Strawberry Bliss!

    I think strawberries are one of my favorite parts of summer!
If you a have strawberry patch, beautiful red berries are probably starting to appear. Home grown strawberries always remind me of my great grandma, Great B. When she still lived on the farm she had the best strawberry patch. The berries were like candy! Yesterday a friend brought us some berries from Jost Picking, Pick-Your-Own Strawberries (near Elvira, IA, 563/522-2305). They are almost as good as Great B's! 
    The berries got me thinking about one of my favorite desserts, Mock Angel Food Cake. We like to serve it with strawberries on top. It also happens to be one of Great B's favorites.


Mock Angel Food Cake
2 c flour 
2 c sugar 
1 c boiling water 
6 egg whites
1 tsp cream of tartar
2 tsp baking powder 
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla 


Sift the flour and sugar into a large bowl, pour in the boiling water and mix to combine. Let the mixture cool. Beat the egg whites until frothy. Add salt, cream of tartar, vanilla and baking soda. Beat until stiff peaks form. When the flour mixture is cool, fold in the egg white mixture. Pour into an ungreased 9x13" pan and bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes.


Allow to cool and serve with strawberries and whipped cream for a delicious spin on strawberry shortcake.

The original recipe can be found in "A Century of Cylinder Cooking" - 
a cookbook put together in the tiny town where my dad grew up.

For more about Great B and some of her recipes, see posts 

"Summer is just around corner...," "A Heavenly Dessert,"

 and "Summer with a cherry on top "

Great is Thy faithfulness...

This has nothing to do with gardening, but I just had to share what happened to me today!


I serve a truly AWESOME God! Today I went treasure hunting with my friend, Natalie, at Salvation Army. We were almost home when, to my horror, I realized I had forgotten my purse. We went back and asked the cashiers about it, but no one had turned it in. I would not have been freaking out, since I had my phone with me and my wallet had all of $12 in it, but my iPod touch was in there! I was positive I would never get it back. 
Then...a wonderfully kind lady called to tell us she had found it. But wait - it gets better! When we got to her house all she had was my wallet and my iPod. My purse was not there. She said she had seen the iPod and wallet when she was checking out because it had fallen to the bottom of the cart. We kept thanking her and she kept saying "I had to; it was the right thing to do."
All I can think of is that someone must have tried to grab it and my wallet and iPod must have fallen out. So, unless some strange person was looking for used lip gloss, they weren't going to find much...except a small bible. The crazy thing is that I have dropped it upside down and nothing falls out, which is one of the things I like most about that purse. It was totally God! 
Later someone from the Salvation Army called to say that someone had turned in the actual purse - apparently they didn't need used lip gloss!
I am still in such awe of how faithful God is to me!!!

Green Peas, Please!

Today I thought I would post one of my favorite summer recipes. I actually got this one from Giada De Laurentiis and put my own spin on it. Pea Pesto sounds a bit strange I know, but trust me, it is fabulous! I love it, and I'm not a big fan of green peas. Since I have limited garden space, so I don't have enough room to grow the amount of peas necessary for the recipe. Fortunately, frozen peas work great.


Pea Pesto
1 (10 ounce) package frozen peas, thawed
2 garlic cloves
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese (freshly grated, if you can)
1 Tbsp lime basil leaves, (if you don't have lime basil you can use regular basil and 1/2 tsp lime juice, it won't be quite the same but it will still be good)
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/2 c olive oil


Place everything except the oil into the bowl of a food processor and pulse to combine. With the machine running slowly, drizzle in the oil and continue to mix until well combined. 


And there you have it! I like to serve it over pasta, with halved cherry tomatoes, for a quick and easy (and might I add, delicious!) pasta salad.

Cucumber Salad with A Twist

    While my dad and I were working in the garden this past weekend I realized something ... come late summer we are going to have cucumbers coming out of our ears! You can only eat so many cucumbers fresh, and unfortunately you can't freeze them like you can tomatoes. I'm thinking some pickles might be in order, but it might be nice to have something to make with some of the fresh ones. And let's face it, nobody makes cucumber sandwiches anymore!
    How about a salad, something light and refreshing. Lemonade would go perfectly with this salad.


Cucumber Salad
5 medium cucumbers, peeled and sliced
1/2 bulb fennel, sliced very thinly 
1 celery stalk, sliced thinly 
1/2 pint grape tomatoes, sliced in half (optional)
____________________________________________________________
1/2 c plain greek yogurt 
1/4 c sour cream 
the zest of half a lemon
2 tsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 tsp rice wine vinegar 
1 garlic clove, grated
1 1/2 tsp fresh dill, finely chopped 
1 Tbsp chervil, finely chopped (if you don't have chervil you can use parsley, it won't be quite the same but it will work)
1 tsp lemon thyme leaves
salt and pepper to taste


Combine the first four ingredients in a large bowl. In a small bowl combine the rest of the ingredient and mix well. 
Add enough dressing to coat the veggies. You don't want to add to much as it will get watery as it sits in the fridge.
You can save the extra dressing in the fridge for later use.

For my lemonade recipe see "When life gives you lemons..."

Milk Crate Gardening 2

So this weekend I finally got my milk crate garden all filled up.

I added some different plants this year that I haven't grown before, and I can't wait to experiment with them!

I don't have pictures of everything, mostly just the new stuff.

Scented geranium and dianthus are on the left. On the right are coreopsis, and the flowers are edible.

I have never had scented geraniums before(I just learned about them, actually) so I can't wait to play around with those.

 Chocolate Mint(left) and Orange Mint (right) are both new additions.

 Sweet basil is a staple in my opinion. 

I started mine from seed. It's not quite ready for full sunlight yet, so we made a mini greenhouse out of an old juice jug. (Milk jugs work great too.)

Oregano is another staple for me. 

This happens to be Italian Oregano, which is a bit milder than its Greek cousin.

Lemon Thyme, one of  my favorites!

 Lavender - I have never grown lavender before - this fall I'm going to try to dry it and make sachets.  

Chervil is also a new one for me. It is sort of cross between tarragon and parsley.

Purple Sage, another one I am trying for the first time this year.

  Chamomile serves two purposes: It's a pretty flower and you can dry it and use it for tea.

Lastly Dill - these particular dill plants happen to have come from Great B's(my great grandma) house.

Dill is perfect in home-made ranch dressing!

For more about Great B and some of her recipes, see other posts: "Summer Is Just Around The Corner", "A Heavenly Dessert" and "Summer With A Cherry On Top". For my ranch dressing recipe see "Ranching Out".

Summer with a cherry on top

This recipe is for one of the pies Great B always had waiting for us when we got to her house. I think it's one of my all-time favorite desserts! With cherry season coming up I thought this might be a good recipe to share. If you have a sweet cherry tree, you could use your own cherries to make your own pie filling. That would be fantastic!

No-Bake Cherry Pie
1 package (8 oz.) cream cheese, room temperature
1 c powdered sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp almond extract
1 c whipping cream, chilled 
1 can cherry pie filling


1 pre-baked 8" pie crust (see the "A heavenly Dessert" post for Great B's lard pie crust recipe)


Cream together the first four ingredients, in a separate bowl whip the heavy cream. Add the whipped cream to the cream cheese mixture and fold gently. Pour the cream mixture into the pie crust, then pour the pie filling on top. 
Refrigerate for several hours before serving. 

For more of Great B's recipes see posts "Summer is just around the corner..." and "A Heavenly Dessert"

When life gives you lemons...

One of my favorite summertime drinks is lemonade, and in my opinion home-made is the very best lemonade you can find! Why not add some fresh herbs with lemony undertones to make it extra special? 


Lemonade 
1 1/4 c freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 c sugar
6 1/4 water
1 sprig lemon verbena 
1 sprig lemon balm
2-3 sprigs lemon thyme 


Place 1 c of the water, the sugar and all of the herbs into a small sauce pan and heat until sugar dissolves (this is called making a "simple syrup", it's quite handy for making lemonade and other drinks). Remove from the heat. Pour the lemon juice and the remaining water into a jar that can hold at least 2 quarts. Pour in 1-1 1/4 c of the simple syrup, depending on how sweet you like it(the simple syrup should make about 1 1/2 c, when pouring I like to use a little strainer to catch the herbs). Give it stir and enjoy!

I saw this idea in a book and I had to try it!
I used dianthus(a.k.a. pinks), but you could use any edible flower. Herb leaves or sprigs would work too.
I must say it worked very well! They make a beautiful garnish to summertime drinks.

I hope you enjoy the recipe!

Milk Crate Gardening

I have been wanting to make a planter for my herbs for a few years, and finally this year we made it happen. A few weeks ago I saw the idea of milk crate gardening(on a cooking show believe it or not). So I thought it would be a great idea for my herb garden. No worrying about pesky(even if they are cute) rabbits and elevated for easy access. This is how I, or rather we did it. (My dad did all of the work, I directed)

Besides herbs I also love hastas.
 We have had people tell us our hastas are on steroids 

Mint

Sage(front) and Rosemary

The finished product.

I love the way it turned out, no more wrestling with chicken wire to harvest herbs!!!

Rhubarb Season

Keeping with the dessert theme for the week, and with it being rhubarb season and all, I thought I would share one of my family's favorite rhubarb recipes. 


Cream Cheese Rhubarb Squares
Crust
1/2 c butter
1/2 c oatmeal
1/2 c brown sugar
1 1/4 c flour
1/4 tsp cinnamon 
1/4 tsp nutmeg


Filling
1 package (8 oz.) cream cheese
3/4 c sugar 
1 egg 
2 c rhubarb, chopped very finely


Use your hands or a pastry blender to mix the crust ingredients together. Divide in half, pat half of the crust into an 8x8" square pan, set the other half aside.
With a hand mixer cream the cream cheese and sugar together. Add the egg and mix thoroughly. Finally add the rhubarb and mix to combine. Pour the filling over the crust and sprinkle the reserved crust mixture over the top. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes or until the top begins to brown.

A Heavenly Dessert

So, this week is kind of turning into dessert week. Oh well, it could be worse! Today's recipes don't really have much to do with gardening(unless you have a coconut tree in your back yard...), but I love them! Today I'm posting Great B's famous pie crust recipe. The other recipe is for "Angel Pie", another Great B classic.


Great B's Lard Pie Crust
3 c flour
1 1/4 c lard (you CAN NOT substitute butter or shortening)
5 Tbsp cold water
1 Tbsp vinegar
1 egg 
1/2 tsp salt


Use your hands or a pastry blender to mix the flour and lard together until it becomes crumbly. Mix the egg, vinegar and water together. Add the egg mixture to the flour/lard mixture and mix until it just comes together. Make sure you don't over work it or it will become tough. This dough freezes wonderfully!


I know it there a few strange ingredients, but it works for us every time.


Angel Pie
4 Tbsp corn starch 
1/2 c sugar 
2 c milk
1 Tbsp butter
3 egg whites


1 pre-baked, 8" pie shell, Great B's lard pie crust recipe above.
Shredded, unsweetened coconut to sprinkle on top


In a double boiler, over medium heat whisk together the corn starch and the sugar. Add about 1/2 c of the milk and whisk. Add the rest of the milk and the butter whisking until smooth. Cook stirring often until thick. Whip egg whites until stiff peaks are achieved. Gently fold the egg whites into the hot mixture. Pour the mixture into the pie crust and sprinkle with coconut. 
Bake at 350 degrees until the coconut turns golden brown and delicious. Watch closely, it doesn't take long. 
Let it completely before devouring. 

Summer is just around the corner...

    With summer just around the corner I've been on full garden planning mode, mapping out in my head where everything will go. And when I think of gardening, I can't help thinking about my great grandma and our yearly summer trip to Cylinder, IA, my dad's home town. When Daddy was young he would spend most of his summers with "Great B". She's the one who taught him about gardening.
    Cylinder is way northwest and has a population of a whopping 90 people. Whittemore, a neighboring town(where my great-grandma lived, she's almost 98 and in a nursing home now), has about 200 people. Algona, the nearest "big" town, has a coffee shop and pet store that belong on Michigan Ave., a few small stores, Hy-Vee and K-Mart ... and that's it! Even the big town only has about 5,000 people. 
    On really hot days if the wind blows one way you can smell cows and if it blows the other way you can smell pigs. The pigs also outnumber the people about 250:1. No lie!
    Despite the smell and the fact that there isn't a Starbucks or a Target for at least 100 miles, and WiFi is about as easy to find as a needle in a haystack, it really is a beautiful place! It's very flat and there are corn and bean fields as far as the eye can see. On a really clear day you can see seven different towns' grain elevators(each town has its own grain elevator).
    Some of my fondest memories from when I was younger are visiting my great-grandma. She always had at least two pies, a crumb cake, cookies, and a roast in the oven waiting for us when we got there. For supper we would have the roast with mashed potatoes, and strawberries, asparagus, and green beans, all from her huge garden. Then dessert! I don't think I have ever met anyone who could, and still can, cook like her! No-bake cherry pie and sour cream raisin pie with home-made lard pie crusts, and the BEST crumb cake EVER! I have tried several times, but I don't think my crumb cake will ever taste as good hers(even after having her one-on-one instruction). I think it's her hands (she always did the crumb part by hand), her pan, and her 40+ year old hand mixer. Or maybe it's just all the love she put into it, I don't know. While we ate she would tell us stories about this and that from her younger days, the same stories she still tells every year. It's almost become a tradition. I'm Looking forward to the 4th of July and seeing her again, when we can bring her back to "the farm" and cook with her again - at 98! Besides cooking, we'll get to happily listen to all of her tales yet again.
    Anyway, enough of my ramblings. Here is the recipe for Great B's fabulous crumb cake. Great B is adamant that if you change the ingredients or instructions at all, you won't get the same results!

Great B's Crumb Cake
1 2/3 c AP(all-purpose) flour
1/2 c white sugar 
1/2 c brown sugar
6 1/2 Tbsp butter, slightly softened and cut into cubes 
You MUST use butter.


Use your hands or a pastry blender to mix the flour, butter and sugar until you have fine crumbs resembling wet sand. 
Reserve 1/2 c.


To remaining crumb mixture add:
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/8 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
2/3 c buttermilk 
1 egg


When you have everything in the bowl, with a hand mixer beat it until it is light and fluffy and has lightened in color quite a bit. Pour into a greased 8x8" pan. Sprinkle topping evenly over the surface. Bake at 325 degrees for about 40-45 minutes or until a tooth pick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cover it with tin foil while it cools to keep it moist. 
I does taste the best when it has had some time to cool.


If you make it, I would love to hear how it turns out!

Here are some pictures from last year's trip

Great B and her "Keithie" cooking  together. 
She is the only person allowed to call him by that name! 

At 97 she can still cook as well as ever!

The master at work :)  

 The finished product. YUM!

                          
                          

Ranching Out :D

Here's a recipe for home-made ranch dressing - it is DELICIOUS!!!
If you grow dill, parsley and chives in your garden here is a perfect place to use them :)


Ranch Dressing
1/2 c mayo 
1/4 c sour cream
1 Tbsp white wine vinegar
1-2 Tbsp milk (depends on how thick/thin you like it)
1 clove of garlic, peeled and minced 
2 Tbsp chives, chopped finely
1 Tbsp fresh parsley, chopped finely
1 tsp fresh dill, chopped finely
1/2 tsp salt
pepper to taste


First measure the mayo, sour cream and vinegar into a bowl.
Now take the garlic and sprinkle the salt on it, using a fork smash it until it turns into a paste(odd I know, but it works!).
Add everything else and mix to combine adding salt, pepper and vinegar to taste and enough milk to achieve the desired consistency.


It's wonderful on salads or as a dip for carrots or other veggies. Or my personal favorite, on grilled burgers!

Enjoy!

Cucumbers & Squash

I already have my tomatoes, peppers, broccoli, and some of my herbs started inside, and the peas, lettuce and potatoes are planted outside. Not all of my lettuce came up(I think we might have planted them a bit early... Oops!), so I'm gonna give some a head-start inside. I'm also planting my cucumbers and squash a few weeks ahead of time so I get an earlier harvest(you never know when the first frost will be in Iowa!).

      Here are the lettuce varieties I am planting. I also decided to plant some lime basil, I grew it last year and I loved it.

I thought these looked really interesting, we'll see how they do.

These look good too, and they have short vines which is perfect because we don't have a lot of space.

These sound really yummy. They keep a long time too, that's good :) 

 These look good too! I tried them last year but they didn't come  up, hopefully they'll grow better this year.

The lettuce will reside in an egg carton until they move outside,   and the cucumbers and squash will be growing in 3 in. peat pots.

Happy growing little seeds!!