is what it takes and how it works:
http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/233
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“There are nights when the wolves are silent and only the moon howls.”
[Link not checked, others had good comments on the site..granny]
http://www.wilderness-survival.net/forums/showthread.php?t=4059
The Top Twelve Foods for Long Term Storage
With the recent surge in food prices it makes sense to buy foods that last and to obtain a bulk discount. However it is pointless to stock up on unhealthy food. During an emergency, having enough snacks won’t increase the odds of survival. So what are some of the best foods to stock up on? The keys to consider are: shelf life, bulk price and nutritional content. This article will explore some of the best options.
http://www.NaturalNews.com/024019.html
http://www.wilderness-survival.net/forums/showthread.php?t=4509
Squirrel Gardeners
Remember in the Spring when I was complaining about the squirrels (or voles, or chipmunks) stealing my corn and squash seeds before they could sprout? Well... apparently they’re better gardeners than I am.
http://www.gardeningblog.net/2008/10...ash-squirrels/
The squirrel’s cache sprouted and I let it grow and it produced 41 pounds. The vine I finally got planted did 1.5 pounds.
http://www.wilderness-survival.net/forums/showthread.php?t=3990
Making jam/jelly? Make your own pectin.
Tart Apple Pectin
4 pounds sliced green apples with peels and cores
1/4 cup of lemon juice
8 cups of water
Simmer, over medium heat, until apples break down completely. Press apples through a sieve or food mill to remove cores and peels. Return liquid to a heavy kettle to cook briskly, stirring until the volume is reduced by half. Pour mixture into a jelly bag or cheesecloth lined colander and allow to drip without squeezing. Use immediately, can or freeze.
4-6 tablespoons of homemade pectin for every cup of prepared juice gives a good gel.
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EDIT:
I had to do some searching on this one. I guess apple pectin was a pretty common ingredient a few generations ago when store bought wasn’t available. Anywhooooo. Thanks, Nell. Good stuff. Here’s a link with some similar information but a bit longer:
http://www.wildflowers-and-weeds.com...ger/pectin.htm
if you juice, you can use the whole pulp that is left over
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I run the pulp through a sieve to take out the seeds and peels,whats left is applesauce,or,if you have real talent,apple butter,I haven’t tried apple butter yet,but I will.
I feed the left over to the pig,it doesn’t seem to mind the cyanide compounds in the seeds
that pomace is largely the cell wall fibers and the material that holds those cell walls together are polysacharides such as protopectin. apples, according to wikipedia, are about 1% pectins by mass, and the pomace, being [b]much[/i] lower in water, and other water solutes than the whole fruit, is richer in pectin by volume, and is probably worth saving if one is a juicing fan and not otherwise inclined to use it.
http://www.wilderness-survival.net/forums/showthread.php?t=4164
It’s about that time of year (may already be in some places) that you need to start thinking about harvesting the last of the seasons fruit and storing those seeds for next year. Here are a couple of good links for saving your seeds.
Tomatoes:
http://faq.gardenweb.com/faq/lists/s...456024410.html
Other plants:
http://www.urbanext.uiuc.edu/hortihints/0008c.html
Dry seeds are essential to keep them from rotting but you can make a homemade silica to absorb moisture in your seeds by using 1 tablespoon of powdered milk wrapped in a paper towel. Add the towel to your seeds stored in the jar to help control any remaining moisture. It’s also a good moisture control for other items as well!
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http://www.wilderness-survival.net/forums/showthread.php?t=3671
capsaicin for natural pain relief
capsaicin is found in hot peppers. it is there to balance the pain of the heat by being an anti imflammant. it is also found in watermelon lol don’t ask me why. ever notice that after eating a big bowl of 3 alarm chili that you feel relaxed and pain free? it works and works well. good for people with chronic pain. grow them, dry them, powder them, store them, use them! or can them.
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...gonna take a walk outside today...
You may want to check on that. From Wikipedia:
“Capsaicin (8-methyl-N-vanillyl-6-nonenamide) is the active component of chili peppers, which are plants belonging to the genus Capsicum. It is an irritant for mammals, including humans, and produces a sensation of burning in any tissue with which it comes into contact. Capsaicin and several related compounds are called capsaicinoids and are produced as a secondary metabolite by chili peppers, probably as deterrents against herbivores. Pure capsaicin is a hydrophobic, colorless, odorless, crystalline to waxy compound.”
It is also the active ingredient in many personal defense sprays.
The reason peppers make you feel good is they cause the brain to release Endorphins. They are a natural opiode (morphine) that the body produces in times of pain. Since your body actually believes it’s on fire, the brain releases endorphins to block the pain. I’ve heard that folks can actually have an “out of body” experience after eating Bhut Jolokia peppers or Habanero extract (which can cause physical harm) because of the amount of endorphins they cause the body to release. It’s sort of a natural high.
Many of the kitchens that I have worked in were staffed mostly by our southern neighbors, who often rely on homeopathic meds. The habenero is a popular migraine remedy. BUT, before you go off and try this, you must understand that many Mexican kids have been raised eating Jalepenos like candy.
A gentleman I worked with (very whitebread) suffered from migraines. I told him about the habenero solution. So he goes and buys some dried habenero powder.
Well, the next time he felt a migraine coming on, he tries some of this stuff. He said it didn’t do squat for his migraine, but his mouth was in so much pain, he didn’t really care.
Jalepenos and Habeneros are VERY high in vitamin C, though.
Try this recipe - you can grill the veggies, rather than roast them, if you prefer.
* 4 or 5 big Roma tomatoes, seeded
* 1 small red onion
* 2 to 5 cloves garlic
* 1 poblano chile (hot), 2 or 3 medium jalapeño chiles (hotter), or 2 or 3 habenero chiles (hottest)
* Small bunch of fresh cilantro, chopped
* 1 shot (1-1/4 ounces) of a nice peppery tequila (like Hornitos)
* Juice of one lime
Peel and quarter the onion, split and seed the chiles, and separate the garlic cloves.
Toss the tomatoes, onion, chiles with the olive oil, salt, and pepper.
Place tomatoes, onion, chiles, and garlic on a roasting pan and roast for 15 to 20 minutes or until tender.
Remove to food processor and add fresh cilantro. Allow the heat from the vegetables to cook the cilantro. Pulse to desired consistency.
Refrigerate before serving to allow the flavors to mingle. Just before serving, finish by stirring in the tequila and lime juice.
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Pain Free Without Numbness: Substance Combination With Chili Peppers
ScienceDaily (May 19, 2008) — A dentist’s injection typically causes numbness for several hours. This experience could soon be history. Now, Clifford Woolf, professor at Harvard Medical School and the Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, USA, and his colleagues have developed a combination of two agents which is able to specifically block pain without producing numbness or motor paralysis. The substance is composed of a normally inactive derivative of the local anesthetic lidocaine, called QX314, and capsaicin, the pain-producing substance in chili peppers.
Capsaicin works by opening channels present only in pain fibers to allow the QX314 only into these cells, where it blocks their function, Woolf explained in the keynote lecture “Using Pain to Block Pain” at the international conference “Development and function of somatosensation and pain” of the Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine (MDC) Berlin-Buch, Germany. “This is the first example of using the body’s own cellular channels as a drug delivery system, targeting treatment only at pain fibers,” he pointed out.
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“A person is not finished when they are defeated.
A person is finished when they quit.”
[LOL, Here, I bought the Purslane seeds and grew them in the greenhouse, they are good for you, I think it was Omega 3, that they contain......you can also use the stems for pickles .
granny]
http://www.wilderness-survival.net/forums/showthread.php?t=3698
Purslane Experiment
As I’ve indicated in the past, I have volunteer purslane that sprouts in my garden every year. I think it makes a much better salad than lettuce. It has a clean crunchy texture that never turns bitter in the heat of summer like leaf lettuce does. Unfortunately, it only grew in my garden and seldom anywhere else.
I left one purslane plant alone unmolested and nurtured the little guy and he (she?) blessed me with seeds this morning, which I dutifully scattered throughout the flower beds around the house. Hopefully, I’ll see some of the fruits of that effort yet this year in the form of new purslane plants.
I would like to gather additional seeds this fall and over winter the seeds so I can plant in containers next year. That would be really cool!
[photo]
Chris - You bet. Make certains it’s Purslane. Break a stem and if it is milky then it is NOT Purslane but possibly Spurge, which is poisonous. It the sap is clear then it’s Purslane. Great stuff!!
WE - You bet. Wood sorrel abounds. My problem with wood sorrel is it has to be blooming for me to be able to identify it. Just not that cozy with it yet.
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both ... try this
8 cups potatoes cut into 1 to 2 inch chuncks
1 and a half cup water
3 cups chopped purslane stems and leaves
3 cups sauteed mushrooms
1 cup finely chopped commercial or wild onion
5 to 6 eggs
2 teaspoons rosemary
1 teaspoon black pepper
cook the potatoes in the water until soft, mash and add the rest of the ingerdiants,mix and form patties. bake on an oiled cookie sheet for 15 to 20 minutes in a pre heated oven. cool on racks.
from wild man steve brill identifyining and harevesting wild and medicinal plants pg288
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Here is a good article on growing plants inside in the winter. While it’s geared for house plants, the advice can be used on indoor garden plants just as easily.
http://www.alive.com/52a1a2.php?subject_bread_cramb=135
Information and links for and about rain barrels.
http://www.wilderness-survival.net/forums/showthread.php?t=2576
[LOL, I did not know this one...granny]
http://www.wilderness-survival.net/forums/showthread.php?t=3235
Homegrown natural toilet paper...
Learned about Comfrey at a living history museum a few years back... it was used by pioneers as a natural and quite soft toilet paper. Grows like a weed. We’ve got some growing where there used to be an old homesite.
Also has other great uses (herbal med, fertilizer)...
Any other good natural toilet papers (besides corn cobs ) ?
Burdock leaves can get 18 inches long or longer.
Remember that old saying: “Leaves of three, no wipee.”
Ginger leaves and bloodroot leaves are also palm-sized.
DO NOT USE cow parsnip, which have HUGE leaves. The sap makes your skin photosensitive. If you get sap on your skin, any exposure to light will cause painful blisters, and you don’t want blisters where the sun normally doesn’t shine.
Cow parsnip pics:
http://images.google.com/images?hl=e...h+Images&gbv=2
Locally, there is one plant that fits the bill. It is better than toilet paper. Known colloquially as “lumber jacks toilet paper,” it is more properly known as “big leaf aster.” With large single leaves growing near to the ground, it has an upper smooth side, and a slightly rougher underside with soft silky hairs which do very well at cleaning you out. It grows almost everywhere there is forest cover.
http://nrs.fs.fed.us/ef/marcell//pla...erbs/aster.htm
http://www.wilderness-survival.net/forums/showthread.php?t=3343
Making dehydrated soup etc
I don’t think this was covered in other threads...does anyone know how to dehydrate things like pea soup, refried beans and tomato paste? Without a dehydrator. I think you can spread it thinly on a baking tray and keep it in a warm oven, but I’m not sure how thin it has to be or how to check for doneness - should it be brittle or still somewhat moist? And then how much water do you add when you’re ready to use it?
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There are 3 pages of recipes and information for the above question.
http://www.wilderness-survival.net/forums/showthread.php?t=3431
farmstead cheese
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jBPYopcoeqs
http://www.motherearthnews.com/Real-...e-Recipes.aspx
Good link - I’ll try some this weekend and let you know how they turn out.
Also try here:
http://schmidling.com/pres.htm
http://www.wilderness-survival.net/forums/showthread.php?t=1571
Dehydrate recipe......Maybe it should be called “Wild Hare”..granny
original recipe i stand behind:
in the dehydrator:
slice small node of ginger thinly and place on rack
take sprig and sweet basil and lay next to ginger
slice and blanch 3 large carrots and place on rack
peel a small orange, saving the peel. half and slice the orange and lay on rack with the peel
slice thinly your choice of foul [i recommend pheasant] or rabbit/hare, salt well and lay on rack
quarter and slice 3 large tomatoes and place on rack.
dehydrate 6 hours. chop basil
place in bag along with:
1/4lb pearled barley
1/4lb lentils or other legume
1/4 cup brown sugar
when ready to use, mix well and add 1 cup mixture to a quart pot. add 2 cups water and a piece of peel from orange. bring to boil, cover and simmer, stiring and adding water if needed untill lentils and barley are done. discard peel and serve. soup is thick and hearty.
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...And remember the night is for hunting, and forget not the day is for sleep.
The Jackal may follow the Tiger, but, Cub, when thy whiskers are grown,
Remember the Wolf is a Hunter — go forth and get food of thine own...
-Rudyard Kipling-
http://www.wilderness-survival.net/forums/showthread.php?t=1571
If you soak red meat in water to remove the blood all the blood and then dry it . The meat is not jerky now that the blood has been removed . The meat will rehydrate much better now , blood stops re hydration in meat
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Here is some general information on dehydrated foods for those that might not know.
1. The higher the water content the longer it will take to dry (Duh!).
2. The more sugar a food contains, the longer it will take to dry.
3. The thicker the piece of food, the longer it will take to dry.
4. The higher the humidity in the room, the longer it will take to dry.
5. The lower the temp inside the dehydrator, the longer it will take to dry.
6. The amount of air circulating inside the dehydrator and the make of the dehydrator will all affect drying time.
Drying temperatures:
Meats and Fish................145 F and above
Fruits and Vegetables.......130 F to 140 F
Herbs and Flowers............100 F to 110 F
Some comparative weights fresh vs. dried:
Weight Fresh............................................. ..Weight Dried
4 pounds (about 10) bell peppers.....................4 ounces
3 1/2 pounds onions......................................4 ounces
2 pounds apples peeled and cored....................4 ounces (dried crisp)
1 3/4 pounds (about 3) zucchini.......................4 ounces
1 pound strawberries...................................... 2 ounces
One 30 oz. bag frozen vegetables.....................5 ounces
Recipes I’ve used:
Dried Pickles
You can use homemade or commercial sweet or dill as you like. Remove them from the liquid and slice about 1/2 inch thick. Place them on the drying tray and dry about 8 hours.
Apple Sauce Leather
One 24-ounce jar unsweetened applesauce
Rub the dehydrator sheet with vegetable oil of spray it with Pam and wipe away any excess. Spread a 1/4 inch layer of applesauce over the oiled sheet and dry. It can take from 8-20 hours depending on how thick you get the applesauce. It will be a paper thin sheet that you can just peel off the tray. If there are any sticky or tacky areas then dry it a little longer.
You can stack the sheets on top of each other. If you want, you can sprinkle the fruit sheets with cornstarch or arrowroot to keep them from sticking together (that’s true of any leather, vegetable or fruit, by the way). Roll them up and wrap them in plastic wrap and put them in an airtight container. Leathers will last at room temperature for 1 year or more. If you freeze or refrigerate them, they will last forever, I guess. I’ve never had leathers go bad no matter what I used.
Jerky Stew
3 cups water
1 cup dried tomato pieces (about 20 slices, broken)
1 cup beef jerky pieces (1/2 inch size)
1 cup dried peeled potato slices
1 tablespoon dried bell pepper pieces
1 tablespoon dried onion pieces
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon dried garlic
salt and pepper to taste
In a large pot, combine 3 cups of the water and all the remaining ingredients. Let sit for 30 minutes to rehydrate.
Place the pot over medium coals and bring the mixture to a boil. Simmer the stew for 30 minutes to 1 hour or until the jerky is tender.
Trail Pudding
2 cups water
1 cup powdered milk
one 3.4 -ounce box vanilla instant pudding
2 tablespoons dried fruit powder (strawberry, apricot, peach or banana).
In a pot, combine all the ingredients and stir until completely blended. Let stand for 10 minutes or until thickened.
You can make fruit or vegetable powders by dehydrating the item then crushing it into a powder.
Beef Jerky
3 teaspoons salt
9 tablespoons light brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
3 teaspoons onion powder
1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder
3 teaspoons dry mustard
1 cup red wine vinegar
1 cup ketchup
1 tablespoon liquid smoke
3 lbs london broil beef or flank steaks, sliced into very thin strips
Combine all ingredients (except the meat) and stir to mix.
Add meat that has been thinly sliced (about 1/4 inch. If the meat is about half frozen, it’s much easier to cut) and marinade 24-48 hours, refrigerated. The longer you marinate the more flavor the meat will have.
Remove from marinade and discard the excess.
Place onto food dehydrator trays, you’ll know its done when it cracks when bent but does not break. Somewhere around 24 - 36 hours.
You can mix your dry food (like the stew) in a baggy at home and carry with you. Then just dump the contents into your pot when time to cook.
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I’ve used my RONCO dehydrater to make jerky but that’s about all dehydrated.
Now I do make a mean Ranger Pudding:1 MRE packet of cocoa beverage powder
1 MRE packet of coffee creamer, 1 MRE packet of sugar (optional), water.
Mix together creamer, powder and sugar. Add water and stir. Yum!
Ranger Bread Pudding: 1 batch Ranger Pudding (see recipe)
1 half MRE pound cake, Crumble pound cake (if you’re lucky enough to find one) into Ranger Pudding for a thicker, more delicious dessert.
Ranger Cookie:1 coffee creamer packet, 1 packet of sugar
Open both sugar and creamer packet. Add the sugar into the creamer packet, shake it thoroughly, and then fold it up together. Heat the packet over the book of matches or with a pinky size ball of C-4(just don’t stomp on it) until the contents have melted. Let it cool. You should have a caramelized cookie.
Mmm mmm good!
Jalapeno Deer Jerky
2 lbs deer, sliced thick
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup maple syrup
6 tablespoons lemon juice
1/4 cup pickled jalapeno peppers, minced
2 tablespoons garlic, minced
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
Rub salt into meat. Make marinade, add meat and place in glass container in fridge overnight. Dehydrate for 8 hours - don’t overcook.
Dehydrated Sliced Potatoes (Dried)
This is a recipe I came up with when I had an excess of potatoes. These are sooooooo much cheaper than buying premade mixes. It takes a bit of effort, but it’s worth it! Something I also like is the fact that it doesn’t have the sulfites that some products include. I don’t bother peeling the potatoes before I make these, but then again I don’t normally ever peel potatoes...I cook them with the skins on. You could do either. I used a corkscrew slicer (looks like a screw with a piece of metal attached) because that’s what I had. It created a hole in the middle, which I wasn’t sure I liked, but it probably helped the potatoes dry faster in the long run. If you use the corkscrew slicer, the potatoes will come out looking kind of like a big slinky. Set the potato on it’s end and cut through all the slices...it will separate them into individual slices. If desired, you could use a mandoline, but I think I like the corkscrew slicer better due to decreased drying time. Drying time not included in recipe, as it will vary from model to model.
5 lbs potatoes, scrubbed clean (peeled, if desired) water.
Put a large pot (12 quart?) of water on to boil. A water bath canner works well, or you could do smaller batches in a smaller pot. In my book, it’s quicker and much easier to use a large pot.
Have a sinkful of cold water ready.
Slice potatoes using either a corkscrew slicer or a mandoline.
Rinse potatoes with cold water, making sure all slices are separated from each other.
Gently put the potatoes in boiling water (don’t get burnt!) and stir well to make sure potatoes are separated.
Let cook 3 minutes.
Drain potatoes and plunge them into the cold water to stop the cooking; stir to make sure they are cooled.
Dehydrate according to your dehydrator’s directions/time — they should be dry to the point of snapping when done.
Store in a cool, dry place.
http://www.wilderness-survival.net/forums/showthread.php?t=1265&highlight=dehydrate
Yea, it looked pretty straight forward. Google food dehydrators and you’ll come up with a load of sites that offer info on what foods and how to. We used a three shelf commercial dehydrator and it worked really well.
Here’s another one that’s solar.
http://www.i4at.org/surv/soldehyd.htm
*Homemade Food Dehydrator*
By Stryder
3-24-02
http://www.alpharubicon.com/prepinfo/dehydratorstryder.htm
http://www.alpharubicon.com/index2.html
Looks interesting, a survival site, appears to have a lot of info..
http://www.wilderness-survival.net/forums/showthread.php?t=1772
More Than 100 Civil War Era Recipes
http://docsouth.unc.edu/imls/receipt/receipt.html
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“There are nights when the wolves are silent and only the moon howls.”
18th Century Recipes
Here’s one for our traditionalist wolves:
http://www.neta.com/~1stbooks/recipes.htm
A Link of Homesteading Links
Here is a site with a ton of links to homesteading information:
http://www.homesteadinginfo.com/
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1. Claire’s Recalls Children’s Metal Necklaces Due to Risk of Lead Exposure (http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/prhtml09/09039.html)
http://www.westonaprice.org/foodfeatures/honey.html
FERMENTED HONEY
By Sally Fallon
Honey has been a valued food in many parts of the world, both in primitive societies and sophisticated civilizations. Hunter-gatherers are adept at removing honey from bee hives located in hollow tree trunks, using smoke to drive away the bees. In some primitive groups, honey supplies a large portion of total calories at certain times of the year. The Aborigines of Australia prized honey and distinguished between two types—light and dark. A neolithic rock painting in Spain shows a man collecting wild honey.
Egyptian writings dating from about 5500 BC refer to honey. At that time, Lower Egypt was called Bee Land while Upper Egypt was called Reed Land. Apiculture was well established in the 5th dynasty (about 2500 BC) and is shown in several reliefs in the temple of the Sun at Abusir. Tablets from the reign of Seti I (1314 to 1292) give a value of an ass or an ox to 110 pots of honey. Thutmoses III is recorded as receiving tributes of honey from Syria in 1450 BC.
The Indians used honey in religious rites. The Indian Laws of Manu, dating from 1000 BC, called for a tax of one-sixth of the beekeeper’s production.
Honey is sugary nectar of flowers gathered by bees. It is carried in “honey sacs” where enzymes begin the process breaking down the sugars. The bee then deposits her cargo into hexagonal wax cells, to provide nourishment for a young bee. Continued evaporation in the warm atmosphere of the hive gradually transforms the nectar into honey. Bees must travel thousands of miles to produce just one teaspoon of honey.
The saliva of bees breaks down the sucrose in flower nectar into the simple sugars fructose and dextrose. Honey consists of about 35-40 percent fructose and 30-35 percent dextrose along with 17-20 percent water and traces of pollen, wax, acids, proteins, enzymes, vitamins, minerals and pigments. Honey also contains gums, which are complex carbohydrates that contribute to the viscosity of honey—the more gums it contains, the thicker it will be. The flavor, texture and color of honey depend on the types of flowers that provide the original nectar.
Only careful and minimal processing will preserve the many nutritive benefits of honey. Honey should never be heated during extraction or the enzymes will be destroyed; nor should it be filtered. Honey should be thick and opaque. When it comes to honey, see-through is obscene.
Many health claims have been made for honey. Babylonian tables give recipes for “electuaries,” medicines based on honey. Pliny the Elder included powdered bees in a cure for dropsy and bladder stones. In Russia, beekeepers are noted for their longevity, and this is said to be due to their custom of eating the “honey from the bottom of the hive,” which contains high levels of “impurities” such as pollen, propolis and even bee parts.
Propolis is a resinous substance collected from various plants which the bees mix with wax and use in the construction of their hives. Extravagant health claims have been made for propolis and it has, in fact, been the subject of a number of studies. A 1992 study published in Chemical-Biological Interactions found that caffeic acid esters (which give propolis a sharp taste like cinnamon) in propolis have strong anticancer characteristics when tested on colon cancer cells.
Health claims are also made for bee pollen, claims which have been validated by at least one study. In 1948, the Journal of the National Cancer Institute reported that bee pollen fed to rats halted the proliferation of cancerous tumors. The best results occurred with only small dosages of pollen. This suggests that bee pollen is very powerful and so potent that even weak or small amounts are vigorous enough to affect the growth of cancerous tumors.
It is the pollen in unfiltered honey that is said to provide relief to allergy sufferers. Small amounts of pollen act as an inoculant against large amounts in the air that trigger reactions like the runny nose and itchy eyes of hayfever.
Unlike other sweeteners, honey is predigested and so is easy to digest. When consumed with carbohydrates, such as oatmeal or toast, the enzymes in honey help with the digestion of carbohydrates.
Since early times, man has made fermented drinks with honey. The most important was mead, an alcoholic beverage, enjoyed by the English and Russians. The word derives from the Sanskrit word for honey, which is madhu. A similar drink called t’ej is popular in Ethiopia.
What is less well known is the fact that honey itself can ferment, if it contains enough residual moisture and is left in a warm place—honey ferments but never spoils! Fermented honey actually expands somewhat, and develops rich flavors. It is an even better aid to digestion than regular honey.
The following recipes all call for raw, unfiltered honey, preferably fermented, and all involve lactic-acid fermentation to which the honey contributes. In all of them, the enzymes are preserved, as none require high temperatures to prepare.
Fermented Honey Crackers
Makes about 30 crackers
1/2 cup plain whole yoghurt
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, preferably cultured
2 1/2 cups freshly ground wheat, spelt or Kamut® flour
1/4 cup fermented honey
1 teaspoon sea salt
unbleached white flour to prevent sticking
Leave butter at room temperature to soften. Mix yoghurt, butter, honey and salt together with an electric mixer. Gradually add the freshly ground flour. Form dough into a ball, place in a bowl and cover with a towel. Leave at room temperature for 12-24 hours.
Rub a 9-inch by 13-inch pyrex pan with butter and dust with white flour. Dust your hands with white flour to prevent sticking and then press the dough into the pan. Score with a knife so the dough will separately easily into rectangular “crackers.” Dehydrate by placing in an oven set at 150 degrees until the crackers dry out completely—this will take a day or two. Break into crackers and store in an air tight container in the refrigerator.
Honey Topping
Makes 1 1/2 cups
1 1/4 cup good quality cream, preferably raw
1 tablespoon cultured cream, such as creme fraiche
2 tablespoons fermented honey
1 tablespoon liqueur, such as cognac or armagnac
Mix all ingredients together with a wire whisk and place in a glass mason jar. Cover and leave at room temperature overnight, then refrigerate. The cream should become very thick when chilled. Use as a topping for fruit or other desserts.
Honey-Lemon Drink
Makes 2 quarts
1 cup fresh lemon juice
1/2 cup fermented honey
1/2 cup homemade whey
1/2 teaspoon grated nutmeg
filtered water
Mix honey with lemon juice and place in a 2-quart glass container. Add whey, grated nutmeg and water to fill the container. Cover tightly and leave at room temperature for 2-3 days. Transfer to the refrigerator and leave for 2-3 weeks. Serve plain or with added soda water.
Honey-Berry Beverage
Makes 2 quarts
2 cups blackberries, raspberries or boysenberries,
fresh or frozen
1/4 - 1/2 cup fermented honey
1/2 cup whey
2 teaspoons sea salt
filtered water
Place berries in a food processor and process with a little water until smooth. Pass through a strainer to remove the seeds. Blend with honey, whey and salt and place in a 2-quart glass container. Add enough water to fill the container. Cover and leave at room temperature for 2-3 days. Carefully remove any foam that rises to the top. Cover tightly and store in the refrigerator for several weeks. The sediment will fall to the bottom. To serve, pour out slowly so as not to disturb the sediment.
Sidebar Article
Fermented Honey Now Available
The Really Raw Honey company produces a wonderful raw, unfiltered honey from hives set in wildflowers along the eastern seaboard. Their product contains the pollens of goldenrod, wild asters, dandelion, May apple and St. John’s Wort and is both raw and unfiltered. They currently have a large stock of fermented honey available which may be ordered by calling (410) 675-7233.
[Making cheese is easy, LOL, after you do it a couple times...granny]
http://www.sugarmountainhome.com/milkncheese/goatcheese.html
Goat Cheese
Now that we’ve had to dry up our nannies while waiting on kidding, we have less milk to make cheese with but more time to work on the web site!
Over the last several months, I have managed to do TONS of research on making cheese! I have learned how to make my own cultures, thermophilic and mesophilic, and where to find rennet — well, at least the junket type. I’ve also learned how liquid rennet, dry rennet tablets, and junket tablets all equal out.
I am only posting recipes that we have already tried out and have turned out well. As we try out new recipes, we will be posting more. Enjoy! (and remember, it’s easier than what it sounds!)
Mesophilic Culture
Thermophilic Culture
Cottage Cheese
Easy Ricotta
Whey ricotta
Mozzarella Cheese
Goat’s Milk Recipes
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http://www.sugarmountainhome.com/gardening/candiedapples.htm
Dehydrated Candied Apples
1-2 bushels apples
3 tablespoons Fruit Fresh
1/2-gallon water
4 lb Sugar
Cinnamon to taste and color
Dissolve Fruit Fresh in water. Combine sugar and cinnamon. Core apples. Peeling is not necessary, but can be done if desired. Slice apples in about 1/4-inch thick slices. Dip apple slices in Fruit Fresh mixture and shake off excess moisture. Dip apple slices in combined sugar/cinnamon mixture, coating both sides. Lay on dehydrator trays. Set dehydrator at 135 degrees or “fruit” setting. Dry 12-16 hours (depending on humidity). Should be leathery to brittle.