Over the weekend...

Over the weekend my parents came up for a visit and we all went over to Cullman county on Sunday afternoon. We visited Clarkson covered bridge. It is the only covered bridge in Cullman county. I have visited the site several times, but this was the first time for my parents. My mother is a huge history/genealogy buff. She and my father seemed to really enjoy the trip.

The road does not travel through the bridge anymore. It is only only open to foot traffic.]

Below is a picture of an old mill in the park. The park also included several picnic tables that sit on the edge of a nice creek.

This is an old cabin in the park. It is a really neat building. It has a dog-trot through the middle. The building now houses the ever important indoor plumbing and drink machine. Here is a link if you are interested in more history about the bridge: http://www.cullmancountyparks.com/clarkson.htm

We also visited Water Valley Flea Market. Here are a few of my finds: several vintage linens that I plan to use a insets for aprons, 4 snuff glasses, a glass juicer, and Wilton dog cake pan. I am a sucker for dogs. Isn't he cute.

I also made some laundry detergent. This is the first laundry detergent that I made independently, but it turned out very good. My sister-in-law help me make it the first time. She has been doing it for quite sometime now. We both use it in our front loading washers, and it works just fine. It is also CHEAP to make!

You need the following:

Hot Water

1/2 cup washing soda

1/2 cup borax

1/3 bar soap (grated) I used Zote. It make a pretty pink detergent.

1. In a large pot, heat 3 pints of water and dissolve grated soap. Do not let the solution boil.

2. Add washing soda and Borax, stirring constantly. Dissolve powder and remove from heat.

3. Pour solution into a 2 gallon bucket and add 1 quart hot water. Fill bucket the rest of the way and stir well. Use 1/2 cup per load. Shake before each use.

I use vinegar as fabric softener, and it works great. No vinegar smell is left behind. As you can see, I reuse milk jugs and a soda bottle with the bottom cut off for a funnel. Yields 2 gallons.

Fresh Zucchini Bread

Tonight, I made fresh zucchini bread from some zucchinis that came from my sister-in-law's garden. I made five mini loaves and one large loaf from the below recipe.

3 eggs

1 cup olive oil

2 cups sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla

2 cups coarsely grated zucchini

1 can (8oz) crushed pineapple, drained

3 cups all purpose flour*

2 teaspoons baking soda*

1 teaspoon salt*

1/2 teaspoon baking powder*

1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

3/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1 cup chopped walnuts- optional

1 cup raisins- optional

*I used self-rising flour in place of the starred items.

Instead of cinnamon and nutmeg, I used pumpkin pie spice. It was very tasty.

1 Preheat oven to 350°F. Beat eggs. Add oil, sugar, and vanilla; continue beating mixture until thick and foamy. Stir in the zucchini and pineapple.

2 In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking soda, salt, baking powder, cinnamon, and nutmeg. A third at a time, add dry ingredients into wet and gently stir after each addition. Add the walnuts and raisins, blend gently.

3 Divide the batter equally between 2 greased and flour-dusted 5 by 9 inch loaf pans. Bake for 1 hour or until a wooden pick inserted in to the center comes out clean. Cool in pans for 10 minutes. Turn out onto wire racks to cool thoroughly.

I used 5 mini loaf pans and a larger loaf pan. I really had enough batter to make 7 mini loaves, but I only had five pans. I cooked the bread for less than one hour, since the pans were smaller.

Everytime I make zucchini bread, I think about one of my beloved aunts. She always had various breads frozen. She would often give you a loaf on a visit. Zucchini is one of the kinds she always kept in her freezer. In fact, her zucchini bread was the first I ever ate. I have been hooked ever since.

Enjoy!

A Fruitful Weekend

This was a very fruitful weekend, or sould I say "vegetable".

This picture shows my first ripe, large tomatoes. I have had several tommy toe tomatoes, but they are not the same as my pink-skinned German Tomatoes.

Not only did I have tomatoes, but also squash and peppers. Not pictured are the 7 gallons of peas that were picked, 2 gallons of green beans, and enough cucumbers to make a half gallon of dill pickles.

I also picked 1/2 gallon of wild blackberries. I then boiled them and made 8 cups of juice. I intend on making jelly and freezing some for pies this winter.

I just love the summer!

Welcome!

My first entry ever! How exciting! No time like the present-I think the title is fitting. I have been wanting to start my blog for quite sometime, but I have been letting the process of choosing the perfect title stand in my way. Well no more waiting. There truly is no time like the present. Carpe diem!