A couple of weeks ago I said I’d bake a loaf of sourdough every day for a week. That hasn’t happened. It’s not for lack of effort. My starter has other plans. Where things stood If you’re just joining us, I scrapped my first starter and started over in mid-August using the King Arthur instructions. … Read more
Giant puffball mushrooms might be my new favorite thing to forage. They’re beginner-friendly to find, identify, and cook, which makes them a fun place to start if you’re new to hunting wild mushrooms. They’re also hard to miss. When you find one, you’re not exactly squinting at the forest floor trying to figure out which … Read more
I waited 30 days for my starter to act like a starter. Thirty days. At that point, I’d put in enough time on a jar of flour and water that I figured I’d earned a loaf of bread. What I got instead was a rubbery, flat, delicious-smelling failure. Bread’s a bitch. If you’re looking for … Read more
It’s hard to ask someone about their disability without worrying you’ll say the wrong thing. So most people don’t ask Brandon. They ask me. Here’s the thing — Brandon has a great sense of humor about all of it. This morning he sent me a post from another disabled outdoorsman: “Yeah, I have a disability. … Read more
You probably have native wildflowers growing in your yard and don’t even know it. We didn’t. We spent years looking at our backyard without really seeing what was growing there. This summer, that changed. It started with a garden. We added a lean-to onto our shop this summer — a little covered porch for morning … Read more
Pressure canning can feel intimidating. Especially when you’re standing over a batch of green beans, venison, or chicken wondering if you’ve done everything right. I’ve been pressure canning for years, and I still don’t rely on memory. Before I start a batch, I slow down and work through the same basic checks every time. This … Read more
Making your own sourdough starter sounds simple enough: flour, water, a jar, and a little patience. So why is mine still sitting on my counter 19 days later refusing to double? That’s the question I’ve been trying to answer. I started making sourdough because I love the bread and already had the two ingredients needed … Read more
I did a thing today. I applied to become a Master Gardener Volunteer through the University of Minnesota. Until about a month ago, I didn’t even know the program existed. We were catching up with a friend whose mom had recently retired, and I asked what she’d been doing with all her free time. Along … Read more
Ask someone where they caught their biggest walleye, and you’ll probably get a vague answer. Ask a forager where they pick wild blueberries, and you’ll get the same response. While you may not get the exact location from a seasoned forager, what doesn’t change is the environment where wild blueberries grow and thrive. If you … Read more
July kicks off berry-picking season, and I couldn’t be more excited. If you’ve ever wanted to try foraging but weren’t sure where to start, wild raspberries and blackberries are two of the easiest berries to identify in northern Minnesota. They grow naturally throughout Zone 3, they’re plentiful, and chances are you’ve already eaten them countless … Read more