Rendering Tallow

 This year I have been attempting to do a better job of using what I have (and buying little) and that prompted me to find out more about using beef tallow in my cooking and baking. I had requested tallow when we got our beef (we buy 1/2 of a grass fed, hormone free, natural beef) but then had left it in the freezer not quite sure what to do with it. It was time something was done!

I did a little research on how to render it and then I went to work (using bits and pieces of what I had read and did it my way). I don't think this will ever be my favorite job but it went fine and I feel very happy to have it done.

 I chopped my big bunch of tallow up into fairly small chunks- taking out any yucky, meaty chunks that I found.

 Then I put it in the crockpot, put the lid on and turned it on low. It took quite a few hours to cook down and every so often I would take my potato masher and do some mashing on it to help get it broken up.

 When it looked pretty cooked down then I strained it using a fairly fine meshed strainer. I strained it into a bowl and then promptly moved it to jars.

  They hardened up fairly fast and I can see now how you can use it to make candles.

I have also found it to work quite nicely in baking (especially bread!) though I do have to soften it in order to use it.

  I am storing some of it in the fridge and the rest in the freezer.

  Though I find this to smell a bit it really is not bad to work with.

I like using it because for me it is basically free (I can get it along with the beef at no additional cost) and according to books like Nourishing Traditions this is actually a healthy fat. Since oils (especially healthy oils) are so expensive, I am happy to find some economical healthy fat!

I am linking up with:

Jill @ The Prairie Homestead

Kendra @ New Life on a Homestead

and Amy @ Homestead Revival

From Death to Life

    When I was working out in the garden this past week (doing some cleaning up and then planting peas and lettuce) I happened to come across a cute little Johny-jump-up in the strawberry bed. It was our first flower to bloom here so that was a pretty fun find.

   This is one of the reminders of the life that comes from God. From ground that has been all frozen and looking dead comes life. When we plant seeds we bury them with the faith that they will grow, that God will give them life.

  These are little reminders of the life that God can give. They point us to something even more important.

  Today on Resurrection Sunday we are reminded of Jesus' resurrection and we are in awe of what God can do!

  "Why do you seek the living One among the dead? He is not here, but He has risen." Luke 24:5b and 6a

That is wonderful, wonderful news!

I don't buy...... Margarine

When I started this series I was thinking of writing on things I don't buy that causes me to save money. Today however when I was doing some reading I was reminded of something that I used to buy and I don't buy anymore but the not buying it does not save me money- in fact I spend more because of it but I think it is worth it.

  I used to buy margarine all of the time. It worked fine in baking and was much cheaper. I still bought butter for spreading on bread and such as I have never cared for the taste of margarine.

 Over the years I learned that margarine is really not good for you and quite some time ago now I switched to just buying butter and no more margarine. I have also used Coconut Oil or Palm Shortening at times in place of margarine.

  This evening I was reading through "Nourishing Traditions" and was reminded of why I don't buy margarine. Here is part of what she has to say about it:

"To produce them (margarine and shortening), manufacturers begin with the cheapest oils- soy, corn, cottonseed or canola, already rancid from the extraction process- and mix them with tiny metal particles- usually nickle oxide. The oil with its nickel catalyst is then subjected to hydrogen gas in a high-pressure, high temperature reactor. Next, soap-like emulsifiers and starch are squeezed into the mixture to give it a better consistency; the oil is yet again subjected to high temperatures when it is steam cleaned. This removes its unpleasant odor. Margarine's natural color, an unappetizing grey, is removed by bleach. Dyes and strong flavors must then be added to make it resemble butter. Finally, the mixture is compressed and packaged in blocks or tubs and sold as a health food." ~Sally Fallon, Nourishing Traditions.

Doesn't that sound yummy?! (note the sarcasm).

So even though I don't save money by not buying margarine- I think it is best for our family.

On another (but related) note....

 I am very excited because I found a source (somebody I actually already knew- some fellow homeschoolers) or raw cow's milk!! You may recall that I used to get raw milk regularly in the winter- while last winter the dairy that did that decided to stop selling any raw milk. It was quite disappointing.

 In the summer my parents generally give us a bunch of goat's milk (raw) which we really appreciate but in the winter they go dry and now they are starting to have their babies but there isn't much milk yet. I am pretty excited to get this raw milk.

  This milk is Jersey milk which I don't think I have ever had before. It is extremely creamy looking and it looks like in each gallon that we get their will be almost 1/3 of a gallon as cream. We are pretty excited thinking about all the things that we can make with cream!

 So do you use margarine or butter? Do you get raw milk? I always love to hear your thoughs!

Kids shopping for our supper

Enjoying the junk food supper that they bought.

   Last week I had some grocery shopping to do and before we went Megan was thinking about taking a dollar that she had along to buy something. That got me to thinking that it might be fun to give each of the kids one dollar and see if together they could buy stuff for our supper.

 The kids thought that sounded like fun so when we got to the store I gave them each a dollar and then as they went around with me while I bought the things we needed -they kept an eye out for what they could buy for supper.

   In the produce section Mara considered buying a cucumber and a can of Mandarin oranges but then Megan found a marked down produce bag with a pound of strawberries and a couple of potatoes in it for 99 cents that she decided to get. Mara decided that would take care of our veggie/fruit needs so she decided that she would keep looking.

  Aaron decided to get 2 Totinos pizzas which were 2/ $1 (with a coupon) and Jonathan was going to get two as well but then noticed Mac and Cheese which was also 2 /$1 and he got two boxes of that.

   Mara didn't find anything in that store (as she had decided she had better get dessert) but at Dollar Tree (which is next door) she found cookies.

  Once at home they had fun fixing the supper too. It was quite unhealthy but a fun experience for once in a great while. I wanted some of Megan's strawberries for something else so I "traded" some bananas for strawberries and some whipping cream for the potatoes. Mara whipped up the cream and Megan had fun cutting up the fruit to make a yummy salad.

  Next time we go shopping I think it would be fun to try this again but see if we can find healthy foods instead. This summer I think it would be fun to do something like this at the farmer's market though I think I may need to give them more than $1 each.

   Do you take your kids shopping and teach them about using money? This was a fun way to do that.

Knitting Socks

Socks for Aaron- he wears them all the time!

 I rather love knowing how to make things myself. Though sometimes I prefer to just buy things (or have someone else make it) I am a bit crazy about the idea of knowing how to do things myself - just in case!

 Socks were one of those things that I figured I would probably never make all that our family needed but I did want to know how to do it - just in case!



Jonathan's socks- he wears his a lot too.

  Over a year ago now I did knit some socks but they were tube socks and in my opinion I hadn't truly figured out what I needed to know by just knitting tube socks. I prefer socks with heels. So this past winter that was a goal- to make socks with heels. Though I still have a ton that I can learn I have successfully made socks with heels that my kids like to wear.

   I started the socks (Jonathan's were first) using a pattern that I had found online but the heel part really confused me so I ended up just looking at socks that I owned and copying the way that the heels were on them. I still want to perfect the pattern but it is pretty easy and the kids think they fit nicely.

I made some like this for my niece (as the first pair was too small for Megan) and Megan. The second pair fit but is also tight so they haven't been the best socks for her. I guess I need to try again! Little socks like this go pretty fast.

 My favorite socks are the ones I made for Mara. I like the Americana look that they have. She likes long socks and likes these too.

Mara's socks.

I am now working on a pair of socks for me using thinner yarn than I did for the others. I am also trying out a different pattern with a different sort of heel. I am struggling a little but will press on. If it doesn't work out I will go back to the type that does work for me.

  Though I still don't think that I will ever make all of our socks- it is fun to have made some of them and I hope to make more. It may seem like a silly skill in this age of being able to buy things like this so easily but I am still glad that I have learned it.

I am linking this up to the Homestead Barn Hop which is hosting by Amy at Homestead Revival, Jill at The Prairie Homestead and Kendra from New Life on a Homestead.

Hoping for the righteous to increase!

 Friday and yesterday Ken and I were at a political convention. We feel strongly about our country and we are involved in politics as we would like to see our country focused again on the principles that it was founded on. We are involved so that we can work hard towards that goal.

  Since we were recently involved in the process of endorsing candidates and such, when I was reading through Proverbs this verse caught my eye:

  "When the righteous increase, the people rejoice, but when a wicked man rules, people groan."
Proverbs 29:2

 To me this is a reminder to strive towards righteousness myself and then to elect (and nominate and encourage) people that are righteous for office.

 Is this something that you have thought about?