Wednesday, May 27, 2015

A Traditional Farm Life - Brownie Pie


A Traditional Farm Life
By Shasta Hamilton

Greetings from Enterprise, dear friends!  We are enjoying steady rainfall once again this Saturday afternoon—perfect weather for a cup of tea while we have our weekly chat.  I’ll pour a cup and be right back . . .

Hip, Hip, Hooray!  The tomato and pepper plants are now planted in the garden!  They finally escaped the confines of our front porch Thursday afternoon.  The garden dried out just enough for the boys to get out there and “mud ‘em in.”  It was still much too wet to till again before planting, so our tomatoes and pepper plants have dock and bindweed as unwelcome, invasive neighbors. 

On the east side of the garden, I was tickled to see a few asparagus shoots coming up from the crowns we planted several weeks ago.  Thinking we had done something wrong, I was about to give up hope--so it was very exciting to see some signs of life there.

The girls continue to tend and plant their small garden.  The garlic is developing nice, thick necks, so we have hope for good-sized cloves forming beneath the ground.  The field corn they planted has come up and is growing nicely.  It was a pleasant surprise for them to see that the kernels they “re-purposed” from the boy’s animal feed would actually grow.  The girls also planted three hills of Big Max pumpkins. The seeds were a gift from a dear customer.  It will be interesting to see if they are able to grow any colossal 100-pound specimens like the one on the front of the seed packet.

Progress is also being made on the round pen for horse training.  Michael helped the boys finish up setting the posts Thursday evening.  All that remains is running the wire fence and hanging the gates.  If it weren’t for the rain, they would be outside working on the project as we speak.

Instead, we are spending the afternoon finalizing our Farmer’s Market plans.  Our boys purchased a 10-foot tan-colored canopy to shade their tables of vegetables and their sister’s Dog Biscuits.  My contribution will be much smaller this year, offering cinnamon rolls and whatever else I may be able to “cook up” alongside my duties as wife, mother, and restaurateur.  It’s a delicate balancing act that definitely requires a safety net!

You’ll see our familiar faces at the Abilene Farmer’s Market starting Saturday morning, May 30, from 7 to 11 a.m.  In addition to Abilene’s Wednesday Market (beginning June 3, from 4 to 7 p.m.) we will also set up our wares at the brand new Enterprise Farmer’s Market every Friday from 4 to 7 p.m. 

Beginning Friday afternoon, May 29, the Enterprise Farmer’s Market will be located downtown in the empty lot between Arc Angel Firearms and the Community Center.  This happens to be right across the street from The Buggy Stop, so look both ways before you cross the street and come say, “Hello.”  If you’re “in the market” for a good old-fashioned stick-to-your-ribs meal, we’ll have our BBQ Boneless Pork Ribs and Bacon Jack Chicken ready to fill you up before you leave town.

While searching through my cookbook for new and different way to use the rhubarb we were given this week, I stumbled upon a “Brownie Pie” recipe.  Being intrigued by the novelty of this dessert spared the not-so-crazy-about-rhubarb folks in my family—and perhaps in yours—from another rhubarb experiment.

Not having a commercial brownie mix on hand, I simply mixed up a quick batch of my usual recipe and put it in a pie shell.  The chocolate syrup and pecans sprinkled on top made it look more distinguished.  Vanilla ice cream and more chocolate syrup on top make it a simple but special dessert you can whip up in a jiffy.

Brownie Pie

Unbaked 9” pie shell
1 (12 oz.) fudgy brownie mix
(to fill an 8 x 8” pan)
1/4 cup chocolate syrup
1/4 chopped nuts
Vanilla ice cream
additional chocolate syrup

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2.  Prepare brownie mix according to package directions.  Spread mixture evenly in pie shell.  Drizzle chocolatge syrup evenly over the top;  sprinkle with nuts.
3.  Bake 40 to 45 minutes, until brownie tests done.  Cool slightly.  Serve warm with vanilla ice cream and additional chocolate syrup.  Serves 8 to 10.

Copyright © 2015 by Shasta Hamilton

Shasta is a fifth generation rural Kansan now residing in Enterprise, Kansas.  She and her husband own and operate The Buggy Stop Home-Style Kitchen with their six home-schooled children.  You can reach The Buggy Stop by calling (785) 200-6385 or visit them on the web at www.thebuggystoprestaurant.com.

Sunday, May 24, 2015

Gypsum, KS - 2015 Poverty Flats Pie Festival and Car Show !

Celebrate Sunday of Memorial Weekend at our fun, laid back event featuring "the good life."

A show open to all years of vehicles, makes and models with made from scratch whole pies to be given away as awards instead of boring trophies. 
Cars, trucks, motorcycles, and bicycles are welcome. 

And a pie festival with homemade pie and ice cream for sale. Pie by the slice and whole pies will be available. 

Exit 14 Restaurant will be serving lunch and has great home style food that is hard to beat. 

The Gypsum Flea Market will have indoor and outdoor vendors and it is a fun place to browse. 

And most of all we want you to share our small town friendliness and enjoy that nostalgic feeling of lost Americana. 

We still have it here.
It's like "Mayberry" !!

Entry fee for vehicles is now free !!!

This event is co-sponsored by Exit 14 Restaurant and the Gypsum Flea Market.