Using natual ingredients to dye

Well I just bought some undyed wool and I can't wait to try some of these!

Color                                   Natual Ingredient
Blue                        Blueberries, red cabbage, purple grape juice   
Beige                      Coffee grounds, black walnut shells, black tea leaves
Gold                       Dill seeds
Brown                    Chili powder
Green                     Spinach leaves
Grey                       Beet juice, grape juice
Lavender                Grape juice, red zinger tea
Orange                   Yellow onion skins, carrots, paprika
Pink                        Beets, cranberries, raspberries, grape juice
Ped                         Red onion skins, pomegranate juice, raspberries, canned cherries
Purple                    Hibiscus tea, red onion skins, red wine
Yellow                  Orange or lemon peels, carrots tops, chamomile tea, green tea, ground cumin, 
                              ground tumeric, celery seed, saffron

Lemon Peel

Add whichever ingredient you choose to a saucepan.
Fill the pan with water to completely cover the ingredient.
Simmer for 15 minutes or until you're happy with the color. You should know that natural dyes will not be as strong as what the color in the pan is. It may also fade with time.Strain the dye into a liquid measuring cup and add 2 tablespoons of white vinegar for every cup of dye.



Chili Powder

I think I'll be doing the red cabbage soon. I'll take pictures to show you how the process goes!










A Short Guide to Some Grains

Amaranth is not an actual cereal grain but acts an awful lot like one. Its seeds and leaves are highly nutritous. The leaves can be used like spinach while the seeds can be used to make flatbreads, pancakes, and oatmeals. Amaranth contains no gluten.

It is very tolerant of hot, dry climates and has no major diseases. If you throw it on some tilled soil and water regularly, it will likely do just fine.

You should plant 1 pound per acre and on average you'll receive 125 bushels per acre.



Barley tolerates salty soils and high pH more than most grains. It is drought tolerant but doesn't do too well is cold weather.

The grains can be used in soups, as a side, and for making beer and malts.

You should plant 100 pounds of barley per acre and can expect 130 bushels per acre.


Buckwheat is used as a grain or as a great cover crop. It grows quickly; it's seeds ripen 11 weeks after planting. Since it grows so fast it's great in climates that have short growing seasons.

Buckwheat has a rich and butty flavor which works really well in baking and pancakes.

Plant 50 pounds per acre. In return you'll receive approximately 20-30 bushels per acre.




Oats are a grain that do better in cooler, moist climates.  It's best to sow oats as soon as soil can be worked because it will go dormant in summer heat. In fact oats do fine during frosts and snow. Oat is a heavy nitrogen feeder and can succumb to leaf and stem rot.


Oat can be used in a variety of ways, many that you probably know: oatmeal, mueseli, granola, cookies, bread, and beer. It can be consumed raw or cooked.

You should sow 80 pounds of oat per acre and the yield will be 70-100 bushels per acre.




Rye is closely related to barley and wheat. It can be used as a cover crop, for animal feed, in baking, or to make hard liquor. Rye is another cereal that tolerates cool, moist conditions. It will also survive drought, frosts, and snow. It will grow in poor, sandy soil better than other grains.  Rye is suseptible to ergot, and moths.

Rye makes great crisp breads, pumpernickel bread, and whickey.

You should sow approximately 84 pounds of seed per acre and the yield will be 25 bushels per acre.


Wheat is the quintessential grain for most people. It usually takes 4-5 months for seeds to mature and ripen. Wheat can be very disease-prone and varies depending on the kind of wheat you plant.

Wheat is planted either as a winter or spring crop depending on the climate.

It is a great grain for making flour for cakes, pastries, bread and pasta.

You will need 75-90 pounds of seed per acre and will receive 40-70 bushels per acre.

Caramel Apple Butter: a recipe from: Homegrown & Handmade

I just finished reading the book: homegrown & handmade: A Practical Guide to More Self-Reliant Living.

You can find it here on the Mother Earth News website for $22.95, although I just got it from my local library.

It was informative, though nothing I hadn't seen before. I wish the pictures had been more detailed and in color.

If you're looking for a place to begin your road to more sustainable living, this is a good venue. Although my favorite place to begin is John Seymour's The Self-Sufficient Life and How to Live It.

One thing I did get from Nieman's book was a recipe for Caramel Apple Butter (doesn't that sound delicious?) Here is the recipe:

(makes 6 half-pints)
8 pounds apples
1 cup water
4 cups sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamin
2 tablespoons lemon juice

Wash apples. Peel, core, and slice them. Put the apples and water into a slow-cooker on medium. Cover and cook until soft. Mash with a potato masher (Or blender if you like is smoother).

Put 2 cups of sugar into a smal saucepan and heat over low heat, stirring contantly until it begins to melt and turn brown. Watch carefully because this conversion happens quickly.  Immediately take off heat. Pour onto apples and stir.

Add the remaining sugar and cinamon to apples and stir. You can add less sugar to taste. Keep cooking with cover off until it can be spooned up and not dribble off the spoon. At this point add the lemon juice. Stir.

You can now process your Caramel Apple Butter using the water bath method to preserve it for up to 12 months.

How to Can Your Apple Butter
Heat water to boiling in a large stock pot. Make sure there will be at least 2 inches of water above the jars. Also you're supposed to have a rack for the jars to be placed on so the water can freely circulate. (I just use a time cooling rack for cookies. Find something that fits that won't make your jars wobble or fall over.) Sterilize your jars and bands in the hot water. In a small pot heat water to low simmer and put the lids in. Do not boil your lids or they won't seal right.

Add your apple butter to your jars leaving 1/4" headspace. Wip the jar rims to remove any spilled butter. Put the lids on then loosely screw on the bands. The bands should be "finger-tip tight."

Place your jars into the water and process your jars for 10 minutes. (At altitude: 1000-3000 ft above sea level add 5 minutes; 3000-6000 ft add 10; 8000-1000 add 20)

Enjoy!

***Last October I stored away a bunch of apples that I picked from a neighbor's tree. I haven't checked my last box yet for spoilage but if they're still good I'm going to make the butter this weekend. Hopefully I'll have an update for you then!!

Craving Chocolate Leads to Impromtu Baking Session

Yesterday evening I just had to have some chocolate. Tragedy struck in the kitchen where I discovered that I had not replenished my stock of dark chocolate squares! (I usually go for these Endangered Species 88% cocoa bites)

My fiance enjoys brownies so I thought I'd make a batch. I checked up on some recipes online but ultimately scrounged from what I had in the kitchen.  Here's was I came up with:

1 cup turbinado sugar
1/4 cup salted butter, partially melted/softened
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 eggs
1/4 cup canola oil
1/4 cup 2% milk
3/4 cup flour

Preheat to 350 degrees F. Grease a smallish glass baking dish with your butter wrapper. I used a 9"x13" but maybe you like thicker brownies.

Cream butter and sugar. Add the rest of the ingredients in the order listed. Pour batter into the pan and bake for about 25-30 minutes or until the middle is set.

*I live at altitude. If you don't you'll want to add 1/4 teaspoon of baking powder for a little lift.

 

It was a pretty tasty little thing but if you're a real chocolate lover, you may want to add some chocolate chips in the batter or on top or melt some chocolate and add to the batter. I'll be doing both next time and I'll let you know how it goes!

 

Happy Baking!

Handspun yarn!

Well I have officially made my first 2-ply handspun yarn. It is a Merino wool mix dyed "Stormy Blue." I used an Ashford drop spindle with a top whorl that is 2.8 oz. As you can see it is not very uniform yet (but such a nice color!)

I will hopefully be purchasing a spinning wheel soon. I can't wait to take this to the next level. This could really be something that I really develop a passion for.

With my next skein of yarn I will take some step by step pictures and walk you through how to create lovely handspun yarn from fibers.