Spring weekend in Gravette provides much to do

In just a week April will be gone. Many of the beauties of spring are just as fleeting. The pink hyacinths are already gone and foliage has popped out and begun to obscure the blossoms on the forsythia, japonica and flowering almond. But the flowers seem to come in waves. Now the early purple iris beside the cellar are covered in fat buds and soon they and the emerging peonies will star in the next act of the play.

A couple of weeks ago we enjoyed another of the gifts of springtime. Monday morning, Jim came bounding into the office and said, "Guess what I've got for you!" Then he opened his fist to reveal a few morels, described by one food editor as "the king of wild mushrooms." I put them in the fridge and, knowing that sometimes one person can see what another did not, I visited his hunting spot on my lunch hour and found a half dozen more to add to his find. Although we prefer these tasty morsels battered and fried, these were small and we didn't have many so at midweek I diced them and added them to a few scrambled eggs. They made a delicious, quick and easy supper served with sausage patties and whole wheat toast.

The next day I accompanied Jim and his helper to Hiwasse where he was painting a house. The weather looked beautiful -- bright sunshine and clear blue skies -- so I sat on the front porch for a while, did some Bible study and read a few chapters in my book. The gusty wind became increasingly disagreeable though so I soon headed for the pickup to finish my reading and eat my tuna sandwich.

On the way home that afternoon, we found four more morels. I put them in Jim's scrambled eggs and fixed scrambled eggs with green onions for myself for breakfast last Sunday.

Another springtime favorite in the Ozarks is fresh greens, and soon I'll be checking the fence rows for a mess of poke greens. A friend told me she recently prepared a salad of dandelion greens and wild onions while on a family camping trip. Martha Stewart's Dinner at Home cookbook features a recipe for wilted dandelion greens coated with a dressing made from olive oil, Dijon mustard, vinegar and a small amount of bacon grease and laced with fried diced bacon and minced shallots. Sounds yummy!

Cooking according to what's in season is a lost art in many homes, but the "Oklahoma Eats" column in Oklahoma Living magazine recommends the above-mentioned Martha Stewart's Dinner at Home to help with seasonal menus. In addition to the wilted dandelion greens, it offers recipes for pan-roasted chicken pieces and lemon-thyme spoonbread. And the columnist says it's "sure to become a dog-eared favorite." Another seasonal favorite, fresh asparagus soup, is featured in the Southern Living Farmers Market Cookbook.

We had a call from my nephew in Connecticut two weeks ago with the welcome news that we'll have a new great-niece about the first of September. A pair of letters last week brought good news as well. My friend in Tulsa wrote that her husband had recently "graduated" from cardiac rehab after a light heart attack near the end of 2013. Our friend in Florida reported she bruised her hip and side in a recent fall but, thankfully, nothing was broken, not even the dining room chair she knocked over.

It was a busy weekend in Gravette and, if everyone had as much fun as I did, the advertised "Family Fun Day" was a huge success.

I visited Old Town Park to check out the Renaissance fair and enjoyed strolling past the booths and mingling with the vendors, most dressed in period costumes. One was carving a bow from an Osage orange limb, another embroidering Celtic cats on her dress, still others engaging in mock sword battles. I purchased some small souvenirs, a personalized bookmark and a frog wand, and treated myself to a Razorback necklace, then drove to the museum to buy one of their pulled pork sandwiches and browse the interesting exhibits there. I believe my favorite was provided by the lady from Rogers who brought the tiny chairs.

Gravette provided a very entertaining way to spend an early spring day!

Susan Holland is longtime resident of Benton County and a staff member of the Westside Eagle Observer. She may be contacted by email at [email protected]. Opinions expressed are those of the author.

Editorial on 04/23/2014