We recently attended a dinner theatre at the Station Arts Centre in Rosthern, Sask., featuring the play Homecoming.
It was great fun.
The story was about a farm couple trying to retire from farming, moving to town and letting the young couple take over the farm. It’s certainly something we can relate to, as can many other farm families.
It was of special interest to us because Leeann Minogue, who grew up in our area, wrote the play, as did one of the actors, Matt Josdal.
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Stock dogs show off herding skills at Ag in Motion
Stock dogs draw a crowd at Ag in Motion. Border collies and other herding breeds are well known for the work they do on the farm.
When you live in a small town, everyone is happy and proud of the achievements of their people, just as they are sad when trouble strikes. In this case, we are very proud of them.
While there, I picked up the Station Arts Centre Tea Room cookbook called Soup, Bread and Dessert by Joan Yoder and Dennis Helmuth.
Because the dinner they served us was so good, I can hardly wait to try their recipes in this little cookbook.
One that I have tried is the following tomato soup recipe. With fresh garden tomatoes right around the corner, here is a recipe for using some of them.
Fresh tomato soup
Into a soup pot, place all of the following:
4 cups chopped fresh tomatoes 1 L
2 cups cold water 500 mL
2 tablespoons fresh parsley springs 30 mL
1/2 cup diced onions 125 mL
1 stalk celery, diced
Worcestershire sauce, dash
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon salt 2 mL
1 teaspoon sugar 5 mL
Cover pot, bring to boil, reduce heat and simmer for one hour.
Puree.
A small amount of cooked white, brown or wild rice or a tiny cooked pasta can be added to create a more filling soup.
Garnish soup with a splash of cream, plain yogurt or a lemon slice.
Serves four or five.
Loaded biscuits
These biscuits are excellent served with soup or as a coffee break snack. They were a hit at our church potluck. Thanks to Caroline for the recipe.
2 cups flour 500 mL
2 tablespoons sugar 30 mL
4 teaspoons baking powder 20 mL
1 teaspoon salt 5 mL
1 1/4 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese 310 mL
3 tablespoons finely chopped green onion 45 mL
2 tablespoons finely chopped green pepper 30 mL
1/3 cup oil 75 mL
3/4 cup cold milk 175 mL
Mix the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, cheese, onion and pepper in a large bowl. Add oil and milk. Using a fork, toss ingredients together until the mixture forms a ball or a mass, which will stick together, adding more milk if necessary.
Excess liquid makes a sticky dough that is hard to handle and too little makes a dough crumble and crack.
Turn out on lightly floured board; knead lightly two or three times, roll until 3/4 inch (19 mm) thick or the thickness you like.
Cut into biscuit rounds with a biscuit cutter or drinking glass, or into squares or wedges.
Place on greased baking sheet and bake at 400 F (200 C) for 15 to 20 minutes or until browned.
Norma’s raspberry jam
I have a small raspberry patch in our backyard in town. A nice bowl of berries ripens every day.
Most we eat fresh, but if there are too many for that, I freeze them for later use or to make this recipe for raspberry jam. It is easy to make and can be made with a small amount of berries. Thanks to a friend, Norma, for passing this recipe on to us.
It uses an equal amount of berries to sugar per weight.
Weigh raspberries before putting them in a saucepan. Bring berries to a rolling boil and boil two minutes. Weigh out an equal amount of sugar to the berries. Add sugar to the berries, bring to a boil and boil another two minutes.
Put in sterilized jars and store in the refrigerator for immediate use. For longer storage, it is recommended that the jars be processed in a water bath canner for five minutes at altitudes up to 1,000 feet. Processing time is 10 minutes for altitudes up to 3,000 feet and 15 minutes for altitudes up to 6,000 feet.
Home canning questions
What is the correct way to prepare snap lids for use on jars?
The answer is to heat the lids in hot but not boiling water.
Before 2002, we were told to boil our snap lids for five minutes before placing them on filled jars. Research has found that boiling the lids for five minutes, combined with putting the screw bands on too tight, could cause seal failure.
Therefore, the lids must be hot when placed on hot food in hot jars, but not pre-boiled.
What about preparing screw bands?
Screw bands are much easier to apply to jars when at room temperature. Therefore, no preparation is needed.
When must a pressure canner be used instead of a water bath canner when home canning?
A pressure canner must be used for all low acid food, which includes vegetables, meat and game, poultry, seafood, soups, stews, and tomato-vegetable recipes.
Clostridium botulinum spores may be present in low acid food and the only way to destroy them is by heating to a temperature of at least 240 F (116 C). That is only possible in a pressure canner because the temperature of a water bath canner only reaches the boiling level of 212 F (100 C), no matter how long it is processed.
While botulism is rare, it is deadly, and so we must not take chances.
Botulism is not a concern in high acid food because the spores cannot grow or produce the deadly toxin. They includes fruit and fruit sauces, jam, jellies, fruit spread, conserves, preserves, marmalade, pickles, relish and salsa.
Tomatoes vary in acidity, and may or may not be a high acid food. That is why we should add citric acid or lemon juice to tomatoes to be sure they are acidic enough to can in a water bath canner.
Source: Bernardin Guide To Home Preserving
Treating a bee sting
The first step in treating a bee sting is to remove the stinger as soon as possible if one is left behind. The best way is to scrape the stinger out with a straight-edged object such as the edge of a credit card or a long fingernail.
Avoid squeezing the venom sac attached to the end of the stinger because this can release more venom.
Wash the sting area with soap and water. Put a cold pack or a cloth filled with ice on the sting area to reduce pain and swelling. Products containing benzocaine, such as Sting-Kill and Lanacane, will also relieve pain.
For persistent itching, you can try applying a hydrocortisone cream or calamine lotion. For swelling that persists after icing, an oral antihistamine such as Benadryl, Chlor-Trimeton or Claritin may help.
Source: Mayo Clinic Health Letter, August 2009.
Television safety
Many children are injured and many deaths have been reported from furniture falling on them. In the United States, falling televisions hurt nearly half of all the children injured by furniture. The large flat-screen models, which often sit on a narrow base, are particularly risky. Check to see that your TV is stable.
Lid up or down?
I’ve noticed that some people fold down the cover over their piano keys, while others do not. Wondering which is better, I found the following information.
If there is a key cover, keep it open so that the keys will be exposed to sunlight. Ivory piano keys will yellow more quickly in the dark. Sunlight will not likely improve the present degree of yellowing, but it will help to prevent further discolouration.
Some darkening is the result of the natural aging process. As well, ivory is porous and susceptible to staining. Even the oil in our skin can cause some darkening.
Playing the piano with clean hands will keep it clean for a long time. The keys can be wiped periodically with a soft, dry cloth. If dirty, use soap and water, with the cloth wrung out well because the ivory is sensitive to water.
Never use cleaning chemicals because many will damage the keys, making them crack.
If you have an old piano with yellow keys, it may be advisable to leave it as is.
The yellowing can be considered relative to the age of the piano and removing it can diminish the authenticity of the piano.
Alma Copeland is a home economist from Elrose, Sask., and one of four columnists comprising Team Resources. Send correspondence in care of this newspaper, Box 2500, Saskatoon, Sask., S7K 2C4 or contact them at team@producer.com.
