Gift from the Garden: Butternut Squash Cake with Cream Cheese Filling and Streusel Topping

My new favorite autumn cake began last spring. There was a little extra room in the vegetable garden and so I planted some seed I'd saved. I wasn't sure exactly what it was.

Vivid and Vibrant

A Kansas Country Garden

This brilliant red day lily has been exceptionally floriferous this year. 

A pocket of vibrant color comes from verbena, gaillardia, day lilies and hibiscus. 

Permission granted to all those gardeners who carefully coordinate the color and bloom times of their flower gardens to feel a little smug and superior. 

End-of-June Flower Garden

A Kansas Country Garden

June has been a lovely month and I can't help feeling a little sad to see it go. On this last day of June let's take a moment to stroll through the gardens. There's always something there to cheer us up. 

Surprised by Sourdough

Sometimes I surprise myself. Since graduating from my mother's kitchen, I've been working in my own for over 40 years. (I had to have a moment of silence and shake my head after writing the previous sentence. How the years fly by!) So I've seen a few trends, gadgets and diet recommendations. Most come and go, replaced almost always by the tried and true, much of what I learned from my mom. 

Complex Combo: Sourdough Brown Bread with Molasses

My new favorite flavor combination is  sourdough, whole grains and molasses.  Like good friends each enhances the virtues of the others. 

Bubbly sourdough, oatmeal and whole wheat grains and earthy molasses

You'll find this complex combination in a rustic loaf of Sourdough Brown Bread with Molasses.