Did Kelly follow her 2012 resolutions?

December 31, 2012

...due for a complete overhaul.) This I did. All of it. Yay me. -Organize the labels or tags on Root Simple so our dear, somewhat abused readers can find information when they want it. This I did as part of our overhaul. -No processed sugar for the month of January. Or beer. (sigh) This I did. I’d forgotten. I probably should do it again, because I’ve been having a torrid affair with the cookie jar. -White flour, crackers, tortillas, pasta & etc. are...

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Beans 101 (Return of Bean Friday!)

Mrs. Homegrown

March 1, 2013

Bean Fest, Food, How-to

21 Comments

...et the idea. Oh, and you might ask why you can’t use canned beans from the store for all of the above. The reason is that they’re terrible. To make them taste decent, you have to flavor them and cook them, so you may as well start from scratch. Now on to the how-to. How to Make Yourself a Big Pot of Beans Beans after an overnight soak It’s easy to make a pot of beans, and while it takes time to make beans, it doesn’t take effort, or even brains. P...

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Fence Appeal

Mr. Homegrown

April 11, 2023

Design

5 Comments

...the slats and the central pressure treated 4×4 posts are covered in cedar making them bigger and more attractive. The trellising at the top creates a kind of filtered view of neighboring vegetation while the lower panels obscure stuff you don’t want to see. Alas, nothing is simple at our funky property and I had to interrupt the fence twice to accommodate two trees that straddle the fence line. I also had to deal with a slight slope and a month i...

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044 Daniel Kent: Cabin Dweller’s Textbook

Mr. Homegrown

April 22, 2015

Domesticus, Food, Podcasts

7 Comments

...carbonation system How to make your own clear cocktail ice The Old Fashion Making your own bitters Herbs of Mexico Institute of Domestic Technology classes Wool and how to wash it Roasting your own coffee with a Whirley Pop Sourcing green coffee at Sweet Maria’s and Bodhi Leaf Coffee Traders Cowboy coffee Sharpening tools If you want to leave a question for the Root Simple Podcast please call (213) 537-2591 or send an email to [email protected]...

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A Simple and Life Changing Bagel Recipe

Mr. Homegrown

January 27, 2021

Fermentation, Food

14 Comments

...agels. Deep Bagel Thoughts Why did it take me so long to getting around to making bagels? It turns out bagel baking is much easier than the sourdough loaves I sometimes attempt. These homemade bagels are soooooooo much better than store bought or even bagels from specialized bagel bakeries. Why? First off, the boiling step gives you that perfect chewy bagel not found in supermarket bagels. But as Hamelman notes, hand shaping also gives you a bette...

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