Category Archives: Animal ethics
Yogurt: oven method
When I started making yogurt 3 years ago, I had a hard time finding information and recipes. Now the internets are practically exploding with yogurt methods — crock pot, oven, yogurt maker, heating pad, back seat of your car, you … Continue reading
Filed under Animal ethics, Cooking and baking, Nutrition, Practical, Theoretical, US Food Production
Detailed plant list
OK, people, we’re going deep into plant geek territory here today. Prepare yourself for latin names! My landscape plan shows where I’m planting all of these. EVERY plant on this list is native to Minnesota/the upper midwest, and hardy to … Continue reading
Filed under Animal ethics, Gardening, Permaculture, Practical, Sustainability, Theoretical
The time for natural animal fats is NOW
I saw this a couple weeks ago and I can’t get it out of my head. [original source article] Palm oil, dudes. It’s in EVERYTHING. And the increasing demand for it is causing unprecedented rainforest destruction and killing of anything … Continue reading
Filed under Animal ethics, International trade, Labels, Sustainability, Theoretical, US Food Production
Milkapalooza!
Yes, there is an event called Milkapalooza, and yes of course we went to it this weekend. It was a blast. Anneke, it turns out, is a natural at milking cows: The event featured tours of the Minars’ farm, and … Continue reading
Rabbit damage
It’s been a rough winter for the varmints living under our deck. Early, deep snowcover meant a scarcity of food for them for months. Now the snow is finally receding (note: not totally gone yet), and they are having a … Continue reading
Filed under Animal ethics, Gardening, Practical
Rendering duck fat
I always make a point of looking in the frozen meat section at Seward Co-op because it usually has a nice traditional foods-minded surprise or two. I’ve found various different kinds of liver, chicken feet, homemade fish and chicken stock, … Continue reading
Filed under Animal ethics, Cooking and baking, Practical
Rendering lard
I finally tried rendering my own lard. I may never do it again. The smell was absolutely revolting. (Caveat: my stomach was also a little off that weekend, because I was also cleaning projectile vomit off every surface of the … Continue reading
Filed under Animal ethics, Cooking and baking, Practical, Theoretical
Using the whole animal
I was a vegetarian for several years. I vowed, when I became a meat-eater again, that I would at least make an effort to use the whole animal. So now I’m taking it to the next level: I bought some … Continue reading
Filed under Animal ethics, Cooking and baking, Labels, Nutrition, Practical, Theoretical
The Coming Famine
Here’s another book to add to my list: The Coming Famine, by Julian Cribb. Mark Bittman reviewed it for the NY Times today. Basically, Cribb contends that we’ve reached peak food production (along with peak oil), and warns that our … Continue reading
Corruption at the USDA
A USDA veterinarian and meat-processing plant inspector testified before congress, blowing the whistle on corruption at the USDA — the guy was shut down by his superiors for issuing citations of animal cruelty, and also overruled 3 times when he … Continue reading
Filed under Animal ethics, Theoretical
