Around our house, venison is the staple red meat in the kitchen. While we love venison in all forms, one of my favorite meals is classic country-fried venison. When it comes to wild game, keeping the seasonings simple allows the flavor and tenderness of venison backstrap to shine. Backstrap, also known as venison loin is…
As the holiday season approaches, the best gift for your homesteading friend or family member is a gift that they will use! My daddy always said, the right tool makes the job so much easier, and he was right! As Philip and I prepared for full-time homesteading, we gathered essential, high quality tools that would…
Here on Kowalski Mountain, we are blessed with an abundance of wildflowers! Fleabane is a common wildflower around the farm. It is often recognized as a weed. Some even call it a superweed that can defy the heavy weed killers used in commercial farming. This native plant grows across much of the United States So…
While milling fresh flour at home has been around for quite a long time, it’s become more popular in recent years. I was introduced to fresh ground flour close to 15 years ago, but as a single mom with three kids, the start-up costs were prohibitive. I have always cooked from scratch, knowing that homemade…
Being good stewards of the land and our resources is an important part of our off-grid lifestyle. As an avid hunter, Philip works hard to provide meat for our family each year. Before our move to the homestead, we were limited not only by space of what we could transport for processing but also limited…
Making homemade soap not only provides us with natural soaps on the homestead, but it’s also a creative outlet. This year I am committed to trying new techniques, additives, and all-natural ingredients to make small batches of unique soaps. Soaps created with peppermint essential oil are my all-time favorite. I wanted to make a winter…
Throughout the holiday season, there are a few recipes that are featured at every one of our family gatherings. This non-alcoholic Christmas punch recipe is one the whole family looks forward to. While it is certainly served at every Christmas dinner, it’s the perfect holiday drink throughout the winter season, from Thanksgiving to New Year’s…
As the days grow cooler, one of my favorite activities on early morning walks in the late fall is to search for frost flowers. My first discovery of frost flowers was on one of my earliest trips to Kowalski Mountain when Philip and I were preparing for archery season. At first glance, frost flowers might…
For years, I have dreaded the late summer months on the homestead because turkey mites would inevitably ravage my legs. This almost invisible villain is the larval form of the Lone Star Tick. The intense itching for weeks was too much! I began searching for the ultimate defense to protect myself from turkey mite bites….
As soap makers continue their journey of creating soap, they quickly find themselves seeking the best way to store homemade soap. As a homesteader, my goal is to build a stockpile of soap in the quiet seasons of life, so that during the busy seasons on the homestead we will have enough soap to see…
