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Our First Beef Harvest
Time really flies when you're working your tail off (ha). The months came and went, and suddenly our long awaited butcher date had...
Aug 31, 20222 min read


Wild Maine Blueberry Pie
My blueberry pie & sourdough crust recipe! Goes great after a Dirigo Ranch beef roast for dinner!
Aug 16, 20223 min read


Garden of Eatin'
Part of my homestead dream for the ranch, included a good sized portager ("kitchen") garden.
Apr 12, 20212 min read


Farm & Forage Recipe: Violet Syrup
Spring foraged violet syrup recipe
May 20, 20203 min read


Garden Series: Preservation - Update 3
Garden season is coming to a close (cue the sad violins)… One of the things I love most about summer, is the fewer groceries I buy from the
Aug 28, 20193 min read


Garden Series: Oh My Gourd! - Update 2
Squash, pumpkins, & gourds, oh my! This year we decided to try our hand at a pumpkin patch.
Aug 23, 20193 min read


Tea Time
One afternoon, watering my many lavender plants, it occurred to me that I was more than fully capable of recreating it at a fraction of the
Aug 14, 20192 min read


Maine Maple Saturday
While our operation is not currently big enough to warrant visitors, this year we did invest in a larger homemade sap evaporator for the who
Mar 26, 20193 min read


DIY Spray Cleaner
Two-for-one deals are my favorite, especially when it means one less thing I have to buy from a store.
Mar 18, 20192 min read


Country Candles
Using the rendered lard that we had from butchering our pork hogs this year, I decided to make my own candles.
Mar 18, 20192 min read


Lard Have Mercy
With the return of pork from our homestead pigs, we were also given quite a few bags of pig fat. Now, what does one do with bag fulls of fat
Mar 9, 20192 min read


We're a Couple of Saps...
Winter feels a lot longer when you become a gardener and keeper of livestock. The sunshine months are when everything glitters...
Feb 20, 20193 min read


Eating at the Ground Level
Why do we bother? All this extra work and time spent making, baking, prepping, tending, feeding and watering. It seems like a lot - and some
Jan 29, 20194 min read


S.W.A.S. - We're Talkin' Butter
Start With A Stick (SWAS) - that's the age-old Harper family motto on the use of butter.
Jan 15, 20193 min read


To Provide for the Family
We harvested our first duck for Christmas dinner.
Dec 23, 20182 min read


From Scratch, With Love
I am proud to say that we have accomplished much of what we set out to do on the Homestead this year. We are raising our feathered and furr
Dec 14, 20184 min read


Putting Our Eggs in a Basket...
We are very proud to have our eggs featured in their dishes, and to be considered part of their collection of quality local farms.
Dec 7, 20181 min read


Tis The Season(ing)...
Using whatever variety of dried herbs you like, place in a mortar with pestle and add course salt and peppercorns.
Dec 6, 20182 min read


Bless This Mess
In preparation for the big day, I can be a little intense... The Homestead Husband knows to stay faaar out of this Big Momma's way, when
Nov 23, 20183 min read


Homemade Cranberry Sauce
It's the turkey day staple - cranberry sauce. Although the jelly-like tin can variety has the spotlight usually, I tried my hand at maki
Nov 19, 20182 min read
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