The prairies encompass everything I love. The quiet, distant sounds that calm; the open air that inspires; the smells that bring comfort, and the sunshine that warms me. My Prairie Story is about sharing all the good things that have been instilled in me growing up and living on the prairies - my new and old family recipes, nurturing my green thumb, making my house a home, and just keeping up with life! ~ Alison Zulyniak
The United Nations has declared 2011 as the International Year of Forests. This year is an opportunity to champion forests and trees and their role in providing communities with clean air, acting as carbon sinks to mitigate climate change, and creating sustainable industries. Since a tree is half carbon, trees represent one of the best ways to extract carbon (which enters the tree as CO2) from the air.
Live a little cleaner, be a little greener, and breathe a little deeper while you plant a tree or two or more this year! I know I'll be planting several trees and shrubs, moving some of my small spruce trees to give them more room to grow, and I'll be sure to give all my trees a little extra TLC this year!
The most popular recipe from last week's Recipe Swap Thursday was Easy Peach Cobbler @ This Mommy Cooks. I love peach cobbler, and it really can't get easier with this recipe!
This week I'm sharing my Shepard's Pie. Meat, veggies, and potatoes all in one dish! How can you go wrong! What is your family version of Shepard's Pie?
How to swap:
1) Link directly to your recipe. Scroll down to "Click here to enter" button. You will be prompted to enter the URL (link directly to your post), Name of your recipe, and Email (not visible), and then select a Thumbnail to upload.
2) Visit the other recipe links!!
3) Please include a link back to Prairie Story so everyone can see all the delicious recipes. Feel free to grab the Prairie Story Recipe Swap Thursday badge, or Tweet/Facebook this swap to your friends and followers.
Thank you to all recipe swappers, blog hoppers, my loyal readers, Twitter and Facebook followers, fellow foodies, family and friends for your support. I'm so happy to be able to share my Prairie Story, and appreciate that you take a precious moment or two out of your busy day to visit my blog!
In early cookbooks, Shepard's Pie was a dish using leftover roasted meat of any kind, and the pie dish was lined with mashed potato as well as having a mashed potato crust on top. There are many variations of Shepard's Pie, one being Cottage Pie which has references back in 1791, when the potato was being introduced as an edible crop, affordable for the poor.
1 1/2 lbs ground beef
1 onion, diced
salt & pepper
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can sliced mushrooms, drained
2 cups mixed vegetables, frozen
left over mashed potatoes
1/2 cup cheese, shredded
- Brown ground beef and onion in skillet.
- Generously season with salt and pepper.
- Stir in mushroom soup and sliced mushrooms.
- Place beef mixture in bottom of casserole.
- Next layer on frozen vegetables, then top with mashed potatoes.
- Top with cheese to make a nice looking crust.
- Bake @ 350° for 30 minutes to warm, or if you have made ahead of time and stored in refrigerator bake for 60 minutes.
I also want to note that one of my good Prairie friends makes Shepard's Pie with the Club House Shepard's Pie Seasoning Mix and Sloppy Joe's Seasoning Mix. It's one of her family favorites. I'm a huge Club House fan so I'll definitely be trying these next time!
Growing up on our farm, during summer I remember lunch used to be called "dinner". I'm not exactly sure why, but I remember the meals being a bigger sit-down meal where the men would come in to eat and usually it was either a hot meal or soup and sandwiches. A staple was rye bread, with some sort of meat, and mustard. We seem to still always have ample mustard in our fridge, and by far my favorite is Keen's.
I spread Keen's Prepared Hot Mustard in sandwiches, add it in dips, and it makes my Old Fashioned Deviled Eggs "deviled". My husband likes to eat with meat like roast beef or ham. Try it... it's got some kick!
For over 250 years, Keen's has provided quality dry mustard around the world. The brand was first manufactured and sold in 1742 by Messers Keen and Sons in the Garlick Hill section of London, England. The expression "keen as mustard", is often thought to have originated with the mustard by Keen & Sons.
The term "deviled" in food dates back to the 18th century, and in the 19th century appeared in print referring to the use of particularly hot spices in cooking. These eggs are definitely deviled!
12 eggs
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup Heinz English Salad Cream
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1-2 tablespoons Keen's Prepared Hot Mustard
2 tablespoons green onion, chopped
1/2 cup celery, finely diced
Garnish:
paprika
chives or green onion
2-3 radishes
- Hard boil eggs. To reduce cracking, place eggs in water prior to boiling, then bring to boil. Turn down heat; if you let eggs rumble in hard boiling water the whites will get tough and rubbery.
- Add 1-2 tablespoons of vinegar to water, to help peel eggs.
- Once hard boiled, place eggs in ice water to cool. The quicker the cooling, the less chance of having the eggs have that grey ring. Also, I find the colder the egg, the easier to peel.
- Once eggs are peeled, cut in half and gently squeeze to remove yolk. Place hard yolks in bowl.
- Crumble yolks and combine with remaining ingredients.
- Dollop filling in eggs, and garnish with paprika, chives and sliced radishes..
- Serve chilled. Makes 20-24.
Welcome to Prairie Story Recipe Swap Thursday! I hope the Easter Bunny visits all of your homes this weekend!
The most popular recipe from last week's Recipe Swap Thursday was Deviled Egg Dip @ From My Tiny Kitchen. This is brilliant! A perfect Easter appetizer!
This week I'm sharing my Hot Cross Buns. It is said that sharing a hot cross bun with another is supposed to ensure friendship throughout the coming year, particularly if "Half for you and half for me, Between us two shall goodwill be" is said at the time.
How to swap:
1) Link directly to your recipe. Scroll down to "Click here to enter" button. You will be prompted to enter the URL (link directly to your post), Name of your recipe, and Email (not visible), and then select a Thumbnail to upload.
2) Visit the other recipe links!!
3) Please include a link back to Prairie Story so everyone can see all the delicious recipes. Feel free to grab the Prairie Story Recipe Swap Thursday badge, or Tweet/Facebook this swap to your friends and followers.
Thank you to all recipe swappers, blog hoppers, my loyal readers, Twitter and Facebook followers, fellow foodies, family and friends for your support. I'm so happy to be able to share my Prairie Story, and appreciate that you take a precious moment or two out of your busy day to visit my blog!
Hot Cross Buns are a sweet, spiced bun with candied fruit and marked on the top with a cross made from icing. In many historically Christian countries, buns are traditionally eaten hot or toasted on Good Friday, with the cross standing as a symbol of The Crucifixion.
My Hot Cross Buns are yet another adaptation of my Sweet Dough Dinner Rolls that I make in my bread maker. I'm sure you can modify to mix in Kitchen Aid or by hand if you ensure you use luke warm milk, room temperature egg, and even warm flour.
Add the following in this order:
1/2 cup milk
1 egg, beaten
1/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons margarine
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups white flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
2 1/4 teaspoons yeast
2-4 tablespoons water (as needed, add as you knead dough if dry or stiff)
1/4 cup candied fruit
Icing:
1/4 cup cream cheese,softened
1/4 cup icing sugar
milk if needed
- Knead 20 minutes, then add candied fruit. Rest 1 hour.
- Turn dough out and shape into rolls.
- Place in greased baking dish and brush with melted margarine.
- Let stand 10 minutes.
- Bake @ 350° for 20-25 minutes.
- Cream together cream cheese and sugar. If stiff add a little milk. Place in baggie and cut corner to squeeze icing out over buns making crosses.
- Makes 9-12 buns.
So, if you've been watching Oprah's Farewell Season, you will know that Oprah's favorite drink is a Moscow Mule. It goes without saying that I had to try one while I was in Chicago!
A Moscow Mule is a cocktail made with vodka, ginger beer, and lime, served in a copper mug. It was popular during the vodka craze in the 1950s and it's name refers to the perception of vodka as a Russian product.
1 ounce vodka
1 teaspoon sugar syrup
Fresh lime juice
1/2 cup ginger beer
1 sprig fresh mint
1 slice of lime
- In a copper mug, pour vodka over ice.
- Add sugar syrup and lime juice.
- Top with ginger beer and stir.
- Garnish with mint sprig and lime slice.
- Serves 1.
I tried it, I loved it... and now I have to find out where to buy ginger beer on the prairies.
Our Oprah day finally arrived, and "O" what a day it was!
4:00 am - Alarm and wake up call!! Jumped into shower, then hair, makeup, dressing, and packed up the last few items to check out of hotel. Thanks Omni, we had a wonderful stay!
5:30 am - The town car picked us up... on our way to Harpo Studios!
5:45 am - Arrived at Harpo Studios. It was actually a beautiful morning so standing in the audience line wasn't bad at all. There were about 50 or so people ahead of us in line.
Faye and I have been friends for 25 years!
Ironic that we see Oprah in her 25th season together.
6:15 am - The line started moving, and we proceeded through the check in process which was efficient but still took some time. First coat check, then ID check. We then were handed a release to sign, then on to security where all phones, cameras, electronics, food, beverages and excess items got removed from purses. Then through the metal detector. We were handed a small breakfast and headed up to the waiting room. I must say that all the Harpo staff were extremely friendly!
7:30 am - Names started to get called to enter the studio. From what I could tell these were primarily people who had a connection and were seated in the front rows. The remainder and bulk of the audience were then seated by number. The studio itself feels much smaller than what it looks like on TV. It was cozy without a bad seat in the house!
8:30 am - The audience director welcomed us all and explained what would be happening. First we were going to watch the documentary "I Am", which asks the question "What is wrong with our world, and what can we do about it?". Oprah and her producers are passionate about this documentary and I loved it too! Please watch the trailer:
10:00 am - We had a bit of a break, and then the warm up party started. Music, dancing, and video of Oprah playing on all the screens. We then had the Oprah Store people come in to pitch and invite us over after the show. Lastly, we had the opportunity to ask any questions, like "Will this show be part of Behind The Scenes?", "What will happen to Harpo employees after the Oprah Winfrey Show?", and "When will this show air?".
10:30 am - The show began and Oprah entered! She interviewed the director of "I Am", Tom Shadyak. His story is inspiring, enlightening and awakening. I'm not going to lie... I had Kleenex handy and welled up many times thinking that I was at one of Oprah's last 30 shows. It was awesome to be in Oprah's presence and I was so fortunate to see a show that was so meaningful. Please watch the show for yourself, it will air April 20th! Oprah graciously thanked us all and spoke a few words us all before she left.
11:30 am - We exited the studio and as we were waiting in line for our coats and valuables, we were approached and asked if we would do an interview on Oprah Radio. We jumped at the chance!
Oprah Radio - We headed over to the Oprah Radio Studio which was a separate building where we got a brief tour then were brought into an interview room and were instructed to put on the head phones, take off our jewelry so it wouldn't bang on the table and got comfortable in front of the mics. They asked us questions about where we were from, how we got Oprah tickets, what we thought of the show, what Oprah means to us and what we've learned from the Oprah Show over the years. If you have Sirius/XM, you may just hear us next week on Oprah Radio!
Oprah Store - Our last stop was the Oprah store of course! Unfortunately Oprah's Closet, where you can purchase clothes that Oprah has worn and 100% of the proceeds go to charity, was pretty depleted. I ended up getting a shirt for my daughter, journal for my husband, and a couple sweatshirts for me!
On a cute note, I also saw Oprah's dog Sadie! Security detail was taking her for a walk. I just happened to be lingering around Harpo Studio after I was done shopping and pretty much bumped into them as they came around the corner.
My entire Chicago trip was amazing! I am so thankful and blessed to have a prairie friend like Faye and am actually still processing my once in a lifetime chance to see Oprah in her Farewell Season.
Welcome to Prairie Story Recipe Swap Thursday! Sorry for being a little late with the swap this week... I just flew in from Chicago last night from our Oprah Show taping. It was so much fun and inspiring and overwhelming to be in her audience in one of her last shows of her Farewell Season. More about Oprah later...
The most popular recipe from last week's Recipe Swap Thursday was Chicken Cobbler Casserole @ It's A Keeper. I'm always looking for a new and interesting casserole, and I like the use of sour dough in this one.
This week I'm sharing my Chocolate Devil Cake Cookies. These only take 5 minutes to mix, 8 minutes to bake and are so soft and chocolaty.
How to swap:
1) Link directly to your recipe. Scroll down to "Click here to enter" button. You will be prompted to enter the URL (link directly to your post), Name of your recipe, and Email (not visible), and then select a Thumbnail to upload.
2) Visit the other recipe links!!
3) Please include a link back to Prairie Story so everyone can see all the delicious recipes. Feel free to grab the Prairie Story Recipe Swap Thursday badge, or Tweet/Facebook this swap to your friends and followers.
Thank you to all recipe swappers, blog hoppers, my loyal readers, Twitter and Facebook followers, fellow foodies, family and friends for your support. I'm so happy to be able to share my Prairie Story, and appreciate that you take a precious moment or two out of your busy day to visit my blog!
I love my cake cookies!! And these are highly addictive! They remind me of Subway cookies.
1 Betty Crocker SuperMoist Devil's Food Cake Mix
1/4 cup margarine, softened
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 eggs, beaten
1/4 cup chocolate & butterscotch chips
- In mixing bowl, combine cake mix, margarine, oil and eggs.
- Drop 1 inch balls onto cookie sheet and top each with some chocolate and butterscotch chips.
- Bake @ 350° for 8-10 minutes. Allow to cool on baking sheet.
- Makes 24 cookies.
What will I do when you won't be in my home every weekday mentoring me? Who will I turn to to lift my spirit, fill my heart, and make me want to be better. Who will warn me of harm, help me protect my children, and encourage me to care about the bigger picture? Who will make me laugh, or let me know that my tears are a sign of strength? Who will tell me that when I know better I'll do better. And who will keep giving me the confidence to be... me?
Who will ensure those who don't have a voice will be heard? Who will recognize the heroes, warriors, and angels amongst us? Who will encourage us to read, motivate us to get moving, and move us to truth.
Oprah, you have taught me how to ask for what I need and give what I have. It's going to be tough without you....oh wait, an Aha Moment - what I now know for sure, is that I'll be fine. Because of you. Thank you.
I'm just a simple prairie girl who believes in dreams and that truly anything is possible; and soon, I'll boarding a plane to Chicago to come see you on April 13 at one of your farewell season shows. I'll be the one fighting off the ugly cry.
The most popular recipe from last week's Recipe Swap Thursday was Zesty Italian Crescent Bake @ This Mommy Cooks. I'm all for using Pillsbury Crescents in creative recipes like this!
1) Link directly to your recipe. Scroll down to "Click here to enter" button. You will be prompted to enter the URL (link directly to your post), Name of your recipe, and Email (not visible), and then select a Thumbnail to upload.
2) Visit the other recipe links!!
3) Please include a link back to Prairie Story so everyone can see all the delicious recipes. Feel free to grab the Prairie Story Recipe Swap Thursday badge, or Tweet/Facebook this swap to your friends and followers.
Thank you to all recipe swappers, blog hoppers, my loyal readers, Twitter and Facebook followers, fellow foodies, family and friends for your support. I'm so happy to be able to share my Prairie Story, and appreciate that you take a precious moment or two out of your busy day to visit my blog!
Do you know anyone who doesn't like Hashbrown Casserole? I don't. It's a comfort food, great for family gatherings or any potluck! Often, I'll combine the ingredients together the day before and cook the day of, and even double this recipe.
- Saute onion in margarine.
- In a large bowl, mix together soup, sour cream, cheese, and generously season with salt and pepper.
- Add in hasbrowns, and place in greased casserole.
- Bake @ 350° for 45-60 minutes.
Well, we had a scare at the beginning of the week when we received an email from the Oprah Show with the subject line: IMPORTANT PLEASE READ & RESPOND. As it turns out our April 12th show has been moved to April 13th. Fortunately, our hotels and flights still all work out. We can only assume that this means this show will be even more awesome!
Anyway, I got shopping one more time and was able to update my possible outfits. I loved all the previous feedback so PLEASE let me know what you think again!
1. This green shirt is a new possibility. It's very comfortable, and I look really good in green. I know that I can also throw my grey blazer on over it which makes it all look pretty sharp and works for cool morning temperatures.
2. I'm not sure if you can see the detail, but I found this funky black shirt with bright pink, purple, teal and green polka dots to go under this bright turquoise sweater and added this chunky black necklace.
3. I found and added this amazing tan jacket to my pink outfit. I think it takes this sweater from "stepford wife" to "kick-ass mom". I like it!
4. Lastly, I added a purple scarf and a different necklace. I really like how this shirt and blazer look with jeans and heels.
And here is Faye's Oprah outfit! She claims she went and got it all on March 26th... but I have a feeling she bought it ages ago and has been secretly keeping it in her closet for Oprah all this time!
6 more days to decide on an outfit! 4 more sleeps until we're in Chicago!!
We had an early Easter Brunch this past Sunday which doubled as my baby girl's 1st birthday party! Brunch is one of my favorite meals and because I'm a morning person I love having family and company over at that time. Also, if you choose a menu wisely, most of the food can be prepared the day before then cooked and warmed up the next day!
