Picture Yourself

The Lincoln Highway is the first coast-to-coast road built in the US. In most of Pennsylvania it's known as Route 30. On our anniversary trip back home, we took the self guided tour through Bedford County Pa. The highway (200 years old this year) has many historic stops along the way.

The Picture Yourself exhibit at the Lincoln Motor Court was our favorite. Leave it to Bob to figure out a way to get us both in the photo. It took a few tries for him to make it to the spot before the shutter went off. 

The Polaroid frame strip across the top is digital and was a perfect element for me to add pictures from our other stops:

  Bison Corral Farm mural

1806 Old Log Church which still has its original 

straight-backed wooden pews and wine glass pulpit.

Giant statue of the Pied Piper blowing his horn.  Since 1950 he guarded 

the entrance to Storyland, a former children's park. 

1925 Giant Coffee Pot, rescued and moved to the Bedford County Fairgrounds.

 

Art deco-style Dunkie's Gulf Service Station opened in 1933.

 

And there's plenty more to see along this scenic highway! 

Apple Cheddar Pie Singles & the rest of the meal

The finale to my Sunday dinner was the highlight!  This recipe was inspired by Eating Well Magazine.  The single serving pies are baked in a traditional muffin tin.

Here's my modified recipe for 6 servings:

Crust
1/3 cup almonds
1 Tbsp. sugar
Dash salt
3 Tbsp. whole wheat flour
1/2 cup all purpose flour
3 Tbsp. Benecol margarine
1 egg
1 1/2 tsp. cold water
 Process in food processor.  Press into sides of muffin tins.  Bake at 400 degrees for 6 minutes.

Filling
2 large apples, diced
1 Tbsp. brown sugar
1 1/2 Tbsp. lemon juice
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/8 tsp. nutmeg
1 1/2 Tbsp. all purpose flour
Cook on stove top at medium heat for 8 minutes.  Divide among tins.

Topping
1/4 cup oats
1 Tbsp. whole wheat flour
1 1/2 tsp. brown sugar
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1/8 tsp. cinnamon
1 reduced fat cheddar cheese stick, cut into 6 pieces
Mix topping ingredients except for cheese.  Press into pies. 
Push into center of each pie.

Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes.

 Here are the ingredients (minus the 1 egg).  I was concerned that I was adding sugar in each step, so I analyzed my recipe.  Each pie had 6 grams of added sugar which made me happy.  (The American Heart Association recommends no more than 24 grams of added sugar per day per grown woman)  
238 Calories, 124 mg Sodium,  2 Grams of Dietary Fiber and a good source of magnesium and Vitamin E.  Made with "good fats".

Here's the rest of the meal:

Can't go wrong with roasting chicken and vegetables!  

The pies were easy to store in a Rubbermaid container and I've got dessert planned for a couple days!


 

Right Where I Belong

One of the reasons Bob selected this anniversary card for me was for the PSM (Potential Scrapbooking Material). So for this layout recognizing our 37th anniversary, I used the entire front panel of the card.

The inscription reads: " Life could've taken me anywhere, but it brought me here to you. . . right where I belong!" 

Have a great week!

Couchgating with local favorites

One of our favorite things to do on our day off together is to go to the Farmer's Market and to New Day Bakery to buy our favorite "Seven Grain Bread".  We watched the baker bring the first loaves out of the brick oven and these were studded with cheese.  We couldn't resist.

My finds at the Farmer's Market were beets and a perfectly sized winter squash from Evans Knob Farm in Bruceton Mills.

For dinner (we're "Couchgating" here in Morgantown watching WVU play at Oklahoma) I baked the squash with a filling of diced local apples, orange juice and a little brown sugar/cinnamon.   The beets were cooked and pickled with hard cooked eggs.  And the scrumptious bread was toasted with sliced tomatoes, mozzarella cheese and a sprinkle of Mrs. Dash.  Now that's good eating! 

There's more than one way to get your vegetables

I always plan my meals to include 2 vegetables or fruits. This pumpkin bread adds even more with an unusual ingredient:  lentils!

Adapted from a recipe from the http://www.lentils.ca/Canadian Lentil Association, here's the recipe for 1 loaf:
1/4 cup lentils
Covered with an inch of water. Bring to a boil and simmer covered for 15 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350.
Beat 3 eggs with 1/2 cup brown sugar
Add 1 tsp. cinnamon, 1 tsp. ginger, 2 tsp baking powder, 1 tsp baking soda and a dash of salt.

In a food processor mash the lentils with 1/4 cup canola or olive oil and 1/2 cup skim milk.
Add to mixing bowl along with 1 15 oz. can pumpkin, 1 Tbsp. lemon juice, 1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce.and 1 tsp. vanilla.  Stir in 1 cup whole wheat flour and 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour.

Bake in loaf pan sprayed with Pam for 1 hour until knife inserted in center comes our dry.

My dinner consists of Tomato Tilapia (with fresh sliced tomatoes and mozzarella cheese) and roasted fingerling potatoes. Served with 1 slice pumpkin loaf and 1 glass of skim milk.

My breakfast will include natural peanut butter pumpkin loaf, a glass of milk and grapes!

Happy Friday!

Bridges of Bedford County

There are fourteen covered bridges in Bedford County, Pennsylvania and we visited six on our anniversary weekend 2013.

The bridges were all unique with varied wooden structures and designs.  For this mask

I used a thick wooden window from a craft store.  (The "stencil" is too thick to place on a page but worked great as a mask).

We had great weather.  Bedford was not that far from home (about 2 1/2 hours).  It's "calendar" country.  Doesn't this remind you of "The Bridges of Madison County"?

We were so please to find step by step directions to each bridge in the Visitor's Center brochure.  Here are the bridges we visited:

  Bowser

 Snook

 Kniseley (where Bob added "B & C")

Ryot

Cuppett

Colvin

Beautiful corn fields surrounded most of the bridges.  It was easy to get great pictures.  Another memorable trip from our 40 years together. 

 

Labor Day Dinner

The highlight of tonight's meal is dessert, a baked apple with a lattice pastry crust. Inspired by a recipe shared by a friend, the apple is hollowed, the filling sliced and mixed with cinnamon sugar prior to baking with a lattice pie crust. 

We had BBQ beef and slaw sandwiches on New Day bakery 7 Grain, along with new potatoes and carrots. The golden crisp apples were from an orchard in Bedford, Pa. The cabbage and carrots were purchased from local farmer's markets. I always enjoy a glass of milk with my meal, and yes we had ice cream with the apple! Enjoy your week!