Dezeray Rathjen, the mama behind MTN DOG FARM. She lives on her off-the-grid homestead in rural Montana alongside her two wildflowers and her husband, Troy; although he is a traveling pipeliner so she often is tending to the chores with just tiny helping hands.
If you’re ever looking for her, she’s probably elbows deep in her market garden, deep in the Bible, starting something new in her DIY greenhouse, singing alongside the sheep or hunting with her family.
She has a heart for community-sufficiency, nurturing her family with wholesome food and encouraging other to live off the land.
This recipe is nothing exciting, there I’ve said it. But I’ve got a lot on my heart and fruit I’m hoping to share will you; it may fill you in ways no dinner can.
Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver
2 Corinthians 9:7
What if we weren’t just compulsively convicted to give, but followed His lead and prepared to give. So that when we are called on to do so, we don’t even have to think twice about it.
How many dinners do you make a week that you could double up on, stick in a disposable or thrifted (because who doesn’t need another reason to go thrifting) dish and tuck it into the freezer for a time it’s needed.
Each one must give what he has decided in his heart.
So we will give this a suiting title –
The Giving Pie
Recipe makes enough for two families of four
The meat I prefer for this recipe is wild game (especially venison) as it has lower fat content but feel free to use whatever you have on hand.
Ingredients
For gravy :
2 lbs hamburger
1 yellow onion
4 cloves garlic
2 cups chopped fresh kale
1 cup corn
3/4 cup stock or water
Salt, pepper, fresh herbs to taste
For potato topping :
4 medium sweet potatoes peeled and diced
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup milk
fresh Rosemary
1 cup shredded cheddar
Directions
1. Brown hamburger, onion, garlic in cast iron skillet
2. Deglaze skillet with stock/water and add kale and corn to pan
3. Stir in seasonings then divide half into a second dish. You could pick up a pack of tinfoil pie pans for under $2 at the grocery store. So you should have a cast iron with half gravy mixture and a pie pan with other half gravy mixture.
4. In separate skillet, add diced potatoes to water and boil until tender
5. Drain water, add butter, milk and smash with wooden spatula. I leave ours a little lumpy but it’s delicious whipped up smooth as well
6. Season with fresh rosemary sprigs
7. Layer potato topping over gravy
8. Top both with shredded cheddar cheese and broil the one you’re eating for dinner in the oven
With the second dish, cover with foil and write these directions :
Giving Pie
Bake at 375° with lid for 13-15 minutes
remove lid for additional 3 minutes
Enjoy
I began my homesteading journey from the perspective of a Nutritional Therapist, closet herbalist, and beekeeper. This mentally gave me a few barriers to diving into the conventionally accepted tools for animal health such as antibiotics, injectable vitamins, generic minerals and mass produced bagged feeds…
If you want to be self-sufficient and feed your family healthy hearty meals from scratch, you’ve got to
start milling at home. I know, I know, it sounds complicated and al little bit scary, right? But it doesn’t
have to be!
I am not well traveled. I’ve never flown on a plane. I’ve never been north of Ohio or west of Texas.I’m not as well traveled as some may say one should be, but this piece of land has housed all of my fondest memories…
Sautéed, Pureed, Roasted or Raw.
Asparagus is perhaps the most versatile vegetable of all…
“In some Native languages the term for plants translates to ‘those who take care of us’ … the land knows you, even when you are lost.” – Robin Wall Kimmerer, Braiding Sweetgrass…
One year ago, I resolved that I would learn to make all of the bread products my family needed. With an ever-shrinking bank account battling current inflation prices, I would walk the aisles of our local markets frustrated that I did not possess the skills required to make most of the things I needed to purchase…
Hey there, Homesteading Mama’s!
I’m Rachel from @frontier_homesteading. My husband Ryan, three children and I have been homesteading for about 10 years now, first in Wyoming and now in Alaska.
We currently have milk goats, pack goats, sheep, a pig, a cow, chickens, rabbits, bees and a dog. Seasonally, we also have more pigs, meat chickens and turkeys….
Stained glass windows date back to the 7th century. With the earliest known reference dating
from 675 AD when workmen were imported from France to Britain to Glaze the windows of a
monastery…
Homesteading and growing food is not the easy way out of this life, i would say it is the hard way as there’s nothing convenient about it. It’s a lifestyle, a life change not a trend or hobby. Well, that’s my opinion any way…
