2016 Inspirational Day

MCBC Women's Ministry Report

2016 Inspirational Day 

For the full stories and pictures please click HERE and follow all the links provided.

Enjoy!

BC Women's Ministry Retreat

October 16-18, 2015

For a downloadable poster please go to our WEBSITE.

Dreams for My Daughter

International Women' Day 2015

Just wanted to share this sweet post by Christina Bartel Barkman about her hopes and dreams for her daughter's future! 

You can read her blogpost HERE 

The Barkmans are Mennonite Church Canada Witness Workers in the Philippines and 

Mennonite Women Canada helps support their ministry through our

Pennies & Prayer Legacy Fund.

You can also help by donating towards their Ministry HERE

And... you can read more about the Barkman's work by clicking HERE.

Enjoy! 
  
P.S. While your checking out all the above links... why not take a few extra minutes and explore our NEW Mennonite Women Canada webpage! We are rather proud of it! :-)

Women Walking Together in Faith - January 2015 - "Looking back on a most incredible journey"

Princess Gloria 

In our latest Canadian Mennonite article

(Looking back on a most incredible journey - page 12) 

you will be introduced to our wonderful friend and Sister in Christ who has become an integral part of our MCBC Women’s Ministry retreat weekends. 

Over the past four years, "Princess Gloria” has brought loads of enthusiasm, fabulous ideas and endless laughter to our retreats & committee meetings! We have had many ( in her words), “Goose-y Moments/Aha/God Moments” together, as she shared her gifts among us, by helping to create meaningful events with opportunities to learn, have fun, or just relax; always with the intent of encouraging  women to return again the following year, bringing friends or family members with them. Her presence has been, and continues to be, an incredible blessing!  

So, here's a big shout-out of thanks from All of us 

that enjoy our MCBC Women's Retreat weekends! 

Waltrude Gortzen – MCBC Women’s Ministry. 

P.S. And... if you are curious as to why "Princess Gloria"? 

It's really quite simple - she is the daughter of our King of Kings and therefore a Princess! 

Are you a princess, yet?

Merry Christmas from BC - Part two

MCBC Women's Retreat 2014

You can read all about it HERE but first.... get yourself a cup of coffee and some Christmas cookies because you will be in front of your computer screen for a while! :-)

Enjoy! 

Merry Christmas from all of us to all of you!

The Retreat Planning Committee - 2014

l-r: Rita Siebert, Cheryl Dyck, Waltrude Gortzen,

Kay Moua and Candice Corder.

In the centre is April Yamasaki - our weekend speaker

Missing is committee member Gloria Laurence

Merry Christmas from BC - Part One

I know it's been a long time in coming but I purposely waited for the Christmas Season to come around before our 2014 Retreat reporting!

Here is the link for PART ONE ! Enjoy!

A Santa Sack big enough to hide a Committee member in! :-)
Found at the 2014 Annual MCC Festival in Abbotsfford.

MCBC Women's Ministry Retreat

Here is the poster for the upcoming Women's Retreat on October 17-19 sponsored by MCBC Women's Ministry.  I was a guest at their retreat last fall and had an amazing time!  This year's theme is "Unwrap Your Gifts" and they are celebrating Christmas in October.  It should be a lot of fun!

For more information check out this link and this link.

Women walking together in faith - July 2014 - "Let's celebrate"

Women Walking Together in Faith 
is the name of Mennonite Women Canada's page in the Canadian Mennonite magazine. Our executive members each take a turn writing or finding someone to write.  The most recent article appeared on July 7 and was written by Waltrude Gortzen our BC Women's Ministry Rep.  She begins her article by saying "In our frenzied, everyday lives, it is essential that we celebrate important ministry anniversaries or family milestones that come along...."   Click here to read the whole article and see the photo of Waltrude's mother who recently celebrated her 80th birthday.

BC women 'at a time of crossroads'

Back a few months ago I posted announcements about the upcoming events that the provincial/area church women's organizations were hosting.  See post from March 29 (click here).  The follow-up report for WMCEC's event "Faith, Food and Friends" was posted on May 8.  In addition WMCEC's "Tulip Festival Bus Tour" report appeared on May 28. 

The BC Women's Ministry event took place on May 3 with a Diamond Anniversary celebrating 75 years.  Amy Dueckman, BC Correspondent for the Canadian Mennonite, wrote a report which was published May 26. "Five past presidents of what was formerly BC Women in Mission shared memories reflecting how serving had changed them and how women's roles in church and society has changed over the years." To read the whole article click here.

Thanks to the planning committee members of BC Women's Ministry:  Waltrude Gortzen (Abbotsford), Rita Siebert (Richmond) and Cheryl Dyck (Mission) for the commitment of time and energy you have put into your province-wide events!

Cutting the celebratory cake for BC Women's Ministry
are members of the planning committee:
Cheryl Dick, left, Waltrude Gortzen and Rita Siebert.

Peace by Piece

Finally, the full picture report from the 

2013 MCBC Women's Ministry Fall Retreat 

is ready for you to inspect!  

Just click on the link right HERE! 

Thought that a Fall picture would be appropriate! 

Enjoy! 

WEST meets EAST

This report/interview is LONG overdue and I apologize. 

With the business of summer followed by the final preparations for our annual retreat weekend, I must confess that I forgot to post the full interview here on our blog.

So... to all of you who read the Mennonite Women Canada "Connections" and came here looking for the whole story .... the reason you didn't find it should now be obvious! 

But.... now it's here and I feel much better!

Hope you will enjoy this post and be inspired to participate in your local area Women's Retreat Weekend in the future! God Bless! 

********************
Interview with the women of

Western Hmong Mennonite Church

Sunday, July 21, 2013 at their meeting place – 5:00pm

Hammond United Church

11391 Dartford Street,

Maple Ridge, V2X 1V6

Present: Cheryl Dyck, Rita Siebert and Waltrude Gortzen for MCBC Women’s Ministry

And joining us from the Western Hmong Mennonite Church were:

Left to right:

Back row: Kay Moua (Assistant Women’s group leader and our translator), 

Seng Yang (Pastor’s wife), Song Thao, Lee Yang (Leader of Women’s group) Chia Cha

Front row: Song Thao (Elder’s wife) Mee Lee (Pastor’s mom) 

Mee Thao (Mee Lee’s good friend from Portland, Oregon) 

See Her (Visiting friend from Alaska) Yer Vang

Rita, Cheryl & I had been eagerly anticipating our upcoming visit with our dear Hmong Sisters and in preparation for our visit we sent them some questions to consider and talk about.

During our drive out to Maple Ridge, BC, the 3 of us were wondering how this visit would proceed. How many women could we expect? Would we intimidate them? Would we be able to communicate?

Well... once we arrived it only took a few minutes and we wondered no longer!

We were greeted with hugs, laughter, chatter and smiles!

Introductions were made all around and we were invited to come in and help ourselves to some refreshments and then Seng opened our time together with a prayer in her native Hmong language. 

They were eager to talk and we were eager to listen and learn.

They had obviously talked about the questions we had sent them and were open and willing to share.

********************

Below are their answers to a few of our questions - with ‘minimal’ editing!

   

1. When did your people come to Canada and why?

In 1980, the Hmong people came to Canada because of the Vietnam War. In Canada we live mostly in Ontario and BC.

2. Our home country and our native language:

We came from Laos and our native language is Hmong.

3. How did you learn about Mennonite faith?

We learned about the Mennonite faith from the Mennonite church that had sponsored the First Hmong Mennonite Church community that lives in Ontario.

4. Are there Mennonite Christians in your home country?

In our country there are no Mennonite Christians.

5. Were you allowed to worship freely?

            Before the Vietnam War we were free to worship, but after we were not.

6. What is the size, age range and makeup of your group of women and what are some of your activities as a group?

         In the Western Hmong Mennonite Church, we have 14 women. 

            We have meetings or gatherings 4  times a year, and women’s group is any ages. 

            Our Church meets every Tuesday night @ 7:00pm for Bible Studies and every
            Saturday evening we have song and band practice to prepare for Sunday service.

7. What encourages you to keep participating in MCBC's Women's Ministry?

To encourage our women's group to participate within MCBC grows our faith; gives us more experience of praying to God. Also get to know MCBC women better through fellowship.

8. What advice do you have for us as a committee to better connect with our Ethnic sisters?

Make more connections and keep in touch through events and non-events.

   

********************

Obviously, we talked about much more than just the questions we had sent them and I've since learned that these wonderful Christian Sisters are so committed to attending the annual Fall Women`s Retreat that they go and pick blueberries during the summer in order to raise funds to help pay for their retreat participation. 

In the hot summer sun, a group of 19, including husbands, picked over 1600 pounds of blueberries – about 64 buckets full and they raised $800.00. 

In the blueberry fields: Seng Yang & Kay Moua

Other topics we talked about... now that they live in Canada.... do they still adhere to their ethnic traditions when it comes to weddings and other life events? They told us that the more ‘Canadian’ young people prefer to be more modern. Frequently, the traditional Hmong Celebration is followed by a Western style celebration.

Clothing...

Nowadays, mostly Western style but on special occasions like our 2012 Fall Women’s Retreat – the finery was out on display. 

Left to right: Kay Moua, Kia Xiong and Seng Yang.

Food...
A combination of East and West

These ladies are looking to get involved! Their hope is to participate at this year’s BC MCC Festival September 6 and 7 by providing the masses with their delectable spring-rolls that they treated us with at the 2013 Spring Inspirational Day.

When the women were done, no spring-rolls were left!   

FYI - We are happy to inform you that they did actually participate in the Food Fair at the MCC Festival and their spring-rolls were a huge success! 

One last group picture before going home!

It was a most enjoyable visit!

Thank you, ladies, for spending your time with us!

Written by Waltrude Gortzen

MCBC Women`s Ministry Rep.

Pigs in Mud ???

This wonderful dessert was created by Tony, the new chef at Camp Squeah, to the delight of the more than 80 women who participated in BC Women's Ministry Annual Fall Retreat, October 18-20.  The theme was "Peace by Piece" with guest speaker Rebecca Seiling from Waterloo ON. 

It was an amazing weekend!  Thanks to the planning committee - Waltrude, Cheryl, Rita and Gloria - for their time, energy, enthusiasm, creativity and commitment. And thanks for inviting me to be a part of it!

You'll hear more about the retreat here and on Facebook in a few days!  

So keep coming back!

Ingrid Schultz - A Courageous Woman

Thought that this interview would be a good post after promoting the 

"Courageous Women of the Bible" 

Bible Study Guide. 

Allow me to introduce you to 

Ingrid Schultz... 

 ...my friend and a Sister-in-Christ!

We attended the same high-school and graduated together.

We were in youth group together at Sherbrooke Mennonite Church in Vancouver, BC.

Our paths separated but now after many years, 

we find ourselves attending the same church once again since we both found 

a new spiritual home at Emmanuel Mennonite Church in Abbotsford, BC.

Hope that this interview will inspire you as much as it did me! 

Interview with Chaplain/Pastor Ingrid Schultz  – March 22, 2013

1.  How long have you been in the Ministry?

I began as pastor of Comunidad de Fe, a Hispanic Mennonite Congregation in Chicago, in 1992.  I was doing an internship there through the Seminary Consortium for Urban Pastoral Education (SCUPE) of which AMBS is a consortium member.  I chose to work in a Hispanic congregation because I thought I might be returning to Bolivia where I had worked for 7 years with MCC.  However during my internship pastors Gamaliel and Amanda Falla announced they were leaving to start a church plant in Florida.  The church asked if I would stay on as their pastor.   I eventually said yes.

One of my concerns was how the men of this Hispanic congregation would feel about having a Anglo woman as their pastor.  When I was ordained at Comunidad de Fe on October 15, 1995 the men of the congregation all stood up, each with a carnation in their hand, and in response to my initial concern about how the men would feel about having a woman pastor, talked about a gift they had received through my ministry.  In a moving moment of the service Ruben, a 79 year old Colombian man, who had recently taken a step of faith, said “Pastor Ingrid has been like a mother to me”.       

I was pastor of Comunidad de Fe for 7 years and then moved back to BC.  In March of 1999 I became a pastor at the First United Mennonite Church in Vancouver.   I was an associate pastor at FUMC for 3 years and then lead pastor for 10 years.  I enjoyed working in this congregation of diverse generations and cultures.     

2.  How did you come to have an interest in chaplaincy?

One of the parts of pastoring that I have always enjoyed most is doing visitation and pastoral care.  We had a lot of elders at FUMC and I loved hearing their stories and learning from their life of faith.  I had many opportunities to visit care homes, hospitals and hospice centres and I wanted to learn more about caring for those who are ill and dying.   So the church graciously let me work half time for 8 months while I took Clinical Pastoral Education at Vancouver General Hospital.   CPE challenged me to listen from the heart and got me thinking more about chaplaincy.

In June of 2011 my father died and my mother needed more support at home.  I learned that Menno Home in Abbotsford was looking for a chaplain and, after consulting with my community, I decided to apply.  I was grateful to be invited to the position and to be able to care for my mother. I have been working as chaplain of Menno Home for almost a year and I love my work there.

3.  What are some of your challenges?

An area of learning for me has been providing spiritual care for people with dementia.  Before I started at Menno Home I visited with Chaplain Mary Catherine Fortuna, of the Purdy Pavilion, a long term care facility at UBC.  Mary Catherine told me that when a person’s cognitive ability diminishes their spiritual connection expands.  I watched her in action leading a service for a group of residents and saw how she sparked memory by incorporated the 5 senses, by using familiar rituals, and, of course, through music.  I have tried to do the same in the services I lead at Menno Home; for example having bread baking when we talked about the Lord’s Prayer “give us this day our daily bread”, perfume when we reflected on Mary anointing Jesus feet, and warm face clothes for a hand washing ritual when we talked about footwashing.   We pray the Lord’s Prayer at each service and this is a place of deep connection for residents who have forgotten so much but still know the powerful words of this prayer.

I’m learning that dementia is something akin to the experience of exile of the Children of Israel.  There is a longing for home, and for connection with lost family members and some days one asks “How can we sing the Lord’s song in a strange land?”  I see my role as chaplain as facilitating moments of connection, with God and others, for residents and their families who find themselves in the foreign land of dementia. 

4.  What are the high lights?

Highlights for me are those times when connection occurs.  For example, after a communion service, when a resident with dementia suddenly looked up and said: “Jesus is here”, or when a new family member at our Family and Friends Group is encouraged by someone who has walked the caregiver journey for longer, or when a group of residents start singing “Jesus loves me” and Anna points to me and sings: “Yes, Jesus loves you”!

 A Bible school intern told me that he was hesitant to volunteer with elders at Menno Home.  He wondered if he shouldn’t rather do what he considered “front line work” in God’s Kingdom.  However, after working at Menno Home some weeks he said he discovered that Menno Home was, in fact, at the heart of God’s kingdom.  He spoke eloquently seeing God’s face in a community that mirrors both the vulnerability and the power of Jesus suffering love.  I’m humbled by the way residents, care staff and volunteers mirror that love each day.

5.  Compare being a Senior Pastor to being a Chaplain.

As a lead pastor I enjoyed being a part of a community of diverse ages and cultures who brought their gifts together for the task of being God’s people in mission.  The same is true as chaplain.  I enjoy being a part of an integrated team of care aides, nurses, social workers, housekeeping staff, recreation workers and volunteers who come together to care for residents and model a community that cares for each other.  As lead pastor I enjoyed naming gifts in the congregation.  I also enjoy doing this at Menno Home with staff, residents and volunteers. I think that care homes are a wonderful place to learn about life, faith, gratitude and letting go. I get excited when I see people discovering gifts for service at every age.

6.  What are some of the joys and challenges of being a woman Chaplain/Pastor?

A number of women were my predecessors as chaplains at Menno Home. They did an excellent job. Chaplaincy is an area of ministry that has been open to women for some time. That was not the case for women as lead pastors in Mennonite Church BC. To learn more about the joys and challenges of being a women pastor I’d encourage you to watch the videos related to Women in Ministry that are part of MCBC’s Pilgrimage Project (www.pilgrimageprojec.com ). In them Pastor Helmut Isaac and I tell FUMC’s story.  After I left FUMC to become chaplain at Menno Home the church invited another woman to become their lead pastor.  Lydia Cruttwell is a gifted preacher, teacher and care giver who was a member of FUMC and did her pastoral internship there.  I had read a statistic that churches who hire a woman pastor usually go back to hiring a man as their next pastor. I’m pleased that this was not the case at FUMC.  

MCBC Women's Ministry - Inspirational Day 2013

Finally!

It took some time but it's finally done! 

A full account of our BC Inspirational Day.

Lots of details and lots of pictures and 

you can see and read it all right 

HERE!

Enjoy! ! !

Mennonite Girls Can Cook; Celebrations Book signing events Book Giveaway

Mennonite Girls Can Cook: Celebrations Book signing events Book Giveaway:
Today starts a weekend full of book signing events and parties to celebrate our new book. Our first events will be held in Abbots...

BC has the honour of hosting the launch for this latest book from Mennonite Girls Can Cook. All 10 authors are in town this weekend to autograph our copies.

I will be seeing them tonight and again on Sunday afternoon.

Many congratulations to all of you!

Inspirational Day for BC Women

Here's the poster for the BC Women's Inspirational Day scheduled for Saturday, May 4.  Check out the MCBC Women's Ministry blog to find out what else the women in that province are involved in.

Sacred Pauses

Sooo... have you ever heard of a "blog tour"?

Exactly! Neither had I! :-) 

But... I love to try new things and it helps when the 'blogger on tour' is my pastor.

And, since becoming part of Emmanuel Mennonite Church, (EMC) I've also learned that we attended the same high-school, with April being a year behind me. 

It really is a small world out there!

So... a very warm and friendly welcome to the Mennonite Women Canada blog!

We hope you enjoy your visit and are having fun on your tour!

Now then... it gives me great pleasure to introduce everyone to April Yamasaki - pastor, author of several books and numerous articles.

And... even though Pastor April and I run into each other almost on a weekly bases, (considering we both call Emmanuel Mennonite Church our home church)....what follows is an interview that was done completely via the internet. Isn't technology a wonderful tool?

I submitted 8 questions and she graciously answered them ALL. Thank you, April!

(1)  In 1988, you wrote the devotional guide, Where Two are Gathered.  In 2003, you wrote "Making Disciples" as a Mennonite Publishing Network resource. Now, Sacred Pauses, which is a resource for "those seeking rest and personal renewal." What motivates you to write resources for the church?

There are already so many great books that I sometimes wonder, why write at all? Why not just keep reading? And yet with all that's available, there is still more to be said, still more to explore, and I find myself still drawn to write. In the case of Sacred Pauses, the book is for all those seeking rest and personal renewal, and that includes people in the church and people without any kind of religious affiliation at all. In the book I draw on Scripture, on the example of Jesus, on some of the history of spiritual practice, on my own experience and the experiences of other people--all of that focused on rest and personal renewal which is for the church and for everyone.

(2)  When did you first become interested in writing and what did it take for you to actually write your first book?

I've been interested in writing for as long as I can remember. As a child and teenager, I wrote poetry and short stories. In university, I did an internship at a magazine, and soon after started writing and publishing short articles in various places. Where Two Are Gathered was my first book--it was a series of responsive readings for two or more people to read together, so it was like a series of short pieces. It took a while to find a publisher--I sent my proposal to eight different publishing houses before the manuscript was finally accepted! So both writing the book and persevering to find a publisher took creativity, time, patience, and a stubborn faith.

(3)  How do you decide what you will be writing about?

Most often it feels quite the other way around--that it's not really about my deciding to write something, but about what questions or ideas have taken hold of me. So for example, Sacred Pauses came out of my own experience and questions about spiritual disciplines. The word discipline can come across as harsh, as a kind of punishment. But I discovered that spiritual disciplines don't have to be a burden. They can be a delight, like sacred pauses in our day to refresh and renew us. My own longing for that kind of spiritual refreshment became a book that I wanted to share with others.   

(4)  What are some of the joys and challenges of being a woman in church leadership?  

I love sharing my story as a woman in ministry, how God called me and led me in such a surprising way--from not at all thinking about pastoral ministry, to an interim role that I thought would be for a limited time, to now almost twenty years as a pastor. I am still amazed at that! It's always a joy to share the movement of God's Spirit in my life, and I find that it encourages both women and men in seeking God's leading for their own lives too.

As a woman in church leadership, it's sometimes a challenge to be in the minority, but for me that operates on a number of different levels--as a woman, as a third-generation Chinese Canadian, as someone who hasn't grown up in the Mennonite church, as a member of a relatively small denomination. I've had more than one visitor tell me on a Sunday morning that they came to the church because they had never heard a woman preach before--it can be a challenge to be the object of someone's curiosity or opposition, but there's also tremendous opportunity in that to share God's grace and good news.

(5)  What are some of the challenges of combining church leadership and being a writer?

One challenge is simply having time for everything in my life--not only church leadership and writing, but home life, personal life, extended family, friends--like most people I know, it seems like I'm combining a lot of different things, and I want and need to give each their due. I'm a morning person, so this morning I was up just before 5:30am, started writing this about 6am, and will soon be ready to put it away and get to the church for 9am. To some that might sound gruelling, but for me it's a great way to start my day.

Another challenge is that both pastoral ministry and my writing beyond my local congregation involve a lot of work with words. I love it, but sometimes all of those words can also be too much of a good thing. I think that's partly why I'm so drawn to silence as a sacred pause.

(6)  Compare writing your first book to this book. What has changed and how is it still the same?

What hasn't changed for me is that writing still takes creativity, time, patience, and stubborn faith. But new technology has made a big difference. Some of my reading and research now takes place online. For my new book, I was able to submit my manuscript digitally as an email attachment. I'm doing this blog tour. We've been giving books away on Goodreads and Twitter.  All of these things were unheard of years ago. 

 

(7)  What are some of the joys and challenges of being a writer?

I love to play with ideas and words, to immerse myself in Scripture and prayer, to write something as an offering to God that I hope will also inspire and teach others. All of those are deep joys. But writing is also hard work, it can be a struggle to communicate in ways that connect with people, and there's always a gap between what I imagine and how it turns out on the page.The joys and challenges are all part of the creative process.

(8)  “Sacred Pauses” – what has been your personal highlight connected to this book?

I am most amazed by the gracious response the book has received. Even before it was published, people I didn't even know were willing to endorse it. My church has been very supportive. A friend passed her copy on to a friend who passed it on to another friend, and now the first two friends each have another copy of the book and are re-reading it.  A few people have sent me pictures of their everyday icon which is something I introduce in chapter one. I love hearing how the book is being read and put into practice. I'd be happy to hear more from readers and invite responses at http://aprilyamasaki.com 

_________________________
April Yamasaki
http://aprilyamasaki.com

Sacred Pauses: spiritual practices for personal renewal by April Yamasaki is available from Herald Press. For more information on the author or to follow her blog, please visit http://aprilyamasaki.com. 

Simply Majestic

Well.... it took a while but I finally finished the 2012 retreat report and I might as well tell you up front..... it's l-o-n-g and it has l-o-t-s and l-o-t-s of pictures so it will take you a while to get through it. :-)

Please come and have a visit with all the MCBC ladies. 

They are waiting for you right HERE.

60th Anniversary - more pictures.

Thought you might like to see a few more pictures from our 60th Anniversary Celebration! 

These photos were taken by Amy Dueckman BC Correspondent to Canadian Mennonite. 

What's a birthday party without presents? No fun at all! :-)
Donated door prizes for which we are so thankful.

Friends having a chat.
Dori Zerbe-Cornelsen and Marie Rehsler

Our Worship Team and Amy even got me! :-)

Reading of the historical vignettes.
L-R: Waltrude Gortzen, Lois Mierau, Liz Koop, Ev Buhr,
Myrna Sawatzky and Carol Penner.

A room full of pretty ladies listening attentively! 

We are thankful that the Lord blessed us with a wonderful celebration.

We will always remember it fondly! 

Rhubarb and Strawberries

In BC the church secretaries within MCBC have an annual "Secretaries' Retreat". 
Yup... and I have the privilege to partake because I am an "alumni". :-) 
It's generally organized by the MCBC Office Administrator or, as we like to call her - the "Boss Secretary". For several years we went for an overnighter to Camp Squeah - Sunday to Monday, however, the last 2 years, for convenience & proximity sake, we have used the MCC Deertrail Guesthouse. 
We gather for dinner, visiting, sharing and laughing and some do stay overnight. Obviously, not all of the secretaries/alumni can attend but for those that come out, it is a lot of fun. 
Dinner is a potluck and this year I was asked to bring some dessert. 
Below are the two things I brought along. Enjoy! 

Rhubarb Square or Muffins

Received this recipe from my Sister-in-Law and we have enjoyed it ever since.

Ingredients: 

2 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 cup sugar

11/4 tsps. baking powder

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. salt

1 large egg

1/4 cup vegetable oil

2 tsps. grated orange peel

3/4 cup orange juice (I do half orange and half lemon or whatever combination you happen to have handy)

11/4 cups fresh or frozen rhubarb, finely chopped

Preheat oven to 350⁰ F if making muffins.

Directions: 

In a large bowl, combine flour, salt, sugar, baking powder, baking soda.

In a medium bowl, beat egg. Stir in oil, orange peel and juice. Add to flour all at once and stir just until moist. Stir in the rhubarb. Lightly grease muffin tins and fill cups three-quarters full.

Bake for 25 to 39 minutes.

I decided to make a square out of the above recipe and then added the streusels of top of the batter. Baking this in a 9x13 inch Pyrex. I lowered the oven heat to  350⁰ F.

Bake for about 40 minutes or until a tester comes out clean.

Streusels:

¾ cup sugar

¾ cup flour

1 tsp vanilla

¼ cup vegetable oil (butter can also be used and to make the streusels a bit crunchier you can add 1 or 2 tbsp of whipping cream)

Mix by hand, crumbling it until well mixed.

Spread over top of rhubarb cake.

********************

Cream-Cheese Stuffed Strawberries

Source: Pinterest

Ingredients:

1 lb large strawberries

1 (8 ounce) package Cream Cheese (softened) 

1 cup slightly softened Cool Whip

1/4 - 1/2 cup Graham Wafer crumbs

Directions:

1. Rinse strawberries and cut around the top of the strawberry. Remove the top and clean out the with a paring knife, if necessary (some of them are hollow already. Prep all the strawberries and set aside.)

2. In mixing bowl, beat cream cheese, Cool Whip, sugar and vanilla extract until creamy. Add mix to a pipping bag or Ziploc bag with the corner snipped off. Fill the strawberries with the cream-cheese mixture. (The recipe is slightly different on Pinterest but I prefer it with the Cool Whip added - makes the cream-cheese a bit softer and the cheese flavour is milder.)

3. Once strawberries are filled, sprinkle or dip the tops with Graham Wafer crumbs. If not serving immediately, refrigerate until serving.