The Dam

Lyman Run Dam, the ice fisherman a little dot on the far right.

The weather has been down right frigid and the wind relentless in our little Clara Valley.  Saturday I never left the house and Dick only to do the morning and evening chores.  Sunday it was time to warm up the car and head out for a ride.  I knew where I wanted to go so with warning I said, take a hat and gloves.  Even Quincy was excited to get in the car, he does not like being left which has me believing he has separation anxiety.  If I leave he's ok but let Dick leave even if I'm home with him and he still goes into a "do not move, do nothing" mood.   I can't believe we treat him like a human but we do.  So off we went for a few hours.


We try to share the driving, that way we each have the opportunity to look around for animals and just enjoy the view.  My turn to start out by way of Coudersport, Denton Hill, Galeton and my destination, Lyman Run Dam.  It's beautiful every season of the year but winter is my all time favorite.......NO WORRY, NO RATTLE SNAKES!  I can walk as far as I want and enjoy the view.  In the other seasons my eyes are looking down and slightly ahead on the ground.  Regular snakes are bad enough but a Rattler, good Lord I would probably never be the same if I even lived through the moment.  One summer we took our camper to Lyman Run, a huge and I mean huge Rattler was killed by the bath house.  I had the kids in the car waiting while Dick hooked the camper up and away we went home!  Young and naïve, Dick knew there were rattlers there, I didn't.  We never went back.

 It was so nice Sunday, all white, lake completely frozen, clear blue sky and the sun so bright it let the barren trees cast long blue/gray shadows across the snow.  What a day to enjoy!  On the ice was one lone ice fishermen setting on his little stool waiting for a bite.  We were too far away to see if he was having any luck and I'm glad we were.  After all for this sportsman to be on the ice with air temperature at 5 degrees and probably lower than that I have a feeling he was loving what he was doing.  The beauty, peace and quiet is 50% or more of his enjoyment.  Maybe I'm a dreamer but I would like to think he was setting there reflecting on his young life right up to present day with a big grin on his face.  Looking across the lake and taking in the view made me relax and be so thankful for the day and this beautiful area we live in.  The creation of it all is far beyond imagination.



The spill way.

Dick took the wheel once we left the Dam and took us up through the Susquehannock Forrest that comes out to the junction of Rt. 44 at Cherry Springs.  It is a winding road with some sharp switch backs, beautiful scenery.  We were surprised not to see animal tracks along the road.  Once we got on Rt. 44 north back to Coudersport another surprise.  They have a very nice groomed snowmobile trail along the edge of the road but not one snowmobile track to be seen.  The snow isn't real deep but there is enough to ride the trail.  Maybe because by the time we did get snow the temperatures dipped below zero.  It turned into not such a nice view,  gas and oil drilling, clear cutting the beautiful trees on several hilltops.  Not what I like to see.  I know it creates jobs, I get that but I don't like how much of the forest is being ruined.  I think of pictures from long ago when all the hills were bare from cutting wood for the factories in our area.  Double sword for sure.

Have you ever ate or even heard of mush?  As in cornmeal mush.  We had it a lot on the farm.  There are 2 ways I fix it.  I make a pot of mush which is simply water, cornmeal and a little salt cooked to a thick consistency.  Then either pour it in a greased bread  pan or spread it on a greased cookie sheet.  The loaf goes in the refrigerator overnight and will last about a week in the frig.  Of course that never happens around here because we eat it for breakfast a couple times.  I slice the loaf in 1/4 or 1/3 inch slices, dust flour on it and fry in oil until crispy on each side.  Then drizzle maple syrup over it.  Add a couple fried or scrambled eggs and that is breakfast. To bake I spread it after cooking while it is hot on a greased cookie sheet, bake at 375 until crispy but soft in the middle. Break it up in a bowl with butter, salt, pepper, warm milk over top and of course maple syrup.  You can buy mush already made at the Shop and Save in Coudersport or the little store next to Hess Tire in Andover.  It is as good as homemade.

I like to watch cooking shows (no surprise), read recipes from the internet and go through all my cookbooks from family, friends and the ones I can't resist when I find one for sale.  What made me laugh was the time a chef introduced a fantastic recipe using.......tada...... mush.  Of course he didn't say mush he called it polenta loaf, I say mush!  He showed several ways to serve this wonderful alternative to pasta and potatoes.  He sliced and fried, he sliced and just warmed it or he put a spoonful on the plate hot from the pan.  Then he would add all kinds of sauces, meat or seafood over it.  He even mixed cheese in it or grated it on top.  You would have thought it was the best thing since air conditioning.  So all these years I have been eating and fixing "5 star" food and didn't even know it.


What is nice lightly dusting the mush with flour stops it from holding the
grease.  Place paper towels on a rack to get what ever oil is left on it.
Remember a rack keeps fried food crispy,  draining on a solid surface
allows the hot food to sweat on the bottom.
 

Tuesday breakfast, fried mush drizzled with maple syrup,
scrambled eggs with chipotle chile sauce canned last August and
toasted leek biscuits with hot pepper jelly.  That jelly is the frosting
on quite a lot of things around here.  My friend, Valarie gave me
the recipe a couple years ago.  We make it every fall.  Please don't
think we eat like this every morning, it was miserable weather this
morning and just seemed fitting to have a hardy breakfast.
 

The blog I wrote about "every once in a while",  I have been proven wrong!  Yesterday the hubs decided to make his famous dry rub ribs.  Wow, that is 2 meals in 3 days he has fixed.  Makes me wonder.....what's up!?!  They are delicious so no complaining.

I pulled some leek butter from the freezer we made last April.
It worked great for the biscuits instead of lard and of
course leek butter and hot pepper jelly on top. 

Every Once In a While

Maybe every 6 months the husband mentions he would like to try a new recipe and fix supper.  Well, you don't have to say it twice.  I love setting on the couch working on my "at the moment" project.  Of course if I'm counting stitches I can get a little "bitchy" when he keeps asking me questions about where something is or how he should chop, slice or dice something.  In all fairness what he asks is what I do out of habit or 51 years in the kitchen plus 16  years of watching and learning from my mom.  I do give Dick credit for at least wanting to try "every once in  while". 

A few days ago he started searching recipes he had been saving from Pinterest (yes!  he loves Pinterest)  which is a good thing because he does find some nice projects for around Cook'n by the Creek.  Once he found the one he was looking for he copied it and asked what we had and what he would need to buy.  Absolutely nothing, we had all the ingredients including a pound of Texas Bay x-large shrimp.  I did help him clean the shrimp, it is a nasty job and I like to make sure the vein is out of the shrimp completely.  He shelled and I deveined.  Back to the couch I went.  He even made the Jasmine Rice all by himself, no help or asking how.  The man read the directions, how about it?
The house was smelling might fine about 10 minutes before everything was ready.  From the orange zest (he did zest the orange) to the thyme is was a wonderful combination.  I didn't get the dinner call until it was ready for me to set down and eat, even with a glass of Niagara Wine.  I could get use to this kinda treatment but won't.  Remember this is an "every once in a while" occurrence.  Let's see, we would be in rough shape if I had the "every once in a while" attitude.  Lucky us, I love to cook, bake and eat. 

Dinner prepared by the husband complete with wine and beer.
He did get lucky!  Tonya Peck delivered a surprise that just
happened to top of the meal.  Fresh Cream Puffs, what better
ending another glass of wine and a Cream Puff.  The filling was
delicious.  Request for the recipe sent.

Let me tell ya, the shrimp in the butter sauce was delicious.  So much so that it is in the recipe box for the next time we have shrimp.  I'm also thinking it would be great with Scallops or a white fish such as cod or haddock.  I bet chicken would be could this was too.  Yes, it was that good and I will share it.

Brown Sugar Shrimp with Orange Butter Sauce:

1/2 cup unsalted butter
1/2 tsp thyme
1 TBSP brown sugar
zest of an orange
1 cloves of garlic minced fine
1-2 pounds of cleaned shrimp
salt and pepper to taste

In a medium skillet heat butter over low heat, add thyme, brown sugar and stir for 5 min.  Remove from heat and stir in orange zest, pour into a bowl and let rest while you prepare the shrimp.  In the same pan add garlic and saute for 1 min or until it is soft.  Add shrimp and cook for 3-5 min.  Strain sauce and pour over shrimp, simmer for 1 minute. 
Serve over rice.

Happy Valentine's Day, if you are in the Northeast extra sweets might help you stay warm or a bottle of wine.  If you are in need of a good one give Niagara a try from Lakewood Winery in Watkins Glen, NY.  It is sold in some liquor stores around the area.

Setting by the Fire

This morning I woke to a star filled sky, just what I like to see.  It soon ended while having coffee and checking out the news around the world and FB friend's news which is also from around the world.  Looking up to see if the hub was going to pour our second cup I realized I couldn't see the neighbor's house.  White outs have been frequent the last couple of days mixed with big white fluffy clouds and clear blue sky.  It is quite a picture to enjoy.  The wind has picked up and now blowing gusts of snow from the Pine Trees, also another beautiful thing to watch.  The birds are chowing on the suet and seed in the bird feeder.  Dick placed 2 Christmas trees under the feeders and the birds love hiding in them and eating seeds that have fallen under them to the ground.  Simple little gestures to keep the critters happy.  The hens are not happy, snow on the ground and they are hoed up in the barn picking around the hay bales and dirt where they can.  This too shall pass, spring is just a blink away.

The day before is a day I look at the weather, if it's going to below the 20 something mark it usually means the oven will be lit for baking.  Yesterday I made some Sour Cream Cookie Dough, placed it covered on the back deck overnight so it would be ready to bake with this morning.  Since there was a half a box of raisins and few a dates left from Christmas baking I made a filling for some of the cookies.  Mom and Gramma Gross baked these frequently and also Eleanor Stavisky.  I use Eleanor's filling recipe.  This is a nice time for me to set at the table, watch the oven, back field, feel the warmth and enjoy the flames from our gas fired stove and write letters or a blog. It's a peaceful morning, just me, the dog and my thoughts.

 A hot cup of Maple Tea and a cookie, ( a sample, wouldn't want to give them away and not be tasty) while writing a letter to my cousin.  Joan lives in Florida now with her husband and twice a year we handwrite letters to each other to catch up on the "Gross Clan".  Email and FB work but there is nothing better than opening an envelope and reading a letter or card.  More time, effort and thought go into it with a personal touch.  Much easier to tuck away in my drawer for later enjoyment, even years down the road.  I still have letters from Dick in college and our sons when the first went into the Army.  Treasures.


One sample wasn't enough, two cookies will do.
Happy Valentine's Day!

One more plan for my "me" day......browsing through our Jung Seed Catalog.  Last night we watched a few garden shows on YouTube and decided to try a couple suggestions from the "Elegant Backyard Gardner".  He is an older man that reminded me of my dad, Uncle Orville and Bill Stavisky.  Great tips that we wrote down and book marked him on our favorites.  We watch a lot of nature, garden, travel and documentaries on YouTube.  Long ago we gave up on Dish and Direct TV.  Way to expensive to get the 3 channels we watch, the other channels were a waste for us.  It is nice to pick what we want to watch with NO commercials.  We also have Netflix which is ok for the price but YouTube has everything we need.  I like the quilting, knitting and crocheting tutorials.  Very nice to get me out of a bind.

Well the last batch of cookies is in the oven.  I have two tips about rolled cookies that Eleanor gave me many years ago and it does make a difference on the last few batches.  Especially if it is a large batch of dough.  When you roll out the first batch and cut with the cookie cutter, put the scrap dough aside and do not use it in the next batch you roll out, always use fresh dough.  In the end when all you have left is the scraps from all the roll outs start using it and in the same manner as you did with fresh dough.  This way minimal flour is being added to each roll out.  Using the left over dough as you cut out each time just makes the dough get thicker, tougher and dry cookies.  I hope that makes sense to you, a little confusing but if need be, message me and I will try to explain it better.  The other tip is keep the dough cold!  Refrigerate over night (when it's below freezing I put my dough outside in a cabinet) once you start rolling the dough put the extra back in the frig.  Cold dough does not suck up the flour on the floured board like warm dough does.  Less flour in cookies, pies and cakes is best and the less you touch the dough the softer the end product. 



Date and nut filled, sugar crystals and strawberry drizzle.

I love the large sugar crystals, they remind me of  when the sun shines on
fresh fallen snow, little diamonds glistening.

A Pocket Watch

How many still carry a pocket watch?  My husband does and did for years, then it stopped working so he bought a traditional wrist watch.  About 2 years ago he started having problems with his little finger getting a catch when he would bend it.  Lucky it was in the summer months, he usually doesn't wear his watch because of working outside.  About a week after he took it off his finger got better and he blamed the ordeal on the watch around his wrist.  I'm sure that was the problem since it has never happened again.  He never put the wrist watch back on and kept carrying it in his pocket.  For Christmas this year our granddaughter (she likes gramps best) bought him a new pocket watch.  I tried to get credit for the gift since I had suggested it when she inquired about a gift for him.  If it isn't enough that she has him wrapped around her little finger, hand and whole being this just sealed the deal.  His face said it all when he picked the pocket watch out of the box and read the engraving.  She did good!  He has always called her "Hammer", apparently she likes the name.

Because a little girl loves her gramps.



Do you know what the little pocket in the front just above the big pocket of blue jeans is for?  That's right, a pocket watch.  A watch fob is hooked to the pocket watch and then hooked to a loop on the jeans or a belt.  I'm sure many have no idea what the little pocket is for, at least the younger generation.  I use mine to stick a Tylenol in if I think it's going to be needed without carrying the bottle in my purse.  Of course a good many have gone through the wash too.

That little pocket watch pocket.

Well here is a great tip for all of you that eat farm fresh eggs.  I mean the ones that are less than 3 weeks old.  The store bought eggs range from 1 month and could go up to more than 4 months old.  That's the truth.  Remember the disease last year that led to hundreds of thousands of chicken being euthanized?  Well when the put out the recall for the eggs it went up to 6 month dates on the cartons.  Ewww.....If you are hard boiling store bought eggs you probably have no problem peeling them.  For farm fresh eggs it has always been a nerve wracking time and getting nice smooth peeled eggs for deviled eggs was maybe 50% nice and 50% not able to use.  Here's the trick that I did yesterday for the first time!  18 eggs, 5 unusable and that was the first five that was trial and error.  Once the eggs have boiled for 20 minutes leave them in the hot water.  In a wide mouth quart jar put about 2 inches of cold water.  Add a hot egg and shake the jar about 6 shakes, no more.  When you take the egg out it will already have started to lift the egg shell away from the egg and enjoy peeling that egg.  It worked great for me.  Now after about 4 eggs I dumped the water and added fresh cold water to the quart jar.  Success with beautiful smooth eggs for deviled eggs.  I liked the brown eggs better than the white eggs because I could visually see when the shell was coming off.  Do not keep shaking thinking the egg shell will all come off, it does but by doing so it breaks the white of the egg. 4-6 shakes at the most.

You can see how the shell came off.

First batch, 18 eggs, 13 smooth, 5 not. 
The 5 first trial and error.

I am going to confess to a failure, my fault.  I put the egg yolks in my food processor, mistake!  I thought what a quick way to get the egg yolks creamy smooth.  Unfortunately adding the mayonnaise only turned it into oil...remember if you have ever made homemade mayonnaise the key is not to over beat.  So the first dozen eggs went to the chickens.  Had I not had success peeling the eggs I would not have made the second batch. 

My cousin's granddaughter messaged me another way that is suppose to make peeling fresh eggs easy.  I will be giving it a try this week and post how it works.  I love when people "pass it on."  Thanks Emily Kellogg, another gal that raises chickens!  Must run in the family.

The Hanky

I never gave much thought to the hankies my husband has carried every day since we were going together 52 years ago.  My dad carried one daily, his were blue or red, the ones we call bandanas now.  Dick carries white ones, which takes more care to keep them white.  After all who wants someone to see their husbands off white, dingy hanky?  Every morning he lays a fresh one on top of his wallet for the day.  There have been a few times we have headed down the road and shear panic hits him when he says, I forgot my wallet and hanky.  Seriously I believe he is more upset over the hanky than the wallet. 

Now I am curious when and how did the hanky come about?  I do know women carried them long ago too.  Mrs, Feig was my 6th grade teacher and she always had one tucked up her sweater or blouse sleeve.  It would gag me watching her wipe her nose or mouth and then put it back up her sleeve.  Remember I have a very weak stomach and that was a very weak moment for me.  When I saw her reaching for her handkerchief as ladies called them I immediately looked away knowing where it would end up for it's next use.  Blahhh  Ladies handkerchiefs were very fancy way back when, lovely lace edging or embroidery on them, thin and not very big.  Maybe so they would fit up their sleeve!  I never acquired the need to carry one, I like disposable ones.

You may wonder how I got on the subject of hankies.  It came about on our last trip to MD to see our grandchildren.  The little 5 yr old had a runny nose and he hates to blow it, his excuse, it makes his eyes water.  We would say, go get a Kleenex......he would look at us like we were from outer space.  Finally he said, what is a Kleenex?  I went and got him a couple and he said, those are tissues!  It's all in the presentation.  They call them tissues and we say Kleenex.  When we bought them years ago it was about the only brand so of course they were Kleenex.  In an emergency Dick pulled out his hanky and Cash was completely taken away with that wide eyed look.  He asked, what is that?  So Dick proceeded to tell him it is his hanky and then the questions kept coming.  Why do you carry it and do you throw it away.  In the end Cash decided he wants hankies to carry.  I think it sounds much easier to pull it out of your pocket than be told to go get a tissue/Kleenex.  So, that is how I started thinking of hankies.  As always it doesn't take much for my mind to wander to the most unexpected subjects.

One thing for sure, hankies/handkerchiefs have been a life saver for many.  They are used for happiness, sadness or to wipe sweat from the head.  Everyone of our grandkids have had the hanky used on them at least once in their lifetime and much more probably for some.  What ever causes that tear to fall usually ends with a hanky being offered (at least in our family) throughout the years. They have carried us through and always appreciated but never acknowledged for their greatness. 

Of course I had to google handkerchief history and found several interesting articles dating the hanky all the way back to the Ming Dynasty and documentation all the way up to our time.  At some point in time hankies meant wealth and royalty but the one documentation that awed me with a smile is what they meant to our our military.  Many handkerchiefs were imprinted with maps of the countryside where bombing missions were carried out.  Should these young men have the misfortune to be shot down, they literally held an escape map in their hands. Hundreds of hankies were printed during both WWI  & WWII for soldiers to carry and/or give as mementos.  Our military intelligence always amazes me.  We are protected by the finest, God Bless them.

Today turned into a wintery, blustery day.  Just what I like, if it's going to be winter then let it snow.  Friday is usually Icelandic Haddock or Shrimp at our house.  It is hard to find seafood products from the USA but there is a little store across from the Charles Cole Hospital that prides itself in just that!  The shrimp from the Texas Bay and the Icelandic Haddock from Canada which is close to the USA.  I refuse to buy food from China, Thailand or other Asian countries.  The next time you buy garlic powder check where it is from, most brands including McCormick are from China.  Walmart sells a brand from Texas and that little store across from the hospital has it from the USA too. 

Ok back to supper, it was haddock tonight with steamed broccoli and seasoned rice on the side.  I always rinse the fish and pat it dry, leave it between paper towels for about 30 minutes to get all the moisture out.  Flour seasoned with salt, pepper, paprika, old bay and a little garlic powder is what I roll the fish in, then dip it in buttermilk and then back into the flour.  Fry until golden brown in what ever oil you like, I prefer lard, solid Crisco(only if desperate) or grape seed oil..  Canola oil and the others leave fried foods too greasy for me.  After fried lay the fish on paper towels on a rack until all of the fish is fried.  The rack keeps air flow under the fried fish, if you drain it on a solid surface the bottom of the fish or what ever you fried tends to develop moisture that takes away the crunch and makes it soggy.  A little tip for crunchy fried foods.

Homemade tartar sauce, mayonnaise,
horseradish and chopped sweet pickles
canned last summer.