I Love Homesteading
Urban Homesteading, that is. I don't have the skills yet to be an actual homesteader. I wish I could say that Max and I have been hard at work, but the truth is we have been hardly working. The last few years have been so exhausting that mostly we are still just trying to rest and feel better, but we are making a bit of progress.
I am making kvass regularly now. It is filled with probiotics and gives me an endless supply of yeast for baking bread. It has been a learning experience to use the kvass yeast for baking bread, it has a much longer rise time, but I'm getting much better at it. All of the loaves that did not work out so well, I used them to make more kvass.
Parts of the garden are growing well, we will have a good crop of tomatoes and onions, but the beans are not growing too fast, the eggplants and peppers don't seem to be growing at all, oh well, maybe next year.
My hydroponic herb garden is growing extremely well. I have fresh herbs every time I need them. Max got the garden window in the kitchen and I have started spinach, cilantro (which did not do well in the hydroponic garden) and hot pepper plants growing in the window, as well as ginger. The ginger took me a couple of tries to get it going, but I now have two plants that are taking off, and a few more that are starting to get sprouts.
My attempts at growing mushrooms have all been failures, but every time I try it I get closer, so hopefully some day. I have learned that I can pasteurize the straw using ash from the wood burning stove that we use to heat the back of our house in the winter, so I am going to wait until fall to try that again.
I have learned how to can and I put up vegetable stock. I used store bought vegetables, but I put up 8 pints for just over half the cost of a quart of store bought stock. And I have put up some pints of soup for Max.
I read that pie crust can smell your fear, and it is SO true. I used to have so much trouble making pie crust, I was always so anxious that it wouldn't turn out and it didn't. But a couple of days ago I just threw the ingredients together without even thinking about it, and it turned out great! It was easy to roll out and flaky and delicious when done. I was so happy!! I made pasties with it, which are turning out to be a family favorite.
I'm not nearly where I want to be, but I am making progress. This is what I have always wanted to do with my life and I'm so happy that I am finally here!!
I am making kvass regularly now. It is filled with probiotics and gives me an endless supply of yeast for baking bread. It has been a learning experience to use the kvass yeast for baking bread, it has a much longer rise time, but I'm getting much better at it. All of the loaves that did not work out so well, I used them to make more kvass.
Parts of the garden are growing well, we will have a good crop of tomatoes and onions, but the beans are not growing too fast, the eggplants and peppers don't seem to be growing at all, oh well, maybe next year.
My hydroponic herb garden is growing extremely well. I have fresh herbs every time I need them. Max got the garden window in the kitchen and I have started spinach, cilantro (which did not do well in the hydroponic garden) and hot pepper plants growing in the window, as well as ginger. The ginger took me a couple of tries to get it going, but I now have two plants that are taking off, and a few more that are starting to get sprouts.
My attempts at growing mushrooms have all been failures, but every time I try it I get closer, so hopefully some day. I have learned that I can pasteurize the straw using ash from the wood burning stove that we use to heat the back of our house in the winter, so I am going to wait until fall to try that again.
I have learned how to can and I put up vegetable stock. I used store bought vegetables, but I put up 8 pints for just over half the cost of a quart of store bought stock. And I have put up some pints of soup for Max.
I read that pie crust can smell your fear, and it is SO true. I used to have so much trouble making pie crust, I was always so anxious that it wouldn't turn out and it didn't. But a couple of days ago I just threw the ingredients together without even thinking about it, and it turned out great! It was easy to roll out and flaky and delicious when done. I was so happy!! I made pasties with it, which are turning out to be a family favorite.
I'm not nearly where I want to be, but I am making progress. This is what I have always wanted to do with my life and I'm so happy that I am finally here!!
56-60, F
