Adventure, Soup

   There are adventures in travel, adventures in money, and adventures
in baking.  Have you ever watched the Great British Baking Show? Those
contestants are crazy adventurers.  Very entertaining. 
   They can make mango ice cream, put it on top of a sponge cake, cover it with Italian meringue  (I have no idea what that is), use a blowtorch and have Baked Alaska. 
 Which takes me back 50 years.  When I was young, with 2 small children, and belonged to a card club.  I prepared a Baked Alaska for my refreshment
for the group.  Don’t ask me how I did it.  It is the only one I ever made. 
No practicing, just made it and served it.  Aw, me! I was an adventurous baker. 
   It wasn’t the first time I had been foolish (or the last).  When I was a teenager, mother asked me to bake the dessert for a family pitch-in. 
A picture in a magazine, I suppose, enticed me to make cream puffs. 
   Butter, flour, water and eggs cooked to a glossy mess, then baked in little circles. Cut part, filled with a pudding of sorts, then topped with powdered sugar.
  My family thought they were wonderful.  In fact they were repeated with varying degrees of success.  They ate them without complaining.  I don’t recall doing éclairs, with the chocolate icing on top but I may have. 
   Which reminds me of a story.  Years ago I worked as an activity person in a retirement home.  It meant chatting with the residents who needed some attention.  There was this tiny, grey-haired,  woman who liked to tell stories. 
I think her name was Pearl. When  she was a pre- school child and had been left alone in the house while her mother helped her father in the field, it was well before T.V. to comfort her, she became bored.
   Not knowing what else to do she decided she would bake a cake, .  She always watched as her mother  measured the sugar and flour and mixed them with a spoon.  Then the eggs and the lard, nothing to it. 
   The wood cook stove was a challenge,  Did mother add more sticks to the fire before putting the cake in the oven?
   Eventually the cake came out of the oven.  Forget icing. 
When her parents came in from their labors at noon, what did they see?
Mother couldn’t believe that Pearl had baked a cake by herself. 
   The memory of that adventure delighted Pearl for years. 
   Just as my adventure with Baked Alaska years ago. 
  Older and wiser, now I cook soup.  Enough for days, with some for the freezer.  . Soup can be an adventure.  Let’s see, where is that cookbook?
                                        Cabbage Soup

I have been adventuress, that’s the fun of it.

½ large mild onion, chopped
½ cup chopped celery
Some diced garlic (if you have any)
2 quarts beef broth
15 Oz. can of diced tomatoes (or equal amount of tomato juice)
1 quart of shredded cabbage
Chopped fresh herbs for topping, (I used parsley and chives)
1 teaspoon honey
1 teaspoon vinegar
Olive oil

In a heavy pot pour enough olive oil to cover the bottom of the pan.
Add the celery, onion , Cook on low until onion begins to
brown. (Brown, not burn). Add diced garlic and cook 1 minute.   Add remaining ingredients and simmer
until desired consistency.  Dish up and top with fresh herbs.
The original recipe additionally calls for raisins, dill, marjoram and thyme

Food For Thought
“Three things in human life are important.  The first is to be kind.
The second is to be kind.  And the third is to be kind.”
                  Henry James, American writer

Children, Dahlias

     The joys of September

   Children are the joys of life in every month.  How about these children?

Gone Fishin'

Giddi- Up, Swan

Dahlias are a joy of September.  So glad we got acquainted.  But I still have so much to learn about them.  Storing the tubers over during the winter is the big obstacle.  Last year’s crop did not survive, so I bought new ones.

Mary's dahlia

Learning can be so expensive. New information about storing them is: remove loose soil from tubers when you dig them; turn them upside down (to drain moisture from stems) and let them air dry for 2 weeks; store in a large plastic bag at 40 to 45 degrees (That’s the catch, where do I find that for the winter?)
   Getting them ready to plant in the spring is a whole other story.
But they are worth it.  They are the prince and princess of the autumn garden. . 
   Little Creek Valley has a vendor’s stand at the Oxford Farmer’s Market on Saturday morning.They had beautiful dahlias.  .  If you can’t wait to grow your own you can enjoy the blooms  of others.  .  All their flowers were gorgeous.
   If you fancy mums, they were to be found in their splendor at the market, also. 

Stir Fry, Emeril and August

   The months slip by fast, the  evenings and mornings are already cool in Indiana.  So enjoy  the vegetable bounty now, even though you don’t know what to do with one more squash and two more tomatoes.
   I am thankful for friends and family; my refrigerator   has plenty of the season’s goodness.
   When you have had your fill of lettuce salad with tomatoes and maybe zucchini; you’ve had enough bacon, lettuce and tomato sandwiches, here are a few ideas that will help you use up your vegetables.



   Gazpacho, a cold soup, similar to salsa, is one of my favorites.  I gave you
That recipe last year.  I love it, and now is the time to prepare it.
    Fried green
tomatoes are delicious and easy.  . The trick is to peel the tomatoes, Slice about 1/3 inch thick.  Then dip in equal parts flour and yellow cornmeal with seasoning, rest or rack.  Heat oil, about ¼ inch deep in heavy pan to about 350 degrees. Dip tomatoes a second time in flour mixture, then in hot oil.  In about a minute, turn the tomatoes and cook for about another minute.  Perfect 
   For an easy meal, try stir-fry.
                                                       August Stir-Fry

Cook 1/2 cup dry rice and set aside
 
   Remember Emeril Lagasse, the television chef who was so popular some years ago?  He made cooking look easy and fun.  He must have been a good influence to many .  When he was going to cook a dish he had all those glass bowls filled with ingredients.  Someone in the kitchen had prepared them, all ;he had to do was put them together, throw in his special “Essence” and say  BAM.   He was an inspiration, and what listener didn’t learn a little something from him?
    Back to the stir fry. “It’s  a what you do with what you’ve got”  recipe. 1 small zucchini  or ½ large one, peeled and cut in strips
Medium onion, chopped
2 ripe tomatoes, peeled, cored, squeezed to remove seeds and water, then chopped
Small piece of meat. I used a pork cutlet; sliced very thin
A chunk of red or green pepper, chopped
½ cup fresh herbs chopped, (I had parsley and basil)

A little minced garlic, if you like, I didn’t have any
I had some small Brussels sprout, I parboiled them. Carrots, cauliflower or broccoli would do.
   When this is all prepped (Think of Emeril) prepare large heavy skillet, ;cast iron would be good, but there are others, with about ¼ cup vegetable oil, you may add more later if you feel it is needed.
When skillet and oil are hot (sizzles when drop of food is added) quickly brown the strips of meat. Stir as it browns. Remove meat and set aside leaving oil in pan. Turn down heat to medium, add onion and garlic if using. Add salt and pepper and cook briefly.  Remove vegetables and set aside. If needed add more oil to skillet.  With heat on medium add remaining vegetables , cook for about 5 minutes. Return meat and onions to skillet.. Taste to see if it needs salt and pepper. Cook just until everything is hot.  Plate the rice, top with cooked vegetables, top with chopped parsley and basil.  Enjoy.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Pie, Guests, Old Movies

     My guests called and said they were enjoying the miles long or something yard sale in Tennessee.  They wouldn’t be arriving today but tomorrow. 
    There was nothing to do but watch Turner Classic Movies. I recognized the leading lady as Myrna Loy, but for the life of me I couldn’t remember the lead male actor’s name. 
   My dad didn’t go in for romantic comedy when he  took mother and us  children to the movies.  He liked Gary Cooper and Gene Autry.  But I couldn’t place that fellow.  Was his name Douglas, or something.   It was a completely absurd movie, but that happens now-a-days, too.  I continued watching.  Myrna was so thin, did she eat anything?  I liked her hair style, just like what was popular in the 40’s.. Yes, I know what was popular in the 40’s. 
   Was it Bryon Douglas?, That was it.   Not an actor to remember.  But he was funny, in a subtle way.
   I relaxed, no more thinking of what I was preparing for dinner, laughed a little. 

  Then the movie was over and the credits rolled on.  Yes, Myrna Loy, but Melvin  Douglas?  Yes, Melvin Douglas   I can’t recall a movie I ever saw him in.  He’s no Cary Grant. 
   The afternoon was gone, the peanut butter-chocolate pie I had prepared for guests will hold until tomorrow and I had a few laughs.  It is a good day.

                                          Peanut Butter Chocolate Pie
Crust
3 Tbsp.  sugar
7 Tbsp. butter melted
10 sheets of graham crackers
Crush g. crackers and combine with sugar and butter.  Press in 9 inch pie
Pan and bake for 8-10 minutes at 350.  Cool.
Filling
2 Tbsp. butter
½ cup ;heavy whipping cream, divided
3 oz. cream cheese, room temp.
1/3 cup creamy peanut butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/3 cup plus 2 Tbs. B. sugar
Combine in pan 1//3 cup B. sugar, 1/4 cup cream, 2 Tbsp. butter. Stir and cook until sugar is dissolved and butter melted. Cool.
  In a bowl combine cooked mixture with ½ cup peanut butter, cream cheese and vanilla. Blend well, Cool.
Whip 1/4 cup cream and 2 Tbsp. B. sugar. Gently fold cream  into peanut butter mixture.  . Pour mixture into cooled crust.  Chill.
Chocolate Ganache Topping
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate pieces
½ cup heavy whipping cream. 
Microwave for 30 seconds in heavy bowl.  Stir. Microwave 30 seconds, remove and stir until combined. 
When ganache is at room temp and pie is well set, spread chocolate on top of pie.  May top with a few g. cracker crumbs

Quilt Gardens,Indiana

   Short outings can be a lot of fun.  That is what Linda Rosenberger and girl friends found out last summer when they took a trip to northern Indiana Amish country.  The focus of the trip was to see the quilt gardens.  They were delighted with what they saw.

  So much so, in fact , that Linda wanted to grow her own quilt garden.  This spring she pursued that endeavor by checking with the fellows at ColorWorks Greenhouse east of Brookville.  They were accommodating; Her 10 x 10 ft. square plot  became  a challenge;, the right plants, the right colors and of course, Mother’s Nature’s participation. 
   With the help of a computer they were able to determine how many plants and what kind of plants were most suitable for the project.  Linda worked with the fellows at Colorworks.   Planted in May, it took several weeks for the plot to fill out but the results indicate it was worth the effort.  Thirteen flats of assorted begonias, marigolds, ageratum  and petunias were needed.

  Upkeep means,. pinching back, very little watering and weeding.  Preen and mulch were used at planting time.     Linda is pleased at the success of her quilt garden, especially since this is her first attempt.  Perhaps she will inspire others to have a go at it.
    The quilt gardens of northern Indiana are an annual event. More information about them can be found on the internet by going to Indiana Quilt Gardens, or Elkhart County Quilt Gardens.  This year eighteen gardens and 21 hand painted, quilt themed, super sized murals can be visited on tours of the area around, Goshen, Elkhart and Middlebury.
   I have enjoyed the area several times, there is much to see, especially if you are interested in food. 

Picture taken from a drone

Pickles

   When my neighbor brought me cucumbers, I thought, pickles! Wonderful!  When I
was a child, summer meant crocks of pickles in the kitchen.  Mother loved growing
cucumbers and making pickles.  That was the snack of the day for my cousin and me.  The recipes must have been complicated; days of changing the water and adding vinegar in the crocks
of pickles until they were finally just right.
   Although I no longer have a vegetable garden I am delighted to be on the receiving end of
other people's harvest.  This is an easy recipe for

Refrigerator Pickles

                                                                Refrigerator Pickles
6 cups sliced cukes
1 1/2 cups sliced onions
2 cups sugar
1 cup white vinegar
1 Tablespoon salt
1 Tablespoon celery seed
   Combine sugar, ;vinegar, salt and celery seed, bring to a boil.  Cool and pour over vegetables.  Will keep well in covered jars in refrigerator.

   If you are looking for that old time goodness, and have lots of cucumbers here is a recipe for
                                                              Sweet Pickles

14 medium cucumbers
8 cups sugar
4 cups vinegar
2 Tbsp. pickling spices
5 teaspoons salt
1 Tablespoon alum
1/2 teaspoon turmeric 
   Cover cucumbers with boiling water, let stand over-night. Drain and discard
water.  Cover again with boiling water to which alum has been added.  The next
day drain and discard water.  Cover again with boiling water, let stand over-night.
drain and discard water.  Cut cucumbers in thick rings.  Bring sugar, salt, vinegar and pickling spices to boil  Add 1/2 teaspoon turmeric. Let set for 2 days in syrup, on third day, heat and fill jars.
   Delicious and worth the effort.

   In her later days, mother came up with an easy-peasy recipe for pickles.
                                                  Sweet from Dill Pickles


   Purchase whole or sliced dill pickles in quart or gallon jar.  Recipe will make 1/2 gallon.
Pour off dill juice, cut pickles if desired. Cover with boiling water.  Let stand over-night.  Pour off water and dry on paper towels. Return pickles to jars.  Cover with pickling syrup as follows.

1 cup vinegar
4 cups sugar
1 tsp. pickling spices
Stir to dissolve sugar and bring to boil.  Place a table knife down the side of the jar to prevent breaking the jar as you pour hot syrup over pickles.  Seal the jars.  Let stand 2-3 days before serving.  Keep in refrigerator.(When I did these recently I cut back the sugar to 3 cups, then there wasn't enough syrup to cover the pickles.  Had to make a little more)

  When you are resting from your pickle making, and need something new to think on here are a
few quotations from a little book,"The Gardener's Guide to Life", compiled and Edited by Criswell Freeman.
   "Just living is not enough,"said the butterfly.  "One must have freedom, sunshine and a little flower."  Hans Christian Anderson.
   All my hurts my garden spade can heal.  Ralph Waldo Emerson.
   This is the day which the Lord hath made, we will rejoice and be glad in it.  Psalms 118:24
     There is no great achievement that is not the result of patient working and waiting.  J.G. ;Holland.
   If a a tree dies, plant another in its place. Linnaeus.
   Man is a tool-using animal.  Without tools he is nothing.  With tools he is all.  Thomas Carlyle.
   We think birds are valuable and keep three birdbaths on our front and side lawns.  The birds no doubt destroy many of the harmful insects.  Edwin Way Teale.

Fun, People and Cookies

   June is surely a party month.  Weddings, graduations, birthdays.  Father’s Day.  Any excuse to have people and food, what fun! 
   Our excuse was my granddaughter’s graduation from high school. E is a beautiful star; appearance, personality and talent.  I have been printing note cards from her paintings since she was six.  She will be attending Herron Art School, IUPPI in Indianapolis this fall. 

The Big Day

One of her paintings made into a card

   It makes us pause, where did our years go? How long ago it was that we were handed our black diplomas.  How will her dreams compare with her reality?
  For now, we will find joy in the dreams of our children and pray for their wellbeing.  At E‘s party.  we shared stories with family and friends; played with the little ones and enjoyed the food. 
   I was struck by a beautiful tray of cookies supplied by family friend, K.
The almond flavored gems were delicious and I wanted the recipe. 
   And there by lies a story. 
K’s Mom was a student at a University in Ohio long ago, where she was a member of a Sorority.  She met her husband there and they went on to have four children.  Life wasn’t easy, as so often happens, but K’s Mom knew how to make lemons into lemon aid.  At the age of 50, she found herself divorced and job hunting.   She had been employed most of her adult life, except when her children were little, but at this stage of life she was looking for a new start.  Remembering the fun and rewards of sorority life, she was encouraged to try being a house “Mom” at a sorority.  That is how she became  a House Mom at a Sorority at an Indiana college.  Fifty girls to plan for, to console and to encourage.  There were dances, parties, and naturally, cookies to be baked.  K’s Mom didn’t leave all that for the kitchen staff.  She pitched right in when needed and baked those cookies.

   .
   That is where this recipe comes from, and why I will call them “Sorority Sugar Cookies.”  They are thin, delicate and pretty to look at. 
.  No doubt she had fun on her job as House Mom and her cookies were a great success with all her girls. 
  K’s Mom  was not only a baker and a charmer, but a mother.  She passed along her knowledge and ambition to her children. 
   Her daughter K earned her doctorate and another daughter became an accomplished nurse.  Many people have benefited from their dedication to their work to help others.
   K, now retired, recalls with admiration the work of her mother.  She has her mother’s special   cookie recipe that she shares with friends.  K, much like her mother, knows the value of encouragement and is quick to praise the work of young people.
   This sugar cookie recipe is time consuming, but worth it, tasting like a delicious wedding cake.  It is to be saved for special occasions, like a graduation party  or a sorority dance.

                               Sorority Sugar Cookies
1 ½ cups powdered sugar
1 cup butter, soft but not runny
1 teaspoon vanilla
½ teaspoon almond extract
1 egg
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon cream of tartar

Combine and mix well P. sugar, butter, vanilla, almond extract and egg.
Add dry ingredients that have been sifted together. 
Beat, but do not over beat.
Cover and chill for at least 4 hours.
Oven temperature 340. (Ovens vary, may need higher temp.)
On lightly floured parchment paper roll out a portion. Roll ¼ inch thick. Keeping rolling pin dusted with flour, cut cookies leaving space between.
Remove dough between cookies, slide parchment paper onto cookie sheet and bake 7-8 minutes or until edges are beginning to brown. Do not over bake.  Cool.
Cookies may be decorated with colored sugar before baking or with a glaze.
                        Glaze
2 cups powdered sugar
1/4 tsp almond extract
3-7 teaspoons milk
1/3 cup almond slices (toasted or plain)-sprinkle a few on top of each glazed cookie.