Food

Keeping healthy in winter

Staying healthy, especially during the winter is one of the things I actively work on. I believe one of the reasons so many more get sick during the cold months is because we tend to stay indoors more and have less fresh air coming in because it’s too cold to raise windows. We cram ourselves inside the house, inside stores and are around more people. The more people you are around, the more likely you are to be exposed to someone who is sick. I am not exposed to very many people as a rule, just because of the way I live in a low population area. The main exposure I have is going to church and being a caretaker for a friend, it means I sometimes have to take her to doctor appointments, I do my best not to go into the doctor offices, clinics or hospitals, but sometimes I have to. So I work hard to keep my exposure to a minimum and to keep my immune system in tip top shape.…

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Food

Backyard farmers by necessity: self-sufficient and debt-free

Inspiring story about how necessity pushes a young couple to become organic farmers and succeed with it for the rest of their lives with no debt, a business and self sustainable food while enjoying their work instead of waiting for retirement to find happiness.

The video contains interesting home made tools and techniques for farming.…

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Food

Extract limonene from citrus


Limonene is a clear liquid that smells of freshly peeled oranges. It can be used in biodegradable cleaning soap, biofuel, botanical insecticide, insect repellent, and it is said  to relieve gastroesophageal reflux disease and heartburn.

This video shows how to extract limonene without having to waste lots of energy on distillation or having to use toxic solvents such as liquid carbon dioxide.…

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Community

DIY inspirations

Ever wonder what websites I enjoy visiting (besides this one of course!)? There are quite a few, but I have to tell you about a couple of websites I have recently discovered, the first one is all about dehydrating, EVERYTHING! If it’s possible (or even questionable) to dehydrate it, you will find it here! The second site is all about everything DIY, from homemade cleaning supplies to recipes and lots more. Whether you are living off-grid, or just want to save some $$$s by being frugal, these two sites have the information and instructions you need.…

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Food

The “world’s first successful eco-revolution”.

Faith, courage and coconuts vs helicopters, industry and corruption.

The Coconut Revolution documentary is like a real life “Avatar” – the film about the struggle of an indigenous peoples – in this case the people of Bougainville Island.

With no food or fuel coming in, it is the perfect scenario for an explosion of creativity and ingenuity.…

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Food

Off-Grid Food Part 3 – Cheese

Corey Naughton’s new Cheese-making recipe

Little Miss Muffet sat on a tuffet – Eating her curds and whey, – Along came a spider, – who sat down beside her – And inquired as to if she had used Corey’s cheese making recipe …

Now I know what you’re thinking … I’ve been ranting in my recipes how storing oils is difficult and producing your own is not a viable option for many. So how can I come out with a recipe on cheese making while keeping things “long term food storage” friendly?

Well, sit back and relax my baby birds because I’m going to feed you. This recipe will demonstrate how you can make cheese from dehydrated milk.

But first, a word on equipment. As anyone who’s spent a few years off-grid can tell you “Quality equipment means everything”. While cheap equipment can typically get the job done, you’ll quickly find that (a) not having the right tool and (b) not having a quality tool … Will catch up to you. Cheese making is one of those things that really requires quality tools…

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Food

How Cuba will survive Peak Oil

Because of poverty, every corner became an edible garden, and food growing became a valued and well paid profession. Despite their lower income Cubans eat as well as we do.…

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Food

Off-Grid food part 2 – Bread

The next in a developing series by off-gridder Corey Naughton

In my last recipe (off-grid apple pie) I demonstrated how we can bake up some delicious goodies without the use of butter or oils. This is because the storage life of butters and oils tends to be short and for many of us it’s not plausible to produce our own. That’s why all my recipes use no liquid fats and are produced with products that have a long shelf life and/or come from your garden (to be a true off-gridder you need a garden and some chickens at the least).

This begs the question about what exactly is a “long shelf life”?

In my opinion, a truly shelf stable food item is anything that will last 10+ years when stored properly. “But Corey,” I can hear you ask: “the title of this article says it’s about bread and yeast only lasts 5 years at best.”

That’s why this recipe is for soda bread which uses only baking soda and baking powder to make the bread rise.…

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Community

Being thankful

I just spent the day, actually the last two days, working on and working up to one of my favorite holidays, a holiday we celebrate in the USA during November, Thanksgiving. This is when we go out and buy an appropriately sized turkey, lots of trimmings to go with it, cook and eat with family and friends, getting as stuffed as that turkey was and feel happy. This is our 4th Thanksgiving living off-grid, we moved out here in Dec ’07, we had spent the previous Thanksgiving with our family, saying goodbye and farewell.…

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Prepping on a budget, part 3 – food storage and security

 

 

Now that you have decided to start putting aside some food, you might be thinking “Where am I going to keep all of this food and other stuff?” Hopefully you have lots of extra space, an extra bedroom, or a big kitchen with a pantry and lots of cabinets…  or if you are like many of us, space is at a premium and you will have to be creative about how and where you store your preps.…

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Food

Light my Fire-knife

Isn’t it great that just one utensil could provide your needs for cooking and eating and heating?

Prepare for winter by mastering the art of fire-making with the Sandvik Swedish FireKnife. To use this necessary addition to your bug out bag (or just your regular camping gear), strike the back of the knife against the included fire steel for a shower of sparks.…

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