Bellevue Cemetery Bike Ride

This has been a very wet January for us in Oregon so when I saw that this Saturday would be partly sunny with a high of 52°F, I got excited about taking a nice long bike ride.  I have had the urge to go see the "forgotten" Bellevue cemetery otherwise known as the United Brethren cemetery as seen on Google maps.  Saturday morning came but the temperature didn't want to rise above 38° and a heavy fog didn't seem to want to lift.  Sometime after noon, the sun broke out but still the temperature hovered at 38°.  Finally, at 2:30 I decided to go riding despite the lingering cold.  

Dressed in my warmest cycling clothes including my new ear covers and gloves, I set out for Bellevue cemetery.  I decided to take Peavine road which is a more scenic and much more hilly route to take, but I was feeling good.  I noticed quite a large number of cyclists out.  They must have been thinking the same thing I was.  The Yougberg Hill Vineyard marks the peak of the route I took.

It is just about 14 miles to the entrance of the cemetery from my front door.  Looking at the sign can you see why it took my 3 tries before I actually found this place?  It also helped to find the right road - darn you Google maps!!

Here is a view of the cemetery from the road.  It is the small bit of shrubbery to the left of the grove of trees.  It's a little nerve-racking to ride on that muddy road with my skinny little tires while my feet are locked to the pedals especially while trying to go up the hill.  Finally, I just got off the bike and walked it up.  Laurie thinks the grove of trees is creepy and worries that zombies are going to suddenly run out of it.

Here are a few miscellaneous pictures of the cemetery...

Finally, here is a little video I made of the ride.  The video highlight for me was when I was quietly eating a snack while sitting in the cemetery and suddenly a boat load of crows went crazy right over me.  I pulled out the camera and caught a bit of it.  Laurie says that was a very bad omen 8)

New and Improved Prune Cream Pie

 

This was an idea I had after enjoying a very nice pumpkin pie recipe Laurie made that had a delicious walnut crumble topping. I thought it would be perfect for the prune pie and I believe I was right cause it turned out great. However, don't look at my lame pie crust making abilities.  I normally have been using stewed prunes for this recipe but as my mom pointed out, it doesn't have to be.


(Taken from a 1952 Betty Crocker Cookbook)

Delicious and homey-tasting.  This prize-winning recipe was sent to us by a prize home-maker, Mrs. W. K. Robbins of Baytown, Texas.

Make Pastry for One-Crust Pie of desired size.  Line pie pan.

Filling for 9” Pie

Beat Slightly…

3 eggs

Mix together and blend in thoroughly…

4 tbsp Flour

1 cup sugar

½ tsp salt

1/4 tsp cinnamon

Stir in…

3/4 cup milk (1 cup in original recipe)

1 tsp vanilla

1.75 cups unsweetened stewed or sliced prunes (1.5 cups in original recipe)

Pour into pastry-lined pie pan (see pie crust recipe below.)  Bake for 20-30 minutes at 350°F until filling is firm enough to support the walnut crumble.  While baking make the crumble as follows...

Walnut Crumble Topping

• 1/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 3/4 cup chopped walnuts
• ½ teaspoon cinnamon

In a small bowl, combine brown sugar, flour, and cinnamon. Cut in the butter or margarine until the mixture is crumbly. Stir in walnuts. Sprinkle mixture evenly over the pie after baking for 30 min.  Bake pie for approximately another 30 minutes or until a knife inserted one inch from the edge comes out clean. 

Pie Crust Recipe

Ingredients:

1.25 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp salt

1 cube cold butter

~4 tbsp cold water

Instructions:

• Mix flour and salt
• Slice up butter and add to flour mixture
• Using pastry cutter, cut butter into pea sizes pieces
• Add a portion of the water and mix/mash using fork
• Add just enough water to form a ball out of the dough
• Refrigerate dough for 5-10 minutes
• Roll dough out from center and place in pie pan