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Dear Friend,

Greetings from the Amish community! I hope this email finds you in good health and spirits. I’m sure you are looking forward to the warmer days of spring, just like we are.

This week was highlighted by an annual winter tradition that the Amish families have practiced for generations: filling up the ice houses!

Amish do not have refrigerators or freezers in their homes, so they rely on natural ice to keep their food fresh throughout the year. Every winter, when the ponds freeze over, they cut large blocks of ice and store them in insulated buildings called ice houses. This way, they can have ice for their milk, butter, cheese, meat, and other perishables all summer.

This year, however, there was a bit of a challenge. The weather had been so mild until last week that some families began worrying that the ice wouldn’t be thick enough to harvest. They prayed for a cold snap, and God answered their prayers!

Last week, the temperature dropped below zero for several days, and the ice grew thick and solid on the ponds. The Amish families wasted no time and got to work as soon as possible. They cleared the snow from the ponds and marked the areas where they would begin cutting. They used a special saw to cut the ice into rectangular blocks, about 50 pounds each.

They worked in a team of 12 men and older boys, divided into two groups: one on the pond and one on the land. One man operated the saw on the pond, while two others used ice tongs to lift the blocks from the water. Two boys then used pitchforks to slide the blocks to the pond’s edge to one of the waiting wagons driven by one of the four men who were the designated wagon drivers.

Wagons were each loaded with approximately 80 blocks of ice and driven to the ice houses. Two more men were in charge of stacking the ice inside the ice houses while the driver unloaded the blocks into a wooden trough that allowed the ice to slide into the icehouse. This process was repeated until they filled six ice houses, one for each family in the local “ring”. A “ring” is what the Amish call a group of families that help each other fill their ice houses.

It was hard work but also fun and rewarding. They enjoyed the camaraderie and the satisfaction of preserving a piece of winter for the warmer months ahead. They also thanked God for providing them with this natural resource and blessing them with good weather and safety.

Besides crafting baskets and harvesting ice, here are some of this week’s other happenings in and around the Amish family’s farms.

Mast Family:

The Mast family joined in putting up ice this week. The men and boys helped cut and carry the frozen blocks, feeling the cold bite their fingers and toes. They look forward to the summer when they use the ice to keep their perishables fresh and make refreshing treats. They also made balona from the deer and hog meat they had preserved. The girls spent a day and a half canning the balona to make it last.

Yoder Family:

Yoder family welcomed their eldest daughter, who had returned from an extended visit to their kin in Missouri. They have a butcher shop, and she had gone there to help them butcher through deer season. She was happy to be home. The Yoder family had planned to butcher two of their hogs, but they had to wait. The ice harvest took a little longer than usual because some ice was thin.

Gingerich Family:

Gingerich family decided to treat themselves to homemade ice cream bars, using their farm’s fresh cream and eggs. They cranked up a batch of vanilla ice cream, and by putting the ice cream between two graham crackers, they created a sweet and simple dessert for the whole family. The Gingerich family also hopes to get caught up with the baskets that sold out over the past holiday season, so they are focused heavily on crafting baskets.

Featured Recipe:

Last week, we were asked for a butterscotch recipe, so we asked the Amish families for their favorite recipes that featured butterscotch in them. The Yoder family gave us this one that sounds unique and delicious.

BUTTERSCOTCH CRUNCH COOKIES

2 c. shortening

2 c. white sugar

2 c. brown sugar

2 tsp. vanilla

4 eggs

3 c. flour

2 tsp. salt

2 tsp. soda

6 c. oatmeal

Mix together shortening and sugars. Add vanilla and eggs, beat and add dry ingredients. Bake at 400° for 10 minutes. You may add coconut, chocolate or butterscotch or peanut butter chips. Whatever you like.