Good Food Served Here

Grandma Wenzel, my mother's mother, was notorious for her wonderful food.  So much so, that during the depression era the hobo's who passed by their Lancaster County, Pennsylvania Dutch farm left a red bandana dangling on the gate--code for:   "Good Food Served Here".  Other train hoppers knew what it meant and stopped there for a meal.  Grandma always delivered.

Grandma Wenzel pictured here on my wedding day

Born Viola Diller and affectionately known as "Lola" by her husband, Grandma was no stranger to cooking for others.  She regularly fed large numbers of field hands who hurried to her door during lunch hour, after hearing the huge, iron dinner bell gonging loudly and signaling:  Time to eat!" 
She had a summer kitchen and a winter kitchen.  The summer kitchen was more like an outdoor camp kitchen and where she fed all those bronzed and sweaty field hands, famished from working tirelessly in the Lancaster County humidity, harvesting Grandpa's cash crop, tobacco. 
I can still visualize that old, sturdy wooden table, a metapor to Grandma's permancy and steadfastness. I can picture too all the sights, sounds and smells that permeated her airy and open summer kitchen.  If I close my eyes now I can just feel the light breezes tickling my skin, hear the flies lazily buzzing about, smell her incredible roast chicken and imagine the touch of the bushels and bushels of hulled lima beans, their cool shells soothing my fingertips. (Those same beans had been picked from her 2 acre garden and I remember developing calluses shelling them.) It is an era gone now and one that my own children and grandchildren will never really know.  That is sad.  
However, there are some things that still remain and that's the Savory, the roast pan of choice for my Grandmother and the one I use now.  It's the key to melt-in-your mouth beef roasts, chicken that falls off the bone and meatloaf to die for.  (I happen to be a fan of this poor man's loaf, which Grandmother did to perfection.  Unfortunately, I've never mastered duplicating her browned meatloaf or the gravy that always accompanied it.) 

Also unfortunate, while the Savory is still around, they are no longer manufactured.  But the good news is, with diligence, they can be found.  As a matter of fact, I am on the search for one now, because a certain little girl I know keeps hounding me to find her one! (I haven't found hers yet, but I know that her brother in D. C. has an agate speckled model that would be perfect for two-- hint, hint!) Savories come in a variety of fun, vintage colors and sizes and range in price from $5 (if you're really the lucky type) to $85 and up. 
A while ago I was on a girl trip with my cousins and their moms at the Jersey Shore where I scored the pictured yellow beauty above, even more stained and worn now then when I purchased it.  I paid $70 for it and was happy to do so. Caution!  There are many old roast pans "out there" but it has to say SAVORY.  Why?  Because it's double walled and cooks somewhat like a slow cooker, with all the capacity for good browning as well.  The sublime Savory with its heft and weight, broad shoulders and deep capacity are so akin to Grandma Wenzel it's no wonder I love it so much!
Since I wanted to write about it in my blog, I did a little research on the company that produced this mighty roaster, and found that--not surprisingly--someone else blogged about it too.  Here's what thesecondhelpinghouse.blogspot.com had to say:
She [the Savory] was made by Republic metalware company of Buffalo New York around 1908. Here is an ad in Home furnishing review of the time.
Home Furnishing Review: “Republic Metalware Co. Every buyer of house furnishing goods knows that the Republic Metalware Company of Buffalo NY manufactures the Savory Roaster. The sale of the roaster has been so enormous during the past year that there is not a housewife from Maine to California who does not know of these roasters. The Republic Metalware Company does not stop with the make of Savory Roasters however, but manufactures also the famous Hustler Ash Sifters. This is a rotary sifter that sifts out the coal clean without dust or dirt. The ashes are put in a hopper and the boy or woman of the house turns the handle which revolves a heavy galvanized sifter dropping the ashes into the barrel and throwing the unburned coal into a waiting coal skuttle. It is lots of fun to work one of these ash sifters and they will more than pay for themselves within a short time. The Republic Metalware Company also makes galvanized ash cans with broad tripple corrugated reinforced strips securely riveted on with large malleable drop handles. These are the best and strongest ash cans made and the entire equipment is one that should be known to every house furnishing dealer in the trade. Full particulars regarding this and the many other metal ware specialties manufactured by the Republic Metalware Company may be obtained from writing to the firm.
So what are you waiting for?  Get started on ebay or the internet and find that Savory so you too can say:   "Good Food Served Here".  (In the meantime, here's a Grandma Wenzel favorite recipe our family calls "Sticky Chicken".)
Grandma Wenzel's Sticky Chicken in the Savory:
4-6 chicken breasts, browned (see below)
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped celery
Salt and Pepper
Saffron (we buy the best Spanish Saffron from Shanks extracts, Inc, Lancaster, Pa http://www.shanks.com/)
Enough cornflake crumbs to cover breasts
Roll each piece in 1/2 cup cornflake crumbs & brown seasoned breasts in butter.  Smother with celery and onion and cook at 325 for 1 hour and a half hours.  If you desire browner meat, take off the cover the last 15 minutes or so.--Enjoy!
 

The Christmas Cookie Express

Okay, before we get started... WHOOO WAAANTS TO MAAAKE COOKIES??!!
On the count'a three, everyone who wants to, please indicate by raising your hands!
Well, since that's settled,we best get crack-a-lackin because we've got a lot a dough to crank out! 
So, it's all aboard the Christmas Cookie Express for Marmie and her little elves:  Mer, Harty, Bella-Becky and little Alden.  (I've got a feeling at some point the Diabolical Kitty may be joining in too.)  
The day is short and we've got a lot to do, but Marmie is at the ready.  And since it tiz the season, what could be more fun than cookie baking using 4 master cookie doughs, each with four twists on the dough, for a grand total of 16 different kinds of cookies?  Pretty clever, right? 
Well, before you think I'm such a genius consider thinking again.  Really, I'm just a great plagurizer relying on one of my fav magazines, Sunset Magazine (Living in the West).  I never throw 'em away.  And  to produce this varied, delectable smorgasboard of  Christmas cookies I turned to the December issue (natch!) http://www.sunsetmagazine.com/ 
Since I've got four little ones to care for, I'll post the first dough today and the other three batches tomorrow, so stay tuned....
Cookie Dough Recipe #1 Shortbread
2 C flour
1 C cold butter cubed
1/2 C sugar
1/4 t salt
2 T coarse sugar
1. Preheat oven to 325.  Mix flour, gran sugar and salt in the bowl of a mixer on low speed until just blended.  Increase speed to med and mis until dough is no longer crumbly and just comes together.
2.Press  dough evenly into a 9 in round cake pan.  Sprinkle with coarse sugar,.
3. Bake until golden brown, 30 to 40 minutes.  Cut still-warm shortbread with fork, tines down, into 16 wedge-shaped pieces with shaggy edges.  Cool completely, then invert pan onto a work surface and carefully seperatate  cookies.
Make ahead:  Up to 5 days.  Store airtight up to 1 week.
3. Bake until  

and  here's the 4 twists...

Honey Caramel Nut Bars
Prepare shortbread.  Press dough evenly into the bottom of a greased 9 by 9 in baking pan.  Bake 10 mins.  Meanwhile, in a small saucepan bring 3 T butter, 1/2 C honey, and 1/3 C sugar to a boil.  Remove from heat.  Stir in 3/4 C each toasted whole almonds, pecan halves, salted cahshews, and salted pistachios.  Carefully spoon mixture over shortbread and continue to bake untilnuts are toasted and liquid is bubbling, about 30 minutes.  Let cool.  Cut into 16 squares or cut diaganolly for 32 triangles.
Lemon Rosemary Buttons  (I'm going to make mine with Lavender!)
Prepare shortbread, adding finely shredded zest of 1 lemon and 1 t of chopped fresh rosemary in step 1.  Form dough into a disk; chill 30 minutes.  On a lightly floured work surface, roll dough 1/2 in thick.  Cut dough into circles with a  1 1/2 in cookie cutter.  Arrange cookies 1 in apart on baking sheets and chill 15 mins.  Bake until light golden brown, 12 to 15 mins.
Mix 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar with 2 T fresh lemon juice and the finely shredded zest of 1 lemon.  Spoon 1/2 t glaze over each cooled cookie, spreading with back of spoon, and press 1 rosemary sprig into glaze.  Makes 32
Apricot-Pecan Crumb Bars
Prepare Shortbread through step 1, reserving 1 C dough.  Press remaining dough into the bottom of a greased 9 x 9 baking pan.   Spread 1 C apricot preserves over dough.  In a bowl, combine reserved dough with 1/4 t cinnamon and 1/2 Cpecan halves and crumble mixture over preserves.  Bake until golden brown and bubbling, about 50 minutes. Let cool competely, then cut into 16 squares.
Raspberry Window Shortbreads
Prepare Shortbread through step 1, form into a disk, and chll 30 minutes.  On a lightly floured work surface, roll dough 1/3 in thick.  Use a selection of decorative cutters to cut as many shapes as you can, making sure you have an equal number of each shape to form a top and a bottom, and rerolling scraps as needed.  Arrange cookies 1 in apart on baking sheets.  use a variety of smaller cutters to remove center from half of cookie tops.  chill on sheets 15 minutes; than bake until light golden brown, 12 to 15 mins.  Let cool. Spread each whole cookie with about 1/1 t raspberry preserves.  Sprinkle powdered sugar over cut-out cookie tops, or glaze them with a mixture of 1 C powdered sugar and 2  1/2 t milk.  set tops on jam-topped bottoms.  Makes 26.
Since time is of the essence, I'm also going to make one batch of the dough and pat it into my shortbread mold, given to me by Jordan one Christmas.  The pan has gorgeous Celtic designs that, when cut, yields 8 lovely pie shaped wedges.

~the end!~

My Three Quilts

The three quilts are finally done and here they are--one from Column A, one from Column B and one from Column C  (please vote on your favorite)!  Now that the project's finished I've decided that making quilts falls into the category of bowling. What? You aren't following this line of logic?! Let me s'plain it. Once a year I go bowling just to remind myself of how much I hate it...nuf said. But no offense to Charlotte, my dear friend, who graciously agreed to the bright idea of "me" making baby quilts. (And let's be honest, she did most of the work.)
Never fear, dear reader, there were a few more "Lucy and Ethel" moments cutting out the fabric, with yet another trip to the fabric store to buy more material to fix the goof we made on the middle quilt. If you look closely on the center quilt (please don't) you'll see the middle part wasn't supposed to be made up into those small square patches. Unfortunately, when we got to the store we found out our favorite monkey pattern had swung itself out the door.  Charlotte, who invented "The Monkey of Necessity", quickly rearranged plans, suggesting we pick up another cute red dot print to mix with the little bit of monkey fabric left over. Actually, it's my favorite rendition.  (Oh! I also have a flub on quilt 3! Can you spot it? Okay, I'll never tell!) 

Though imperfect, I've kind of fallen in love with these guys and lovingly refer to them as "The Sock Minkeys".  The reverse side is a delicious orange textured dot fabric (called Minky) that is so soft and snuggly, no baby will mind the few minor defects.  And I think any baby will love the brightly colored silly mug shots of all those naughty little monkeys. Who knows? Maybe I'll just have to keep them!

~the end~

The Thanksgiving Manifesto 2009

As usual (this time of year) here at Full Circle Ranch Ma and Pa are gearin' up to do  the Turkey Trot. Big plans are already brewing  for the Thanksgiving Holiday. There's nothing we LOVE better than building traditions into these covenant homecomings and this season is proving to be extra special with the whole gang assembling-- including our latest new family--Henry and Anna Knecht. During the holidays I put together a manifesto (subject to approval) for each particular season, assigning a break down of tasks, food and activities! I thought ya'all might enjoy taking a peak at this year's, although it isn't yet finalized. (Please check back to this post for updates/changes.)

Thanksgiving Manifesto 2009

THURSDAY

The Menu

(asterisk denotes information and/or recipe below)

*****

Appetizers  Variety of Luscious Northwest Cheeses-Caitlin

Main entree *Roast Organic Turkey-Marmie & Papa 

Sides Pennsylvania Dutch Filling-Marmie

Brussel Sprouts w/ Toasted Hazelnut Butter-Christi

*Mashed Potatoes--Mounds of Mashed Potatoes-Marmie

*Creamy Baked Leeks w/ Garlic,Thyme and Parmigiano-Hurleys

Yams-Robertsons

*John Cope's Baked Corn-Marmie

Salads  Claudette's Cranberry Apple Relish-Christi

*Roasted Baby Beet and Orange Salad w/ Champagne Vinaigrette-Marmie

Desserts  *Grandmother Engle's Pumpkin pie

*Custard Tart w/ Wine Poached Cranberries, Old fashioned Apple Pie w/ Crumb Topping, *Caramel Pecan Pie-Anna

Beverages  assortment of our finest Northwest Wines,

*Irish Car Bombs-Matt B., pop/juices, Panna bottled waters-Matt, Marmie 

The Table

namecards Caitlin

centerpiece-Christi

tablesetting-Meredith

*(stencils for children to color on brown butcher paper tablecloth)

The Activities

Feasting

Special reading-Anna

Special entertainment-Back by popular demand:

House-buzzing and fly-by, compliments of those great folks at Tundra Tires! http://www.akbushwheel.com/ (Maybe we can get them to land in the field this year!)

Silhouettes-photography Nathaniel, Jordan, all cut out their silhouettes

Games  Settlers of Catan-Zac and Cait bring extension

Cranium

 Special children's activities-Marmie, Hurley girls

Butter making for Wee Ones

all you need is cream, container with lid and

wee ones with wiggles and jiggles to shake, rattle and roll...butter!

Various children appropriate games

Spades

FRIDAY

breakfast Zac and Cait

lunch  Left overs, everyone for himself!

dinner Terminal Gravity

activities Girls hit Joseph for Black Friday shopping

Video adults- "The Brain in Love"

children-New Wallace and Grommit "Shawn the Sheep"

Games-more of the same!

Saturday

breakfast  Henry and Anna

lunch  Left over, everyone for himself!

dinner  *Dutch Oven Flatbread Pizzas,

pepperoni, sausage, sage and goat cheese,

veggie, plain (each family assembles their own)

Sunday

breakfast Darrell and Christi's home

Everyone off to Church

lunch To be announced

Pack up and say goodbye 'til Christmas!

*****

Recipes and Other Useful Information

Roasted Baby Beet and Orange Salad with Champagne Vinaigrette (serves 6)recipe from the girl and the fig36-40 baby beets

¼ C olive oil
½ C Champagne Vinaigrette
(recipe follows)
3 oranges, segments only (grapefruit works too)
3 fresh tarragon sprigs, leaves only
½ pound watercress, well washed, leaves only (arugala could be substituted)
¼ c fresh Italian parsley, leaves only
salt and pepper
¼ pound hard cheese, such as dry Gouda or Parmesan, thinkly shaved
zes of 1 lemon, grated
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Place the beets in a roasting pan ad toss with the olive oil. Cover with foil and roast for 1 ½ hours Let cool. Peel off the skins and cut the beets into quarters or halves, depending on th size of the beets.
In a large bowl, toss the beets with the vinaigrette, oranges, herbs, and watercress and season with salt and pepper. Serve in a large bowl and garnish with the shaved cheese and lemon zest.
Creamy baked leeks with garlic, thyme, and Parmigiano (serves 8) from Fine cooking
1 t butter
8 medium-large leeks
2 t lightly chopped fresh thyme
1 c heavy cream
2 large cloves garlic, smashed and peeled
½ c finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Rub the bottom of a shallow 10 x 15 rectangular baking dish with the butter. Sprinkle ¼ t salt over the bottom of the pan. Cut the dark-green portion and all but about 1 inch of the light green off the top of the leeks. Peel away any tough or damaged outer leaves. Trim the ends by cutting the roots but leaving a bit of the base intact to hold the leek together. Cut each leek in half lengthwise. Gently wash each half under running water, fanning open the layers to rinse as thoroughly as possible. Pat the leeks dry and then arrange them cut side down in the baking dish. They should all fit snugly, but if they are crowded, turn a few on their sides. Sprinkle the thyme and ¼ t salt over the leeks.
Heat the cream and garlic in a small saucepan over high heat. As soon as the cream comes to a rolling boil (watch carefully and don’t let it boil over), remove the pan the heat and let sit for 5 minutes. Pour the cream and garlic evenly over the leeks. Cover the leeks with a piece of parchment cut to fit inside the pan. Bake the leeks until the thickest ends are tender all the way through when pierced with a paring knife and the cream is almost entirely reduce, about 35 minutes. Sprinkle the leeks with the Parmigiano and salt to taste. Bake just until the cheese melts, and additional 1 to 2 minutes. Transfer to serving platter.
Custard tart with wine-poached cranberries
For the crust
7 T chilled butter, cut into ¼ inch pieces more for the pan
¾ C flour
1/3 C toasted silvered almonds
¼ C sugar
½ t salt
1 large egg yolk, chilled
For the filling:
2 large eggs
2 large egg yolks
½ C sugar
3 T fresh lime juice
3 T dry white wine, preferably Sauvignon Blanc
½ C heavy cream
For the topping:
½ C dry white wine-Sauvignon Blanc
2 T honey
2 T sugar
1 T fresh lime juice
2 ½ C cranberries (maybe a little more to cover tart)
Make the crust:  Butter a 4 x 13 in rectangular fluted tart pan with a removable bottom (may use round). Combine flour, almonds, sugar, and salt in a food processor and process until almonds are finely chopped. Add the butter and pulse until the mix resembles coarse meal, about 15 seconds. Add the egg youlk and process until moist clumps form. With lightly floured hands, press the dough evenly over the bottom and up the sides of the prepared tart pan. Freeze until firm, about 45 minutes.  Position rack in the center of oven and put rimmed baking sheet on the rack and heat the oven to 357*. Bake the crust on the heated baking sheet until light golden on the bottom and golden-brown on the edges about 14 minutes. Cool completely.
Make Filling:
In a medium pan, whisk the eggs, yolks, sugar, likme juice and white wine until well blended. Cook over medium-high heat, whisking frequently, until the mix bois ad thickens about 3 minutes. Transfer the filling to a medium bowl and let cool until warm. Whisk the cream into the filling and pour the mix into the baked tart shell. Bake at 355 until the filling begins to slightly puff and bubble around the edges, about 15 minutes. Let cool to room temp.
Make the Topping:
In a medium pan boil the wine, honey, sugar, and lime juice over the medium heat until the mix reduces to a thick syrup and begins to darken slightly 4-5 minutes—about ¼ C. Reduce heat to low, add cranberries and poach gently over low heat until tender or starting to burst skins. Continue boiling til liquid is syrupy about a minute. Randomly place cranberries on top of tart, pressing slightly into the filling. Brush glaze over tart. Let cool cmpltely at room temp for at least 4 hours before serving.


Mother Engle’s Pumpkin Pie
2 eggs, beaten
 1/4 t ginger
1/2 C white sugar
1/4 t nutmeg
1/2 C brown sugar
 1 C pumpkin
2 T flour
1 C milk
1 t cinnamon
 1/2 C cream or evaporated milk
3/4 t salt 1 unbaked 9” pie shell
Blend all ingredients together, in blender, in order given. Pour into the pie shell. Bake at 400* for 15 min, then 375* for 35 minutes or until set. Top with freshly made whip cream.

Baked Corn Supreme
Grind contents of John Cope’s dried corn package in a blender or food processor. Add 4 cups cold milk, ½ C heavy cream 3 ½ T melted butter, 2 t salt, 3 T sugar, and 4 well beaten eggs. Mix thoroughly and pour into buttered baking dish. Bake at 375* for 60 minutes
Irish Car Bombs
Can of Guiness and 1 shot of Bailley's Irish Cream. Pour Guiness in a glass and carefully drop shot glass and all into beer.  Drink all at once!

To order dried corn: http://www.zingermans.com/

Happy Thanksgiving!

Gone Quiltin!

Gone Quiltin'!  Check back again to see my three--count 'em--three! Super Sized 9 Patch Sock Minkey Baby Quilts!

The Heart and Soul of a Covenant Home

"I'm more accustomed to the revisions of interiors, a large topic among the women of my family, any one of whom might say something like, "I never should have papered that dining room, especially with those Chinese cranes coming in to land. I always feel like one will plop down into my soup. I should have lacquered the walls brilliant yellow and a mirror should go over that sideboard, not those puny sconces..."I wonder if they, when insomnia strikes, have practices like mine."--Frances Mayes

Some of the lines out of Frances Mayes "Bella Tuscany" could be a line straight from my own playbook!  Like her, I carry scraps and tattered pieces of fabric, paint swatches and the like in most of my purses.  And why not?  You never know when you'll need them to match a potential find to your interior. 

I not only have those bits hanging around my handbags, but I have a huge notebook entitled "The Hostetter Home Portfolio" which houses every picture, article or thought I ever had when building my home. It's a compilation of years of stuff which, for the most part, got translated into this home. On the inside front cover is a list of "notable quotes" I collected over the years and wanted to share with you.

-"In attempting to define the enduring appeal of cottages, words like comfort, coziness, charm, simplicity, intimacy, and romance readily spring to mind, suggesting that the idea of "cottage" is as much a state of mind as it is a tangible presence."

Stone fireplace lovingly built by the dsil

-"In our childhood, we found or created spaces to fulfill an essential, unspoken need to feel safe and secure from an overstimulating and dangerous-feeling outside world."

-"The appeal here is a house that's easy to live in and easy to maintain, a house that encourages informal living while offering unpretentious comfort, a house that's small enough to allow you to spend more on fine details, quality materials and craftsmanshp, a house that's expressive about who you are and how you like to live your life."

-"Architect Robert Gerloff of Minneapolis reminds his clients that it is the details that hold our interest, that can make the cottage "as unforgettable as a villa."

Master bedroom detail

-"For it was Wright who pushed the American house away from segmented rooms that physically and visually cut themselves off from one another and from the surrounding exterior landscape...Wright's long low "Prairie" style houses (and, later, the small "Usonian" house, exalted in ther sense of openness and in their enthusiastic embracing of ther space immediately surrounding the house."

-"The stable was usually included as part of the house."

In the stable

Christmastime

-"If timelessness can be considered one of the major qualities of good ranch house design, the second major trait is adaptability to changing conditions."

-"...They [early Californians] felt that the house should provide a closer relationship between outdoors and in, a more intiate association with the garden, an informal, relaxed way of living, and feeling for the environment in which they built." 

-"You shall know the truth and the truth shall set you free."  I am the way. the truth and the life." 
-"In Him is light."
A big part of covenant life (to my way of thinking) is all wrapped up in making a cozy nest for the ones you love.  The greatest compliment I get (almost daily) is from my dear husband (dh) who says, as he calls in at the end of the day, "I can hardly wait to get back home. There's no other place I'd rather be." 
When people walk into my home they invariably comment on how warm and comfortable it feels.  It was built a little over a year ago by my dear son-in-law (dsil) but looks and feels old--in the sense of permanence, I suppose.  That was no accident.  It was my great fortune to work with a group of men who put the E into excellence and effort and every detail in our home was lovingly thought out and executed painstakingly by them. 

Aside from the dsil, I was blessed to have my relative and artist Matt Barley http://matthewfunkbarley.blogspot.com/ http://www.youtube.com/user/MatthewFunkBarley on the job. Matt found another quote, which summed up our desires in building this home.

Matt at work

When we build, let us think that we build forever. Let it not be for present delight nor for present use alone, Let it be such work as our descendants will thank us for; and let us think, as we lay stone on stone, that a time is to come when those stones will be held sacred because our hands have touched them, and that men will say, as they look upon the labor and wrought substance of them, "See! This our father did for us."--John Ruskin

Most of those quotes were translated--in one way or another--into this place called home. I hope you enjoyed the tour. My greatest desire is that this virtual look into my home will also provide you with a glimpse into my heart and soul. I'm hopeful too that someday soon you will turn the virtual into the reality. The door's always open!

Many thanks to Tim Hagen for this shot!