Recipe - Aunt May's Famous Wheatcakes

Now Playing -  Forever Young by Alphaville
 

RECIPE:
MAY PARKER'S FAMOUS WHEATCAKES

Originally made by my pal Pete's Aunt May, these wheatcakes are a great, hearty alternative to the standard pancake and will get your day off to a swinging start.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 cup Buckwheat Flour
• 1 cup Sifted Whole Wheat Flour
• 2 teaspoons Double Acting Baking Powder
• 1 teaspoon Baking Soda
• 1 teaspoon Kosher Salt
• 2 cups Buttermilk
• 2 teaspoons Molasses
• 2 Egg Yolks, Beaten
• 1/4 cup Melted Butter
• 2 Egg Whites, whipped to stiff peaks

DIRECTIONS:

• Mix buttermilk and molasses, set aside
• In a separate bowl, mix together flours, powder, soda and salt
• Add egg yolks, melted butter and buttermilk/molasses mixture to flour mix
• Fold whipped egg whites into batter until blended - Don't overmix or thicken! Batter will set up slightly after mixing.
• Cook on hot greased griddle until small bubbles appear on top - Flip and cook until bottom is lightly browned. Serve hot with butter and syrup to your favorite nephew in a stack of  6-8 wheatcakes.

NOTES:

This recipe is really flexible to modifications and changes - the important part is the Molasses and the Buckwheat flour. I have substituted milk for the buttermilk, margarine for the butter, AP flour for the whole wheat flour and made the recipe without separating or whipping the eggs, just throwing it all in a bowl and they still make hearty, slightly fluffy pancakes that fill you up many times over better than pancakes. A great recipe!

The ROUS FAMILY -   

  

 

 

 

 

Great Falls, Montana for Grandma Graves' Memorial

Now Playing -  Here I Go Again by Whitesnake
 

Life -  

Last weekend Linz and I traveled with her folks to Great Falls, MT for the memorial of her grandmother, Ethel Graves. Rich, my father-in-law has been driving a lot lately, so I volunteered to be the driver for this trip. As it turns out, 6-7 hour drive to Great Falls for a weekend is a pretty short drive for me, now that I'm used to comic con trips, but the weekend itself was a wholly different experience.

It's always odd going to a family event that you are only tangentially attached to. The Graves family has always made people feel welcome to the family, that's been one of their strengths, no question, but when you are surrounded by people with decades of bonds, stories and connections, it's easy to become lost quite quickly. Particularly at a funeral, when emotions run high and more than ever, people reflect on the past.

I met Ethel a couple of times; at our wedding and at my brother in law Dylan's wedding, but she wasn't at her strongest either time and I was pretty preoccupied both times, so unfortunately I never really got to know her in any meaningful sense. However, I'd heard many great stories about her and I was glad we could make it up to the service.

The funeral home

It was held at a beautiful old funeral home in central Great Falls, replete with old details like painted ceilings and iron sconces. The owner gave me a tour of the upstairs and the original family's living quarters - its a great place, with a lot of character. The service was simple and pleasant, with all of the children speaking, a few songs, a slideshow and friends reminiscing about her and her husband. After that, there was a short graveside service, some admittedly questionable food at a small church and then the family assembled at the site of the old family farm. At the farm, with views of the Montana countryside stretching for miles, we scattered some of her ashes and added to the cairn of rocks that we made when Shorty was laid to rest. Beyond that, in typical Graves fashion, there was some eating out and many a beer was consumed.

The family farm

It was a bit frustrating at times because I'd driven Rich and Sue in our Element, so transportation became complex and to be frank, planning has never been Lindsay's family's strong suit. There's also been an undercurrent of tension between Lindsay's brother and sister's sides of the families for years that has spilled over into the way her parents treat the two groups that I really wish both sides would get over. It never overtly surfaced during the weekend, but it was always there lurking absurdly under the surface.

Essentially the only people there under 50.

At the end of the weekend, we also managed to get together with a couple of Lindsay's friends that live in Montana, which was really great. It was excellent being able to spend time with members of her extended family that I talk with online often but rarely see and overall it was a nice weekend, considering the circumstances. Though by the end of it, I was happy to be home.

The complete collection of photos from the trip can be seen on Flickr HERE

The ROUS FAMILY -   

  

 

 

 

 

Ludo's Ninth Birthday

Now Playing -  Here I Go Again by Whitesnake

Life -  

 Today, our boy Ludo turned nine!

I still remember the day we picked him out at the pound, a little black ball of energy, who has grown up into a smart, loving, cornerstone to our family. If it wasn't for Ludo, the last few years could have been almost impossible to weather, but his constant energy and enthusiasm makes it hard to do anything but feel happiness around him.

So yeah, I'm waxing a bit rhapsodic about a Newfoundland Retriever Pound Puppy. But he's worth it.

For his day, we picked up sandwiches and took him up for a hike around Cherry Springs. It was gorgeous out - sunny and clear, around 80 degrees. They've done quite a bit of work up there, but it's still the vaguely charming and overgrown nature area we've known since we were kids - a little too random, a bit small, but a nice little stroll.

Afterwards, we stopped at Tastee Treet and bought him an ice cream cone, (Video HERE) then went home and inspected him for ticks. I hate ticks, but he loved the inspection/attention.

This isn't the most interesting post in the world, but we've decided to really start turning this blog into a journal for our family and besides... Dog pictures!

The ROUS FAMILY -