Apple Strawberry Crumble

The seasons go from summer to autumn on Monday. In the produce section yesterday, pretty USA strawberries and apples were part of my purchase. Strawberries harken the warmer months, and apples beckon the cooler. I combined the fruits for a nice fruity dessert.  Or snack. Or breakfast.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups quick oats

1/3 cup self-rising flour

3/4 cup light brown sugar

1/2 stick salted butter, melted

Big dash of cinnamon

4 medium Gala apples, peeled and cut into equal sized wedges (save the skins for another recipe) https://theexileskitchen.com/2023/01/28/crispy-apple-skins/

3/4 cup strawberries,  washed, stemmed, and thinly sliced

More salted butter, cut into pats

What to do:

Into a 9×9 casserole dish or 9 inch pie plate, pour a little of the melted butter to coat the bottom. Set to the side. Preheat oven to 350°.

In a medium-sized bowl, combine the oats, flour, brown sugar,  cinnamon, and the rest of the melted butter. This will be the crumble top.

Next, arrange your apples in the dish in a single layer. Then, top the apples with the sliced strawberries. Take a few of the pats of butter and dot evenly over the fruit.

Then, take the crumble mixture and sprinkle  over the butter and fruit, covering well. Place the rest of the butter pats evenly over the top.

Place the filled dish in the center of the oven and bake for about 35 minutes or until the top is nice and brown. 

I served this apple strawberry crumble with a few dollops of light strawberry ice cream and stuck a few crispy apple skins on top. That link is above in the ingredients list.

It’s that time of year when the calendar says autumn, but the temperature says summer. This crumble is a tasty blending of those two seasons. September and October are months of reflection and anticipation.  It’s not quite the end of the year, but close. Have we met any of the goals we set back in January? Well, you have three more months and a few days…

Seasons of change Blessings from the Exile’s Kitchen.

What Day Is It?

I think it was Wednesday today. Each 24 hours blends into another. Told to not go into work, my mother, Marigold and I bugged out to the country, not quite a week ago.

I’ve spent this time planting my big garden. G90 corn under planted with contender green beans: 2 rows. Almost half a row of squash: zucchini and yellow crooked neck. The rest of the rows will be zinnias, cosmos, bishop’s flower and a multitude of sunflowers. Pink flamingo whirlygigs mark where I’ve planted what. Plus, detailed notes are kept in a notebook. A gentle rain for most of yesterday (Tuesday?) graced the turned ground, making it perfect for planting.

Early evening, after a simple supper of braised chicken tenders and tossed salad, I sat down at the piano and right hand pecked out old hymns. I have trouble reading bass clef. Marigold was on the porch and she started barking, when she heard my feeble notes. Everyone is a critic.

Gardening. Writing. Music- kinda. What’s keeping you from going stir crazy?

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Blessings from the Exile’s Kitchen while hunkering down at Flowers Proper.

June

 

 

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Going through a difficult time a few years back, I remember looking out an upper church window and seeing crepe myrtles in bloom. I thought, “How can it be June already?” Time had stood still, during that dark period. Wrapped up in my troubles, I lost track of the days. The frilly, periwinkle pink blooms snapped me into my then present.

Five Junes have come and gone. Crepe myrtles start to bloom now and last through August. With them come a reminder of getting through a tough transition and also the gift of a beautiful future.

Here are some pics from my evening stroll through Magnolia, Mississippi. The park in the old depot yard is serene and harkens to days gone by.  Enjoy your walk on the quiet streets of Small-town, USA. Try to hear the mockingbirds singing their various trills,  the cars passing on Hwy 51, children’s voices calling out in a game of chase outside the barber shop.

Blessings.

Keep Kicking the Penny: Word Of Encouragement

It’s cold and I do not function well in cold weather. I know what you’re thinking: How cold could it possibly get in SW MS? This morning it’s a balmy 31° with a windchill of 25°. Thankfully it’s sunny today, but the winds are racing straight out of the North.

Enough of the weather report.

When I added my time card today it added up to 6.66. !  -6.98 + 13.64= 6.66. !

I had to distribute the Community Coffee order around campus. The small yellow hand truck wasn’t up to the task. And as I have said,  ‘Baby its cold outside!’ Thinking I would save a few steps getting into another building, I went in the closest door. Heavy door, small-overloaded hand truck, key pad for alarm at opposite end of the building… Please, Mr. Officer. I really do work here. Just trying to do it and I need an extra set of hands.

I put away that buildings coffee and went to another. On my way to the next building, I spied a penny on the sidewalk. Tails.  Wudint picking it up. Did what I needed to do, reached in my pocket for my $1 for the Coke machine and there was no $1. Grrrrrr.

I grumbled all the way outside, across the parking lot, wind whipping my hair around, my eyeballs frozen open. But lying near the sidewalk was my dollar. I picked it up and walked over to the penny. It was still tails. So, I kicked it! It came up heads.

Moral? Is there a point?

Here ’tis: Big or small life is going to be filled with aggravation and troubles. My troubles were small today. In my recent past my troubles were huge. I know many going through things I cannot imagine dealing with.

We all know Phillipians 4:13. I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength.  Hebrews 13:5 is another that keeps me going. He will never leave me nor forsake me.

This life is tough and cold. Keep kicking the penny. It will eventually come up heads.

Blessings from the Exile’s Kitchen.

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