Category Archives: Recipes to Rely On

Easy Elderberry Jam Recipe

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A Fast, Simple, Delicious Elderberry Refrigerator Jam Made from Dried Elderberries

Got 30 minutes and some dried elderberries? Then you’ve got elderberry jam!

Got 30 minutes and some dried elderberries? Then you’ve got elderberry jam!

There’s no faster or easier elderberry jelly or jam recipe. Since it’s a refrigerator jam, this recipe requires no canning or processing after the jam is made. Fill the jars, pop in the fridge, and you’ve got one more easy way to incorporate the goodness of elderberry into your everyday diet.

There’s no faster or easier elderberry jelly or jam recipe. Since it’s a refrigerator jam, this recipe requires no canning or processing after the jam is made. Fill the jars, pop in the fridge, and you’ve got one more easy way to incorporate the goodness of elderberry into your everyday diet.

Easiest Elderberry Jam

Ingredients:

Elderberry Jam Jars

Instructions:

Measure the ½ cup dried elderberries into a small glass bowl or two-cup glass measuring cup. Add the ¾ cup cold water to the dried berries. Cover and refrigerate overnight (or eight to twelve hours) to rehydrate berries. (Alternatively, if you are short on time, you may bring the water and berries to a low boil and then simmer for 10 to 15 minutes. Time permitting, rehydration is slightly better with the overnight cold-soak method, but either method will work. Read here for more on how to rehydrate dried elderberries for recipes.)

Pour the rehydrated elderberries and any remaining juice/water into a medium saucepan. Add the lemon juice and additional ½ cup water, stir to combine, then bring to a boil.

  • soak elderberries overnight
  • rehydrated elderberry for jam from dried elderberries
  • elderberry jam in food processor
  • pour hot elderberry jam in jars
  • making elderberry jelly
  • Elderberry jam in jars
  • Elderberry Jam Jars

Remove from heat and carefully transfer the mixture into a blender or food processor. Keeping your hand on the lid of the blender, blend the berry mixture until a smooth, uniform consistency is reached (a few minutes).

Return the blended mixture to the pan. Sprinkle the powdered pectin over the berry mixture. Let rehydrate for one minute and stir to incorporate.

Stir constantly while heating and bring the mix to a full rolling boil that cannot be stirred down. Turn off the heat. Add the honey (or sugar). Stir to combine.

Heat, stir, and return the entire mixture to a rolling boil. Continue to boil for one minute, then remove from heat. Skim foam if necessary.

Pour the hot jam into jars. Cap and let cool for several hours. Refrigerator jam must be stored in the refrigerator, even before use, and is not considered shelf-stable at room temperature as it is not a canned product.

Yields three, eight-ounce jars of jam.

*This recipe originally appeared in The Complete Elderberry Tea Book. It has been adapted from a recipe from Frontier Co-Op, with changes made to improve sweetness and instructions. Enjoy!

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All-Butter Pie Crust Recipe

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Homemade Pie Crust Recipe for Two Crust Pie

I’m not sure whether or not the world needs another pie crust recipe, but to be honest, every time I post a picture of one of my pies, whether on Facebook, Instagram, or some homesteading group, at least one person asks for my recipe. Nine times out of ten my pies are made with all butter crusts, and so, here is my pie crust recipe made with all butter.

Jump to recipe. Skip the blah, blah, blah.

Why All Butter Pie Crust?

Fresh Homemade Butter

My reasons for making pie crust with all butter (as opposed to shortening or another fat) are simple.

I have a cow.

And so, I make a lot of butter and do what I can to maximize the use of her dairy.

But there are other great reasons for making an all-butter pie crust, too:

  • FLAVOR! It’s butter. Enough said.
  • Flakiness. Butter makes one of the flakiest crusts. it’s why French Croissants are nothing but layered, “laminated” sheets of butter and flour (well, just about).
  • It’s natural. Butter is a natural fat, as opposed to vegetable shortening, which is hydrogenated vegetable oil. Shortening is actually higher in trans fats and calories. Butter has a lower total fat count and contains good percentages of essential vitamins, too. These are mostly fat-soluble vitamins which need good natural fats in order to be absorbed in the body.

That said, no doubt what you really want is the recipe. So here it is. If you care to read on after the recipe, you’ll find a few more tidbits of information (including fat substitutions for this all-butter pie crust).

All-Butter Pie Crust

Makes one two-crust pie crust

Ready to Roll All-Butter Pie Crust Dough

Ingredients:

  • 2 C all-purpose flour
  • 3/4 C cold butter
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1/3 C cold milk* (more as needed)

Instructions:

  1. Measure the flour into a medium-sized mixing bowl. Sprinkle salt evenly over the top.
  2. Stir through to combine.
  3. Cut the butter into chunks and add to the flour and salt mixture.
  4. Cut in the butter until a coarse, even meal-like mixture is formed.
  5. Add cold milk, pouring evenly through the flour mixture.
  6. Press and fold with a rubber spatula or large spoon until the dough comes together. Add more milk in small amounts if needed. Do not overmix; stop when dough forms a ball.
  7. Split dough into two even balls. Wrap in plastic wrap or place in sealed container and refrigerate for one half to one hour (or overnight) before rolling.
  8. When working dough, whether mixing or rolling, work only as long as you need to. This will make your crust flakier, and help avoid toughness.

*May substitute cold ice water for cold milk if desired.

The Only (Kind of, Not Really) “Downside” to All-Butter Pie Crust

If there is a downside to an all-butter pie crust, it’s only that crusts made with only butter lose their shape a little more than crusts made with shortening or lard. It’s not an issue for the crust itself, it’s really just around the edges and the crimping where this tends to happen.

One way to minimize this and help keep the shape a little better is to return the prepared, crimped pie to the refrigerator or freezer for a half hour to an hour before baking. Then go directly from fridge to oven. That will stiffen the butter and allow it to cook before it melts (that’s the condensed version) and the crimping won’t be quite as lost. It’s truly aesthetic, though, and as you can see from the pictures it certainly does not mean you get a bad-looking pie!

Fat Substitutions for the All-Butter Pie Crust Recipe

I always think it’s a little funny when someone asks me if I have a recipe for a pie crust with just butter in it. Because there truly is no mystery here.

Any pie crust recipe can be made with butter. All you do is use an equal measure of butter in place of whatever fat is called for in the recipe you have (no matter if it’s lard or shortening). Everything else stays the same.

All-butter pie crust pies. Homemade butter pie crust.

One thing I do often do, though, is to cut the fat in the recipe and use half lard, half butter. This gives me another natural fat option (one I also tend to have around as we frequently raise pigs and render fresh lard for cooking and baking). A lard and butter crust will hold its shape better than an all-butter crust, and also lends a robust, savory flavor to the pies. It is an especially nice flavor for pot pies and meat pies. Lard is a lot healthier than we’ve been led to believe, too. It’s definitely worth your while to learn a little more about this not-so-unhealthy natural fat in its pure form.

A Real Homemade Pumpkin Pie Recipe That Works!

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Pumpkin Pie from Scratch, Made from Real Pumpkins (Or Squash!)

Looking for a great scratch pumpkin pie recipe made from real, actual, whole pumpkins? Here’s one I’ve been tweaking off and on for years!

Sugar or pie pumpkins are generally one of the easiest things to grow on the homestead (assuming you have space to put up with the vines). Homegrown pumpkins, or even fresh-bought sugar pumpkins* from the store or farmers’ market, make the best pumpkin pies and pumpkin treats. As long as you have the recipes to use them!

What I like best about this recipe is that it does not require evaporated or condensed milk. That’s kind of hard to find in a pumpkin pie recipe. I have an aversion to adding processed and commercially canned products to my recipes if I can avoid it, because I want them as natural as can be, using as much of my homegrown and home-produced goodness as possible. Since I have a dairy cow, I want a real milk recipe. Actually, even when we have not had fresh cow’s milk of our own, I want real dairy instead of the processed canned stuff.

Homemade pumpkin pie made from real pumpkin

(*NOTE “field pumpkins” can also be used for baking homemade recipes from real pumpkins. You can also substitute any winter squash in equal measurements in place of the pumpkin. All the same instructions from roasting to baking apply, you just use squash instead.)

Converting Canned Pumpkin Recipes for Baking with Real Pumpkins

There’s no big trick to converting a recipe that calls for canned pumpkin into one made with fresh or homegrown pumpkin. Yes, you have to cook the pumpkin first—and for that, I’ll always recommend roasting (see below), as it makes a nice, firm, pumpkin puree similar in moisture and texture to the canned stuff (but better tasting…and many sources say that canned stuff is really a variety of squash, not pumpkin at all…maybe why we don’t notice much of a difference between “their” pumpkin and squash?).

>> To use fresh pumpkin in place of canned, use your homemade roasted pumpkin puree in equal parts. So, if the recipe calls for one cup of canned pumpkin, use one cup of homemade pumpkin puree.
>> If a recipe calls for one can of pumpkin puree (usually referring to a 15-ounce can), make life easy and use 2 cups of your homemade puree. The tiny difference only gives you a firmer, less-wet baked result. It totally works!

How Many Pumpkins to Roast for Pumpkin Puree

A typical small sugar pumpkin will yield about 1 ½ cups of finished pumpkin puree; a medium pumpkin yields more towards 2 ½ to 3 cups. Field pumpkins can be more variable because they tend to have more seeds and “guts” but you should get at least 3 cups of puree from the average field or carving pumpkin.

>> For one pie bake two small pumpkins
>> Will yield 2+ cups of puree = to 1 can of pumpkin

For one pumpkin pie I usually bake at least two pie pumpkins. When deciding how many pumpkins to roast for a pumpkin pie or other pumpkin recipe, it’s usually a good idea to bake more than your estimate. No worries—any leftover puree can always be frozen in a Tupperware™, deli container, or Ziploc™, freezer, or vacuum seal bag.

Roast the Pumpkins, Make Pumpkin Puree

To make your pumpkin pie from scratch, you’ll first have to roast the pumpkin and make it into a puree. Don’t be nervous, there’s nothing easier. I often roast the pumpkin ahead of time and freeze it, and/or I will roast and make more puree than I need when I am baking and then throw the extra in the freezer in a deli container or plastic bag.

To roast the pumpkins:

  • Cut pumpkins in half the long way (stem to blossom end—if you screw this up and cut it width-wise, it’s no big deal and it ruins nothing, this is just an easier way to cut it)
  • Scoop out all the loose seeds and strings. Reserve the seeds to roast them if you like. https://cookieandkate.com/roasted-pumpkin-seeds-recipe/
  • Cover the bottom of a baking sheet (with sides!) with water and place the pumpkin halves cut-side-down on the baking pan.
  • Roast at 375° for 45 minutes or until soft—you should be able to stick a fork through the skin and into the pumpkin meat.
Real pumpkin purée

Let roasted pumpkins cool for half an hour until easily handled, then make your puree:

  • Using a spoon, scoop the soft pumpkin into a medium or large mixing bowl (or into the bowl of a stand mixer).
  • Use a beater, blender, food processor, stand mixer, or immersion blender and beat the pumpkin until it reaches a smooth and even consistency.
  • Measure out 2 cups for the pumpkin pie recipe and freeze the remaining pumpkin puree for future use. Do NOT attempt to can the puree, as this is not considered safe in a home kitchen.

And without further ado, the recipe:

**Real Pumpkin Pie Recipe – Homemade Pumpkin Pie from Scratch

  • Beat all ingredients together for filling.
  • How to make homemade pumpkin pie from scratch from real pumpkins.
    Filling and crust ready to roll.
  • Roll one single pumpkin pie crust.
  • Pour filling into unbaked pie crust.
  • A foil guard helps to keep the crust from over-browning.
  • Bake at 450 for 15 minutes, the. 350 for 50 minutes. Perfect homemade pumpkin pie!

Ingredients:

  • 9- or 10-inch single pie crust, unbaked
  • 2 C homemade pumpkin puree
  • 1 ½ C whole milk
  • 1 C sugar
  • 1/8 C molasses
  • 2 large eggs, beaten
  • 2 TBSP melted butter
  • 1 TBSP cornstarch
  • ½ tsp salt
  • ½ tsp cinnamon
  • ½ tsp ginger
  • ½ tsp nutmeg

*Substitutions: Depending on preference and what you have on hand, 2 cups homemade squash puree may be substituted for the pumpkin. You may substitute 1 cup brown sugar for the sugar and molasses. You may substitute 1 ½ tsp pumpkin pie spice in place of the cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg.

Directions:

  • Preheat oven to 450°F.
  • Prepare pie crust. Use a single-crust, 9-inch or deep-dish pie crust (unbaked). (Note: recipe can make up to a 10-inch pie easily.)
  • Combine all ingredients into a medium mixing bowl or into the bowl of a stand mixer.
  • Using a whisk, handheld mixer, immersion blender, stand mixer, or food processor, beat the ingredients together until they are smooth and creamy.
  • Pour into prepared pie crust. Cover crimped edge with a guard or foil to prevent over-browning.
  • Place prepared pie on a baking sheet and carefully transfer to preheated oven.
  • Bake at 450° for 15 minutes, then reduce to 350° and bake for 50 minutes more or until done. Pie is done when a knife inserted near the center of the pie comes out clean. (But if you loathe the thought of ruining that pumpkin pie top perfection, here’s some advice on how to test a pumpkin pie for doneness without the knife!) https://www.realsimple.com/holidays-entertaining/holidays/thanksgiving/how-to-tell-pumpkin-pie-done

**adapted from the One-Pie Pumpkin recipe

That’s it! Perfect Pumpkin Pie from Homemade Pumpkin Puree. This recipe is a keeper for all your holidays and pumpkin cravings to come! Enjoy!

Can’t Buy it? Bake it!

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Easy Homemade Bread & Baking Resources

Not surprisingly, during this time of stocking up (and let’s be honest, flat-out panic buying), many of the items we take for granted are just not available on store shelves. Chief among them, bread…and bread is an important staple for many, most especially when the kids are all home and looking for lunches!

If you can bake your own bread, though, that dearth is less of an issue for you. And this looks like a good time to revive or to learn a new old trick or two, to better situate yourself to deal with not only this crisis, but future impacts that might come along.

Baking and Bread Recipes Designed for Modern Life & Times

easy standmixer bread, KitchenAid bread recipe

The goal of my site and my published works has always been to bring self-sustaining knowledge, tips, tricks, and skills, back to the masses; to modify recipes that make it possible for people to make more of their own, cleaner, better, tastier foods from scratch.

I acknowledge that this isn’t always easy when we are in the throes of our “normal” busy day to day lives. So, I’ve always tried to develop helpful posts and books with that in mind, and find the recipes and methods that fit a little more easily into daily life. I’ve had excellent feedback from a number of readers and users saying that they have found these resources to be exactly that—helpful, easier, less-intimidating, and more manageable for today’s busy home cooks.

Judging from the scarcity of flour and basic baking supplies in the stores, people are doing exactly that—becoming a little more self-sufficient, depending more on themselves, and getting lined up to at least be able to bake their own bread and foods for a bit. It’s an excellent skill for the everyday, but one thing we are also learning is that learning and honing a few of these skills now during our time of need is proving an excellent, in fact at times imperative, skill to have in your repertoire. Knowledge can never be lost, and is always worth having, now and in the future—these crazy days prove you never know when you might need to be a little more prepared toward self-sufficiency.

Bake-Your-Own Resources for Beginners to Experienced Bread Bakers

Following is a compiled list of my books and other resources that can help you fill the needs of your pantry while the shelves are bare (and maybe for a long time after!):

*All books are available through Amazon in both Paperback and for instant download via Kindle/Kindle Reader Apps.

Daily Homemade Bread easier, faster homemade bread

your stand mixer (think, KitchenAid® mixer breads). It uses instant/rapid rise yeast to speed and streamline the process.

No pan? No problem! Choose the French or Italian breads that only require a simple baking sheet!

no-knead bread recipes, bake no-knead bread

—so if your yeast supply is getting low, take a look at these recipes! No-Knead bread recipes are also excellent time savers, as the “hands-on” time is virtually nil (and the science of it is kind of fun, too). You’ll find bagels, rolls, and sweet treats, too.

mason jar baking mixes, prep baking mixes

The measuring and proportioning involved in making these mixes is a great project to do with kids—and one that extends learning in a practical way, too!

Even if you don’t want to take the time to make a lot of mixes ahead, the batches themselves make good, easy baking recipes with normal, minimal ingredients.

  • Sourdough Starter Recipe (Levain): Yeast is one of those somewhat scarce ingredients on the grocery stores lately—probably because they don’t stock as much as they used to, anyway, so it can sell out quick with just a few shoppers. Sourdough bread doesn’t need yeast, though. And you don’t need yeast to make a sourdough starter! This is a traditional, healthy bread (actually better tolerated by a lot of people because of the breakdown of the process), often used by frugal mothers and grandmothers and by rural-dwellers who didn’t rely on frequent trips to the corner store—they simply kept a starter culture going in the kitchen instead.

    And yes, you will find some easy sourdough bread recipes in the Quick-Time Homemade Bread book above!  (*Note: Though you do not need yeast to make a sourdough starter or to make sourdough bread, if you have a pinch to spare you can throw it in to make the process go a little faster.)

  • Beer Bread Recipe (plus make-your-own self-rising flour link): Beer bread is technically a quick-bread, but easier and unlike any other you’ve ever eaten.
easy beer bread recipe, no yeast necessary

It’s a quick bread a bit more like regular sandwich bread that is great to have with butter, as a dinner side, or with cheese, and it works well for sandwiches, too.

This recipe could be a real life-saver for those of you who are out of bread and out of time!




Math, Science, Life Skills, Learning…Baking Has a Lot of Educational & Life Value to Offer!

Let’s not forget—baking is actually a very valuable learning exercise that includes a lot of hands-on math and science, reading, and more. For many of you battling the boredom and looking for meaningful, useful ways to muddle through these awkward pseudo-homeschooling times, wrapping in some bread-making and baking activities is truly double-duty!

I hope you find these resources very useful. All are available via Amazon in paperback and for immediate download for Kindle and Kindle e-reader apps; just follow the above links.

Stay safe, take heart, and BE WELL!!




*This post contains affiliate links to helpful books and products, at no additional cost to the reader/purchaser. This will take you to secure login and purchasing via your personal Amazon account. NO personal information is shared with this website from Amazon. Links such as these help to support and maintain this website. Thank you for clicking through to purchase these products!

Easy Beer Bread – No Yeast Required!

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Grocery Store Bread Solutions and Substitutions You CAN Bake at Home!

Beer bread is fast and easy to bake and requires no yeast — and excellent substitute for any day, and especially when grocery store stocks are low!

With grocery store shelves rapidly emptying, it’s hard to get your hands on the everyday staples—bread, of course, being top among them.

This easy beer bread recipe is a great solution for when you are running out of bread and the store and local bakery are no help.

Beer bread does not need yeast and does not require kneading.

It needs only minimal ingredients that you probably have on hand, and is good for sandwich-making, as a dinner side, cheese plate partner, toast-maker, and much more.

Your biggest problem will be keeping enough made ahead, as it’s a real fan-favorite!

Some things to know about baking beer bread:
>> Beer Bread does not require yeast
>> Soda, seltzer, almost any carbonated beverage can be used in place of beer
>> Four simple ingredients 
>> 2 minutes of mixing
>> 1 hour to homemade bread!
>> Great for sandwiches, cheese plates, toast, & more
>> Basic, cheap beer is the best beer to use to make beer bread
>> You can make self-rising flour from basic pantry ingredients if you don’t have any on hand

NB: Most easy Beer Bread Recipes call for Self-Rising Flour. It’s easy to mix up if you don’t have any on hand. Click this link for easy instructions for making your own self-rising flour for your beer bread, or in fact for any recipe that calls for self-rising flour!




Easy 5-Minute Beer Bread

Ingredients:

  • 3 Cups self-rising flour
  • 3 Tablespoons sugar
  • ¼ Cup melted butter, divided
  • 1 Can beer (equal to 12 ounces, or 1 ½ cups)

Directions:

  • Preheat oven to 375 F.
  • Grease a 9 x 5 bread loaf pan (if you do not have a 9 x 5 pan, use whatever size you have—just know that you may need to adjust baking time up or down accordingly).
  • Melt the butter.
  • Combine the self-rising flour and sugar and stir through to combine.
  • Pour in 1/8 Cup of the melted butter (equal to 2 Tablespoons).
  • Pour in the can of beer.
  • Mix through until evenly combined. Try not to over-mix the batter, as this will “deflate” the beer’s carbonation and restrict the rise. It should not take more than a minute or two to mix the batter. Some lumpiness is normal when mixed.
  • Pour mix evenly into prepared bread loaf pan. Pour the remaining 1/8 cup melted butter over the top of the batter.
  • Place in oven and bake at 375 F for 45-50 min. To check if done, insert a toothpick about ½ to ¾ inch in. If it comes out clean or with few crumbs clinging to it, the loaf is done. It should be golden brown on top.
  • Remove from oven and cool for 5 minutes on a cooling rack. After cooling, invert the loaf to remove from the pan and cool before cutting and serving.
  • Enjoy!

A Couple Beer Bread Baking Tips & Ingredient Substitutions:

Beer bread typically has a crisp, crunchy crust due to the butter poured over it before baking. If you prefer a softer crust, mix ALL of the butter into the loaf and do not pour any over the top.

If you do not have beer, or prefer not to use it, you can substitute other carbonated beverages or sodas, such as Coca-Cola, Sprite, seltzer or tonic water. Some bakers have even created interesting flavored beer bread versions with things like Mountain Dew and Cherry Coke.




What’s the Best Beer to use to Make Beer Bread?

As for what type of beer to use for beer bread, you don’t need to overthink this. Use what you have—especially if you’re making beer bread just because you can’t find bread in the store and you need a quick and easy bread substitute!

That said, some darker beers can lend a deeper flavor—try dark ales, porters, Guinness, brown ales. Lite beers will make a lighter, whiter, bread.

The yeastier-tasting the beer, the more similar to a “real” traditional white yeast bread it will taste; but aside from taste, it’s the carbonation in the beer that is bringing the rise to the leavening agents in the self-rising flour, and you are not actually relying on any yeasts from the beers (which by the time of bottling is gone anyway).

Many, many people who make beer bread regularly have this to say about what beer to use for beer bread:

Don’t waste the good beer!

The difference in flavor is not all that perceptible, in the opinion of most beer bread bakers.

And so, it makes sense that you would use the cheapest beer you have on hand, or maybe the beer you don’t care for that got stuck in the back of the fridge.

And that, my friends, is all there is to baking easy beer bread at home–a simple, time-saving solution to bread shortages, or just a good, plain handy, helpful recipe to have on hand for delicious bread any time!

These easy homemade bread recipes are a great way to overcome bread shortages, too! Learn a new old trick that will ensure you never have to fear the bread aisle again!

Those of you with stand mixers might want to check this popular, well-loved bread-baking book, too!

*This post contains affiliate links to helpful books and products, at no additional cost to the reader/purchaser. This will take you to secure login and purchasing via your personal Amazon account. NO personal information is shared with this website from Amazon. Links such as these help to support and maintain this website. Thank you for clicking through to purchase these products!

Make Elderberry Jelly from Dried Elderberries!

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Elderberries may be hitting the mainstream now for their promising antiviral benefits, but the truth is that a lot of us homesteading and country types have had a relationship with elderberries for a very long time. Elderberries were always a part of our late-summer preserving in my mother’s and my grandmother’s kitchens.

Blessed with Abundance…Smells Like Childhood

elderberries on stem

If you grew up with elderberries, you’re sure to remember the rich smell of it processing. In my house it was always in the form of jelly. I recall it as a fruity yet rich, deep, earthy flavor, actually something of an acquired taste for me as a youngster, but which I grew to appreciate even more as an adult. We were blessed both on our property and my grandparents’ property next door with an abundant grove. Over the years, though, many of those bushes fell away, probably choked out by more dominant growth, and so, too, did my knowledge of elderberry as a prime food source.

I understand that a few bushes remain and I’ll have to go scouting for some cutting to root for planting elderberries here on the homestead (not that I don’t have native elderberries available near me, and in fact I have plenty of local cuttings, but there’s something about owning a piece of grandma’s elderberry bush that draws me).

Elderberry Knowledge Lost & Re-Found

At some point about five years ago I was reminded of elderberries once again. I think it came to me when we started making homemade wines with the fruits of our land and started looking at things other than grapes to make wine with. An older gentleman at the gym made mention to my husband, who made mention to me, and there was my head-smack moment. Elderberry is the PERFECT flavor for my husband! He’s not much of a sweets-eater, but elderberries are not sweet, and nor are most recipes that use elderberries. Earthy and balanced, he’d love elderberry anything, and I should have thought of it years before. In a wine, elderberry tends toward dark, heavier and dry, and not very sweet. exactly what he’d want. That gentleman sent him home with a bottle, and the rest, well, it’s homemade wine history.

Making Elderberry Jelly from Dried Elderberries

how to make elderberry jelly from dried elderberries

I did, however, manage to convince my husband to let me use a small portion of our first elderberry forages for a batch of jelly. And on this, too, he soon became hooked. Elderberry jelly recipes are pretty basic, and not too involved. The problem is often finding elderberries in season to make them…or being willing enough to spare from the wine for the jelly!

Recently, however, I chanced across a post from an herb and spice company, Frontier Co-Op, that I frequently order from online (usually through Amazon because it gets around their high wholesale minimums). I order from them primarily for ingredients for my homemade elderberry tea mixes. But Frontier had recently shared a post on How to Make Elderberry Jelly from Dried Elderberries. This is a brilliant, simple elderberry jam recipe made from dried elderberries, so you can make it at any time of the year.

One More way To Get Our Daily Dose of Elderberry

Especially in the winter months (but really all year long), we try to incorporate elderberry into our daily diet. We do it for the immune support, the antioxidants and antiviral benefits, the high vitamin and mineral and overall strong nutritional profile, but mostly, we use it for the taste of elderberry. It’s simply delicious! We enjoy elderberry in wine. We enjoy it mostly in tea–it’s not hard to make a tasty, relaxing cup of elderberry tea a part of your daily habit. But we enjoy elderberry in other ways, too; like that jelly and like syrup for yogurt and summertime spritzers.

In the end, I believe we can get far with small changes to our daily diet and a return to traditional, wholesome, nutritional foods like elderberries. The challenge for us in this modern crazy age is finding the ways to incorporate those good foods. Simple recipes like this elderberry jelly that are easy–and delicious!–to use every day make eating well and harnessing the power of healthful traditional foods that much easier. I hope you, like me, SHARE and ENJOY this handy elderberry jelly recipe!

Clean Bread for Busy People

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No-Knead Bread is the Easy Solution for Preservative-Free Homemade Bread

I’m actually not sure why no-knead bread is just now becoming trendy in clean home-baking. It is the absolute simplest bread to make. It requires the most minimal of ingredients. It takes almost NONE of your precious, limited time. No-knead bread is clean and preservative-free, and a myriad of recipes means that you can easily choose one to fit your health, diet, or culinary goals.

no knead bread recipe

Really. There’s just no downside to no-knead bread.

For busy people today (and who isn’t!?), no-knead bread is THE solution to problem of being able to put home-made, quality, reliable, knowable goodness on the table, with a side of holy delicious and nostalgia!

No-Knead Bread: The Time It Takes

So, what is it that maybe scares people from making cleaner, better no-knead breads at home?

If one had to guess, you could suppose it’s that it takes a long time to make no-knead bread. Hours, in fact. OVERNIGHT, in fact. Or rather, at least 6 to 8 to 12 and maybe even 18 hours!

no knead bread rising

Who in the world has that time today!?

We all do. Because here’s the thing. The “time” it “takes” to bake no-knead bread is not hands-on time at all. It’s almost completely in rising—a slow, sourdough-like rise time (without the hassle of maintaining a sourdough starter) with a moist, soft sponge, that pretty much doesn’t even get your hands dirty. You’re literally only talking maybe—MAYBE—5 minutes of measuring and mixing (if you drag it out), and then covering the bowl, forgetting about until the next morning, or the next afternoon, or whenever you have the time, then a quick dump-and-shape-up with a little more rising while the oven heats up, and around 45 minutes of baking.

All told, you’re looking at a maximum of 15 minutes of hands-on “labor.” The rest of the time, you could be soaking in the bath, working, running your kids around endlessly, or reading a book for all the bread cares. You see where I’m going with this. No-knead bread doesn’t need us, either.

So,

How Long Does It Take to Bake No-Knead Bread?

Here’s a general overview of how long it takes to make no-knead bread (for the typical no-knead bread recipe; the process itself doesn’t vary that much between recipes for no-knead bread):

no knead bread with elderberry jelly
  • Dough preparation: 5 minutes (measuring, mixing)
  • Rising/proofing time: minimum 6 hours, 8-12 recommended, can go as long as 18-24 as life dictates
  • Baking prep (turning out dough, shaping loaf): 5 minutes (maybe?)
  • Final rising (mostly while oven and Dutch oven or baking vessel preheats): 45 minutes
  • Baking time: 45 minutes
  • Total Time: average 9 hours, 45 minutes
  • Total ACTIVE (read: busy, hands-on) time: 10-15 minutes

A Bare Minimum of Ingredients

The time-factor is one of the biggest reasons to bake no-knead bread.

The others? TASTE and homemade goodness, clean PRESERVATIVE-FREE bread, INGREDIENT CONTROL, and ease-of-use (you really don’t need to be a bread baker, or much of a cook at all, to make this bread; basic kitchen skills required—an excellent bread for beginners!).

So,

What Ingredients are in No-Knead Bread?

You’ll probably be floored when you see the list of ingredients for the typical no-knead bread. They include:

  • Flour
  • Water
  • Salt
  • Yeast (about ¼ teaspoon)

Seriously. That is all.

chocoalte chunk cherry almond no knead bread recipe

Now sure, there are no-knead bread recipes with more ingredients. If you’re looking for a more savory or flavored no-knead bread, that’s an option, too. You might find one like a Cherry, Nut, & Chocolate no-knead bread recipe; perhaps a Wheat no-knead bread recipe; you could make a multi-grain no-knead bread; or a Garlic and Herb no-knead bread recipe might be your choice. But even with no-knead breads as delicious- and complicated-sounding as these, the process, and therefore the time involved, remains largely unchanged. You’re talking about a little more preparation and a little more measuring. A few measly more minutes. The results, however, are anything but measly. They’re amazing, quite frankly.

Time-Saving, Clean, Preservative-Free No-Knead Bread Recipes

Now that you’re a little more comfortable with taking on these easy, clean, delicious (so delicious), crusty, chewy, European-style no-knead breads, all that’s left is to find some good recipes to get started.

In Quick-Time Homemade Bread and Pastries, you’ll find plenty. Ten, to be exact. From the basic Dutch oven no-knead bread recipe to the savories with herbs, cheeses, and garlic, to the sweet like the aforementioned Chunky Chocolate Cherry Almond no-knead bread recipe, you’ll find all the bases covered, with plenty to enjoy (and impress!).

easy no-knead bread recipes

So buy the book (you can get it for Kindle or in paperback), bake the bread, and be sure to come back here and share your experience (and your no-knead bread pictures, too!).

Happy Baking & Enjoy!

*This post contains affiliate links to helpful books and products, at no additional cost to the reader/purchaser. This will take you to secure login and purchasing via your personal Amazon account. NO personal information is shared with this website from Amazon. Links such as these help to support and maintain this website. Thank you for clicking through to purchase these products!

New Book! Easy Homemade Bread – No Stand Mixer Needed!

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Quick-Time Homemade Bread Easy bread recipes
Now Available in Paperback and on Kindle – Easy, faster yeast bread recipes, no stand mixer needed, Excellent NO KNEAD BREAD RECIPES!

ORDER NOW in PAPERBACK or KINDLE

Now Available: Quick-Time Homemade Bread and Pastries: Real Homemade Yeast Breads, Rolls, and Doughs Made Simple, In Less Time

Another new release! This is the book that makes bread-making easy for those who do not have a stand mixer. The same great time-saving ingredients and technique as the Daily Bread series, without the need for costly large stand mixers (much as we love them, they are pricy!).

This is also a book for those looking for new instant-yeast bread recipes and for those looking for no-knead bread recipes–quite possibly the best and EASIEST bread you could ever bake!


Good bread isn’t especially hard to make, but it does take time. Time that is more and more precious these busy days. It’s a problem for those of us who really want that cleaner, better, nostalgia-inducing, wholesome goodness.

The Solution: A Quicker Way to Make Easy Homemade Bread

A little known fact to many home bakers is that we now have some excellent products available to us that make our bread-baking lives easier. When you know the right way to use them, they make homemade bread-baking time SHORTER, too! With a little adjustment to your shopping list and a solid list of reliable recipes, suddenly you can find the time to bake GREAT breads and treats once again. This book brings the know-how and the recipes. You bring the groceries.

Bakery-Quality Recipes for Homemade Bread and More

Here we cover all the bases for faster, easier homemade bread baking. Armed with this book, and with minimal time investment, you can make traditional white breads, wheat and whole-grain breads, fabulous artisan-style no-knead breads, quick croissants and crescent rolls, homemade yeast donuts, bagels, pretzels, pizza doughs, and more.

Use the “Look Inside” feature for a look at the Table of Contents and a full list of recipes included in this book. Some featured favorites include:

•Farm Hearth White Bread

•Cranberry-Apple Bread

•Old Fashioned Potato bread

•Homestead Honey Oat Bread

•Basically Baguette

•Dinner Rolls

•Rise and Shine Cinnamon Rolls

•Nutty Sticky Buns

•Fast & Easy Herb & Cheese Garlic Knots

•Donuts, Bagels, & Sweet Bread Treats

•No-Knead At All Rustic Loaf

•No-Knead Sourdough Bread

•No-Knead Chunky Chocolate Cherry Almond Bread

•Pita Pockets

•Soft Pretzels

•More and More!

All of these recipes, all of this homemade goodness…with this simplified method, and without tying up all your time! A little modern ingenuity, a little traditional wholesome goodness…a match made in heaven and the best way to eat cleaner, better, breads again!

https://amzn.to/2QysSRP

Many homemade bread recipes, easy sweet roll recipes, simple dinner roll recipes, and no-knead recipes, great for beginners through experienced bakers. An excellent arsenal of easier, simple, real bread recipes to have on hand.

ORDER NOW in PAPERBACK or KINDLE

Your Daily Bread II Available in PAPERBACK!!

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Honestly the one biggest “complaint” I’ve had about this book is that it has only been available for Kindle. No more the problem!

Print files are approved and live! It may take a bit of time before Amazon “finds” it and fits it on the site alongside the Kindle version, but this generally happens quickly (I expect by the end of the day, but perhaps up to three).

Keep checking this link or searching the title in Amazon – it’s there even if it doesn’t come up “with” the Kindle edition.

Thanks everyone for your continued patience and patronage!!

UPDATE! This is a link to the paperback product page; it is available for purchase and is ‘in stock’!

How to Grill Fruit: New Kindle Book and Sale

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homestead_grillfruitHere it is, just in time for your weekend grilling adventures! My new book, Great Grilling Fruits: 17 Simple & Sensational Recipes for Fruit on the Grill.

In it you’ll find a discussion that covers how and what to grill in more general terms, along with 17 healthy and fabulous, low-cost, low-calorie, DELICIOUS recipes. Grilling fruit is an easy way to mix up your barbeque foods and you’ll be impressed by the diversity of fruit on the grill.

Get it now for the introductory price of only 99 cents  before it goes up! Or better yet, if you’re a Kindle Unlimited subscriber, for FREE!