Thursday, May 27, 2010

Rhubarb Pie

Last weekend we had our annual rhubarb pie making day. This year Mom, Lisa and I made 14 pies for the freezer.  The first step was to clean and cut the rhubarb.  We ended up with about 58 cups.  What we didn't use for pie, we put in freezer bags for use throughout the year.


My job is to make the crusts.  I use a recipe I learned in high school home ec. 
1/2 cup shortening
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 tsp. salt
Mix the above with a pastry cutter until it's crumbly.  Add 4-5 tbsp. ice cold water a couple at a time until the dough holds together.

Between Mom and Lisa they made the filling.  Honestly, I've never made it.  Noboby else wants to learn how to make the crusts, so I'm stuck doing it. 
2 eggs
1 cup sugar
1 tbsp flour
Mix and add in 2 1/2 cups rhubarb.  Pour into crust and dot with butter.

After putting on the top crust, rub a small amount of milk on crust and sprinkle with sugar.  Bake at 350 degrees for 55 minutes.

Here are some of the finished pies.  The rule is that if you help make them, you get to share in the pies throughout the year.  Mike has helped in the past but wasn't home this year to help.  But I'm sure if he's really nice to me, he might get one.

Enjoy!!

Monday, May 17, 2010

More Spring Work

Over the past weeks I've been trying to get some yard work done in between rains. It seems things would dry out just enough and it would rain again. 

I decided to put mulch down all along my back fence.  There are only perenniels back there and I was getting tired of weeding it....actually, trying to keep it weeded is more like it.  This would have been a much easier project a few weeks ago when the plants were smaller.  I'm about two-thirds finished.  The next mulching project will be to replace it all in the front of the house. 

 

There's one lone peony blooming today.  It could be a few days before any more open. 
 

 I don't eat chives, but they sure look pretty in my garden.

 The alium are slowly but surely opening.

 The roses are beginning to open too.

And then there's this pretty white flower.  It's really a weed growing among the rose bushes.

 I'm still working on making my gardens bigger.  I got another 12-inch strip dug along the length of the flower garden and a 3x3 spot dug by the veggie garden.  The ground was still pretty wet so the dirt wasn't coming off the sod very easily.  I decided to work on that project again another day.  I had a couple of holes in my yard from something digging in it, so I filled the holes and used the sod from my gardens.

Sunday, May 16, 2010

Garage Sale

Yesterday was the annual garage sale at my friend Becky's house.  Having the sale started out as a way to get rid of our stuff, but over the years one of our reasons for continuing is the fun time we have the day of the sale and setting up the night before.  This year we had a perfect day for a sale...compared to last year when we had winter coats on to keep warm.


After the sale, I ended up bringing several boxes of stuff home as seed for next year's sale.  I didn't make a lot of money, but the time spent with friends was the best.  Until next year, Girls!!

Saturday, May 15, 2010

Rhubarb Dessert

Here's recipe number 3 using rhubarb. This is a very quick and easy dessert.  It's delicious when it's served just a little bit warm.

2 eggs
2/3 cup flour
1 cup sugar
1 tsp. baking powder
salt
vanilla
Beat the above ingredients and then add 2 cups diced rhubarb.  Put in ungreased pie tin.  Bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes or until light brown.  Serve with cool whip.

Saturday, May 1, 2010

Rhubarb Muffins

Today I made recipe number 2 with rhubarb...muffins.  These have been a favorite of my family for years. I had already shared with Mike and Lisa before taking the picture so this isn't all of them.
Blend 1/4 tsp. salt, 1 cup sugar, and 3 Tbsp. butter. 
Add 2 eggs - 1 at a time until blended
1 tsp. soda in 3/4 cup sour milk
2 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp. vanilla
3 cups diced rhubarb
Bake at 375 for 15-20 minutes.  Frost when cool.