4 Simple DIY Suet Cakes Your Backyard Birds Will Adore
4 Simple DIY Suet Cakes Your Backyard Birds Will Adore
Attracting birds to your backyard is easier than you think, especially with homemade suet cakes. These high-fat treats provide essential energy to our feathered friends, helping them thrive, especially in colder months. Here’s how you can create your own suet cakes at home!
Why Suet Cakes Are Important
Birds have high metabolic rates and require energy-dense foods to sustain their active lifestyles. With their endless flitting and fluttering, it’s essential they have access to high-energy nourishment.
- Suet feeders provide quality high-fat foods such as:
- Lard
- Tallow
- Nut butters
These energy sources are crucial during winter months when natural food is scarce. While there are plenty of commercial options available, making your own suet cakes lets you choose the ingredients and tailor them to attract specific birds.
What Birds Will Enjoy Suet Cakes?
You’ll likely attract various bird species to your suet feeder, including:
- Nuthatches
- Chickadees
- Woodpeckers
- Blue jays
- Goldfinches
- Cardinals
- Wrens
Be patient after setting up your feeder; it may take some time for birds to notice the treat. Consistently refill the suet cakes to keep your avian visitors coming back!
When to Use Suet Feeders
Suet is best left out during the warmer months when natural food sources are plentiful. Heat can cause suet to melt or go rancid, creating a messy and unsafe feeding environment. Stick to using suet in the cooler seasons for optimal bird enjoyment.
Add-Ins for Enhanced Suet Cakes
Make your suet cakes even more appealing by incorporating various add-ins, which will also help the cakes hold their shape better:
- Raw, unsalted peanuts
- Cracked corn
- Sunflower seeds or hearts
- Favorite wild birdseed blends
- Dried fruits (no sugar added)
- Dried mealworms or black soldier fly larvae
Deter Squirrels with a Simple Trick
If squirrels are a problem, add a tablespoon of red pepper flakes to your suet mix. Birds won’t taste the heat, but the squirrels will stay away!
4-Ingredient DIY Suet Cakes Recipe
Ingredients:
- 16 oz lard
- 16 oz natural (no sugar added) crunchy peanut butter
- 1 cup of cornmeal
- 1 cup of flour
- 2-4 cups of your preferred add-ins
Tools Needed:
- Large mixing bowl
- Gloves (optional for less mess)
- Wax or parchment paper
- Baking sheet
- Knife
Directions:
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the lard, crunchy peanut butter, cornmeal, flour, and any add-ins.
- Using your hands, mix everything together until well blended, ensuring the dry ingredients are integrated.
- Transfer the dough to a baking sheet lined with wax or parchment paper and flatten into a rectangle, adjusting for the size of your suet feeders.
- Freeze for 2-4 hours.
- Once frozen, cut into individual cakes.
- Wrap remaining cakes in wax or parchment paper and store in the freezer for up to six months or in the fridge for two weeks.
- Thaw in the fridge for a day before placing in the feeder, if desired.
In about ten minutes, you can make these delightful suet cakes. Don’t hesitate to experiment with different add-ins to find what your local birds love best. If temperatures are particularly low, consider using cracked corn to help warm the birds internally.
Conclusion
Once you experience the joy of attracting birds with your homemade suet cakes, you may want to set up additional feeders. With this simple recipe, you’ll have no trouble keeping your feathered friends well-fed and happy. Grab your binoculars and bird guide, and enjoy the show!
