A Gwinnett Master Gardener who is an active member of the Southern Wings Bird Club provided a recipe for making what can only be called gourmet suet for bird feeding.  The recipe is as follows:

Melt 1 cup of lard (rendered beef or pork fat, not vegetable shortening) in a large sauce pan.

Take off heat and add 1 cup of peanut butter (smooth or chunky)

Add 2 cups of oatmeal (old fashioned), 2 cups of corn meal, 1 cup of flour, and 1/4 cup of sugar

Add 1 cup of raisins or peanuts

Mix well and pour/spoon into a 9x13 dish lined with aluminum foil 

*Store in refrigerator until firm (at least 2 hours).  When cold, dump the suet from the dish onto waxed paper or newspaper.  Remove foil from the suet and cut in pieces.  Store pieces in refrigerator in zip-lock bags until ready to use.

 Note:  I (webmaster) conducted a less than scientific study to see how this homemade suet compared with the "store-bought"variety.  Using three cage-type suet feeders, I placed the homemade suet side-by-side with one cake of "High Energy Suet" ($.99 from a local grocery store) and one cake of "Premium Suet"  ($2.96 from a local wild bird feeding specialty store).  Here are the results:

The homemade suet was discovered almost immediately after it was placed in the feeder  and the species of birds that routinely feed on suet preferred it over the "store-bought" varieties.  In fact, the birds consumed the homemade suet completely while the store-bought varieties were left untouched!  Here is a list of bird species that visited the homemade suet:  numerous bluebirds; three species of nuthatches; tufted titmice, chickadees, pine and yellow-rumped warblers; ruby crested kinglets,  three varieties of woodpeckers, Carolina wrens, mockingbirds, robins, and one lone hermit thrush.   Several other ground feeding species devoured the crumbs under the suet feeder. 

 This homemade suet is more expensive than "store-bought"varieties, but if you are an avid birdwatcher, I believe you will find it worth the price and effort.  One thing to remember is this homemade suet should probably be used  during periods of cooler temperatures.  Lard can be hard to find, so look in the "Mexican Food"section of your local grocery store.  Also, ingredients might be available in bulk at local membership grocery stores.  You can save money by using "store brand" peanut butter, oatmeal, etc.

 If you try this homemade suet, please provide feedback in "The Garden Gate Forum."   The link to The Southern Wings Bird Club website is:   www.geocities.com/southernwingsbc/

****MORE INFO :   The Master Gardener who provided the suet recipe made some calculations which show the approximate cost of making this suet.  My assumption this suet was more expensive than the store-bought variety was incorrect.

"I made a double batch of suet for $5.95.  This cake of suet is 8.5 x 13.25 x 1.625 inches or 183.02 square inches.