How to Build a Bird Feeder [Tutorial]

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Like many young people, I thought my grandpa might have some kind of magic. You see, he was one of those people who seemed to be friends with the birds in a way not many of us are. He could merely step out into his yard and with a few quick whistles summon all varieties of backyard birds to his palm or his shirt pocket, where they would enter into a conversation of chirps and intense eye contact that fascinated me. To be honest, looking back I’m still fairly certain that it was some sort of magic. Even through the rose colored glasses of childhood, I know deep in my bones that he understood something of nature that many people do not. Could he have known that these moments he spent with me and the birds, carving whistles from fallen horse chestnuts, would become a part of my own origin story as a naturalist? Far from an expert though I might be, he showed me what it meant to be a student of nature long before I grew my own garden or made my own companions in the rabbits and toads that keep me company as I sow, weed and water. I learned from him that all wildlife has value, no matter how small. That bird song deserves our attention. And of course, I learned that feeding birds is just plain fun.

Why have a bird feeder? Here’s some of the benefits of backyard birds in your yard:

Pollination

Backyard birds do much of the same work as the insect pollinators we are all familiar with when it comes to spreading seed and supporting plant growth - both good and bad. For example, the reason you almost exclusively find poison ivy along fences and underneath trees is because birds eat the berries, digest them and then “plant” them while sitting on branches or fence posts.

Pest control

Birds eat bugs - the largest ones eat rodents too. Aside from the beloved garden worm, they also eat flies, ants, moths, aphids and ticks…and if you’re luckier than me, they’ll even help with your cabbage moth problem by eating the larvae before they have a chance to totally decimate your kale crop (ask me how I know)

Weed control

Birds eat seeds, including weed seeds! Birds can help manage invasive species that you do not want growing on the land with their snacking. This is also why it is so important not to completely clear-cut your dead garden for the fall and winter - leave it up as a vital food source for the local wildlife and cut back in the spring before new growth forms instead.

Conservation

Creating an environment that is inviting and safe for backyard birds offers us the chance to give back through conservation of these important species. The more trees and shelter your can provide throughout the land, the better for all your neighborhood birds (and other wildlife!)

Education

What better way to teach your children the importance of wildlife than to observe it in your own backyard, as I did as a child with my grandfather.

Bird song

I have yet to meet a person who doesn’t enjoy the warbling, chirping, sing-songing symphony of bird song in the summertime.

What is a bird feeder?

A bird feeder is some type of container hung from a high up spot and filled with bird food that allows birds to land and eat safely. A bird feeder can be made of many different things - read on for some of my favorite DIY bird feeder ideas!

So you want to know how to build a bird feeder. Thanks to decades of experience, I’ve made my fair share of zero waste bird feeders for free, with repurposed materials you probably have in your house right now. Here are some of my favorite DIY bird feeders you can make today:

• Fruit string garlands: This is a simple bird feeder. Pop some popcorn the night before and leave it out so it gets a bit stale since it’s easier to thread this way. The next day, cut up various fruits (apples, oranges and blueberries work well) With a needle and thread, pierce through your fruit chunks and popcorn in an alternating pattern until you have a good length of garland. Simply drape your finished garland over a couple of branches and you’re done.

• Empty can on its side: Create a bird feeder station by piercing a hole in the bottom of your empty tin can and thread a piece of sturdy twine all the way through the inside of the can, through the opening and the hole you created, making a large loop over the top. Secure the twine so that the can can lay on it’s side when hung and add a layer of birdseed to the “floor” of the can.

• TP roll covered in peanut butter + seeds: Kids love this easy bird feeder! It’s a little bit messier, but easy and fun. Spread a thin layer of peanut butter over the exterior of the toilet paper roll. Pour your birdseed into a tray or baking sheet and then slowly roll the tube in the seeds to coat the outside with seed. Thread a piece of sturdy twine through the interior of the tube and secure, making a big loop from which to hang your TP roll!

• Cookie cutter ornament bird feeder: Combine 2 envelopes of gelatin with ⅔ cups boiling water. Stir 2 cups of birdseed into this and press firmly into your cookie cutters. Use a toothpick to form a small hole that you can pass twine through to hang your ornament outside. Allow to dry overnight.

• Pinecone bird feeder: Similar to the TP roll craft above, you’re going to spread a thin layer of peanut butter over the pine cone and roll in seeds on a tray. Securing a piece of twine may be a little trickier on this one - but just try and wrap it around the top of the pinecone and form a loop for hanging.

• Hollowed out orange with toothpick ledges: Cut your orange in half and scoop out the inside. Save for a snack for later, or incorporate into the fruit garland idea above. Poke 8 holes evenly around the cut edge of the orange. Thread twine through 4 of these holes and have them meet at the top to form a hanging basket. Poke toothpicks in the remaining 4 holes to serve as ledges the birds can stand on. Fill the empty orange with seed and hang.

• Egg carton: Take the lid off of an egg carton and poke holes in the four corners of the bottom piece. Thread twine through the four holes you just made to create hanging loops. Pour bird seed into the divots that the eggs would normally rest in and hang! I think this is the best bird feeder you can make with minimal effort.

It’s important to be mindful about choosing a bird seed blend that is meant for birds in your area when considering a bird feeder DIY. If possible, choose an organic variety to avoid exposing your bird neighbors to unwanted pesticides or other chemicals. Bird seed is the safest thing to feed your backyard birds. Here are some foods that aren’t safe for backyard birds:

• Bread

• Spoiled seed

• Chips

• Anything with sugar

• Honey

• Salt

• Milk

How to keep squirrels away from bird feeders

Let’s be honest; you’re going to have a tough time finding any bird feeder that is completely squirrel-proof, and DIY bird feeders do not have any extra cages or protection on them to help in that regard. I accept that squirrels will probably take more than their fair share from the snack I create, but you can try a couple of things to deter squirrels from investigating your bird feeder: Switch up your seed to see if there’s a variety they aren’t interested in (squirrels do not like safflower seed, nyjer seed, and white proso millet), try mixing cayenne powder into your bird seed (birds are not sensitive to the heat of capsaicin but squirrels are!) keep the ground clean of spilled seed underneath the bird feeder and place your bird feeders away from trees.

Where to place a bird feeder

According to Yard Envy, you should hang your finished DIY bird feeder in a place where your visiting birds feel safe from predators. Avoid open and noisy areas and hang your bird feeders at eye level or a little above. Do not hang feeders too close to any place where squirrels can jump on them, or so low that they are within a cat's reach.

How to attract birds to your feeder

According to Wild Birds Unlimited, birds generally find their food by sight. Placing your feeder where it will be visible to them should decrease the time it takes for birds to start feeding. Sometimes sprinkling some seed on the ground or on top of the feeder will let the birds know that you are open for business.

Nature Activities for Winter: Snow Cream [Recipe]

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In the winter my scuffed up slippers are my constant companion, and I am always seeking out sources of external heat, and stuffing my toes under the cat.

My body runs cold, so you might make the mistake of thinking that since I am always cold from my fingertips to my toes, I would avoid cold things at all costs. But no, I have one weakness, and it is ice cream. I’m told that it runs in the family, as evidenced by the sheer number of “ice cream breakfasts” I experienced as a child during sleepovers at my grandparents house. But how could I not enjoy ice cream all season long? I may be shivering from the internal cold of my own creation but I will not deny myself a dish of chocolate chip cookie dough or mint flavor ice cream, no matter how many degrees below zero it may be.

Here in New England, it’s important to know which ice cream shops stay open throughout the winter months - a short list to be sure, but an essential one. It is a unique sort of camaraderie that you share with others in line for ice cream on a chill January day, bundled up to your ears but clutching that cup or cone like your very life depends on it. Despite the lack of options for open ice cream stands in winter, the line is always short and I can quickly grab my treat and be on my way, whisking the cup-with-a-cone-on-top situation into the belly of my warm vehicle. But there is one type of ice cream that requires a very specific set of winter circumstances to be enjoyed, and that is the elusive Snow Cream.

If you’ll allow me to take you back to my childhood once again, let’s journey back in time to 1996; specifically Season Two, Episode Five of Little Bear (a children’s show with no known modern rival to match its particular blend of slow, simple outdoor living, whimsical and kind friends and adventure): Snowed in at the cabin. Emily’s grandmother teaches everyone how to make snow cream and they sing this cheery tune which still manages to worm its way into my subconscious every snowfall more than 25 years later:

“Whether the weather be cold,

Or whether the weather be hot,

We’ll weather the weather,

Whatever the weather,

Whether we like it or not”

Once winter has really truly settled in, I begin waiting, and watching, for the perfect circumstances to arrive. Fresh, fluffy snowfall is a requirement for this snow ice cream recipe, and it cannot be grown or bought. We are at mother nature’s mercy on this one, which makes the end result that much more special, a truly local and seasonal food. Of course it helps if you are snowed in and bored too, (maybe throw a power outage in there as well) looking for a way to pass the time that doesn’t involve card games or chucking wads of crumpled paper at each other and pretending you don’t know who’s at fault (other people do this too, right?!).  

I may seem biased by my nostalgia but you’ll just have to take my word for it; snow cream lives up to the hype. It is winter magic in a bowl. It is all of the delights of the wonder of childhood manifested in physical form. Which is really just a pretty way of saying - it’s delicious. Simple. And you probably have everything you need to make snow ice cream in your house right now (well, except maybe the snow…but you can’t pick that up at the supermarket, so you’ll just have to watch the weather for that one)

How does something so crunchy and icy become a creamy, rich winter treat with only 5 ingredients? It’s not alchemy, though it may feel that way at times. This is an easy way to have your children’s eyes lighting up on a dreary winter day, 

If you’re wondering how to make snow ice cream, my first recommendation is to watch Episode Five of that 1996 Little Bear epic because Emily’s grandma knows what’s up and will inspire you in ways I could never hope to achieve. But since this blog is *supposed* to be helpful, I’ll do my best to share the process here in my own words, with my own recipe for snow cream.

How to find the best snow to use for snow cream? Follow the same rules of foraging and keep away from areas near roadsides, buildings and any run-off areas. If you live in a polluted area, I’d suggest finding a friend in a more rural spot who wouldn’t mind sharing a bit of their snow. Try to time your “harvest” as soon after snowfall as possible in order to have the freshest, cleanest snow. Do not use snow that has footprints or animal prints in it. Most importantly of all: Never Eat Yellow Snow.

Snow cream is best made with heavy cream, but you can make snow cream with milk in a pinch as well. Vegan milk alternatives work, though personally I’d opt for the richest of the bunch - coconut cream. Really, snow cream is whatever your imagination says it can be, so any creamy liquid will do - I’d even try my hand a little tahini thinned with water if I was feeling experimental. The thing to remember about snow cream is that the ice portion (your snow) is literally just that - ice. It has no fat content on its own, which is what will transform this recipe into something truly rich and creamy like store-bought ice cream. So, the richer the better!

The next important ingredient is maple syrup. Can you use alternative sweeteners? Of course, this is your snow day after all. However, years of experience have taught me that maple syrup is the absolute best option for sweetening your snow cream dessert. There’s just something so earthy about maple syrup that pairs well with the fresh snow. But if you insist on coloring outside the lines on this one, try another deeply flavored sweetener like molasses, honey or brown sugar. This sweetness will give our snow cream the true dessert status it deserves.

Vanilla is added because snow is a blank slate, and we want to have a warm flavor to complement our cream of choice. You could also add any other flavorings you’d like to try now, like cocoa powder, cinnamon, peppermint or citrus. The beauty of this winter recipe is that you can make it as simple or complex as you like.

A pinch of salt will amplify the profile of your chosen flavorings, bringing them together in harmony - and before you decide to go rogue and skip this one, salt is not optional in my opinion. Just a small dash can make all the difference in your dessert tasting like the real thing.

And last but not least, we’ll add a bit of winter cheer via the most joyful ingredient in your pantry: sprinkles! Use whatever you have on hand, but I opted for a traditional red, green and white variety. Small pieces work best with the delicate texture of snow cream. I don’t know about you but personally I will take just about any excuse to add sprinkles to my desserts, they are just so bright and fun. You could go along with a holiday theme or just go for the classic rainbow variety and no one would complain!

You’ll also want a large, sturdy bowl (thick walls will keep the snow insulated from the warmth of your kitchen and prevent it from melting too quickly), a whisk, spoons and bowls. Use whatever you have on hand, no need to get fancy with it when this treat will be gobbled up in a quick moment (although I do find it extra special to serve snow cream out of cute enameled mugs) 

Yield: 4

Author: The Cottage Peach

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Snow Cream

Prep time: 5 MinTotal time: 5 Min

Ingredients

• 8 cups fresh snow
• 1/2 can coconut cream
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 2 tbsp maple syrup

Instructions

1. Combine all ingredients and serve immediately

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How to make snow ice cream recipe:

Gather your ingredients and supplies, except for the snow. You’ll want to work quickly once you have the snow inside for the best texture, as it melts rapidly and does not refreeze well. You can also chill your bowl outside prior to harvesting the snow to slow the melting process, or bundle up and make the entire recipe outdoors.

Combine the coconut cream, maple syrup, vanilla extract and in your large bowl with the whisk. You want all the ingredients to be fully combined before you gather your snow.

Head outside and scoop up your clean snow into another large bowl. Pour the liquid mixture over the snow, stirring as you pour until the snow cream is fluffy, not saturated completely with liquid.

Scoop into individual bowls and top with sprinkles, or freeze dried fruit. Enjoy immediately - this treat melts fast!

Decorate with Flowers Year Round Using These Tips [Tutorial]

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When winter has settled on our doorstep and blinding white snow fills the field outside my bedroom window, it is easy to forget the thrill of a vibrant bouquet of fresh flowers on the kitchen table. The muted tones of the season lend themselves to quiet reflection, but also a deep sense of emptiness that can set in with no notice if we leave it unchecked.

It is the time of year where Jeff and I find ourselves drowsy and full, disoriented by the lack of sunlight in the afternoons and finding the effort to keep awake to be challenging. But this year, I promised myself, would be different. This year, I would have flowers in winter.

A plan set in motion last March, when I set seeds into soil blocks underneath the grow light in the cold basement. A plan for eternal, dried flower blooms that would last far longer than the warm summer days in which they would stretch and grow and bloom. This is the story of strawflower and statice, poppies and cornflower, aster and lavender. While their scent may fade, the colors we miss so much in deep winter continue on in a vivid show that defies the passage of time.

Best flowers for drying

An endless variety of flower seeds will leave you feeling overwhelmed as you begin to flip through the catalogs and plan which flowers you’d like to grow for drying. However, with a few simple tricks you can easily set your sights on the best flowers to dry for eternal blooms. My first piece of advice is to ensure you receive the Fedco seed catalog each year - in fact, this is the best place to begin all your garden planning, not just flowers. The reason I suggest Fedco over others is twofold - firstly, you’ll be shopping high quality, non-gmo seed from a private source that isn’t just another subsidiary for Monsanto. Second, it is really a misnomer to call the Fedco book a catalog since the vast amount of educational information contained within really qualifies it as more of a book or guide. A free one at that! This is because the folks at Fedco have gone out of their way to provide useful charts and more to help guide you in your seed selection process. One chart in particular will be useful to us now, and that is the chart denoting the different forms and functions of all the flower seeds available for purchase. You’ll find this chart at the very beginning of the flower section. And no, this isn’t an advertisement for Fedco - just an honest recommendation from a fellow gardener who has utilized this tool for years.

It’ll make more sense once you have the chart in front of you, but there will be a column ticked off just for those flowers which dry well. This is an excellent place to begin making a list of all the possibilities before you do further research.

Don’t want to wait for the catalog to arrive? Here’s what I grew in 2022 for my dried flower garden:

Lavender

A favorite for many reasons, lavender is one of the few dried flowers which will retain its pleasant fragrance after drying. I have lavender bunches from a year ago that still smell incredible if you give them a quick squeeze to release the essential oils within. Known for its calming effects on the nervous system, lavender is an incredibly therapeutic plant to grow. Being a woody shrub however, it is also one of the more difficult ones to grow from seed on this list. You’ll want to do research on how this Mediterranean plant will fare in your own climate, and learn the best pruning techniques to keep it in tip-top shape. Once dried, the delicate purple flowers will make an excellent addition to any arrangement. I like to keep bunches of lavender on my bedroom windowsill.

Strawflower

This eternal bloom is a must for flower crowns and wreaths of all sizes. Strawflower has a long growing season and produce a huge amount of stems. We were picking strawflower all the way up to our first frost. The trick with cutting strawflower to dry is to cut at just the right stage of blooming - too early and the bud won’t open enough as it dries, too late and the blossom will open so far once it has dried that it will be barely recognizable, almost turning inside-out. To time it right, cut when the stem is no longer very wobbly when shaken and only 2-3 bracts of petals are open. This way, as the bloom dries the petals can expand outwards but still leave the very center intact and slightly closed. Strawflower is fun to tuck within an arrangement, but due to the stems tending to dry with bends and curves it is easier to use shorter pieces within a circular craft.

Statice

The variety of color within the purple family you can achieve with statice is remarkable. From our plot, we harvested rich magenta, pale pink, deep amethyst, bright white and even butter yellow blooms. Somehow all of these shades complimented each other perfectly, and made creating an arrangement simple. The long stems go rigid with drying, standing perfectly upright and straight for a large vase arrangement. The tiny individual blossoms are compact and generous, making for a full bouquet. But the best part of statice is in it’s longevity; I had fellow gardeners tell me they have bouquets of dried statice that were ten years old and still preserved their beautiful coloring. 

Poppies

Fresh poppies are notoriously difficult as a cut flower - picked at the wrong moment, they “shatter” in the vase, dropping all their petals dramatically within hours. Truthfully, I was only ever able to get the timing right a couple of times last season - they must be picked in the early morning hours, just after blooming, and immediately placed in water. Their stems also leak an unforgiving bright yellow sap that will permanently stain your favorite gardening clothes without a care (ask me how I know). So I found poppies to be best enjoyed fresh in the garden itself, however, the dried seed pods that begin to pop up as the blooms die off in late summer lend themselves to drying very well. The unique shape and neutral brown coloring of these pods means they will look right at home in most arrangements.

Cornflower

They don’t call it cornflower blue for nothing! These small but delightful blue wildflowers will grow with abandon anywhere you can think to spread them. Like their friend the strawflower, they too require careful timing in cutting to dry in order to preserve their coloring and structure. If you are wondering why your dried cornflower has faded or the petals seem to shed just about everywhere, it’s probably because you picked the bloom too late. Cornflower dries best when it is picked just before the bloom fully opens. These small delicate flowers can be tucked in a crown, a small bud vase or bunched together for a wall sash. They tend to be overpowered in arrangements using multiple other flowers, so let these blooms stand on their own if possible.

New England Aster

The wild child of the group, my tiny pink New England Aster flowers offer an autumn finale in the garden, jumping up out of seemingly nothing and taking over for a few short weeks. Each stem branches out with clusters of inch wide blossoms that dry to a deep magenta pink. Though a bit unruly in a vase, I have a soft spot for their unkempt nature and deep coloring with pinks that last through the whole winter season. Easy to grow and requiring no upkeep, they are certainly a worthwhile addition to any garden for the benefits given to pollinators in search of late season food alone.

Goldenrod

This list wouldn’t be complete without the admirable goldenrod. Often confused for its allergy-causing lookalike, ragweed, goldenrod isn’t the reason for your autumn sniffle session. In fact, goldenrod has many medicinal benefits - but that’s another story for another time. Goldenrod’s showy, small yellow blooms are arranged in rich clusters that droop delightfully.

How to preserve dried flowers

Preserving dried flowers is one of the easiest ways to extend your garden season. The most important step begins with ascertaining the best moment to pick your flower based on the breed. After picking, most flowers (aside from larger blooms like sunflowers and roses) may be dried in a similar fashion - tied with string, hung upside down in a cool dry place. The amount of time needed to dry will vary depending on how hot and dry your climate is in that moment and the amount of water within each stem and bloom - thicker stems such as strawflower taking a few weeks to dry while thinner plants such as cornflower drying in just a few days.

How long do dried flowers last

Dried flowers should last anywhere from 3-6 months, with some varieties such as lavender and statice holding their color for a year or more. It’s important to note too that “last” is relative here - since they are dried, they are unlikely to mold or go “bad”, so if you continue to enjoy the look of your dried flowers past their prime, by all means keep them around!

How to store dried flowers

When not in use, it is best to store dried flowers in brown paper bags or cardboard boxes in a cool, dry place.

What to do with dried flowers

With a little imagination, the options are endless. But here are a few of my favorite ways to use dried flowers:

• Door wreaths

• Candle wreaths

• Crowns

• Attached to a barrette

• Displayed in a vase, crock, pitcher or other container

• Bunches on a windowsill

• Bunches hung on a wall

• Bunches tied to your shower head

• Suspended within a glass bottle sealed with a cork

• Flatted between two pieces of glass in a frame

• Cooking - check to be sure they are edible

• Drawer sachets - best for more fragrant blooms

• Potpourri

• Blended into hand poured candles

• Blended into handmade paper

• Blended into teas and herbal steams

Where to buy dried flowers

If you aren’t ready to grow your own flowers for drying, I recommend searching on Etsy for flower growers near you who offer the types of blooms you are looking for.

What varieties will you be growing this year? Comment and let me know!

7 Tips to Survive a Long Winter[Nature Activities]

How to Survive a Long Winter

Winter is a fleeting season for some, but long here in the Northeast. Long enough to require that we adapt and find space in our routines for signals that pass the time, as well as ways to enjoy it for what it is.

New England winters force us to turn inward, to find ways to slog through the darkest days, to connect with nature when that connection is scarce.⁠

They feel like crunchy snow underfoot, stinging wind on your cheek, and the numbing cold in your fingertips, and sound like the patter of sleet on the windows, slush under car tires, and crackling fires.⁠

There is a hush in the air with the sound of insects and busy birds gone from the land, for the time being.

I can smell the snow on the air, and see it building in the dense shapes of the clouds above.⁠

Snow clouds always look a little bit different than regular clouds. There's a slight glow within the deep gray of them that promises nights when snow muffles the sounds outside, ice coats the roof and we say "winter is here" tucked in and insulated from the chill, mugs full of hot chocolate.⁠

Living in a place where winter is the longest season of our year when I don’t particularly love winter has come with its challenges.

My arthritis always is worse during the winter months, leaving me struggling more often with pain and fatigue that limits my ability to enjoy many activities.

I’ve had to find new ways to pass the time - simple, small things that make the winter more enjoyable without pushing myself. But in a way winter has taught me an important lesson; it really is the little things which matter most, which bring us the most light and joy on our darkest days.

We forget this easily, living in a fast paced and unforgiving world that is constantly telling us we need more more more to be happy. Winter does not play this game. Winter knows that pausing and stepping back forces us to focus on the things that really matter in our lives.

We truly begin to absorb the lessons of slow living when winter arrives to wrap us in her embrace.

With winter being so long, finding ways to pass the time and survive this cold and grey season is essential. Here are my top tips for small ways to survive the long winter this year:

#1 Let’s Get Cozy: Snuggle Up

There are a few non-negotiables required to make a home cozy. The first, of course, is blankets. Lots and lots of blankets! I have a bit of a blanket obsession, to tell the truth. I want heavy blankets, wool blankets, knit blankets, and quilts. Having the choice of a few well made, well chosen and well loved blankets is one way I give myself a little gift, an opportunity to feel cared for.

I love to collect blankets from antique stores, thrift stores, and occasionally even friends’ houses, if they are feeling generous! And, of course, there’s not much nicer than knitting a blanket myself on long winter nights.

We drape blankets over every available surface, just in case a sudden chill takes hold. Every chair arm and couch back, plus the ends of our beds, is covered in blankets in the winter. A blanket ladder, cabinet, trunk or chest are some other great ways you can store or display your blanket collection.

Of course, if you find yourself with an overabundance of blankets, there are many people in need who would benefit from your donation, and animal shelters that need a cozy spot for their four legged friends to find a reassuring moment of peace. Although it may be hard to believe from what I’ve written thus far, I do think there is such a thing as too many blankets. The same goes for coats - don’t forget to dig through your coat closet each year and donate any well-loved pieces that you no longer need. No one should go cold in the winter and this is an easy way you can help.

#2 Add warmth with fire

A flame of some sort will instantly bring peace and warmth to your day. Any sort of flame will do. The flickering of a hand poured soy candle on your kitchen counter, a crackling fireplace filled with wood logs, a pellet stove with a glass front or simply some beeswax candles are all good places to start.

When the sun sets as early as three or four o’clock in the afternoon, the warmth of the light, the dancing shadows, and the opportunity to roast marshmallows are all absolutely necessary to a cozy winter. The ambiance of a flame cannot be matched - just be sure to follow all necessary safety precautions with any open flame in your home.

#3: Drink Your Tea

If you’re anything like me, you have an extensive collection of mugs waiting for you to use them in your cabinet. Embrace these colder months by making a habit of enjoying a cup of tea with your breakfast each morning, or before bed. Experiment with different flavors and types of tea, and even different sweeteners and milks. While I lean heavily on green tea with honey and lemon in the summer, in the winter months I prefer chai and rooibos and rich black teas with raw sugar and oat milk.

#4: Read a Book

What could be more reassuring than a stack of books? I set myself a reading challenge this year, but you don’t need to be so structured about it. If you’re having trouble finding time in your day to read, try to find even five or ten minutes at first - there’s nothing wrong with starting small.

Here are some of my favorite book recommendations from what I read this year to add to your own stack:

Wintering: the Power of Rest and Retreat in Difficult Times by Katherine May: I felt this one in my soul. If you are struggling, read this.

The Hidden Life of Trees by Peter Wohlleben: Read this book and you’ll never look at trees the same way again!

With the Fire On High by Elizabeth Acevedo: I bawled my eyes out reading this book. It isn’t even particularly sad, it’s just that she has a way of making you care about the characters.

Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer: If you love nature, the outdoors, gardening, etc., this is a must read. On second thought, everyone should read this.

Anxious People by Fredrik Backman: This book has a fun twist at the end, and is written by one of my favorite authors. Check out his other books as well!

#5: Use your hands

In the summer it is my feet that guide my activity, padding through the garden barefoot feeling the earth, but in the winter, I lean heavily on my hands.

In winter I am drawn to different sensory experiences, which primarily revolve around fiber + cooking, to keep busy.

I work with my hands to keep my head busy and my heart full. I know this season too will pass, and my thoughts will turn from knit stitches to seedlings and a growing of a different kind. I don’t want to hold my breath until that happens, but rather, enjoy the now.

These pursuits make time stand still even as it seems to whirl past me faster and faster every season.⁠

#6: Get Outside

There is lots to do outside in the winter but so often we forget that there’s no such thing as bad weather – just bad outfits. Gear up to go outside with some wool or fleece-lined leggings, a baklava, alpaca gloves and your favorite wool hat.

Dust of your sled from childhood and find a new hill to careen down, visit a new ice skating rink, take a walk in the woods with your field guide and hunt for animal tracks, put some birdseed on your deck and see what visitors you attract, hike a snow capped mountain or enjoy a quiet night beside a bonfire, wrapped up in one of those blankets you collected earlier and roasting marshmallows.

#7: Experiment in the kitchen

Nothing is more synonymous with winter cooking than baking. As our bodies crave richer foods to keep us warm through the winter season, I try to make a point to experiment in the kitchen with new recipes as well as old favorites. If you’re interested in a baking project, you could try making a spiced gingerbread with whipped cream, pumpkin cookies or sourdough bread. Make soup with whatever you have on hand and freeze some for those nights where you just can’t wait to eat another minute. Use seasonal ingredients such as potatoes, squash, apples, beets, brussel sprouts and carrots. Not every meal needs to be a fancy or extravagant preparation, but cooking from scratch allows you to work with your hands and maybe even learn something new.

Comment below and let me know what your winter essentials are!

Caring For Cast Iron Cookware

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Cooking on cast iron is a traditional method that has stood the test of time. Some of the best dishes I’ve ever made have involved cast iron cookware. The timelessness of cast iron pans is outshone only by their innate quality. You would be hard pressed to break a cast iron pan. Consider this your ultimate guide to choosing, maintaining and cooking with cast iron.

What is Cast Iron?

There are two ways we make things from iron. One is to heat it and work it with tools, the product of which we call wrought iron. The other is to cast it. In casting, melted iron is poured into molds to form a solid piece, such as a frying pan.

Why Cook on Cast Iron?

There are five reasons just about everyone should have a cast iron pan if they are able:

Cast iron pans will outlive you.

Cast iron pans are virtually indestructible. There’s a reason you can easily find them at antique stores and garage sales. Even a rusty old cast iron pan can be revitalized with a bit of work. When handled properly, a cast iron pan can be handed down to generation after generation.

Cast iron handles heat.

A cast iron pan can go from the stovetop to the oven to the table. Cast iron pans can handle heat up to 600 degrees, so have no trouble in a kitchen oven.

Cast iron maintains heat.

Once a cast iron pan is hot, it stays hot. This makes it ideal for searing food, keeping dinner warm, and making pizza.

Seasoned cast iron is non-stick.

With proper care, you can build up layers which will develop into a slick, hard, non-stick surface. Seasoning a pan is not hard. I’ll explain how below.

How to Choose a Cast Iron Pan

The first decision to make is whether you want to buy an older, used pan or a brand-new one.

There are benefits and downsides to either choice.

Benefits of old cast iron pans:

Ecologically, an older pan is the obvious choice.

In the 1940s and earlier, cast iron pans were poured into sand-based molds. They were then polished to smooth their pebbly surface. Because of this, an older pan can be slighter more non-stick than a newer one. People will hunt hard to collect these ‘original’ pans.

A vintage pan may already be beautifully seasoned. It takes time to develop a cast iron pan’s non-stick surface. An old pan that’s been cared for properly is a real find.

Downsides of old cat iron pans:

A vintage cast iron pan will need work if it has been allowed to rust. This can be time-consuming.

An old pan may hair hairline cracks or be warped, so needs to be examined closely before purchasing.

Vintage cast iron, particularly Griswold pans, can be more expensive than buying new. (Griswold pans are thinner, which means they are lighter and take less time to heat up.)

Benefits of new cast iron pans:

A new cast iron pan may be more readily available.

There are very inexpensive options available for new cast iron pans, and there are new pans available that are lightweight and relatively well-seasoned. Field pans are some of the best lightweight cast iron pans you can buy.

Downsides to new cast iron pans:

In the 1950s, a much higher volume of pans was produced than had been in the past. In order to streamline the process, the final step of polishing the pans was dropped. This results in cast iron pans that have more of a pebbly surface. These newer pans can be seasoned to a really nice non-stick surface, but they will never be quite as non-stick as an older pan.

While new pans may be marketed as pre-seasoned, for the most part there will only be a couple of thin layers of seasoning.

Inexpensive new cast iron pans are much thicker, and therefore much heavier. They are also rougher and take longer to season.

A lighter, well-seasoned cast iron pan, like those from Field, come with a higher cost but many benefits to go along with it.

How to Cook in Cast Iron

When you first start using a cast iron pan, even a pre-seasoned one, you may find your food sticks to it. To avoid this, it’s best not to cook with high heat until your seasoning develops.

The more often you cook with oil or butter, the faster you’ll have a well-seasoned pan.

The handle of a cast iron pan can get as hot as the pan itself, so use quality potholders. Silicone sleeves to cover the handles are also available.

It is ok to use metal utensils on seasoned cast iron if that’s what you’ve got. Seasoning is not just a coating on the surface of the cast iron. It is chemically bonded to it. You may not want to scrape hard at your cast iron pan with a metal spatula, but using it in the normal course of cooking is fine.

Acidic foods like tomatoes and vinegar can break down your pan’s seasoning. Once your pan has developed a non-stick seasoning, you can use small amounts of these ingredients, but it’s best not to use large quantities or to simmer acidic dishes for long periods of time in cast iron.

How to Clean a Cast Iron Skillet

Cast iron pans have a bad reputation as being finicky and difficult to clean. You’ll hear that you should never use soap, for example.

It’s true that cast iron should not go in the dishwasher. But there is no harm in using a small amount of soap with a pot scraper or sponge to hand-wash your pan. The advice to not use any soap is from back when soap was a lot harsher.

If you’d rather not use soap, though, you can use coarse salt and warm water to scrub your pan clean.

It’s easiest to clean a cast iron pan while it is still warm from cooking. This is true of just about every kind of pan I’ve ever used.

There are two big no-no’s when cleaning cast iron pans. The first is soaking. Soaking a cast iron pan can cause it to rust. It’s possible to repair a rusted cast iron pan, but it is not a quick process.

The second is that you should never put a cast iron pan away wet. Any moisture can be a problem.

There is one (quick) extra step when cleaning a cast iron pan as opposed to other pans. Cast iron pans should be seasoned after each use.

How to Season Cast Iron

Seasoning cast iron is a process which bonds hot fat molecules to the iron to build up a smooth, non-stick surface. Seasoning also protects the iron from rust and corrosion.

Cast iron is porous and when heated, those pores expand, which makes it possible for the fats to incorporate themselves within the iron.

Cooking with oil plays a part in seasoning the pan, but for best results, you should season your pan after each use.

How to season cast iron after use:

After washing it, put your cast iron pan on a burner over high heat until any water has evaporated.

Once it is dry, spread a small amount of olive, vegetable, sunflower, or grapeseed oil in a very thin layer over the pan with a paper towel or rag. Keep in on the heat for a minute, but remove it before the oil on the pan begins to smoke. Let it cool, and it’s ready to be put away.

How to do a deep seasoning of cast iron pans:

When you first get a cast iron pan, and then 2 or 3 times a year thereafter, you should do a deeper seasoning of your pan. It’s a similar process to regular seasoning, but in this case, we bake the pan in the oven rather than heating it on the stovetop.

What you’ll need:

• An oven

• ¼ teaspoon + ¼ teaspoon oil, divided

• Paper towel or rag

Instructions:

• Preheat your oven to 200 degrees.

• Clean your pan as you would after use, as described above, and dry it by heating it on the stove.

• Put your dry pan in the oven at 200 degrees for 10 minutes. This will ensure it is completely dry and also open the iron’s pores.

• After 10 minutes, remove it from the oven and increase the oven’s heat to 300 degrees.

• Use a clean rag or paper towel to rub ¼ teaspoon of oil onto the pan, using a circular motion.

• Using a different, clean rag or paper towel, rub off the excess oil. When you’ve removed the excess, your pan will look dry and dull. It will look as though you have removed all the oil, but a very thin layer will remain, which is just what you want.

• Repeat this oiling process on the handle and underside of the pan with the second ¼ teaspoon of oil.

• Put the pan, upside-down, on the middle rack of your oven at 300 degrees.

• Leave it for 10 minutes, then remove the pan from the oven and increase the heat to 400.

• Once your oven is at 400 degrees, return your pan to the middle rack, and let it bake for 1 hour.

• At the end of the hour, turn off the oven, but keep the pan in there for an additional hour.

It’s important the heat be consistent, so do not open the oven door during the final two hours of the process.

Cooking Pizza on Cast Iron

As someone who likes each tool to do more than one job, I’m not a huge fan of pizza stones. Luckily for me, cast iron is equally useful for cooking pizza as it is for cooking eggs.

Cast iron is incredibly strong and can withstand very high temperatures. A baking stone is more fragile, and is more apt to experience thermal shock than a cast iron pan.

Pizza develops a crispy, chewy, puffed up crust when cooked on an already heated surface. Because cast iron holds heat extremely well, it is perfectly suited to the job. Pizza can be cooked either in the cast iron skillet or on the bottom of it.

Recipe: Pizza Cooked on Cast Iron

What you need:

• Pizza dough

• Sauce

• Cheese

• Toppings

• Oil

• 10-12” cast iron skillet

Instructions: Pizza Cooked on Cast Iron

• Put your skillet, empty, into the oven.

• Set the oven to 500 degrees.

• After 10 minutes, the pan should be hot. Remove it from the oven.

• Sprinkle the surface of the pan with cornmeal or flour, and then arrange your dough, being careful not to burn your fingers.

• Brush the dough with olive oil and put it back in the oven until the dough bubbles. (You can skip this step and move straight to toppings if you want. It just improves the texture of the dough.)

• Add your sauce, cheese, and toppings and cook until golden brown, about 15 minutes.

Recipe: Easy Vegetable soup

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“To feel safe and warm on a cold wet night, all you really need is soup.” — Laurie Colwin

We all know soup is good for you, and a great source of comfort. But have you considered that soup may be the best thing you can make for yourself when you are in the midst of a chronic illness flare, when you have no energy? Here is why soup is the best food to make for people with limited energy:

• It’s easy to make soup, you can just throw your ingredients into the pot, set the heat and sit down while it cooks. You only need to get up every so often to stir the pot. You can easily modify it to substitute ingredients and save yourself a trip to the store, and using frozen vegetables (which contrary to popular belief often have a very similar level of nutrition as fresh produce) will save you the trouble of chopping everything yourself.

• There’s only one pan to clean. Less dishes filling up your sink means less precious energy expended. And who really enjoys doing dishes anyway?

• You can make a big batch of soup all at once and freeze most of it for later in individual servings to save you time on days when you really don’t have the ability to cook anything at all. This is also an excellent time saver if you’re planning for dinner guests - save your energy for conversation by thawing out your soup the day of and have dinner ready to go with the turn of a dial.

• Soup is easy on your stomach. Because everything is cooked low and slow for an extended period of time, your gut won’t have to work as hard to digest it. The nutrients within the soup are also more bioavailable, meaning your body can absorb more of the benefits more easily.

A scent that brings us home

The way the smells of soup fill a house easily brings us back to our childhood, and the comforting knowledge that our bowls will be filled by our loved ones without fail. I almost exclusively make soup in the fall and winter, as I find the aromas to be the perfect way to bring warmth to your kitchen and home in the cold and gray months. Plus, a bowl of soup functions as an excellent hand warmer!

Why should you saute soup ingredients first?

Many soup recipes begin with instructions to saute the vegetables and aromatic herbs first. It can be easy to dismiss this step thinking that these ingredients will cook through just fine since the soup will cook a long time once the liquids are added.

Here’s what Serious Eats has to say about sauteing vegetables: “Vegetables contain many different aromatic molecules trapped inside their cells. But the aromas you get from raw vegetables are quite different from those you get from cooked vegetables. In fact, the aromas you get from whole vegetables is even different from those that you get from vegetables that have been finely chopped, grated, or have otherwise had their cells ruptured. This is all due to reactions that take place between chemical precursors inside the vegetables cells. When those cells are ruptured, these precursors come into contact with each other and recombine into new compounds. Heat and time can increase the rate of these reactions, and indeed cause brand new ones to occur.”

Can you freeze vegetable soup?

Yes, soup generally freezes very well. I prefer to ladle my leftover soup into mason jars for long term storage in the deep freezer. Make sure to leave at least an inch of headspace at the top of your jars since the liquid will expand as it freezes. You can store soup in the freezer for two to three months. Soups with dairy don’t always freeze as well or as long - about one month. To thaw, just move your mason jar to the refrigerator the night before you want to eat. Then you can pour your thawed soup into a sauce pan to reheat on the stove top.

How long will vegetable soup last in the fridge?

Soup can be stored in the fridge for five to seven days. I still prefer mason jars for storing soup in the fridge, since it’s easy to pour from. We have a large metal canning funnel that makes ladling the soup into the jars very simple. Be sure to label it too so you don’t lose track of it in the back of the fridge!

Can you make vegetable soup in advance?

Vegetable soup is great to have on hand for busy nights. You can meal prep your soup up to five days in advance and store it in the fridge for another time.

What kind of pot should you make soup in?

Soup is one of the larger batch meals we cook in our kitchen, and so I find myself reaching for our Caraway Home non-toxic 6.5 quart Dutch oven. It never fails to surprise me how quickly such a large pot can be filled once all your soup ingredients are added. Soup really is the best way to stretch your ingredients the farthest.

Is vegetable soup healthy?

There are many healthy soup recipes and vegetable soup in general is very healthy and a great vehicle for serving vegetables to picky eaters in particular. One thing that can make soup less healthy is when there is excessive sodium in the soup, which usually comes from the broth that has been used. Most processed vegetable broth as well as powders and cubes have extremely high levels of sodium to make up for the lack of other flavoring. You can make your own dry vegetable broth mix pretty easily by combining nutritional yeast, and powdered onion, garlic, tomato, carrot, salt and pepper and herbs. We personally use the Frontier Co-op Low Sodium Vegetable Broth Powder in all our soups including my vegetarian vegetable soup recipe and love it, but it is definitely more cost effective to make it from scratch yourself.

So what is the best way to make an easy soup recipe? The basics of soup making are the same, no matter what soup recipe you start from. You will heat your fat (I usually use olive oil) and add your toughest vegetables like carrots and potatoes first. Then your softer vegetables like onion and broccoli, peas and corn. Lastly, you’ll sautee your aromatics like herbs, spices and garlic for the shortest amount of time.

Once your vegetables are all softened you can go ahead and add any liquids - tomato paste, crushed tomatoes, broth. All this needs to simmer to allow the flavors to blend for thirty to sixty minutes depending on the specific soup recipe.

Really, once you understand the basic elements of soup making it is the best sort of recipe to begin experimenting with in the kitchen. Start with small modifications to a recipe you know and love, and move on to more complex changes. Once you’re comfortable with substitutions, you’ll probably have a good idea of what flavors go nicely with each other and can start developing recipes from scratch on your own. Soup is a fantastic first foray into recipe development for this reason.

My favorite easy soup recipe is my grandmother’s vegetable soup. Aside from the obvious nostalgia that comes with every spoonful, it makes a fantastic base from which you can modify and make the vegetable soup recipe your own. This is a tomato based soup, with grains for fiber and protein and a mix of vegetables that everyone will enjoy including onion, peas, carrots and corn. You can easily swap out the farro for a different grain of your choice, and add or subtract whatever vegetables you and your family enjoy. Plus, this is the perfect soup recipe when you are putting off making another grocery run because you can just throw whatever frozen veggie mix you have in the freezer in and call it a day!

My grandma always serves this soup with a big loaf of fresh challah bread, golden brown on the top and slightly sweet. Toasted with butter, I can’t imagine a meal that feels more like home to me. I can remember many cozy evenings as a child enjoying this soup with my family, and now that my grandma has moved to another country, I make this soup any time I miss her to bring her comforting and sometimes wild presence to our kitchen once again.

Since I’m always looking for easy vegetarian soup recipes and ideas, I wanted to share mine with you and encourage you to use it as a starting point to develop your own favorite vegetable soup! This is a modified version of my grandma’s recipe, made based on what we usually have on hand in our pantry on any given day. I hope you make this recipe your own, and share a bowl with the people you love this winter.

Grandma’s Easy Vegetarian Vegetable Soup Recipe

Yield: 8-10

Author: The Cottage Peach

Print

Easy Vegetable Soup

This is a modified version of my grandma’s recipe, made based on what we usually have on hand in our pantry on any given day. I hope you make this recipe your own, and share a bowl with the people you love this winter.

Cook time: 40 MinTotal time: 40 Min

Ingredients

• 2 Carrots
• 1 Yellow onion
• ½ cup Peas
• ½ cup Corn
• 28oz Diced tomatoes
• 8oz Tomato sauce
• ½ cup Farro
• 4 cups vegetable broth
• Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Saute the onion and carrot on medium heat until softened.
2. Add all remaining ingredients and bring to a boil.
3. Lower heat and simmer 40 minutes, partially covered.

Recommended Products:

Shun 8

Wood Spoon

Caraway Dutch Oven

Caraway Sauce Pan

Nutrition Facts

Calories

102.86

Fat

0.67

Sat. Fat

0.12

Carbs

22.64

Fiber

4.97

Net carbs

17.68

Sugar

6.97

Protein

3.56

Sodium

646.31

Cholesterol

0

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