|
KFRM BlogSuper Bowl = Super Snacks By Kim L. Fritzemeier KFRM Central Kansas Reporter Farm Wife along the Stafford/Reno County Line
Beef Tostadas From Taste of Home's Simple and Delicious magazine December 2011/January 2012 1 lb. lean ground beef (I used roast beef - see below) 1 cup chopped sweet red pepper 1/2 cup chili sauce 1 tsp. taco seasoning 1/4 tsp. salt 1/4 tsp. pepper 1/2 cup sour cream 3 tsp. chipotle sauce 6 tostada shells 3 cups shredded lettuce 1 1/2 cups guacamole 1 1/2 cups shredded Mexican cheese blend Chopped cilantro Chopped green onion Cook beef and red pepper over medium heat in large skillet until meat is no longer pink; drain. (Because I used already cooked roast beef, I softened the red pepper in the microwave.) Stir in chili sauce, taco seasoning, salt and pepper; heat through. Combine sour cream and chipotle sauce in small bowl. Layer each tostada with lettuce, meat mixture, guacamole, cheese and chipotle cream. Top with chopped green onions and cilantro. Serve with refried beans. Notes: I used roast beef instead of hamburger. I had cooked a roast in the same liquid I'd used to make pulled pork sandwiches. (The pulled pork would be a great Super Bowl meal, too, by the way.) Then I brought part of the roast to Jill and Eric's. Originally, I thought we could use it for sandwiches. But then I saw the tostada recipe and thought it would be perfect for that. The beef had some extra spices from its stay in the slow cooker, but it just added to the flavor. I didn't buy tostada shells. Instead, I used whole wheat tortillas. I sprayed both sides with cooking spray and then broiled them until they were crispy. We used more than the 3 cups of lettuce called for. I purchased shredded lettuce from the grocery store, rather than doing it myself this time. Jill and Eric especially liked the chipotle sauce/sour cream combo. They thought they'd be using that idea for other Mexican meals or for sandwiches. Need other ideas for the Super Bowl? Click on the underlined recipe names for the recipes. (Some of those posts also have links to more recipes, so happy exploring!)      Have a great weekend everyone!
Respond to this Entry
Calving - Weather or Not? By Kim L. Fritzemeier KFRM Central Kansas Reporter Farm Wife along the Stafford/Reno County Line
January 28, 2012 I don't know whether Phil will see his shadow today. But I know we've had some mighty nice weather so far for our calving season on the Stafford/Reno County line. I vote for a bunch of babies to be born today before the weather changes. We'll see if the mamas listen.
February 8, 2011 It would be better for all parties involved.
Respond to this Entry
A Century Farm: The Neellys By Kim L. Fritzemeier KFRM Central Kansas Reporter Farm Wife along the Stafford/Reno County Line
 For a behind-the-scenes story about this house, click here. Charley had a fondness for horses and made money by trading them. He also liked good driving horses and owned 11 race horses during his lifetime. During the 1910s and 1920s, Charley and the children farmed six or seven quarters of cropland. In 1919, they had more than 500 acres of corn. Shelby, his older brother Archie, and two hired hands shucked corn all winter. Corn at that time was worth 25 cents per bushel. After graduating from high school in 1925, Shelby attended Kansas State College. But in 1928, he had to leave school because of the Depression. He returned home and earned money by shucking corn for 2.5 cents per bushel. In 1929, he went back to K-State and earned his bachelor's degrees in physical education and biology in 1933. He coached and taught school, farming on the side. In 1945, he began farming full-time. In 1987, he sold his machinery and transferred operation of his ground to his grandson, Kent, who still farms that ground today. The farming roots run deep, not only on my mom's paternal side. Her mother's family farmed northeast of Trousdale. I love this photo taken in 1907. My grandma, Lela Johnson Neelly, is the baby being held in her mother's arms on the porch of the farm house. Doesn't it look like Americana personified?  Randy's family also has ties to agriculture for more than 100 years. A few years ago, our pasture was recognized as a Farm Bureau Century Farm. Initially, Randy's Grandpa and two of his brothers owned the pasture together. Now Randy and his cousin are the owners.  Our roots run deep in Kansas. And I wouldn't change a thing.
Respond to this Entry
A Century Farm: The Moores By Kim Moore Fritzemeier KFRM Central Kansas Reporter Farm Wife along the Stafford/Reno County Line
(My dad as a toddler and his Dad) As Kansas celebrated its 151st birthday on Sunday, I re-read a 16-page term paper I wrote in 1979 for History of American Agriculture, a class I took as a senior at Kansas State University. It didn't have a lot to do with my career goals at the time. But it was one of the best classes I took since it encouraged me to learn more about my heritage. Every person and every family has a story. I did learn that in journalism school. Today, my Dad and brother continue the story of the Moore family farm, which was established 135 years ago in Pratt County. The photos were gathered by my Mom into a family history book. She presented a copy to each grandchild. I keep telling the kids that I'm holding onto the books for safekeeping. Excerpts from the paper: Sometime in the late 1860s, Kentuckian James T. Moore spent a brief time in Kansas as a helper to a buffalo hunter. He was impressed with the potential of western Kansas for cattle grazing and went home to tell his wife, Chalista, that the grass stood as high as the stirrups on a horse. He couldn't forget that undeveloped frontier. In 1876, the family came to Kansas in a covered wagon drawn by oxen. They arrived in December 1876 in Sodtown, later known as Stafford. A hotel proprietor mentioned to J.T. that he might do well to homestead in Pratt County. A man whose business it was to locate claims helped J.T. and his family. The son, J.J. who was 9 at the time, later described the trip: He told us of a place that we could homestead down in Pratt County where Kelly the buffalo hunter had put down a well. We started with an ox team to a wagon and the driver carried a compass as he drove. On the hind wheel of the wagon was tied a rag, and a man sitting in the back counted the revolutions of the wheel. So we came out 23 miles, so far south and so far west. We hit the place all right and found the government corners. We went to Larned and put in the (homestead) papers.The Moores began living on the claim - located 3 miles east and a half mile north of present day Byers - in spring 1877. They later filed a timber claim which gave them a total of 320 acres of land.  (This was my childhood home for the first 6 years of my life.) But times weren't easy in this new place. J.T. gathered buffalo bones from the prairie and hauled them to Larned or to Hutchinson to sell for fertilizer. The trip took all day, but he needed the $5 or $6 per wagon load to purchase food and necessities for his family. After delivering the load, he would spend the night in Larned (45 miles away) or Hutchinson (55 miles away). His wife, Chalista, would be scared and lonely while he was gone, so she would take the children to the barn and spend the night there with the horses for company.  My Dad's Grandpa, J.J. Moore, was the second owner/operator of the family farm. Besides farming, he played a part in the founding of Byers in 1914. J.J. also owned the bank in Byers. During the Depression, he lost the bank but was able to save the farm ground. J.J. had many talents besides farming. He purchased young, strong mules and broke them for work on the farm. When they were well trained, he sold them for a good profit and repeated the process. He was also an accomplished blacksmith, making his own tools, sharpening shears and shoeing his own horses.  My Dad is the third owner/operator of the farm. The family tradition continues with him and my brother, Kent. A year ago, wheat harvest provided an opportunity to take a photo with the 4th, 5th and 6th generations to work on a family farm in South Central Kansas.  Brian, Kent & Bob Moore 6th, 5th & 4th generations to work on the Moore Family Farms
Respond to this Entry
Ad Astra Per Aspera By Kim L. Fritzemeier KFRM Central Kansas Reporter Farm Wife along the Stafford/Reno County Line
  Were they adventurers? Were they dreamers? Were they looking to improve life for themselves and their families? Under the Homestead Act, any person older than 21 could choose 160 acres of land on which to farm or ranch. If the homesteader could live and farm on the land for a period of five years, they could own it.Clearing the land of the tall, tough prairie grass was back breaking work. They had to figure out what crops would grow, often a process of trial and error. Droughts, thunderstorms, bitter winters, prairie fires and grasshopper invasions stood in the way of fulfilling their hopes for a different way of life.  The dreams they planted on the Kansas prairie took root like the trees they planted to block their homesteads from the unrelenting wind.And they worked hard. They planted churches and schools along with the winter wheat.  They raised their families. They lived and they died on the Kansas prairie. And as we celebrate 151 years of statehood, I am thankful for my ancestors and those of my husband who had a vision and worked hard to provide a future for their children and their children's children and beyond. Kansas is celebrating its birthday. But we got the gift.
Respond to this Entry
|
OUR STATION | MARKETS | PROGRAMS | weather | RADIO MALL | BLOG | staff/contact
