SOME CHANGES COMING !!!!

I have decided on some changes with the coming seasons.  First, Monday, will be on Veterans Day and Jean will have her post on Tuesday this week.  Someone special will be on Wednesday with Jean, this week.  There will be three different recipes on Wednesday.

I thank Sue Ann for all the posts that she has taken so much time to present to us.  As garden season is ending, I asked Sue Ann if she would end her posts and come again in the Spring.  We have really appreciated all she has done for us.

Olive, Jean's grandmother, said she would do a post on canning meats and fish.  Right now, she is still looking for where she put her notes that she wrote up for the post or posts.  She said she doesn't need notes to do it, but to write a post she does.  So, I hope to have her on soon on Tuesday.

My birthday is this month and I am trying to figure out what to do.  I want to put on a post about one of the Mennonite places of business I went to last month.  This will take more than one post.  The day after my birthday is the day that President Kennedy was killed.  I don't know if I should something special on for President Kennedy.  What would you like?  The Mennonite Business or President Kennedy?

On December 12th we will start the Christmas Recipe a day.  Jean and I decided to do something different this year and ask if any of you had a special recipe that has been a family tradition or favorite that you would like to share as one of the Christmas Recipes.  If you do, please send it to:
lincolnlady1121@yahoo.com   We want only one recipe per family.  The recipe will be made by either Jean or myself before it goes on our Christmas Recipes. If we don't have enough recipes, Jean will put some of hers on.  I made a list of last years recipes, for Jean and myself, so we don't have the same things we had on last year. We would like the recipe by November 20th, so we can get it on the Christmas Recipes.  Also, if there is any Christmas recipe you would like, please ask and Jean will see if she has it.

Doreen came up with a great idea,  Do you have any Amish or Mennonite made items?  Doreen came with the idea that people take pictures of the items, send them to me and I put them on the posts.  I thought it would be a great idea if you told a little bit about where you got them and if there was a special reason you received them or purchased them.  So if you have any Amish or Mennonite items, take those pictures and e-mail them to me at: lincolnlady1121@yahoo.com

The week of November 18th is my Birthday week.  I will be 65 on November 21st. That will be Mennonite week with Jean (Old Order Mennonite) on Monday, Mennonite School on Tuesday, Jean with recipe on Wednesday and a Mennonite Business for the rest of the week.



Marilyn

COWS GET EQUAL TIME !!!

I have put on posts of horses, buggies, chickens, ducks, and more, but no cows.  I think it is time cows got equal time.

JEAN'S CHICKEN CHOW MEIN

JEAN'S CHICKEN CHOW MEIN

1 chicken, cooked and broken in pieces
1 Cup celery
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can chicken noodle soup
1 can chow mein noodles

Mix chicken, celery, mushroom soup, chicken noodle soup and half of chow mein noodles.  Place in baking dish and top with other half of chow mein noodles.  Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour.

Jean was upset by the last recipe that she put on, so we replaced it with this one on.  I told her not to get upset.  We are use to our local stores and forget that they are not all over the United States much less the world.

SUE ANN - NEVER SAY NEVER WHEN YOU PRESERVE FOOD!

NEVER SAY NEVER WHEN YOU PRESERVE FOOD!

My husband brought home, FIVE count them, FIVE,  5 gallon buckets of apples and pears! We are on the verge of having our first hard frost, and the trees we pick, still had fruit...he is not one to let things go to waste, and I have been busy with applesauce, and pear sauce! We put roughly 15 lbs. of apples in the fridge for eating....the first batch of apples produced 21 qts. of applesauce..I still have that many to go yet....I am freezing all of it....

This is the time of the month that I begin planning our Thanksgiving menu. I get a big sheet of paper out and begin.....I have kept the menus of several years past, and I look back on them to see what was a favorite..what was not. As life gets busier, and complicated at times, these lists have been a saving grace for me, when my brain can no longer think!

I found an easy yeast dough recipe years ago, for dinner rolls, that did not require kneading and several risings. It has served me well when time was limited, and now, it is just EASY!!! You will like it.

I use a long Pyrex, oblong , baking dish, the kind a whole lasagna noodle can rest in without being broken.

                  PERFECTLY EASY DINNER ROLLS

                          yields 2 dozen

1 c warm water

2 pkgs. dry yeast

1/2 c melted butter( 1 stick)

1/2 c sugar

3 eggs

1 t salt

4-4 1/2 c flour

additional melted butter (optional)

Combine warm water and yeast in a large bowl( the one you will be mixing the dough in). Let mixture stand til yeast has proofed(is foamy), about 5 mins.

Stir in melted butter,sugar, eggs and salt. Beat in flour one cup at a time, til dough is too stiff to mix. Some flour may not be needed.

Cover and refrigerate 2 hrs., or up to 4 days.

Grease well, a 13x9 baking dish. Turn the chilled dough out onto a lightly floured surface. divide dough into 24 equal size pieces. ( I use a pastry cutter). roll each piece into a smooth round ball, and place in even rolls in the baking pan.Cover and let rise 1 hour.

Bake- 375 degrees, til golden brown, 15-20 mins. Brush tops of warm rolls with melted butter if desired.

I halve this recipe, sometimes all I need are a dozen rolls, not 2 dozen- everything divides equally, except the eggs, I use 2 eggs.

I have made dinner rolls since I could walk, and this is THE easiest recipe ever!! And they are very fluffy, not heavy at all.

What is also nice about this recipe, is the adding of other things, like dried onions, in the dough. 2 T.

I hope you enjoy your week, and all your planning for Thanksgiving!

JEAN'S - FREEZING CHRISTMAS COOKIES

You have asked about freezing Christmas Cookies, so I thought I better get on that subject.  Most Christmas Cookies can be frozen, but not all.  Cookies that have a filling: cream, meringues, pudding, cake like etc. should not be frozen.  When they defrost they are kind of mushy.  I have learned not freezing them, by experience.  I even tried wrapping each one individually and freezing them and the filled ones came out real soft. Here are a few tips when freezing cookies.

Make sure you use plastic containers (Rubbermaid or Tupperware, etc.) or freezer bags that are air tight.

Use wax paper, aluminum foil, saran wrap, or parchment paper between layers to keep them fresh.

Put similar types of cookies together - chocolate cookies, butter cookies, sugar cookies, etc.

Keep hard cookies and soft cookies in separate containers.

Cool cookies completely before you start packing them for the freezer.

Most places I see say to decorate cookies after your defrost them.  It is easier that way, but you can frost cookies and freeze them. Put them in the refrigerator for a few minutes until the frosting is hardened and pack them for freezing.  When you take them out of the freezer, remove the covering (wax paper, aluminum foil, saran wrap or parchment) before they defrost.

After you have the cookies out of the freezer, should you notice they are starting to harden - add either a slice of bread or a piece of apple to the cookie container.  Change it daily.

I have heard of some people using Christmas Cookie tins to freeze cookies in, I have never done that.  I have packed cookie tins with cookies to give to people as presents, but never frozen cookies in them.  Really, I would rather use those tins to store my fudge in after I make it.  I do not freeze the fudge, I put it in the refrigerator,

Make sure when you put the cookies in the freezer, you label them what kind they are and the date you put them in. I learned the hard way, when we first got married.  Nothing is worse than standing there looking at a bunch of cookie containers and trying to figure out what cookies are in what container.

Most articles say (I have read a lot of cookie articles, cook books, etc.) you can freeze them for 2 to 4 months.  My freezer now is an upright, but when I had the old long one and I couldn't reach in the bottom, David found a box of cookies down there I made a year ago, when we defrosted the freezer.  We let them defrost and tasted them to see if they were any good and they were just fine. I am not telling you to keep the cookies frozen a year, just telling you what happened to us, once. I usually keep my cookies in the freezer no longer than a month or two at the longest.

Some of the best cookies to freeze are: chocolate chip, oat oatmeal, peanut butter. and sugar cookies.  If you never froze cookies before, these would be the best to start with, but most other cookies can be frozen, too.  I also freeze pies, too.

I am putting on a couple of recipes for you to start with.  Maybe you can bake some extra cookies, as gifts,  for those who are unable to bake.  Hope you have fun baking.

Be With God,
Jean

SUGAR COOKIES

1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 cup margarine or butter, softened
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
2 1/2 cups all-purpose or whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
Granulated sugar

Mix powdered sugar, margarine, egg, vanilla and almond extract.  Mix in flour, baking soda and cream of tartar.  Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours.  Heat oven to 375 degrees.  Divide dough into halves.  Roll each half 3/16 inch thick on lightly floured covered board.  Cut into shapes.

Sprinkle with granulated sugar; place on lightly greased sheet.  Bake until edges are light brown, 7 to 8 minutes.   Makes about 5 dozen.

MOLASSES COOKIES

2/3 c. shortening
3/4 c. molasses
3 c. sifted all-purpose flour
1 t. ginger
1 t. salt
1 1/4 t. soda

Heat oven to 375 degrees.  Cream shortening, add molasses and beat until creamy.  Sift dry ingredients together and add to first mixture.  Chill if very soft.  Roll out 1/4 inch thick on lightly floured pastry sheet.  Cut with fancy cutters.  Place on cookie sheet.  Bake in preheated oven for 8 to 10 minutes.  You can use this dough for Gingerbread Men, if you have the cutter.

A NEW FUTURE FOR PALMYRA, NY - THANK YOU MARK

On October 29th at 11:00 AM Mark's Pizzeria opened replacing the buildings that had gone down in the fire.  It opened before Halloween just as Mark wanted.  The fire, took down three buildings, one of them being Mark's Pizzeria.  Mark purchased all three buildings and replaced them with the Pizzeria which is not only a take out, but includes a restaurant.  I am going down and ask Mark if I can take pictures of the interior.  Mark's Pizzeria was founded in our town in 1982.  He now has 51 Pizzeria's.  We thank Mark for doing what he did.  Had he not done this, there would be a great whole on our Main Street where the buildings had been taken down.  Another reason I am glad that he is open is he makes the best Pizza's and Calzones and I can't wait to eat one.

ELMER'S ANSWER TO YOUR DWARF QUESTIONS-PART 2

I can't give you a romantic story like you read in all the Amish novels.  To start, when I got to teenage   dating age, my parents got nervous that I might not be able to find someone.  If I did marry, for some reason they thought I would marry another small person.  They didn't tell me that, but through conversations with my sisters and brothers, I found that out.

When I started going to singing and taking ladies home, it seemed like it was a different lady every week or I came home alone.  Some of the ladies, I think, wondered what it would be like going with a dwarf.  I did have a serious lady when I was about 17.  We wanted to get married, but our parents were against it due to age.  It turned our parents were right.  Her and I were not ment for each other and parted ways.  When I got over that lady, I started looking again.

Anna, her sisters and brothers plus her parents moved into our area.  I met Anna at church, weddings, funerals, barn raisings, etc.  but she was not someone I was close to, at that time.  Also, saw her at singing but she had her friends and I mine.  One night on the way to singing, I came across two ladies (my age)  with a buggy along side the road.  It was Anna and her sister Hannah.  Two of her brothers went ahead to singing because they were asked to help with some chores - they took the family buggy.  They girls were left the courting buggy - which they didn't know, had a bad wheel.  Each of the brothers was to take one of the buggies home, with their ladies, and the sisters were to be brought home by their courting fellows.  I took the girls to singing, got one of their brothers and my brothers to repair the buggy.  After singing, I offered to take either both of the ladies or one to their home, but they had rides.  I would see them a church, and singing saying hi and they would like wise to me.

One night, a few months later, I was coming home from singing alone, in the snow and sleet, when I saw this lady charging up the road.  I got ahead of her, stopped and offered her a ride, which she accepted.  I couldn't remember if she was Anna or Hannah, her sister's name.  Finally, I had to ask her and she told me she was Anna.  I listened while she told me that she and her courting fellow had had a disagreement.  So I took her home.  When I got her home, I left her off, she thanked me.  Next singing, I asked if she would like a ride home, she accepted.  I took her the long way home.  Asked her if I could take her for a ride next Sunday, but she said she wanted to wait a while as she wasn't ready for someone now.  I did as she said and four weeks later, I asked her again if she would let me give her a ride on Sunday - she accepted.

After we went together a few weeks, I asked Anna why she chose me.  She told me because I had taken them to singing the night the buggy broke down, helped to fix the buggy and offered them the ride home. Also, that I picked her up on the way home in the snow and sleet.  When she told me to wait, I waited for four weeks.  I asked if my being a dwarf had anything to do with that.  She had to admit that she was curious, but that was not the main reason.  She asked me questions, many the same you asked and I answered them.  As we went together we found we had many things in common - we liked bird watching, we enjoyed Farmers Markets and garage sales, we enjoyed sleds in the winter and more.

We started going together and after a year, started courting.  Instead of sending someone to her Father's door to ask for her hand, I went myself.  He asked me if I could support her and take care of her.  I said yes.  What is funny is that I got upset.  I didn't say or do anything, but was upset.  When my daughter's gentleman came to me and asked if he could marry her, I asked him the same question.  I guess it is a parents question.  At the time, I thought Anna's Father asked because I was a dwarf.  Anna's Father gave me his permission.  We were married at her parents home.  Next year, Lord willing, we will celebrate our 30th wedding anniversary.

What are my hobbies?  I enjoy bird watching, fishing, and hunting.  During the winter, I enjoy reading especially the Bible, and working on the inside of our house.

What do I think about?  I think about if I am pleasing the Lord, my family, my chores and when I can smell it - what Anna is cooking.  Those are the immediate things I think of.  I also think of the church members both young and old, our Bishops, ministers and deacons.  Also, all of you people.

Yes, the word dwarf can be used derogatory terms.  I hope people that use it derogatory will look at that word in different terms.  That is one of the reasons I put on these posts.

I also agree with someone's statement: We are all God's children, whatever size we are.

Trust God's Wisdom,
Elmer

A SPECIAL POST TOMORROW