How’s the Sugar Free Experiment Going for Erik?

...as how nutrition interacts with human customs, rituals and beliefs. That said, processed sugar is definitely bad. I have no doubt about that. And I don’t think I need to tell the readers of this blog that processed foods as a whole are what are making us unhealthy. But as I discovered in my own life, it’s difficult to avoid sugar. It’s in everything the big food companies make. Making time to cook from scratch and eating a diverse variety of food...

Read…

Worth Doing From Scratch: Corn Tortillas

...f that’s easy and economical. Now you should be suspicious of any tortilla making advice dispensed by a gabacho. Let’s just say it’s easy and the results are way better than those dry tortillas you buy at the store. Some things I’ve learned: I have a cast iron tortilla press that works great but my Mexicano friends in the know suggested a wooden press. Making masa from scratch is a huge amount of work and I’ve done just fine with supermarket masa...

Read…

Saturday Tweets: Addictive Snacks and Ninja Houses

...e chickpeas are killer) https://t.co/u79ixiFHLG — Michael Pollan (@michaelpollan) January 23, 2016 Ninja House: Open-Ceiling Layout is an Agility Course | Designs & Ideas on Dornob https://t.co/6V12RzOYJD via @dornobdesign — Root Simple (@rootsimple) January 19, 2016 Build this Solar Powered Hydroponic Water Garden on Wheels – MUST READ! https://t.co/PXhU21ji7m — Root Simple (@rootsimple) January 18, 2016 Internet of Things security is so bad, the...

Read…

A Little Free Blockbuster

...s on the Garden Fork Podcast, the host, “East Coast Eric” challenged me to build a Free Blockbuster Little Library and I finally made good on the promise. I managed to install this garishly painted DVD, VHS, CD and video game themed little free library in our parkway yesterday as the sun went down. With the exception of the hinges and Lucite, I used repurposed materials and patterned the design after a lararium I saw online. I downloaded a digital...

Read…

Getting started with worms

...bins (like Rubbermaid bins) and a drill. Here are two resources for how-to build a plastic bin. One is at vermicomposting.net. Another is in pdf form, available through this link to Oregon State Extension Services. Our favorite resources: It would take pages and pages for us to tell you how to make and maintain a worm bin, or explain the general amazingness of worms, and this information is already freely available on the Internet. So for further...

Read…