On a Quick Bread Kick

Had bananas on hand and used them to make some banana bread yesterday. It's already mostly gone. I like mine with butter on it, they way we used to eat it at home when I was growing up. Mom would also often make "sandwiches" out of the slices with butter between, then cut in half to make a little square. Sometimes I heat up the bread and let the butter melt in. Sometimes I just eat it plain.

Disaster Doesn't Always Mean Disaster

The above photo shows two nice, plump loaves of pumpkin bread, fresh out of the oven. Now look at the pans in the foreground. They look a little messed-up and crusty, no? Well ...

I decided to make some pumpkin bread this afternoon. I like to get ingredients ready or grouped together, then I can just throw them all together without having to stop and get them ready. So here's how it went: Oven preheated. Check. Two loaf pans nicely greased and floured. Check. Dry ingredients measured out, and everything else ready to put in the batter. Check. Then I put the batter together: Eggs-sugar-oil. Check. Pumpkin. Check. Dry ingredients. Check. Poured it into the two loaf pans, dividing it evenly. Check. THEN, I saw the little glass measuring cup still on the table with 2/3 cup of WATER in it that was supposed to be added at the end. UH-OH. Only I didn't say "uh-oh," I said something else. Then I scraped the batter out of the loaf pans back into the batter bowl, ADDED THE WATER, stirred vehemently, and poured it back into the loaf pans, which by now were no longer nicely greased and floured!

I shoved them in the oven and hoped for the best. Thankful that despite the "disaster," they turned out just fine. Here's the recipe in case it sounds good:

PUMPKIN BREAD

3 c. granulated sugar
1 c. vegetable oil
4 eggs, beaten
1 lb. canned pumpkin
3 1/2 c. flour
2 tsp. soda
2 tsp. salt (scant)
1/2 tsp. ground cloves
1 tsp. each - cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg
2/3 c. water

Mix sugar, oil and eggs together. Add pumpkin. Then add dry ingredients, then water, stirring just until mixed. Pour batter into two greased and floured 9 X 5-inch loaf pans. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour.

Cereal

Mom often enjoyed a bowl of cereal (usually cornflakes) with banana sliced on top for breakfast. This bowl is one she got at Stutzman's Greenhouse near Hutchinson, Kansas one time. (Just southwest of Hutchinson, a little place called Pleasantview, the Dutch Kitchen is also there.) So this morning I'm thinking of her as I eat cornflakes and banana and milk out of one of her dishes. Sometimes the simplest things can bring a happy memory.

Cheerful Colors

I found this single pillowcase a long time back at the thrift store. As I changed our bedding this morning, I thought it would be appropriate to use. Love the colors, and the cardinal is one of my favorite birds.

Belated Thanksgiving Pictures

It's been three weeks since Thanksgiving, but here's a sampling of what we enjoyed eating that day.

Rain Water Rinse

This morning, I put a big load of towels on the line to dry. Later on, in the afternoon, I took hubby to the truck in the neighboring town. Showery clouds were forming in the area. The towels on the line at home were the furthest thing from my mind. I plumb forgot they were there. After I dropped him off, I went to wallyworld. As I left there after a bit, I saw this to the east, where our little town is.

I drove in some sprinkles on the way home. Came into town, and everything looked drenched, like the main part of that shower went right through town. As I pulled up to the house .... there they were, my towels on the line! Well, they were "a little damp" to say the least, but I just left them out there. It showered off-and-on all afternoon. It got awfully windy one time. Finally in the evening, I went out to bring them in, that's when I took this photo. I expected them to be damp at the least, soggy at the most. But they were basically DRY. A little ruffled around the lines from the wind, but dry. I was glad! I was prepared to use the dryer, but instead was just able to fold them and put them away. "WHEW" But I'm really not upset about it ... we need the rain awfully bad! And we're thankful for every drop, praise God.

Seeds

A few days ago I got some "mini" planting containers from Tractor Supply. The one on the left is supposed to be cactus, and the one on the right is supposed to be butterfly plant. So we will see. I DO NOT HAVE A GREEN THUMB. Gardening and flowers have been excruciating trials the last few years. This is about my speed. You can't see in the picture, but on the left is an African Violet that a lady gave me a start of a few years back, and it has done pretty good. Even with my forgetting to water a lot of the time. To the right is a green plant of some kind that our pastor's wife gave to me recently, it's supposed to be easy to take care of. So here by my kitchen window sill is the extent of my "plant" hobby. Now to see if those seeds will sprout.