Zucchini Bread

Jan here, feeling loved.

 I remember back in the 70's when zucchini was a fairly new vegetable on the scene for backyard gardeners. It was different. Who knew how to use it?

Then people discovered how prolific it was.

 Old joke alert! "How can you tell if a person has no friends?" "They buy their zucchini at the grocery store."

 LOL! Up until my daughter's zucchini plants started producing, that was me!

But then she gave me a giant zucchini, and we're back in the zucchini bread business! My favorite recipe comes from this cookbook that I got for a wedding shower gift thirty eight years ago:

I've been making a version of the zucchini nut bread recipe in this book ever since!

You can tell this book is well-loved and well-used!

Here's the recipe:

ingredients:

1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1 cup sugar
1 cup finely shredded, unpeeled zucchini
1 egg
1/4 cup cooking oil (I use coconut oil)

In a small mixing bowl, stir the first five ingredients together.

In a larger mixing bowl, whisk the egg, then add the sugar and zucchini and stir them in. Then add the oil and stir until everything is combined.

Add the flour mixture and stir until it's all mixed together. Pour the batter into a greased loaf pan (8" works best.)

Bake at 350° for 55-60 minutes or until done.

In other news, the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally was last week. The numbers were down, but I guess that's expected this year. Another change this year is that the bikers seemed to be taking more "long rides" to the Badlands, Devils Tower, etc. rather than hanging out in Sturgis all week.

But then on Wednesday, this happened (I chose the video without sound.)

According to witnesses, the woman tried to approach a baby bison and an adult attacked her. (I think I would say that according to the bison, the woman tried to attack a baby and the adult protected the the little one!)

The woman only had minor injuries, which was a miracle.

Just a reminder - bison are not fuzzy cows. And the signs that are scattered throughout the park are serious: "Bison are dangerous. Do not approach."

Whenever I take photos of wildlife, I always stay inside our vehicle...unless we're hiking.

And then I make sure we keep our distance, walk away, and let them have the right of way!

But with the end of the Rally comes the end of the summer. Starting this week our temperatures will be moderating toward fall, the bucks lose the velvet on their antlers, the fall wildflowers start blooming. Soon the aspens will turn to gold and the north wind will bring the promise of snow...

...all in the next four weeks.

I'm looking forward to it!

Jan Drexler has always been a "book girl" who still loves to spend time within the pages of her favorite books. She lives in the Black Hills of South Dakota with her dear husband of many years and their active, crazy dogs, Jack and Sam. You can learn more about Jan and her books on her website, www.JanDrexler.com.

Touring the Black Hills: Custer State Park

by Jan Drexler

The summer is winding down. The Sturgis Motorcycle Rally is this week...

After the Rally, the tourist season dwindles quickly. By Labor Day the season officially ends, and a peaceful quiet descends over the Black Hills.

That won't keep us away from our favorite place in the Hills, though! Custer State Park is open year around!

I thought I'd take you on a seasonal tour today. Are you ready?

Late July/Early August is rutting season for the Bison. (It coincides with Rally week...no comment!)

We saw these two in a standoff last week. You can't hear it, but they are trash-talking each other something fierce! And why?

The bulls are on the right and the left, and that cow (with her tail raised in a 'come-hither' kind of gesture) is the object of their affections.

Things can get a bit wild. We drove on before they decided if they were going to come to blows or not. If you look at the pictures closely, you can see that both of these big guys have been in a few fights already this year. You can see the scars on their sides and shoulders.

By the end of August, the prairie grasses will be dormant - in dry years they are dormant by the end of July.

After rutting season is over, the bulls wander off alone
or in pairs. They become best buddies...until next July!

The grass holds its nutrition, though, and feeds the bison and other animals all through the winter until the green grass grows again in the spring. Meanwhile, the land is covered with a lovely shade of golden brown.

Late summer/early fall is a great time to see wildlife of all kinds, and some not-so-wild, like the park's burros.

When the aspen leaves turn gold. we know that fall is here and winter isn't far behind.

I've grown to love winter in the Park. There aren't as many animals to see, but it's so beautiful!

Winter eventually gives way to spring. The park can get snow almost every month of the year, but the grass does come back, and so do the animals.

In the spring, orange is one of my favorite colors!

This picture was taken in the spring of 2018 - last year's
grasses were burned off by the Legion Lake fire
in November 2017. Most springs, there is plenty of dormant
grass, but the bison are hungry for the green shoots!

Then we can visit some of our favorite places in the park - the Wildlife Loop, the Needles Highway, Sylvan Lake, Heddy Draw, Mt. Coolidge, all the hiking trails...

The Needles Highway

Badger Clark's home, The Badger Hole

The Cathedral Spires

And remember, the best way to see the park is on foot. But if you can't walk the trails, make sure your drive is leisurely...

Until next time!

Have you ever been to Custer State Park? If you haven't, what is the first thing you would want to see?

Jan Drexler lives in the Black Hills of South Dakota with her husband and growing family. When she isn't writing, she loves hiking in the Hills or satisfying her cross stitch addiction.

You can find Jan on Facebook, Jan Drexler, author, or her website, Jan Drexler.com.

Summertime Sandwiches: the BLA

No, that's not a typing error. My favorite summer sandwich is a Bacon, Lettuce and Avocado sandwich. AKA, BLA!

It's what I like to make for a quick lunch, especially if I'm going out of town for a week, and these are in my refrigerator:

I hate it when avocados go bad...they're too delicious to waste that way!

A BLA is super easy to make. In fact, it's a lot like a BLT.

Cook up some bacon, toast your bread, get the Ranch dressing out of the fridge...

Yes, Ranch dressing rather than plain mayo. It adds a bit of yummy deliciousness to the sandwich.

And then start layering - A bit of salad dressing on both pieces of toast, and then a generous helping of lettuce, avocado slices, and top with bacon.

Put the lid on (aka, the other slice of toast) and you're set to go.

Warning: this is a very messy sandwich. Don't try to eat it on the run!

Another delicious lunch I've just heard about is avocado toast. From the number of recipes available on the internet, it seems like I'm the only one who has never run across this before!

Easy peasy lemon squeezy! A slice of toast, mashed avocado, and a topping. My favorite is crumbled bacon.

Do you sense a theme here? Avocado and bacon are delicious together!

I've been doing quick lunches for the past week or so because I'm getting ready to take off to Nashville tomorrow for the First Annual Christian Fiction Readers Retreat  and the ACFW (American Christian Fiction Writers) Conference.

If you haven't heard about the Readers Retreat, go here to get the scoop!  You'll notice that some of your favorite writers are involved, and it's a day centered around our favorite people: Readers!

And then the ACFW Conference starts on Thursday.

Just imagine, an entire week (at least, Wednesday through Saturday) filled with readers, writers, and other people who love books. Doesn't that sound like a dream come true?

Since we just got done with the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally (ten days of not leaving home to head up into the Hills) and I'm getting ready to leave for the rest of the week, my husband and I HAD to make a trip up to some of our favorite places on Saturday.

I ignored my new office and the paint-less walls, the vacuuming and weeding and laundry that needed to be done, and we went to the center of the Hills, up to the Needles Highway.

This is what we wanted to do:

Our intention was to hike the Cathedral Spires trail, but there was a problem. We couldn't find anyplace to park near the trail head. Or near our alternative hiking choice in that area, the Little Devils Tower trail. So we drove and dodged other cars.

I'm not complaining, though! It's a beautiful drive....

Do you see why it's called the Needles Highway? Those granite spires....

There are narrow tunnels along the way, and the one at the top is breathtaking. Here's the approach...

Suck in your tummy when you meet those trucks!

Looks good so far, but remember - it's a one-lane tunnel.

Oops, traffic jam. Everybody wait your turn...

And if you aren't driving, be sure to look up as you go through!

The other side of the tunnel was packed with cars, trucks, pedestrians...and I forgot to take more pictures!

But here's a great video someone took during last year's Rally. They have people directing traffic during that week!

Do you see why I hate leaving home, even for the ACFW Conference? I'll still have plenty of fun, though. My roommate for conference is the best, isn't she, Ruthy?

Have a great week, everyone!

Jan Drexler loves her family, her home, cooking and just about anything made by hand. But she loves her Lord most of all.

Stop by Jan's website to learn more about her books: www.JanDrexler.com