Say goodbye to the fruitcakes and ugly sweaters…
The 2014 Homestead Gift Guide is here and ready to roll!
You know,personally, I think us homestead-types are pretty darn easy to buy for. I mean, we’re pretty much interested in everything, and easily amused too, for the most part. (Canning jars? YAY! A new egg basket? YAY! Knitting needles? YAY! New muckboots? YAY!)
BUT if you need a jumpstart to your gift-buying efforts, I know you’re gonna LOVE this 2014 edition of the Homesteader’s Gift Guide! There something for both hardcore homesteaders and wannabe homesteaders alike, you’ll be supporting small businesses in the process, and many of the companies have provided exclusive coupon codes just for Praire Homestead readers! Win, win, WIN!
And of course, if you’re a homesteader yourself, you can always send the link to this post to those people who are asking what to buy you for Christmas… *hint hint*
The 2014 Homestead Gift Guide
Homesteader’s Supply
Your source for self-sufficient living, featuring the Ultimate Cheese Press and cheesemaking supplies, butter making tools, fermenting crocks and kits, farm animal equipment, meat processing, canning supplies and more!
Jill’s Pick: I’ve been drooling over this 13-quart stainless steel milk pail. It’s looks to be more solid than the bucket I’ve been using, and I could use another one anyway. And this basic cheese kit is the perfect start for the person who is looking to add cheese-making to their list of skills in 2015!
Website: www.homesteaderssupply.com
Coupon Code: Get 5% off your order with coupon code: JOYFUL5 (good for US orders to the lower 48 states only)
Nicks Sticks
All of the goodness, none of the garbage! All of these snack sticks are made with the Midwest’s finest grass-fed beef or free-range
turkey. No MSG. No Nitrates. No Antibiotics. No Hormones. No Sugar. No Red Dye. No Gluten.
Jill’s Pick: I know, you wouldn’t think of meat sticks being on a gift list, but seriously guys, these are life-changing! They are the perfect size to fit into stockings and my family literally fights over them. They are THAT good. I buy boxes at a time–especially the regular grassfed beef sticks.
Website: www.nicks-sticks.com
MadeOn Skin Care Products
These amazing hard lotion bars have three simple ingredients: shea butter, coconut oil and beeswax. That’s it! Shea butter and coconut oil are known edible emollients. They soften and soothe dry skin and are gentle enough to rub over skin cuts and cracks. The beeswax emulsifies the other two ingredients to create a beautiful combination to smooth your skin. Hard lotion is better because it uses beeswax to leave a gentle, protective coating on the skin. The beeswax works to seal in the ingredients for longer-lasting absorption. No water necessary.
Jill’s Pick: I’ve tried a lot of different hard lotions over the years, but the Au Chocolat bar remains my favorite! It smells so good, you’ll want to eat it. In fact, my bar has a lovely bit mark in it because my two year-old couldn’t resist taking a bite! There are also some fantastic gift groupings if you are having a hard time making a decision: like this hard lotion/lip balm combo, or this cute little variety pack.
Website: http://store.hardlotion.com/
Coupon Code: For a free peppermint lip balm, add the peppermint lip balm to cart, apply code “PrairieGift” at check-out, and your lip balm is free! Coupon expires 12/31/2014
Fermentools
Fermenting vegetables is the healthiest method of food preservation. Make your own probiotic rich sauerkraut, kimchi, or pickles the way the homesteaders did, without electricity! Fermentools allows you to turn your standard wide mouth mason jars into your very own fermenting crock, saving you both space and money. The lids are heavy duty stainless steel with heavy glass weights that will literally last a lifetime! Give the gift of health that may be passed down to your children some day.
Jill’s Pick: Fermenting is one kitchen project I have yet to master, but it’s something I’m very interested in! I’m planning on starting with the Basic Starter Kit and going from there. Sauerkraut is first on my list!
Website: http://www.fermentools.com/
Pantry Paratus
Pantry Paratus is the self-sufficiency store that encourages you to produce, prepare, and preserve your own harvest! There’s something for homesteaders of all types and experience levels at Pantry Paratus and they have everything from grain mills to food dehydrators to canning supplies to seed kits!
Jill’s Pick: The Roo Gardening Apron makes a brilliant gift! It’s super affordable (only $24.95) and who doesn’t need a place to stash stuff while they are digging in the dirt?! It prevents you from having to bend and twist to harvest with an old bucket. Deep pockets, a pouch that empties into your bucket, and adjustable straps mean that this is the gardening apron for anyone who harvests, prunes, or pulls weeds!
Website: www.pantryparatus.com
Coupon Code: Get free shipping on your order of any size by using code PH-SHIP (Expires 12/25/2014. Grains, pressure canners, & cast iron grinders & presses are excluded.)
Bainbridge Farm Goods
The perfect gifts for the backyard farmer, horse enthusiast, dog lover and more! Bainbridge Farm Goods products are built for fun and built to last. These signs are waterproof, UV resistant and mounted on heavy duty aluminum -think street sign durability! The T-Shirts are sewn in the U.S. and screen printed in Seattle, just a ferry boat ride away from our island headquarters. All our product are proudly made in the U.S.
Jill’s Pick: Ack! Don’t make me pick just one sign–I want them all! But, I will say the “Fresh Eggs from Happy Chickens” ones make me smile, and the “Farm Fresh Vegetables” sign makes me want to start a farmstand, just so I can display it proudly!
Website: http://bainbridgefarmgoods.com/
Coupon Code: Use PRAIRIEGIFT10 to save 10% off all orders through 12/14/14
Bulk Herb Store
Not only does Bulk Herb Store provide superior herbs and spices at the most competitive prices, they also will show you what their organic and wild crafted herbs are good for, and how to use them. We are passionate about giving you the products and friendly service that we would like to receive, being there every step of the way to help you on your journey towards natural health.
Jill’s Pick: There are so many options, a gift certificate would be a fantastic way to allow the recipient to pick and choose. Or combine a gift certificate with one of the many herbal books Bulk Herb Store carries, or the Making Herbs Simple DVD set.
Website: www.BulkHerbStore.com (you’ll also find FREE research aids, remedies, recipes, educational articles, how-to videos and much more)
Coupon Code: Enter coupon code BIG10 at checkout to receive 10% off your entire order, through 12/31/14. Not applicable with Water Filters, Specials, Accessories or Gift Cards. Cannot be combined with any other discounts.
You know you’re a homesteader when you ask for a strange-looking mushroom-pancake thing for Christmas! But, those initiated into kombucha are fans for a reason– it’s an amazing fermented tea provides probiotic action and a myriad of health benefits. Plus, it’s easy to keep it going in your kitchen and is a healthier alternative to soda pop.
Jill’s Pick: I got my Kombucha SCOBY from GetKombucha.com and it’s still going strong. The kombucha mushroom kit is an excellent choice for the kombucha newbie, as it contains everything you need to get started. Or, the Gold Continuous Brewing System is a good pick for the hardcore kombucha brewer.
Website: www.getkombucha.com
Coupon Code: Use code homestead25 to get $25 off the CBS Gold Brewing System.
Favorites for the Homestead Bookshelf
(affiliate links)
- Natural Homestead – My debut print book with all sorts of recipe, formulas, and recommendations for concocting natural options for your garden, barnyard, and critters.
- Nourished Kitchen – I seriously want to put this cookbook on my coffee table. It’s THAT elegant and is fill with traditional recipe goodness.
- Fresh and Fermented – A fabulous initiation in the world of fermented foods. This would be a wonderful pairing with the Basic Starter Kit from Fermentools.com.
- Encyclopedia of Country Living – If I could only have ONE homesteading book, THIS would be it.
- The Backyard Homestead – A wonderfully simple look at growing a lot of food in a very small space
Sally at Garden Valley Homestead says
Jill, I love your gift guide! You didn’t it again!
I’m happy to see Bulk Herb Store in the mix. I shop there regularly. A (local) friend of mine is their photographer (Laura Newman Photography) So it’s fun to see her work “in lights” when stop in.
Glad you like, too.
Joyce says
The Roo Gardening Apron is $29.95, not $24.95. Just FYI.
Kelsey @ Snacking Squirrel says
🙂 right on!
Jean Mayer says
After being diagnosed as a “pre-diabetic” in March of 2010, I made significant changes in my diet, and almost five years later, my A-1-C numbers remain in the normal range. Store-bought jams did not taste the same, so I began making sugar-free jams…blueberry, blackberry, strawberry and peach. I love cranberries, so when cranberries arrived at our grocery store this fall, I thought…”why not!” I bought six 12 oz. bags of fresh cranberries! Basically, I used the same recipe that I had devised for our other favorite fruits, and the Cranberry Jam turned out GREAT!
After Thanksgiving, I went online and discovered your site where I saw your Cranberry Jam recipe. I’ve used Splenda in my recipe, but you may prefer to substitute another “artificial sweetner.” Your site invited online guests to share their recipes, so here is my sugar-free Cranberry Jam recipe:
Cranberry Holiday Jam
INGREDIENTS:
4 lbs. of Fresh Cranberries (should equal 16 cups of ground Cranberries)
3 cups of Apple Cider (not vinegar)
Juice and Zest from one large Orange, seeds removed
Juice of 1 to 2 fresh Lemons, seeds removed (lemon zest may be added, if desired)
3 Tbsps. Butter
3 to 4 Pkgs. of Sure-Jell No Sugar Needed
8 to 10 cups granulated Splenda
PREPARATION AND PROCESSING:
Prepare “filling” area for transferring hot jam into hot sterilized pint jars. Tools needed are (1) Canning Funnel, (2) a dipper or cup to transfer jam to jars, (3) a Jar Lifter to remove sterilized jars from hot water, (4) 8 sterilized pint jars sitting in very hot (but not boiling) water, (5) a magnetic lid lifter to remove lids from hot water (6) paper towels for damp-wiping jam from mouth of filled jar, (7) a hand towel for holding filled jars as the Jar Rings are tightened by hand or with a Jar Wrench, and (8) eight lids sitting in hot water (not boiling) until ready to place on jam-filled jars. Use a 7 to 8 quart pot for cooking the jam.
After filling jars with hot boiling jam, thoroughly damp-wipe the rim of each filled jar before placing a sterilized lid on the jar; then immediately add the jar-ring and tightened by hand or jar wrench. Set filled jars in an area where they will not be moved for 24 hours. Approximately 30 to 40 minutes after the jars have been sealed, the lids should “pop” indicating that the jar lid has sealed as the jam cooled to room temperature. If the center of the lid does not pop downward by the time the jam has cooled to room-temperature, the jam must be reheated in a Pressure Canner for sealing, or must be refrigerated for consumption. *Consult Pressure Canner instructions for amount of time to “pressure-cook” jars of jam.
SUGGESTION: Read through all Steps of Directions before beginning to cook the jam mixture.
NOTE: Heat Settings: I use an electric stove that has temperature settings from 1 to 10; I start heating the jam at “4” heat-setting and increase to a “5” heat-setting to bring the mixture to a rolling boil.
DIRECTIONS:
1. Cull out any bruised or overly soft cranberries, and set the berries outside for hungry winter birds. Thoroughly wash the remaining cranberries and remove any stems. Use a Food Processor to chop the washed cranberries, which should yield about 16 cups. Transfer the chopped cranberries to a 8-quart cooking pot. Add Apple Cider, juice and zest from one orange, and juice from one lemon. Start the heat at a medium-low temperature.
2. While cranberries and juice begin to warm, add 3 Tbsps. of Butter to the cranberry mixture. Next, gradually add 3 packets of Sure Jell No Sugar Needed and thoroughly stir into cranberries. Then, gradually add 8 cups of Splenda, gradually stirring in the Splenda with each one-cup addition…up to 8 cups. *In Step 4 when testing for sweetness, more Splenda may be gradually stirred into the hot jam to “taste.”
Once the 8 cups of Splenda have been stirred into the jam mixture, increase the heat to bring the mixture to a “rolling boil” stirring constantly. Use a heat-proof spatula (not metal) to constantly stir and scrape the bottom center of the pot to prevent scorching the jam.
3. As the mixture reaches a rolling boil, continue stirring the mixture to avoid scorching the jam. Cook at a rolling boil for 30 to 40 minutes.
5. TASTE and THICKNESS TEST: Begin testing a small amount of hot jam in a bowl for sweetness; let the jam sample cool to room temperature or chill for about 4 minutes in your freezer. If no additional Sure-Jell or Splenda is needed, you are ready to transfer the jam to sterilized jars.
If a sweeter jam is preferred, gradually add 1 cup of Splenda at a time until jam reaches the level of preferred sweetness.
If the jam consistency is too thin, add a half or a whole package of Sure-Jell No Sugar Added. Or, if the jam is too thick, add 1/4 cup of Apple Cider. To check for preferred thickness, let the jam sample cool, then use a spoon to lift the jam from the bowl. The jam should be soft and spreadable, but not runny. After the final Taste and Thickness adjustment has been made, cook the jam at a low-boil for an additional 5 to 10 minutes. (This is a good time to review the steps of filling the canning jars.)
6. When the jam is ready to put into sterilized jars, keep the jam at a low boiling stage while filling the jars. Work quickly while the jam mixture is very hot. This recipe makes 7 to 8 pint jars of jam.
7. Serve on hot buttered biscuits or toast.
HAPPY HOLIDAYS AND MAY GOD BLESS YOU
Jill Winger says
Thanks for sharing your recipe, Jean!!