How Does Your Garden Grow?

Amanda loves her garden

The first Strawberries from Mackay's Garden

The first Raspberries of the year

Mackay's Garden

Liz's garden threatens to over grow her plot!

My garden of greens, lettuce, kale, beets, spinach and carrots

Preserving Lavender

I grow a lot of lavender in my garden.  I can't resist it.  The way it smells when you walk by and happen to brush up against it.  The way it brings the bees to the garden.  The wonderful things you can do with it.  And did I mention it smells good.....so divine!  I was noticing the other day that the flowers were just at their peak and so I decided to preserve some of them to add to little gifts or stick in a vase or lay on a table. So I gathered them into little bunches and hung them upside down to dry.  I could hardly get them away from the bees they love them so!

It's as easy as 1, 2, 3:
1.  Gather Lavender in small little bunches.
2.  Secure with a twist tie.
3.  Hang them upside down to dry or use as is.

Enjoy your lavender inside and out!

Linked up to Traditional Tuesday at Whole New Mom

Dessert Burgers.....a blast from our childhood past!

My sister came to visit me from Denver last week.  Have I mentioned that I have a lot of sisters.  I am so blessed.....blessed seven times with sisters.  Have I mentioned how much I love my sisters.  I do not think I could have made it this far in life without my sisters.  They are my mothers, my friends, my cohorts, my confidantes and I would not like to know life without them!  So back to my sister Jana's visit.  We were going to be traveling to our cabin in Beaver for the 4th of July weekend and so of course we needed to make a few treats.  She suggested we make Dessert Burgers which was her specialty from our childhood.  We all had a specialty because back in those days we didn't have so many handy treats and anything we wanted we had to make....from scratch!  So here it is one of our favs from our childhood....you might also know these as Whoopie Pies but we grew up in the Pacific Northwest and no one had ever heard of those!

The cooks!  Me and Jana

The Expert

We were having some fun!

The Batter

The baked goods!

The frosting!

It takes a little swirl to get it right!

Ta Da!  The finished Dessert Burger!

Dessert Burgers

by Jana Martenson Trenck

2 cups flour

1/2 cup Cocoa

1 1/2 tsp Baking Soda

1/4 tsp salt

Combine the dry ingredients.

In the bowl of a mixer:

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 cup sugar

1 egg

1/2 tsp vanilla

Cream the butter with the sugar.  Add egg and vanilla and mix well.

1 cup milk

Now add about 1/3 of the dry ingredients to the mixer and mix well, add 1/3 of the milk and mix well.  Continue to do this in 3rds until you have added all the ingredients.

Scoop about 1-2 tablespoons of the batter on the baking sheet, leaving plenty of room for spreading.  Bake at 425 degrees for about 7 minutes.  They are done if the top springs back, like a cake!  Transfer to a cooling rack and cool completely.

In the meantime mix up your favorite vanilla frosting.  If you must you can use canned frosting, like my sister Jana now does.  Here's my favorite recipe if you need one:

Butter Frosting

From the Better Homes and Garden Cookbook

• Butter Frosting

  Makes: enough to frost tops and sides of two 8- or 9-inch layers
  

  Start to Finish: 20 minutes
  

  ingredients
  

  • • 1/3
      cup butter or margarine
    • 4-1/2
      cups sifted powdered sugar
    • 1/4
      cup milk
    • 1-1/2
      teaspoons vanilla
    • Milk
    • Food coloring (optional)
      
      

  directions

  1.In a mixing bowl beat butter until fluffy. Gradually add 2 cups of the powdered sugar, beating well. Slowly beat in the 1/4 cup milk and vanilla.

  2.Slowly beat in remaining powdered sugar. Beat in additional milk, if needed, to reach spreading consistency. If desired, tint with food coloring. This frosts tops and sides of two 8- or 9-inch layers.

  nutrition facts
  

  • Servings Per Recipe enough to frost tops and sides of two 8- or 9-inch layers
   
  • Calories193
   
  • Total Fat (g)5
   
  • Saturated Fat (g)3,
  • Cholesterol (mg)14, 
  • Sodium (mg)54, 
  • Carbohydrate (g)38,
  • Vitamin A (DV%)4, 
  • Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet

Oh Joy......a jar of honey!

The best thing happened today!  I went to visit my friend in her garden today and I left with a jar of honey. Not just any jar of honey mind you.  This is a jar of honey made in her own back yard.  This is a jar of honey made with her own little bees from her own little beehives.  This is a jar of honey that has been gathered by the bees from all the wonderful herbs around her beautiful garden.  This is the best jar of honey I have ever received.  I love the way it sparkles in the sun.  I love the way it still has some of the bees wax on top.  I love the way it tastes....yum!  Thank you to my friend for sharing her lovely honey with me and a bit of Garden Therapy to go with it!  As she would say.....See you in the Garden!

The Best Jar of Honey!