Cheeseburger Macaroni - Comfort Food at its Best

Amish cooks are known for their hearty, comfort food served in large portions to keep the body going while doing all that manual labor around the farm.

I’ve taken liberties with an Amish recipe and tweaked it for my family’s tastes and preferences and present to you Cheeseburger Macaroni Casserole. Since my family is considerably smaller than what our imaginary Amish housewife is feeding, I don’t need to stretch my casserole as far as she does.  My family prefers a higher meat to macaroni ratio than what a frugal Amish housewife would have approved, so I cut the elbow macaroni in half and increased the amount of ground chuck in the recipe. 

Cheeseburger Macaroni Casserole

¾ cup of diced onions

1 tablespoon of olive oil

1 ½ pounds ground chuck 80%/20% mix

8 oz. or ½ of a 1 pound box of elbow macaroni

28 oz. can of petite diced tomatoes

2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese

3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped

1 teaspoon smoked paprika

Salt, pepper to your family’s taste

Cook the diced onions in the olive oil in a very large skillet or dutch oven until translucent, add the ground chuck and cook until browned, breaking it up as it cooks.  Drain as much of the grease as you can.  Season generously with the salt, pepper, teaspoon of smoked paprika, and add the garlic.  Pour in the petite diced tomatoes including the juice in the can.  Simmer on low for approximately an hour.

Meanwhile, cook the elbow macaroni to al dente, according to package directions.  Add the drained elbow macaroni to the meat and tomato mixture after it has simmered for one hour.  Mix well and taste for seasoning.

Pour the mixture into a 9” x 13” pan.  

At this point, cover the top with the 2 cups of shredded cheddar cheese and cook in a 375 degree oven for approximately 20 minutes until the top is bubbling and yummy.

If your family likes things a little spicy, you could add half a package of taco seasonings to the ground beef after draining the grease.  I hope you enjoy this as much as my family does!

Amish Frugality - Reuse, Repurpose, Recycle

Pinterest is full of creative ideas for ways to reuse, repurpose and/or recycle common everyday items. Before you buy new, think of what you already have and how you can use it in a new way. The Amish don't throw away much.  They may not have access to Pinterest but the Amish are still very creative in their frugality.  Think of composting - it is the ultimate way reusing, repurposing, and recycling!

Chest of drawers, repainted and repurposed - how clever!

Who needs to buy Tupperware to store snacks?  These containers are just the right size to pour snacks out into little hands. Or how about using it for homemade salad dressings?

Here is a website that will really stretch your imagination on ways to repurpose and reuse items into beautiful new pieces.  I was amazed at the ingenuity and creativity of some of these items:

http://www.boredpanda.com/creative-reuse-upcycling-repurposing-ideas/

Maintain your financial frugality by thinking outside the box.

Book Review of Taken For English by Olivia Newport

Olivia Newport is an amazing author.  She has a whole slew of successful novels. Not all of her books are Amish fiction, several are historical romance novels, and currently she has a 13 part serial novel called Hidden Falls in publication.  I read Taken for English, it is a wonderful book, so without further ado, here is my review:

Reading Taken for English by Olivia Newport (Barbour Publishing) is like unwrapping a gorgeously wrapped present then finding that what’s inside is even more wonderful than the beautiful covering.  Olivia knows how to write an Amish romance and she delivers with several delicious romances as well as a good mystery within the covers of this delightful book.  In addition to the continuing love story of Annalise and Rufus, interspersed is a separate, yet fascinating, action packed historical tale of Rufus’s Amish ancestors sent by their bishop to look for a farmable spread of land to begin a community in the summer of 1892.

Taken for English is the third in the series Valley of Choice, but easily stands on its own with no problem.  The story begins with Annalise, who was raised English, taking her Amish baptismal vows as sirens alert the congregation that something is amiss in their community.  Thus begins the mystery of fires being set around town, always in uninhabited settings.  Several capable suspects are introduced.

Rufus, who is Annalise’s beau, is having financial problems with his cabinetry business, he doesn’t feel financially ready to ask Annalise to marry him.  In addition, the family farm is suffering and Rufus wants to help his father.  How long can Rufus delay an engagement to Annalise after her baptism into the Amish faith?  Readers will be rooting for Annalise and Rufus, two very pleasing and engaging characters.

As Annalise is trying to live her new faith the best way she knows how, she feels called to help a young girl, Leah, who is new to their Westcliffe, Colorado Amish community.  Leah’s somewhat dysfunctional family left Pennsylvania to move to Colorado which required Leah to leave her steady boyfriend behind.  Leah is disheartened and has run away from her family.  She is looking for a way to earn money to purchase a train ticket back to her boyfriend in Pennsylvania.  Annalise tries everything she can think of to befriend Leah, but Leah isn’t making it easy.  With all of Leah’s anger issues, could she be the one starting the fires?

Meanwhile, Annalise’s best friend Ruth, is suffering growing pains in her journey transitioning from Amish to English lifestyle while she is working and going to nursing school.  Ruth is troubled by the attention she is getting from two Englisher fire fighters, Bryan and Alan, as well as her old Amish boyfriend, Elijah.  Elijah has waited for Ruth even though she has left the Amish faith and he has a secret of his own to reveal.  Who should Ruth trust?  Could any of her three potential suitors be involved in setting the unexplained fires?

Taken for English is an enjoyable read with appealing characters and thought-provoking relationships.  The ending wraps up all loose ends in a happy and rewarding style.  Olivia Newport truly provides a quality Amish Christian faith novel interlaced with several captivating romances, a portion of history and action, plus one curious mystery.  Once finished with Taken for English, readers will certainly want to read the first two books in the series Valley of Choice to learn more about the start of the opposites attract relationship between Annalise and Rufus.  Taken for English was published February 1, 2014.

Inside & Out Book Tag

What is a book tag, you ask? Well, it’s a lovely set of bookish questions re-posted from another person or blog with your own answers. It’s like a get-to-know me post.

I first saw this book tag over at Courtney Clark’s blog, TheGreenMockingbird.wordpress.com. It was created by MathomBooks on YouTube. I thought this would be a fun post to share because I enjoy seeing other readers’ habits. Here are some of mine:

I ~ Inside flap/Back of the book summaries: Too much info? Or not enough? (Discuss)

Most books give enough of a summary, I like summaries and feel the more information, the better.

N ~ New book: What form do you want it in? Be honest: Audiobook, E-Book, Paperback, or Hardcover?

No to audiobooks for sure, although I know people who love that format, I like to see the words, not hear the words.  Between e-books, paperbacks, and hardcover, I like each one for different reasons.  I love reading my e-reader in bed before I fall asleep, I like paperbacks for the convenience of looking through the book, and its light weight, and I love the permanence and smell of a hardback.  One of my most favorite smells in the world is the smell of walking into a bookstore.

S ~ Scribble while you read? Do you like to write in your books, taking notes, making comments, or do you keep your books clean clean clean? (Tell us why)

I never write in books.

I ~ In your best voice, read for us your favorite 1st sentence from a book.

This is from The Appeal by John Grisham, “The jury was ready.”  So simple yet right away something is about to happen.  Does anyone write better than John Grisham?  I usually read rather quickly but when I’m reading John Grisham, I know each page will bring me closer to the end of the book and having to wait another year before his next book will be released, so I read his books in small doses so I can savor them.

D ~ Does it matter to you whether the author is male or female when you’re deciding on a book? What if you’re unsure of the author’s gender?

I normally prefer female authors as I feel they are more likely to bring a point of view that I can identify with.  The only exception to that rule is John Grisham, see the answer above.

E ~ Ever read ahead? or have you ever read the last page way before you got there?

Yes, I have and I’m not proud of it but sometimes my curiosity gets the best of me.

&

O ~ Organized bookshelves, or Outrageous bookshelves?

I organize as far as separating Fiction from Non-fiction and group collections together, but I don’t alphabetize.

U ~ Under oath: have you ever bought a book based on the cover (alone)?

Yes, many times, for some reason I feel like I can tell whether a book is any good by its cover, so I go against the old saying that you CAN’T tell a book by its cover!

T~ Take it outside to read, or stay in?

The weather had better be just perfect for me to read outside, besides my e-reader doesn’t work right outside.

Tag, you’re it now!

Do you agree with my Inside & Out answers? What are your bookish habits? Tell me in the comments below!

If you post this book tag, please leave a comment with a link to your blog post. I’d love to hear your thoughts! Thanks for visiting my blog!  - Gloria

Discovering Family Fiction

Today I want to share a wonderful Amish fiction (and more) resource with you.  In the past few years, when I began reading Amish fiction, I just couldn’t get enough of it.  I would read constantly.  All day, into the night, while exercising, while the TV was on, in waiting rooms, while on vacation, there I was with a book or a Nook or a Kindle in my hands.  That’s what happens to me when I fall in love with a subject.  And the best part was that I had a large inventory of Amish fiction to choose from.

So 200 books later, I found myself running low on new Amish fiction authors to try.  I needed a new resource to feed my Amish fiction hunger.  What I discovered was Family Fiction.  Family Fiction is a website and electronic magazine that features Amish, Historical, Suspense, Speculative, Romance, Contemporary, Young Adult, and Children’s Christian Fiction.  Book reviews are published weekly and an e-magazine comes out monthly with author interviews, reviews, among other articles of interest to book lovers.

The website also provides upcoming releases in each genre.  Click on Books, then Amish, and find literally hundreds of new and future releases in Amish fiction or just go to http://www.familyfiction.com/genres/amish/books/.   Each book can be clicked and it will open a screen with information about the author, the new book, and a listing of previous books written by this author.  It is a valuable resource if you are trying to find new authors to read in the same genre.

Family Fiction just began partnering with the fabulous author, Karen Kingsbury.  Ms. Kingsbury will be penning an e-series about the Baxter Family in each month’s e-magazine.  You can get links to the monthly magazine at www.FamilyFiction.com.

If you love books, you will love Family Fiction’s website and e-magazine.  There is an enormous amount of quality content at this website.  In addition, I submit articles to Family Fiction and two of them are in April’s edition of Family Fiction magazine, please let me know what you think!

An Amish Easter Cookie Recipe

Easter is quickly approaching and each year my husband and I invite my sister’s family, my mom, our daughter and her fiancé to brunch.  We have the typical Honey Baked Ham, crisply fried bacon, savory sausage egg casserole, cheesy potato casserole, fruit salad, peach jello salad, a couple of coffee cakes, blueberry mini muffins, fresh orange juice, chocolate milk, mimosas for the adults, coffee, and cookies.

Last year I made sugar cookies that I decorated with tinted coconut and then placed mini jelly beans on the icing to make the cookie look like a birds nest.

They were great and fun to make with my daughter, she’s 26 but still likes to bake cookies with her mom. The only problem was those cookies were so intensely sweet.  I want to make something different this year for my after Easter brunch dessert cookie.  Then I remembered an Amish recipe that I had seen for a cookie called Raisin Puffs.

These cookies are delicious, light and puffy like their name, and not too sweet.

Here’s the recipe and directions:

RAISIN PUFFS

1 1/2 cups of raisins

1 cup water

Boil raisins in water till the water is gone.  The let the raisins cool.

1 cup softened or melted butter

1 teaspoon baking soda

Add the butter and baking soda to the cooled raisins.

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 eggs

1 1/2 cups sugar

In a separate bowl, beat together vanilla, eggs and sugar until well combined.  Add the raisin mixture to the sugar/eggs mixture and stir. 

3 1/4 – 3 1/2 cups of flour

1/2 teaspoon of salt

Combine the flour and salt with the above raisin mixture in a large bowl, mix well.  At this point, chill for a couple of hours in the refrigerator.

Flour your hands and roll the dough into small balls. 

3 tablespoons of sugar

1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon

Mix sugar and cinnamon well in a small bowl or plate.  Roll the dough balls in the sugar/cinnamon mixture.

Place balls on ungreased or parchment paper lined cookie sheets.  Bake at 350 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes or until puffed but firm.  Makes 3 – 5 dozen depending on the size of your dough balls.

Favorite Amish Blogs

I have a regular routine I follow each day when I fire up my computer.  I have certain blogs that I like to check out to keep me up-to-date on all that is Amish.  Most of these websites offer more than just Amish news, you can find inspiring bible verses, recipes, motivating stories, newly published novels, and travel ideas.

Here are some of my favorite Amish websites:

www.Amish365.com

www.notquiteamishliving.com

http://ajoyfulchaos.blogspot.com/

http://suzannewoodsfisher.com/blog/

http://pinecraft-sarasota.blogspot.com/

www.sarahpriceauthor.com

http://www.sherrygore.com/blog/

http://karenannavogel.blogspot.com/

http://www.amishcountry.org/travel-blog/amish-country-blog/

http://www.amishleben.com/blog/

These are just a small sample of the great blogs out there.  Let me know your favorites!

Review of Fields of Corn by Sarah Price

Another author I am very fond of is Sarah Price.  She has written many Amish genre books and Fields of Corn is one of my favorites. If you haven't read this one yet, please do.  Fields of Corn is the first book in The Amish of Lancaster series.  Once I read Fields of Corn, I had to read the rest of the series.  Kindle has a sale going on currently and Fields of Corn is only 99 cents!

Book Review of Fields of Corn by Sarah Price

This book captures you from the start and takes you right into the lives of the loving Amish Lapp family and the 22 year old Englischer girl, Shana, who wants to rent an apartment on their farm for two months.  Shana, from Connecticut, just received a promotion as a restaurant manager in Lancaster and needs a temporary place to stay.  She is captivated by the serenity and beauty of the country as opposed the noisy and dirty city.

Shana meets the Lapp’s 26 year old son Emanuel, he is curious about Shana and her world and a friendship begins.  Even though the friendship begins innocently, Amish men and Englischer women do not spend time alone.  Emanuel’s mother is concerned that he is drawn to Shana.

Emanuel and Shana begin taking carriage rides, visiting his family, playing volleyball, and going horseback riding.  Their feelings slowly begin to grow as they learn about each other.  Shana asks Emanuel to teach her about the Amish way of life and he agrees.  She becomes enchanted with the Amish lifestyle.  So slowly, their feelings deepen even though a relationship between an Amish man and Englischer woman is forbidden.

The romantic scenes are beautifully written, tension is created with the knowledge that his beliefs and values are counter to her independence and career.  The author pulls all the pieces together in a new and different way and thankfully we do not have a cookie cutter Amish romantic novel here.  The ending is emotional and satisfying.  I must say I didn’t foresee where this novel was going and I liked that.

Sarah Price has a wonderful writing style that grabs you and lets you be in the middle of the surroundings she is writing about.  Her characters are richly drawn, you feel you know them by the end of the book.  You can smell the farm as well as the delicious foods on the kitchen table.  I look forward to the next book in this series.

A Visit to Pinecraft

Every year my husband and I travel to Pinecraft in Sarasota, Florida.  We pass by the large shuffleboard courts in a park where the large busses from up North arrive with their passengers from Amish and Mennonite communities.  In Pinecraft, the Amish don’t use horse and buggies, they use bicycles and adult sized tricycles to get around the community.

We love to eat at either Yoder’s or Der Dutchman’s (formerly known as Troyers) Restaurant.  Yoder’s has some of the best pies you will ever taste.  Their Key Lime pie was named best in Florida!  Their peanut butter crème pie is fantastic.  All their pies, including the crusts, are homemade.  There is nothing better than a flaky homemade crust.  At Yoder’s they bring two slices of homemade bread to each diner.  Where on earth do you get homemade bread but Yoder’s? Der Dutchman’s is in a large, modern building with a huge second floor gift shop.  On the first floor is their bakery as you walk in and then a large seating area.  They offer a buffet or order off the menu.  We usually get the buffet so we can sample a variety of things.  Every table has a bottles of Amish peanut butter and apple butter on it.  It is simply delicious just spread on a cracker!

  

Yoder’s and Der Dutchman’s are across the street from one another, both are generally crowded.  Right next to Der Dutchman’s is Alma Sue’s Quilts.  Don’t you just love the name?  I may be prejudiced as my grandma’s name was Alma.  The shop has two large quilting frames set up and at any given time you can walk in and see Amish and Mennonite women quilting right there.  What a treat for a city gal like me to see their work, stitches so tiny and perfect.

There is also a bulk food store and furniture store in this area.  It makes for a wonderful day trip if you are in Southwest Florida.

Forgiveness

One of the most life changing tenants of the Amish faith that we all can learn from is Forgiveness.  Many Amish novels incorporate the Amish belief and necessity of forgiveness in the storyline.  Practicing forgiveness has been one of the most important lessons I’ve learned from reading Amish novels.

Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.

                                                                   Colossians 3:13

If the Lord is willing to forgive me, who am I not to extend forgiveness to others?

Do you recall the massacre at West Nichol Mines School in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania on October 2, 2006 where ten Amish schoolchildren, ages 6 – 13, were shot and five died?  The shooter, Charles Carl Roberts IV, took his own life after lining the schoolchildren up and shooting them.

The same day of the shooting, the first of Charles Carl Robert’s Amish neighbors reached out to his widow, Marie, to offer forgiveness to her and her children.  The Amish grandfather of one of the victims, said on that day to younger relatives, “We must not think evil of this man.”

The public at large was amazed that the Amish comforted the Roberts family hours after the shooting and extended forgiveness to them.  Amish community members visited and comforted Roberts' widow, parents, and other relatives.  As reported by the Philadelphia Inquirer, an Amish man comforted the sobbing Roberts' father for well over an hour.  Approximately 30 members of the Amish community attended Roberts' funeral and invited Marie Roberts, the widow of the killer to the funeral of one of the victims.  She was one of the few outsiders allowed at the funeral.

Marie Roberts wrote an open letter to her Amish neighbors thanking them for their forgiveness, grace, and mercy. She wrote, "Your love for our family has helped to provide the healing we so desperately need. Gifts you've given have touched our hearts in a way no words can describe. Your compassion has reached beyond our family, beyond our community, and is changing our world, and for this we sincerely thank you."

If these heartbroken parents of murdered children can offer forgiveness to their children’s murderer, can I offer forgiveness to people who step in front of me in line, gossip about me, those who hurt my feelings, and in all those everyday situations where I can choose forgiveness over anger and bitterness?