The Amish to be admired and Pennsylvania Farms

The land is hilly and beautiful in it's openness. You can see the landscape and the simple beauty of what a farm really is and should be.



Across from the red dirt field was a veggie stand run by and older Amish couple

The Amish farmers (Scrabble Queen informed me this couple were Mennonite) are a wonderful group of people who are open and when we talked to the woman and the man at this stand (maybe her husband) it was like talking to an instant friend.


The rhubarb and peas looked great but we got some tomatoes instead.


Rubarb Tart Receipe
One box of pre-prepared pie crusts. You'll need both crusts
4 to 5 cups fresh rhubarb cubes cut into 1-inch pieces (In a pinch, frozen will work fine.)
3/4 cup white sugar
3 Tbl cornstarch
1 tsp grated orange peel
1/4 to 1/2 tsp nutmeg
3 Tbl milk
2 tsp white sugar

Preheat your oven to 425 degrees. Open your pie crusts. Use one to line the bottom of a 10-inch tart pan or spring form pan with removable bottom. Turn the top edge of the pie crust over to form an edge so the rim of crust is about three quarters of an inch high. You don't have to be too precise but, if it's too high, your pie crust will droop as it bakes.

In a bowl, mix your rhubarb cubes, the 3/4 cup sugar and the cornstarch with the grated peel. Stir them until they are well combined. You want to make sure the cornstarch is well distributed. Pour the mixture into the crust in your pan.

Now sprinkle the nutmeg across the top of the rhubarb mixture. I like to sprinkle the nutmeg on top instead of mix it in because I want the nutmeg flavor to jump out when I bite into the tart. If you want it to be more subtle you can mix it in. That's also why I didn't specify an exact amount of nutmeg. I love nutmeg and I want it to be a bold flavor in my tart. You can vary the amount to your mood and taste.

Now unroll your other crust. You want to make sure the crust is slightly larger than your tart pan. If it's not, just take your rolling pin and roll it a tiny bit to stretch it so it's slightly larger. You're going to use a pizza cutter to cut strips of dough so your tart can have a lattice top and you'll be able to see your rhubarb peeking through. Cut one-inch strips from your pie crust. Use up the whole crust. Now you're going to begin making your lattice. This is a bit difficult to explain without a picture. Start with your middle pieces--the longest ones. Pick up the longest piece of crust and lay it across the middle of your tart. There will probably be an inch or two laying off the end on each side. Just tuck those along the side of your tart pan, down the sides. Don't worry if it's not perfect. Take the next longest piece and lay it the opposite way, again in the middle. If the first one was north to south, this one is going east to west. Keep going back and forth across your pie. Leave about a half inch between the rows so you can see your rhubarb in between. That way the pieces will get a basket-weave look. When you get to the ends you'll have the pieces that have the rounded edges. You'll use those to cover up along the sides where you've been tucking your edges in. Any time your pieces along the sides seem like they are too long, you can just cut them off and toss away the extra dough. It's nice to have some dough tucked along those edges though. It gives your tart some strength on the sides.

Now you're going to glaze the tart. Put your milk in a cup. Use a pastry brush to stroke the milk over the crust. Then sprinkle the sugar on lightly. You're ready to bake.

Put your tart in the oven at 425 degrees for 12 minutes. Then turn the oven down to 325 and bake it for 20 to 25 minutes more until it's golden brown. If the crust starts to get too brown, just lay a piece of aluminum foil over the whole tart to shield it from getting any darker.

Remove it from the oven when it's brown and let it cool. When you want to remove it from the pan, take a sharp knife and cut around the edge of the crust to loosen it. Then pop off the ring and display your dessert on a nice platter.

Serve room temperature or slightly warm. You can serve with ice cream, whipping cream or even plain. It's also great for a breakfast/brunch treat!

Hint: This can also be made with lots of other fruits: Peaches, cherries, etc.



On the drive to out campsite we passed this little cemetery on the lightly traveled backroad where we were totally lost.


This farm was across from the cemetery and I took this picture from the parking lot of St. James Church also across from the cemetery on the road where we were lost the third time we went by it.


On an even smaller road (if possible)we stopped to let this family drive by. They said hi and we talked a little and they said they wouldn't mind if we took a picture of the family. What a fantastically beautiful family and don't let the shy look of the wife in the picture fool you she was very vibrant in conversation and has a great smile. The children were wonderful as well.


They left us to get lost on our own but we found the campground only to find out all of the sites we about as level as the leaning tower in Pizza um er I mean Pisa. So we got on the phone and found another Campground over the hill. Very close - if you turn right instead of left. Yikes!!!

While lost we saw sever Amish Carts and even a family walking down the road with a little red wagon



We also saw this little wagon but I think it was a hot rodder's and didn't belong to an Amish family


At the end of the day we found the secondary campground and were lucky enough to meet Eric and Deanne and his family of fishermen(persons)


Deanne - Eric - Evan - Daniel - Katrina
The Garver family won: Most Fish Evan(youngest son), Biggest Fish Katrina (daughter) and Smallest fish Daniel (eldest son) trophies and guess who taught them to fish Deanne. We have met the nicest people on our trips and Eric and his family were great to visit with if only for a brief time

One more picture of a yellow house next to the cemetery across from St. James church near the farm on the road where we were totally lost.


Scrabble Score Scrabble Princess 360 - The Scrabble Prince 364 - another close one.

Quote of the day

"Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself. You are a child of the universe, no less than the trees or the stars; you have a right to be here. And whether or not it is clear to you, the universe is unfolding as it should." ~ Max Ehrmann from the Desiderata