Comforting comforters and a deluxe fruit pizza to brighten winter

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It’s cold these days. I don’t do as well with cold weather as my husband Daniel does. His pullover sweatshirt is sufficient for him in all kinds of weather. I like my jackets, sweaters, and blankets. What’s better than snuggling up with a blanket and a cup of hot chocolate and reading or watching the birds?

Imagine what it would be like not to have an insulated house or a means of heating the house, not to mention the ample supplies of coats, scarves, and blankets we all have. My heart goes out to those mothers and fathers who struggle to keep their children warm.

This winter we, along with another couple in our church, organized a comforter knotting for our youth group. The comforter tops had been pieced and sewn together by some of the Amish ladies in our community. Most of the comforters will be sent to Iron Curtain Ministries who will distribute them to poor people throughout the world. Iron Curtain Ministries is an Amish-operated organization who gives aid to the less fortunate.

Since we were the ones planning the event, Julia, Austin and I went on Friday afternoon to get a head start on things. Daniel helped me load our buggy with a sewing machine, scissors, food, and other items needed for the comforter knotting that evening.

My cousin Eunice and I had cut out the lining to the size of the comforter tops several days prior to the knotting. On Friday afternoon the two of us set up two quilt frames in my parents shop where we pinned in the lining, batting, and tops in preparation of the knotting that was held in the evening. I was a bit nervous whether we’ll be able to have all four frames filled and ready for the youth at 5 p.m. All went well, though.

Soon there were girls swarming all around me finding their place at the comforter. Using a long needle we followed the corners of the blocks as we poked the needles up and down, up and down. Someone else followed behind, snipping the yarn and tightly knotting them. I was amazed at how swiftly their comforter had been completed.

In the meanwhile, potatoes were baking and sausage gravy was being heated in preparation for supper at 7:45 p.m. Each person then mashed their own taters with a fork and spread butter and salt on it before topping with sausage gravy. Next was a tray of veggies, crackers, and dip that I had furnished. For dessert we had two desserts with one being on the top of my list of favorites: fruit pizza. Mmmm it was absolutely delicious.

Suppertime rejuvenated us before tackling the remaining comforters. After supper I was kept busy at the serger and sewing machine, binding the edges. It took awhile to make an entire trip around the edges. Thankfully we had three sewing machines and one serger so several of us could be at it at once. And listen to this! A few of the boys even helped with the sewing! I must say I was impressed. Certainly not any boy would be willing to admit he enjoys sewing, right?

As you can hear we did have a very enjoyable evening. All went very smoothly. By 9 p.m. we had 15 cozy, warm comforters, knotted, most of which were full-sized. I’m sure you haven’t forgotten that remark about that tasty fruit pizza. I’m passing the recipe on to you to try. It may be interesting for you to have the story behind the crust recipe. Recently Daniel invited a friend who is one of the youth boys for supper.

He admitted his crush on fruit pizza then added, “with my Mom’s crust recipe!” I chucked, delighted to ask Susan for her outstanding recipe. Be sure to give it a try, just be careful not to over bake! A few other tips if you want to make this recipe less work: I use my own home-canned pie filling instead of having to make my own glaze each time. You could use store-bought pie filling in a pinch. Also, you may omit fresh fruit and just use pie filling. It will be easier to cut these bars, if you cut before putting any of the layers on top of the crust.

Fruit Pizza

Crust:

3 /4 cup brown sugar

1 /2 cup butter

1 egg, beaten

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 teaspoon lemon flavoring

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 1 /4 cup flour

Press into a greased 9 X 13 pan.

Bake at 300 for 20 minutes. Do not over bake, it should not be brown at all.

Cream Cheese Mixture

1/2 cup powdered sugar

8 ounces cream cheese

8 ounces whipped topping

4 cups fruits your choice: bananas, kiwis, grapes, berries, sliced or diced

Beat cream cheese and powdered sugar until smooth. Fold in whipped topping. If desired add a dash of lemon juice.Spread on top of cooled crust and then pile and spread the fruit over the whole cream-cheese mixture covered crust.

Glaze

3 /4 cup sugar

5 heaping tablespoons clear jel

3 cups pineapple juice or water

3 tablespoons lemon or pineapple jello

1 /4 teaspoon salt

Mix together in a saucepan and boil a few minutes. Cool and spread on top of fruit.

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By Gloria Yoder

Readers with culinary or cultural questions or stories can write Gloria directly at Gloria Yoder, 10568 E. 350th Ave., Flat Rock, IL 62427-2019. To see more on the Amish go to www.amish365.com.

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