Turtle Crossing

Little Turtle

There was a little turtle.

He lived in a box.

He swam in a puddle.

He climbed on rocks.

He snapped at a mosquito.

He snapped at a flea.

He snapped at a minnow.

And he snapped at me.

He caught the mosquito.

He caught the flea.

He caught the minnow.

But he didn't catch me.  

by Vachel Lindsay

1879-1931

Vachel Lindsay was famous in his day as a traveling bard whose dramatic deliveries in public readings helped keep appreciation for poetry as a spoken art alive in American Midwest. Like Walt Whitman, Lindsay was a poet who traveled widely and chronicled as much as he could about the American experience. Perhaps you remember learning  this poem for recitation in school. The structure of this poem makes it really easy to remember.

Traveling the lake roads either by foot or car one needs to proceed with great caution this time of the year. Lots of turtles make the trek across the roads oblivious to traffic. Some just get as far as the middle of the road to lay eggs. Recently a turtle found a good egg laying place in our driveway. We have had to be creative figuring out ways to protect the egg laying spot from Bella. She is persistent!   

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Black Forest Cupcakes

recipe from My Family Table by John Besh

Ingredients:

• 1- 15 oz. can pitted sweet cherries in syrup
• 4 oz. dark chocolate coarsely chopped
• 1-1/3 cup plus 1 TB. sugar   
• 10 TB. butter (optional to use half butter and half margarine)
• 1/4 cup cherry brandy plus 1 TB. cherry brandy
• 1 large egg
• 1 cup flour
• 2 TB. cocoa powder
• 1 TB. baking powder
• 1 cup heavy cream, whipped
• dark chocolate curls (I used a vegetable peeler)

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 350
• Drain cherries, reserve the cherries and syrup separately
• Set aside drained cherries in a bowl
• Combine the syrup, chocolate, 1-1/3 cup sugar, butter and and 1/4 cup brandy in a saucepan
• Over low heat stir till chocolate melts
• Pour into a large bowl and whisk in egg
• Sift flour, cocoa powder and baking powder in a small bowl
• Gently fold flour mixture into chocolate mixture
• Line a 12 cup muffin tin with paper liners
• Divide batter evenly among cupcake liners
• Bake about 22-25 minutes or till cupcakes are firm to touch
• Cool a few minutes and place on a wire rack to cool
• Mix 1 TB. cherry brandy, 1 TB. sugar and stir into whipped cream
• Cut a quarter size hole into the top of each cupcake and fill with two reserved cherry in each
• note:the little tops are edible and can be added back on cupcake then top with whip cream mixture and shaved chocolate-my family ate the tops before I could put them back on