By Kevin Williams One of the enduring scenes from the Harrison Ford classic movie, Witness, was of a barn-raising. Barn-raisings make great TV and capture the public’s imagination when it comes to Amish culture, but the reality is that they are fairly rare occurrences.  This is especially true in older more established communities where there’s little […] Read more

By Kevin Williams “Loaf meals” are very popular among the Amish and for good reason.  Amish cooks have a lot of leftover meat, often the “scraps”kind.  Leftover chicken or beef stew or hamburger and mixing in some eggs, often some oats, some veggies and then baking the heck out of it. This chicken loaf is, […] Read more

By Kevin Williams Have some interesting stuff in this week’s blogroll.  Or I should say delicious.  This week’s blogroll is all food and there’s a little something for everyone, so let’s get started! AMISH FRUIT BARS:  Patricia at the Patchwork Quilt blog posted this recipe from the classic Amish “Wooden Spoon” cookbook by Miriam Miller. […] Read more

By Kevin Williams Here are a few Amish-themed stories making headlines this week. MIXED MARTIAL ARTS CHAMP:  This was an interesting story for several reasons.  One, simply the guys’ last name: Lee.  Now I will not profess to know every Amish surname out there. But I have heard of most and the last name Lee […] Read more

THE AMISH COOK BY GLORIA YODER “Gloria, do you have anything planned for today? Are you needing help with anything?” It was Susan, a sister in church who is a dear friend,j yet also like a mother in ways her own. She went on to explain: “My 11-year-old daughter, Judi, likes to go help young […] Read more

Related Recipes: Amish Beef & Noodle Oven Stew, Amish Farmhouse Beef Stew, Southern Amish Buttery Cornbread   By Kevin Williams This recipe comes from a Shaker cookbook.  I’ve compared the cooking styles of the Amish and Shakers before.  They share similarities but are different in some key ways.  Whereas Amish cooking has been shaped by […] Read more

By Kevin Williams Some surprises as we slide through the middle of the summer.  It’s always interesting to see what recipes are “trending” on Amish365, showing up the most in search boxes and such. AMISH CASHEW CRUNCH:  I think of this as far more of a Christmas-type treat, but it trended strong this past week. […] Read more