Good Morning Everyone!
So are you still in the deep freeze where you are? Our weather cannot make up its mind! Frigid cold for a few days, then warms up to maybe the 40's or 50's, and then frigid cold again!
One thing our family has really noticed is an increase in bird activity at our little back yard feeding station. I think with the cold being THIS cold, the birds are having to burn more calories to stay warm. And with burning more calories comes the need for them to replace those calories.
My hubby has taken on the job of keeping our bird feeders filled. On a normal week, he fills them once a week, as we are getting ready for Sabbath. We cook and clean inside the house, preparing our "Sabbath feast," and he makes sure the birds have full bird feeders so they, too, will have a "Sabbath feast!" Sometimes the feeders get a little low a day or so before he refills them, but when Sabbath comes those little birds can always count on having full tummies!
Well--with all the frigid cold weather, instead of the feeders remaining full for most of the week, every time we turned around the feeders were empty! And my kind hearted husband was giving in and refilling them! Which I love about him--but at the same time I also do not want to run out of bird seed and need to buy more TOO fast! So I decided if you can't beat them--join them! Those poor birds needed a little more to help them out when it was THAT cold! It was time to make them some home made suet cakes!
Years ago, I used to purchase those little square suet cakes you find in the grocery stores--and the birds loved them! But they always were eaten up real quick, and the price for each little square can really add up! But then I discovered that you can easily make your own suet cakes, and for much less than purchasing them already made for you. And it is an easy little project to do as well!
1) Some type of fat. I use vegetable shortening, but you can also use lard if that is what you have in your house.
2) Peanut butter. While I feed my family the natural peanut butter, for our dog or the birds I keep some regular, inexpensive peanut butter from Aldis.
3). Cornmeal. In addition to the cornmeal, I usually add in some quick oats as well. Some people also like to add in some bird seed, but since I have seed in nearby feeders I usually keep my home made suet on the plain side.
First step--measure two cups of the shortening plus one cup of the peanut butter into a microwave safe dish.
Second step--microwave, stopping to stir, until the shortening and peanut butter are all melted together.
Third step--stir in one cup of cornmeal and one cup of quick oats. If you were only using the cornmeal, you would need to stir in two cups of it.
If your mixture is way too soupy, add in a bit more cornmeal or oats until it is like a very soupy cookie dough. Then I pack it down into a plastic container to keep in my fridge. In times past, when I had a little square hanging suet basket, I would pack some of the suet mixture into square plastic freezer containers, and freeze them. Once they are frozen, you can easily pop them out of the container and into your hanging suet basket.
Since at this point I do not have a square hanging suet feeder, I just keep my home made suet in a plastic container in the fridge, and when I want to serve it to the birds I scoop some out onto a little piece of scrap wood.
Then I place the piece of scrap wood on our bird feeding station. The birds LOVE this mixture, and it gives them higher calories to help them during these cold days and nights when they are spending so many calories to keep warm.
So there you have it--my Frugal Friday tip for this week! I hope you enjoy mixing up some of your own home made suet to feed the birds!
And please share--what is one frugal thing that you did this past week to bless someone? I love to get new ideas from you!
Have a beautiful week! And don't forget to spend a little time watching our bird friends!
~Susan
1 comment:
I'm visiting from The Prudent Homemaker. I make a similar suet recipe, but cook it on the stove top. I use grits instead of corn meal, and often mix in some dried fruit or seeds. I'm in NC, and we've also had frigid temps this winter. I bet your birds are appreciative of the suet!
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