grace grits and gardening - ramblings from an arkansas farm girl

Southern Pecan Pie

November 5, 2012 By Talya Tate Boerner

This is Nana’s old family recipe…

Southern Pecan Pie

Ingredients

1 pie crust (make your own or don’t)
1 cup white sugar
3 tablespoons brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup corn syrup (light)
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
3 whole eggs beaten
1/3 cup melted butter (salted)
1 generous cup of chopped pecans (from Arkansas if possible…:))

Method

1. Mix everything together except the pecans.
2. Pour pecans into the uncooked pie crust.
3. Pour syrup mixture (#1) over pecans. Watch the pecans mysteriously float to the top.
4. Cover lightly with foil and bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees. Remove foil and continue baking for approximately 20-30 minutes depending on your oven.

Delicious!

talya

Grace Grits and Gardening
Farm. Food. Garden. Life.

Musical Pairing:

Don McLean, American Pie

Storybook Journal

November 5, 2012 By Talya Tate Boerner

jour·nal a record of experiences, ideas, or reflections kept regularly for private use. (Merriam-Webster definition 1c)

On the afternoon of my last full day at Dairy Hollow, I opened the middle section of an antique bookcase to reveal a drop-down desk. Inside, I found journals provided to guests when the property was a bed-and-breakfast. For an hour (or more) I became lost in the entries dated 1988-1995. Hundreds of thoughts and reflections, along with detailed sketches and poems.

The stories were similar. This peaceful spot in the Ozarks affected each guest in the same manner. People were drawn from across the country, all with different circumstances–newlyweds, lost souls, stressed out families. Some folks were simply passing through. Each with different issues and lives, all leaving with a common bond.

Connecting randomly selected sentences from five journals–a letter to Dairy Hollow…

Dear Dairy Hollow—

My bride and I arrived late on January 4 all decked out in glorious wedding attire. She was beautiful… I didn’t know a woman could change so much from one night to the next morning! Just kidding! (1992). This can’t be real life…we have stepped into the pages of a storybook and like Goldilocks, everything was “just right.” (1988)

I have traveled many miles visiting hundreds of inns…fine, stately mansions with exquisite furnishings….others are cute little places. Each is a reflection of the innkeeper’s soul. Some have no soul…Dairy Hollow stands out…there is a mystical quality. (1990) Our last night in particular I felt and understood the power of this place. (1993)

This has been a pleasant way to start a life together. (1991) No phones, no television. It is so sweet to remember how less is always more. (1988) We love this place. (1995)

Home Sweet Home (1988)

Love…

talya

More than a Feeling, Boston

“And above all, watch with glittering eyes the whole world around you because the greatest secrets are always hidden in the most unlikely places. Those who don’t believe in magic will never find it.”
― Roald Dahl

in His sight

November 3, 2012 By Talya Tate Boerner

Remember those church songs from childhood— Jesus Loves Me and Jesus Loves the Little Children? We sang them in Vacation Bible School and church camp. They were the first lyrics we memorized, words we couldn’t forget if we tried.

red and yellow, black and white, they are precious in His sight…

Spring Street, Eureka Springs, Arkansas

Yesterday, I thought about those songs while walking along Spring Street. It was a glorious autumn day with summer’s sidewalks buried under layers of leaves.

I searched for that perfect yellow leaf, brighter than all the rest, golden among scarlet and orange.

Unable to pick just one, they were all beautiful. Each different.

Precious in His sight—absolutely.

talya

Grace Grits and Gardening
Farm. Food. Garden. Life.