The Amish Cook

By LOVINA EICHER

This past week we did a lot of painting as we continue to get things in order after the house fire last month. All four bedrooms upstairs are painted and one needs another coat. Things are beginning to look a lot better. We would like to go get some flooring to put in the bedrooms that don’t have any yet. My husband Joe and the boys can work on that while he is off work. He will be having some days off due to waiting on some lumber to come in at the factory. We are excited to put the rest of the floors in so that all the furniture can be put back in place. Then we will move everyone back to their bedrooms. We can always wait to work on the trim and closets until they are back in their rooms.

After we get finished with that, our next project will be to paint our walls and ceilings. Busy time of the year trying to keep both gardens weeded and watered. It has been really dry and not much rain in the past week. Yesterday, though, we had a welcome rain. Our rain gauge showed only two tenths of an inch but every little bit helps. It sure gave the garden a good boost. We are still enjoying radishes, lettuce, and green onions and our peas are almost ready. We are looking forward to tomatoes, sweet corn, and all the other garden goodies in the months ahead. The first batch of corn to be put out is looking very nice but the second batch came up very spotty. A lot of the women in our church have been saying that they have had things not come up as well as usual. I am wondering if it could be from the heat and not enough rain. My lettuce is doing good but some have said that theirs is wilted from the heat.

Daughter Elizabeth had her 18th birthday on Thursday, June 14. It is hard to believe she is that old, the years sure went fast! Her friend Timothy invited her friends over and surprised her for her birthday. He had pizza here for everyone and gave her a big ice cream cake from Dairy Queen.

Meanwhile, Joe and the three boys spent the day on Saturday on the lake fishing. Kevin, 6, caught quite a few which excited him. They left early in the morning The boys sure were out of bed pretty fast when Joe asked them if they wanted to go fishing Saturday morning. This is the first time they have gone fishing this year. There was something not working right with Joe’s boat motor, so last week Joe and Timothy went out on the lake to try it out. Timothy figured out what was wrong with it so Joe is glad to be able to use his boat again. The rest of us stayed busy at home. Elizabeth did the laundry, Susan, her friend Mose and I painted her bedroom and Verena and Loretta did the weekly house-cleaning. Lovina seems to be doing well since her appendix surgery. I took her to the doctor for a check-up and he said she is doing fine. She asked if she could ride her bike and Minnie, the miniature pony again. The doctor said it would be okay and she asked if she could run again and take a shower. She was all excited that she could do that again. When one of the girls asked if she could wipe off the dishes she asked “well, do you think they weigh more than 5 pounds?” The doctor had told her not to lift more than 5 pounds so she was trying to get out of doing dishes. It is funny how the other things were a lot more exciting to be able to do again.

Last week we also made strawberry freezer jam out of 16 quarts of strawberries. I want to make rhubarb jam this week. I don’t like to use my rhubarb after June, this makes the plants stay nice and hardy for the next year. This week I will share a recipe for some homemade “energy bars.”

Energy Bars

1/3 cup butter
1/2 cup quick cooking rolled oats
1/3 cup whole-wheat flour
2 slightly beaten eggs
1/2 cup sliced almonds
1/4 cup raisins
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons toasted wheat germ
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup flaked coconut

For the crust, beat butter and brown sugar until thoroughly combined. Then stir in oats, both flours, and wheat germ until thoroughly mixed. Pat the mixture into a lightly greased 9 X 9 X 2 inch baking pan. Bake at 350 for 10 minutes. Meanwhile stir together eggs, 1 cup brown sugar, and stir in almonds, coconut, and raisins. Remove the crust from the oven and pour the mixture onto crust, spreading evenly. Bake in 350 oven until center appears thick, about 20 minutes.

The Amish Cook Friend Club

Many readers have asked about joining The Amish Cook Friend Club by postal mail. Here is the information:

Joining The Amish Cook Friend Club is a fun way to support Lovina in her battle against Muscular Dystrophy (she announced it last week’s column that two of her daughters have been diagnosed with a form of it) and in keeping her column around long-term. There are several levels of support that you can offer the column:BASIC ONE-YEAR MEMBERSHIP $10: thank you note and recipe for “marriage meatloaf.”ONE-YEAR SILVER $25: thank you note and a packet of 25 unpublished recipes from The Amish Cook recipe archives.ONE-YEAR GOLD $50 all of the above, plus an 8 X 10 photo of a suppertime scene at Lovina’s and a copy of The Amish Recipe Project Cookbook.SUPER SUPPORTER, $100.00: all of the above, plus a complimentary copy of the Amish-themed fiction book Abraham’s Redemption when it is released. To join, visit www.oasisnewsfeatures.com/friendclub or send to:Oasis Newsfeatures, PO BOX 157, Middletown, Ohio 45042 100 percent of the funds benefit Lovina by going to her directly or being reinvested in the column.