A natural living site where you'll learn about organic gardening, foraging, home medicine and more.
Pressure canning is a great skill to have when it comes to preserving food for a well stocked pantry. Choose pressure canning to preserve low acid foods like meats, poultry, seafood, many vegetables, dried beans, and recipes that contain any low acid foods.
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In northern climates, gardeners grow what is called hardneck garlic because it thrives in cold temperatures. In late spring, hardneck garlic produces a leafless, curly, flowering stem called a scape. The scape itself is delicious, and can be used in many ways. Garlic scape powder is one of many ways I use garlic scapes, and while I love garlic powder and make my own, making scape powder is a much easier process.
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Chickweed is a wonderful herbal “weed” to forage, and is both edible and medicinal. Be sure to try this chickweed salve recipe – it’s easy to make and is great for itchy skin and all types of skin irritation.
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Water bath canning is a great skill to have when it comes to preserving the harvest. Choose water bath canning to preserve high acid foods like jams, jellies, fruit, most tomatoes and sauces, pickles, relishes and vinegar based condiments.
Even if you live in a small apartment, this is a skill you can learn and practice now before you are able to move to your dream homestead. Fruits and vegetables can be purchased at Farmer’s Markets even if you don’t yet have your own garden.
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Low Carb Zuppa Toscana is an amazingly delicious soup. Since I love all things foraged, I created this soup with stinging nettle instead of spinach or kale. But yes, you can use either of those if you can’t find nettle.
I highly recommend using sausage from pastured pork, grass-fed butter, and organic vegetables in the recipe. With the wild foraged stinging nettle, it will certainly be a nutrient dense meal.
Stinging nettle, or Urticia dioica, is a flowering perennial that loves rich soil and partial shade and gets its common name from the sharp hairs that sting when touched. I love to forage and use stinging nettle and most often find it growing along moist, forest trails.
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