Living during the depression

 As I placed apples in the storage closet, my mind was thinking on these uncertain times for 2020.   I began to think of my grandmother Maggie and how she raised 9 children during the great depression. Times were very hard for them and others.  My grandmother was born in 1889 and she married in 1909.  These were the days of wagons, horses and yes, she lived a life much like Little House.  She saw hard times, death, war, the first car, planes, lived on a river boat one time and rode buses but she never learned how to drive. 

Source unknown

 My grandparents were poor before the depression hit and living during the great depression life became even harder for them. 

My grandmother had no choice but reuse, save and make do with what she had been given to work with.  However, she knew her plants and berries in the woods to help feed her family.  She would take the older children in the woods and teach them which plants and berries were safe to eat.  She knew which bark to use and how to make tea from flowers and roots.  Many times she and the kids would gather walnuts to store for later.  She would pick flowers to dry and use for teas or just brighten up their home. She always had a large garden and a kitchen garden.

Early in the morning, her older sons would go out and kill a couple of rabbits for supper.  Grandma Maggie would cook the rabbits along with carrots and potatoes from the root cellar that was located under her house. She would pinch a hand full of dry herbs that hung on her kitchen wall and toss it in the rabbit stew.  She placed the stew in a cast iron kettle and cooked it all day on a wood cookstove. Kindling and fire wood was placed in the woodstove all day to make sure supper would be ready by six.   

After the stew was on, she would send the boys out to the woods to collect greens to be cooked in bacon grease to go along with supper. By supper time, the rabbit was so tender it would fall off the bone.  She always served it with homemade biscuits and a pat of butter. Nothing was wasted.  She would save the last spoonful of food and the last biscuit.  She would always say, "someone may come in later and be hungry."

 I thought I would share with you the struggles and life during the depression of my grandmother Maggie. Who knows maybe we can learn from it in these uncertain times.

Until then,

Simply Farmhouse

My Handmade Farmhouse

 Hello, Friends,  These photos are of my homemade and handmade farmhouse in time past.
Enjoy!  I hope just for a moment all your cares fade away.

 Nothing says farmhouse like a couple of loaves of homemade white bread...fresh from the oven.

 Blackberries from the farm

 In a simple-lived life, we must take the time to notice even the smallest details... in our everyday life.

barefooted and watermelon.

 gather

                        

Farmhouse life is still homemade.

Thank you for coming by and seeing life in my handmade farmhouse.

Chicken Scampi (copy cat of Olive Garden)

My family and I love Olive Garden and one of our favorite dish is the Chicken Scampi.
Paying close attention to the ingredients and reading the description on the menu. I decided
to make it at home.  This is what I came up with using all organic ingredients.

Prep:
Slice up three colors of peppers thin
Slice up the chicken breast thin and into bite size pieces
Gather spices, salt and pepper.
Grate the Cheese
Boil the noodles

*Serve with bread of your choice
*Serve with a salad

Pin it!

Simply Farmhouse Chicken Scampi (copy-cat of Olive Garden)

1 box of angel hair pasta (cook as directed)
1-2 chicken breast (cut thinly and into bite size)
3 peppers  three colors of your choice (sliced thin)
1 1/2 cups of heavy cream ( I use half and half)
White cheddar block cheese (grated)
1/4 to 1/2 tsp cumin (or to taste)
1/4 to 1/2 tsp chili pepper (or to taste)
1/2 tsp salt
pepper (to taste)
2-3 TBSP of butter or little more I won't tell 😉


1. Cook chicken in butter in a iron skillet until almost done, add all your peppers, spices, salt and peppers. Stir well.

2. Bring the water to a boil and place in your pasta. (cook accordingly to direction on box)

3. Once the pepper and chicken are tender add the heavy cream and one cup of cheese...mix well and
reduce to heat to low.

4. Drain the pasta and serve on plates. Next add the Chicken Scampi mix over the pasta.

5. Top each dish with more cheese and serve.

Serves 4-6

Pin It

Leave a comment below and share if you try it and what changes did you make?

Blessings,
Simply Farmhouse

Life in An Old Farmhouse

Did you ever lived in a farmhouse with metal cabinet?

I love the mixed matched dishes and the apron.

When farmers wives used to dress up to care for the home, always looking presentable.

My mom always dressed nice when I was a child, I remembered one of her dresses
that she wore, it was a white printed cotton dresses that button down
the front and tied at the waist.

  Does anyone remember when a table was used instead of an island?
There was no such thing as a island when I was a child.

Cotton dresses ~ always

Do you remember milk been delivered by a milkman?

 A time when butter

would sit out all day on the table.

What a bountiful pantry! Crocks filled with harvest and apples picked and stored in baskets.

I just love this pantry and all its harvest.

A Farmhouse Porch

With rocking chairs, wood floors, wooden table and a beautiful foggy sunrise.

Thank you for visiting, Life in An Old Farmhouse.

To see the source or credit of all these amazing photo, visit  PINTEREST

Visit a past post:
A walk in the woods
A Merry Little Christmas
Intentionally Homemaking

Simply At Home

 Homemade Salted Caramel Sauce

I have enjoyed my time at home this week, mostly staying in the kitchen baking up these lovely pies.
I don't have cutters, I just used a knife to make these shapes...it works!

 These lovely pies are gifts to a couple of families that we appreciate and we are so blessed they are in our lives.  I did bake another pie for my family ~ serving my best to them as well.

Our weather has been so nice with warm sunny days and cool nights.  We are trying to enjoy each day before the weather turns off cold. While the pies are baking I like to step out onto the front porch and soak in the warmth of the sun....I will miss my front porch visits this winter

Happiness is still homemade in our farmhouse...

Enjoy your day and spend time with your precious family.

*Please excuse the quality of these photo's they are from my phone.

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Hello October

"I am so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers."

~Anne of Green Gables, 1908

October has been a month of baking in our farmhouse. We have enjoyed trying some new recipes and some old ones.  This is a pumpkin spice cake with cream cheese frosting.

Fresh Baked Apple Pie

Bushels of apples await me in harvest baskets. Oh, how I love this time of the year!

This week we will be canning some apple sauce, apple butter, and apples for homemade pies.

I love to can apples because of its wonderful smell while they are simmering on the stove.

Cozy Fall!

Banana Nut Bread 

 These banana breads are tucked away 

in the freezer--a treat for us on a cold winter day with a hot cup of coffee.

The hens are laying well this month, and I am sure they will start to slow down 

on their laying before too long.

Our garden is still putting out some tomatoes. I have been picking them and placing them in the

hot greenhouse to ripen.    So thankful that we are still getting some tomatoes.

The leaves in our area are just now starting to turn. I am looking forward to the changing of the leaves. God's grand finale before the gray days of winter.

Praying our lives will slow down to enjoy this beautiful season.

The girls and I have been collecting seeds from the garden and from zinnias. I remember my

grandmother collecting seeds from her garden for the coming spring.  

May your fall be cozy!

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Life in An Old Farmhouse

Have you ever lived in a old farmhouse?  Have you ever wanted too?  Or maybe you still do.

A farmhouse must have a cast iron bed. 

Mason jars of sweet tea.

cotton dresses

Farmhouse morning...can't you smell the coffee perking.

Farmhouse breakfast

Pies cooling in the farmhouse window.

I hope you have enjoyed life in the old farmhouse.

It brings back many memories for me.

source  for all photo's

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