Country Lifestyles
Baking Dreams Come True – Sweet Mother of Pies
By Jessica Crabtree
Hebrews 13:2 reads, “Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.” That is the favorite verse of pie-maker, mother, grandmother, sister, wife, daughter, believer and owner of “Sweet Mother of Pies,” Betti Jo Weber. Sweet Mother of Pies is a dream come true for its owner. Weber describes her pie business as being a “crazy blessing.”
Weber is a native Texas, born in Midland and raised in Carlsbad, N.M. Attending Texas Tech University brought her back to her roots and led her to a summer camp for special need kids where she met her husband Joe. The two married in 1986, officially making Weber a Texas girl. The couple moved various places, Lewisville then Denton, before relocating and settling in 1994 in the community once known as Hood. Much like other towns that dwindled with time, Hood had a store, cotton gin, Methodist and Baptist churches and Hood cemetery, a some-what town marker for locals. Fun fact being Hollywood movie moguls shot a couple scenes from the popular movie “Armageddon” in Hood.
A teacher, Joe began teaching at Era school in 2000. Weber also taught for eight years, as well as occupied various jobs until 2016 when a new slice of life appeared. When she and her family moved to Hood, the yellow house she calls home was not her first choice. “We were looking for a fixer-upper and two acres. We passed by this place several times and on the third time we stopped. It was once the Hood grocery store before becoming a home,” Weber explained.
As the Weber family of six began to flourish, Weber busied herself making the house a home. “It was an old house and run down. It just needed some elbow grease,” Weber said. That is the way she wanted it, being a self-proclaimed lover of restoring things to their former glory. Always loving crafting, Weber was all too happy to paint and recreate her space. “I knew I wanted country and not new. I love a home with character, to make something from nothing,” Weber concluded. The family combined adjoining pieces of property, acres at a time, even their neighbors’ home, Mr. and Mrs. Pledger. After their passing the home sat vacant, awaiting its next breath of life. “Everyone asked me, ‘What will you do with it?’ I thought about a Bed & Breakfast or place for crafting.”
To read more pick up a copy of the April 2018 issue. To subscribe call 940-872-5922.
Pie maker and owner of “Sweet Mother of Pies,” Betti Jo Weber. (Photo by Jessica Crabtree)
Weber inside “The Pie House” surrounded by signs custom-made for “The Pie and Sign” parties. (Photo by Jessica Crabtree)
By Lacey Vilhauer
Ingredients:
1-2 cups vegetable oil
½ cup diced white onion
2 tsp minced garlic
½ TBSP chili powder
¼ tsp oregano
½ tsp ground cumin
1 lb. ground beef
1 tsp salt
½ tsp black pepper
½ to a full can of Rotel tomatoes and green chilis
8 (burrito-sized) flour tortillas, warmed
2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese
Toppings: salsa, sour cream, guacamole, queso
Directions:
Brown hamburger meat and onions in a large skillet until onions are slightly softened. Add in garlic chili powder, oregano and cumin. Stir and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Season with salt and pepper. Stir in Rotel. Cook and stir another five minutes. Set aside.
Warm tortillas in the microwave. On each tortilla, place about ½ cup of meat mixture. Do not overfill. Top with shredded cheese. Fold sides over the meat and cheese, then fold bottom over the sides and roll up. Place all folded chimichangas, seam side down, on a large plate and repeat with remaining tortillas.
To read more, pick up a copy of the May issue of NTFR. To subscribe by mail, call 940-872-5922.
By Dal Houston
I am terribly saddened by all the argumentative discourse that seems to be going on in today’s world. It seems as though it is no longer enough just to disagree on certain issues. We are expected to classify someone as an enemy if they do not always agree with us on all issues, lest we be considered weak.
To make things even worse, because those who disagree with you are now considered enemies, the sentiment seems to be that it is only fair and proper to destroy them, because they are the enemy, again with the fear of ridicule for being weak if we do not fight.
With all that said, and seemingly unrelated, I am a big John Wayne fan. From watching him dive into his role as a cowboy, to marveling at his time portraying a soldier or appreciating his acting gig as a sailor, there is seldom a week that goes by without me watching at least one
To read more, pick up a copy of the April issue of NTFR magazine. To subscribe by mail, call 940-872-5922.
By Martha Crump
That old adage, “What you don’t know won’t hurt you.,” may have some basis in truth when applied to minor situations. However, when what you don’t know is presented in the form of a “Trojan Horse” and is what amounts to an incredible attempt to fleece American property rights, it becomes a different story altogether.
To put this unbelievable tale together, we need to step back to Joe Biden’s 2021 Executive Order which pledged commitment to help restore balance on public lands and waters, to create jobs, and to provide a path to align the management of America’s public lands and waters with our nation’s climate, conservation, and clean energy goals.
To read more, pick up a copy of the April issue of NTFR magazine. To subscribe by mail, call 940-872-5922.
-
Country Lifestyles1 year agoScott & Stacey Schumacher: A Growth Mindset
-
Equine8 months agoThe Will to Win
-
Country Lifestyles7 years agoStyle Your Profile – What your style cowboy hat says about you and new trends in 2017
-
Country Lifestyles4 years agoAmber Crawford, Breakaway Roper
-
HOME7 years agoGrazing North Texas – Wilman Lovegrass
-
Country Lifestyles7 years agoDecember 2016 Profile, Rusty Riddle – The Riddle Way
-
Outdoor9 years agoButtercup or Primrose?
-
Country Lifestyles8 years agoJune 2016 Profile – The man behind the mic: Bob Tallman