Amish Etsy: Coal Figurines, Shoofly Pie, Pitcher, Mrs. Miller's Cookbook and More...

By Kevin Williams

Wow, we have some fun stuff on "Amish Etsy" this week, so I'll get right to it!

Little Amish coal figurines

AMISH COAL FIGURINES: Is this not the coolest thing in the world? Or do I just have bad taste. SIGH, I don't think I'll be reaching into my wallet now to buy these but, boy, I would if I could.  Maybe one of you will snap these up.  And, heck, if you tire of them, you can always burn them.  Click here to read more about these.  How the heck did this coal carver do it?  Coal seems like it'd be too hard to carve.

AMISH DOLLHOUSE:  The Etsy listing here says it is "Amish made" and I tend to believe it. This looks like a nice, sturdy, non-assembly line dollhouse. If it is Amish-made, it'll last a lifetime. Check it out here.

AMISH POTTERY PICTURE:  This just doesn't do much for me.  The likeness on the pitcher just doesn't look Amish. The hat is too floppy and the facial expression doesn't really gibe.  But to each their own.  Click here to see this.

MRS. MILLERS AMISH COOKBOOK: This cookbook was published in 1973, a year after I was born.  This is a charming collectible and judging by the title, Mrs. Miller must have been pretty well-known in Berlin, Ohio about that time.  The book's inner-pages mention that Mrs. Miller lives in Berlin.    In my experience, any cookbook written in that time period and earlier really captures the true traditions of Amish cooking.  One of the intriguing recipes mentioned are "dishpan cookies" and "Pineapple Dapple."  Sounds like some good stuff.  There is a photo of Mrs. Miller's house on the cover the book too and - keeping in mind this was 1973 - she must have been a fairly affluent Amish.   The house just looks very large and well-kept.  Back then, Berlin was a relatively sleepy burg in the middle of Amish country.  Today it is still in the middle of Amish country, but it's a bustling tourist outpost.  Click here to see the cookbook.

SHOOFLY PIE:  I've said before that buying food from Etsy makes me nervous.  That said, I'd probably have no problem buying from this place...it looks like an established bakery AND they make AND ship homemade shoofly pie.  Woo-hoo!  You have never tried Shoofly Pie, now is your chance. Click here!