MOUNTAIN MOMENTS MELT MY HEART

I’m watching my son Haakon split wood for kindling this morning. He is pretty skilled with a hatchet. He just finished preparing the firepit for our evening campfires. For the fourth straight year, I’m back in Montana, sitting at the old rustic table by the back porch here on this glorious mountain enjoying the warm sunshine, a gentle breeze, the smell of the pines, the chuckling sound of the creek.

My husband, Walt, and I loaded the two dogs and took off in the truck to Big Sky country this week and, as usual, we enjoyed every mile of the drive. Wide open spaces in North Dakota, beautiful sunflower fields, acres of wheat, gently rolling eastern Montana and then the rugged beauty as we headed into Gallatin County and the Bozeman area. It’s great to be back.

The crisp fall mornings here are a perfect match for buttermilk pancakes and Mountain Huckleberry muffins. Next up, a trek on the mountain bikes, a hike or just a cup of coffee on the porch swing. If we go to town, we will browse the quaint shops, lunch at one of Bozeman’s cute cafés, stock up on fresh produce at the co-op, buy a pair of boots at the feed store. Today I met a couple that live at the base of Timberline Road who have horses, so a trail ride is on the list of things to do.

It’s not hard to fall in love with mountain life. The dogs are having a heyday chasing chipmunks out from under the porch, dashing into the creek for a swim and sniffing out a whole new set of smells. We will savor each moment here at Winchester Cabin as a rest from the usual, hectic pace we all keep. Haakon will start his fourth year of college next week and we will leave this all behind and head east, back to Cricket Meadow and life on the prairie. Hopefully, he will be on the five year plan, and we will follow him back here next year for more of the same.

If I could bottle a memory, this would be a favorite I’d keep at my fingertips. It would be called “Montana Moments.”

WINCHESTER CABIN BUTTERMILK PANCAKES

1-2/3 cups flour

1/4 cup sugar

1-3/4 teaspoons baking powder

3/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup buttermilk

2/3 cup plain yogurt

1 egg

1 tablespoon pure vanilla

2 tablespoons canola oil

Stir together dry ingredients and set aside. In a separate bowl, whisk together buttermilk, yogurt, egg, vanilla and oil. Add to dry ingredients and combine. Heat griddle to 375 degrees. Lightly coat the surface with oil and spoon 1/4 cup batter onto griddle for each pancake. When bubbles appear, flip and cook for about 1 minute more. Serve immediately.