Scone Week

Posted on August 8, 2011 by heidiannie

Last year I made some North Umberland singin’ hinnies or

Welsh scones –with lavender. Celia and Joanna and some

others made scones this week, as well, and so we (Celia,

mainly) proclaimed it Scone week.

Celia has a VERY good memory and she has posted a

savory cheddar and onion scone.

I decided to share my Slovak scones, begonya- a bacon

or scrappling savory scone that my grandmother used to

make for my mother when she was a little girl.

My mother never gave me this recipe until I was messing about

with different ingredients to go into a scone for a tea I was preparing.

I’m not sure of the spelling- it is pronounced with all short vowels,

be-gon-ya. I love these for just plain snacking- or joined with a creamy

soup and salad for lunch. Or warm and slathered with butter…. any way

you like them- with tomato slices and basil and cheese would be good,too!

Here’s the recipe-

Ingredients

1/2 pound bacon fried and chopped

2 cups all purpose flour

1 Tablespoon baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

5 Tablespoons margarine or butter

2/3 cup cold milk

Method:

Mix together flour,salt, and baking powder. Cut in margarine or butter

until it looks like oatmeal.

Add bacon. Stir. Add milk.

Mix with fork, gently knead to blend for 1-2 minutes.

Pat down or roll on floured board to 1/2 inch thick.

Cut on angle to make diamond shapes.

Place on ungreased baking sheet ( I use parchment paper)

and bake in preheated oven at 450 F for 12-14 minutes.

Today’s Psalm- a memorial- 137

Posted on August 7, 2011 by heidiannie

Psalm 137

¹ By the rivers of Babylon we sat and wept
when we remembered Zion.
² There on the poplars
we hung our harps,
³ for there our captors asked us for songs,
our tormentors demanded songs of joy;
they said, “Sing us one of the songs of Zion!”

⁴ How can we sing the songs of the LORD
while in a foreign land?
⁵ If I forget you, Jerusalem,
may my right hand forget its skill.
⁶ May my tongue cling to the roof of my mouth
if I do not remember you,
if I do not consider Jerusalem
my highest joy.

⁷ Remember, LORD, what the Edomites did
on the day Jerusalem fell.
“Tear it down,” they cried,
“tear it down to its foundations!”
⁸ Daughter Babylon, doomed to destruction,
happy is the one who repays you
according to what you have done to us.
⁹ Happy is the one who seizes your infants
and dashes them against the rocks.

Imprecatory psalms are sometimes hard to read-

and harder to digest. “Happy is the one who seizes your

infants and dashes them against the rocks”?

There is a whole history lesson that goes with today’s psalm-

but I’m not going there. This is a psalm of sorrow- of memorial-

of pain- and yes, of anger.

This past week I had a conversation with a lady about her

nephew who is back in jail because of his addiction to drugs.

He is due to be released, but no one in the family is willing to take

him on. Or should I say, no one is willing to take on him and his

addiction

I don’t really understand addiction fully, but what I get- what I KNOW

about it is that it is as tenacious and destructive as a stage 4 cancer- and

more often than not- it ends in death.

Those who live with drug addictions are whirlwinds of trouble-

redemption and relapse,

futile futures and they are dangerous to love.

I’m not saying that they can’t come out of the depths of degradation-

I’m saying that often, they don’t – and if they do- there is no

guarantee they won’t end up back in the same despair.

My friend, Michele, wrote a psalm that I’d like to share with you.

PRAISE THE LORD

Praise the Lord for being our Creator

Praise Him for making us new

Praise Him for being our mentor

Ask and it shall be given to you.

Praise the King, the First and the Last,

Praise Him for your future and past.

Praise the One in Heaven above,

Praise Him, Praise Him with all of your love.

Michele was an addict who came to know and love the Lord.

Her voice was loud in His praises, her chuckle filled with the joy

she had in being a part of the family of God.

Her eyes would sparkle as she spoke of His grace and mercy-

and her stories were full of the mystery of His love.

Her life was troubled-

there was so much she had to make amends for- so much she

had to learn-her addiction was costly- it stripped her of her

family, her teeth, her health, her friends.

And she wanted to have a life like those of the believers she knew.

But her life was precarious – even at its best.

And the addiction did not go away- it laid in wait for a moment of

weakness and despair.

And I believe- in the end- it was too strong for her to keep fighting.

But – thinking of Michele and the many others of our loved ones

who are caught in the web of this enemy-

I understand Psalm 137 better.

”Daughter Babylon, doomed to destruction,
happy is the one who repays you
according to what you have done to us.”

Amen.

Here is a little background to this entry-

http://heidiannie.livejournal.com/31820.html

Blessing…

Posted on August 5, 2011 by heidiannie

This is my son, Luke.

He’s an Episcopalian priest, working in Cold Springs Harbor, NY.

He recently shared this picture with me and it made me smile.

This is what the people called, “The blessing of the Hogs”- I love it.

I love that there is an appropriate blessing for motorcycles.

I love that these people are moved to seek such a blessing.

And I especially love that this is part of my son’s job.

Life is good when your work is doing what you love-

connecting with people and connecting people with God!

And I am so very blessed- that this man is my son.

Blueberry and Almond crumb bars-recipe with a lemon zest

Posted on August 2, 2011 by heidiannie

Last Friday, our downstairs upright freezer decided to defrost itself.

We have had a long hot BUSY summer.

And we have neglected to do some things- so the ice in the freezer was

becoming like a living monster-growing and Growing and GROWING!

Until it pushed the door open of it own volition.

Sometime in the wee hours of Friday morning it started to defrost the

freezer, so by the time we got there it was well on its way!

Thankfully- the meat was still rock hard frozen.

The ice cream was a loss.

The bread we could use for toast that morning.

But the bags of blueberries were totally defrosted and I had to

find something to make with them fast.

The good news here is that Frank loves desserts.

He thinks every meal should end in dessert.

But he’s not that fond of fruit pies.

So- I decided to make blueberry bars.

Of course, I started making them without looking for a recipe.

Because I’m that stupid, really.

So I put them into a pan with a cup of sugar, the juice of a lemon,

and teaspoons of cornstarch and started to cook them down.

Then I started making a crust and after I had mixed up sugar (1 cup)

and flour (3 cups) and a pinch of salt, I grated a cup of butter into a

measuring cup and thought- I should go see how much baking powder

I should add- and I went to look up a recipe.

The recipe said 1 teaspoon of powder would be sufficient.

But it was really different for the blueberry addition.

It said to use fresh blueberries and mix them with sugar and cornstarch

and lemon juice and then just spread it over the bottom layer of crust.

RATS! I had already been cooking my thawed berries for about 20 minutes,

and they were bubbly and fragrant and done. There would be no going back.

So- I adapted my recipe, and added some almonds and lemon zest to the top

layer and baked them up.

Recipe ingredients:

1 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup cold unsalted butter (2 sticks or 8 ounces)
1 egg
1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup slivered almonds
Zest and juice of one lemon
4 cups blueberries ( frozen or fresh)
1/2 cup white sugar
4 teaspoons cornstarch

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease a 9×13 inch pan.

2. Put frozen/thawed berries in pan – add 1 cup sugar and lemon juice and

cornstarch and cook until bubbly and thick.

(2. Alternative:

mix blue berries, 1/2 cup sugar and cornstarch in bowl- set aside.)

3. Mix together flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Grate butter into mixture-

and mix together until it resembles oatmeal in texture.

4. Add egg and lemon zest- and mix together with hands. Dough will be very

crumbly.

Now put half of mixture into bottom of 9×13 pan and

press down. Spoon blueberry mixture over the entire pan.

Add almonds to mixture in bowl and stir. Sprinkle over top

of blueberries and bake for 45 minutes to an hour (keeping an eye on

it- you want the top to be beautifully browned.)

Cut into bars when completely cool and separate carefully.

I wrapped mine up in wax paper and plastic for lunches.

I ate one first and decided to freeze the rest- these can be

easily eat by the handful!

Strawberries- a guest post and a quick and easy pastry recipe

Posted on August 1, 2011 by heidiannie

Strawberries- a guest post by Robin Loretta Hrubik

( First let me introduce the post. Robin wrote a small book of memories

for me on my 40th birthday. She was going to be on a tour of Europe over

the weeks before and after my birthday- so she wrote me a collection of

essays, made up a marvelous treasure hunt for Jordan and me to follow, and

put together a campaign of birthday wishes from almost everyone who knew

me and orchestrated a birthday party at a friend’s home- it was amazing

how very much she was there without actually being there.

This is the entry she wrote about strawberries and our childhood.)

Who doesn’t love them?

Maybe my small patch will produce while I’m in Europe.

Stop over and pick a handful, wipe off the dirt and pop a sun-kissed warm berry

into your mouth and close your eyes to remember…

those delectable teeny-tiny seed covered WILD strawberries that grew

on the bank on the other side of the dirt road.

We were children of the Earth more so in those days. We probably had ” chores”

WORK- that four letter word- assignments awaiting us. But oh, when those

berries were ripe- we Picked! Such work it was- adults were too impatient to spend

precious time at such a labor-intensive job. Yet to us it was a gift straight from heaven.

Smell the sweet breeze- the delicate scent of slightly crushed berry mixed with grassy,

earthy aromas and the hot pungent waves of hot tar and auto exhaust.

We tuned out everything to focus on our worthy task and reward to come.

When we had finally picked” enough”, we would run to the house and prepare our feast.

Between the bank and the house something must have happened to our handfuls of

berries. I always felt we had more outside and somehow lost Large amounts by the time

we were ready to add the sugar and mash, mash, mash!

Who can forget that tart/sweet full flavor of those few spoonfuls of wild berries?

We savored them quickly- by now someone had come upon us and assessed our

childishness (they said stupidness) and broke into our play/work.

All of a sudden we saw (we were forced to see) the kitchen as it really was-

dirt tracked on the floor,

water splashed and dripping,

berry stems and leaves scattered,

sugar spilt everywhere-

our hands sticky

our faces smeared.

But we had had our adventure, our fun!

They couldn’t take it away!

Thank you, Lord, for not allowing us to be “caught” until we had finished our

moment of “be-ing”.

And thank you Lord, for this book of memories I can still share with my sister,

it helps deal with the loss of her for so many years.

Here is the quick recipe for Almost strawberry pie!

This is quick to put together, but you need some of the ingredients to already

be prepared. First wash and cut up a pint of strawberries and lightly sugar them

(about 1 TBSP per pint of berries). Then stir 1/3 cup of strawberry frozen jam- I

use the recipe on the pectin package- into the berries. This works better than

a glaze and adds sweetness, color and flavor.

Finally, you need several pieces of pastry, sprinkled with sugar , baked ahead and

cut into pie shaped pieces. I usually do this with any left over pie dough and store

it in the freezer for just this purpose. Put them all together on a plate, add whipped

cream and you have a little bit of summer delight sitting on the table in front of you!

Not every psalm has a number. Exodus 15:1-22

Posted on July 30, 2011 by heidiannie

The Song of Moses and Miriam

¹ Then Moses and the Israelites sang this song to the LORD:

   “I will sing to the LORD,
   for he is highly exalted.
Both horse and driver
   he has hurled into the sea.

² “The LORD is my strength and my defense;
   he has become my salvation.
He is my God, and I will praise him,
   my father’s God, and I will exalt him.
³ The LORD is a warrior;
   the LORD is his name.
⁴ Pharaoh’s chariots and his army
   he has hurled into the sea.
The best of Pharaoh’s officers
   are drowned in the Red Sea.
⁵ The deep waters have covered them;
   they sank to the depths like a stone.
⁶ Your right hand, LORD,
   was majestic in power.
Your right hand, LORD,
   shattered the enemy.

⁷ “In the greatness of your majesty
   you threw down those who opposed you.
You unleashed your burning anger;
   it consumed them like stubble.
⁸ By the blast of your nostrils
   the waters piled up.
The surging waters stood up like a wall;
   the deep waters congealed in the heart of the sea.
⁹ The enemy boasted,
   ‘I will pursue, I will overtake them.
I will divide the spoils;
   I will gorge myself on them.
I will draw my sword
   and my hand will destroy them.’
¹⁰ But you blew with your breath,
   and the sea covered them.
They sank like lead
   in the mighty waters.
¹¹ Who among the gods
   is like you, LORD?
Who is like you—
   majestic in holiness,
awesome in glory,
   working wonders?

¹² “You stretch out your right hand,
   and the earth swallows your enemies.
¹³ In your unfailing love you will lead
   the people you have redeemed.
In your strength you will guide them
   to your holy dwelling.
¹⁴ The nations will hear and tremble;
   anguish will grip the people of Philistia.
¹⁵ The chiefs of Edom will be terrified,
   the leaders of Moab will be seized with trembling,
the people of Canaan will melt away;
¹⁶ terror and dread will fall on them.
By the power of your arm
   they will be as still as a stone—
until your people pass by, LORD,
   until the people you bought pass by.
¹⁷ You will bring them in and plant them
   on the mountain of your inheritance—
the place, LORD, you made for your dwelling,
   the sanctuary, Lord, your hands established.

¹⁸ “The LORD reigns
for ever and ever.”

¹⁹ When Pharaoh’s horses, chariots and horsemen went into the sea, the LORD brought the waters of the sea back over them, but the Israelites walked through the sea on dry ground. ²⁰ Then Miriam the prophet, Aaron’s sister, took a timbrel in her hand, and all the women followed her, with timbrels and dancing. ²¹ Miriam sang to them:

   “Sing to the LORD,
   for he is highly exalted.
Both horse and driver
   he has hurled into the sea.”

Not every psalm is found in the book of psalms, either!

I love History.

I love women in historical settings.

So, when I was a girl and discovered this particular psalm, it made me happy-

here is a psalm- a song- sung by a woman.

A psalm that recounts a fabulous miracle and redemption for God’s people.

And the women followed her lead and sang and danced.

I learned the song, as well, and it was one of my favorite songs growing up.

This is also a song of prophesy- coming from a woman in a patriarchal society.

It is a song of hope and protection as they travel through enemy territory.

It is a song of PRAISE to the Lord who reigns for ever and ever!

And a song of belonging-

“My God…my father’s god”.

So- take a moment, grab your timbrel and sing and dance with the women

of Israel, Miriam, and me.

“I will sing unto the Lord

for He has triumphed gloriously

the horse and rider thrown into the sea!”

Such good food (with recipes!)

Posted on July 27, 2011 by heidiannie

Meatloaf with wild rice and bacon- unbaked view.

And baked- really yummy!

Tri colored slaw with white balsamic vinegar.

Gluten free almond and chocolate cakes.

Recipe for meatloaf:

Ingredients:

1 lb. ground chicken

1 lb. lean ground beef

1 1/2 cups cooked wild rice

1 onion, diced and sauteed in 2 TBS olive oil

1 jalapeno pepper diced fine

3 TBSP tomato paste

3 TBSP chopped fresh basil

1 TBSP chopped fresh thyme

2 TBSP chopped fresh parsley

1/4 cup milk

1 egg

salt and pepper to taste

1/4 cup pesto- I used a mushroom pesto- but any kind you like will be grand

3 slices thick bacon

Method:

First let me confess- this looks very high end- but I really just used up the

wild rice I had made for dinner the night before, forgetting that my husband

really isn’t a wild rice fan.

The rest of the ingredients were also either growing outside or opened and

almost moldering in the fridge.

So- first sautee the onion- or sweat the onions- however much time you have.

I sauteed them for about 10 minutes. Then add to the ground meat in a largish bowl

and mix in the herbs,egg, milk, tomato paste, rice and pepper (jalapeno). Mix well

with hands- or spoon- I use my hands.

Shape into loaf shape, and

Place on grill pan ( with holes to drain off the fat).

and slather pesto on top thinly, then cover with bacon slices

and bake in preheated oven-375F – for about an hour and a half.

Allow to rest for about 10 minutes before slicing.

And the chocolate gluten free cupcakes?

Here is where I found the recipe! Celia at Fig Jam and Lime Cordial

found it on yet another Australian food blog. If you haven’t made the

trip to Celia’s blog yet- you should- she always has the best recipes and

some of the sweetest chickens I’ve ever seen! Her bread is fantastic, as well!

The slaw is just cabbages – red and green- sliced thin- and carrots, chopped.

Add 1/4 cup white balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper to taste and a couple tsps of

olive oil- and you have a colorful and delicious slaw.

July has been HOT!

Posted on July 26, 2011 by heidiannie

Hot and humid and miserable.

AND I finally uploaded the pictures of garden defenestration and destruction.

I have some nice basil still growing, but the squash and cucumber and

nasturtium have been beheaded. So sad.

On the other hand- the hanging baskets and flowers and ferns are

all doing fine. I’ve been watering- although I don’t like to- it is such

a selfish use of water. So I’ve tried to keep it just to container plants-

never the lawn or established plants.

I snipped the sucker growth off of the bay tree.

It is a standard- and every year the roots try to send up

a little extra growth from the base. I love fresh bay-

you can chop it up fine and leave it in your recipes. It

isn’t as strong as dried bay leaves, but it adds an extra

punch because it is still present.

And last night’s supper was quite fine- the fresh corn, tomatoes,

peppers, onions and grilled squash really fine. The steak and potatoes

were necessary to keep my husband happy. I ate the grilled veggies

and counted it a blessing!

Pony Penning in Chincoteague

Posted on July 25, 2011 by heidiannie

This is the big week on Chincoteague! Today they are rounding up the ponies

to get ready for the swim across Assateague Bay on Wednesday!

The Firemen’s Carnival has been running since the beginning of July- visitors

have filled the town to capacity in anticipation of the Auction – and it is hot

and sultry on the Eastern shore of Virginia.

This is THE week to be there. I never have been there on Pony Penning Week.

I’ve been going to Chincoteague off and on for the last 30+ years- and have never

gone for this event.

I don’t like crowds.

Don’t want to buy a pony.

Would rather see them on the estuary than in pens.

And – did I mention- I don’t like crowds?

I always think about the ponies this week.

In fact, I pray for their safety during the swim and that they will get owners that

treat them lovingly.

There were so many foals this summer- everywhere you looked- either pregnant mares

or tiny foals and colts following their mommas around.

Here I sit – in Ohio- dreaming about wild ponies in Virginia.

Because it is pony penning week in Chincoteague.

Psalm- July 23, 2011

Posted on July 23, 2011 by heidiannie

I started off these psalm postings saying that I had just

taught a class on the Psalms that had lasted for several

years. We had a method for studying, and a notebook for

copying down familiar and repeated stanzas. The students

were all encouraged to pay close attention to the language

of the psalmists and were told that at the culmination of our

study- they would be asked to write a psalm of their own.

The average age of our class was about 70- a couple were in the

range of 35 to 45, several of us in our fifties, some in their sixties,

several in their late seventies and early eighties and two in their

nineties. We had lots of years of experience in our classroom-

and many of the ladies had been believers for 50+ years. It was

a wonderful group to study and share with!

The oldest lady in our group was Mae.

Mae is still living and loving the Lord, but her health has

been on a decline of late and she can’t live by herself

anymore, even with help.

So, her family is moving her closer to them and I went recently

to say goodbye to my old friend.

I wrote Mae’s psalm for her after asking her to tell me what

she would like to say. Today’s psalm is

“A Psalm for Mae”.

From my earliest childhood, I called you Father,

And I call you Father, still.

You have held my hand and filled my heart-

And you hold them now – still in your protection-

Still in your love. I am still yours and by

Your grace I always will be.

Father, you have blessed my life with your goodness.

And I have tried to pass that blessing on-

With hugs and love and even with bananas.

Because what is life without blessings?

This life that you have given me has been long,

But not long enough to sing your praises-

And so I will keep on singing here

Until You take me home so I can sing them

With all the saints in glory!

Keep on singing, Mae!

Steps On The Journey

walk with me a while