COUNT von IMHOFF . . . and a BUTTER TART SLICE

We lived in Saskatchewan for over 30 years and always meant to visit the Imhoff Gallery in St. Walburg . . . maybe next year.  Now I’m sorry we didn’t make it there until this year because the girls would have enjoyed it.  

First off, you have to drive along lovely country roads. 

When you get there, the Gallery is all gingerbread on the outside and there's still lots of his work inside. 

Can you see the faded mural? 

Count Berthold von Imhoff (January 14, 1868 – December 14, 1939) was born in Germany.  When he was 16, he won an award for a grand painting of Emperor Frederick which you can see in Lloydminster at the Tourist Center/Museum.

He studied art, got married, and immigrated to Reading, Pennsylvania, USA.  The cathedral in Reading contains some of his most important work.

Imhoff’s love of hunting brought him to Saskatchewan.  He bought himself a farm near St. Walburg, hired some workers, and did it up in style.

                  This is the teeny house they lived in just at first.

The big house is occupied by his descendants (he had 7 kids), but two rooms are kept in their original state as a museum.  These rooms FASCINATED me:  the way they were painted, the carved mouldings, the old furniture,  and the walls covered with hunting trophies. 

Imhoff shipped  huge religious canvases to Europe and to the United States where they were glued onto walls to decorate churches.   In Saskatchewan, he contributed his work to many small churches for free. 

  The Depression years hit hard though and Imhoff ran out of money.  When he was invited to Rome to receive a knighthood from the pope, Imhoff didn’t have enough money to buy a suit.

        After this very pleasant tour and chat with the local lady who was staffing the gallery just for the day, we headed into the nearby town of St. Walburg for refreshments at the Farmhouse Inn and Restaurant.

        It was a lovely day to sit outside.  

The gravy that came with Bryan’s fries was FANTASTIC!

  I also enjoyed my coffee and a Butter Tart slice.

BUTTER TART SLICE.

½ cup butter

1 cup flour

2 tbsp icing sugar

Blend these together in a food processor; then press into a nine inch square pan.  Bake 5 minutes at 350.

Topping:

1 ½ cups brown sugar

¼ cup butter

1 cup raisins

2 eggs

1 tbsp vinegar

1 tsp vanilla.

Mix topping ingredients together.  Pour over cookie base. Bake 25 minutes at 350.   Ahhhhh! so good and so easy that you'll be able to kick back and reminisce about the good ol' days when overworked women like our mothers made REAL BUTTER TARTS.

******

P.S.  Imhoff decorated over 90 churches.  If you’d like to find out  where they are, look him up on Wikipedia!  

  

           

UKRAINIAN CULTURAL HERITAGE VILLAGE . . . and UKRAINIAN CAULIFLOWER SALAD

It’s much more than a museum.  It’s a TIME TRIP back to meet the pioneers. 

The guides wear period costumes and they stay in character.  The young woman in the first house we popped into told us that our Uncle Vanya would be sorry to have missed our visit.

Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church

The guides speak English, but not after you respond in Ukrainian. 

Ukrainian Greek Orthodox Church

       

This  is only a small sample of all there is to see!

It’s east of Edmonton on Hwy 16.  Don’t miss it!

*****

Bohdan Zahny’s Salad (Salat z Svitnoyi Kapusti, Pomidoriv, Ohirkiw, ta Yabluk)

1 pound cauliflower

½ pound apples

1 pound tomatoes

1 cucumber

½ cup sour cream

1 tbsp vinegar

1 tsp sugar

1 tsp salt

¼ tsp pepper.

·        Separate cauliflower into small florets.  Boil for 3 min in salted water and immediately refresh in cold water.

·        Prepare dressing of sour cream, vinegar, sugar, salt, and pepper.

·        Add finely cut apples, tomatoes, and cucumber to cauliflower.

·        Stir in dressing.  Yum!

Sophie Hodorowicz Knab tells us that, in 1682, the wealthy could enjoy cauliflower dishes.

Sheho, part II, and Congratulations to Marilyn’s family!

Marilyn sent me a picture of her Mom and Dad’s house in Sheho and wrote that it:  

"is still standing very close to St Nicholas Catholic Church that you visited.

Aunty Florence has great memories of wallpapering this house

that Mom and Dad built.

Guido bought Mom a woodstove for this house.”

P.S.  Marilyn also commented:

Sheho is my Dad, Matt’s hometown.  Mom and Dad lived there with my grandmother when first married.  Eleanor was so close to the first home Mom and Dad built that I thought I would send her the picture of the house which is still standing and yes, pink.  My Mom loved pink and even married in Pink and also wore pink to my wedding!    

One of my friend's daughter who lives in Toronto and a is professional photographer said this on Instagram when I posted the picture of the “pink” house,  "So so so cool. Too bad MaryAn couldn't use it as a photo location for wedding pics.”  

********

I also would like to take this opportunity to congratulate Marilyn and her

 family on so many fun times and exciting events!

                                 Marilyn and Bill hanging out with Vern

 

                                        Sophia enjoying Hot Chocolate

Sophia making Christmas Cookies

Marilyn and MaryAn petitioning Santa

 MaryAn’s work/art

MaryAn and her fiancé 

 Josephine 's arrival

And soon,  a wedding. 

 Congratulations, one and all!

SHEHO, SK . . . and SPANISH RICE

There are MANY Stadnyks in Saskatchewan who probably are related to my family, but we don’t know any of them.

In 1905, my grandfather, John Stadnyk, immigrated to Canada along with his cousins.  John went to Manitoba; his cousins went to Sheho, Saskatchewan.   (My gedo is the one sitting down.)

We’ve passed by Sheho countless times, but this summer we decided to ‘tour’ the tiny village . . . and we’re so glad we did.

You won't see this from the highway; you actually have to drive in.

When I got out to take this picture, a man waved to me from the adjoining backyard.  “That was once a blacksmith shop,” Ivan P. informed me.

“The town’s amazingly neat and tidy,” I remarked.

“It’s someone’s job to go around and do that,” explained Ivan.

I asked about this little church across the way.  “That was the Pentecostal Church,” said Ivan.  Then he told us where to find all the other churches in town.  “But first you should go to the Teahouse before it closes.”

We asked Mrs. Hart if she had any pies and there was just one piece of apple pie left.

“But I made zucchini cake just this morning.”

The interior is really cute, but it was such a lovely day we asked if we could sit outside. 

Before long, another car pulled up, and we all sat outside chatting with Mrs. Hart like old friends.  Before marriage, Mrs. Hart was a Berezowski. 

 “There used to be another church across the highway,” she said.  “You know Ukrainians.  I don’t like you so I’m building one over there.” 

 

This was so funny because I remember Mom and Dad switching from the church in one community to another in a different town because of personality clashes with some congregation member or other.

Ukrainian Greek Orthodox

Sacred Heart, Roman Catholic

(very nice inside as noted by peeping through a window)

 

Ukrainian Greek Catholic

Marilyn, you were the inspiration for this trip as you posted a picture of this church as being the one your relatives helped to build.

******

After our big camping trip, extra European weiners  lingered in my freezer so I dug into Mary Meade’s SAUSAGE Cookbook  and came up with this simple but very good recipe.

SPANISH RICE and WEINERS  (Mary used Vienna Sausages)

3 slices bacon

1 medium onion

1 cup rice

1 large can tomatoes (796 ml)

1 can tomato sauce (213 ml)

½ cup water

1 tsp salt

1 tsp chili powder

¼ tsp pepper

1 green pepper

7 to 10 mushrooms (fresh)

½ to 1 pound European weiners

·        Chop onion finely.

·        Whirl tomatoes in food processor or chop them.

·        Dice bacon and cook until crisp.

·        Start oven preheating to 350.

·        Remove bacon and set aside in a Dutch oven or casserole dish.

·        Add onion and sauté for a minute or two.  Transfer to Dutch oven.

·        Scrape up browned bits with water and add to Dutch oven.

·        Stir in tomatoes, rice, tomato sauce, and seasonings.

·        Cover Dutch oven and bake for 450 min.

·        Slice mushrooms (not thinly) or cut in quarters.

·        Chop green pepper into ½ inch to 1 inch dice.

·        Cut weiners into one inch lengths.

·        Take out Dutch oven and stir in green pepper, mushrooms, and weiners.

·        Cover, return to oven, and bake 15 more minutes.

Or turn off oven and let casserole sit in it for 30 minutes or more while you enjoy a drink and chat with your guests.   Everything will be hot and cooked just right!