Tropical Sangria

As summer  and graduation parties approach I thought this might be useful. This is also another recipe from my Survivor Party.

TROPICAL SANGRIA

• 1/2 cup peach schnapps
• 1 (15 ounce) can pineapple rings , in their own juice, not sweetened
• 1/2 cup juice , from pineapple can
• 1 (750 ml) bottle dry white wine , like sauvignon blanc
• 1/4 cup seltzer water
• 1 kiwi , peeled and sliced
• 4 strawberries , quartered
• 4 slices lemons
• 4 slices oranges
• 4 slices limes
• 1/2 cup raspberries (about a handful)
• 1 tablespoon granulated sugar

Directions:

-Do not open bottles of wine or seltzer until ready to serve

-Place slices of lemon, orange and lime in a large sangria pitcher and dust with the granulated sugar.

-Lightly mash with a wooden spoon until fruit begins to break down and sugar begins to dissolve.

-Cover fruit with pineapple juice. Quarter 3 of the pineapple slices and add to pitcher.

-Add remaining fruit and peach schnapps. Stir lightly, then refrigerate for 4 hours

-Right before serving, add seltzer and bottle of wine to pitcher. Be sure each glass gets some fruit!

-Garnish with orange or kiwi slices and serve with fruit-juice ice cubes.

Burger King.....No Longer King (in my books)

Yep, Burger King too has fallen to the pressures of being more, "ethical/healthy" or whatever they choose to call it.

Burger King vows cage-free chicken and pork
Decision by the US No. 3 burger chain raises the bar for its rivals

I had heard the news last week and I started thinking about what we have talked about in my last grad level class, Communicating Ethical Issues in Agriculture.
Do people really know what they are doing and how it will effect others when they make these decisions?!

I was driving home the other day listening to K-LOVE radio and the dj was talking about the new plans for Burger King. He joked saying: who was going to be on egg gathering duty, how will they find the eggs, where will the chickens live, etc. He then asked if anyone listening could help him understand, "this cage free deal" ( I decided that was going to be me, I am emailing this post to him as soon as I finish it)
Interesting enough the dj's grandparents had a farm and I believe he grew up on one as well. I started getting upset about BKs new vow and that someone who grew up in an farm family had a lack of knowledge of what was going on. People assume that cage-free  or free range means that that the chicken is roaming free all the time NOT SO: According to USDA, free range means " Producers must demonstrate to the Agency that the poultry has been allowed access to the outside."  (Allowed access can mean that the chicken or pig was outside for 15 min.) Labeling is not as straight-forward and honest sounding as you might think or hope for. Even those against animal agriculture are not clear about proper labeling and regulations for cage-free. As of today there is not a strict and concise labeling for eggs in the United States.

We need to educate others (even if you think they grew up on a farm) about what certain terms in agriculture mean AND how these harmless looking steps can lead to something much worse. A fellow K-State grad blogged about this here.  Check out another great blog post here. We as producers and Ag Advocates need to have our voice heard- don't allow PETA & HSUS be the only voice that consumers are hearing!

Life that is planned?!

101 in 1001

Happy 1 year blogging anniversary to me! I can't believe how fast one year has gone. To celebrate I thought I would do 101 in 1001. I've seen my friend and other bloggers to this.....so here it goes.

101 in 1001

Start Date: April 21, 2012

End Date: January 17, 2015

Travel
1. Go to 5 new states
2. Attend K-State vs Oklahoma football in Norman
3. Attend K-State vs Baylor football in Waco
4. Attend K-State vs Iowa State football in Ames
5. Travel out of the country
6. Travel to Vegas for NFR
7. Visit another Laurel city
8. Go to the Kentucky Derby
9. Go to a NBA game

10.Go to a NFL game
11. Visit 5 unique Kansas attractions

Out and About
12. Visit a museum
13. Attend a K-State Alumni event
14. Go to play or musical
15. Eat at 10 new restaurants and blog about them 0/10
16.Go to a concert of someone I’ve never been to.
17. Go snow skiing

Around the home
18. Paint my bedroom turquoise
19. Complete 10 Pinterest projects 0/8
20. Fully clean out my car out 0/2
21. Tile kitchen
22. New carpet in the living room
23. Host a dinner party
24. Redo the bathroom
25. Make my bed everyday for a week
26. Vacuum once a week for a month
27. Keep dresser & desk clean/organized for at least 30 days
28. Try a 10 new recipes 0/10

Financial/Business
29. Start an event planning business
30. Get Laurel Hill  tax id number
31. Go 2 weeks without spending any money on things other than bills, food or gas

32. Buy a house
33. Get taxes done earlier than March 15th
34. Save $5 for every goal completed


Gratitude
35. Write 20 thank you cards 0/20
36. Buy flowers for others 0/3
37.Send 12 birthday cards 0/12
38. Make a birthday cake for someone
39. Read devotionals everyday for 30 days
40. If someone is sick, visit them. Take a dish, card, or flowers...even if they aren't close friends
41. Buy someone else’s meal
42. Read the Bible

My Network
43. Attend 2 agiculture conferences 0/2
44. Successfully execute Dirt, Denim & Diamonds

45. Have 50 attendees to 3D
46. Book 5 speaking gigs 0/5
47. Have 100 followers on the Blog
48. Write 3 guest blogs 0/3
49. Maintain blog for 1 year.
50. Sell 10 items on Etsy
51. Meet 5 social media friends in real life - 0/5
52. Judge at an FFA or 4-H event

Health & Beauty
53 Run a 5K
54. Get to my ideal body weight, and maintain for 6 months
55. Get a spray tan
56. Golf in a tournament
57. Have a spa day
58. Clean out my closet
59. Take a yoga class
60. Drink 3 glasses of water everyday for a month
61. Get rid of 10 pair of shoes
62. Take a zumba class
63. Take a multi-vitamin every day for a month
64. Get a massage
65. Improve my posture
66. Get a  manicure
67.Get a pedicure
68. Floss daily for 1 week

Personal

69.Make a T-Shirt Quilt

70.Don’t use the internet for a week

71. Be a camp counselor

72 Double my cow herd
73. Finish a quilt I have started.
74. Own another Paul Cameron Smith Print
75. Take part in a 30 day photo challenge
76. Attend church at least 12 times in 12 months
77. Send Christmas cards
78. Scrapbook Europe trip
79. Train Monkey to ride and take her to work cattle
80. Write in my journal at least once a week
81. Write a letter to myself to open in 10 years
82. Cook for a branding
83. Fall in love
84. Take dance lessons
85. Sleep under the stars
86. Get my google email down to 50 emails
87. Make a custom recipe book
88. Own another pair of boots (you can never have enough)
89. Tie a note to a balloon and let it go
90. Get my Yahoo email down to 200

91. Arrange 6 ladies nights
91. Get my gmail inbox down to 20 emails and keep that way for 2 weeks

93. Make a pair of spurs

94. Tool something made of leather

95 Host a game night

96 Get a puppy

97 Make 2 photo books 0/2

98 Read 5 books 0/5
99. Write 5 letters to people I haven’t talked to in a long time 0/5
100. Don't complain about anything for a week
101. When this list is complete start another one

New life to old boots

Thrifty Thursday- CP had a pair of old Anderson Beans that needed resoled. I thought if they were getting resoled they could also get another update.
BEFORE (but after being resoled)

AFTER:

Words of Wisdom

Pinterest Tested-Grilled Corn, Avocado and Tomato Salad with Honey Lime Dressing

Yummy & Healthy! A perfect refreshing salad for summer
Original recipe here.

The Salad:

1 pint grape tomatoes

1 ripe avocado

2 ears of fresh sweet corn ( I used canned and just fried it in the skillet)

2 tbsp fresh cilantro, chopped

Remove husks from corn and grill over medium heat for 10 minutes. The corn should have some brown spots and be tender and not mushy. Cut the corn off the cob then scrape the cob with the back of your knife to get the juices. Set aside and let cool. Slice the tomatoes in half. Dice the avocado and chop the cilantro.

The Dressing

Juice of 1 lime

3 tbsp vegetable oil

1 tbsp honey

Sea salt and fresh cracked pepper, to taste

1 clove garlic, minced

Dash of cayenne pepper

Add all the dressing ingredients in a small bowl and whisk to combine. Set aside.

Combine the sliced tomatoes, avocado, cilantro and grilled corn and honey lime dressing and mix gently so everything is evenly coated. Be careful not to mash the avocados. Let the salad sit for 10-15 minutes to let flavors mingle. Enjoy.

Scenic Sunday-Bayard Kansas

 

 

Again another town not in my book, but shown to me by my good friend as we did our ghost town traveling. Bayard is unincorporated

 

I was kinda sad to see how this church or school has just been ignored and run down. What a sight with the door open and still able to see a podium inside.

 

History Lesson: In 1910, Bayard was a station on the Missouri, Kansas & Texas Railroad with a money order post office with one rural route, an express office, and some mercantile interests. It was a shipping point for the surrounding agricultural district. The population that year was reported as 50.
A post office was opened in Front (an extinct town) in June 1886, but it was moved to Bayard in August 1887 and remained in operation until it was discontinued in April 1943

County: Allen

Population: No census since it is unincorporated. There were 1 or 2 houses in the area that people were living in.

Words of Wisdom

Hippy-Not Hippie

One of my good friends raises goats. I went down to visit for a weekend to help dehorn the herd, which I will talk about in a later post but for now I want to just share some pictures of Hippy (my favorite) who because I didn't take the bottle baby home she went to the auction (still bitter about that!) and a few others. 
Hippy got her name because of her right hip's markings.

Hippy, is quite a nibbler and thought my blonde hair was straw....some days working with it, I think that myself.

Pinterest Tested-Cinnamon French Toast Bake

OH MY GOODNESS.....this is amazing AND super easy. The original recipe is from What's Cooking, Love? 

1/4 cup melted butter
2 cans refrigerated cinnamon rolls with icing
5 eggs
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 cup chopped pecans
3/4 cup maple syrup

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

2. Pour the melted butter into an ungreased 13x9 glass baking dish. Separate both cans of refrigerated cinnamon buns into 16 cinnamon buns, setting the icing aside. Then cut each cinnamon bun into 8 pieces and place the pieces on top of the butter in the baking dish.

3. In a medium bowl beat the eggs. Then beat in the heavy whipping cream, cinnamon, and vanilla until they are well blended. Then gently pour over the cinnamon bun pieces. Sprinkle the top with the pecans and then drizzle with the maple syrup.

4. Bake for 20 to 28 minutes or until golden brown. Cool for 15 minutes.

5. Microwave the icing on medium (50%) for 10-15 seconds or until it is thin enough to drizzle. Drizzle the icing over the top of the French Toast Bake. Serve with additional syrup if desired.

I made this before I started by "eat healthy, get into shape diet" Even then I reduced the amount of butter and cream, (substituted half of the cream with 2% milk.) In the future I would buy reduced fat cinnamon rolls and make a healthier version.

Words of Wisdom-Age

Pinterest Tested-Layered Dessert Bars

I'm not sure what name you have heard these go by, "Chocolate Chip Cookie Oreo Brownie Bars", "Chocolate Chip Cookie n’ Oreo Knock your socks off Brownie Bars", or maybe, "Slutty Brownies"

Whatever you choose to call them, I made 'em.
I used the recipe found at Betcha Can’t Eat Just One.

Conclusion: Me: Ok, but I'd rather have each of those desserts by themselves than stacked.
                     Others: Ok, "They got better as I ate them"

1 cup granulated sugar

1 cup unsalted butter, room temp

3/4 cup brown sugar

2 eggs

1 tbsp vanilla extract

2 1/2 cups flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

2 cups chocolate chips

1 package of oreo cookies

1 package of brownie mix (to be prepared as directed on the box)

Preheat the oven to 350 and line a 9X13″ pan with parchment paper

Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs followed by vanilla and mix well.
Add the flour, baking soda and salt and continue to beat until well combined. Fold in the chocolate chips.

Press the cookie dough evenly into the pan.

Now place the oreos on top of the cookie dough. Surprisingly enough, there are just enough oreos to top the whole thing!

Prepare brownie batter as directed (I didn’t even wash out my mixer bowl…just scrape the cookie dough clean and move on!)

Pour brownie batter on top and smooth it around with a spatula.

Bake for 40-50 minutes. They should look slightly under baked.