HOME SWEET HOME continued
Mary Beth Voelker
Mary Beth Voelker is a writer, a mother,
a cook, a gardener, and a crafter. Though
originally from Pittsburgh, she and her family
kept coming back to North Carolina until God
let them stay. She likes to say that while she has
often been bored at work she has never been
bored at home.
Home
Sweet
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Recipes, Crafts & Life Tips
HOME SWEET HOME continued
Lemon-Dill Salmon Patties
Here’s a family favorite recipe that makes a
big batch of Salmon Patties to freeze for quick,
easy, busy-day meals. Easily divided to make a
smaller batch if you don’t want to freeze any.
Ingredients
• 4 (14 3/4 ounce) cans salmon, drained
• 4 eggs
• 1 cup cracker crumbs or 1 cup dry
breadcrumbs
• 1⁄2 cup oatmeal
• 2 teaspoons dill weed or 2 tablespoons
minced fresh dill
• 4 tablespoons lemon juice
1⁄2 cup milk
• salt and pepper to taste
Directions
Drain the salmon then flake it. I leave
the bones and skin in because they pack
a powerful nutritional punch, but you can
remove them if you dislike them.
Add the remaining ingredients and mix
well. Let the mixture rest 5 minutes.
Form a test patty. Add additional crumbs
or milk if necessary to make a moist patty that
holds together well.
Heat a little oil or butter in a skillet over
medium to medium-high heat and cook
patties until the first side is nicely browned.
Turn and cook the other side to a nice brown.
Don’t turn too soon—the patty will fall apart.
Make as many batches as necessary, adding
more oil when you need to and using two
skillets if you have room on the stove to speed
up the process.
Serve hot with lemon wedges, serve hot or
cold as sandwiches on hard rolls with cocktail
sauce or tartar sauce, or serve mini-patties as
party snacks.
Freeze extra patties individually-wrapped
and reheat gently in the microwave when
needed.☐
Fruit Trees?
Someday Should Be Today
When we bought our first North Carolina
home fourteen years ago we had big plans
for how, someday, we’d have grapes and
peaches and blueberries and hazelnuts.
Somehow, actually putting in the fruit kept
getting pushed back to “Next fall” or “Next
spring” and we ended up with nothing but the
muscadines—leaving a good crop for the new
owner.
When we bought this property three years
ago we’d learned our lesson. The first thing we
did on this land was plant muscadines and a
fig tree. This year we should see our first crop of
the muscadines and might—or might not—get
a few figs. As I write this I’ve got two bareroot
pear trees in my screen house waiting for my
next day off and an order of two plum trees,
two hazelnuts, and a collection of raspberry
and blueberry bushes to be shipped shortly.
It’s easy to put this kind of planting off,
to say “We’re not ready,” or “We’ll do it next
year.” That’s a mistake. “Next year” too easily
turns into “Someday” and “Someday” turns
into never so that 10 years down the road you
still don’t have the opportunity to pick the
freshest, most delicious fruit you’ll ever eat
just by stepping outside your door.
With long-term projects like planting an
orchard or, at least, a berry patch, there’s no
perfect time hanging out there in the future.
You will always be “too busy” in the spring
or the fall. The ground will always need to be
prepared. There will always be other things
demanding your time and attention.
If you’ve been wanting to get some
fruit trees or make other additions to your
landscape that will take time to mature, make
“Someday” into “Today,” and you’ll soon be
enjoying the rewards of your efforts instead of
HOME SWEET HOME con't. next column HOME SWEET HOME con't. next column
regretting the time lost.
Tip: Bareroot plants must be shipped and
planted in the fall or spring while they’re
dormant, but potted fruit trees can be planted
at any time of year. You’ll find a larger selection
of varieties buying bareroot trees by mail, but
will find the most popular varieties potted at
local nurseries during a longer season.
Tip: The best piece of advice I’ve been
given is this, “Don’t put a twenty-dollar plant
in a five-dollar hole.” Dig deep, dig wide, and
take the time and effort to improve the soil.
The soil here in Moore Country can be hard
and difficult to dig, but that is exactly why it’s
worth doing the work so that your baby plants
don’t have to. Make it easy for your plant to get
off to a good start and you’ll be glad you did.☐
A $30 Dollar Tree in a $30 Hole.
No. 142 The Pinehurst Gazette, Inc. p.11