Let's talk about books, the Amish, and peanut butter

Grab a diet coke, this is gonna be a long one.


It all started with the previews for the movie "My Sister's Keeper" Being one who prefers to read the book before the movie I read Jodi Picoult's book. It was good, but I was told that she had written others that were better. Next I tackled "19 MINUTES". It was fabulous. Much better than "My Sister's Keeper". I was hooked. Next I read "Plain Truth". A book set in an Amish community. A little way into the book I realized I had seen the movie on Lifetime (starring Mariska Hargitay--who ROCKS a sexy short do on Law and Order SVU--my fav of all of the Law and Orders).

The Amish fascinate me. I think it mainly has to do with the lack of electricity. I wonder how they live without TV. I once went to a garage sale at an Amish home in the Arcola area where oddly enough I picked up an old golf trophy. I don't know why or what I did with that trophy, I think the fact that I bought it from some Amish people was reason enough for the purchase.

Cliff has been working in Southernish Indiana for a couple of months now. Lately he has been working 7 days a week 10-12 hours a day. Because of the drive and amount of hours he works, he stays in the Washington, IN area in our camper. The area Cliff has been staying in has a very large Amish population.


A few weeks ago the boys, my parents, and myself headed down to meet Cliff for dinner after he got off work. We drove around and looked at all of the super nice Amish homes. Admired their huge gardens, wondered at the oddity of the fact that one Amish home also housed a motor shop. We ate dinner at Gustav's Amish village. The food was FAN-freakin-tastic. My favorite part was the peanut butter. Normally I only enjoy peanut butter encased in chocolate in an orange wrapper. This stuff was out of this world. My meal was mainly peanut butter slathered on homemade bread and peanut butter that I licked off of my knife after slathering it on my homemade bread. I dreamed of that peanut butter.

A week or so later my Mom and one of her gal pals went to Arcola to pick up some Amish type stuff. My Mom brought me home a jar of Amish peanut butter, an Amish cook book (lots of recipes call for lard) that has the recipe for the peanut butter. She also gave me the fixin's for my first batch of this heavenly delight.

After eating half of the jar with a spoon, hooking Jack on the stuff, letting Prince Harry have a try, giving Prince Harry more peanut butter, later finding out that you are not supposed to give babies peanut butter, worrying that I have gave him peanut butter allergies, worrying that I will now have to carry an epi pen for Harry's severe peanut allergy that I have created, deciding that he really liked the peanut butter and it was made by the Amish for heavens sake, so I just let him have a little more, it was time to make my first batch.

I had saved up (and washed) my baby food containers for a week or so. When I finally had enough to house this peanut butter heaven, I got to work. The recipe was simple. It needed tweaked a little bit, but my oh my.....it's good stuff.

My batch turned out pretty well. It's good, but it's not Amish good. My batch is tainted with electricity, internet, curling irons, and above the knee skirts.
I decided I am going to call it Baptist Butter.

My first batch is pretty much gone. I gave it all away to rave reviews. I'll make another batch this week and will keep handing it out. I can't raise a barn, but I can give away my semi-homemade peanut butter. I hope the Amish would be proud.