Beggars!!

Almost daily, I have 2 beggars at my back door. Sometimes they knock with their beak...that's usually how I know they're there! Their names are Riley and Sleepy, and they love graham crackers, corn bread, cucumbers, zucchini, and apples.

Buttermilk Pie

I had never heard of buttermilk pie until I got a request from my friend Ruth, to make it and feature it on my blog. I am not one to deny a friend's request, and I was very intrigued none the less. Ok...buttermilk pie...time for a little research! I found many buttermilk pie recipes on the internet, all of them fairly similar.Each recipe called for a few eggs, 1 to 2 cups of sugar, 3 Tbsp. flour, and of course BUTTERMILK! So really, it was a matter of closing my eyes, picking one, and praying it would be a good one! The recipe I chose was posted by a man who saw it featured on a cooking show. Even better, it was an Amish recipe! Ok...how can you go wrong with an Amish recipe! He raved about the pie, claiming he had made many buttermilk pies, but this one was THE best. Well, needless to say, he had me, hook, line and sinker! One great thing I had going for me, I had JUST purchased 2 pints of buttermilk from Brunton's Dairy!! I was actually going to use the buttermilk to marinate chicken overnight. Well, the recipe for buttermilk pie only calls for 1 cup, so I would still have plenty left to make my chicken. (Let's see if I ever get around to it.) The recipe was very simplistic, and I like that! Sometimes the most simple recipes are the BEST recipes, letting the true essence of the star ingredient shine through! Without further hesitation, I present to you....BUTTERMILK PIE.....recipe by the Amish, of course!

Before baking.....very beautiful, creamy, buttermilkey color!

WOW! I have to humbly say, my pie crusts are getting better and better looking! I used to be horrible at making pie crusts! They would always crumble and fall apart or be too sticky and never even make it off the table where I rolled it out! I have come a loooong way! Please don't think I am bragging. I am just celebrating a personal accomplishment! It's the little things in life that THRILL me!

Fresh out of the oven!! My loving husband is graciously holding the pie for me...OUTSIDE...so I can get better light...cause the lighting in my kitchen stinks! (It makes everything look yellow!) He is a good sport that man of mine!

Ok...so this is what the pie is SUPPOSED to look like! It is NOT burnt! It forms this wonderful, golden, crisp, caramelized, sugary layer of goodness on the top! All the photos of this pie that I found on the internet ALL looked like this! So...at least I was prepared! If I had put that beautiful, creamy, buttermilkey looking pie in the oven and checked back and hour later...I would have died!! I would have thought I burned the HECK out of it! Even still...even though I KNEW it was going to look like this, I was still a little freaked when I checked in on my pie around the 50 minute mark! But, once I checked the pie for doneness in the center, I could see that just under that browned, crisp layer, was that BEAUTIFUL, creamy, buttermilky filling! Whew! Just checkin'!

After letting the pie cool for a couple hours, I couldn't wait to try a slice! It was worth the wait! It was very yummy! This was my first taste of buttermilk pie, and I liked it!! It reminds me of a cross between cheesecake and custard. I can definately taste the twang of the buttermilk, and then...there is the SWEET taste of the custard that follows! I even went back for seconds! oh me oh my, can you imagine that! me?? going for seconds!! HA!

Here's the cut pie. I wanted to show the thickness of the pie. I used a pretty big pie pan. It was a 9" deep dish. I did bake it on a cookie sheet as reccomended by several people (ahem, ahem!) and had no problems with spillage! or oven fires!!!! I caught my oven on fire too, once! ONCE! and that's enough for me, I was scared to death! Sooo....here is the recipe! Please give it a whirl, and let me know how it turned out!! Please! I'd so love to hear from you!!

Recipe for pie crust click here crust-pie-recipe.html

P.S. Don't forget to cover the edges of your pie crust with foil to prevent burning! This pie takes a long time to cook. Remove foil during last 15 of baking.

The end!

Soooo responsible that kid of mine!

Okay, this is just WAY too cute! Woke up this morning around 6:30 AM...went to check on Easton, my 8 year old...wasn't in his bed...Hmm??...must be playing video games in the play room...Noo, not there...Oooh, I think I hear the TV downstairs...call out to him from the top of the stairs, "Easton"...no answer...maybe he is in the kitchen eating a bowl of cereal...go down the stairs...found him sound asleep, on the couch, the TV on, all snuggled up with a quilt and two stuffed animals...I found a note and a pencil on the coffee table...and here is what it said...

How sweet is that??? I love the complete detailed explanation for why he was sleeping on the couch and not in his bed. My heart just melted! He was so thoughtful and considerate. It seemed like he wanted to make sure all his bases were covered by writing a note so it wouldn't look as if he were up all night playing around. I love the "sincerely" part too! Stan said that he can't even SPELL sincerely himself..too funny!

my Easton

teensy tinesy flowers

I have fond childhood memories of these tiny wildflowers. They always grew proficiently in our neighbors side yard. I remember getting down in the grass on my hands and knees to admire these little beauties. So dainty and small, I've always thought them to be the prettiest little things!

Well, I am now 39 years old, and I am STILL getting down on my hands and knees to revel in their tiny glory. I am trying to identify them on the internet. I found a few that looked almost exactly like them, but not quite. One day, I will learn what they are, but for now I am content to just say, "oooohhhh look, there's those teensy tinsey little flowers!"

Donuts To Die For

It is my personal opinion that Oram's Donuts, located in Beaver Falls, PA, makes THE best donuts and cinnamon rolls!


William and Lilliam Oram opened their donut shop in 1938. They knew they had a great recipe for donuts and the success of the store proved it! People would drive from miles around just to get a taste of these yummy little treasures.


In fact, loyal customers today, will still go out of their way on a Friday morning to pick up cinnamon rolls for work. Coffee breaks in Beaver County are just a little big longer and a little bit sweeter when these freshly baked, soft rolls, show up in their break room.

As you can see by their display case, Oram's has never claimed to have a large variety of donuts. I think that is one of their cornerstones of success: making a few recipes and making them well with quality ingredients and attention to detail.


William and Lillian's foster son Tom Bradshaw took over the business in 1960. Fast forward to May 1995, Tom unfortunately had to close up shop due to an illness. The store along with it's original recipes, was sold to Jon and Vickie George reopening just 3 months later. Customers were thrilled to see Oram's back in business, and producing the same great donuts they had come to love for generations.

My personal favorite is their chocolate topped, cream filled donut. With a wallop of chocolate frosting "shmeared" (not a typo) on top and a heavenly cloud of sweet cream hiding inside, it can take me to places far above the tree tops! If you've never had an Oram's donut, I suggest you get in your car and go. Now! Go early in the day. It's not unusual for them to sell out! They are not open on Sundays and that is nice to see in this day and age! Hours are Mon thru Sat 5 am to 2 pm, and of course, closed on Sundays.