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The Origin of Hot Cross Buns

March 30, 2021 by Bet Hannon

By Lorie Lewis Ham

There are many things associated with Easter, including a lot of yummy food. One of the foods that some partake of this time of year has a very interesting history and symbolism for the season—Hot Cross Buns.

The buns are a spiced sweet bun usually made with fruit and marked with a cross on top, either with icing or etched into the dough. In many countries, they are traditionally eaten on Good Friday to mark the end of Lent, including parts of the United States and Canada. The cross represents the crucifixion of Jesus and the spices inside signify the spices used to embalm Him at His burial.

The origin of these buns is filled with mystery, with no one really knowing for certain where they came from. However, there are many theories and legends surrounding them. According to the website @Kitchn, one legend is that an Anglican monk created them in the 12th century to be eaten on Good Friday. There are also several stories that indicate that Hot Cross Buns were baked on Good Friday for superstitious reasons—some believed the buns carried magical or medicinal properties. They gained popularity in England towards the end of the 16th century when Queen Elizabeth I passed a law limiting the sale of sweet buns for only funerals, Christmas and Good Friday. Because they couldn’t buy the buns at other times, many people started secretly making them in their homes. According to Wikepedia, the first definite printed record of Hot Cross Buns comes from a London street cry, which appeared in Poor Robin’s Almanac for 1733 in which the buns are mentioned.

Another possible origin is found on the website Good Food Ireland. It states that even though they are inextricable linked to Easter and Christianity, they probably have pre-Christian origins. Cross Buns were baked to celebrate Eostre, a Germanic Goddess of Fertility, after which the season of Easter is said to be named. The four quarters of the cross on top of each bun were said to represent the phases of the moon, while the cross itself symbolized rebirth after winter. Even more interesting myths and traditions can be found on Smithsonianmag.com.

Through the years other versions of the buns have appeared, including coffee flavored ones in Australia, and toffee, orange-cranberry, salted caramel and chocolate and apple cinnamon versions in the UK. There is even a Not Cross Bun variation which is made the same way, but doesn’t include the cross.

Whatever its true history may be, in 2021 for many people Hot Cross Buns are still a symbol of the Easter season, but also a delicious treat to enjoy any time of year. If you have a special memory or special recipe for Hot Cross Buns that you would like to share with us, please share on our Facebook Page.  Here is the recipe that Mennonite Insurance General Manager Jerry Linscheid grew up with:

a top down image of a bun with a white icing cross on top

Hot Cross Buns – Rosemary Moyer 

Ingredients

  • ¼ c. warm water 
  • 1 T. dry yeast
  • 2 T. sugar
  • 3 c. flour
  • 1 ½ t. salt (less with margarine or salted butter)
  • ½ t. cinnamon
  • 1/8 t. nutmeg
  • 1/8 t. allspice
  • ¾ c. warm milk
  • ¼ c. margarine, butter, or vegetable oil 
  • 1 egg, beaten
  • ½ c. Zante dried currants, or chopped raisins 
  • ½ c. chopped walnuts 

Directions

  1. Plump dried currants or raisins in 1 c. hot water (let sit at least 15 minutes).  
  2. Dissolve yeast in water. Stir in 1 T. sugar.  
  3. In large bowl, combine 1 ½ c. flour, 1 T. sugar, salt, and spices. Add yeast mixture to flour mixture. 
  4. Add milk, margarine (oil/butter) and egg. Beat with mixer until well blended. 
  5. Add more flour and mix with a spoon. Add plumped currants and nuts. Continue adding flour and stirring until soft dough is formed.  
  6. Knead gently, until smooth, adding flour as needed and keeping dough soft.  
  7. Let dough rise until doubled.  
  8. Form round buns. Place on greased baking pan 12 per pan. Let rise until doubled. 
  9. Bake at 375 degrees for about 10-15 minutes or until golden. In my oven, 5-6 minutes on the lower rack, and 3-4 minutes on the upper rack. Yield: about 24 buns. Let cool before decorating with a white icing cross. 

Filed Under: Uncategorized

Adopting Pets During the Pandemic

March 30, 2021 by Bet Hannon

By Lorie Ham

a small brown dog standing on a grooming table

According to Shelter Animals Count, 26,000 more pet adoptions took place in 2020 than in the year before. The group runs a database that tracks shelter and rescue activity. Some shelters during this time have even been faced with the demand being greater than the supply—which never happens during normal times. Are more people adopting animals because they are lonely due to being stuck at home? Or perhaps because they now have more time for a pet?

Mindi Miller, Vice President of Animal Rescue of Fresno states that they have definitely seen adoptions go up. “Everybody wants a dog and they feel since they are working from home they are able to better care for the companion since they have more time.” 

Paula Hunsaker, CEO/Founder of Feral Paws Rescue, has been rescuing cats for over 20 years. She too has seen an increase in adoptions during the pandemic. One thing they do during the process right now is to make sure people understand that a cat isn’t a temporary fix for loneliness. “Adopting any animal is a serious commitment.”

Paula feels that while sometimes people are looking to adopt out of loneliness, more often she feels that the pandemic has had us all stepping back to re-evaluate our lives. “Normally, life moves along like a speeding train without thought of what is lacking in our lives. With this past year of lockdown, we’ve stopped to see that in many instances the connection with a pet is what filled the empty spots in our lives we didn’t even know that we had. The joy we see from adopters, and shared happy experiences, shows us that people are much more grounded with a pet in their lives, almost as if it is an added extension of home.”

For most rescues, the process of adoption has changed a bit. “Our process is no more walk throughs—all our adoptable dogs are online for all to see,” shares Mindi. “If they are interested in meeting a dog they complete the application and our adoption crew will contact them to go through their application first and then arrange a meet and greet. Which is safe for all involved.”

a grey and white cat sitting on some books on a desk

Feral Paws has always worked by appointments so for them less has changed. They have a listing of adoptable cats on their website and listed at over 1000 other websites. “When somebody views a kitty, or sometimes two kitties, they send us an email or call us to make an appointment. We have always asked the public to make an appointment, which makes it much more comfortable for the adopter and also for the cats, where we have an enclosed area for the cat(s) they wanted to meet and also a couple of others . We also ask that they have an open mind and allow the cat to choose them, and most often, this works best. You want a connection with the cat, and allowing them to choose you is a special blessing. Pet adoption, as well as human insurance, is a contractual agreement.”

Pets can bring so much joy to life, but before adopting always make sure you are able to make a lifetime commitment to your new companion. If you feel that a pet is right for you, there are many options for finding just the right one. You can check the websites of local rescues, which can be easily found by doing a Google search, or check out Petfinder, which connects those who want to adopt with rescues all over the country. Kings River Life Magazine has columns from many local rescues every month featuring various pets that are up for adoption as well.

If you have adopted a new pet during the pandemic, we would love to have you share some photos on the Mennonite Insurance Facebook Page!

Filed Under: Uncategorized

Co-Insurance: What Does This Mean for Property Insurance

March 4, 2021 by Jerry Linscheid

Vic Alemania of Mennonite Aid Plan explains how coinsurance affects the settlement amount on a loss. Vic also notes that coinsurance for property policies is completely different from coinsurance in health insurance policies.

To obtain the full policy benefits, your policy coverage limits must be at least the percentage (typically 80%, 90% or 100%) of the full replacement cost required by the coinsurance clause of your policy. The example in the video below is the easiest way to understand coinsurance.

Filed Under: Business Insurance, Condo Insurance, Earthquake Insurance, Flood Insurance, Home Insurance, Renters Insurance

Fresno County Blossom Trail Celebrating 33 Years

March 1, 2021 by Jerry Linscheid

By Lorie Ham

cherry blossoms

The Fresno County Blossom Trail is one of the most beautiful sights you will find in the San Joaquin Valley of California, and this year it celebrates 33 years. According to the Blossom Trail website, blossom season begins in February and runs through March, or early April. When you travel this trail, you will find orchards full of fruit trees bursting with blossoms.

The Blossom Trail is a self-guided 60 mile long motor or bicycle tour organized by the Fresno County Blossom Trail Committee, a partnership between the County of Fresno and the Chambers of Commerce in Sanger, Kingsburg, Reedley, Orange Cove, Selma and Fowler, to celebrate and feature the beauty of Fresno County’s agriculture and a few historical points of interest.

cherry blossoms

The blossoms come in white and various shades of pink (some are almost red) and are found on almond, plum, apricot, peach, nectarine, apple, and citrus trees. The Blossom Trail has been named one of the top blossom attractions in the world by British Travel Magazine, and has been featured in many other magazines and newspapers through the years. It is estimated that this free showcase brings more than 20 thousand visitors to Fresno County during the concentrated 4-5 week period of beauty each year.

Each season starts off with an opening ceremony held at one of the cities involved. This year’s ceremony was hosted by Reedley, but due to Covid, it was done virtually. Some other events are up in the air as to whether they will still take place this year, including the Annual Blossom Days Festival and Car Show, and the Orange Cove Blossom Festival.

One of the events sadly not happening this year is the Annual Reedley Lions Club Blossom Trail Bike Ride, but they hope to be back in 2022. For the Bike Ride you can choose to take either the 60, 40, 20, or 10-mile route. The 10-mile one is considered the “family fun run.” The 60-mile route takes you up Elwood Road through Wonder Valley. Even though there isn’t an official event this year, you can still go out on your own, or with family, and enjoy riding through parts of the trail.

cherry blossoms

Another fun event each year is the Blossom Trail Train Ride, which takes place in early March, and this one is still happening! “The Blossom Trail Train will be running the first three weekends of March from 10-5, with Reedley Rail Fest on the third weekend,” shared Sean Batista from Hillcrest Farms in Reedley. You can find the details and purchase your tickets on the Hillcrest Farms website.

There is also a Blossom Trail Bus Tour put on by the Sanger Chamber of Commerce each year. According to Tammy Wolfe, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Sanger District Chamber of Commerce, it is an amazing day of wine tasting, shopping, and good food. While this event will sadly not be happening in 2021, Sanger also has the Blossom Trail Run that is a 10k run that will be held virtually this year from March 1-April 4. More information can be found on the chamber website.

While sadly many events are not taking place in 2021, it is never too early to plan to visit the Blossom Trail in 2022. In the meantime, you can enjoy the virtual events, and go out and enjoy the trail on your own, whether on your bike, driving, or walking parts of the trail. Check out the Blossom Trail website for a map of the trail, and to keep up to date on whether more of the events will be going virtual this year, and if others might still be happening in person. You can also follow them on Twitter @GoBlossomTrail.

If you do check out the trail, you are encouraged to share some of your blossom photos with the Fresno County Blossom Trail through their website, and you can share them with us on the Mennonite Insurance Facebook page.

Filed Under: Life Insurance

Celebrating Pi Day

March 1, 2021 by Jerry Linscheid

By Lorie Ham

On March 14, it will once again be Pi Day. But what exactly is Pi Day? According to Wikipedia, it is an annual celebration of the mathematical constant π (pi). The reason it is celebrated on that particular day is because 3, 1, and 4 are the first three significant digits of pi. The House of Representatives recognized March 14 as National Pi Day in 2009.

Pi is one of the oldest and most recognized mathematical constants in the world. It is the ratio of any circle’s circumference to its diameter. Its value is approximately equal to 3.14159265, or 3.14 for short.

The earliest known official or large-scale celebration was organized in 1988 by physicist Larry Shaw at the San Francisco Exploratorium. Staff and the public marched around one of its circular spaces, and then ate fruit pies. The Exploratorium continues to celebrate to this day.

Timeanddate.com has several suggestions for celebrating this unusual day, which include eating pies, baking pies, having a pi recitation contest, and watching the 1998 movie by Darren Aronofsy called Pi.

Among the many who celebrate Pi Day, NASA celebrates every year. On their website they offer 10 different suggestions for celebrating, which include making and eating space themed pies! PiDay.org offers resources for teachers who want to celebrate Pi Day in their classroom, math tutorials and videos, and even pi merchandise! One thing that Chiff.com suggests is to include other round foods in your celebration such as pizza and donuts, and not limit yourself to pies. You can also celebrate with meat pies. There are also pi songs all over YouTube, and there are pi trivia games.

While some suggestions such as pi recitation contests and Pi Day marathons, will mostly appeal to the math fans in your life, on Holidays Calendar, you can also find some more unusual and messy ways to celebrate such as pie drops. Pie drops are an activity in which people drop pies from the top of a building to see who gets the biggest splatter. For even more ideas, check out Wiki How.

However you choose to celebrate, I think in times like these we should celebrate every chance we get! I am not really into math, but I think I might celebrate this year anyway by eating my favorite kind of pie, chocolate! You can find an easy recipe here on the Pioneer Woman website!

Please share with us on our Facebook page how you plan to celebrate this unusual day!

Filed Under: Life Values

Vic Alemania Explains Water Damage Claims

February 4, 2021 by Jerry Linscheid

Vic briefly explains types of water damage and which ones are usually covered.

Filed Under: Flood Insurance

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