[Birdtalk] Homemade Bird Seed Cakes

[Kristin Purdy]

Have you had success in baking your own bird seed cakes and would you care 
to share the recipe on birdtalk?

I baked a seed cake last week instead of relying only on loose seed in 
feeders because I want a product that will be more enduring when the 
Steller's Jays happen to pass through. The magpies and scrub-jays get all 
the loose peanut supplies in about 3 seconds. I baked a seed cake last week 
and it's working; so far I've seen siskins, magpies, finches, and this 
morning's triumph, a female Downy Woodpecker hammering away at the block.

Here's what I did:

Sprayed a loaf pan with non-stick cooking spray
Filled the bottom with an inch of sunflower chips mixed with a couple egg 
whites
Filled the rest with a black-oil sunflower based mix stuck together with egg 
whites
Packed it down well
Baked it in a 225° oven for an hour
Cooled it; put it outside in a tray-style feeder with a roof to keep it dry

You can also bake your own wire into the mix so your creation can be hung. 
I'm about to try another using and old Bundt pan; I've heard terra cotta 
pots work well also. I'd like to know how other adhesives like syrup and 
gelatin work to stick the seeds together. Have you tried either?

Please share your homemade recipes and success stories.

Kris

P.S. The Steller's Jays returned this morning, six of them, but failed to 
find the seed cake. They did find spilled sunflower seed in the grass, so I 
bet they'll return.