The Rustic Elk

menu icon
go to homepage
  • Start Here
  • Preserving the Harvest
  • Everyday Eats
  • Natural Remedies
  • Venison & Wild Game
  • Seasonal Living
search icon
Homepage link
  • Start Here
  • Preserving the Harvest
  • Everyday Eats
  • Natural Remedies
  • Venison & Wild Game
  • Seasonal Living
×

The Rustic Elk • Old Ways. Natural Living. Real Food.

 

Welcome to The Rustic Elk

Portrait of Elle McCoy standing in front of a textured brown background with soft botanical overlays and antler illustrations. The text reads: ‘Old Ways. Natural Living. Real Food.’ and ‘Simple rhythms, seasonal meals, and ancestral wisdom for the modern kitchen.’

The Rustic Elk is a space for anyone ready to reconnect with the rhythms that nourished generations before us.

This is a place for those who stir herbs into broth, hang garlic to dry, and keep a notebook of recipes passed down, or created from scratch. For those who want to preserve the harvest, cook with intention, and keep a pantry that does more than just feed: it sustains, remembers, and roots.

Here, you’ll find real food, old-world kitchen wisdom, and natural remedies without fluff, trends, or the pressure to go off-grid. Just time-honored practices that still work.

I’m Elle, a home cook, forager, and lifelong learner of ancestral skills. I’ve spent more than a decade filling shelves with home-canned food, feeding my family on wild meat, and building a pantry that serves both function and meaning. The Rustic Elk is here to help you do the same.


What’s calling you today?

Explore foundational guides on food, remedies, and seasonal living rooted in what still works.

  • Preserving the Harvest
  • Venison Recipes
  • Seasonal Living
  • Natural Remedies & Herbalism

Kitchen Staples + Timeless Reads

Popular posts to help you cook with intention, preserve with confidence, and live in rhythm.

  • Close-up of a glass jar filled with sun-dried tomatoes in olive oil, infused with fresh rosemary, surrounded by cherry tomatoes and herbs on a dark rustic surface.
    Sun-Dried Tomatoes in Olive Oil with Rosemary
  • Crunchy homemade dill pickles in mason jars with garlic, dill, and pickling spices on a kitchen counter.
    Easy Homemade Dill Pickles (refrigerator or canned)
  • Ladling homemade peach bourbon jelly into a glass Weck jar with fresh peaches and bourbon in the background.
    Homemade Peach Jelly (for Canning or Just Because You Want Summer in a Jar)
  • Close-up of juicy smoked pork butt shredded into pulled pork and topped with barbecue sauce on a wooden cutting board
    Easy Smoked Pork Butt Recipe (Tender + Juicy Every Time)

🔎 Looking for your next recipe, remedy, or ritual?

Dig into decades of ancestral food, ritual, and real-life witchery.

Explore the archives


Gathered + Grounded

Recipes and remedies to keep your home nourished and well.

  • image featuring natural squirrel repellents arranged on a rustic wooden surface. Items include a small bowl of cayenne pepper, an amber spray bottle, fresh mint leaves, and a scattering of black peppercorns. Soft, dramatic lighting emphasizes the natural textures and earthy tones, creating a practical and inviting setup for home and garden pest control.
    Best Natural Squirrel Repellent Ideas for Home
  • Close-up of saucy smoked pork ribs on a wooden cutting board, cooked using the 3-2-1 method until tender and falling off the bone.
    Smoked Pork Ribs (the best 3-2-1 baby back ribs)
  • Smoked chicken legs arranged on a sheet pan
    Smoked Chicken Legs with Crispy Skin (Easy Pellet Grill Recipe with Dry Rub)
  • Wicker basket filled with fresh herbs glowing softly under moonlight in a dark, natural landscape.
    Planting by the Signs: Gardening with the Moon + Zodiac
  • Brown snake curled on a stacked woodpile, highlighting common hiding places for snakes around the home and homestead.
    10 Natural Snake Repellents That Actually Work (And a Few That Don’t)
  • American cottontail rabbit in a vegetable garden
    Best Natural Rabbit Repellent Tips for Your Garden
  • A jar of homemade goat milk lotion in an amber glass container, surrounded by lavender, dried herbs, and a wooden spoon with lotion on a dark rustic surface.
    Homemade Goat Milk Lotion Recipe
  • A glowing green glass mason jar tiki lamp with a flickering flame, set in a lush, forested backyard. The scene evokes earthy magic and summer ritual, with moss, ferns, and natural elements surrounding the jar for a grounded, green witch vibe.
    How to Make Mason Jar Tiki Lamps: Witchy DIY for Summer Nights

About The Rustic Elk

I’m Elle.

I used to be a homeschooling mom with a backyard garden, a pantry full of homemade everything, and a quiet longing for a slower way of life.

Over the years, I started learning the old ways... how to preserve food, cook from scratch, make simple herbal remedies, and keep a seasonal home. What started as survival became something more: a way to nourish, remember, and reclaim.

Now I share everything I’ve learned so you can build a kitchen and life rooted in what matters.

Whether you’re here to learn to can, cook wild game, grow herbs, or just bring more meaning to your meals, you’re in the right place.

Start Exploring Here
Danielle McCoy standing in a warmly lit kitchen, wearing a brown embroidered top, with long wavy dark hair, a layered necklace, and a confident expression. The background features wooden cabinets, a microwave, and kitchen essentials.

Footer

↑ back to top

Privacy

  • Privacy Policy
  • Disclaimer
  • Terms & Conditions
  • Accessibility Policy

About

  • About Elle
  • Start Here

Contact

  • Contact
  • Press & Media

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Copyright © 2025 The Rustic Elk