“Our life holds few distinctions Mrs Bennett, but I think we may safely boast, that here sit two of the silliest girls in the country". --Mr. Bennett, Pride and Prejudice, A&E 1995 miniseries.
Yesterday, mom and I visited a Mennonite Bulk Store way out in the country, about an hour from our home in Kingsport.
I took my camera.
When Todd found out that I walked all over this tiny, old-fashioned, “general store”-esque establishment (serviced by strong, capable women with varying headwear) with my Nikon slung over my shoulder, he laughed. It's ok...you can laugh too, if you want.
But I just couldn’t help it. I know I'm silly, but places like this thrill my ridiculous soul to its core for two reasons: one, the apparel of the employees transport me back a few centuries, and two, they’re uber cheap. There was no way I was going to visit such a place and not document it photographically.
That said, here are a few pictures from our excursion. I attach them in the hope that they might inspire you to visit this little gem of a store, or one like it. We had a great time!
Welcome to 1890s...minus the Infiniti.
It's the bread baker's dream...an entire row of flours and other baking supplies.
But, if you're not into baking your own bread, you can always buy a loaf of theirs.
This...now this is incredible. Choose your spice(s) of choice!
Ok, awkward confession: Honey Butter is one of my (many) made-up nicknames for Todd (if he knows you know this, he might audibly groan). Would you believe it's one of the more normal ones? I tend to call him whatever comes out of my mouth first. He takes it like a champ. :) I had no idea that honey butter was an actual substance. I wonder how it tastes...
There were lots of free samples for our tasting enjoyment. These guac bites were fantastic!
Wow! The final tally was outrageously cheap! Let me fill in the blanks for you.
I purchased (the items go in order down the receipt):
5 lbs. white whole wheat flour
.1 lb. star anise
1.3 lbs. cornstarch
1.1 lbs. wheat bran
.4 lb. cinnamon sticks
1 lb. wheat germ
.7 lb. active dry yeast
.9 lb. raw sunflower seeds
!!!
This was the absolute best part of the entire adventure. It's a peach fry pie, and it was de-li-cious! I sincerely hope you manage to eat your fill of these before you depart from this earth. I'm glad the bag didn't list the calories...it wouldn't have been pretty.
You can make your own honey butter. Mix honey with butter until it tastes good. If you don't count the calories it adds, it tastes even better.
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