10 Amish Cooking Secrets

1. Share breakfast as a family. A typical Amish family rises early, starts chores and sits down to eat together in the peace before the day begins.

2. Eat pie. Lots of it. Pies are practically synonymous with Amish cooking. It’s not unusual for a cook to make eight to 12 pies a week.

3. Enjoy the earth’s bounty. Since the Amish produce much of their food on their own land, recipes incorporate ingredients from the garden, coop or orchard.

4. If you can’t eat it now, can it for later. As a low-tech way to keep produce, canning is a central practice.

5. Waste not, want not. The Amish are taught not to waste food while cooking.

6. You can make something out of (almost) nothing.

Many Amish recipes call for only a handful of ingredients.

7. Celebrate special occasions with food. Barn raisings, weddings and family reunions are big events, and there is always plenty of food.

8. Cooking is good for the community. After Sunday service, worshippers share in a light lunch, bringing them together.

9. Pass cooking traditions through generations. Amish cooks don’t keep a lot of written recipes. Mothers teach daughters cooking through hands-on lessons.

10. When in doubt: Make applesauce. You’ll find scratchmade applesauce at every meal.

The Amish are part of a religious community and separate themselves from modern technology. Though the lifestyle is reserved, they express themselves through food, and there’s a lot we can learn from them.