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Posted by Grandma on June 21, 2016

When my youngest son was a baby he loved to climb. He climbed out of his crib, opened his dresser drawers to use as a ladder and climbed to the top. He climbed anything and everything. The older he got the more he climbed. One day I went outside to find that he had scaled the house and was sitting comfortably on the peak of the roof. He loved to impress his brothers and friends by hanging from a tree branch by one arm, drawing up his legs, scratching his armpit with his other arm and grunting like a monkey.

One day while shopping for Christmas presents my husband and I came across an unusual piece. A twelve inch by twelve inch clay etching of a monkey. It was one solid piece that consisted of a frame, flat background and monkey. It was painted in lovely jungle shades. It even had hooks on it to hang on a wall. We hung it over his bedroom door.

Decades later while downsizing we decided to give the monkey to my son. Well he loved it, or perhaps the memories of it so much that he hung it in his kitchen. His wife didn’t mind as she was one of the ones he impressed with his branch hanging routine. My two grandchildren didn’t say anything as they were too young to care about decor. Until one day…

The conversation went something like this:

Dad: Eat your dinner.

Son: I don’t like it.

Dad: How do you know you haven’t even tried it?

Son: I can tell just by looking at it.

Dad: Well you better eat it or you’ll end up like your brother.

Son: What brother?

Dad: That brother ( my son points to the monkey on the wall.) Rodriguez wouldn’t eat his supper either.

It’s now a year later and they are enrolling my grandson into kindergarten. Today he comes along to see his classroom and meet his teacher. The parents stand back and let the two get to know each other. The teacher asks if he has any sisters or brothers. My grandson answers that yes he has a little sister named Sophie and a brother named Rodriguez. The adults are stunned. The teacher knows there is no brother but continues with her meeting. Meanwhile, my son and wife decide that if asked they foster a child in South America, and will do so as soon as possible. The truth would be too much. They are shocked that he remembered that conversation never mind that he believed it. What he must have thought this past year every time he saw the monkey. When they got home they tried to explain and took the monkey off the kitchen wall. My grandson said that it was okay that he only had a sister but would they please hang Rodriguez in his bedroom.

Sometimes we don’t realize how what we say is interpreted or believed by young children. All this time my poor grandson thought the story of Rodriguez was real. And now as I think about this I wonder did we, by calling my son a monkey, create this chain of events or was he really such a climber to begin with. I guess we’ll never know.

Posted by Mom on May 26, 2016

We have an ancient apple tree growing next to our house that provides us with apples. The view from our dining room window is of this apple tree. In spring, when blossoms cover the tree, we can watch the orioles, warblers, and bees that visit the tree and anticipate all the apples that will hang from the branches come fall. However, an apple grown on our tree is definitely not the same as the one we could be buy at the grocery store.

Our apples are not super-sized, glossy, or spherical. Instead they are small, have brown spots and are asymmetrical. But you know what, they seem infinitely fresher, crisper and more satisfying. We have found many uses for our apples, besides eating them fresh: apple pie filling, apple pie jam, applesauce and apple butter. And whenever I serve a pie or preserve made from these apples, I am sure to inform the people about to partake that “these apples came from our tree.”

We are unsure of the age of our apple tree. But it appears larger in diameter than the trees we  have seen growing in orchards. It has undergone some chainsaw pruning in the past and has more of an oval than a round shape to its crown. The tree was never trained or pruned to make harvesting an easy chore. It simply reached for sunlight and grew up – it was likely a tree someone planted with good intentions, but for whatever reasons, the tree appears to have been neglected. As a result, we can reach only a tiny fraction of the apples by standing on the ground. Even a ladder propped on a branch provides only a small increase in our yield. Looking up, we can see beautiful, red apples hanging so temptingly from the upper branches.

In an attempt to use these “higher apples” rather than having them drop to the ground, bruise and rot, last summer we rigged up a net below the tree. Again, this increased our yield by only a small margin. I think we could make a better increase if we improved on our apple-catching device. Mom saw an image of an apple-catcher made from an old canvas tarp. The middle was cut out to fit around the tree and then a slit made from this hole out to an edge. Once around the tree, the slit was then stitched together to create a net to catch the falling apples. One corner of the tarp was lower than the others and caused the apples to gently roll into a bucket for easy collecting. Perhaps we will have enough foresight this year to rig up an apple catching tarp? Only time will tell. But if we don’t, I will pick what I can and scrounge up the least bruised apples and transform them into some preserves that we can enjoy any time of year.

Posted by Grandma on May 20, 2016

“Grandma will you read to me?” My six year old granddaughter asked. Sure, I loved to read stories to my grandchildren. The book she placed on my lap was about where babies come from. The cover photo was of a mother holding her newborn. I could tell this wasn’t a cabbage patch or here comes the stork type book. I know there was more honesty about these things nowadays and thought I can handle that. Well, when I started reading the book I could have kicked myself for not perusing it more thoroughly. There were proper anatomical names. Words I didn’t know until I was in my twenties. I did my best to cover photos and skipped many paragraphs. I didn’t know how to stop without drawing attention to what I thought was inappropriate for a six year old.

As it turned out mom thought so as well when she came into the room and found me reading one of the books in a series she’d purchased. The one I was reading was meant for years down the road. My granddaughter had picked it because of the cover. She loves babies. I finished the book as quickly as I could. So now we both knew better. Mom to place some books out of reach of little hands and me, do a quick preview.

Time goes on and you think little minds forget. Not so. Their brains are like sponges, eyes and ears are everywhere but what I’m referring to is the book I read on the story of birth. My granddaughter got a new baby doll. She fed it, changed its diaper, loved it and you may have already guessed it…

My youngest son came over to borrow a tool. He had called earlier so we had it ready for him at the door. No sooner had he stepped in when my granddaughter slips her baby doll out from under her skirt for its debut. Oh no. I hope my son doesn’t make a fuss. But quick thinking as he is he says, “she’s sunny side up, turn her over.” And that was the end of it, for now.

Posted by Mom on May 14, 2016

Being a homeschool family, we had a growing collection of books and a dwindling amount of space to keep them. A dilemma ensued: how can we create an environment for learning while simultaneously not getting overwhelmed with too many books and nowhere to put them?

The books we accumulated could be added to shelves or cupboards in an out of the way spot to keep the appearance of a tidier home. But we did not want to tuck the children’s books away because we want books to play a central role in our home; we want the children to see their storybooks and feel the urge to go over, grab one and sit down to enjoy it. We want our nature guides to be quickly grabbed when a new flower or insect is discovered. But we also want these books to be given a place of honour and not just stuffed onto shelves with no thought to aesthetics or the atmosphere of the room.

To encourage our books to be enjoyed, we needed a place that invites a person to sit comfortably and get lost in a book. The main room in our home is the kitchen-great room. The room is bookended by the kitchen area on one side and a sitting area on the other. In the centre is our table/school desk and wood burning stove. I hoped to keep our books in this room where we spend most of our day. We needed a solution that could house many books, look pleasing to the eye, and provide a comfortable place to read. We needed a reading bench!

I’ve always liked the look of a reading bench in front of a window; an upholstered bench with cushions just waiting to have a person cozy up with a good book and sit for a spell. Of course, the window behind such a bench looks upon a verdant garden. To me, window benches hold a romantic appeal; they suggest luxury, leisure and elegance. Three things I have always dreamt of having. My reality however is hard work, an unending to-do list and country charm. So while we saw that a reading bench was what we wanted, my visions of elegance needed to be tapered with a dose of reality: 3 children and constant use.  

Dad and I talked it over and planned our reading bench. A day’s worth of construction and painting in the barn was followed by a few hours of cushion assembly. We placed the bench in its spot beneath a window, topped it with throw pillows and filled the cubbies our treasured storybooks and nature guides. Now when it’s time to read we pile onto the bench and snuggle in for a good story.

Posted by Grandma on April 26, 2016

How we got here is a long story. Besides, the getting here is not what matters. It’s that we are here. Three generations learning, trying and living together. Mom, dad and three grandchildren live in, what my husband and I like to refer to as, the Big House. Grandpa and I live in the addition we built. As you leave the big houses’ kitchen you enter the utility room then go through the laundry room where you may knock on my door. We have taught the grandchildren that this must be so and in return we knock as well. We must respect each other’s privacy.

When outside we work and play together. Me not so much work because of my ailments but I do know how to keep the grandchildren busy. In summer months I tend to man the barbecue while everyone works. My eldest grandchild has shown an interest in cooking so this year I’ll hand over the tongues and teach her some recipes. Recipes my grandmother, and her great-great-grandmother, taught me like potato beet salad. This recipe and more I’ll share with you at a later date. The younger granddaughter likes to work in the vegetable garden where she supplies us with a variety of vegetables to accompany our meal.

Grandpa does all the lawn cutting and there is a lot of lawn to cut. He puts on his iPod and listens to his favourite tunes, probably Bob Dylan, Van Morrison or The Eagles. Besides lawn cutting he does a variety of jobs. Taking care of the garbage and recycling is one of them. He’s always going to the hardware store for something or other.

What I find most important about our arrangement is that both grandpa and I have found a purpose. We lived many years after the boys moved out and grandpa retired just living, if you know what I mean. The days just seemed to melt into each other. Sure we enjoyed our vacations to Florida and our time in cottage country but otherwise our lives were like a melting candle and our wick getting shorter and shorter. I remember saying to grandpa one day that without a job to go to and no children to care for, what is our purpose? Do we live the rest of our days just entertaining ourselves. Read books, watch television and do our chores. I think we should have a purpose. It seems meaningless otherwise.

So by happenstance we fell into this arrangement and now our lives have purpose.

Posted by Mom on April 7, 2016

While some people’s wintery visions may include sugarplums dancing through their head or palm trees swaying in the breeze, come January, and the arrival of the seed catalogues, it’s visions of vegetables dancing through my head.

Of course, these vegetables look plump, glossy, and free of dirt, pests and disease. That is a vision we strive for, but by sticking to the principles of organic gardening, our harvest can be smaller or bear the evidence of dirt, pests or disease. That is the sacrifice we make for the uniqueness, the flavour, and the health of the food we grow for our family. In addition, we know that we are cutting back on our carbon footprint and food miles, while simultaneously involving our children in the growing, harvesting, and preserving of our food.

Our children are learning the value of hard work and tasting the fruits of their labours – literally! They witness and partake in all the steps of a home harvest:

• preparing the garden beds for planting
• starting seedlings indoors (and then later transplanting those same seeds)
• planting seeds directly into the beds
• caring for the plants by watering and weeding
• reaping the bounty
• cooking, preserving and freezing the harvest

The children are also coming to appreciate the fact that homegrown veggies and fruits are not the same as their supermarket counterparts. Our produce is ugly when compared to the standards of beauty you find on the supermarket shelves; our harvest can be asymmetrical, bumpy, and variable in colour. But, oh the flavours and nutrients – all present in the food as nature intended it to be. To grow such crops, we do our best to adhere to the principles of organic gardening.

The foundational principle of organic gardening is to work with nature; if we can provide an environment that nourishes growth and mimics the natural processes of decomposition and nutrient recycling, then we won’t need to use man-made inputs. And, if we can take measures to limit stress to our plants and to prevent pests, blights, and diseases, then we will not need to treat problems with the “icides” (i.e., fungicides, pesticides, insecticides or herbicides). Organic gardening makes sense if we want to sustainably grow healthy food.

Here is a list of some of the tenets of organic gardening.

1. Feed your soil
2. Replenish your nutrients
3. Interplant your crops
4. Apply companion planting
5. Rotate your crops
6. Know your insect and bird allies
7. Use barriers to protect your crops
8. Mulch your soil
9. Use alternative pest control products

In following posts I will explain these principles in more detail and explain how we apply them at our country home.

Posted by Mom on April 13, 2016

When I started to consider educating our children at home rather than sending them to school, I was overwhelmed with the array of methods and philosophies surrounding homeschool. A continuum of homeschooling styles, from school-at-home to unschooling, passed into my consciousness. One style however stood out from the rest; one that was named after a person: the Charlotte Mason Method.

Miss Charlotte Mason (1842-1923) spent her adult life educating children and developing a philosophy of education. Her philosophy has been dubbed The Gentle Art of Learning by Karen Andreola. Why? Because Miss Mason studied children and founded her philosophy upon some basic truths about children. Here is a sampling of some of these truths:

1. Children are persons with individual needs for knowledge and training and their minds and personalities should be respected
2. Children can sustain attention for only a short duration, and as such, lessons should be short and the subjects varied daily
3. Children’s minds are most attentive and receptive in the morning and lessons should occur in the morning hours
4. Children are intensely curious about the world around them and their schooling for the first six years of life should be informal and steeped in nature exploration and living books
5. Children learn by forming relationships, therefore, present to them inspiring stories, biographies and concepts
6. Children also learn by telling back what they have heard or seen and this re-telling is a natural and spontaneous inclination

These foundational concepts, combined with other principles, set the Charlotte Mason Method apart from other forms of education; they guide a child toward a lifelong pursuit of knowledge by developing a habit of self-education. A lifelong love of education and the pursuit of knowledge is just what I want my children to acquire.

According to Miss Mason, books and literature are the best tool to impart knowledge. Her method emphasizes the humanities rather than the more empirical approach of the natural sciences. She proposed that children should learn by listening, and later reading, what she called, living books. Living books, as opposed to textbooks, are written by authors who care deeply about their subject. These authors present the material as a narrative that engages the listeners and sparks their imagination. Furthermore, living books contain literary language and not simplified vocabulary (i.e., twaddle) which disregards the intellect of the child. Living books provide the stimulus to gently enliven a child’s appreciation in history, geography, literature, nature study, and science.

Unlike traditional methods for education, Miss Mason did not believe that teaching and then testing for comprehension was the proper method to educate a person. And she is right! When you cram for a test, you only retain what you need to pass the test, and then forget what it is that you learned because you no longer need to recall it or because what you learned was never something you truly owned as your own. Miss Mason proposed an ingenious notion for making knowledge personal, and its acquisition, gentle: Narration.

For children, telling back something that engages their imagination or inspires them is natural. The taking in, the processing, and then the composing of a cohesive re-telling is how a child personalizes knowledge. Children begin narration by telling back, and as they mature, through written composition. In addition, because the information is obtained from living books, children also gently expand their vocabulary, improve their spelling, and practice their grammar.

Miss Charlotte Mason, and her revolutionary Gentle Art of Learning, was something that spoke to my soul; it was something I needed to understand further. Fortunately, Miss Mason established a school where her method was applied, tested, and honed. Based upon her experiences and her observations she formulated her pedagogy. She was a prolific writer and her six-volume compendium is a source of inspiration for modern homeschoolers looking for an inspirational and gentler approach to education.

We have a large laying flock of chickens. We tried our hand at raising Thanksgiving turkeys. “Why not try ducks?” we asked ourselves. We’ve wanted to add ducks to our farm ever since we learned that they feast upon mosquito larvae. Since we are tormented by mosquitos and will not use any chemical controls, ducks sounded like our saviours. So last spring we tested the waters, so to speak, and became the owners of three ducklings. We did a bit of research into duck husbandry before we started, but mostly we learned as we went along.

First lesson to learn: ducks are not chickens. One cannot care for ducks as one would chickens. Chickens detest getting wet. Ducks love it! Chickens drink water by scooping water into their bills and tipping their heads back to pour it down their throats. Ducks put their entire bill into the water and shake it back and forth, splashing water all over. No dainty tea party manners for them! Chickens don’t need to get their food wet to eat it. Ducks do, and cause a slimy, soggy mess in and around their waterers. Chickens make a mess by scratching but ducks by splashing water everywhere.

Second lesson: chickens dust bathe, ducks bathe with water. Ducks love water, any sort of water, and are not turned off by mud or slime. I think they are happiest when they can splash around and dunk themselves under the water. As evidence or this, when I bring buckets of water to refill their mini plastic pond, they start quacking away and can’t stand still they are so excited. As soon as I leave it’s a shoving match to see who gets to go in first. And due to their propensity to get wet and grub about in the mud, the mini pond needs fresh water daily. Chickens, on the other hand, only like water to drink it. Their idea of keeping clean is to scratch themselves into a hole of dust and flick it all over their bodies. The sand particles work through the feathers and shed pesky fleas and mites. Flying sand from bathing chickens and splashing water from bathing ducks is a recipe for unhealthy 

Third lesson: you can herd ducks, you can’t herd chickens. Ducks have a strong instinct to stay in a flock. With chickens, it’s every girl for herself (unless there is a rooster to keep them under control). But even with a rooster, good luck getting them to go where you want! It is not a one person job. It takes forethought and strategy. Sticks help too. With the ducks, so long as you are behind them and driving them forward, (sticks helps here, too) they will waddle in a cluster and end up where you want them to be. If one gets separated, it makes every effort to get back to the others. We’ve even heard of people who can train ducks to obey voice commands.

Fourth lesson, ducks are creatures of habit and do not do well with change. When our ducklings were large enough to leave the brooder and heat lamp behind, we put them into the same run as our chickens in an effort to keep things simple. This was fine while the weather was warm and summery and the ducks spent their days free ranging outside. As winter descended upon us, it was evident that the chickens and ducks could not stay together. Chickens will do fine in cold weather, so long as they stay dry. That wasn’t going to happen with the ducks as roommates. As the ducks were outnumbered 80 to three, they had to move out. 

Within their new digs the ducks seemed to always be anxious as they paced along the fence and repeatedly tried to force their way out. If they did become free, they made a beeline for the chicken run, walked in through the open door and proceeded to make themselves comfortable and the chicken run a soggy mess. The ducks became increasingly adept at breaking out that we knew we needed to change something. After some thought, we determined that the ducks might just be lonely for the chickens’ company? When they did escape and the door into the chicken run was closed, they would settle down nearby where they could at least still hear the chickens. Letting them back into the chicken run was not an option, but what if we brought a couple chickens to them? We gave it a try and had instant success. Problem solved! Now our ducks are content to remain behind the fence with their chicken pals. 

Suffice it to say. We’ve been pleased with our duck trial. We learned some valuable lessons through our first year of owning ducks and are better prepared when more arrive. And more are coming, we’re planning on adding six more this spring. Our flock will spend its time in our orchard and earn their keep as lawn mowers and pest managers. They won’t scratch and make a mess like the chickens, but we will have to bring them fresh water daily for bathing. At least they’ll let us know how much they appreciate it.

In the midst of an unseasonably cold stretch of weather in early January I happened to be looking into our pantry and spied some jars of peach pie filling I had “put up” way back in August; that time of year when baskets of ripe peaches abounded and I sweltered away in the kitchen while preserving the bounty. Now that work is a minor blip in my memory as I stare at the pie filling and imagine the taste of a homemade peach pie.

The recipe I use for my pie crusts is from a Mennonite cookbook. It’s delicious and the dough is easy enough to work with that I’m motivated to continuing improving upon my pie making abilities. As it is, each time I make a pie my techniques is a little better and I have less filling leaking out. Practice makes perfect, I guess. Though my family and I do enjoy eating each practice pie, regardless of how pretty they look.

In the end, the peach pie turned out just as I hoped: a scrumptious slice of summer, something to remind us of what we can look forward to while enduring a cold, dark winter. As we were enjoying our peach pie, my four year old son leaned over and told me he could eat pie everyday for dessert.

Recipe for Peach Pie Filling
(This is taken from Bernardin Complete Book of Home Preserving (2006)). It makes about four pint (500mL) jars.

1 cinnamon stick, broken into pieces
2 tsp whole cloves
12 cups sliced peaches
2 cups finely chopped cored and peeled apples
2 ⅔ cups granulated sugar
1 cup golden raisins
2 tbsp grated lemon zest
½ cup lemon juice
¼ white vinegar
½ tsp ground nutmeg

Tie cinnamon pieces and cloves into a square of cheese cloth to create a spice bag.

In a large stainless steel saucepan, combine peaches, apples, sugar, raisins, lemon zest and juice, vinegar, nutmeg, and spice bag. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring frequently.

Reduce heat, cover, and boil gently, stirring occasionally, until thickened.

Prepare canner, jars, and lids (here is a great reference for the why and how of preparing jars and lids for canning).

Ladle hot pie filling into hot jars, leaving 1 inch headspace. Remove any air bubbles and adjust headspace, if necessary by adding hot filling. Wipe rim. Centre lid on jar and screw down until resistance is met, then increase to fingertip tight.

Place jars in canner, ensuring they are completely covered with water. Bring to a boil and process for 15 minutes. Remove canner lid. Wait 5 minutes, them remove jars, cool, and store.

N.B. While this recipe did not call for a thickening agent, other pie filling recipes do, so I mixed into the filling before putting it into the pie crust 3 tbsp of flour and 3 tbsp Tapioca Powder. It worked wonderfully; we didn’t have any oozing filling.

Recipe for One Double Crust Pie
(This is copied from my Mennonite Girls Can Cook (2011) cookbook. The page for this recipe is my most visited recipe and the book naturally falls open to the page).

1 ⅔ cup flour
¾ tsp salt
⅔ cup lard
4 tbsp cold water

Combine flour, salt, and lard. With a pastry blender, cut lard into flour until the size of large peas.

Sprinkle the mixture with water and stir with a fork in circular motion until there are no more loose crumbs. It may seem too dry at first, but keep stirring.  

Shape the dough into a ball with hands and divide in half.Turn onto a floured surface and use hands to form into a circular shape. Roll the dough out until it’s a little larger than the pie plate, adding small amounts of flour if it sticks (I find it easier to put the dough between two sheets of plastic wrap or wax paper – it’s a lot easier to pick up the rolled dough and transfer it into the pie plate. After the dough is rolled out, you peel off the top layer, pick up the crust from the bottom and turn it over so that it falls into the pie plate. Peel off the remaining plastic wrap). Trim excess crust.

Roll the dough (if you did not use plastic wrap or wax paper) onto the rolling pin and carefully unroll it into the pie plate.

Brush the unbaked bottom crust with a slightly beaten egg white to keep it from getting soggy.

Fill with fruit filling.

Roll out the second crust a little larger than the pie plate, centre over the filling and trim the edges so you can fold the top crust over the bottom crust. Pinch the two layers together.

Brush top crust with beaten egg white and make several small cuts into the crust for steam to vent while baking.

Bake at 400℉ for 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 350℉ and bake for another 50 – 60 minutes or until the juice bubbles through the slits.

————————–

Kingray, J. And L. Devine (eds.), 2006. Complete Book of Home Canning: 400 Delicious and Creative Recipes for Today. Toronto: Robert Rose Inc.

Schellenberg, L. et al., 2011. Mennonite Girls Can Cook. Waterloo: Herald Press.

A friend of mine was looking to pare back her rhubarb patch at the same time that I was looking to expand mine. What a stroke of luck!

We dug up all the roots we could find. In the end, I took home a 65 litre tub full of rhubarb roots. The new home for this rhubarb is a perennial garden bed in the reclaimed filed. The rhubarb is the new neighbour of our other perennial crops – asparagus and strawberries.

I enjoy rhubarb, especially for baking. My all time favourite pie is strawberry-rhubarb. In addition to pies, we also use rhubarb in jams, muffins, loaves and tarts, as well as in a cordial, and even in savoury sauces for main dishes.

A few years ago I discovered yet another recipe for rhubarb – a dessert tart. The tart is one I like to make when fresh rhubarb is abundant. In this recipe, rhubarb does not have to share the stage with any sweet fruit, like strawberry. Instead, rhubarb takes centre stage.

You begin by mixing the crust and spreading it onto the bottom and up the sides of a springform pan.

Next you beat together cream cheese and sugar; and then beat in the egg and vanilla. Spread this mixture over the crust.

Now it’s time for the rhubarb! The chopped stems are mixed with some sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg. Into the oven it goes to bake and the delicious aroma of cinnamon and nutmeg fills the kitchen.

After the tart has cooled, and just prior to serving, dust some icing sugar on top. Enjoy! We sure do.

Prep Time: 20 min.
Total Time: 1 hr  10 min.
Makes: 12 servings

Ingredients

½ cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar, divided
1 cup flour
1 pkg. (250 g) cream cheese, softened
1 egg
½ tsp. vanilla
¼ tsp. ground cinnamon
¼ tsp. Ground nutmeg
½ lb. (225 g) fresh rhubarb, cut into ½ in. lengths
1 tsp. Icing sugar

Preheat oven to 425℉.

Make the crust: beat butter and ⅓ cup of sugar until light and fluffy. Add flour and mix well. Spread onto bottom and up the sides of a of 9-inch springform pan.

Make the filling: beat cream cheese and ⅓ cup of sugar until blended. Add egg and vanilla and mix well. Spread over crust. In a large bowl, combine remaining ⅓ cup sugar with spices and toss with rhubarb. Spoon over cream cheese mixture.

Bake for 10 min. Reduce heat to 375℉ and bake for another 40 min. or until centre is almost set. Cool completely. Run knife around rim of pan to loosen tart. Sift icing sugar over tart and serve.

Original recipe published by Kraft and available at http://www.kraftcanada.com/recipes/rhubarb-tart-143382