I haven’t been in the kitchen much lately for holiday cooking, however, I have been in the kitchen to organize and clean out the cabinets. A couple of weeks ago, I came across my Bundt pan. I haven’t seen it in years! It brought back such great memories! Mom used to make Bundt cakes every now and again, but she went through a period of making them weekly at the height of the Bundt cake craze. I remember those cakes as having one flavor on the outside with a different flavor inside so that when the cake is cut, it looks like it has a circle of a different cake inside. Mom usually made them vanilla on the outside...
Glen and Debbie’s Deep Dish Pecan Pie Written by Debbie Sloan Edited by Mandi Pitt-Reed I got news a few months ago that a dear friend of the family passed away. I am not sure why it was shocking, but death always is – even when we expect it. Glen was my next-door neighbor growing up, but left home at seventeen to join the Army. He was much older than me so I don’t recall much of his time living next door, but I do recall how excited everyone was to learn he was coming home for a visit. He was quite tall and thin, very distinguished in his military uniform, and simply a delight to be around. He...
David and I are invited to attend a wedding reception of mutual friends this evening at Cousin Cyndi’s house. I always chip in for the festivities by bringing a dish. While shopping at our local market for the veggie and fruit trays I promised to bring, I noticed that there were strawberry cake mixes displayed throughout the store. I suppose the displays were set up for Memorial Day and didn’t sell out, or maybe just a bit early for the July 4th holiday. Either way, it reminded me that not long ago Cousin Jennifer mentioned making strawberry brownies for a dinner she was hosting. I had never heard of strawberry brownies, but they sounded delicious. Yesterday I made the...
For some reason, when I woke up this morning, I began thinking about spring and summer and the wonderful weather ahead. It is not cold here today, but it isn’t warm either and there is a soft rain falling with a few rumbles of thunder that let us know that soon the temperatures will remain warm and sunny. The buttercups, tulips, and irises are in glorious full-bloom with the daylilies and daisies soon to follow. It is a magical time of renewal with the promise of better days ahead. When I was a kid, springtime was the time of year when everyone got their yards in shape. There was also excitement in the air for the spring and summer...
Fruit flavored popsicles were a treat for us as kids. They were always bright red or orange and later blue and had two sticks. If you wanted to share one, you could easily break it down the middle because each side had its own stick. Occasionally, Mom would let me ride my bike to the little quick stop store down the street to buy one for me and one for her. The trick was getting back home before they melted. One day Mom came across a recipe to make these glorious popsicles at home. She bought a set of molds a few days later and we were on our way to having popsicles on demand. The recipe called for...
