Bakersville Pioneer Village and Seed Store

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The end of January almost always brings around a visit to our local Baker Creek Pioneer Village and Seed Store.  Whispers of warm air have been stirring our thoughts of planning the garden.  I say whispers.....it has been over 60° several times this month, so what else is there to do but to make sure we have all the seeds we need.

Handmade Steel Amish Hairpins

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These are my latest and greatest find!  These are handmade, steel hairpins.  Talk about heavy duty!

The longer my hair grows, the harder it is find ways of putting it up.  I think I have purchased and tried every single hairpin under the sun, with no success, until now.

One day, at a friends house, she was putting up her daughter's hip length hair.  Since they are the only people with hair as long as mine that I know, I asked her how on earth she kept it up.  So.... she let me in on her little secret and I headed straight to the local Amish store to get them.  

Now I don't know if you have a local Amish store or not, but ours is a simple little room on an Amish farm ran by a local Amish family.  It isn't one of these high traffic, fancy, high-priced "Amish" stores where they sell a small bag of "bulk" food for $10 and a wooden bench for $300.  This is a store specifically for the Amish, but they will sell to a few locals also.

We enjoy going in there.  Good people and handy, handy stuff.

If you don't have somewhere to get such terrific and handy things, you might like to order a catalog that many of the Amish around here order from.  It's full of canning equipment, stainless steel kitchen supplies, non-electric appliances, tools, heaters... and the list goes on and on.

ShetlersWholesale Co.

PO Box 8

Geneva, IN  46740

You will need to send them a letter requesting a catalog.  Its been ages since I had to request such a thing through the mail, but they sent me one right away. 

For any of you that participate in historical re-enactments, these hairpins might work wonderfully for you too!

Amish Cinnamon Sauce

The other morning my dear family was cravings pancakes.  I've gotten on this anti-Bisquick kick, so I took out one of my Amish cookbooks, one like we just had a giveaway for, to see if there was a good sounding recipe for pancakes in it.  

First let me say that there was, it was called Johnny Cakes and included a bit of cornmeal in it.  Second, to my delight, there was a delicious sounding recipe for Cinnamon Sauce.  My family really likes Cinnamon, so I read it over and thought I'd try it to have as an option to our Maple Syrup.  

It is DELICIOUS!!  

Not only that, but you could use it on more than just pancakes.  It could be used on ice cream, french toast, over sweet bread, the sky's the limit because it can be made just a bit thicker to be used as a frosting on cakes too.  Ok, here's the recipe:

Amish Cinnamon Sauce

1 c. sugar

1/2 tsp. salt

3 Tablespoons flour (scant)

3 Tablespoons brown sugar

2 c. boiling water

4 Tablespoons butter

1 tsp. cinnamon

Blend first 3 ingredients in a saucepan.  Stir boiling water in gradually to keep smooth.  Cook until clear for 4 to 5 minutes.  Remove from heat; stir in brown sugar, butter, and cinnamon.  Serve!  YUM!

That's it, that's all there is to it!  This recipe makes about 2/3's of a Mason quart jar full.

The Amish Cookbook Giveaway!

This giveaway is now closed.  

Congratulations to the winner, A Nest in the Rocks, 

chosen from Random.org.

Thank you for all of your entries!  I had the most enjoyable time visiting everyone's websites!  Now that I realize how much interest there is in Amish items, I promise there will be several more giveaways related to our Amish community.  Be sure to check back often!

Oh, I almost forgot....to purchase your own Kitchen Keepsakes Volume II Amish Cookbook, simply send $9.95 per copy, plus $2.00 postage to:

Mrs. Monroe (Ida) Hershberger

1289 SE 1300

Windsor, MO  65330

Planting in Winter

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Here it is, the end of the first full week in January and I have been looking forward to being elbows deep in our sewing projects, but instead, it seems that the weather has turned my attention back to the fast approaching growing season.

We can not believe how many beautiful days we are having in January!  The warmest day last week was about 65°, turning my mind to mailing out the seed order.  The thermometer in the greenhouse was reading 80° and my fingers were itching to play in the dirt.

Hearty Winter Beef Stew

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Soups and stews tend to dominate our kitchen this time of year.  I absolutely love cooking up a big ole' pot of meat and vegetables that can simmer for hours, blending so many yummy flavors into some of the greatest comfort food during the winter, not to mention making our home smell delicious all day.

Happy New Year

"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."  

Jeremiah 29:11

You can find me linked up at:  Homestead Revival, Growing Home, Far Above Rubies, Skip to my Lou, Penniless Parenting, Titus 2sdays, Raising Homemakers, Frugally Sustainable, Women Living Well, Raising Mighty Arrows, Deep Roots at Home, Fingerprints on the Fridge, Farm Friend Friday, Life as Mom, Farmgirl Friday