This morning I was walking the hill-filled path (roughly 3 miles) in a nearby neighborhood at about 7:15 a.m. I have to get up early to exercise to be able to enjoy the cool and quiet of the morning. I look at the architecture, yards and gardens and wave to people out walking their dogs or driving by. I usually see lots of chipmunks and squirrels, cardinals and bluebirds and every so often a hawk will screech loudly and fly overhead, eventually perching in a tall pine tree.
But today on my walk, I saw three bunnies. They were in different yards along the way... one was nibbling his breakfast, the second was sitting in the shade and the third was hopping down a driveway.
Seeing them reminded me that a few years ago, a family of rabbits took residence in my yard and it was not unusual to see several of varying sizes at different places...some in the vinca, some by the apple trees, some making their way to the shelter of the azalea bushes.
At the time, I had black-eyed susans lining the flower beds in front of our house. The plants grew next to the sidewalk and there were hundreds of beautiful flowers. I had planted them as a remembrance of my home state of Maryland and was thrilled that they were thriving in the Georgia clay. In the fall I would leave the dried flowers in place after their season had come and gone and watch the small birds land on the centers and eat the seeds that remained. The goldfinches seemed to enjoy them the most.
This particular summer, I watched through my kitchen window, not the birds eat the black-eyed susans, but the rabbits! They would delicately bend the stems to the ground and eat all the yellow and black flowers, leaving only stalks behind. It took weeks for them to finish off all the blossoms, and in the end, I had a garden full of sticks and a family of contented, well-fed rabbits.
The black-eyed susans didn't return to my flower bed until this year. Some dormant seed decided it was time to try again and I now have 2 small plants that have volunteered to take up space next to the sidewalk. I have seen rabbits in my yard recently and wonder if they will make a meal of the flowers. As much as I love the flowers, it's really OK with me if they do.
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Blueberry Crumble
Preheat the oven to 375.
Mix 6 cups of blueberries, 1/2 cup sugar, 2 teaspoons of lemon juice and 5 teaspoons cornstarch together. Mix until the blueberries are well coated and pour into an 8-inch square baking dish.
6 cups of freshly washed and drained blueberries.
Blueberries, sugar, lemon juice and cornstarch.
I used a pretty baking dish instead of an 8-inch square!
For the crumble topping, mix 1 1/2 sticks of softened, unsalted butter with 1/2 cup light brown sugar. Use a mixer to make the batter light and fluffy. Add the butter mixture to 2 cups all-purpose flour and 1 teaspoon coarse salt. Mix this with your fingers until large pieces come together. Spread this over the blueberry mixture.
Unsalted butter and brown sugar added to flour and salt.
Blueberries peaking out from under the crumble topping.
The blueberries are completely covered here!
The crumble baked at 375 for 40 to 50 minutes. Be sure it's bubbling when you take it out!
In a dessert dish, waiting for the final topping.
Perfection.
The blueberry crumble is delicious hot or cold. Today I topped it with vanilla frozen yogurt, but you could use ice cream or whipped cream. This is so, so good!!
My wish for you today is that you find something that calms and relaxes the mind (for me walking and looking at nature) and feeds the soul (baking).
May you have a three bunny day!!
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