Homemade Bird Suet

One of many things that I've loved since moving to my little farm is watching birds!  Where we used to live I rarely had the chance to observe so many species of wildlife and especially the feathered friends variety.

My bird feeders are hanging just outside my kitchen window.  Since I don't have a dishwasher, I've discovered that there is a lot of entertainment to be had just watching birds while I go about my daily chore of washing dishes.  It is hard for me to admit this but...I actually look forward to washing dishes...just because there is a wonderful feathered show in store for me.

Just as many of you have had, we've had some very frigid temperatures lately. The birds NEED extra fat and protein to carry them through the winter. I feel fortunate to be able to enjoy watching the birds and feeding them and I think it is my responsibility, once I began the feeding the birds, to be sure that they continue to have sustenance available at my feeders through the winter months.

 

"MY" birds love suet blocks and go through the suet blocks every week.  Last week I decided to see if I could make my own suet and happily discovered that it is very simple to make.  So the next step was to see if my homemade suet was to my feathered friends liking.  I'm delighted to say, YES!  They seem to love it.

 

Here is my recipe for homemade Suet:

 

 

Homemade Wild Bird Suet

 

Ingredients:

• 2 cups lard
• 2 cups peanut butter
• 2 cups quick cooking oats
• 1 1/2 cups cornmeal
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 cup birdseed
• 1/2 cup raisins

Directions:

1. Melt lard and peanut butter in a large pan.  Once melted combine the remaining ingredients and stir well.
2. Pour mixture into a 13" X 9" pan and allow to cool.  I set mine in the freezer for an hour or two.  It's perfectly fine to put the pan into the refrigerator too..
3. When the suet has cool cut into blocks to fit your suet feeder.  
   
   
   
4. If you don't have a suet feeder that uses blocks don't worry!  Once your suet has cooled enough to handle, form into ball and place inside mesh bags that you get oranges/apples/onion in and hang them from nearby trees.

 

 

I would be remiss if not to add that store bought Suet is cheap!   I will also admit that probably my recipe costs a bit more per suet block than the ones you can buy ready made.  That being said, I enjoy the satisfaction of making the suet myself for my bird friends. 

 

Feel free to vary this recipe to your heart's content.  I think next time I'll reduce the amount of peanut butter.  I will probably add more cornmeal and perhaps  add peanuts.

 

What is most important is to have a high fat source of energy for the birds in the wintertime.  They need the fat.  You can also save and use bacon, beef and pork fat.  Bacon fat is fine but use it sparingly since it also contains nitrates and chemicals that the bird don't need in great quantities. 



Until next time,

Cheers!

Jennifer



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