Ah...well,I have been diligently working on some recipies for our town's annual festival, Harbor Days. Each year there is a cherry bake off and this year I am going to enterthe contest and finding new and original recipies proves to be quite the task!! I thought I'd share a cherry recipe with ya and some pics so you can be inspired to get those fresh cherries that are everywhere now and get to baking!! I will post later about the bake off and what recipe I ended up deciding on!!

Check out these adorable cherry pie cupcakes!! Too Cute!!

Here is a recipe for ya!!

CHERRY BROWN BUTTER BARS

Cherry Brown Butter Bars

Crust:7 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted1/3 cup sugar, 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract,1 cup plus 1 tablespoon all purpose flour, Pinch of salt

Filling:1/2 cup sugar,2 large eggs,Pinch of salt, 1/4 cup all purpose flour, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract,1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, diced1 pound sweet cherries, which will yield 12 ounces of pitted cherries, which yielded some leftovers, perfect for snacking (alternately, you can use 12 ounces of the berry of your choice)

Make crust: Preheat over to 375°F. Cut two 12-inch lengths of parchment paper and trim each to fit the 8-inch width of an 8×8-inch square baking pan. Press it into the bottom and sides of your pan in one direction, then use the second sheet to line the rest of the pan, perpendicular to the first sheet. Congratulations! You’ve just faked a square tart pan.

Using rubber spatula or fork, mix melted butter, sugar, and vanilla in medium bowl, in the bottom of the small saucepan you used to melt the butter. Add flour and salt and stir until incorporated. Transfer dough to your prepared pan, and use your fingertips to press the dough evenly across the bottom of the pan. Bake the crust until golden, about 18 minutes (it will puff slightly while baking). Transfer crust to rack and cool in pan. Maintain oven temperature.

Make the filling: Cook butter in heavy small saucepan (a lighter-colored one will make it easier to see the color changing, which happens quickly) over medium heat until deep nutty brown (do not burn), stirring often and watching carefully, about six minutes. Immediately pour browned butter into glass measuring cup to cool slightly.

Whisk sugar, eggs, and salt in medium bowl to blend. Add flour and vanilla and whisk until smooth. Gradually whisk browned butter into sugar-egg mixture; whisk until well blended.
Arrange pitted cherries, or the berries of your choice, in bottom of cooled crust. Carefully pour browned butter mixture evenly over the fruit. Bake bars until filling is puffed and golden and tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 40 minutes. Cool bars completely in pan on rack.

The Amish Cook

Today I thought I'd share one of my favorite cookbooks with you, The Amish Cook At Home By: Lovina Eicher ( you can order it through Amazon, here ). I love this cookbook because it is simple recipes that I tend to cook for my Family as well as it is neatly organized into seasons, so I find I tend to take out this cook book and browse through it as the seasons change.

It is sitting beside me right now on my kitchen table as I look at the spring section and see all of the beautiful pictures and recipes utilizing my favorite spring vegtables! Lovina Eicher writes a coloumn that our local paper carries in the food section and I can't wait to read it each week. It contains a small snippet of amish life as well as a recipe. I sometimes think I could live like the amish, then I get real and realize I would be miserable with out my internet, TiVo, and telephone.... so I cook the recipes and look at pictures and admire the Amish lifestyle from afar!! Here are some pics and a recent article from the Amish cook, and I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

Amish Cook: Spring goodies are everywhere

BY LOVINA EICHER Special to the Record-Eagle

This column will wrap up my writing for April already. Time seems to slip away too fast. There are only five more weeks of school for the children before the term ends. Right now they are outside waiting for the bus. It is a nice, breezy Monday morning and everyone wants to be outside. It sure is easier when I don't have to pack their coats along.
We have been having 80-degree weather the last few days. My husband Joe put our porch swing back up again for the summer. He also put up some swings on some of our big trees for the children. They have had their share of use this weekend. It is surprising how a few boards and a few ropes have made hours of entertainment for them. The children say they like these swings better because they can swing so much higher.
Joe is leaving for work at 3 a.m. this week, 45 minutes earlier than usual. Because one of the drivers is on vacation, Joe is one of the first men picked up on the vanload of Amish men that go to the factory. Being 45 minutes early sure makes a big difference in the morning hours.
I have so many things on my to-do list today that I am not sure where to start. I'll probably start with doing the laundry and then it will be onto the garden. We were ready to plant corn on Saturday but it started raining. I think I'll try to get some corn planted today. Silver queen, Bodacious, Seneca and Candy Corn are a few of the varieties that we will have in our garden this summer.
I want to make quite a few batches of rhubarb jam. We are out of rhubarb jam and this is one of our favorite jams. We like to spread butter and rhubarb jam on our toast or homemade bread in the morning. My rhubarb is really spreading out and growing this year so I will try to put it to good use. Besides rhubarb jam, we'll also be making rhubarb juice, shortcakes, pies, cakes and other desserts. Also Joe came in last night and told me our asparagus is ready to use. I got the hint, so I will try to fix his favorite asparagus recipe tonight, which is asparagus-potato soup.
Our radishes, peas and green onions are up in the garden. We have had a few winter onions already but it looks like it will be another week before they really start.
We have had our share of dandelion greens. The yellow flowers are really popping up so it will not be long before they are over with for another year. Once the blossom is on the greens they taste too bitter to eat. The young tender ones are the best although my daughters don't really like washing them because they are so tiny.

Here is the recipe for my husband's favorite asparagus dish:

Asparagus-Potato Soup

1&3/4 c. chicken broth
3 potatoes, peeled and cubed
1/2 lb. asparagus, trimmed and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1/3 c. chopped onion
1 t. salt
1&1/2 c. milk
2 T. all-purpose flour
1 c. Velveeta or Colby cheese (cubed or sliced)
Combine the broth, potatoes, asparagus, onion and salt in a large saucepan. Cook over medium heat until the vegetables are tender, about 30 minutes. Whisk the milk and flour together well in a small bowl and whisk into the broth mixture. Stir in the cheese until melted. Pour into warmed soup bowls and serve immediately.

Lovina Eicher is Old Order Amish. She hand-writes this column from her home in southern Michigan. Anyone with cultural or cooking questions can send them to: Lovina Eicher, The Amish Cook, P.O. Box 2144, Middletown, OH 45042. Read all of her columns online at www.record-eagle.com/amishcook.

Farm Chicks Giveaway!!!

If you haven't been on the Farm Chicks Blog, or seen their AWESOME new cookbook... head on over to their blog and check it out!! They are hosting a wonderful spring giveaway from Pixie Dust Decor. Stop by and check it out!!!

It's snowing!!

Remnants of Summer....

Well, today it is snowing like crazy.. my kinder is home sick from school and my pre-kinder is gone at school..

Thought I'd make some Toll House cookies..seems like a cookies and milk kinda day. My 4 year old will squeal with delight when she gets off of the bus and my 6 year old daughter sick on the couch may drool as well...

As I prepare the ingredients.. I can view my very fit neighbor cross-country skiing ( what is she thinking?!?) and I have a view of a sink full of dishes.

Forgot to add the eggs one at a time...ooops!

"Mom, are those cookies done yet?"

I think I just may eat the dough.. that's the best part anyway, right? Now I am off to wait for a bus, eat some dough, and maybe get some dishes done:)