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About Cottage Grove sentinel. (Cottage Grove, Or.) 1909-current | View Entire Issue (June 19, 2019)
COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL | WEDNESDAY, JUNE 19, 2019 | 5A Pet Tips ‘n’ Tales Cook’s Corner Strawberries’ sweet, short season By Betty Kaiser G hours of direct sunlight. Raised beds are a good option for them but re- member they send out runners and need lots of room. Do not plant them in the shade! If possible, amend your soil in ad- vance of planning with aged manure or compost. Finally, read the instruc- tions on the plants for best results. And remember, bugs like them too! Simplicity and fresh- ness are the keys to today’s strawberry recipes. Dessert, of course, is going to start off the meal planning. Today’s semi-fresh straw- berry pie is new to me and so simple. First you fill the pie shell with sliced berries. Then you mash the re- mainder of the berries and cook them with sugar, wa- ter and cornstarch. Pour that mixture over the fresh berries, refrigerate and you’ve got a strawberry pie. Topped with whipped cream, of course. One of my favorite ways to change-up the taste and presentation of a green din- ner salad is by adding fruit. Strawberries are great for color, taste and nutrition. Your kids will even eat them! So, if you only have a few berries at a time on your bushes, add them to a green salad and you will be the cook of the day! Check out these salad recipes and see how you like them. The Strawberry Cucum- ber salad doesn’t even call for lettuce. It’s more like a spicy fruit salad. ood grief! It’s al- most the end of June and strawber- ry season. Our berries have almost come and gone and I have yet to make jam or a strawberry pie. Of course, I can always buy some at the markets but I do love watching Chuck pick fruits and veggies from our home garden. Hopefully, there are still enough strawberries on our plants for a pie. Oregon strawberries are truly special — especially the Hood berries. “They have a little bit of romance that our other berries don’t have,” says Bruce Pokarney, a spokesman for the Oregon Department of Agriculture. “It is fire-engine red, burst- ing with flavor, sweeter and juicier than berries from anywhere else in the United States. It is also highly per- ishable. California strawberries are sturdier but if you buy the right variety Oregon can match them. The web- site for Oregon strawberry varieties lists 12 different kinds all with different qualities: Albion, Charm, Hood, Mary’s Peak, Puget Crimson, Shuksan, Sea- scape, Sweet Sunrise and Tillamook. You can find more in- formation about them with pictures at htpps.ore- Quick ‘N Easy gon-strawberry.org/variety. strawberry pie If you’ve not grown • 1 (9 inch) pie crust, strawberries before, here’s a few things to remember. baked • 1 quart of fresh straw- Strawberries need 6-10 berries • 1 cup white sugar • 3 tablespoons corn- starch • 3/4 cup water • 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream Arrange half of the straw- berries in a baked pastry shell. Mash remaining ber- ries and combine with sug- ar in a medium saucepan. Place saucepan over medi- um heat and bring to a boil, stirring frequently. In a small bowl, whisk together cornstarch and water. Gradually stir corn- starch mixture into boiling strawberry mixture. Reduce heat and simmer mixture until thickened, about 10 minutes, stirring constantly. Pour mixture over ber- ries in pastry shell. Chill for several hours before serv- ing. In a small bowl, whip cream until soft peaks form. Serve each slice of pie with a dollop of whipped cream. Serves 6 or 8. Strawberries and mixed green salad with poppy seed vinaigrette Ingredients: • 1 (10 to 12-ounce) package baby spinach or mixed greens, washed and dried • 1 pint of strawberries, hulled and quartered Vinaigrette: • 1/2 lemon, juiced • 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar • 1/3 cup sugar • 1 tablespoon vegetable oil • 1 teaspoon of poppy seeds In a large salad bowl, add the mixed greens and strawberries, and toss to- gether. For the dressing: In a small glass bowl or jar with a tight-fitting lid, combine the lemon juice, vinegar, sugar, oil and poppy seeds. Whisk together in the glass bowl or shake if using a jar. Dress the salad right before serving. for The Sentinel • School for the CAL School District is almost out for summer. Tomorrow, June 20, students will come for a half-day, then be on their way home. • Another reminder to drive more carefully as stu- dents are bicycling or walk- ing along our busy roads. Please drive the posted speed through Lorane on Territorial Highway and in the center of Lorane on Old Lorane Road. People have been driving much too fast. 6-day weather forecast THURSDAY FRIDAY 69° | 47° 74° | 49° Partly Cloudy Partly Cloudy • Tomorrow night, June 20, the Territorial High- way Reconstruction pub- lic meeting will be held at Lorane Grange from 6 to 8 p.m. Construction will take place on a portion of Terri- torial Road from Gillespie Corners into the town of Lorane. Beginning in 2020, it will be done in stages un- til 2024. Come to the meet- ing and hear the plans to improve this much needed section of road. • Football strengthening Salad: • 4½ cups (1½ pounds) California strawberries, stemmed and quartered • 1 medium cucumber, peeled, seeded and cut into ½-inch dice • ¾ cup Italian parsley leaves • 4 green onions, chopped • 6 radishes, thinly sliced Vinaigrette: • 3 tablespoons rice vin- egar • ½ teaspoon salt • ½ teaspoon sugar • 1½ teaspoons chopped fresh dill • 1½ teaspoons chopped fresh mint • ½ teaspoon ground cumin • ½ teaspoon sweet pa- prika • ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil In bowl, whisk together all vinaigrette ingredients except oil. Whisk in oil un- til blended. To make salad: In large bowl, toss salad ingredi- ents with vinaigrette until coated. Mound salad on 6 chilled plates, dividing it equally. Serve immediately. Makes 6 servings. Contact Betty Kaiser’s Cook’s Corner at 942-1317 or email bchatty@ bettykaiser.com. will continue on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursdays. • Plan to take part in the 16th Annual Crow Car Show on July 13. Volunteers are needed, so call Marissa at 641-517-6608 to volun- teer or find out more infor- mation. The show is bring- ing back the free pancake breakfast plus there will be all-day raffles, an activity Kid Zone and more. Add all that to the amazing cars and you’ll have a fantastic day. Transmissions Plus & AUTOMOTIVE SPECIALTIES PRACTICING THE ART OF TRANSMISSION REPAIR SERVICE SINCE 1991 SATURDAY SUNDAY 78° | 51° 72° | 51° Partly Cloudy Partly Cloudy MONDAY TUESDAY 70° | 50° A.M. Rain 73° | 50° Partly Cloudy 60% of smalled businesses close their doors within 6 months following a cyber-attack. Call today (541) 942-0555. PayneWest.com/Cottage-Grove Th e Cat Walk Strawberry and cucumber salad LORANE NEWS Contributed by Lil Thompson By Mary Ellen “Angel Scribe” Manual & Automatic Transmission Repair Tune ups 30-60-90K Services Brakes, belts, hoses and cooling system services Muffl ers & Custom Exhaust All makes and models. MAINTAINING YOUR VEHICLE AFFORDABLY Mary Ellen and her cats enjoy strolling around town meeting other pet lovers. Y es, I know! Unusual! Eccentric idea but I still did it! When we moved to Cottage Grove my husband had long working hours, so I was lonely. The only way to solve the dilemma was adopt- ing a dog, walking around town and “bumping into” new friends. The only trouble was that we had four cats — and a dog was not in the immediate picture. Then a flash idea came to solve the problem: walk the cats. Who could resist stopping to talk to someone walking gorgeous silver Persian cats on a leash or rid- ing pretty in a pet stroller! We bought a blue pet stroller. I made cute H-harness vests and long-neon colored leashes in case a cat broke away while walking, I could follow the “flea”-ing flash of neon. (Which luckily, I never had to do!) Soon, our indoor cats enjoyed their afternoon strolls around the neighborhood and into town. They sat upright peering out the cloth mesh that zipped them safely in the buggy. They watched birds, squirrels and other cats, and loved sniffing the air. Some took cat naps, but mostly they were fully engaged with all the new sights, sounds and smells. Our daily strolls improved their heart health and mine. In more ways than I could have imagined, the walks expanded our world in other ways than just ex- ercise. We were meeting lots of neighbors and the cats became local celebra-cats. Pet lovers, amazed pedestri- ans, tourists, teens, children and seniors stopped and talked to us. As we approached strangers, there were no more of a slight tip of their heads and a “Have a nice day” conversation. Everyone dove into an excited conversation asking to know the cats’ names, ages, breed and what we fed them and mostly why we were out walking. Some peo- ple even wanted to know how to teach their cats to walk on a leash. The cats walking through town brought smiles to everyone driving or walking by. When they were done with walking, they easily jumped back into the stroller. Before long, the cats knew their way home no matter which direction we walked — even from a mile away. They negotiated the train tracks, parks and wisely looked both ways before crossing a driveway or street. I had already purr-used the areas to make sure no loose dogs were ever seen on our walks. My furry family led the way like a short-fluffy dog- sled team. On one occasion, a car gently bumped into another because the driver was rubber necking at the white furballs pulling the buggy down a quiet road. More times than I could count, drivers (even tourists) pulled over and asked to take a photo of a sight they had never seen before. One of our best memories was of the owner of the French Cafe who loved cats. He always invited us in to give the kitties a slice of turkey. It did not take the cats long to figure out who had the best treats in town and they would pull me up the sidewalk and right into the open cafe doorway to the delight of all the customers. The funniest things I remember: Walking by the carnival and several rough-looking carnies crossed the street over to our little-furry parade. These large bearded-tattooed men dissolved into smiles and de- clared that seeing cats walking like dogs on a leash was the most amazing thing that they had ever seen. Also, many people did not look close enough at the cats and said, “Your ‘dogs’ are so pretty.” Who knew kitties would cure loneliness by intro- ducing you to your neighbors while improving your health? I bet you are wondering, “If you walk 10,000 steps a day, does that mean the cats walked 40,000 steps?” TALES: Would I recommend walking cats in harnesses or in- vesting in a pet stroller? Yes! Meow! WE LIVE IN THE SAME TOWN WE WORK IN “WE MAKE SHIFT HAPPEN!” www.automotivespecialties.biz DUSTIN TULLAR & RUSS OWENS 541-942-8022 • COTTAGE GROVE Share your fur-avorite pet memory or adventure at angelscribe@msn.com. Visit Pet Tips ‘n’ Tales on Facebook at/www.facebook.com/PetTipsandTales Humane Society for Neuter/Spay Assistance Program. 541-942-2789
