Here goes with some.... Frugal, delicious and healthy cooking for families or anyone who wants to downsize my recipes. Child rearing and education. Chicken rearing and coop/run design and building(woodwork). Soap making. Country Wine brewing. Jam/chutney making. A determined and successful ability t...

Hi Dom, any success with hatching Cream Legbars this year?

One huge nest box, like a king size bed for hens? Two of my hens like to get into a big box together...

Hi Linda, sorry for the delay; had a busy weekend. Here is the second recipe, (shortened) it is from The Preserving Book by Lynda Brown. I love this book... Apple, sultana, and date chutney. Makes 5 jars. Keeps for 9 months, store opened jars in the fridge. 2kg Cooking apples, peeled, cored, chopped...

Hi Linda, It's white wine vinegar. The high acidity in vinegar helps to preserve the fruit/veg in chutney. If you substitute the raisins for another dried fruit, chop them up quite small like the raisins. Also, and this is important! Do not eat the chutney for 1 to 2 months after you have made it; t...

Plum Chutney. Contains apples and plums! Makes 3 jars. Keeps for up to 12 months. 1kg Plums (stoned and quartered) 350g Apples (Peel, core, dice) 250g Onions (Peel, finely slice) 125g Raisins (can be replaced with chopped dried soft prunes/apricots) 300g Light soft brown sugar 1 tsp Salt 1 tsp Allsp...

Hi Dom, Thank you for posting your recipes, they all look good. I usually try a new chutney recipe every year made during the October half term, so this year I think it will be your pumpkin. Anything home made usually doesn't last very long... I made 6 jars of blackcurrant jam at the start of the Su...

Hi Sunshine,
We had a limping hen and took her to the vet who prescribed an anti inflammation/pain relief (Metacam). This was given orally by syringe, you may need two people for this job if your hen is a wriggler and clamps her beak shut!

Best of luck, and hope she mends,

Snoopy.

Hi kitla,
I think I knew it deep down.......
I'll just have to wait until Easter which is a very long time off.
I must not look at hatching eggs for sale, I must not look at hatching eggs for sale, I must not look at hatching eggs for sale...

Snoopy.

Your girls look lovely, their life can only get better now
Snoopy

Hopefully your little broody knows what she is doing, mother nature and all that!
Or, you could end up with chicks in the house all winter
Snoopy

I can feel the cold autumn already creeping in and was wondering if it is too late to set some eggs this week?
I can just see us with chicks in the house all winter....
Grateful for any advice,
Snoopy

Good evening to you too Totally Scrambled.

I too would have thought the temp should be measured at egg level, not high up by the heat source, but that is how this incubator is designed...to cause anxiety and no tea being made...

Hi, I am about to embark on the grand voyage of hatching chicks for the first time. I really need some quick advice (before the eggs arrive, eek!) about the reliability of the Covatutto glass thermometer and hope someone who has had experience with this problem can help. I have placed a small digita...

I have also lost the ability to type properly!