Showing posts with label Seasons. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Seasons. Show all posts

Tuesday, June 25, 2019

Mom's Strawberry Shortcake



The patch is old, the berries are small but plentiful,
the mosquitoes are hungry but a stiff breeze is keeping them at bay today!

The birds are getting their fair share but we are too.
It's strawberry season over here - yay!


It's time to make the annual batch of Mom's Strawberry Shortcakes.
Always a treat!

This is how she wrote the recipe and I copied it onto the back of an October, 1975 calendar page
while sitting at her kitchen table - oh the memories!
Tried and true, this recipe!

2 Cups flour – good and full
4 tsp. heaping baking powder
¼ Cup Lard (yes lard - the real deal)
½ Cup Butter
2 Tbsp. full sugar
Salt - 1/2 tsp.
1 Cup milk – I’ve used buttermilk as well with good results

Mix dry ingredients and cut in the lard and butter.
Gradually mix in the milk with a spoon.
Spoon into ungreased tart tins and bake at 350F for 30-35 minutes.
Remove from oven and brush tops with melted butter - an important step for that special flavour!
Serve warm and topped with sweetened strawberries and vanilla ice-cream.
Makes approx. 1 dozen.









Bake till slightly browned 
and crispy.
Brush the melted butter on the hot
shortcakes to soften the tops
and make them taste extra good.








The official taste tester!

And then this happened today ... our little schnigglefritz graduated!




Milverton Nursery School 2018/2019

Well done ........... Noa!!!

Till next time ......... savouring the strawberries while they last and spending the day with our graduate.



Saturday, May 23, 2015

Walk About the Farm Yard

Old fashioned Lilac bush - so fragrant!


Although later than most years,
It's one of the prettiest times of year here on the farm.
In spite of it being very dry
and a frost last evening - everything is blooming beautifully.


Periwinkle blooming against the barn wall.

Lily of the Valley - taking over a whole flower bed at the back of the house!

My favourite White Bleeding Hearts Plant
Graceful Ferns unfurled and luscious green.



Hostas and Peonies - and a purple ground cover (not sure what it's called)

Fragrant White Lilac - best blooms ever this year!



I learned something new today.
My friend Margo told me that her mom always squished the woody stems of the lilacs when making a bouquet.
It helps the lilac last longer and absorb the water better.
Did you know that?
I hope my bouquet stays fresh and beautiful.








Wish you could smell this ...





Nothing is quite as pretty as a bouquet
 of Lily of the Valley!

My mom always put them into this very vase - it reminds me of her so much.
It looks so nice on the corner of the old Hoosier cabinet that was her first cupboard
and now has a special place in my farm kitchen.

Mom had so many beautiful flowers and almost always had a bouquet on her dining room table.











Well, there you have it - a wee walk about the farm yard.

Look who's waiting to be packed and hitched for a little bird watching "Escape"!

This post was inspired by Vee's recent postAnneliese's recent post, and especially Marg's "Happy Place" post!  I sure appreciated their inspiration this week! There is much work to be done and we are waiting for the warm rains predicted early in the week before edging and mulching the beds.

Till next time ............ stopping to smell the lilacs while they last!


Thursday, July 24, 2014

All on a Summer's Eve...





A hot air balloon
gently floating by 
the farm.

Reminding me that
these are the days of Summer.











Sunsets streaming through
the back yard arbour on
freshly mowed grass.

Summer evenings (and 
monster mosquitos).













A garden doing it's 
best to produce
fresh edibles in spite
of a late start and sparse germination.

Summer's promise...










Summer blooms .....



Sweet stir fried snow peas 
from a friend's luscious garden.

Summer's treats.

Happy Summer's Eve to you .................









Sunday, September 22, 2013

Welcome Fall!

What a wonderful way to
Welcome Fall....

We just returned home from a
beautiful weekend visit with friends
in Northern Ontario.



After doing a bit of hiking,
eating a picnic lunch
next to a serene lake,


enjoying each other's company,
more eating,


reminiscing and solving the world's problems,
and still more eating,


I feel rejuvenated and
ready to welcome Fall!

Thank you John and Dianne
for your superb hospitality
and friendship.



Till next time ............ how was your first weekend for Fall?




Short, Long Story

This beautiful old fashioned summer with lots of   heat and sunshine is whizzing and sizzling by far too fast! I have to say it's been o...