Scribbles and Scrambles ~ Your Mom Called...

So. I found out something somewhat hilarious yesterday. 

But first, a little background. My dad is pretty techie. He's had a computer for a long time and does all sorts of things with it. His VCR clock. Ha. Ha. No one uses VCRs anymore...his DVD player doesn't blink 12:00 endlessly either. He's had a Blackberry for years. 

My mom, though no slouch with the computer (unless she gets frustrated with either IT or it, as in the computer....just sayin I've seen her threaten to throw either/or out the window) is a little more tech-wary.  She's become pretty computer savvy out of necessity, but.....  

The latest piece of technology that she is refusing to embrace is a cell phone. Yes. My mom has a cell phone and she could even text. Note, I say COULD. However, mastering of the DOING is going to require quite a bit of flinging phones toward glass or at least threats. For now the phone just takes up precious space in her purse. I love that my dad put in all the ICE contacts for her. And she says that if she enunciates and yells "Call ___________(fill in the blank!)" It will usually offer to call someone else. One step at a time, Mom. Ha. Ha.

But the craziest part of this whole thing is that my 94-year-old grandma now has a cell phone. 

Yes. It's true. She hates paying the rising cost of a landline just for the privilege of receiving pesky telemarketer sales calls. My dad is working on making a cell phone easy-peasy and into something workable for her. 

His work is cut out for him. I might mention that seeing and hearing are not her strengths. However, she excels at saving money and at being determined. I'm hoping this works out. I'm thinking it's pretty sweet to have a hip 94-year-old grandma packing a cellphone. I think I need to bedazzle her a sweet cell phone case. 

Scribbles and Scrambles - Bulky

A few weeks ago we had pears. 

This week the theme is apples. Lots and lots of imperfect apples.

During the pear blitz & and I made pear sauce, pear pies, pear tarts, pear pie filling and dehydrated pears, Last night I arrived home to the delicious scent of freshly baked apple pie. I've frozen cups and cups of applesauce...just apples no sugar and it's amazing. We've dehydrated a dozen or more cups of apple slices, made up bags of apple pie filling and there are still cups and cups more to process.

Those free apples and pears are saving me $$$ on organic applesauce usually purchased from the store. Dried apple slices, uh yeah, those aren't cheap. And using the imperfect apples makes me feel virtuous and earthy.

Tomatoes are on my agenda for the weekend, too. Our garden is producing those little suckers now. Oh what a problem to have too much delicious organic produce to put away for a rainy day!

Speaking of rain. We got an entire summer's worth last night. Whew. The temperature on Tuesday hit 100 (hearsay, not necessarily fact) today is looking like sweater weather. Crazy Iowa.

Scribbles and Scrambles ~ Veggietalk

Things you might overhear at an organic CSA pack.

"Don't forget to grab all the discards you want from the pile."

"The white ones are thin-skinned." 

"Uh oh, we have an extra bag. Who didn't get one?" This is a favorite, it is followed by the sound of several people going through 42+ boxes until either a) the box with the missing produce is found or b) we determine the count was over by one. It is a standard statement. When there are six women packing about a dozen or more items into 40+ boxes, you can bet your bippy that it is blurted almost every week.

"So, then what did you put on it?  How long did you cook it?" 

"My spiralizer is on it's way."   Yes. We talk about food. Quite a bit. And how we like to prepare it. And sales of spiralizers have spiked in the past few weeks.

"That one's weeping. Get rid of it!"
"If it's crying, clearly it's upset, getting rid of it just seems cruel." 

"And this one is thin-skinned. Chuck it." 
"So there is no room for weak tomatoes, is that what you are saying?"   Many, many sarcastic and goofy comments are made and we are usually tired, dirty and punchy enough we laugh hysterically.

"How many half share boxes again?" 

"Who's box is missing? Someone read the list again." 

"Those cucumber beetles are a scourge this year. No more sweet corn, they ate the silk." 

"The basil got burnt!"

"Snack time?" "When is Costco going to get the Ghiradelli chocolate chips back?" Farmer number two packs each helper a baggie of dried fruit and almonds (and the above mentioned chocolate when available.) After a few hours of intense and sometimes dirty, nasty work, these baggies almost bring us back to life. There may even have been tears of gratitude during some packs. She also brings tea which we manage to guzzle with gusto, too.

"Look at this __________fill in the blank, radish, tomato, etc. __________________? Isn't it beautiful?"

Scribbles and Scrambles Really? Really!

So & and I were headed out to walk the girls last night. Casually, I mentioned that I had seen a wild bunny by our bunny cages the night before last and that I'd had a bizarre thought that it wasn't wild. It had such light coloring and seemed too fluffy and tame to be wild.

All of a sudden & stage~whispered that I needed to get close to her side of the yard, real fast. So I did. And there was the "wild" bunny, hopping along checking out some vegetation. "Look at his gait. He's not wild. No way." And I had to agree. Our neighborhood wild bunnies are speedy, skittish and all angles and sinew as well as being the traditional speckled gray, brown, black with just a hint of white under their tails and around their ears. 

If this guy was wild, he was a mix of wild and domestic. No way he was the pure thing. And his feet. Big old honking fat feet. Wild? Nah? And where the heck did he come from? Really? Another domestic bunny loose in our yard?

Crud! Now what? Seriously, we watched him sniff around getting closer to the cage where Charlotte was enjoying grass time. He hopped around without a care in the world. Of course, at this point, the dogs were all interested in the loose bunny on the other side of the fence. We couldn't leave this little guy out when there were predators about. I've heard racoons in our back yard the past few nights. Racoons don't have a bunny-friendly reputation.

& put the girls in the house and we both walked around to the other side of the yard to where this little guy roamed. She cut a wide arc and I brought up the back. Rob ended up joining us. & got to within feet of the bunny as he zeroed in on Charlotte. The guy was looking for a date, clearly. First he hopped over to &'s outstretched hand and actually sniffed it before heading back to charm Charlotte. Catching him was as simple as reaching out and grabbing him.

And he might be the tamest rabbit in the pack. No back foot defensive action, no wriggling to get away. He just let himself be captured and held and picked up and moved several times as we rearranged apartments and living quarters. 

Enter Willoughby. The newest member of the Klepfer Bunny Herd. Should we incorporate? LLC. That's got a nice ring. And should we build another cage. We no longer have any vacancies. Or maybe we should build a bunny ark. & is either a modern day bunny Noah wherein the critters now come to her. No more need to hunt and chase or visit Craig's List, those little suckers and bounding on up to the front door and ringing the bell. Facebook friends suggested that she might be the bunny whisperer or even Snow White. Ha. This little bunny summer saga definitely feels Walt Disneyish to me.

Scraps and Snippets ~ Amazing Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies from Classic to Vegan....

I lied. I said I wasn't going to post another peanut butter cookie recipe. Because, I reasoned, how many peanut butter cookie recipes does one person need? 

Well, this one. For sure. 

The classic Better Homes and Garden red gingham cookbook has a recipe for peanut butter cookies that I felt the need to completely remodel. Maybe it's because I've been making pear and apple sauce like a crazed beast and needed a vehicle. Maybe it's because peanut butter and chocolate is pretty much my favorite flavor combination. Anyhoo. These suckers have been modified to include healthy ingredients. Half applesauce to replace butter, coconut oil with a very low coconutty flavor. Flax eggs, old-fashioned oatmeal, whole wheat pastry flour. I cut the sugar in half without touching the burst of yumminess. 

Dare I admit to making a half sized batch which didn't make it 24 hours. And then again a full sized batch that makes about four dozen. And this was all from Thursday to present. There is not one delicious crumb left. None. 

I am going to put this recipe in my to go to favorites. And I'm going to add to it and turn it into monster cookies as the occasion requires. The addition of chopped peanuts, Vegan chocolate candies and/or other goodies would take them into the next level. 

In the meantime, here's the recipe. 

Amazing Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies Classic Gone Vegan

1/2 Cup coconut oil
1/2 Cup applesauce
1 Cup peanut butter
1 Cup brown sugar
2 Flax eggs (2 TBSP ground flax, 6 TBSPS water, combined and set aside to gel)
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 and 1/2 Cups whole wheat pastry flour (or flour of your choice)
2 Cups old fashioned oatmeal
1 Cup chocolate chips

Cream the oil, peanut butter, applesauce and sugar together. (it's best that you use everything at room temperature or a mixture because cold peanut butter or applesauce will crunch up the coconut oil if it's liquid)
Add the flax eggs, salt, soda and stir. Add vanilla and mix well. Blend in flour and add oatmeal and chocolate chips and mix until incorporated. 

Roll into walnut sized balls and press lightly onto cookie sheet. Bake at 350 for 11 minutes. I used a stone and didn't need to grease the pan.

Scribbles and Scrambles ~ Druggies

Scary. I almost posted another peanut butter chocolate chip cookie recipe. Really. How many peanut butter chocolate chip cookie recipes do I need to post? So no matter how good those peanut butter and chocolate chip cookies are, I'm not posting. But here's a picture, and one of my trusty 31 year-old red gingham cookbook.

So instead I will tell my drug story. 

Most of my co-workers are fairly aware of drugs, drug abusers, and drug seekers. We work in a medical office, after all. One gal is, however, still slightly innocent about such things. 

That's the set up. 

One of my co-workers mentioned she was coming down with the snuffles and that she had to go to Walgreens to pick up a name brand with a decongestant in it. After she waited in line at the drive thru the clerk told her she had to come in and sign for it. So she complained that she wasn't feeling great and had to go in and then stand and wait for a long, long time, then jump through the hoops of proving she wasn't going to spend twelve bucks on a box of pills and go home and make a batch of meth with them. She even said previously, in her quest to breathe clearly, her driver's license had a crack in it and when she went to buy pills the pharmacy refused to sell them to her. She wondered if a meth maker was more likely to have a crack in their driver's license. We laughed. 

Then another co-worker brought up a conversation she'd had with our slightly more innocent co-worker a few weeks ago. Turns out this gal had been lamenting the get-the-decongestant-and-get-on-with-life-hoop-jumps she'd undergone. She said, with her totally straight face, and possibly with her pearl necklace in place, and her sensible shoes on her feet. "Yes. And I said the the cashier. Do I really look like I'm going to go home with these and make marijuana?" 

And maybe the best part of that is several folks were standing there, including one of the doctors and not one person corrected her sweet innocent self. Ahh. Innocence is so refreshing.

Scraps and Snippets - Sesame Roasted Eggplant

Sesame Roasted Eggplant


1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

3/4 teaspoon garlic powder

1 TBSP rice wine vinegar

1 TBSP sesame oil

1/2 TBSP soy sauce

1/4 teaspoon agave

I'd also have added a few teaspoons of sesame seeds but I was out.

Preheat oven to 350

Peel and slice eggplant into planks. (soak slices in salt water for 20 minutes) Then blot dry and lay on a large cookie sheet. (I used a stone so I didn't grease the pan so I'd suggest spraying or using parchment paper if you don't have a stone.) drizzle or brush 1/2 the sauce on the top side of the slices.

Place in the oven for 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and turn the slices over. Coat each slice with the remaining sauce. Return to oven and bake another 15 minutes. 

When I was done baking I did run it through the broiler to give it an extra nice browning.

dessert = kiwi and mango...pretty and yummy.