Zucchini Bars

Zucchini Bars

1 c. oil

2 c. white sugar

3 eggs (add one at a time)

1 t. vanilla

2 c. flour

1/4 t. baking powder

2 t. soda

1 t. salt

3/4 t. rolled oats

2 c. grated zucchini

1 c. chopped nuts (optional)

Frosting

1/2 c. margarine

3 oz. cream cheese

1 T. vanilla

2 1/2 c. powdered sugar

1/4 t. almond extract

Preheat oven to 350*. Mix together & pour into a greased 10X15 " (I always use a 9X13") pan. Bake 25-30 minutes. Cool. Mix frosting until smooth; spread on bars.

Refrigerate any leftover cake.

Gone but not forgotten

In memory of our neighbor March 3, 1940-August 14, 2010 EDWIN MYERS WHITTINGTON, 70, of Waterloo, died Saturday, Aug. 14, 2010, in a car accident in Terrace Bay, Ontario, Canada. Unsinkable ships, sink Unbreakable walls, break Sometimes the things you think would never happen Happen just like that Unbendable steel, bends

If the fury of the wind is unstoppable I've learned to never underestimate The impossible

We will miss you Ed. You were a great neighbor & always willing to help when needed. We will miss seeing you drive down the driveway to check your mail every morning & seeing you putting around on your lawn mower across the field. We will miss your smiling face & the way you bounced when you giggled. God must have needed your help in heaven.

Rest in peace.

Busy, Busy, Busy!

What have I been doing these last few weeks?

I'll let these pictures do all the talking.

A little over 13 pounds total!

Turning this:

Into this: (just the 2nd row! 3rd row from previous yr)

And making the porch more inviting!

Ecuador 2010

This is our church youth group.

They left yesterday (7/16) to travel to NY then they are off to Duran, Ecuador where they will be spending 12 days building a 3rd floor onto the school that they started years ago. Here's a link to a South America map.

http://www.mapsofworld.com/ecuador/ecuador-political-map.html

I couldn't get the image to save to my computer!

They will be flying into Guayaquil. Duran is southeast (?) of there.

Baking Day w/ Pics & Recipes

Vanishing Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

1 c. margarine 1 c. brown sugar

1/2 c. white sugar

2 eggs

1 t. vanilla

1 1/2 c. flour

1 t. soda

1 t. cinnamon

1/2 t. salt

3 c. quick oats

1 c. raisins

Mix first 9 ingredients together in mixer. Stir in oats & raisins by hand. With small ice cream scooper, place 2 scoops of dough per cookie onto lightly greased cookie sheet.

Bake @ 350* for about 10 minutes.

Homemade Wheat Bread

1 c. warm water

2 T. oil

3 T. brown sugar

1 t. salt

1 egg, slightly beaten

1 c. ground wheat flour

1 c. bread flour

1 c. all-purpose flour

2 1/2 t. yeast

Put in order into machine. Hit dough cycle. Let rise. Take out & roll into a rectangle with rolling pin. Roll dough into loaf. When finished rolling up, pinch together. Put this to rise in a greased bread pan, with pinched end on bottom of pan. Let rise again til double in size, about 35 minutes.

Bake @ 375* for 20-25 minutes. Brush top with butter when done.

The fruits of my labor!

Blessings!.· ´¨¨)) -:¦:- ¸.·´ .·´¨¨)) ((¸¸.·´ .·´ -:¦:-Miki -:¦:- ((¸¸.·´*

Our Very First Garden....EVER!!!

Here are some pictures of our garden that I took today. Not too bad for some former "city slickers" huh?

The whole garden

Cucumbers in the back.

From left to right: carrots, green peppers, banana peppers, & head lettuce.

Green beans & zucchini. Onions, Anaheim peppers & corn.

Peas on the left & cabbage on the right.

Tomatoes: Better Boys, Romas & Cherry(?)

The Cherry (?) tomatoes just mysteriously appeared.

Better Boy tomatoes

Cabbage.

I've been having problems with cabbage worms & I read that if you dust the cabbage with self-rising flour it will kill the worms. So I am trying the flour before I go out & buy chemicals. The flour is supposed to expand in the worm's stomach & kill them with they eat it.

Zucchini leaves.

Our first zucchini!

Which I floured & fried for last night's supper.

YUM!!!

Blessings!.· ´¨¨)) -:¦:- ¸.·´ .·´¨¨)) ((¸¸.·´ .·´ -:¦:-Miki -:¦:- ((¸¸.·´*

Deep-Dish Cherry Pie

A few days ago my youngest daughter & I picked a small bucket full of cherries from one of our cherry trees so I decided I had better do something with them before they went bad. I made this recipe this morning. I have never used cherries picked from a tree in a recipe before but this one turned out pretty tasty!

Deep-Dish Cherry Pie

Old-fashioned, deep-dish pies were baked in a casserole with just one crust on top. To catch any juice that bubbles over, put the casserole in the oven on a baking sheet.

1 c. sugar

1/4 c. all-purpose flour

1 t. lime juice

1/4 t. grated lime rind (I omitted this since I didn't have any. Tastes just fine without)

4 c. fresh or frozen pitted tart red cherries

*1 store-bought or homemade pie crust (mine was homemade. see recipe below.)

*Note: If using pie recipe below, only use 1/4 of roll

1. Preheat oven to 375*. In large bowl, stir together sugar, flour, lime juice, & lime rind. Add cherries; toss til cherries are coated. (If using frozen cherries, let mixture stand for 15-30 minutes or til cherries are partially thawed but still icy, stirring occasionally.) Pour cherry mixture into a 1 1/2 qt. casserole dish.

2. Place pie crust on top of cherry mixture. Trim crust to 1" beyound edge of casserole. Fold under the extra crust & crimp edge. Cut slits in crust. Brush with mixture of egg & water; sprinkle with a little additional sugar.

3. Bake for 50-55 minutes or til crust is golden. Cool on wire rack for 1 hr. before serving. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream.

Makes 8 servings.

Perfect Pie Pastry

Makes enough for 2 pies with top crusts

4 c. all-purpose flour

1 T. sugar

2 t. salt

1 3/4 c. shortening

1 egg

1 T. cidar vinegar

1/2 c. water

1. Combine flour, sugar, salt, & shortening in large bowl & blend til it has the texture of coarse crumbs. In small bowl, whisk together egg, vinegar, & water. Drizzle over flour mixture & mix thoroughly. Shape dough into patty, wrap in plastic wrap, & place in freezer for 45 minutes, or refrigerate overnight.

2. When chilled, form dough into a long roll, & divide into fourths. Roll & use immediately, or wrap each portion separately & refrigerate or freeze.

Welcome!

Welcome to my new blog! I am moving over here from Homestead Blogger where I have been blogging for about 5 yrs. They currently changed all the settings & it's way too confusing for me & not so much a blogging style anymore so I have decided to relocate. My name is Miki (pronounced Mike E). I have been married to my husband, Mike, for 17 1/2 yrs & we have 2 daughters. Ashley is 16 1/2 & Katie is 13. Ashley just finished up her first year back to school. She will be a senior this coming fall. Katie is currently going into the 8th grade in our homeschool come this fall. We attend a Mennonite church in Ohio where we have been members since April 2001. We have just recently moved to the country after living in the city our whole married life & most of our childhoods. So come & share our journey with us as we go from "city slickers" to "country bumkins"! :D Thanks for visiting & please stop in again!