Tour The World Blog Hop-Food!

When you think of other states and countries around the world, I think of things that represent that place, that make it unique.  A group of bloggers from around the world are featuring their food, or something that represents the place where we are from.  I represent Missouri, and so I really had to think about what food really represents the place we live.

I thought of Gooey Butter Cake, but it is more of a St. Louis thing.  I think we do a fine job of BBQ and so I decided to take that path.  Everywhere I eat at a BBQ place, I like to try their pork steak, to see if they can put a delicious spin on this cut of meat.  
So together my husband and I decided to make Pork Steaks with Root Beer BBQ Sauce.  Our joint adventure started with Bob smoking the pork steaks on our Green Egg.  He lov…

My Talents

I believe it is important for us to share our talents with one another.  I always feel so blessed when someone shares their talents with me.  I have been so blessed in this department.  My friends have always been ready to share with me:  Charlotte and her incredible parties, Linda and her relationship building techniques, Ashley and her devotion to her students, Kendra and her music, Mary Francis and her positive affirmations, all these and more have blessed my life in more ways than I can count.
I often wonder what my friends see as my talents.  I feel more like a jack-of-all-trades than really talented in any one area.  My daughter threw me for a loop this past weekend when she talked about writing a book and wants me to illustrate it.... what???  I doodle all the time, but how does sh…

Tipsy Tuesday-White Peach Sangria

One of our must-dos while in Columbia (MO) is to visit Glenn's.  We've been going to Glenn's a long time, as far back as Bob's graduate school days in the 80s.  They moved to Boonville (MO) for awhile, but now they are back in Columbia!

We love their cocktails and their summer line up is fantastic.  My daughter and I sampled several and you will be seeing them here in the next few weeks.  Today you will see the delicious White Peach Sangria.  I love how this drink is presented.  

The drink is made with Moscato, peach schnapps, fresh fruit, and triple sec.  The fresh fruit, blueberries, strawberries, peaches and citrus is delicious, too, so you have to eat it as well.  The drink is served over ice, which keeps it cold.  It is refreshing and delicious.

Headed over to Pam'…

Around the Garden Monday!

We have harvested a lot of tomatoes this week from the garden.  We have more cherry tomatoes than we can eat, so we share them with friends and neighbors.  We also picked a big crop of large tomatoes, so we set out making Crock Pot Spaghetti Sauce.  It is an easy process, and we freeze it instead of canning it, which makes it super easy!

 Step One, dice veggies

Cook veggies in crockpot until soft, about 6 hours on low

Puree in blender and return to crock pot to thicken.
Crock Pot Spaghetti Sauce

6-8 c diced tomatoes (no need to skin them ahead of time)
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
4 cloves of garlic, peeled and smashed
1/4 c fresh basil, chopped
2 T Italian seasoning
2 bay leaves

Put all ingredients in crock pot and cook on low for 6-8 hours…

Five Favorites Friday #2

I had a blast last week showing you five things that I found and loved with you!  This week I am happy to share with you some items that I love that I just know you will want to have, too!

Number 1.   This cookbook.  I am in love with cookbooks and this one just grabbed me the minute I walked into the store.  I found it at World Market, but I decided to wait to see if I could find it elsewhere, for a bit less.  I always look for a bargain!  I decided for the Kindle version, which is half the price of the paper version.  Here's a bit of what Amazon had online:

Recipes include: Dungeness Crab Cakes with Tarragon Aioli; Dutch Baby (puffed pancake with lemon and powdered sugar); Grilled Prosciutto-Wrapped Radicchio; and Warm Pear Upside Down Cake. This collection of recipes invites all c…

Nacho Regular Hot Dog #WeekdaySupper

It's National Hot Dog Day and there's no better way to celebrate than to, well, eat a hot dog!  I love hot dogs for their ease of preparation and their versatility.  A hot dog is a blank canvas, ready to be painted!  Today, the hot dog is being painted with flavors from the south!


This week at #WeekdaySupper you can find all of the following meals, just waiting for you!

Monday - Gluten-Free Fresh Tomato and Basil Pasta by MealDiva
Tuesday - Mexican Street Corn Tart by The Wimpy Vegetarian
Wednesday - One Skillet Steak Fajitas by Daily Dish Recipes
Thursday - “Nacho” Regular Hot Dog by Our Good Life
Friday - One Pot Burrito Bowls by Recipes Food and Cooking

The inspiration for this hot dog comes from my love of all Mexican foods.  I love guacamole, salsa, tortillas, black beans, yum.  T…

Garden Club Outing at The Libertine

The New Town Garden Club tour committee celebrated the completion of a successful tour at The Libertine restaurant in Clayton (MO) last night.  The Libertine calls itself A Neighborhood Eatery and perhaps rightfully so, as we entered the restaurant there was a couple sitting outside with a small, well-behaved dog.  I love it when I see this!

We were seated quickly and that was the last quick thing that happened while in the restaurant.  The service, while cheerful and friendly, was slow.  Our drink order was 30 minutes coming out after ordering, and then another 30 minutes before our orders were taken.  Fifteen minutes later our apps came out and then another wait of 15 minutes before our main orders were taken. We were at the restaurant two hours on a weekday night.  For a neighborhood e…

Chocolate Cake Waffle Cookies with Banana Ice Cream #CreativeCookieExchange

July is a hot month for those of us here in the US, and ice cream is the favorite treat of summer.  This month, #CreativeCookieExchange challenged us to find a cookie that would go well with ice cream, nense the inspiration for the cake style cookie.

Cake and Ice Cream go hand-in-hand and so does this take on a waffle cookie.  These cookies are delicious plain with the ice cream, or you can jazz them up with the glaze recipe I provide. However you chose to serve them, they are delicious!



Chocolate Cake Waffle Cookies

makes approx 36 cookies

1 cake mix (buy a good brand for the best flavor)
2 eggs
1/2 c water
2 T oil
1 t vanilla
1 t cinnamon

Preheat waffle pan.  I used an electric one.  Beat all ingredients together.  Spray waffle pan with cooking spray.  Drop 1 T of batter onto the waffle…

Top Ten Readiness Skills for Your Kindergartener

In my former life, I was an elementary teacher and an elementary principal.  I taught mostly grades 3 and up, but I often took on the younger grades during summer school.  It always gave me a strong appreciation for my older students!


As a principal I was able to enjoy all the grades, but I particularly loved being a principal to kindergarten students.  The excitement!  The joy!  The range of experiences!

This list is a list of readiness skills that I think will help any kindergartener be successful in the classroom.  These skills are ones that are anticipated by most kindergarten teachers.  There are many other skills that are important, too, but these will particularly help your student master the skill of school!
Top Ten Readiness Skills for Your Kindergartener
1.  Counting.  Counting i…

Farm Stand Food: Radish Top Pesto #SundaySupper

I was so excited when I saw this theme for this week.  I love going to food stands in the summer. This event is being hosted by Colleen of Foodie Tots with help from DB aka Foodie Stuntman at Crazy Foodie Stunts  This is the time to try new and different vegetables, one because they are plentiful and two, because they are so inexpensive and three, the farmers can tell you all kinds of things to do with them!  That is what happened in my case, when I picked up a beautiful bouquet of radishes.  The farmer said, what do you do with them?  I replied, nothing, I don't like radishes but this bunch is so beautiful.  He said, have you ever used the tops?  To that I replied, no, why?  He closed his eyes and said, Honey, you are missing the best part!

He went on to describe the peppery flavor o…

Five Favorites Friday

During the week I often think of things I would like to share with you readers and then I forget to do so.  I am hoping having this little Friday post will be a landing page for those cool things I have discovered during the week!

Number 1.  Astronauts Wives Club on Hulu.  I love this show, from the fashion, food and historical relevance and the personal relationships between families.  This show has it all.  I am thrilled it is on Hulu, as I gave up my DVR.  I read this book with my book club and now I get to watch it unfold each week!  Woo hoo!

Number 2.  Pug Paper Shop at Etsy.com.  I love so many things here, but these darling bicycle paper clips won my heart.  Best of all, I know the owner and love her.  You will, too, just go over and take a look at her shop!  https://www.etsy.com/s…

Roasted Banana and Black Walnut Bundt Cake #BundtBakers

Our theme this month for Bundt Bakers was Any combination of fruit and nuts, but at least one of each! Our host, SimplyVeggies, created this fun, challenging theme for us!



My inspiration for this theme came from my daughter, who loves Banana Boats.  We made them on vacation and I loved the banana taste and texture after roasting in the oven.  I also always like to look for ways to cut down on oil and fat in my cakes, so I worked hard to incorporate healthy fats into the batter and I think I have a winner!



Roasted Banana and Black Walnut Bundt Cake
by Terri Steffes Prep Time: 15 minutes Cook Time: 70 minutes
Ingredients 2/3 c sugar2/3 c brown sugar2 eggs1/3 c applesauce1/4 c canola oil3 t vanilla3 c flour3 t baking powder1 1/2 t cinnamon1/2 t salt3 bananas, roasted1/4 c chopped black walnuts …