View this email in your browser

We are seeing sky again!

We woke up this morning to a partially cleared sky. As the wind moved in it pushed the smoke further out. We are finally seeing blue sky above us, a cool breeze and hope that this smoke is finally moving out of our area. If you are still dealing with smoke and/or fires please be safe! We shared some ideas and a couple of recipes for help dealing with smoke. You can find that here.

Granola Bar Recipe

I made these delicious granola bars earlier this week and, as promised, am sending you the recipe. I plan on making a few changes each week to try to increase the healthiness (is that a word?) of the bar while still maintaining the texture and taste which our children, 24, 16 & 5, loved!

Ingredients

12 medjool dates, pitted
3/4 cup toasted buckwheat
3/4 cup toasted rolled oats
1 cup roughly chopped toasted almonds
1 Tbs raw pumpkin seeds
2 Tbs dried blueberries (you can use any type of dried fruit)
1/4 cup honey (I used white pine infused honey)
1/4 cup peanut butter (you can use other nut butter)

Directions:

Toast the almonds & rolled oats in a 200 degree oven for 7-10 minutes until they are lightly brown.

If you are starting with raw buckwheat, toast it in a pan on medium heat, stirring until evenly browned. I let mine get pretty toasted, it really brings out a nutty flavor.

Grind the dates in a food processor until it forms a ball.

Heat honey and peanut butter over medium heat. Stir and let lightly simmer for 1 minute.

Mix the first six ingredients together. You'll probably have to knead it with your hands to get it fully incorporated.

Pour hot honey/peanut butter mixture over and mix well.

Press into a prepared pan (I coated mine in coconut oil but next time I will do that PLUS put a thick strip of wax paper across the pan to make the bars easier to remove) The size of pan is up to you. If you want them thin use a 12 x 8, if you want thicker bars use an 8 x 8.

Allow to cool

Remove from pan and cut into "bars" I cut mine into 24 square bars but feel free to make them as big as you want.

Store in the freezer.

These are a perfect quick snack for the kids and they even enjoy eating them while they're still partially frozen.

If you make these, please stop by our Facebook page and let me know how they turned out! A photo would be great too!

If you want to print the recipe go here where it is laid out by itself on the page.

Foundations of Permaculture

Today is the last day to take advantage of the early bird sign up price. If you have wanted to jump into permaculture but are more of a hands-on learner, this is the workshop for you! Not only will you do some practical planning but you'll be working here on our homestead putting in guild and food forest components. Come see how to use permaculture in a practical way!
Click the video for an overview of the class and come prepared to learn, work, and have fun!

It's not too late to sign up for my upcoming herbal workshop. We will be talking about adatogens, immune stimulators and modulators, and having a lot of fun making preparations in the kitchen. I will even demonstrate making a hydrosol and we'll do some tasting of different herbs. These classes are always a lot of fun and are focused on giving you hands-on experience using herbs.

Learn More

What we will cover in the workshop:

Intro to Herbal Actions
Intro to Herbal Energetics
Wildcraft/Garden Walk & Tasting

Building Your Health

Tonic Herbs
Adaptogens
Immunomodulators

Managing Stress & Balancing Hormones Naturally

Lifestyle
Diet
Herbal Allies

Hands-on Herbal Preparations

Tincture
Fire Cider
Infused Oil
Nourishing Herbal Infusion
Herbal Blend

Herbal Preparation Demonstration

Mint and Lemon Balm Hydrosol

Starting Your Own Materia Medica
Walking You Through Your First Herbal Monograph