THE SCENT OF A TURTLE

Spring is in full swing at “The Meadow,” and every day brings more evidence of the season. Morning birds chirp a wake- up song, herbs are popping up in the garden, the rhubarb patch is a foot high. Scotchy, the little brown hen is nesting on eggs in the chicken coop, the geese are back with mates at their sides making homes of their own near the pond. And, the turtles have arrived, headed for the shelter and warmth of the lawn to lay their eggs as they have every year since we’ve been here at Cricket Meadow to witness their spring ritual.

I’ve never had snapping turtles come close to the house, but I have seen them in the marsh and ditches by the pasture. I will never forget my mom’s story of the snapper my dad killed and cleaned and coaxed her to fry. She was not a reptile lover, therefore was not eager to see a turtle show up in her kitchen as a potential meal. But Mom was a compliant, obliging, peacemaker type, so she bent over backwards to please her man and play the part of Betty Crocker-Suzie Homemaker.

So, when Dad sauntered into the kitchen with a freshly cleaned snapper in tow and persuaded Mom to try her hand at the preparation she balked, but to no avail. Then, in submit mode, proceeded to pan fry the disgusting mound of flesh. She recounted this tale from her newlywed years many times and, in the years since, claimed she never did fully eradicate from her memory the scent of cooking reptile and the sight of twitching meat in the pan. The meal was fed to a table of men my dad invited for the event, never letting on that it was turtle. They thought it was fowl of some sort. The dish went over well, was likened to chicken (surprise) and was promptly thrown up by one of the diners when the truth of species was divulged.

My mom was braver than I’ll ever be. I would not be able to perform such a feat. My ability to please has never hit those levels.

TURTLE (The one thing missing from this recipe is, who kills it and how?)

Turtle

3 sprigs fresh parsley

1 bay leaf

2 sprigs fresh thyme

1 medium onion stuck with whole cloves

3 stalks celery

 6 tablespoons melted butter

To cook, place turtle in a pan of cold water. Bring to a boil and parblanch about 10 minutes. Drain. Plunge turtle into cold water and leave until cool enough to handle. Scrub well.  Place turtle in rapidly boiling water. Add herbs, onion and celery. Reduce heat and simmer 35 to 45 minutes or until claws can be removed by pulling. Drain, reserving stock. Allow the turtle to cool on its back in order to trap the juices as it cools. When cool, pry the flat plastron free from the curved carapace. Near the head, is the liver. Free it carefully from the gall. Discard the gall. Slice the liver thinly and reserve, as well as any eggs. Remove the meat from the both the carapace and the skinned legs. When ready to eat, toss in melted butter and garnish with more fresh parsley.

TURTLES (THE CANDY)

12 ounces pecan halves

1 can sweetened condensed milk

1 cup light brown sugar

1/2 cup butter

Pinch salt

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

3/4 cup light corn syrup

12 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips

On a cookie sheet, arrange 3 pecan halves in a triangular shape. Separate each triangle by 2 inches. In a heavy saucepan, combine milk, sugar, butter, syrup and salt. Cook to soft-ball stage, stirring constantly. Add vanilla and stir well. Using a large spoon, put 2 tablespoons caramel on top of each group of nuts. Let set until cool. Melt chocolate chips in microwave and top each pecan caramel cluster with chocolate. Let set. Store in a tightly covered container.

TURTLE BARS

1-1/2 cups flour

1-1/2 cups brown sugar

1/2 cup butter

1 cup pecan halves

2/3 cup butter

1 cup chocolate chips

In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, 1 cup brown sugar and 1/2 cup butter. Mix until crumbly. Pat into the bottom of a 9 by 13 inch pan. Sprinkle pecans evenly over crumbs. Combine 2/3 cup butter and remaining 1/2 cup brown sugar in a small saucepan. Cook and stir over medium heat until bubbly. Cook and stir 1 minute more. Pour into pan, spreading evenly over crust. Bake at 350 degrees for 18 to 20 minutes. Remove from oven and sprinkle with chocolate chips. Let stand for 2 or 3 minutes and then use knife to swirl chocolate slightly. Cool before cutting.

PRETZEL TURTLES

20 mini pretzels

20 chocolate covered caramel candies

20 pecan halves

Arrange pretzels in a single layer on a cookie sheet. Place one candy on each pretzel. Bake at 300 degrees for 4 minutes. While candy is warm, press a pecan onto each candy co

THE OPENER

I woke to a cold house this morning…the damp spring weather undermining my premature air conditioning choice. I quickly switched the thermostats to “heat,” but not before I was reminded of the dank and chilly lake cabin Mom and I used to ready for the season in early spring each year.

We always picked a nice, sunny day in late April to open the un-insulated cabin. Despite the strength of the sun, the big shade trees on the hillside kept the space from warming until we stoked the fireplace and turned on the stove. Then we set about polishing furniture, clearing away cobwebs, dusting books and washing windows. We brought clean curtains and towels, sheets and rugs and heated water on the stove to wash the dishes that the mice had used all winter. My grandparents built Linger Longer Lodge in 1920 and it was a no-frills place, with uneven wood floors, piecemeal décor and leaky windows. It withstood hundreds of storms and an equal number of parties. I have a ton of great memories from that place. My kids grew up there, and my brothers and me, and my mom and her siblings before that.

Mom loved that old cabin and enjoyed filling it with bric-a-brac, shells and driftwood she combed from the beach, Depression glass her mother passed down to her, linens embroidered by my great-grandmother. In one corner of the cabin, stood the old Victorola crank phonograph that had been given to her by her Uncle Oscar. On our periodic coffee breaks, we’d wind it up and spin her collection of Bing Crosby records. We loved “opening day” of the cabin: the lunch we fixed over the old gas stove, the cookies she always packed in a tin and the plaid thermos of coffee we sipped as we cleaned, the memories we shared as we worked to scrub away a winter’s-worth of dirt.

Before we left at the end of the day, we spent time in the sand, listening to the loons and the gentle gurgle of the creek that ran into the lake from the ravine nearby. We planned our summer and talked about life then and when she was young.

I will never forget those times and am grateful that Mom taught me how to work and eat and play and listen to good music, all at the same time. She taught me that work is play, play is work and it all equals fun. A habit I have perfected with time.

MOM’S PEANUT BUTTER COOKIES

3/4 cup butter

3/4 cup sugar

3/4 cup brown sugar

1 egg

3/4 cup peanut butter

1 teaspoon vanilla

1-3/4 cups flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and sugars. Beat in egg. Add peanut butter and vanilla. Stir in dry ingredients. Shape into balls and roll in sugar. Press a criss-cross pattern in tops with a fork. Bake at 375 degrees for 10 to 12 minutes. 

MOM’S MORNING GLORY MUFFINS

1-1/4 cups sugar

1/2 cup oil or applesauce

3 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla

2 cups flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cinnamon

2 cups grated carrots

1/2 cup raisins

1/2 cup coconut

1/2 cup diced raw apple

Coarse ground sugar

In a mixing bowl, combine sugar, oil or applesauce, eggs and vanilla. Add flour, baking powder, salt and cinnamon. Fold in carrots, raisins, coconut and apple.
Spoon batter into paper-lined or greased muffin tins. Sprinkle tops generously with coarse ground sugar. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes.

EVERYDAY SLOPPY JOES

1 pound ground beef

1/2 medium onion, chopped

1/2 cup celery, finely chopped

1-1/2 fresh lemon juice

2 teaspoons vinegar

1-1/2 tablespoons water

2/3 cup ketchup

1 tablespoon brown sugar

1 teaspoon dry mustard

Salt and pepper to taste

In a large skillet, brown meat with onion and celery. Drain. Stir in all other ingredients. Simmer for 10 minutes. Serve in buns.

WHETHER THE WEATHER

“Red sky at night, sailor’s delight. Red sky in morning, sailors take warning.”

I come from a long line of weather watchers. Maybe, the fact that Minnesota has so much weather, explains the fascination with our ever-changing atmosphere in this state. The Farmer’s Almanac was never far from the kitchen table where it was consulted often in my youth.

My paternal grandfather proclaimed that, once March arrived, “winter’s back was broken” and, come what may, spring would not be far behind. My maternal grandmother would announce that, on any given cloudy day, if you “spy a patch of blue sky the size of a Dutchman’s breeches,” it would clear. If your bones ached, rain was on the way. If birds swooped low and huddled near shelter, a storm was brewing. So I guess my parents couldn’t help being indoctrinated in the art of weather watching. Nor could I.

When I was young, my Mother kept track of rain on the calendar. She would write down the rainy days, then flip ahead six months to the day for a prediction that hoarfrost would coat the trees. Oddly enough, it usually did. If we spotted sundogs, it confirmed that the temps were frigid. Winter thunder signaled we would see snow within the week. In the fall, we watched the wooly worms for the size of their black and brown bands. Folk wisdom claimed that a narrower brown band foreshadowed a harsher winter. The premature gathering of seagulls in August would signal an early fall. An animal’s thickening coat, as winter approached, meant a colder than usual season. Thicker than normal acorn shells also predicted a rough winter.

My Mother was weather obsessed and, I think, so am I. I have half a dozen weather apps on my phone and check them often. I could definitely live in perpetual sunshine and really don’t like a cloudy day. If it rains, though we may need it, I can hardly wait for night to fall so I don’t have to peer through gloom. But, life in a place that is constantly changing, is good for the soul and, as Mama used to say, “Take the bitter with the better.”

Kind of good advice for surviving March in Minnesota.

FARMER’S ALMANAC CHICKEN WITH CHEESE AND APPLES

5 tablespoons butter

3 medium apples, halved, cored and sliced

2 large onions, sliced thinly

3 whole chicken breasts, boned, skinned and split

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1/2 cup Swiss cheese, shredded

1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

1/4 cup dry bread crumbs

1/2 teaspoon thyme

2 tablespoons brandy or apple cider

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Coat a 2 quart baking dish with 1 tablespoon butter. Melt the remaining 4 tablespoons butter in a large heavy skillet over medium heat. Add the apples and onion and sauté until tender, about 10 minutes. Spoon into baking dish. Rub chicken with salt and pepper and arrange over apple-onion mixture. Combine cheeses with bread crumbs and thyme and sprinkle the mixture over the chicken. Drizzle brandy or cider over the cheese. Bake for 35 minutes, or until cheese is golden brown and chicken is done.

 

SNOW DAY MAC AND CHEESE

1 pound rotini or elbow macaroni

2 cups whole milk

8 ounces cream cheese

3 tablespoons butter

Salt and pepper to taste

1-1/2 cups sharp Cheddar, grated

1-1/2 cups smoked Gouda, grated

Cook pasta according to package directions. Strain and rinse with cold water. Drain and transfer to a baking dish. Set aside. Combine milk, cream cheese, butter, salt and pepper in a medium saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until butter and cream cheese have melted, about 10 minutes. Assemble macaroni and cheese by tossing the Cheddar and Gouda with pasta. Add hot milk mixture and combine well. Bake at 350 degrees about 30 minutes until cheese is set and top is golden brown.

WEATHER TRACKER SUNFLOWER COOKIES

1 cup butter

1 cup sugar

1 cup brown sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

2 cups flour

2 cups oatmeal

1 cup roasted and salted sunflower seeds

1 cup coconut

In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and sugars. Beat in eggs. Stir in vanilla. Mix well. Add baking powder and soda. Mix in flour. When well combined, stir in oatmeal. Add sunflower seeds and coconut. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 to 12 minutes. Cool on wire racks.

I HEAR VOICES

With the subzero days we’ve had this month, all of our flocks and herds are snugly tucked into shelter during the long, frigid nights. No free ranging for snow covered horses. Heat lamps and bales of wood shavings keep the small livestock warm and snug. Even our loyal and coddled lab eats a daily bowl of oatmeal and sleeps by the fire. But all of this indoor dwelling makes for more housecleaning. The biggest job being that of cleaning the barn each day.

I am happy to report that, after being gone for 2 winters, I haven’t lost my touch with a broom, fork or shovel. I don’t work like a “girl.” I tie on a fresh bandana each day and head for the stalls.

Back in my early years, as a Meeker Country farm kid, Dad had a pretty strict idea of what barns should look like. We had to be neat and tidy. Even though most of the time found me with Mom in the kitchen, I logged plenty of hours out with the boys and I find myself still thrusting a knee into a haybale to break it up, I do the quick scoop method with a shovel to get the last of a pile of feed, I perform the classic dance with a barn broom walking and stomping it as I progress across the floor, cleaning up debris. I know how to fill a trough, gauge a water tank by sounds from a hose for fill levels. I know that “as the crow flies,” it is a mile down the drive and back, I can tell you that the hay barn is a “stone’s throw” from the east paddock, that a rod is 16-1/2 feet and that all tools should be reasonably clean and hanging from hooks on the barn wall because “the banker owns them” and I need to take care of my investment. I may have learned a lot from my Mom about domesticity, but “by goodness,” I am no stranger to life in a barn. I know that when I meet someone on a country road, “it doesn’t cost anything to wave,” and I also know that, when opportunity knocks, I should “strike while the iron is hot.”

I know that “a good stint in the military” would do all of us “a world of good.” I know that “if you have your health, you are rich,” and that if I ever “need a place to hang my hat,” the “back door is open and the coffee pot is always on.”

Funny, how lines or phrases never leave you when they are ingrained at an early age by people who seemed larger than life. Every day my head spins with Dad’s jargon.

I just know, “this isn’t my first round-up” and “you better make hay while the sun shines” because “a second cutting is in order.”

And so is another sub-zero night so I’d better “put those four buckle boots on” and get my work done because “I can pret-near always find something to do.”

BARN CLEANING BANDANA BROWNIES

4-1 ounce squares unsweetened baking chocolate

1 cup butter

2 cups sugar

4 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla

1-1/2 cups flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup pecans, chopped

1/2 cup toffee baking bits

FILLING

2-8 ounce packages cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup sugar

1 egg

2 teaspoons vanilla

1/2 cup pecans, chopped

1/2 cup toffee baking bits

Melt chocolate and butter in a medium saucepan over low heat; stir until smooth. Cool for 5 minutes. Combine chocolate mixture, sugar, eggs and vanilla in a large bowl. Beat for 1 minute with an electric mixer on high speed. Beat in flour and salt on a low speed for 30 seconds. Beat on medium speed for 1 minute. Spread half of batter in a 9 by 13 inch greased baking pan. For filling, beat cream cheese, sugar, egg and vanilla in a medium bowl with an electric mixer on high speed until smooth. Stir in nuts and toffee bits. Spread filling over top of batter. Carefully spread remaining batter over filling. Gently swirl through layers with a knife to marble. Sprinkle with nuts and toffee bits. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 to 50 minutes. Cool on a wire rack and cut into squares. Keep chilled. 

BACK DOOR CINNAMON ROLLS

1 cup warm milk (110 degrees)

1 packet yeast

1/2 cup sugar

2 eggs, beaten

1/3 cup butter, melted and slightly cooled

1 teaspoon salt

4-1/2 cups flour

3/4 cup brown sugar

1/3 cup butter

2-1/2 teaspoons cinnamon

Combine milk, yeast and sugar in a large bowl. Let stand for 10 minutes. Stir in eggs and 1/3 cup butter with a wooden spoon. Mix salt into flour; add flour to wet mixture one cup at a time, until dough forms. Knead in a bowl until smooth and elastic. Place dough in a warm place. Cover. Let rise until doubled.  On a flour covered board, roll dough into a 16 by 21 inch rectangle. Spread with another 1/3 cup softened butter. Combine brown sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle over top. Roll up dough and slice into 12 rolls. Arrange in a lightly greased 9 by 13 inch baking pan. Cover and let rise until nearly doubled in size, 30 to 40 minutes. Bake at 400 degrees about 15 minutes. Cool and frost with vanilla icing.

VANILLA ICING

3 ounces cream cheese, softened

1/4 cup butter, softened

1-1/2 cups powdered sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Beat ingredients together until smooth and spreading consistency. Cover tops of cooled rolls.

WINTER CHILL MORNING WAFFLES

1-1/2 cups flour

2 tablespoons sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 eggs, separated

12 ounces evaporated milk

3 tablespoons oil

1/2 teaspoon maple extract

1/2 cup pecans, finely chopped

In a mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Mix well and set aside. Combine egg yolks, evaporated milk, oil and maple extract in a large bowl. Blend well. Gradually add flour mixture, beating well after each addition; set aside. In a small bowl, beat egg whites with an electric mixer until stiff peaks form. Fold into batter. For each waffle, pour 1/2 cup batter onto preheated, greased waffle iron. Sprinkle with 1 tablespoon nuts. Bake according to appliance instructions. Makes 8 waffles.

THE CORNER CAFE

Back in my youth, my Uncle Gene and Aunt Dolores owned and operated the Corner Café on Main Street in Grove City. I spent a lot of time there and remember well watching a bustling business in a small town, not just thrive, but provide so much for the community.

In my Mom’s day, three sisters named Larson ran the café. The Post Office was at the back and upstairs there was a dental office. In the sixties and seventies, when it was Bergstrom’s Corner Café, I remember four or five booths lining the west wall, an arch leading to the “Back Room,” the counter with the cash register and several stools facing the front. The wall behind the counter held pipes, cigarettes and tobacco along with a milk machine, an ice cream freezer, jars of homemade cookies, a candy display, and a chalkboard stating the day’s specials. In the middle of the wall was a doorway leading to the kitchen. That’s where you would find my Aunt and Uncle, cooking a big pot of soup, frying a hamburger, baking a cake or elbow deep in the dish sink. My cousin, Lori, and I often took our turn at pushing a broom or washing the noon rush dishes. Floor to ceiling windows lined the east and south walls, the entrance was between, angled to the southeast, accessed by a few concrete steps into the building. For years, upon entering “The Corner,” Bernice Thomsen, a longtime family friend and dedicated employee, waited tables and did any number of other jobs that needed doing.

The café was home to all sorts: men in plaid shirts with seed corn caps, high school kids seated on stools at the counter drinking bottles of Coke, Pepsi, Squirt, 7-Up or Frosty Root Beer, ladies out for coffee after shopping the hometown, children licking ice cream cones in a booth while Mom and Dad enjoyed a piece of homemade pie or a chocolate shake. It was also the Greyhound Bus stop, which provided nonstop color to my small town world. One could encounter travelers from coast to coast. 

In the back room, on weekends, there were often bands playing oompa-pah, or sometimes even more contemporary sounds.  My cousin Charlie and his band, as they were getting their start playing gigs in the metro, debuted at the Corner Café. I will never forget Lori and I inviting all of our girlfriends to come hear these young teens blow the roof off that back room. Our first rock concert.

With no rec center in town except for the basketball court, Uncle Gene, who had a heart for kids, placed pinball machines and foosball tables in the café (though some older folks objected), simply to give them an entertainment option when they had some spare time.

All good things come to an end, and the Corner Café is long gone. Aunt Dolores passed away a few months back and I have been flooded with memories of her sweet demeanor and gentle spirit as I remember her. Maybe I’m biased, but my Aunt and Uncle were generous and congenial, dedicated and gracious and I wish with all my heart for a “Geno Burger,” complete with a platter of golden, crispy French fries. The platter of fries was separate because the burger itself covered the plate. As I recall, all of the portions were gigantic, long before that was the norm. But biggest of all, were the hearts of those two who shared their space and hospitality with so many of us, kin or not.

UNCLE GENO’S VEGETABLE SOUP

1 large beef bone

8 cups water

Salt and pepper, to taste

6 whole allspice

1 bay leaf

6 cups chopped vegetables: onion, celery, carrots, parsnips, potatoes

Roast beef, cut up

In a large stock pot, boil bone and water with salt and pepper, allspice, bay leaf and onion. Simmer for 1 to 2 hours. Add other vegetables and cook until tender. Stir in meat before serving.

AUNT DOLORES’ SOUR CREAM RHUBARB PIE

9 inch unbaked pie shell

1 cup sour cream

1 tablespoon flour

1 cup sugar

3 egg yolks, beaten

Diced rhubarb

In a mixing bowl, stir together flour and sugar. Add sour cream and beaten egg yolks. Place rhubarb in an unbaked pie crust. Pour sour cream mixture over rhubarb. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. Lower temperature to 325 degrees and bake 30 minutes more, or until center is firm. Remove from oven and cover with meringue.

MERINGUE

6 egg whites

1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar

6 tablespoons sugar

Beat egg whites with cream of tartar until frothy. Gradually beat in sugar. Continue beating until stiff and glossy. Spoon onto baked pie. Carefully spread over pie sealing at edge of crust. Bake at 400 degrees until browned, 8 to 10 minutes.

CORNER CAFÉ DATE COOKIES

1 cup butter

1 cup sugar

1 cup brown sugar

3 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 teaspoon Mapleine flavoring

3-1/2 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon cream of tartar

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup chopped dates

1 cup chopped walnuts

In a large mixing bowl, cream together butter and sugars. Beat in eggs. Add vanilla and maple extract. Add dry ingredients and mix well. Finally, stir in dates and nuts. Mold dough into 2 rolls and cover with waxed paper. Chill overnight. Slice thinly and bake on cookie sheets at 375 degrees until nicely browned, 8 to 10 minutes. Dough can also be dropped by spoonfuls onto cookie sheet and flattened with a glass.