Empty Nest in the Midwest

How do you stay active after your children have left the nest?

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Ample Harvest – A Good Use for Excess Garden Produce

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Our garden is really producing right now. I have way more tomatoes and yellow squash than I can use. Every day, I go out and pick more. So I was excited to hear about Ample Harvest. They promote sharing excess garden produce with local food pantries. This reduces unnecessary food waste.

Food pantries can register with Ample Harvest to indicate that they will accept garden produce. I went to their website and put in my zipcode. There were quite a few pantries within a 10 mile radius listed on the site. The site states that you should call to find out donation procedures before heading out with your garden goodies.

I called one and found out they don’t take produce. So I informed them that they were listed with Ample Harvest and might want to have themselves removed.

On the second call I had success! It was a pantry about 7 miles away and they accept produce. So I hopped on the e-bike (more on that later) and I rode over there. They were happy to have the squash and tomatoes and told me I was welcome to bring more. And the bell peppers which are about to come on strong in the garden.

I don’t like throwing away food and the garden has a few weeks every year where it just produces a bonanza of food. So having a place to take the food where I know it will go to good use was worth the time it took to get it over there.

Webelos Camp at Camp May, Beaumont Scout Reservation, July 2007

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Here is a throwback to when LC went to Webelos Camp at Camp May. Several years later he would spend his summers working on camp staff there.

This year, he and ZM were supposed to be working at Camp May again, but due to the Covid-19 pandemic, camp was cancelled. LC was going to be aqua director and ZM was going to be field sports. But instead they are stuck home with me and The Husband and DS. Not quite what they planned, but we are enjoying our unexpected family time together.

Ready to go swimming at the pool! Several years later he would be a counselor at the pool
Ping! Ping! Ping! at the BB gun range. Last year LC was a Field Sports counselor.
Archery at Camp May
The whole group. They are all adults now. How the years fly by.
Going to the nature lodge.

And here are a few more photos:

Freezer Meals Recipe: No Boil Mac n Cheese

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We made meals for our freezer meals outreach again a few days ago. We made three different dishes, including one of the favorites, No Boil Mac n Cheese!

We make Mac n Cheese every two or three months. This one is very kid friendly and also meatless for Lent. Although this might not be the healthiest dish in the world. 🙂 But these meals are for people who are stressed and need a little extra love. So sometimes we provide that in the form of Mac n Cheese.

For the record, when I first saw this recipe I didn’t think the noodles would be tender without boiling them first. So I made this for my family without freezing it. And yes, the noodles do cook. You just need to stir it up before serving; This really is a great meal to keep in our outreach freezer, especially for when somebody comes by to pick up meals for a family with kids.

No Boil Mac n Cheese Recipe

  • 2 small disposable pans with lids (something like these)
  • 4 cups of milk
  • 4 tablespoons butter
  • 4 tablespoons flour
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 16 oz macaroni
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
  • 3 cups shredded cheddar cheese
  • 3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

Instructions

  1. Melt butter and whisk in flour. Add milk, salt, and pepper
  2. Put macaroni in pans. (Divide all ingredients between both pans.)
  3. Add cheeses over macaroni.
  4. Pour milk mixture over macaroni, submerging noodles.
  5. Write directions (below) on the lids. Place lids on pans and seal.
  6. Freeze immediately

Directions (Written on lids)

  • Thaw in refrigerator overnight.
  • Leave cover on. Bake covered at 400 degrees for 25 to 30 minutes.

Troop Court of Honor – July 2007

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Today’s throwback is to some photos I found from a Troop Court of Honor in July 2007. I noticed a few fun things here.

This is JD and DS. DS’s sash is practcally down at his ankles. I’m struck by how small he is in these pictures. But it looks like he is confidently acting as MC at the Court of Honor.
LC is quietly sitting on the floor, off to the side, but still paying attention to what is going on.
ZM managed to get himself up front and included in the action. The older boys were always nice to make him feel welcome.
The Husband always did a great job letting the youth lead the program and then thanking them.

And here are a few more photos from this Troop Court of Honor.

Boy Scout Summer Camp at Camp Sakima – July 2007

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Today’s throwback is to DS’s first summer camp. This was JD’s third summer as a Boy Scout so of course he was there also. Since I had been the den leader for his den (all of the first year Scouts) and The Husband (who was Scoutmaster at the time) was away on a business trip, I went with them for the first four days of the camp.. By that point I had completed Scoutmaster training and been registered as an Assistant Scoutmaster with the troop. The Husband arrived later in the week.

We went to Camp Sakima at S bar F Scout Ranch. The highlight at S bar F is Nim’s Lake, a 270 acre lake completely enclosed by the Scout property, which includes two other Scout camps (Famous Eagle and Gamble) along with Swift Base (a high adventure camp for Venturers, Explorers, and older Scouts). So of course there was lots of canoeing, fishing, and swimming. Interestingly this was the last summer that Camp Sakima was open for traditional Scout Camp. After that, it was dedicated to National Youth Leadership Training (NYLT).

Canoeing on NIms Lake at Camp Sakima, S bar F Scout Ranch

Kayaking at Nims Lake, Camp Sakima at S bar F Scout Ranch
Fishing at Nims Lake, Camp Sakima at S bar F Scout Ranch
Swimming at Nims Lake, Camp Sakima at S bar F Scout Ranch

One thing I remember from this camp is that they built a tremendously large fire which they wanted to light. It was a “cabin” style fire and the middle was packed with kindling and leaves. I kept telling them no, because it seemed really large. So we would have a smaller campfire every evening. But after I left the dads, including Fireman Mike who I thought would say no, let them light the fire. From what I heard the fire reached about 20 to 30 feet up to the tree canopy. I’m glad I wasn’t there because I would have been panicking. 🙂

Anyway, the photo evidence seems to indicate that JD started building this fire structure early in the week. They all had a hand in in and thoroughly enjoyed wondering how high it would go.

JD laying the foundation for a fire

This was a fun camp and though we might have gotten ourselves into a little trouble here and there, we have some fond memories.

Cooking for a Crowd – Beef Stroganoff

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Yesterday we cooked and served a meal at FOCUS, an Orthodox organization which provides a Sunday supper to those in need in our community. We had to provide 150 servings. Cooking for a crowd is always a challenge but somehow we always manage. This time we served beef stroganoff, salad, bread, and desserts.

We made the beef stroganoff in our own parish kitchen since it is larger than the kitchen at the church where we serve the meal. We started cooking at noon and were ready on time at 3pm to pack up and take the meal to the basement of the Orthodox church.

Fr. Patrick always does an orientation before we start serving. One of the things he reminded us of this time is that program is a ministry to us, so we can meet and serve Jesus by interacting with those on the margins. We are grateful for this opportunity. There is really only one place in the gospel where Jesus clearly states the difference between those who go to heaven and those who do not:

Then the King will say to those on his right hand, Come, you whom my Father has blessed, take for your heritage the kingdom prepared for you since the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food; I was thirsty and you gave me drink; I was a stranger and you made me welcome; naked and you clothed me, sick and you visited me, in prison and you came to see me.

Matthew 25:34-36

And even more that that, this program puts my heart back the way it should be. It removes that smallness of thinking which makes me think I have earned what is mine and I deserve more than others. And I get to do this with family and friends whose company I enjoy. It reminds me that everything I have in this life is a gift and there is joy in sharing it.

So here is the recipe. We served this with a salad made from 6 5lb bags of salad mix (yes 30 lbs) , a food service sized tub of creamy garlic dressing, grated cheese, and croutons. (We accidentally bought little individual bags of croutons instead of the big bag we could dump in the salad. Oops!) We also served sliced bread. And some of our parishioners provided desserts for us to take also, in fact so many that there were leftovers which FOCUS froze for later.

Beef Stroganoff for a Crowd

  • 40 pounds ground beef or stew beef cut into bite sized pieces 
  • Kosher salt and black pepper, to taste
  • 5 teaspoons garlic powder
  • 20 bay leaves
  • 5 cups butter
  • 5 lbs onions (we used a food service bag of pre-cut onions)
  • 5 lbs mushrooms, sliced
  • 2 ½  cups red wine
  • 5 cups  all purpose flour
  • 40 cups beef broth (320 oz)
  • ¾ cup Worcestershire sauce
  • 120 cups dried egg noodles
  • 14 cups sour cream
  • Dried parsley, to top
  • 15 cups grated Italian cheese blend
  1. Toss the meat with the salt, pepper, garlic powder, bay leaves, and Worcestershire. Divide between 6 to 8 shallow oven pans.
  2. Bake meat in convection oven at 300 degrees for 1 hour or until tender. Stir frequently. Add liquid if it starts to dry out.
  3. Melt 1 cup of the butter in a large pan and reduce heat to medium. Add the onions and cook until the onions are soft and nearly caramelized, about 20 minutes. Add in the mushrooms, and saute until the mushrooms are soft and slightly browned and the onions have caramelized, about 5 more minutes.
  4. Deglaze the pan with the red wine, being sure to scrape up all of the browned bits. Add 3 cups of the butter and melt. Sprinkle with the flour and stir to combine. Gradually stir in the beef broth sauce and bring to a low simmer. Mix the onions and mushrooms in and let simmer until the sauce has thickened, about 8 minutes.
  5. Cook the the egg noodles in batches for about 3 minutes less than the package directions recommend. They will be firm and undercooked. Drain and divide between 4 deep pans. Immediately add some of the remaining butter, mushroom onion sauce, sour cream, and meat. Stir to coat. Do not let the egg noodles sit uncoated or they will become sticky.
  6. Top with dried parsley. Keep warm in a 350 degree oven. (After everything was ready, we put the food in insulated carriers and drove to the church where we were serving and put it in the ovens there.)
  7. Before serving, stir in some of the cheese blend.