Tag Archives: Amish wedding

Wedding work frolic planned; sister promises eggs to help make wedding noodles

FrontPorch
Not much time to relax on the porch these days …

Today, 17 years ago, our oldest son was born to us after having three daughters. I remember seeing the look on my husband Joe’s face when he told me “It’s a boy!” He loved his daughters too but was excited to have a son. Benjamin was only four pounds and thirteen ounces at birth and caught the flu at a few weeks old. He ended up in the hospital and went down to four pounds. He was just a tiny baby but now he is far from that. We will give him a tool chest on wheels with various tools tonight. He enjoys working with tools and doing construction work.

Tonight in honor of Benjamin’s birthday, 20 to 25 youth will gather at our local Pizza Hut. Benjamin loves pizza so he will enjoy that and also being with his friends. Daughter Verena called Pizza Hut to reserve seats for all of them. I will need to make a cake for Ben but might wait until Saturday to have cake and ice cream since he won’t be home tonight.

Benjamin didn’t have to go to work yesterday so he and our son Joseph were mowing our pasture field with our big walk behind mower. It helps keep the weeds out to mow it down every once in a while.

Saturday we are having a “work frolic” for anyone who wants to come help us prepare for the wedding. Joe ordered material to insulate and finish the other end of the pole barn. We will use both parts of the building for the wedding and be able to spread out. Mose will be here to help but none of his family will be able to make it. Mose’s older brother Joe is getting married September 2 and that wedding will be at Mose’s parents’ house. They put up a new pole barn and are working on finishing that too. Hopefully we will get plenty of help to get a lot done.

We also want to have someone put a roof coating on our barn roof. We are springing a few leaks, so that should help. Joe also ordered stain for our ramp and deck. We wanted to let the wood season awhile before we apply the stain. The wedding is three weeks away so we need to keep busy. Joe has to work Saturday in a week so that’s one Saturday less for him to get ready.

I still haven’t made noodles for the wedding. Our chickens have not been laying so well. We have new ones started but they won’t lay eggs for a few months. We will butcher the older chickens and can the broth once the new hens are laying eggs. We like to get new hens every two years. I will use all my chicken broth I have left at the wedding so I will need more. The broth is used in the noodles and dressing.

Sister Emma and sons were here assisting us with our work yesterday. She said I can have some of their eggs to make noodles for the wedding.

I have had enough pickles to make three batches of freezer pickles. I am clear out of any canned or freezer pickles. Hopefully my plants keep doing well so I can restock with those. Plans are that church will be here in October so I want to have plenty of pickles.

Today I want to try and get started sewing my dress for the wedding. I once again have put it off too long.

Friday sisters Verena and Susan will come help me with some more cleaning. Daughter Elizabeth plans to come as well.

On Friday, July 15, Joe and I will have our twenty-third wedding anniversary. Twenty-three years! How can that be possible? I am blessed to be married to a kind, loving husband. Every marriage has ups and downs but with God’s help it all ends up making our love stronger for each other. Without God in a marriage, I can’t imagine it working well. God’s love for us is unconditional. May He bless each of you!

Cucumbers are the crop of choice in Lovina’s garden right now, and this week she shares a favorite recipe for cucumber salad.
Cucumbers to make a few batches of Freezer Pickles.

Freezer Pickles

Makes about 4 pints

I store these in large containers in the freezer so when I have church I can serve them for the meal afterward. But I can also freeze them in smaller containers so we can eat them at home on sandwiches. It is really surprising how crisp they are. These pickles will stay good in the freezer for up to a year. They taste so fresh and crunchy. The making of these pickles does stretch out over three days, so plan accordingly!

4 to 5 cucumbers, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch-thick slices
2 tablespoons salt
1 large onion, sliced
1 3/4 cups sugar
1/2 cup distilled white vinegar

Day 1: Put the cucumbers, salt, and onion in a large bowl. Cover and refrigerate for 24 hours.

Day 2: Drain the juice from the cucumbers. Combine the sugar and vinegar and stir to dissolve the sugar. Pour the mixture over the cucumbers. Cover and refrigerate for 24 hours.

Day 3: Take the pickles out of the refrigerator and pack into a freezer-safe container(s). Pour the syrup over the pickles and freeze until ready to use.

 

Lovina Eicher is an Old Order Amish writer, cook, wife and mother of eight. Formerly writing as The Amish Cook, Eicher inherited that column from her mother, Elizabeth Coblentz, who wrote from 1991 to 2002. Readers can contact Eicher at PO Box 1689, South Holland, IL 60473 (please include a self-addressed stamped envelope for a reply) or at LovinasAmishKitchen@MennoMedia.org.

 

Cleaning house for Susan’s wedding, Eichers save worst bedroom for last . . .

We are wrapping up the month of June. The year 2016 is now already halfway done. Amazing how time seems to go faster and faster. The wedding for Mose and Susan is only five weeks away. It’s getting too close way too fast for me!

We still want to make noodles for the wedding, and there is still a lot of cleaning that needs to be done. Sisters Verena and Susan were helping us Saturday. The girls’ bedrooms upstairs are all cleaned. We saved the worst for last: the boys’ bedroom. I have been organizing in there. After the wedding, Benjamin will move into Susan’s bedroom. Joseph and Benjamin share a lot of the same clothes. We are separating the clothes so half of them can get moved into Benjamin’s bedroom. Susan has quite a bit of her own furniture in her bedroom, so the room will look empty.

As of now, Mose and Susan plan to make living quarters in a small part of our pole building until they find a place suitable for them to live. I am happy Susan won’t be moving off the property yet. She and Mose both will be working, and this way she won’t have to keep a house going.

After Joe and I were married, we lived with my dad and mom until Elizabeth was born. We then moved into a trailer house across the driveway until after Susan was born. We then moved to a place about two and a half miles from there. That is where we lived until our move to Michigan in 2004.

Now it is 2016, and daughter Loretta will be sixteen on July 1. We will have pizza and ice cream cake tomorrow evening in honor of her birthday. Loretta and Lovina share a bedroom. Loretta doesn’t like anything out of place, and her bed is made every day. Lovina gets annoyed at the neatness and is learning fast that her end of the room has to stay “cleaned up” as well. If I let things clutter up too much, Loretta takes over cleaning up my things. It’s good to have someone stay organized after working in the boys’ bedroom. I teased them and said we are going to put Loretta in charge of cleaning their bedroom. They said she would probably call their treasures “junk.”

Tomorrow we are invited to the wedding of one of Joe’s coworkers, Joseph and Edna. We won’t be able to attend but appreciate the invitation. Another of Joe’s coworkers, Jerry, was married to Diane on June 16. We were all invited but unable to attend. We wish God’s blessings to both young couples. May they have a long and happy married life together, letting God lead their way.

Lovina’s husband, Joe, loves salad for lunch, and right now all the vegetables for his salad come from their garden.
Lovina’s husband, Joe, loves salad for lunch, and right now all the vegetables for his salad come from their garden.

Today is Joe’s last day in the factory until July 11. His vacation won’t be much of a vacation, though, with the upcoming wedding to prepare for. We will take a few days off and take the whole family up north for a few days. I’ll write more about that next week.

Saturday, July 2, Joe’s sister Christine and Jake have Joe’s family gathering at their house. They live around three hours from here in Hersey, Michigan.

Last Sunday, Jacob and sister Emma and family, my sisters Verena and Susan, and Timothy and Elizabeth were all here for a fish fry, with Joe cooking. He also made French fries. Verena and Susan each brought a salad, and Emma and Elizabeth brought desserts, so it was an easy lunch for me. We set up tables on the porch to eat. The men and boys enjoyed playing croquet in the afternoon while the rest of us just visited and relaxed.

Cucumbers are the crop of choice in Lovina’s garden right now, and this week she shares a favorite recipe for cucumber salad.
Cucumbers are the crop of choice in Lovina’s garden right now, and this week she shares a favorite recipe for cucumber salad.

Our cucumbers are really getting ready fast. We are enjoying cucumber salad a lot. I’ll share this recipe with you. May God bless each of you always!

Cucumber and Onion Salad

1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup vinegar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon celery seed
1–2 cucumbers, thinly sliced
1/2 cup onions, sliced

Mix first four ingredients well to make the dressing. Add cucumbers and onion. Refrigerate for at least 3 hours. Serve cold.

Lovina Eicher is an Old Order Amish writer, cook, wife and mother of eight. Formerly writing as The Amish Cook, Eicher inherited that column from her mother, Elizabeth Coblentz, who wrote from 1991 to 2002. Readers can contact Eicher at PO Box 1689, South Holland, IL 60473 (please include a self-addressed stamped envelope for a reply) or at LovinasAmishKitchen@MennoMedia.org.

On Lovina’s birthday, another summer wedding gets “published”!

It is 6:42 a.m. and our three youngest just left with the bus for another day at school. They are counting the days left of this term. Eight and one-half days left! I still have a hard time getting used to the bus coming this early. All the years our children went to school the bus was never here until 7:00 a.m. or a little after. Changes are hard to get used to in our lives!

Talking about changes in life. Our family will have another change and I’ll probably have the hardest time with it. On the other hand, I’m excited and happy for daughter Susan, 20, and her special friend, Mose. They were published in church this past Sunday to announce their wedding date. They picked Friday, August 5, for their special day. Mose and Susan have been dating for four years and we have no doubt in our minds that he will be a good husband to our daughter. He seems like my own son and I hope that never changes. It is so much easier on a couple if both families accept the life partner of their family member. May God bless their marriage and grant them many happy, healthy years together!

With the wedding coming up I see busy months ahead! We will be more organized than with Elizabeth and Timothy’s wedding. We were in the process of putting up a pole barn last year which delayed all the other work.

Susan’s dress for the wedding is mostly finished. The rest of ours are cut out but still waiting to be sewn. That is what I plan to do the next few days.

I feel better to sew now since our whole garden was planted Saturday. We are enjoying radishes and green onions from the early things we planted. Mose and his brother Freeman assisted us with our work on Saturday. The pole barn was organized and cleaned up. When it gets closer to the wedding we want to wash down the walls and ceilings on both sides of the pole barn. We will set tables in both sides and open the garage door that’s in the middle. Mose and daughters Susan and Verena planted flowers in my flower beds. We put out 68 tomato plants. With everyone’s help the garden was quickly filled. Now it’s up to our good Lord to provide sunshine and rain to make things grow. Some years we have a bountiful crop and others not much but we want to take what “He” sends.

Lovina45BirthdayEdited

On Sunday, May 22, I also turned another year older. We had communion services at sister Emma and Jacob’s house. After the services were over everyone sang “Happy Birthday” to me and sister Emma brought out a cake with candles. Luckily she only had a four and five for candles. I don’t know if I could have handled blowing out 45 candles. Emma sent the cake home with me. We had it for supper with our children. The children went after pizza in town and they grilled hot wings so I wouldn’t have to cook on my birthday. We had a nice evening together!

On Thursday we traveled to Berne, Ind., to brother Amos and Nancy’s house for the wedding of their daughter Lovina and Benjamin. They had a very nice day! On the menu were fried chicken, mashed potatoes, gravy, noodles, dressing, mixed vegetables, lettuce salad, sliced cheese, homemade bread, butter and rhubarb jam. Also pies (rhubarb, blueberry, cherry, and pecan), tapioca pudding, angel food cake, fruit cocktail dessert, and of course “nothings” were on all the tables. Sausage was added in the evening. It was nice to see a lot of family again.

On a sadder note; Friday, May 20, brought memories of the passing of my dear father, Ben Coblentz, 16 years ago. How nice it would be to have my parents at all their grandchildren’s weddings. God’s ways are not our ways so we need to accept what He sends to us.

I must get busy. I love sewing but it’s different if you have a deadline to get things done. It kind of takes away the enjoyment, but we will take one day at a time. God’s blessings!

Fruit Cocktail Dessert

1 15-ounce can fruit cocktail
1 3-ounce package apricot Jell-O
1 3-ounce package vanilla pudding (not instant)

Drain juice from fruit cocktail; add water to the juice to make 3 cups of liquid. Put in a saucepan. Add pudding and bring to a boil. Add Jell-O and cool; add fruit cocktail.

 

Lovina Eicher is an Old Order Amish writer, cook, wife and mother of eight. Formerly writing as The Amish Cook, Eicher inherited that column from her mother, Elizabeth Coblentz, who wrote from 1991 to 2002. Readers can contact Eicher at PO Box 1689, South Holland, IL 60473 (please include a self-addressed stamped envelope for a reply) or at LovinasAmishKitchen@MennoMedia.org.

 

Plant garden, clean and work on cookbook: all in a spring day’s work for Lovina

We are having really nice weather this week. The garden dried up and we were able to plant some onions, lettuce and radishes. I need to go get some sweet onions and peas to plant this week. Spring is such a lovely time of the year! Dandelion blossoms are popping up, making the greens too bitter to eat anymore.

My husband, Joe, got the mowers oiled and ready to use. Verena, 18, and Joseph, 13, were mowing the grass for the first time this spring. Hopefully they will get the rest done today.

Joe opened the gates to the pasture field for the horses, ponies and the cow, Bessie. They are enjoying the lush green grass after a winter of eating hay. Our hay field is looking promising for a nice crop of hay.

Yesterday daughters Verena and Loretta and I went to help sister Emma prepare for church services. They will host church services on May 8 and May 22. Emma and her family added three bedrooms upstairs, so there is more to clean. They aren’t done remodeling yet, but we cleaned where we could. They want to hang drywall yet and put in new cabinets. Jacob plans to build their own cabinets. So it all takes time. Since they were behind in hosting church services, they will take it twice this time. Daughter Elizabeth and sisters Verena and Susan were also there for the day. We got a lot accomplished and even got a lot of visiting done.

We all left for home around 4:00 p.m. Our children attended a meeting and pizza supper with the youth at the community building. It is under new ownership, and the new owners wanted the youths’ opinions on what they could do for improvements. I am so thankful that the owners are being so thoughtful. Hopefully, the youth group will all respect the new rules and have a nice place to gather on Saturday evenings. It can’t be an easy job to be responsible for the upkeep of a big building like this.

The youth play volleyball, basketball and other games there. It will be so much nicer if some things would be added for the youth who are handicapped. I’m sure they would love to be able to play ball with the rest, but they can’t. Having games there that they can play will be so much more enjoyable for them than sitting and watching. As parents of handicapped children, we are more aware of this. My heart goes out to all children and adults with disabilities. May God bless people who care for and are thoughtful to others with disabilities. You will be greatly rewarded someday for it!

We received a wedding invitation this week for niece Lovina Coblentz and Benjamin Schwartz. They will join hands in holy matrimony on May 19, 2016. Lovina is brother Amos and Nancy’s daughter, and the sixth of their children to be married. Lovina was named after me. I still remember how special I felt when I heard the news almost twenty years ago. Amos and Nancy’s son Ben married a girl named Lovina last spring, and so she changed her name to Lovina Coblentz. So they will still have a Lovina Coblentz in the family. They will now also have two “Ben and Lovinas” in their family. What a coincidence! I was asked to be cook at the wedding and wear a smoke blue dress. It looks like I better get started sewing.
AppleCrispEicherEdited3

I am excited about the announcement of my new cookbook coming out next year. It has taken hours of time and effort to get this done. What a pleasure working for the editors at Herald Press. They have been understanding through all our busy times. I’ll share this recipe, which will be in the cookbook. It was my mom’s recipe, and it is a family favorite. God bless everyone!

Apple Crisp

9 cups apples, peeled and sliced
1 cup sugar (more or less, depending on variety of apples)
2 tablespoons cinnamon

Crumb Topping
3/4 cup butter (12 tablespoons)
1 1/2 cup white sugar
2 cups flour
pinch of cinnamon

In a large bowl, toss apples with sugar and cinnamon. Pour into 9×13-inch baking dish. Combine crumb topping ingredients in a bowl with a pastry cutter or two forks. Mix until coarse and spread over apples. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes or until apples are tender.

Lovina Eicher is an Old Order Amish writer, cook, wife and mother of eight. Formerly writing as The Amish Cook, Eicher inherited that column from her mother, Elizabeth Coblentz, who wrote from 1991 to 2002. Readers can contact Eicher at PO Box 1689, South Holland, IL 60473 (please include a self-addressed stamped envelope for a reply) or at LovinasAmishKitchen@MennoMedia.org.

Lovina’s daughter offers glimpse of a week in the life of an Amish teen

Hello! This is Lovina’s 17-year-old daughter, Verena. I decided to help Mom out since she is busy sewing Loretta’s dress for Friday. Mom sewed hers yesterday. She will be a cook and Loretta is a babysitter at Aden and Ruth’s wedding. I gathered the laundry for tomorrow, as I’ll be washing the laundry alone since Mom has to help bake pies for the wedding on Friday.

On Saturday Dad shot a deer with a bow. Mose helped him get the deer up from the woods and butchered. This is the first time Dad went hunting this fall. Ben and Joseph are also bow hunting. Joseph was excited to go hunting again when he heard Dad got a deer. Tim shot two deer this season, and Mose also shot one. My sister Liz was along when her husband Tim got the second one, and she wasn’t too enthused about that.

Mom and us girls went over to Liz’s place after the hog roast. Liz and Tim were canning applesauce. We helped Liz get her dishes washed, and of course we spoiled Liz’s dogs, Izzy and Crystal.

After Liz was married, I moved into her bedroom. I had always shared a bedroom with Susan, so it’s different to have my own bedroom now. I still forget sometimes and put my clothes in Susan’s bedroom! My siblings still call it “Liz’s room.” We miss Liz. We all looked up to her. It’s exciting to be able to go to Tim and Liz’s place and also when they come home with the dogs.

Every guest at the wedding of Verena's friend received a glass, letter opener, and comb with their names and date on them, as well as an apple and candy bar.
Every guest at the wedding of Verena’s friend received a glass, letter opener, and comb with their names and date on them, as well as an apple and candy bar.

I was a table waiter at my friend Loretta (Schwartz) Lenacher’s wedding on October 9. She was married to Lester Lenacher. Every community does weddings differently, so I had to ask a lot of questions on how they do it. It’s pretty interesting to see how differently everyone does it. I have quite a few dear friends from that community, so I really enjoyed it. I also met a lot of new friends.

Tonight I am going to make a casserole for Mom to take tomorrow. She will take it along for lunch. All the women take a dish for lunch. Chicken and potato casserole is what I’ll be making.

The leaves are falling from the trees. I miss the days when all us children were younger. We used to love playing in the leaves. All of us would help each other gather the leaves into a big pile. Then we would hide and roll in them. So many great memories shared. In a house with seven siblings, there was never a dull moment!

Kevin is only 10 years old and already almost as tall as I. Joseph, Loretta and Ben are all taller than I. Lovina and Kevin are catching up pretty fast. They all tease me about being the “shorty” of the family.

This week's recipe for chicken potato casserole comes from Lovina's daughter Verena.
This week’s recipe for chicken potato casserole comes from Lovina’s daughter Verena.

Wishing you all God’s blessings!

Chicken Potato Casserole

 2 cups chicken, cooked and cut up
6 cups potatoes, cooked and diced
1/2 cup onion, chopped
1/2 cup carrots, diced or shredded
1/2 cup celery, diced
2 cans cream of mushroom soup
16 ounces sour cream
1 cup cheese, shredded or cubed
Seasoning of your choice
2 cups corn flakes, crushed

In a bowl, mix up chicken, potatoes, onion, carrots and celery. Mix cream of mushroom soup, sour cream and cheese together in a separate bowl, then mix with potato mixture and season to taste. Put in a greased 9 x 13-inch pan and top with corn flakes. Bake at 350 degrees for 45–60 minutes or until thoroughly heated.

Lovina Eicher is an Old Order Amish writer, cook, wife and mother of eight. Formerly writing as The Amish Cook, Eicher inherited that column from her mother, Elizabeth Coblentz, who wrote from 1991 to 2002. Readers can contact Eicher at PO Box 1689, South Holland, IL 60473 (please include a self-addressed stamped envelope for a reply) or at LovinasAmishKitchen@MennoMedia.org.

Lovina’s friend Ruth provides additional background on Amish wedding

Editor’s Note: Lovina Eicher is on vacation. Guest columnist Ruth Boss, an “English” friend of Lovina’s, shares her perspective on the wedding of Tim and Elizabeth from her ringside seat as a “gopher” leading up to the wedding August 14.

HorsesWaitingAugust 7. One week until the big wedding! Lovina tells me they’ve invited 700 for the noon meal, 600 for the evening meal, and 200 for the youth meal. But about 30 percent won’t come; still, she will be serving 1,000 meals. Some of the people are invited to both meals so there won’t be 1,000 actual guests— but who’s counting?

August 12. How much food do you need to serve 1,000 meals? A lot! For the dressing we bought 45 loaves of bread (to be cubed and toasted), 12 stalks of celery, and 10 pounds of onions. We picked up 350 pounds of chicken leg quarters to grill the morning of the wedding. Today 20-30 women will come to Lovina’s house to make cherry and pecan pies and angel food cake. PotatoesTim, Liz, and I will pick up the 250 pounds of potatoes and 1,000 candy bars this afternoon. It’s an Amish tradition in this community for the bride and groom to hand one out to each guest. It’s fascinating to watch the family, friends, and church family work together to prepare for this wedding. The Amish community quietly and cooperatively gets the job done.
SheetsOnLineDayBeforeWeddingAugust 13, early morning. It’s another cool morning in Michigan. The cooks in the wedding wagon are grateful for the cool breeze with seven ovens going, which also has two large sinks and plenty of prep counters and open shelves. The cooks are chatting in German, probably catching up about their families and news. The bread is being made along with peanut butter pie and “dirt pudding.” Two women cut the chicken leg quarters into two pieces. Susan is washing all the bed sheets today. Small children are playing and babies are being watched by young girls. A large pot of coffee is brewing with snacks on a table. Yesterday Elizabeth gave Timothy a haircut for the wedding. After tomorrow he will not shave his beard as that is the tradition for a married man. Tonight all the sisters are having a sleepover in one bedroom for their last night together.

August 13, afternoon. There is literally a bee hive of women workingBreadDoughRising in Lovina’s kitchen. Two are doing dishes, three are washing windows, more are sweeping and mopping floors. Laundry is being folded by another while yet another is cleaning the bathroom. Outside, in the wedding wagon, the bread baking and dessert making continues. In the middle of the kitchen four men sit at the table with coffee, talking about work and other stuff men talk about—and taking a break from cleaning out the barn. The homemade bread is out of the oven; after brief cooling, it will be put in used bread bags to make it softer.

LakeNearLovina

August 14: Tim and Elizabeth are officially married! We had beautiful weather. The cooks arrived around 6:30 a.m. to start cooking. The wedding, which was at the neighbors, started at 9:00 a.m. with songs and then preaching until about 11:30. Tim, Liz, and their witnesses sat in the middle with benches in a u-shape surrounding them. The men sat on one side facing the middle and the women sat opposite them facing the middle. About 11:00 all the cooks and table waiters filed in and took seats. It was all in German, so I didn’t understand what was being said but towards the end the bishop asked Liz and Tim six questions which are their marriage vows, to which they answered yes. After a prayer the bishop placed Liz’s hand in Tim’s and pronounced them husband and wife.  A wonderful meal was served at noon and another at 5:00 p.m., and a separate supper for the young people at 7:00 p.m. At the end of the evening the men and women all pitched in to wash the dishes and pack up the wedding wagons. There was a bit of mischief that involved a “silly string” war at the youth dinner and some TP’ing of Tim and Liz’s new house.

Lovina and I have been friends for a number of years; she is just asBonnetsAtWedding genuine as you may imagine her to be. She is patient and loving with her children, and generous with her time when it comes to helping others. She is deep rooted in her faith and that is what has gotten her through the trials they have experienced through the years. There is fun and laughter in their home, and often the source of jokes is Lovina herself! She speaks often of her gratitude for her readers and how the prayers and support of all of you have helped her through some difficult times. She cherishes your friendship even though she will never meet many of you. I am glad to call her my friend.

WeddingMenusHere’s the Peanut Butter Pie Lovina’s family made for the wedding, (listed on the extensive menu, right).

Peanut Butter Pie (makes two)

2 baked pie shells
4 cups milk
1 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup flour
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 eggs, beaten
12 ounces whipped topping, divided

Crumb Mixture (make one batch for each pie)

3/4 cup powdered sugar
1/3 cup peanut butter

Mix powdered sugar and peanut butter with fork until it is coarse and crumbly.  Place 3/4 cup of mixture into each baked pie shell.

Heat milk to scalding. In a separate bowl combine sugar, salt, and flour. Stir in 3 beaten eggs. Stir 1/4 cup of the scalding milk into this mixture. Pour mixture into pan of warm milk and cook over medium-low heat until thick, stirring often. Stir in vanilla.

When thick, pour into pie shells. Let cool, then refrigerate a few hours or overnight. Top with whipped topping and remainder of crumb mixture.

Lovina Eicher is an Old Order Amish writer, cook, wife and mother of eight. Formerly writing as The Amish Cook, Eicher inherited that column from her mother, Elizabeth Coblentz, who wrote from 1991 to 2002. Readers can contact Eicher at PO Box 1689, South Holland, IL 60473 (please include a self-addressed stamped envelope for a reply) or at LovinasAmishKitchen@MennoMedia.org.

 

Elizabeth’s wedding day brings sacred vows and 1,000 meals served

The wedding day of Timothy and daughter Elizabeth (August 14) is now past. We had a few sprinkles of rain early in the morning and then nice weather the rest of the day. After everything was over and cleaned up, we had a thunderstorm and more than an inch of rain. We were thankful that it waited to rain until all was over.

It was hard to believe this day was finally here after so much preparation to get ready for it! Joe’s cousin Samuel started grilling the 350 pounds of chicken at 4:00 a.m on Friday. Around 6:30 a.m. the cooks started arriving to get the food prepared. Wedding services were held at our neighbors’, Joas and Susan’s. Timothy, Elizabeth and their four witnesses—Mose, Susan, Ernie and Martha (Tim’s sister and her husband)—left to go to the neighbors soon after 7:00 a.m.

Verena, Loretta, and Lovina wore these dresses for Elizabeth’s wedding.
Verena, Loretta and Lovina wore these dresses for Elizabeth’s wedding.

Elizabeth likes the color burgundy and Timothy likes purple, so the wedding colors were those two colors. Elizabeth got married in a burgundy-colored dress with a white cape and apron. The grooms always wear a black suit and white shirt, as do the witnesses. Susan and Martha wore purple dresses with white cape and aprons. Family members wore a shade of rose, and the table waiter girls wore another shade of raspberry-colored material. Timothy’s mother and I wore dresses of a dark plum color, and some of the helpers wore purple. The cooks all wore dark gray. The men and boys all wore black pants and vests with white shirts. Timothy’s nephews wore rose-colored shirts and sharkskin-gray pants. His nieces wore rose-colored dresses.

An Amish couple says these vows to each other on their wedding day. Here they appear in German and English.
An Amish couple says these vows to each other on their wedding day. Here they appear in German and English.

Around 11:30 a.m., toward the end of the service, Bishop Leroy asked Timothy and Elizabeth all the marriage vows, which they responded to with yes. There are six questions that are asked. Then everyone is asked to stand for a prayer for the couple. After the prayer the bishop takes the hand of the bride, places it in the hand of the bridegroom and pronounces them man and wife.

After the service ended around noon, everyone came to our house for the noon meal. We estimated that there were more than 500 people here for the noon meal. Our menu consisted of barbecued chicken, mashed potatoes, gravy, noodles, dressing, corn, cheese, lettuce salad, homemade bread, butter, strawberry jam, angel food cake (with frosting and Danish dessert topping), dirt pudding, mixed fruit, and cherry, pecan, and peanut butter pies. We made 25 of each kind of pie. Candy bars were passed around after the meal. The same menu was served at night, but smoked sausage and ice cream were added to the meal. We served around 575 for supper.

The Eicher family served more than 1,000 meals on the day of Elizabeth and Timothy's wedding.
The Eicher family served more than 1,000 meals on the day of Elizabeth and Timothy’s wedding.

Timothy and Elizabeth opened their gifts in the afternoon. They have a lot of nice gifts to add to their new home. The gifts are usually household items such as kitchen items, towels and bedding, and some give things like tools and shovels for the groom. Money is given by some who aren’t sure what to give, which is also nice because the bride and groom can go buy what they didn’t get.

There is a lot more to write about the wedding, so I’ll share more in future columns. We are having to adjust here at home without Elizabeth here. We really miss her, and the children also miss her dogs, Izzy and Crystal. Verena has moved her things into Elizabeth’s bedroom. It’s surprising how empty the house feels with one of the children not here.

I have to thank my friend Ruth for all her help over this wedding. She was here to go and get whatever we ran out of or forgot. She took me shopping, one trip after another, to get the many groceries needed for this wedding. She also did loads of laundry for me when we had rainy weather. She washed all the towels and dishcloths after each meal. I don’t know how I can ever repay her. A true friend indeed! Thanks so much, Ruth!

Also, a thank you from Timothy and Elizabeth to all the readers who so kindly sent cards and gifts.  They were greatly appreciated! God bless! God’s blessings to Timothy, Elizabeth and all you readers.

Here is the recipe for pecan pie that we served at the wedding.

Pecan Pie

6 eggs, beaten
1 1/2 cup light corn syrup
1 1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon butter, melted
1 cup water
2 cups pecans, whole or crushed

Mix together all ingredients except pecans. Pour mixture into a 9-inch unbaked crust. Sprinkle pecans on top. Bake at 350° for 10 minutes, then reduce heat to 300° and bake until pie is set. Makes two 9-inch pies.

Lovina Eicher is an Old Order Amish writer, cook, wife and mother of eight. Formerly writing as The Amish Cook, Eicher inherited that column from her mother, Elizabeth Coblentz, who wrote from 1991 to 2002. Readers can contact Eicher at PO Box 1689, South Holland, IL 60473 (please include a self-addressed stamped envelope for a reply) or at LovinasAmishKitchen@MennoMedia.org.

Lovina’s prayers of blessing for her daughter on the eve of the wedding

It is a hot and humid Sunday afternoon. My husband, Joe, and I and our four youngest children are the only ones home this afternoon. Everyone is taking naps. It would be nice to take one too, but I need to get another column written before next week.

Church services were held at our neighbors Joas and Susan’s house. The next services will be here in two weeks. Joas and Susan will also host the wedding services for Timothy and daughter Elizabeth in their nice new pole barn on Friday. The receptions will be here.

On the day of the wedding, we serve a meal after the services and marriage, which are usually all done by noon. Then we serve a 5:00 p.m. supper for guests and a 7:00 p.m. supper for the youth and family. The bride and groom usually open their wedding gifts in the afternoon.

The inside of the wedding wagon, a portable kitchen that Lovina and her family are using to prepare the food for hundreds of wedding guests.
The inside of the wedding wagon, a portable kitchen that Lovina and her family are using to prepare the food for hundreds of wedding guests.

We are renting a wedding wagon, which comes with seven stoves and two sinks, plus all the pots, pans and dishes you need for the wedding. It also has a big cooler/freezer to put all the food in after it has been prepared. An 8×16-foot trailer comes with it, carrying all the tables, shelves and dishes.

Yesterday we had a lot of help to get the tables set for the wedding. There are enough place settings for 350. We have enough room in the new pole barn to seat 350 people at one time plus the bride, groom and their four witnesses. The wedding wagon, cooler, and trailer with dishes and tables have to be ready to leave here at 7:00 a.m. Saturday morning. It will go to another place for another wedding.

The tables are set for the big wedding day of Elizabeth, Lovina and Joe's oldest daughter, and Timothy.
The tables are set for the big wedding day of Elizabeth, Lovina and Joe’s oldest daughter, and Timothy.

My thoughts and prayers are with my firstborn this afternoon as I think of her taking this big step in life. She will have a lot of changes, but I have no doubt in my mind that they will be good ones. It is just a mother’s nature to worry for her children, but there needs to be a time to let them experience life without the presence of their parents.

Elizabeth has been a great daughter and never caused us any trouble. She was always obedient to us, which means so much to parents. My advice to her is to always start her day with her husband in prayer together and to end it with prayer together. What a great way to start and end your day with God being the guide. Every marriage has its ups and downs, but if you have love and respect for each other, things can always be healed. Marriage vows should be taken very seriously. Elizabeth, I pray that you and Timothy will always remain in love as much as you are now. Joe and I were fortunate to have parents who encouraged us and let us make decisions on our own. We asked for a lot of advice, but parents can only give so much advice. It takes husband and wife alone to work things out together, with God as their guide.

Elizabeth and Timothy, may you have a long and happy married life together. May God grant you both good health and a family to care for. I hope and pray your wedding day will be a day you want to remember. My love to both of you. Now we will gain a son, not lose a daughter! God bless!

Here's Lovina's pie crust recipe from her card file.
Here’s Lovina’s pie crust recipe from her card file.

This week I’ll share Timothy’s mother’s pie dough recipe, which we will use to make all the pies for the wedding. I’m not sure yet, but I think we will make 75–80 pies for that day.

Pie crusts wait for filling as preparations continue for Elizabeth's wedding.
Pie crusts wait for filling as preparations continue for Elizabeth’s wedding.

Pie Crust

6 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 cups lard
2 eggs
2/3 cup water
2 teaspoons vinegar

Mix together flour, baking powder and baking soda. Stir lard into flour mixture to make crumbs. It’s best if crumbs are quite moist; add a little more lard if necessary.

Beat together eggs, water and vinegar and pour over crumbs. Mix with a fork until right consistency. Don’t overmix. Roll out and press into pie pans. Makes six single-crust or three double-crust pies.

Lovina Eicher is an Old Order Amish writer, cook, wife and mother of eight. Formerly writing as The Amish Cook, Eicher inherited that column from her mother, Elizabeth Coblentz, who wrote from 1991 to 2002. Readers can contact Eicher at PO Box 1689, South Holland, IL 60473 (please include a self-addressed stamped envelope for a reply) or at LovinasAmishKitchen@MennoMedia.org.

 

Lovina’s diary, one week and two days before wedding!

P1060407For this week I’m going to write a daily diary for August 5.

3:15 a.m. Time to get up and pack my husband Joe’s lunch. For his lunch he wants bread slices, sliced tomatoes fresh from the garden, and mayonnaise. I also put frozen peaches, some cheese crackers, and a piece of rhubarb pie in his lunch. I fill his water jug with ice and water and make him a mug of coffee to take along.

3:40 a.m. Joe’s ride is here. I go back to bed and set the alarm for 5:00 a.m.

5:00 a.m. Daughter Elizabeth, 21, is ready for work.

5:15 a.m. Elizabeth’s ride is here. I wake up Benjamin, 16, to get ready for work. He is doing something different this morning. He will bike the 18 miles to work. He has wanted to do this for a long time already. Benjamin loves biking and after a long, hard day’s work, he still likes to bike four to eight miles at night. I pack ham and cheese sandwiches for Benjamin’s lunch. He never wants more than a few ham and cheese sandwiches every day. I would get tired of the same thing over and over, but he says he likes it.

5:45 a.m. After checking his lights and tires Benjamin heads out for his long ride to work. They start work at 7:00 a.m. and he thinks he will make it in time. Verena, 17, and Lovina, 11, get up to get ready for their ride. They will work at the flea market today for a friend. They are both getting great at waiting on customers and sharpening their math skills.

6:45 a.m. Verena and Lovina leave. Susan, 19, is making the rest of us scrambled eggs and toast for breakfast. She doesn’t have a job at present but I’m sure glad for her help with all the work getting ready for Elizabeth’s wedding. Joseph, 13, is out milking Bessie the cow. Kevin, 9, makes sure his little kitten gets some of Bessie’s warm milk for breakfast. Loretta, 15, helps Susan and I mend a few shirts.

8:00 a.m. My sister Verena walks over to help us today. My sister Susan is working so Verena decided to come help us.

9:30 a.m. My sister Emma and children come to help today too.

1:00 p.m. A lot of cleaning is in process: the walls and ceilings are being washed off in the kitchen and dining room area; windows are being cleaned, and some cabinets have been washed out.

I finally have lunch ready for everyone. Our lunch consists of One Kettle Soup in which I used some the noodles we made last week. They taste very good. Also sliced tomatoes, cheese bread, and hot peppers. Verena brought Swiss roll bars and Emma brought brownies for dessert.

2:00 p.m. They continue with the cleaning. The noodles we made last week, which are still on tables drying, are ready to be put into containers. My sisters weighed them and we have well over 30 pounds of noodles so we will have more than enough for the wedding next week.

3:00 p.m. My sister Susan came here from work and pitches in to help. Daughter Elizabeth and Joe are home from their jobs. Emma and her daughter Emma pick two five-gallon buckets full of tomatoes in my garden. Looks like I’ll have to be canning tomatoes soon. I hope it can wait until after the wedding. We will use some of the tomatoes in the salads for the wedding.

3:30 p.m. Benjamin is home from work. He caught a ride home so he didn’t have to bike home. He said this morning it took him one hour and fifteen minutes to bike the 18 plus miles, but he made it there in time to start working at 7:00.

4:00 p.m. My other helpers leave for their homes. Joseph finishes mowing; I do some tilling in the garden.

6:30 p.m. Supper time. On the menu are hamburger sandwiches and lettuce salad.

9:00 p.m. Everyone is cleaning up for the night. We decided to quit early and get a good night’s sleep for once. God’s blessings!

This week I’ll share the recipe that I got from sister Emma. She brought it here on Saturday when they came to help. It is delicious!

Orange Cream CheesecakeOrangeCheeseCake

Crust:

2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup butter, melted

Combine cracker crumbs, cinnamon and butter. Press into bottom of 9×13 pan. Refrigerate 30 minutes.

Filling:

1 3-ounce package orange gelatin
3 8-ounce packages cream cheese
1 1/4 cups sugar
1 5-ounce can evaporated milk
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1/3 cup orange juice concentrate
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 8-ounce Cool Whip

Prepare gelatin according to package directions. Set aside 1/2 cup at room temperature. Chill remaining gelatin until slightly thickened, about 80 minutes.

Meanwhile in mixing bowl, beat cream cheese and sugar. Gradually beat in milk and lemon juice on medium speed for 2 minutes. Gradually beat in orange juice concentrate, vanilla, and room temperature gelatin. Fold in Cool Whip and pour over prepared crust.

Topping:

2 cups Cool Whip
1/4 cup sugar

In a mixing bowl, beat Cool Whip and sugar. Beat in refrigerated gelatin. Mixture will be thin. Chill for 30 minutes. Gently spoon over filling. Refrigerate 8 hours before serving.

Note: We place mandarin orange slices on top also. Delicious!

 

Lovina Eicher is an Old Order Amish writer, cook, wife and mother of eight. Formerly writing as The Amish Cook, Eicher inherited that column from her mother, Elizabeth Coblentz, who wrote from 1991 to 2002. Readers can contact Eicher at PO Box 1689, South Holland, IL 60473 (please include a self-addressed stamped envelope for a reply) or at LovinasAmishKitchen@MennoMedia.org.

Noodle making, cleaning and fixing up fill the weeks before the wedding


This is already Thursday and it’s time I get this column written. Today, July 30, is nephew Steven’s eighth birthday so happy birthday wishes go to him!

It seems like the days are flying by. Tomorrow in two weeks is the wedding for Timothy and daughter Elizabeth. I ordered 350 pounds of chicken this morning for that day. Joe’s cousin will grill it for us on the morning of the wedding.

Last week we attended the wedding of niece Katie Edna and Ben. They had a very nice day for their wedding. All of Joe’s siblings were there except for one of his brothers. There are twelve siblings so it was nice that most could be there. Hopefully all of them will be able to make it here for Elizabeth’s wedding.

We arrived back home at midnight from the wedding and we had to get up a little after 3:00 a.m. for Joe to go to work. I could go back to bed but Joe had a rough day and was glad to see Friday evening come.

NoodlesDrying
Oodles of noodles — Amish style. These are made and dried to be cooked and served at the wedding of Elizabeth and Time.

Yesterday Timothy’s parents, sisters, sister-in-law and some of their children, my sisters Verena, Susan, Emma, and Emma’s children Emma and Steven, came to help us. They made noodles using well over 200 eggs. We saved the egg whites and put them in bags in the freezer—which will be used to make angel food cakes for the wedding.

The helpers washed all the dishes in both my cupboards and corner cupboard. Some went out to work in the garden and finished weeding and tilling most of it. The younger girls washed off the outside porch and railings. So much was accomplished! Everyone brought something for lunch so I didn’t have to take time to make lunch.

JosephCupcakes2015
Son Joseph was not forgotten amid the wedding preparations: colorful cupcakes for his birthday!

I painted the new closet that Joe put in for me in our bedroom. Joe put in a new floor and brother-in-law Jacob hung the doors and trim. Now today I’m excited to be able to fill it and I know that won’t take long. I also want to wash off walls and ceilings in our bedroom today. The girls are washing clothes. Joseph, 13, has been going with Benjamin, 16, every day to help Mose at his sawmill. Mose’s brother Freeman injured his leg so he needed help stacking wood.

I still haven’t sewn my dress for the wedding. I have it cut out already. My goal is to work on it tomorrow. It seems I keep pushing it off every week, and I need to sew it before I can’t concentrate on it. Most of the other sewing is done, thanks to Elizabeth.

Church services will be held here a little over a week after the wedding. We will have it in the pole barn where we will have the tables for the wedding. What a relief it will be when all of it is over.

We hope tomorrow will be a nice day for Lyle and Leah. I saw them in town one evening this week. I told them I’m not sure if we will make it to their wedding as Joe is having a hard time taking more days off from the factory. They said if we can’t make it for the wedding, we can come for supper, so we will see if we can make it. Appreciate the invitation!

Try this chicken noodle casserole. God’s blessings to all!

Chicken Noodle Casserole

2 cans cream of chicken soup
1 cup sour cream
4 cups cooked noodles (8 oz.)
3 cups cubed, cooked chicken
2 cups cooked peas
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/4 teaspoon rubbed sage

In a large saucepan blend soup and sour cream. Cook together for 5 minutes. Add remaining ingredients. Heat; stir occasionally. Can serve immediately. Makes 10 cups. If frozen, place in covered casserole in cold oven. Bake at 400 degrees for 1 hour and 15 minutes.

 

Lovina Eicher is an Old Order Amish writer, cook, wife and mother of eight. Formerly writing as The Amish Cook, Eicher inherited that column from her mother, Elizabeth Coblentz, who wrote from 1991 to 2002. Readers can contact Eicher at PO Box 1689, South Holland, IL 60473 (please include a self-addressed stamped envelope for a reply) or at LovinasAmishKitchen@MennoMedia.org.