Fruit of the tree, fruit of my labour

                “Your apple tree looks loaded!” I said to Mrs. B about two weeks ago. 

                “There are lots on the ground.  But if you want to pick some, please help yourself.  Mr. B. and I will be away, but “Maverick” can use the ladder to get up in the tree to pick all you want.” 

                “So, where are you off to? “ I said, being nosey.

                “We’re off to the Holy Land for about 10 days.  We’re leaving Sunday.” 

                “I’ll send “Maverick” over for some apples.”

                It was on Thursday, 8^th October, that I was ironing a sewing project when I realised that Mr. & Mrs. B were to leave on Sunday morning and it might be helpful to them to not worry about cooking a meal the night before they left.  So I interrupted the ironing just long enough to ring Mrs. B and invite them over for dinner on Saturday night.  They readily agreed, so we arranged a time. 

                Saturday “Maverick” helped with the house work to prepare for our guests.  The chicken quarters rested on top of celery and carrots as they cooked in the oven.  I enjoy doing everything in one dish.  I sliced up onions, diced garlic, cut up sweet bell pepper and after sautéing them added in green beans.  For dessert we had cake and ice cream. 

                When The B’s arrived for the dinner, Mrs B. handed me an orange plastic bag full of apples.  There must have been almost five pounds (2.25 kilos) of apples from their tree.   How lovely!

About to begin--Step one!

                “I’ll take care of those apples Saturday;” was my litany the week following.  Morning of the 17^th October brought out the resolution of mind and body as I set all the tools and apples on the table.  The Travel

Step two--peeling done

Channel on the television educated me with Mysteries at the Museum.  Maisy observed and begged while my fingers got sticky working through that bag of apples.  I refused to resist temptation to eat one as the room filled with the perfume of autumn fruit. 

   

             The plan was to reserve enough apples to bake a cake with and to cook the rest.  Many years ago my Dad had put cinnamon candies (called red-hots or cinnamon imperials) into some apple butter spread he was making.  It made that apple butter a beautiful colour.  I remembered that I had some of those spicy cinnamon candies in a jar far back in a kitchen cupboard.  So I hunted them out and when the apples were about half cooked, I dumped in the candies.   The benefit of that was that I didn’t have to add any extra sugar or cinnamon.  And it tasted just the way I wanted.

 The cake I wanted to make required about 1.5 cups of chopped/grated apple.  This is my own recipe for the autumn cake.

Ingredients:

4 eggs

1 ½ cups corn oil

3 cups sugar

1 ½ cups grated apple

1 ½ cups grated carrot

3 cups all purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 ½ teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons ginger

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1 teaspoon nutmeg

½ teaspoon ground cloves

1 cup nuts (optional)

Method:

1.       Preheat oven to 350ºF/175ºC.  Adjust for fan assisted ovens.

2.       Butter and flour a 9” x 13” cake dish or three round 9” cake pans and set to side.

3.       Shift together flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves.  (I usually sift it twice just to get it well mixed.)

4.       Beat eggs until light yellow.

5.       Add oil mix well.

6.       Add sugar and mix about one minute.

7.       Add in carrots and apples and mix well. 

8.       Once wet ingredients are well blended, add in the dry ingredient mixture a bit at a time, letting it incorporate before adding more.

9.       Add in nuts and mix about 1 minute.

10.   Pour into prepared cake tins/dish.

11.   Bake about 1 ½ hours for a 9 x 13 pan or 50 minutes to one hour in the three cake pans.  Cake is done when a toothpick inserted comes out clean. 

·         Notes:

·          This is a large recipe, so I might make a tiny cake in a ceramic coffee cup as well as the 9” x 13” dish.

·         This recipe also works to bake in three bread tins. 

·          Sometimes, depending on the oven, it can take a bit longer to bake.

·          I love warm spice, so I put lots in; but the amount of spices can be adjusted according to taste. 

·         It can be served with or without icing.

·         Three cups of apple or three cups of carrots can be used instead of 1 ½ cups of each. 

 

 The cake was appreciated at church yesterday (18th October) after the service during coffee time.  Don't worry--"Maverick" had a smaller version for himself. 

I pray you are enjoying this wonderful time of harvest too.

Serving Jesus, Author of our faith,

"Lady Helene"

Earning a Girl Scout Badge...1968

I sat on Mom's bed with the green book in front of me.  It was the Junior Cadet Girl Scout manual.  I flipped through the pages, looking specifically to badges to be earned.  I read the requirements of each one, and I found the one I wanted next. 

That little circle with the green background, and a little saucepan emblem on it stood out to me.  It was achievable.  After all, on my mother's side of the family my great-great grandmother taught my grandmother (who was orphaned) to cook.  My grandmother taught my mother and at 10 years old, I was ready to begin cooking.

I can still remember planning and cooking that first meal--round steak, with mashed potatoes, corn and green beans; a simple but filling meal.  I can't remember now if I fixed a desert.  I can still remember that square kitchen in the Castle Air Force Base family housing suburb.  The outside door was on the outside wall led to the breeze-way/carport.  Across the small room was the doorway to the dining area and rest of the house.  The window on the other outside wall faced the fenced-in back yard.  During the summer we had four-o'clock vines growing on wires and this shaded the kitchen and filled the air with a pungent, sweet perfume when the flowers swirled open their fragile blooms.  The stove sat next to the door way, with other cabinets across the room from the sink.  There was a work counter-top beneath cupboards on the wall.

And it was here that my love with the creative art of cooking was started.  Mom taught me to beat the steak with a meat knife to tenderize it.  I poured on garlic salt and black ground pepper.  Next was a dip into the flour.  It was ready for the grease.

"Mom, how many potatoes?"

"How many people are you cooking for?"  she asked.

"Five--you know, you, me, Dad, Bubby and Monkey Girl."

"Peel six potatoes--one per person and one for the pot." 

That is the guideline I've used throughout my life, no matter what I'm cooking.  If I'm preparing mashed potatoes, potato salad or boiled potatoes for a meal, it's one per person and one 'for the pot'.  This extra potato allows for second helping--especially in the case of growing teen-age boys.  It also covers you if an unexpected guest shows up.  Left over potatoes become potato bread, potato cakes or potato soup.

The corn of that first meal was out of the can.  So were the green beans.  But Mom taught me to put in some bacon and onion. 

I did achieve the scout badge, and I still have my sash and the badge--someplace.

Something to tantalise you...

I want to thank everyone who has been praying for me.  The results from the cystoscopy showed a healthy bladder.  I will keep you posted as the other tests are completed and the results in—But enough on that topic!

For clarity’s sake, I must explain that I am called “Nana Reed” by the grandchildren; My Midnight Man’s ex-wife is referred to as “Granny Reed” by the youngsters.  Here in England mid-term break from school for our grandchildren was the week of 21^st February.  Two of our grandchildren came up from the south coast with their “Granny Reed” to visit some of her family and friends for a week.  This provided cousins KJD1999 and TLR2000a great opportunity to spend a day with “Nana and Granddad Reed”. 

KJD1999 & TLR2000

The grandchildren in England have come to know that spending time with me is “kitchen time.”  I’ve never forced this activity on them.  They always anticipate these days with excitement.  KJD1999 is especially fond of food and cooking.  He often says:  “I want to be the next Jamie Oliver.” 

We had a limited time with them, as their Aunt was coming to pick them up about 4:30 p.m.  The project of the day was suggested by their Granny.  Apparently My Midnight Man used to make Meringues with his own children years ago.  So perhaps Granddad would do the same with the grandchildren.  Granddad had made commitments to other people—so he wasn’t even going to be home!  But meringues were the order of the day, and so out came The Good Housekeeping Illustrated Cookbook copy write 1980. 

Since I had learned to make Pavlovas whilst I was in Scotland and just conquered royal icing in December, I figured that meringues wouldn’t be a problem.  Thankfully, they were easy and fun.  KJD1999 loves my Kitchen Aid Mixer.  But then, so do I as it does the hard work. 

The recipe calls for three egg whites.  This worked out well because it meant I could show KJD and TLR how to separate the whites from the yolks.  TLR2000 got it right on her first try.  KJD1999’s first attempt was heavy-handed and that egg ended up with the egg yolks.  His second try was better, but still unsuccessful. 

       “Maybe you should do it, Nana” he said, a bit discouraged.

“It’s okay—I’ve got plenty of eggs.  YOU can do this.  Just slow down, concentrate and you’ll get it.”  I reassured him.  I wasn’t about to let him give up.  “If you want to be the next Jamie Oliver, you have to know how to separate an egg.”  Third time success! 

                       They took turns turning the Kitchen Aid on and off, and also adding the icing sugar.  Then we let the mixer run for 15 minutes while I had them clearing and washing up.

                       Instead of putting the meringues onto a greased cookie sheet, I stuck grease-proof paper on the baking tray.  To keep it from slipping I used a little of the meringue mixture under the corners of the paper. 

Since we had some time, and I thought the cousins would enjoy it, I folded grease-proof paper into piping bags to place the meringues onto the paper.  I also pulled some cake decorating tips out of a drawer to use in the end of the piping bags.  White, sticky mixture got on our hands, our faces and enough on the paper to make the meringue nests!

                       KJD1999 and TLR2000 took theirs with them to their Aunts, as well as one for her.  My Midnight Man and I ate ours that evening with bananas and hot fudge sauce. 

I’ll have to make them again soon, because they are temptingly tantalising as well as tasty.

Serving Jesus, Author of our faith-Lady Helene 

3 egg Whites at room temperature

1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar

¾ cup sugar

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

1)      Preheat oven to 275°F/140°C/Gas mark 1

2)      In small bowl with mixer at high speed, beat egg whites and cream of tartar until soft peaks form.

3)      Gradually sprinkle in sugar, 2 Tablespoons at a time, beating after each addition for about two minutes or until sugar is completely dissolved, about 15 minutes.  To test, rub meringue between fingers; if grainy, continue beating.  Add vanilla, beating at high speed until mixture stands in stiff, glossy peaks.

4)      Onto large greased cookie sheet, spoon mixture into 6 mounds.  Spread each mound into a four-inch circle, heaping mixture to form a next shape.

5)      Bake 45 minutes until meringues are crisp and very lightly browned.  Turn off oven; let meringues stand in oven 45 minutes longer to dry.  Cool completely on cookie sheet.

6)      Store loosely wrapped in waxed paper; keep at room temperature.