A Kansas Country Garden: September Zips By

Morning Glories are in the glory in the autumn.

What happened to September? It just arrived and suddenly we're waving good-bye. In the flower gardens the demands of summer have lessened, or perhaps they're just being ignored. Many plants are past their prime, but there are still islands of color. 

Make a Date with Skillet Cookies

Bet you haven't had a date lately. No, I'm not talking about the kind where a guy nervously calls a girl he likes and asks her to accompany him on an outing. I'm talking about the fruit. Dates are an ancient fruit grown on the palm tree in temperate climates. You can find them mentioned in the Bible. Wonderfully sweet, they are actually quite nutritious. An excellent source of fiber, iron and potassium, they are also rich in minerals like calcium, manganese, copper and magnesium (Source).

Why don't we often find them used in modern recipes? After thousands of years culinary use, they seem to have fallen out of favor. I'm afraid a whole generation can only offer a blank stare when asked about them. 

Governor's Cookie Jar: The Recipes

This year I entered the Governor's Cookie Jar contest at the state fair. I did not win. Frankly, the judges were not all that impressed with my cookies. I know! I was surprised, too. They labeled several of my cookies as "not done in the middle." This is probably more than just a difference of opinion on the tenderness of cookies. I imagine there is a precise crumb standard in the cookie that they were looking for. I don't know. I do know, however, that I really like these cookies and I am glad to share the recipes with you if they are online.

Governor's Cookie Jar: Fair Contest

I have not ridden on any of the carnival rides at the state fair for many years, but entering the Governor's Cookie Jar competition felt at little like a roller coaster ride. I sent off the cookie jar on Friday morning with high hopes. I felt like I had given it my best shot and there were some really good cookies in there. Surely I had as good a chance as anybody. 

Governor's Cookie Jar: Bake and Take

Just how do you get at least nine different kinds of cookies baked, wrapped and at the peak of their tastiness to the fair by 9 a.m. on a Friday morning? That was my quest when I entered the Governor's Cookie Jar contest at the state fair. 

Governor's Cookie Jar: Gonna Do It!

In our town September means the state fair. Traffic picks up, an air of excitement invades our sleepy town and we almost always have rain (none this year yet, however). A visit to the fair is almost mandatory. For some its the carnival games and rides that compels attendance. Others are drawn to the buildings with rows upon rows of booths with vendors handing out freebies. Some love to visit the barns with fine farm animals of every kind. Many people come from around the state to attend the shows at the grandstand. My favorites are the the Domestic Arts Building with its displays of fabric and food entries and the Pride of Kansas building with garden, agriculture and floriculture displays.

In the Domestic Arts Building there are shelves full of baked goods; cookies, breads and cakes.

A Kansas Country Garden: Is This A Good Thing?

Martha, our lone guinea fowl has laid some eggs under the rose bush right next to our home and is now setting on them. Is this a good thing? 

It's a good thing because. . . .