Our freezer and pantry regularly provide us with delicious reminders of previous seasons’ bountiful and diverse harvest. Many of our most delicious moments in the kitchen result from creative ways of using items we’ve previously put by. Our chile corn chowder with bacon is a…
I’m a big granola lover, but I hate the funky ingredients included in many processed, pre-made granola blends. Too many of them have artificial sweeteners, artificial flavors, and other junk that I’m not interested in consuming. So, I basically avoided granola until a friend shared…
The pagan festival of Imbolc–also known as the feast of Brigid, the Festival of Lights, Candlemas, Lupercalia, Feast of Flames, and the Festival of Milk–marks the midpoint between the Winter Solstice and the Spring Equinox. Celebrating the return of the light, it falls at the…
(If you’re just joining this series, you’ll find a fire cider recipe here to get you started and other recipes using fire cider here… If you’re back for more, welcome back!) Yes, there are still more amazing ways to use fire cider. Here are a…
If you’re like I was, you were very excited the first time you made fire cider. I visualized my highest possible health as I washed, peeled, and minced my ingredients. I imagined wellness itself steeping in that beautiful Mason jar. I was positively dizzy with…
Let me begin by reminding you that I am not a health care professional (nor am I into pretending to be one). So I won’t suggest I know how to protect you from everything that might infect you this autumn. I’m no master of my…
While the rest of the world is losing itself over Pumpkin Spice Everything, I’m just happy to be in the season when people open their hearts and mouths to actual, real-life edible gourds. If you’re a regular consumer of organic squash, you’re probably already aware…
Let me begin by saying I am an Only Child. Despite a big heart and a sensitive soul, I can be a real brat. [Not on the daily. Here and there. But still. Only Child. Where the “O” and the “C” are capitalized no matter…
This is a wonderful relaxing, anti-inflammatory scrub for the tub that looks and smells like a bright ray of sunshine. Whereas the coffee and sugar scrub is designed to thrill with you wonderful fragrance, this next one is anti-inflammatory, relaxing, and ultra-nourishing for your skin. It’s…
Over the next few weeks, many gardens will be dotted with the emergence of the earliest spring blooms, most notably many perennial bulbs. On our farm in the Idaho panhandle, we can expect to see a number of flowers, from hyacinth and crocus to narcissus and daffodils, emerging with fresh…
While I love the wonderful facial cleansers I have on hand of my own making, I recently found myself hankering for a facial scrub without sugar, coffee, or salt that feels like the facial scrub I left behind years ago. The name rhymes with Ain’t Hives…. I loved that scrub for years…
It’s about that time when we begin getting antsy for signs of spring. As the light, warmth, energy, and glow of spring build behind the scenes, many of us are feeling the turning point… While some people will be watching a groundhog for signs of spring’s…
Happy New Year, friends! I’m just poking my head out of my hibernation cave to offer the first “hello!” of 2015. As is my nature, I am hunkered down in contemplative mode making plans for the new year, assessing strides against last year’s goals, and tending to…
As a treat for the holidays, I’m sharing some recipes to help you craft natural, handmade gifts for friends, loved ones, hostesses, and distant cousins… Today, it’s all about herbal body powders… First, your BASE recipe (aka natural body powder!): Combine Arrowroot powder and…
So simple to make and so incredibly amazing. Hurray for wild and wise, natural and intentional, pure and simple goodness for our faces! Compared to over-the-counter cleansers laden with long lists of complicated, synthetic ingredients that tend to strip skin, the natural and organic facial cleansers offered…
Few DIY projects are as easy as making your own aromatic melt-and-pour soaps — just about anyone can do it, you don’t need many special supplies, and the resulting products are superior in quality and fragrance to most store-bought soaps. You can create unique blends…
