I grew up in the city, and we had common modern-day cooking conveniences. In addition, our house had a fireplace, which by today’s urban pollution laws, may now have wood burning restrictions. However, should an extended regional power outage take place, the fireplace hearth would become “cooking central”. Fireplaces in modern homes are mostly ornamental [...]
I’ve met a few folks lately who have shared their experience using a unique cooking method from decades ago… cooking food on a car’s engine. This concept has always intrigued me, and I knew that I had to try it. I began to study this method and apparently it is seeing a resurgence in interest. [...]
The event was “Trail Day” at the W. Kerr Scott Reservoir where volunteers gathered this morning at 08:00 and worked until noon, cutting a new trail by following marked contours along the hillside. The reward: roasted pig, that began cooking yesterday in a huge trailer-mounted smoker. The pit master (and owner) was “BBQ Man” Chad [...]
A couple of weeks ago I was a vender at a local Faire. One of the benefits is that you get to meet interesting folks who share a wealth of wisdom from their experiences. One particular item was the Swedish Log Candle which was news to me. Of course, any topic with fire interests me [...]
Have you ever gone camping but forgot to bring your cooking gear? Many other cultures don’t need equipment. In the States we may not have native banana leaves to wrap food for baking, but we do have poplar leaves that interlock, thus making a griddle type surface upon which you can cook thinly sliced meat [...]
Well, after 2 days at Merlefest, I’m starting to get the rhythm of daily routine at this festival. The first day I met many nice folks, some that have primitive living skills who were a delight to speak with. The second day began some sales of products… wallet magnifiers (A.K.A. solar fire starters) were a [...]
Well, it’s just about here… Merlefest, a Bluegrass Festival in Wilkesboro NC. Last year it drew 70,000 attendees, and this year promises more. At this event the air is filled with the sound of banjos, guitars, mandolins and singing. So what does this have to do with Survivaltek?? Well, until now, Survivaltek has been the [...]
Continue reading about Preparing for Merlefest - a Survivaltek first…
Each Spring I enjoy the sight of the first Violas that appear within grassy areas. One reason is that it announces Spring, and the other, is that they are edible and tasty! Violets and violas are the same thing: “violet” is the common name, “viola” is the scientific name. There are three related plants in [...]
Just over a week ago I had the opportunity to be a guest speaker at a Cub Scout Patrol Meeting (Pack 399). This was a new experience for me as the main audience’s age was 9-11 years old. Rather than plunging into conventional skills that I normally demonstrate, I chose to review the “Hug-A-Tree” program [...]
Historically, bannock was introduced to America by European fur traders. Using basic simple ingredients, it was easy to prepare and became the food staple for Settlers and subsequently Native American Indians. It consists of these basic ingredients: flour, baking powder, salt, water, and some type of fat. It can be baked, fried in a pan [...]
