Food for Feathered Friends: Biscuit Bird Feeder

Our holiday adventure this week is taking us over the river and through the woods complete with hiking, some light caroling, and bird watching. In these parts, there are lots of cardinals, but no shortage of other tiny feathered friends.

Before we headed out we took about half an hour to put together a little holiday gift for our woodland pals. This is such a great opportunity for you to connect with nature. Take in all of your surroundings and capture some photos you wouldn’t ordinarily get. Bring along a field guide to identify some of the birds you see. These biscuit bird feeders are simple to make, offer some food to hungry creatures, and whatever is left is completely biodegradable.

savour… friends, bird and furred

BISCUIT BIRD FEEDER

Before you start:

Don’t worry about spending too much money here. Buy the generic biscuits and peanut butter or better still make some biscuits from scratch for breakfast with a few extra for your woodland friends. 

Bake the biscuits a little longer than usual going for golden brown instead of lightly browned. This gives it just the right texture for holding peanut and seed without crumbling under the weight. 

Be generous with the peanut butter, but if maintaining the shape of your feeder is important be sure not to apply so much that the details are lost.

The materials:

• Canned buttermilk biscuits
• Small jar of peanut butter
• 2 cups of wild bird seed
• A biscuit tray (perhaps the one you already used) or baking dish
• Twine
• Scissors
• A pencil or chopstick
• Metal cookie cutters (optional)
• Cooking oil spray (optional)

The steps:

For cookie cutter shapes:

1. Preheat oven according to package instructions.
2. Lightly coat inside of cookie cutter with cooking oil spray and place cookie cutter on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
3. Press biscuit dough into the cookie-cutter form. Use two pieces of dough if necessary.

Note: if using more than one piece of dough, pinch the two pieces together and twist a bit to create a bond. Continue to step 4.

For the wreath:

1. Preheat oven according to package instructions.
2. Create a circle (about 7 inches dia) with the biscuit dough pieces overlapping each about 1 inch (will take 7 or 8 biscuits).
3. Pinch and twist the dough at the overlapping points to form a bond.  Then twist and pull the dough all over to great some peaks and valleys.
4. Bake slightly longer than directed on package.
5. Remove from oven to a wire rack to cool completely.
6. Use the pencil to gently poke a hole through the biscuit about 1 ½ inches from the top.
7. Hold one end of the twine firmly over the erase of the pencil and feed it through the hole.  Tie the twine together just above the top of the feeder and then again at the ends.
8. Spread peanut butter all over the form with a butter knife. 
9. Place peanut butter covered forms on a parchment-lined biscuit sheet or baking dish. 
10. Sprinkle generously with birdseed then pat firmly to adhere seed. 
11. Transport in a sealable plastic container with extra birdseed to press on just before hanging outdoors.