Rabbits are not only cute and fuzzy, but they are also delicious and nutritious. They are an easy to keep species that have simple needs, take up little space, and can be kept on even the smallest of homesteads. Every part of the rabbit can be used, from food for humans and carnivorous pets to craft projects, nothing need go to waste. While the focus here will mostly be their meat uses, they can have other purposes on a homestead and there are plenty of breeds to choose from depending on those needs. There are wool breeds for the fiber artisan, friendly and small breeds for those 4H children to work with, and breeds that make for wonderful or unique pets. Even when kept as just a pet, a rabbit can still have a use on the homestead by producing the perfect fertilizer with their droppings.
Rabbit care is pretty straight forward. Housing, food, water, and cleanup are easy to acquire and can be quite affordable. There are many ways to keep rabbits, each with their own benefits and drawbacks, so don't feel pressured to stick with one method if another would be a better fit for your lifestyle. In a future article, I will go in-depth on what my set up is like as well as discuss alternative methods that have worked for others. This is a basic introduction to meat rabbits, below is a list of topics that will be discussed more in-depth in future posts:
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This is a recipe I threw together the other night, and it tasted good enough to share. I don't generally keep track of or follow measurements, basically added things to taste or sight.
Ingredients:
Warm up skillet while preparing the pasta, as per package instructions, in a separate pot. Add bacon and onion to the skillet and cook until bacon is crispy. Remove the bacon, but leave the grease, and add in the rabbit, tomatoes, and zucchini. Brown both sides of the rabbit, then pour in enough chicken broth to cover a little less than half of the rabbit. Sprinkle on (to taste) and stir in the garlic powder, onion powder, rosemary, oregano, basil, round pepper, and salt. Cover and simmer for 20 minutes or until the meat is fully cooked and zucchini is tender. Remove the meat and vegetables, then add to the broth the heavy cream, grated Parmesan and shredded Cheddar to taste. Keep the broth mixture simmering as you continuously stir until the sauce has cooked down to desired consistency. Remove from heat when the sauce is ready. Crumble the bacon and mix in with the sauce before adding in the meat, veggies, and pasta. Serve and enjoy! Every story and adventure has a beginning. Then sometimes a story ends sooner than expected, and one finds themselves in the beginning of a new story. I began a homesteading lifestyle when I became a homeowner back in 2010, though the urge was there long before that. I started with chickens and a garden in that tiny fixer upper on a half acre, and from there it grew to more animals, more projects, more like-minded friends, more experiences, and most importantly a direction in life. Over the years there had been ups and downs, but the drive and the goal of going deeper into homesteading had continued to be my leading passion. I had thought that this dream would continue to grow with someone by my side, but unfortunately that aspect was not meant to be. This past year was filled with sorrow and hardship, not to mention a broken heart and many life changes. And in all of that turmoil, I was blessed with an amazing son. While my animals kept me busy and grounded, having a son has been my guiding light through all of this. There is still more difficulty and change ahead as the old story comes to a close, but soon enough a new story full of new experiences and adventures will begin. And it is from this new beginning that I start this blog. While I had never thought or planned to be doing this journey as a single mother, that's still not going to stop me from continuing the homesteading dream and building the best life possible for both my son and myself.
In future posts, I hope to share my journey and experiences of continuing to build a homestead as a single mom. Gardening, livestock, dogs, recipes, crafts, and projects will be discussed; along with any other fun and useful tidbits that I may find interesting. Looking forward to also sharing about other homesteaders and farms, through interviews and hopefully some guest posts. I have always felt that it's important to know about and support each other as homesteaders. So stick around, pull up a chair and pour some tea as there will be plenty more to share. |
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