The warmer days last week were a welcome change from the snow and ice we had earlier in the month. Spring is still over three weeks away but, as one fellow said, every day we're one step closer.
We see subtle changes in the yard, with a cluster of bluets in the strawberry beds beside the shop and an occasional dandelion popping up here and there. Out with friends Wednesday morning, we rounded a curve and happened upon a mother cow who had just given birth to twins. One little critter was already staggering around on his wobbly legs, nudging his mama and searching for the dinner table. The other, a little larger, was still struggling to stand. I guess a part of my heart lingers back on the farm because the arrival of the spring calf crop is always a sure sign of spring for me.
I introduced our readers to John Rowlands in my last column. In his "Cache Lake Country" he admitted "you may think I'm jumping the gun a mite," but after the middle of February he said his mind just naturally turned to thoughts of fishing. He knew spring was a long way off but he confessed, "I can't help it and so I either tie myself some flies, take apart my reels and oil them, or read fishing stories."
A popular springtime activity in this area is berry picking. My twin aunts Leda and Leta were very fond of visiting Fisher's Blueberry Farm west of town and laying in a supply of blueberries each year. Leta had quite a collection of cookbooks and, in sorting through them, I came across a few recipe sheets from Fisher's filled with tasty suggestions for using this nutritious fruit. It will be a while before this year's crop is ready, but I have a can of blueberries and I think I'll try the recipe for easy-to-make bran-blueberry muffins I found.
Although I enjoyed the blueberries my aunts shared with us and have bought some at the farmers' market, I've never picked any myself. Picking blackberries was always a springtime ritual on the farm though. Avoiding the briers snagging our clothes and shooing away the June bugs which always moved in for their share were some of the hassles, but when we got a taste of the resultant blackberry cobbler -- maybe with a big scoop of ice cream on top -- it was all worth it. We even knew where there was a corner up in the northwest pasture where we could find a few gooseberries if we checked at the right time of year.
In examining Aunt Leta's cookbook collection, I found a trio of vintage books that were quite interesting. The oldest was "Electric Refrigerator Recipes and Menus," published in 1927 by the General Electric Company. This collection of basic recipes for four to six people was adapted particularly for the General Electric refrigerator. Then there was the booklet of "Everyday Recipes," a 1930 publication from the Wesson Oil people. It contained recipes for "the most delicious mayonnaise you ever put in your mouth," several salads, baked and fried foods. The third was the 1941 "Birds Eye Cookbook" from the Frosted Foods Sales Corporation with recipes utilizing some of the first quick-frozen foods.
Speaking of seasonal events, I think it's worth noting that March 7-9 will mark the 152nd anniversary of the Civil War Battle of Pea Ridge. The war was 10 months old in December 1861 when Federal General Samuel R. Curtis assumed command of the Southwestern District of Missouri and began an aggressive campaign to clear it of Confederate forces.
In February of 1862, General Sterling Price, Confederate commander of the Missouri State Guard, crossed into Arkansas and joined forces with General Ben McCulloch in the Boston Mountains. These combined Confederate forces of 16,000 under General Earl Van Dorn then turned north with St. Louis as their goal.
Curtis, with 10,500 Federal troops, dug in at Sugar Creek near Pea Ridge and waited. Van Dorn, realizing a frontal attack was suicide, skirted to the north to attack from the rear on March 7, 1862. Curtis recognized the tactic, pulled his men away from Sugar Creek and "faced about" to meet the Confederates in the open. The three-day battle culminated in no clear victory for either side, but historians point to it in retrospect as having secured Missouri for the Union. Van Dorn made an orderly withdrawal east down Huntsville Road and later he and his troops were ordered east of the Mississippi River, leaving Arkansas virtually defenseless.
Susan Holland works for the Westside Eagle Observer and is a lifelong resident of Benton County. Opinions expressed are those of the author.
Editorial on 02/26/2014