That's surprising, K.C. I've never had any problems raising QMs. They will use Elm, Hackberry, False Nettle, and Hops vine. I have all four so they have a wide choice. In fact, Mama QM was laying eggs this morning on all but the Hops. False Nettle is the best plant, IMO, because it attracts both the QMs and the Red Admirals. My patch has gotten pretty big over the last few years. Susan P.S. If your Hops vine gets big and ratty looking by summer, cut it back to the ground, and it will respond with lots of new, healthier looking foliage.

Yes, I have a hops vine and I pick the hops off when they are bright green before they get old and sun- bleached. I use them in wreaths and on birdhouses that I put a small arrangement across one side of the roof. They will dry and keep their color. The flowers from the oregano make a good filler and take floral spray paint well. When they dry they lose a lot of color and need some help.

Here are a few recipes that I make using Buttermilk. As mentioned above, if you don't have buttermilk just add a little fresh squeezed lemon juice to your milk. Let it sit for a minute or two to thicken. Home Cookin Chapter: Recipes From Thibeault's Table Almond Cake From Albufeira, Portugal ==================================== Bon Appetit, November 1977 1 cup all purpose flour 3/4 cup granulated sugar 1/2 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/4 teaspoon salt 1 egg 1/2 cup buttermilk 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract 1/3 cup melted butter cooled to room Temperature 2/3 cup sliced almonds Hot Almond Syrup (recipe follows) Hot Almond Syrup 3/4 cup granulated sugar 6 tablespoons water 1/2 teaspoon almond extract . Preheat oven to 350* F. Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside. Beat egg, buttermilk and vanilla extract together until smooth. Stir in melted butter. Add flour mixture and mix with spoon until nearly smooth. Turn into a buttered 9" springform pan. Bake until center of cake springs back when lightly touched, about 35 minutes. Remove from oven. While is hot, cover top with sliced almonds. Slowly pour Hot Almond Syrup even over, letting syrup soak into cake. Broil about 6" from heat until almonds are lightly toasted. Cool on rack 15 minutes. Using knife or spatula, loosen sides between pan and cake, then cool completely before releasing springform pan. Almond Syrup In 1-qt saucepan combine sugar and water. Boil until mixture reaches 220* F on candy thermometer*. Remove from heat and stir I almond extract. Edited: January 22nd, 2006 Be careful not to over cook the syrup or it will harden on top of the almonds rather than get absorbed into the cake. I don't use the thermometer. I just bring the syrup to a boil and cook for about one minute. There is so little syrup that it doesn't take long. Home Cookin Chapter: Recipes From Thibeault's Table Oatmeal Pancakes ================ Http://www.elise.com/recipes/archives/001893dees_oat meal_pancakes.php Do you love oatmeal? Do you love pancakes? You should try them when they are one and the same. Seriously. Dee Johnston whipped up her favorite family recipe for a recent gathering of friends and this is now my new favorite pancake. Great smothered with butter and maple syrup (of course) and also leftover strawberries from strawberry shortcake. A little advanced planning is necessary as the oats must soak in buttermilk overnight. Yummmmm.... 2 cups oats (the regular kind - Old Fashioned or Quick, not steel-cut and not instant) 3 cups buttermilk 3 eggs, well beaten 1/2 cup flour 1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder Dash salt 1 tablespoon peanut oil Butter or extra vegetable oil for the griddle Optional A basket of strawberries - stems removed, sliced, and macerated with 2 Tbsp of sugar for an hour, then slightly mashed Maple syrup Butter 1 Put oats into a large bowl, add the buttermilk. Let the oats soak in the buttermilk overnight. 2 Mix in the eggs, flour, baking powder, salt, and peanut oil. Oatmeal-pancakes-1.jpg oatmeal-pancakes-2.jpg Oatmeal-pancakes-3.jpg 3 Then proceed as with any pancake recipe. Heat a flat iron surface - griddle or large pan - to medium high heat. Oil the pan with either a Tbsp of butter or vegetable oil. Ladle the pancake batter onto the griddle to the desired size, usually about 5 or 6 inches wide. When air bubbles start to bubble up to the surface at the center of the pancakes (about 2-3 minutes), use a flat spatula to flip them over. After a minute, peak under one for doneness. When golden or darker golden brown, they are done. Note that cooking the second side takes only about half as long as the first side. And the second side doesn't brown as evenly as the first side. Serve immediately or keep warm in the oven until ready to serve. Serves 4-6. Serve with butter, maple syrup, and macerated strawberries. Country Biscuits ================ 2 cups of flour 1 Tablespoon of baking powder 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/2 cup shortening, lard, Crisco or butter (I use butter) 1 cup of milk (cream) or buttermilk if using buttermilk add 1/2 teaspoon baking soda) Optional. Add a little sugar if you prefer sweet rather than savory. Mix the flour with the baking powder, and salt. Cut in butter/shortening until it resembles coarse meal. Stir milk or cream in to flour mixture. Mix quickly with fork until dough comes together. Using hands gently pat the ingredients together. Fold over once or twice or even three times if necessary. Do not over-handle. Pat out to about 1/2 to 3/4 inch thick on a lightly floured board. Cut with biscuit cutters and place on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet and bake for approximately 12 to 15 minutes at 450°F. TIP: Using your finger push a little dent into the middle of the biscuit. This helps the biscuit rise straight and prevents it from tipping over as it rises. If making cheese biscuits add the mustard and cayenne to the dry ingredients and add the cheese after the shortening has been cut into the flour. Tip: An easy way to cut the butter into the flour is to use a box grater. The large side of the grater makes the perfect size pieces of butter. Options: You can use any favourite cheese. Gorgonzola and other blue cheeses are wonderful with the addition of black pepper. Cheddar cheese is good with chives or green onions. Sometimes I add dry mustard and cayenne pepper. Or bacon or ham.

I've never made these yet, found the recipe online, but I've eaten plenty of these dumplings. They are excellent in chicken soup (along the lines of a won ton)or just fried until crispy in a pan like a potsticker! My grandmother used leftover pot roast for the filling. Kreplach (dumplings) * 2 cups all-purpose flour * 1/2 tsp. salt * 2 eggs, beaten * 1/4 cup cold water Process flour, salt, eggs in food processor with the metal blade. With the machine running, add water. The mixture needs to form a ball. Knead for 30 seconds, adding either more water or more flour to get correct consistency. Wrap dough in plastic while preparing meat. Meat Filling * 1 pound ground beef or 1 pound leftover brisket * 1 onion * 1 clove garlic * 1 large egg * salt and black pepper to taste If you are using raw meat, cook it with onion and garlic in a frying pan. Otherwise cook onion and garlic in a small amount of oil. Put cooked meat, onion and garlic in food processor and process until just smooth. Add egg, salt, and pepper. Divide the dough into 2 or 3 parts so that it does not dry out while filling. Roll each portion into a very thin rectangle, and cut into 3-inch squares. On each square, put a tablespoon or so of filling, and close into a triangle, wetting the edges and pressing them tightly. Put finished kreplach on a floured surface to wait. To cook the kreplach, bring a large pot of salted water to a rolling boil. Drop the kreplach into the water, and simmer for 15 minutes. Drain well. Serve in traditional chicken soup. The parboiled kreplach can be frozen or refrigerated before using. If you have more kreplach than will fit in a single layer, separate with oiled paper or foil so they don't stick. Quantity, about 30 kreplach.