Can she bake an apple pie, Billy Boy?

By Jackie Clay Issue #77 • September/October, 2002 Okay, I know in the song it's "cherry" pie, but what the heck, we all love apple pies, don't we? Unfortunately, few people bake good old fashioned apple...

Tips and handy hints for 4X4 living

<!-- Tips and handy hints for 4X4 living By Jackie Clay --> By Jackie Clay Where Jackie lives, a 4x4 is essential Issue #71 • September/October, 2001 After spending more than 35 years living in homesteads that were so out of the...

Wash day

By Jackie Clay Issue #130 • July/August, 2011 I was in a Lowe's store yesterday and happened to walk past the appliance section, where I saw gleaming stainless steel, black, and white washing machines and clothes...

Saving money on the homestead

By Jackie Clay-Atkinson Issue #148 • July/August, 2014 I come from a "penny-pinching-and-proud-of-it" family background and I learned the importance of saving a buck at an early age. Throughout my journey toward a self-reliant lifestyle, I've...

Building and stocking your pantry

By Jackie Clay Issue #125 • September/October, 2010 At the turn of the 19th century, most country homes had a walk-in pantry, as well as a root cellar for keeping vegetables and fruits. This pantry contained...

Bottle-raise a calf

By Jackie Clay Issue #120 • November/December, 2009 If you think milk and beef are expensive in the grocery store, then you should think about raising a baby calf or two. Because corn and milk replacer...

Cast iron

By Jackie Clay Issue #118 • July/August, 2009 My very favorite cookware is old. Some of it very old. It's nonstick, is equally at home in the kitchen or wilderness camp, is the ultimate slow-cooker, and...

Goat birthing and raising kids

By Jackie Clay Issue #112 • July/August, 2008 Dairy goats form one of the cornerstones of our homestead. Not only do they provide milk, cheese, ice cream, cottage cheese, and meat, but they also give us...

Feeding large families without breaking the bank

By Jackie Clay Issue #116 • March/April, 2009 Many of us have been there; for unforeseen reasons, suddenly we have a lot more people to cook for. With the economy melting down, jobs ending, and the...

Chickens — The most valuable animal on the homestead

By Jackie Clay Issue #109 • January/February, 2008 When I was a child, I used to read and re-read the chick section in our Sears and Roebuck catalog. Imagine! For only two cents you could buy...

Protein — The Cornerstone of a Survival Diet

By Jackie Clay Issue #111 • May/June, 2008 It goes without saying that preparedness is not for "radicals" or "weirdos" anymore. I picked up a preparedness leaflet at the County Agent's office last week and another...

The perfect holiday meal

By Jackie Clay Issue #108 • November/December, 2007 There are no cultures in the world, nor have there been, that did not have feast days. From prehistoric times to yesterday, food has always played an important...

You can safely and easily can your own meat

By Jackie Clay Issue #105 • May/June, 2007 Of all the foods I can every year, the most useful is the wide variety of meats. While we aren't huge meat eaters, these rows and rows of...

A recycled dresser makes a useful bathroom vanity

By Jackie Clay-Atkinson Issue #152 • March/April, 2015 Here's the finished vanity with our unfinished dresser that will store our extra towels and linens. We've had our log home built for more than eight years now, but until...

Avoiding common canning mistakes

By Jackie Clay-Atkinson Issue #142 • July/August, 2013 Canning has been an important part of my life since I was a young girl helping my mother and grandmother can in our Detroit basement. I loved the...

Book Review: The Encyclopedia of Country Living By Carla Emery — 40th Anniversary Edition

Reviewed by Jackie Clay-Atkinson Issue #141 • May/June, 2013 Are you a new homesteader? Perhaps you have dreams and plans to become one sometime in the near future? Maybe you're an old-timer, like me, needing a...