Sue's Kitchen: September 2009

Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Birthday Pies

Happy Birthday to you! What better way to celebrate your birthday than with PIE! Who gives a hoot about cake-give me pie! This past week I made 2 very different pies for birthdays: a Boston Cream Pie (not really a pie in my book but it has pie in the name), and a Cherry Pie for my cousin Vicki. Both looked scrumptuous and were enjoyed by all (thanks Pam for the return phone call-always wonderful to get feedback!), along with candles to complete the celebration. So, if you ever want a pie for the big celebration, remember-it's all about the pie.

Monday, September 21, 2009

All Things Pumpkin & Fannie's Apple Walnut Blondies

Fall is my favorite time of year and boy, do I love pumpkin. Pumpkin Pie, Cream Cheese Pumpkin Bread, Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies.............so many good things from this yummy vegetable. My next favorite fall goodie is anything with apples. Everyone seems to LOVE my Gramma Fannie's Apple Walnut Blondies. I plan to make extra this week so we can share the love. Make sure you come early while there are still plenty!

On a decorative note (did I tell you I'm no Candice Olsen?)-you can find all the beautiful fall bounty you need for your home decorating needs: mums, gourds, pumpkins, Indian corn, bittersweet........so many beautiful things. Come see for yourself!!

Monday, September 14, 2009

Friends at the Market

One of the very best things about our farmers' markets are the relationships we build between vendors. We love what we do and we enjoy each others' company each week; supporting one another when the weather is less than perfect and when we are so busy we need that extra hand. It is always nice to get that "good morning" when our butts are dragging and we just need that one extra hour of sleep and definitely that first large cup of hot coffee. Pictured above is BKatz from "Cowtown Candies"-home of the best fudge in Central Ohio, Lee Bird from Birds Haven Farms with his classic truckload of delicious sweetcorn, and Gretel from Sunny Meadow Flower Farms who puts together gorgeous fresh sunflower bouquets. These are but a few good friends of the market-wonderful people who love what they do and show it in their smiles!

This week's fall specials from Sue's Kitchen will include Pumpkin Cream Cheese Bread, and Apple Walnut Brownies. I'll also have tons of cookies and pies for everyone. See you there!

Friday, September 4, 2009

Apple Season!

Well, by now you know I have failed at blogging 101. I haven't entered anything since August 21st and I am so sorry! Inbetween baking chocolate chip cookies, my Biker Bars and Blueberry Crumb Bars I am attempting to catch up. I went to the Granville Orchard today and picked some of the biggest, most beautiful, delicious Cortland apples! I'll be making large and mini pies with them and they are sure to smack of late summer. I also picked up some fresh peaches so we will have these in pies tomorrow as well. Here's a picture of the apples that were hanging in the trees in the orchard-so pretty!

About Me

I grew up in the country in Ohio on the family farm baking alongside my Mom and Gramma…back when we grew huge vegetable gardens, foraged the fields and woods for summer’s blackberries, and picked tart cherries until the juice ran down our arms. We spent many a hot afternoon “putting up” gallons of transparent applesauce for our enjoyment later in the winter. Those hot summer afternoons were also just right for raising bread dough on Gramma’s dining room table, later to be hand-rolled into buns and slathered with butter when they emerged from the oven for us to eat. Now that I think about it, it seems only natural to me that one day, many years later I would decide to share my love of baking with others.

After leaving Ohio, moving around, going off to college and working as a nurse, my husband Jim and I came back to our family farm and built our home. We raised our two daughters, Sara and Caitlin, and have been fortunate to have our parents, brothers, sisters, grandparents and extended family close by. How blessed we are to have such wonderful family! Then about seven years ago I decided I wanted to do something to make extra money. Sara was going off to college and I thought this would help with expenses. Farmers’ Markets were just starting to become a popular Saturday morning venue for socializing, buying fresh produce and sampling all kinds of delectable goodies artisans, like myself, baked and brought to sell at the market. I visited our town’s market one day with my Mom and I thought to myself. “I can do this!” And so, our local farmers’ market is where I took a leap of faith and “Sue’s Kitchen” was born.

Each week as I set up my table and put out my pies and cookies I was amazed by how many people do not bake anymore. Is it our fast paced lives that prevent us from throwing flour and butter together to produce yummy cookies? Are fewer people being taught this art as they grow up? Or is it just too easy to hit the local supermarket and pick up a pre-packaged sweet to take home? Whatever the reason, I quickly found how much that lost art of baking is truly missed.

Baking with heirloom recipes has brought smiles to the faces of my customers over the years, especially my homemade pies with flakey crusts and fresh juicy fruit fillings. When I use the leftover pie dough for cinnamon sticks I find my customers have their own family story and nickname for these treats: “roley poley” “cinnamon rolls”,etc..Whatever the name, they say when they were kids they waited in anticipation for them to be done baking then devoured them while still warm. I remembered the cookies Mom baked for us kids and she gave me her Oatmeal Raisin cookie recipe, which I make every week. I always loved Gramma Rose’s Molasses Sugar cookies, which are a fall favorite. I am lucky to have her old wooden recipe box complete with all her handwritten recipes, tips and even some letters. Some interpretation is needed here and there to replace her “butter the size of an egg” with actual measurement.

Another summer farmer’s market season is just beginning along with the growing anticipation of what new to bake, how to reach out to more people and how to design my new logo and website with the help of my friend Linda and my daughter Sara. I hope you all enjoy the ongoing happenings from Sue’s Kitchen.

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