Martha and Joseph are old order Mennonites who live on a farm in New York state with their family, and like the Amish use horse and buggy when traveling.
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Thank you for all your comments and questions on my past post’s. I really enjoyed and appreciated them. To answer your question-yes we still have quilting bees. Most of the time quilting bees are held are in the fall or winter after all the crops are harvested and things have sort of settled down-but we do have one going now for the former teacher and her husband.
As their marriage came as such a surprise to us without an advance notice-we are now making their wedding quilt. We hope to surprise them with it. Quilting bee is what the men call: “The ladies day out.” We get ready ahead of quilting bee day so we get all chores done. Also, we make sure that the men have a lunch ready for them at noon time plus a few snacks. Also, we defrost and make up what we can for supper the night before so when we get home from quilting we can put it in the oven. Us ladies also each bring a snack or finger dish to the quilting so we have something to snack on.
After we get our breakfast dishes done – we leave for quilting. Those that have small children or babies bring them along. One or two of the older girls watch the little ones while the rest of us quilt. Our children are taught quilting at a very young age. My girls are older, but like Jean’s Susan is age 6-learning how to do quilting. She still has a lot to learn but we let her put a few of her stitches in the quilt as it is her former teachers. We are trying to let each of her former girl students that lives locally put in a few stitches-but I am getting ahead of myself.
At the quilting bee we can have as many as 20 to 30 ladies or as small as 3 to 4 ladies. It all depends on who can come. Right now we are getting about 5 or 6 ladies at a time. With the planting, harvest, Farmers Markets, etc. some are really busy right now. The quilt is laid out in one persons house. It stays there until we get it done. When we first come, we sit and chat until we have a group of us there and start working on the quilt. As we work, we chat.
At mid -morning we stop for coffee or tea and part of our snacks-then continue on until lunch time. The woman’s whose house it is at puts on lunch-after which we get back to working again. In the afternoon, we have a mid-snack-then back to work. We usually end working about 3 or 4 so we can get home when our children come home for school (which is not a problem now) and we can start dinner.
During our current season-some of us come and go as we must because of harvesting, etc. that I previously mentioned. As it is staying at this woman’s house-we bring snacks plus , sometimes, a dish to pass for lunch so she doesn’t have to do that for all the quilting’s. We want her to enjoy our company and help on the quilt-not spending all her time making food for us. All of us have a really enjoyable time at quilting. Some of us are better than others at quilting, but we all work together.
Sometimes I have to take out what I put in and do it over as I haven’t done this as long as the other ladies have. We all have certain things we are better at than others. Most of us are either Old Order Mennonite or Amish. Once in a while we have a local lady join us who is an Englisher. They either know the person who the quilt is being made for or they want to learn quilting. Canning is similar to quilting in some ways. We all show up at whose ever house it is with our children.
Again we have as many as 10 to 15 or as few as 3 or 4. After a cup of coffee or tea with a roll or brisket – we start in. It looks like we have a lot of canning to do, but with us all together makes time pass faster. Each person has a job to do and we get it done. Also, we have our breaks and lunch depending on how much someone has to get done. Sometimes we switch jobs after lunch so we aren’t doing the same thing all the time. Once the canning is done, labeled and on the shelf-we plan whose house will be next and back home we go.
Sometimes we do two canning’s at one house. As Jean is not quite up to par yet-we did strawberry canning at Jean’s. I also brought some of our strawberries over so we did her canning and mine at the same time. We all bought a dish to pass and snacks so Jean’s maude (maid) didn’t have to prepare us lunch. We all had a great time. Now to the next house.
Funny you should ask if we have a canning workshop. As I said in another post a while back, we have youth groups (Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, etc.) plus adults come to our home to see how we make apple butter, cider, pies, etc. We also do this same thing at maple syrup time. People have asked us if we have canning workshops. In past years we haven’t-but are thinking of starting it this year.
We thought we might try with a Girl Scout Troop first and see how it goes. Also, we would sign up a group of maybe 5 adults for another canning group. Then we could see how these work out. If adults and young folks really like it, we may make it a regular every year. Just so you know men adults have asked to learn as well as women. Please feel free to ask me any questions. I would be glad to answer them for you,
4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon allspice
1/2 cup shortening
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup brown sugar
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon maple flavoring
1 cup canned pumpkin
1/2 cup milk
1 cup cinnamon chips
4 ounces cream cheese
1/2 cup butter
4 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 tablespoon lemon juice
water
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. If you are using a dark pan, preheat to 300 degrees.
1. Mix the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and allspice tighter in a medium bowl. Set aside.
2. Cream the shortening and sugars together. Add the eggs one at a time, beating after each. Beat the mixture until light and fluffy.
3. Add the maple and pumpkin and combine.
4. Alternately add the flour in three additions and the milk in two, starting with the flour. (Adding the flour and milk in stages will better balance the batter.) Add the chips. Scrape the batter into a well-greased 8 1/2 x 13-inch pan.
5. Bake for 50 to 55 minutes or until the cake tests done. Cool on a wire rack.
6. For the frosting, beat the cream cheese and butter together. Add the powdered sugar and continue beating. Add the vanilla and lemon juice. Add just enough water to bring the frosting to a spreadable consistency. Frost the cake after it has cooled. Recipe from http://www.recipegoldmine.com
I like Martha's style and how she tells a story, so its all very easy to see why she's an Amish Stories favorite and why Martha connects with the readers. So considering both Jean and Martha are not professional writers they are doing a fantastic job with telling their stories, but then again I'm not a professional writer either folks,lol. I have only one more post left from Martha that has not been published as yet, and I will get that out of the hopper in the near future. Richard
Tell Martha thank you for sharing her snack cake recipe. It looks and sounds delicious.My mother and I used to own and run a embroidery/quilt shop for about 35+ years. The art of embroidery and quilting is losing its charm where I live here, but I am trying to gather up some scrap fabrics and attempt a small quilt. It has been over 12 years at a machine and needle for me. I am not sure if I can remember it or not.Have a wonderful weekend Richard. Thank you for your blogging and journalism, it is wonderful.
Good afternoon, Richard!First of all, YOU ALL are getting hot weather???? Out here, we are loving the colors, but as I type, my hands are FREEZING! We may have to start putting on the heater!!!Oh how I love this way of living. I so wish we could go back to using horses and buggies! Honestly, there are so many undue stresses that we could lift if we could just live a simpler life. This recipe looks like a winner my friend! Anita
Greetings Denimflyz and you have a great weekend yourself now, and thanks for popping by. Wow Anita your freezing, and I only wish that I was here. But that should change by this weekend as our temps should dip into the 60s with some rain in the forecast. I was never ever a fan of hot weather especially when I lived in Florida, and one time when I was in the small community of Pinecraft (In Florida) I did bump into some Amish ladies who were making a quilt at the Amish church there.If I remember these Amish woman were pretty much all business and sitting around what looked like a very large jig or table, and as you can tell I know nothing about quilts or what's involved in the making of them. But I do respect the work that's involved to make something so pleasing to your eyes, plus if you do use them they also can keep you warm! Good night folks. Richard
This was a wonderful post, Richard. I do not hand quilt, but love the quilts when I see them. I would love to know what size needles they use for their quilting, and how many stitches to the inch they strive for. I know the smaller more precise stitches the more an inch can contain. I wonder also if they quilt other people's quilt tops, or if the construction is entirely done only in their communities. Also do they have apple butter stir offs outdoors in copper kettles, like we have down south, or if all is made inside on their ranges. thanks!
Thanks so much for the info. I think bees are a wonderful way to connect and bless others too. Thanks also for the recipe. I need to give this one a try!Happy weekend,Karen
G'day Richard…thank you so much for popping in….that organ is fabulous! I did read this post this morning but didn't get a chance to comment on it. After reading it I wanted to take a trip into the Amish country but unfortunately nothing like that here….A fabulous post!
Cinnamon Chip Pumpkin Snacking Cake…are you trying to drive us crazy? My god, that looks like heaven on earth!Horse & Hounds has been in Ocala for a number of years, but unless you lived here or were in the horse business you would probably not have heard of it.
The quilting and canning sound like fun. I am loving the pumpkin cake – it looks wonderful.
Great post, I think Martha does a great job. Boy, do I feel like a slug. When my friends and I get together we just eat and drink wine! I would love to attend either a quilt making or canning workshop, wish Martha lived closer to us down here in Maryland!By the way, Richard, I've been reading your blog for over a year and you've inspired me to start one of my own. Come visit me at http://smallbluethingat.blogspot.com/You'll likely be my first visitor!
This was a delightful post, thank you so much, Martha. And I have to try the recipe.
Richard, may I link up to this post on my blog sometime so that people who read my blog could learn about a different way of life and the wonderful community spirit that shines through Martha's post? I don't know when I would do it, but I would love to.
Where do you find cinnamon chips? I've never seen them in the store!
Hi Cheryl and welcome to the blogging world, I was just at your new blog and left you a comment. Richard
Sure Inger you surly can provide a link to Martha's post to your own blog, and thanks for your comments and the interest in Martha's post. The weather here has been very un-Fall like the last week, but hope I hear is on the way with cooler temps starting this Saturday. How long will this all last with these crazy weather patterns remains to be seen, but sooner or later Fall will be here like it or not. For me I like very much so I'm welcoming the cooler temps and all of the Fall festivals that come along with the changing seasons. Richard
Great post, very nice.
Martha called me yesterday with the answers to Annie's questions. Perfect is 10 stitches per inch, but some, like me (Martha), will never reach that. I am about 7 or 8 stiches per inch. Jean's Mother can do the 10 stitches per inch and Jean is pretty close. Most run between 6-10 stiches per inch. Needles are about 1 1/2 inch long. Usually construction is done only in the community. We have had both OOM and Englishers bring in a quilt that they think is in bad enough condition to throw out-but when we get – we repair it. We would quilt another peoples tops if asked, but we aren't asked. When we make the apple butter-we do it outdoors in a large kettle.Marilyn for Martha
Good morning Marilyn and I was wondering where you were the last few days, and I'm glad that your back. I've loved apple butter since first trying it in the Boy Scouts when I went on my first camping trip, and I have a jar in my refrigerator right now. I prefer natural and unsweetened with cinnamon spices, yes folks I like to live dangerously when eating my apple butter! Richard
Ilove apple butter, too. It's different when like Jean makes it than what you buy at the store. I like Jean's a lot better. I don't know it's more natural or something from Jean's. She doesn't put in a lot of stuff like stores do. Nothing like apple butter on a piece of toast and a cup of coffee.Marilyn
Interesting. We watched the recent TV programmes on Amish communities.We too are part of a Christian community with 17 houses in our small street part of same plus others in the surrounding neighbourhood.I enjoy seeing how other people live.
It's wonderful that Martha not only quilts and cans but is also willing to teach others!
Your blog is very interesting! I noticed the canning lids are not the usual 'Ball' lids we use. Are those just the original lids that were on the jars originally? Thank you for coming by my blog…Wishing you a blessed Sunday.
Good morning everyone on this brisk Sunday, and I'm taking advantage of the lower temps by opening up the windows and shutting off the air conditioning. It was cool here on Saturday and I could have just shut down the A.C but was out for most of the day and I still have a few animals living in the house, some may consider myself to be one of those animals but they usually say that behind my back,lol. And Marilyn all this talk about apple butter makes me want to post another recipe for it on Amish Stories, so I will be looking for something different this Fall/Winter involving apple butter and if I can Id like to post another one of those. Richard
Maggie that image of those canned items was taken by myself In Lancaster county at an Amish food stand last year, and since I have no idea what's involved with the process of canning I never noticed those jars and lids only what was inside of them! I did buy a few things from that stand after that photo was taken like some pickles and black berry jam, how I remember all of that I will never know. When I stop at these food stands the first thing I will always look for is cinnamon bread without the raisins which is tough to find and is my personal favorite, and there is one place where I have found this bread to be made the best and that is an Amish food stand located in the Green Dragon market. Simply the best bread that I have ever tasted hands down and I only wish they had more outlets around here to buy their breads, so maybe its the chase for me that helps make this bread taste so very good! Richard
That cake looks scrumptious!
You have doing doing quite a bit of traveling Reena, and I enjoy reading about those travels on your blog. Thanks for your visit. Richard