21 Days Eating Only What We Can Grow
- Thread starter Mark
- Start date
I thought you grew hibiscus? no jam in the cupboard ?? also the calyx has natural source of pectin. and where is your stevia patch???
I’m loving this challenge Mark and as I said on your latest update on SSM2 you’ve inspired me to try it once my new vegetable garden is producing!
The food you are making looks freakin delicious, I bet you’ll find a few meals that’ll become favourites after you finish the challenge.
Keep up the good work, it is very interesting!
The food you are making looks freakin delicious, I bet you’ll find a few meals that’ll become favourites after you finish the challenge.
Keep up the good work, it is very interesting!
Hi @Mark just watched your latest YouTube, you are both doing really good and those veggie patties looked very yummy.
Re your chickens laying. Might not help this time round but maybe for the future. I’ve had my 3 on MotherHen chook food. Very high protein. Decided to go for a higher quality feed this time round and honestly they have not stopped laying. I am getting 3 eggs most days From 3 chooks and the colour of the yolk is incredible.
If you buy 4 bags they will deliver for free. https://motherhenaustralia.com.au/ Worth looking at.
Re your chickens laying. Might not help this time round but maybe for the future. I’ve had my 3 on MotherHen chook food. Very high protein. Decided to go for a higher quality feed this time round and honestly they have not stopped laying. I am getting 3 eggs most days From 3 chooks and the colour of the yolk is incredible.
If you buy 4 bags they will deliver for free. https://motherhenaustralia.com.au/ Worth looking at.
Yes re the stevia patch. Next time you do this experiment Mark, think ahead and get that stevia patch firing first! ........And a milking goat or some white nuts for milk!
or rice or sunflower seeds I think can be used. There's no reason why you couldn't grow a container or 3 of rice (not the dry type Australia grows but the water growing type).
Now re your cornbread situation. To make the gluten and starch more elastic, use hand-hot water in place of tap cold.
If you have a bread maker, put your dough in there for 15-30mins to knead. Let the machine do the hard work.
The resulting dough will be far better. Also, use 2tbsp oil or fat per 1.5cups plain flour or ground grain as well to make a very sticky dough.
Prove in a very warm place 40mins after it's been in the breadmaker to knead.
or rice or sunflower seeds I think can be used. There's no reason why you couldn't grow a container or 3 of rice (not the dry type Australia grows but the water growing type).
Now re your cornbread situation. To make the gluten and starch more elastic, use hand-hot water in place of tap cold.
If you have a bread maker, put your dough in there for 15-30mins to knead. Let the machine do the hard work.
The resulting dough will be far better. Also, use 2tbsp oil or fat per 1.5cups plain flour or ground grain as well to make a very sticky dough.
Prove in a very warm place 40mins after it's been in the breadmaker to knead.
Hi Mark.
Good on ya mate! you're doing well so far.
If you plan on doing this again next year, I can give you a suggestion on how to move forward to being a little more prepared.!!!
This requires a bit of perserverance and dedication.
First: Make a list of everything you eat. I mean everything even those snacks you talk about in your latest video.
Second: Make a list of everything you CAN grow. Everything that can be grown in your area that is available to you.
Third: The next list is about comparing the first 2 and making a third and then commiting to changing the way you are eating to include the things you can grow as at least 50% of your diet. The closer you get to 100% the better but 50% is a good start.
As a first suggestion you mentioned potato chips as a snack. I've seen your video on how to grow a ton of sweet potato and they make absolutely great chips for snacking on and you can store them frozen or dried to turn into chips when needed.
As for protein: you are correct you do need a fair bit of protein per day and as in the comments they talk about beans and lentils. A great protein for winter is the good old broad bean. The fava bean is a variety of broad bean that is slightly smaller and I personally think a little better in flavour. They can be eaten as pods when young and store for a long time dried. Hummus and a vegetarian meatloaf can be made from them as well as numerous other things.
There are tons of things that can be organised when you have time to prepare.
I congratulate you on doing this un-prepared!
Good on ya mate! you're doing well so far.
If you plan on doing this again next year, I can give you a suggestion on how to move forward to being a little more prepared.!!!
This requires a bit of perserverance and dedication.
First: Make a list of everything you eat. I mean everything even those snacks you talk about in your latest video.
Second: Make a list of everything you CAN grow. Everything that can be grown in your area that is available to you.
Third: The next list is about comparing the first 2 and making a third and then commiting to changing the way you are eating to include the things you can grow as at least 50% of your diet. The closer you get to 100% the better but 50% is a good start.
As a first suggestion you mentioned potato chips as a snack. I've seen your video on how to grow a ton of sweet potato and they make absolutely great chips for snacking on and you can store them frozen or dried to turn into chips when needed.
As for protein: you are correct you do need a fair bit of protein per day and as in the comments they talk about beans and lentils. A great protein for winter is the good old broad bean. The fava bean is a variety of broad bean that is slightly smaller and I personally think a little better in flavour. They can be eaten as pods when young and store for a long time dried. Hummus and a vegetarian meatloaf can be made from them as well as numerous other things.
There are tons of things that can be organised when you have time to prepare.
I congratulate you on doing this un-prepared!
Yes we do have jam but we're not eating it at the moment - we might though... As for stevia, we're not big fans of the taste to be honest
I do want to try this!
Thanks Clissa and we do have a breadmaker too. I must admit trying my best to work that cornmeal into a reasonable dough and it isn't the easiest thing to do
I wish we could but we practically ate most of our sweet potato before this experiment and it doesn't grow well through winter here, unfortunately...
Thanks for all the suggestions will do!
Hey @Mark, every time you say "jicama hickama" it reminds me that you can use Google to check your pronunciations for many words if you're unsure. If you search for "pronounce blah" then it will tell you how that word is generally said. Just click on the picture of the person's mouth to hear it spoken, and you can switch between British and American to hear the varations. Here are some example links:
Jicama - "jee carma" for Brits/Aussies, "hickama" for Americans
Celeriac - there's an i in there
Very interesting you said in the latest (week 1) video that Nina was having headaches. I had all sorts of withdrawal symptoms when I gave up eating processed foods with cane sugar (sucrose) in them, so it doesn't surprise me in the least! Unfortunately for me the withdrawal symptoms lasted for a number of weeks before I finally got over the sugar addiction, but giving it up made me feel so much better it was amazing.
Hopefully when you're done with the experiment you will try staying off sugar because it really keeps you feeling great.
Jicama - "jee carma" for Brits/Aussies, "hickama" for Americans
Celeriac - there's an i in there
Very interesting you said in the latest (week 1) video that Nina was having headaches. I had all sorts of withdrawal symptoms when I gave up eating processed foods with cane sugar (sucrose) in them, so it doesn't surprise me in the least! Unfortunately for me the withdrawal symptoms lasted for a number of weeks before I finally got over the sugar addiction, but giving it up made me feel so much better it was amazing.
Hopefully when you're done with the experiment you will try staying off sugar because it really keeps you feeling great.
I agree stevia is a bit over the top flavor-wise, but it beats black coffee.... now with some sweet cream, i would be better able to handle it without the stevia, BUT no milk cow
If you still have some tumeric and ginger left, I put that in the instapot, and make a tea.
25g of ginger and tumeric / L
A pinch of black pepper(helps with absorbing the tumeric)
If you want it sweet add honey to taste.
Soup or broth setting pressurized for 45 min
Strain, and cool.
Enjoy!
25g of ginger and tumeric / L
A pinch of black pepper(helps with absorbing the tumeric)
If you want it sweet add honey to taste.
Soup or broth setting pressurized for 45 min
Strain, and cool.
Enjoy!
Hi @Mark,
I'm interested in your coffee conundrum. I gave up sugar (to a certain point, I'm still adding a little in bread to feed the yeast and I'm not going to turn down a slice of homemade cake if offered) four months ago. This wasn't the shock you might be experiencing as I've been slowly weaning myself off the stuff for decades and I eat very little processed food. I did, however, experience some headaches and it's interesting that when I do occasionally eat something loaded with sugar I feel unwell. What has been a revelation is that I no longer need to sweeten my porridge. This would be unthinkable in normal circumstances.
Back to your coffee problem. I haven't added sugar in my coffee for decades. I drink it black. But... I don't buy coffee out and I only make my own. I find (not that I can afford it these days) purchased coffee often bitter. I'm not a barista and I can't link you to any articles (long since read and forgotten) but I think that it's not only the type of beans but how you make it that can make it bitter. Also, I'm wondering if your taste buds are slowly evolving which might help.
I purchase ground coffee online and I use (one of the cheapest models available, nothing flash) a coffee machine. I get a divine sugarless cup of coffee in the morning in the comfort of my pyjamas without leaving home at a fraction of the cost.
Tamara
I'm interested in your coffee conundrum. I gave up sugar (to a certain point, I'm still adding a little in bread to feed the yeast and I'm not going to turn down a slice of homemade cake if offered) four months ago. This wasn't the shock you might be experiencing as I've been slowly weaning myself off the stuff for decades and I eat very little processed food. I did, however, experience some headaches and it's interesting that when I do occasionally eat something loaded with sugar I feel unwell. What has been a revelation is that I no longer need to sweeten my porridge. This would be unthinkable in normal circumstances.
Back to your coffee problem. I haven't added sugar in my coffee for decades. I drink it black. But... I don't buy coffee out and I only make my own. I find (not that I can afford it these days) purchased coffee often bitter. I'm not a barista and I can't link you to any articles (long since read and forgotten) but I think that it's not only the type of beans but how you make it that can make it bitter. Also, I'm wondering if your taste buds are slowly evolving which might help.
I purchase ground coffee online and I use (one of the cheapest models available, nothing flash) a coffee machine. I get a divine sugarless cup of coffee in the morning in the comfort of my pyjamas without leaving home at a fraction of the cost.
Tamara
Tamara said "I get a divine sugarless cup of coffee in the morning in the comfort of my pyjamas without leaving home"
YES! that is the way to have coffee! Sitting on one's own verandah watching the little birds visit my garden.
All these people now working from home should finally be able to experience this for themselves.
The pleasure of the morning coffee drunk at one's own pace, inplace of the mad 40min commute!
I think too, regarding taste buds and types of coffee, is that these days the processing of coffee has become so technical and scientific, that it is made to order depending on whether the finished cup will be drunk sweetened, white or black.
It might be that Mark and Nina have to change their brand of coffee to one designed to be drunk black and unsweetened.
Now if they lived in Gympie they could rock on over to the Nestle factory in town and test out some flavours!
YES! that is the way to have coffee! Sitting on one's own verandah watching the little birds visit my garden.
All these people now working from home should finally be able to experience this for themselves.
The pleasure of the morning coffee drunk at one's own pace, inplace of the mad 40min commute!
I think too, regarding taste buds and types of coffee, is that these days the processing of coffee has become so technical and scientific, that it is made to order depending on whether the finished cup will be drunk sweetened, white or black.
It might be that Mark and Nina have to change their brand of coffee to one designed to be drunk black and unsweetened.
Now if they lived in Gympie they could rock on over to the Nestle factory in town and test out some flavours!
thats the way to do it, we just processed 8 roosters this morning, and still have about 20kg of pork in the freezer,
vegie patch is coming along well, and fruit tree's but alittle off being able to chomp away to our hearts delights
vegie patch is coming along well, and fruit tree's but alittle off being able to chomp away to our hearts delights
Not enough eggs and protein? Why not Raise New Zealand white rabbits? They produce loads of meat and fertilizer....
Rabbits are illegal in many parts of Australia as they are an introduced pest and cause big problems for the native wildlife.
Other small animals such as chickens and quail are ok and Mark has both. He could also go fishing!
Or trade some excess veg for a young goat or pig? Where's Ray Speed?
Bartering should not be forgotten as a viable method of supplementing the produce supply.
Or trade some excess veg for a young goat or pig? Where's Ray Speed?
Bartering should not be forgotten as a viable method of supplementing the produce supply.
Just watched your final video, it was lovely. Missing dairy would certainly be difficult because it goes into so many foods/recipes without even thinking about it. We are just harvesting our new potatos and the thought of eating them without butter is unthinkable. So well done both of you. The fermented tomatos looked interesting, will you show a video about this, we would like to look into that. We make a passata from our tomatos and freeze it to use for our Italian cooking. Anyway, your video was well worth the wait.
- Jun 18, 2020
- 58
- 40
- 41
- Climate
- Temperate (all seasons)
Full movie is out )
Good job Mark on sticking to it! And I feel for you for not sharing a big family meal every day - I love those as well, grew up with them and still enjoy them a lot!
With regards to pickling, which I noticed in the video was a surprise for you and a new interest on how to do more - I believe you need to learn from the temperate countries techniques. I didn't realize up until this video how you're pickling (albeit I did wonder why you were content with just 2 bottles of tomato juice when the cherry video came out) ) enough to last your family.
Even if the climate allows you to get everything fresh most of the time, the pickled food (as you've noticed) has a different and in some cases amazing taste and I think you should do more of that. You'll find pickle recipes that last for months (or even up to 1-2 years) that people in other climates use.
Also I'm curious... you like chilly peppers a lot - did you ever eat chilly jam? It's one of my favorites...
)Good job Mark on sticking to it! And I feel for you for not sharing a big family meal every day - I love those as well, grew up with them and still enjoy them a lot!
With regards to pickling, which I noticed in the video was a surprise for you and a new interest on how to do more - I believe you need to learn from the temperate countries techniques. I didn't realize up until this video how you're pickling (albeit I did wonder why you were content with just 2 bottles of tomato juice when the cherry video came out
) ) enough to last your family.Even if the climate allows you to get everything fresh most of the time, the pickled food (as you've noticed) has a different and in some cases amazing taste and I think you should do more of that. You'll find pickle recipes that last for months (or even up to 1-2 years) that people in other climates use.
Also I'm curious... you like chilly peppers a lot - did you ever eat chilly jam? It's one of my favorites...