Washingtonians

[JennS]

DH and I will be putting on a butchering school aka "Freezer Camp 101" sometime in the spring of 2013. We have been raising our own meat birds for the past 4 years. We had to learned from a variety of sources, but we both feel that it's good to share knowledge. I will be ordering meat bird chicks about late March or early April. The classes will then be held about 8 to 9 weeks later. I have found that we will be offering a class on both a Saturday and a Sunday. I will be posting more about this in the Spring.

I will be looking for your posts in the spring. Thanks!

Jennifer

 

[justbugged]

Quote: I so sorry that you lost a hen this way.

I lost one of my meat birds this year. It fell into the rain barrel and could get out. I think that it was FirewifeJess's little boys that discovered it. I don't think that it traumatized the boys very much. They seemed to be having a fairly fun time watching their mom learn to process meat birds that day.

 

[Rainwolf]

You can get blueing just about any grocery store, in the laundry section. It is used to make whites look whiter by giving it a very very very slight blue color, thus counteracting any yellowing. Using too much gives things a bluish tinge. Do not spill it, stains pretty easily.

Imp

Thank you!

You can also get pet shampoo for white dogs. I was just reading on the Silkie thread and they use that. I think they called it bright and white.

Yep, and I use horse shampoo.  Quick Silver for white or light birds, Quick Color for dark birds.  Just don't mix them up because they're both purple! LOL  I once turned a buff Orpington purple! 

I would love to see a photo of a purple chicken!!!

I have a question. Back oh so many posts ago ya'll were talking about your diets and things you can or can't, do or don't eat. I would really like to get my family to the point of not having prossesed foods which will be a huge struggle for me with 5 kids. But right now I am wondering what in the world do ya'll drink? I have a son that has ADHD and other behaviral things we are helping him battle and I have found that all those dies in the drinks and food really affect him (as well as the other 4 kids). I have tried taking out all drinks that contain those dies but I can't find much to substitue. So I am really looking for ideas if ya'll have any.

Today I plan on trying to make my first batch of black berry jam. My cousin made some the other day and told me I need (besides the berries) sugar and stuff called Pectin. Those of you that make jams, do you use this Pectin stuff or no?
So I guess that was two questions lol.

Pectin makes the jam/jelly firm so unless you want syrup I would suggest using it to make jam/jelly/preserves.

Pectin is a naturally occurring substance (a polyscaccaride) found in berries, apples and other fruit. When heated together with sugar, it causes a thickening that is characteristic of jams and jellies.
Your grandmother probably didn't use pectin. Instead she stood over a hot, boiling pot, stirring and getting splattered by hot jam until she cooked the vitamins out of it and it finally cooked down to a thicker consistency. You can also make your own pectin. I use apple peels, boil them to mush then strain through a jelly bag and you have a thick water. use that water for the jam to make it naturally thicken. Or just buy apple pectin so you can be sure of the consistency every batch.
Some fruits have a lot of natural pectin some have almost none.

Check www.archive.org for canning/preserving/food storage books and you will see hundred year old books that the recipe/process has not changed much.
1912 recipes http://archive.org/details/preservespickles00hurd
1926 http://archive.org/details/homepreparationo02crue

Unless you know what your looking for in making jam/jelly/conserves/chutney/marmalade/etc... I would use pectin

 

[mikeyb]

Quote: Whhhaaaattttttt, you're not going to read from the beginning? Heck this thing moves so fast if you miss a weekend you have to start over. Just kidding. It moves very fast but like above, just jump right in and join in the fun. Have questions? Ask away, someone will help you if possible or at least point you in the right direction. Sooooooooooooooo a very big

 

[justbugged]

Quote: I have found that for me fairly high doses of vitamin D makes all the difference in the world. I had thought that for years, I was just sad at that time of the year because it happens around the anniversaries of my daughter's life and death. Then I tried the vitamin D, and found that I had very little sadness during the winter months. So far it's the only supplement that I know has made a real difference in my life. I would start with 5000 mg for the first week or so, then drop back to 2000 a day. You can develop a toxicity to vitamin D so you need to read up on it. I just know what has been more than safe and effective for myself, and my DD.

 

[Rainwolf]

hey JB are you going to the auction this sat? maybe we can hook up?
send me a pm if your up for it

 

[justbugged]

Why does every vegan cookbook have to contain a long-winded diatribe of their extreme viewpoints?

I just want to find a book with egg-free and nut-free recipes because of my allergies. If anyone knows of such a thing, please post it.

I just want a vegetarian or vegan cookbook that doesn't use onions in all the food. As far as I can tell, I may have be the person that writes the book in the end.

I hope you find a cookbook that is just recipes.

 

[itsren]

The Enumclaw Music Store will repair clarinets. I checked with the store, and they are open until 7pm most week day. I will PM you their phone number.

Thank you, I got your PM. It looks like I have to have it repaired before Sept. 25. I better get it in quick!

 

[FirewifeJess]

Quote:
Yeah they were fine after that day but John was quite concerned that night until I told him that some animals die naturally, some animals die because we kill them to eat them, and some have accidents just like people and die before they "should" have. He was fine. Just told me it looked scary seeing it floating in the water dead. Hasn't talked about it since then though!

 

[justbugged]

hey JB are you going to the auction this sat? maybe we can hook up?
send me a pm if your up for it

I was planning to drop off some of the bunnies, chickens, and a couple of cages of finches at the auction Saturday. I would love to hook up with you and any of the rest of the group. As long as I don't get a buyers pass, I should be safe.

I am hoping to get to the auction by about 9 am, but that's just the plan at the moment. Do you need a ride out here from Auburn or Federal Way. I would be more than willing to do that for you.