We had our first snow on Oct. 15, which was very early for around here. It didn't stay too long but one of the girls said, "Oh good, now we don't have to rake leaves!"
Our trees are losing leaves fast and once again we are seeing the beautiful artwork of our master srtist as the colors really are pretty. Everything is in its autumn splendor.
Our gardens are all tilled up and history for 2009. I still have my carrots in the ground, though. I will just cover them with a pile of leaves and dig them up as I use them. They seem to keep better that way.
Meanwhile, I would like to help sister Emma can her red beets this week and make her cabbage into sauerkraut. These weeks are flying by so fast and time is so limited. Emma and Jacob's baby Marilyn is already 5 weeks old today. It is a pleasure to hold her when she sleeps and watch her expressions on her face. So far it looks as if her eyes will be blue. It is hard to think of my youngest child, Kevin, being over 4. Kevin makes sure we know he is not a baby anymore and he reminds us often that he is older than his cousins Steven and baby Marilyn.
Daughter Lovina, 5, left at 7 a.m. this morning with the other children. Her classes will now be in the morning instead of the afternoon. She comes home around noon. She is not a morning person but did very well to be ready this morning. I had to tell Benjamin, 10, to quit teasing her as he kept telling her how scary it was to walk to the bus in the dark. Benjamin always enjoys picking on his sisters. (Editor's note: Amish children in Lovina's area attend public school. Some Amish settlements the children attend Amish schools; in other places they attend public.)
Yesterday we had brunch at Emma and Jacob's house. Brother Albert's family, his daughter Elizabeth, her husband and two children and Albert's three oldest sons and their special friends all came along. They were also joined by Uncle Joe and Aunt Betty and sisters Susan and Verena.
This gathering was held so Albert's family could meet little Marilyn Jane. Altogether we were a total of 41. Needless to say Emma and Jacob had a full house. At least the weather warmed up and the children could enjoy playing outdoors.
On the menu were biscuits and sausage gravy, potatoes, eggs, cheese, hot peppers, cherry pudding, peaches, apple, pumpkin and blueberry pie. Beverages included coffee, vegetable juice and homemade rhubarb juice.
Brother Albert's wife Sarah Irene brought us radishes out of her garden. They taste just as fresh and crisp as they do in the spring. Probably with all the cool weather we have this summer it made a good year for radishes all season.
On Friday, Joe and I took our horse and buggy to the children's school as they had "vehicle day." The school had asked if we could bring our buggy so children at the school could also see how the inside of a buggy looks. A lot of the children got inside the buggy to see what it was like to be inside of one. This was a good way to teach young people about safety around buggies since cars and buggies have to share the roads. The school had various other kinds of vehicles there also such as police cars, fire trucks, dump trucks and bulldozers. It was an interesting hour for all the children.
Apples are still in season here, so here is the recipe for the apple pie I took to Emma's on Sunday.
Amish Apple Pie
1 9-inch pie crust
3/4 c. granulated sugar
1 t. ground cinnamon
6 to 7 c. sliced McIntosh apples
1/2 c. (1 stick) butter, softened
1/2 c. packed brown sugar
1 cup all-purpose flour
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. For the homemade pie dough crust: Roll the disk of pie dough out to a 1/8-inch thickness on a floured surface.
Fit the dough into a 9-inch pie pan. Trim the overhang to 1 inch. Fold the dough under and crimp the edges. For the pat-a-pan piecrust: Pat the dough with your fingers, first at the sides of the 9-inch pie pan and then across the bottom. Flute the edges.
Mix the sugar and cinnamon with the apples in a large bowl and put into the unbaked pie shell.
Mix the butter, brown sugar and flour in a medium bowl for the topping. Sprinkle over the pie. Bake for 15 minutes, then lower the oven temperature to 350 degrees and bake for 30 more minutes.
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.
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