Crepes with Strawberries

This as a simple quick meal, although my husband does not agree that it is a "meal" as it is very light and has no meat and potatoes.  You definitely have to eat a couple of them for you to feel full.

I served this for dessert to my 2 1/2 year old and he loved it!   But why wouldn't he, they are filled with strawberries, rolled up and sprinkled with icing sugar.

 

1 cup flour

2 eggs

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup water

1/4 tsp salt

2 tbsp butter, melted.

Mix/whisk wet ingredients together, then add dry till no lumps.  Heat a skillet with a little oil over medium heat.  Scoop a ladle full of batter onto pan.  Tilt pan in circular motion to coat pan and make a circle.  Cover pan to let batter set and flip when the bottom is lightly brown.  Turn and brown other side.  Roll up and place in a container with a lid to keep them warm till ready to serve.  Serve with fruit and icing sugar or whipped cream.

While dating, I remember coming over to my husbands house one time when they were eating supper and his mom was serving crepes.  I remember sitting at the table with Jake and one of his brothers and they were putting a crepe on their plate and then proceeded to spoon and sprinkle purple powder all over the inside.  I was dumbfounded.  "What is that?" I asked.  "What, this?", pointing at the mysterious purple powder.  "It's grape jell-o powder", mirroring my dumbfounded expression with their own, like I was the one that was weird for not knowing.  This is how they grew up eating their crepes.  My husband doesn't think there is a difference between sprinkling jello-powder or icing sugar on crepes as they serve the same function.  Each to his own, I guess.  It's all normal if you are the one who grew up with it that way.  I'll definitely have that as optional when I make these while my kids are growing up.  

Pluma Moos or Obst Moos

This last Tuesday I spend the day with my parents and after sharing with my Mom my idea for this blog we talked about ideas and food.  I shared with her the difference my Mother-in-loves Plumi Moos tasted compared to hers.  (I'm not saying my mother-in-loves was not good, it was, it just wasn't what I was used to and I then craved what my taste buds were used.)  My Mother-in-love said, growing up (in Mexico) they were poor and only used a little bit of raisins and used any red jam (strawberry or raspberry) they had on hand.  Of course after talking about the soup with my Mom, we had to make it for supper, so here is my Mom's version of the soup, which I guess since it doesn't have any plums should be called Obst Moos.  Other variations of the recipe include adding a package of cherry jello for colour and flavour.

Pluma Moos
3 1/2 cups water
1/2 cup raisins
1 cup dried fruit mix, coarsely chopped (pears, nectarines, apples, apricots)
1 cup frozen or fresh bing cherries
A small amount of juice from Marashino cherries.  (My Moms secrete ingredient for colour and flavour)

1 1/2 tbsp cornstarch
2/3 cup sugar

In a medium sized pot, bring to a boil and cover for 10 to 15 minutes.  Combine cornstarch and sugar and add a little water to liquefy, stir to melt to avoid lumps.  Add to the fruit and cook until bubbling, then cook for 1 minute.  Soup can be served warm or cold.

(When I make this soup myself, I'll measure the ingredients a little better and update them on here as my Mom used her hand to measure some of the ingredients)

This soup has many different varieties to it.  When talking to a friend, she grew up with using cut up canned pears and also milk added for a creamy soup .

I went shopping this week and I picked up some dried fruit myself and now I'll be able to make it for my growing family.  It really is an easy soup and it can be served alone with leftovers to stretch the meal further.

A little History:
Traditionally, this soup was made on Saturday and served on Sunday, as Sunday was a day of rest.

An Introduction

The idea of this blog is inspired by my Mother-in-love.  My husband and I (try) to have supper with his parents every Saturday and we usually talk of many things, along with experiences from their lives growing up in Mexico.

She has wanted to write her experiences and stories down and has at one time verbally recorded some of them, but that too takes time and effort.  I also thought it would be a great idea to record some of traditions and stories that she shares with me and thought a blog would best help inspire me to do so.

The reason for the title is simple, I am Mennonite along with my husband, yet we grew up somewhat differently.  Hence the title, Mennonite Your Way.

Though we share many similarities there are definitely differences.  There are some foods that he grew up with that I didn't and vice versus or even differences adaptions of the same meal which can make them completle different.  I know that with every generation traditions and mannerisms are changed if not completely lost.  The low German language, Plautdietsch is definitively one of them that once was the domminate language for Mennonites is now somewhat diminishing with the younger generation (me included).

A Little History.

We both were born in Canada, yet he is first generation Canadian (meaning his parents grew up in Mexico) and I am 5th generation Canadian.  My forefathers immigrated from Russia to Canada, whereas his from Russia to Mexico, then (30 some years ago) to Canada.

I hope that this blog helps to log some of the traditions, food and mannerisms from the "old Mennonite" ways to the way we live today.