Ten on Tuesday. Dana vs Kim. Take 2.

Questions for Tuesday, March 29, 2011!

1. What is a food that you never thought you would try, but then tried and liked?
D: The first time I tried blue cheese dressing I hated it. Now I LOVE it. Especially when I'm pregnant and I'm not really supposed to eat it. Figures.
K: Red peppers. Sometime after Gage started eating solids I figured it was time to be an adult about our cuisine and cooked with them a few times. Turns out they aren't so bad - in fact, they're pretty good. Delicious in pasta sauce, fajitas, and homemade pizza especially!

2. Do you subscribe to any foodie publications? If so, which ones?
D:I used to get the Food & Family magazine, but then they started charging for it and I never subscribed. I should though, it was good. It had easy, normal recipes with normal ingredients that anybody can make.
K: Can I count the kiddie recipes in Parenting Magazine or picking up the Pillsbury/Taste of Home magazines in the checkout lane. I also have all but two Taste of Home Annuals since 1995 (missing 1996 and 1997).

3. What ingredient do you find yourself reaching for the most when you cook?
D: Cream cheese, cream soups, minced onion (or the real thing), and minced garlic. Wow, don't come to my house if you're dieting.
K: Probably cheese, or something with tomato in it.

4. Are there any foods that you hated as a child, but then learned to like as an adult?
D: Tomatoes. I'm fairly certain I didn't like them because my mom didn't like them, therefore, we never had them. I don't like to eat them for a snack (like my husband, who will eat cherry tomatoes by the handful), but I like them on salads, burgers, tacos, and of course BLTs.
K: I sort of already answered this. But what food did I hate as a child and still don't care for? Mushrooms. I probably haven't tried them enough different ways, but even the thought of cooking with them about turns my stomach.

5. What do you like to eat that others may consider weird?
D: Rice and raisins. I didn't know it was weird until I brought David to the farm for the first time and it's what was on the table. It's basically rice pudding (hot) that we smother with butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon.
K:Canadian bacon and green olive pizza. Is that weird?

6. What is the weirdest ingredient you’ve ever cooked with?
D: I don't use strange stuff. We're pretty much meat and potatoes kind of people.
K: I'm really usually pretty regular in the recipes that I pick and use. I really can't even think of anything right now.

7. Do you have any major food allergies?
D: Nothing, thankfully.
K: Thankfully, no. But I was pretty pukey sick with both pregnancies. The first time, if I smelled, thought about or drove past the pizza joint in town I started gagging. Convenient. The second time around it was raw meat. I had to skip a few meals because I couldn't stand to think about eating meat after I saw it raw. Touching raw meat still bothers me.

8. Is there an ingredient that you would like to cook with, but are intimidated to try?
D: Hmmmm...nothing I can think of. Food does not intimidate me. I intimidate food.
K: I don't get it...I guess I'm not intimated to try anything. I'm not certain it would be safe for me to to use a torch in the kitchen, and I should be intimated by making gravy...I need to take lessons to learn how to prevent lumps.

9. Do you bake?
D: I like to, but don't find a lot of time to do much of it. I'd rather bake than cook. But if somebody will do both for me that's really best.
K: Barely. I really enjoy cooking but could give or take baking most days. I like to take frozen cookie balls out of the freezer and heat them up though. Or eat them raw, also a valid option :)

10. If you could go on any “foodie” show to compete, which one would it be, and why?
D: I don't really watch any "foodie" shows...they make me think I'm a better cook than I am, which just gets me in to trouble.
K: I like watching Rachel Ray cook, and for a while I liked watching Cupcake Wars and Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives. I would fail miserably at Cupcake Wars, but would love to drive around visiting restaurants and burger joints. Just hold the mushrooms.

Off the Shelf

Just a quick post and link tonight with Max's current pick for a bedtime story, nap time story, drive in the car story, bathtub story, or i-can't-sit-in-this-shopping-cart-surrounded-by-groceries-one-more-second story every single time. And you know what? I still love it. I have it memorized and I do it like a little cheer for them (no actions, no jumping, just a happy voice). In fact, Gage has most of it memorized and Max can fill in words at the end of every phrase. Its a good one. I picked it up at the main street Books and More in Madison while we were visiting. Count cows, look at the creative animations and singsong your way through a story. Here's one of my favorite parts:

Boogie to the left, boogie to the right.
Moo real loud with all your might.
Boogie down low, boogie up high.
That's how to do the Moo Cow Jive.

Find it here or stop at Books and More - its one of my favorite places to shop!

The Rebirth of Cold Meat Sandwiches

Many conversations between Dana and me go something like this:

K: Enchilada and Dr. Pepper for lunch. mmmmm
D: Sounds good. I had a sandwich.
K: I don't do sandwiches. I just can't make myself do it. Jack would eat one everyday. They just don't inspire me.
D: I put bacon in mine and grill it like a panini.
K: That's tempting. What do you eat with it?
D: Chips.
K: Ooh, good idea.

I can't really explain why I don't like cold sandwiches for lunch. There aren't any horror stories about moldy meat, eating them everyday for lunch when I was a kid or soggy bread. I would just rather have a hot meal. It could be all of the years I spent eating hot lunch in the public school system. Whatever the reason, I know it would be cheaper and make more sense to just eat a sandwich, but instead I'll cook a frozen pizza, grab something hot at the deli or order subs (what? that's also a cold sandwich...interesting...).

Today, my world may have changed forever.

Anybody out there ever make your kid a silly face sandwich? We have once or twice for Gage and he gobbles those suckers down like nobody's business. It never occurred to me that maybe I needed to be "inspired" by creativity too. This morning Dana sent me a link to http://www.ziggityzoom.com/ and the first place I visited was the food section. Its almost lunch people, give me a break.

Immediately, I printed off every sandwich faced idea they included. Check out a few of my favorites:

Pinto Pony
Rocket Ship
Pirate
Lion

My boys will go nuts for this stuff. I'm certain Jack dream of soaring into outer space when I serve his cold ham and cheese in rocket ship form today. Let's hear it for cold sandwiches next week! Gotta jet - I'm on my way out the door to stock up on bread and veggies!

Ten on Tuesday. Dana vs Kim. Take 1.

Ten on Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Here's a fun little activity. Every week, Dana and I will be answering questions, determined on this random blog: rootsandrings You will get to see each of our answers and and learn a little something about our lives. Warning: We are strange, and brutally honest. I started this a few weeks ago, posting answer on this site csquared and will continue posting business-related material there. Think store specials, information and pro photo shoots. You'll find personal stuff here.

Let's hop to it:

1. What condiments are always, always in your fridge?

D: Ketchup, mayo, and Ranch dressing. Is cream cheese a condiment? Because that's always in there too.

K: ketchup, BBQ sauce, ranch dressing, parmesan cheese

2. How do you like your steak cooked? Your burgers?

D: I like them on the grill without too much blood oozing out. Medium well would probably cover it.

K: grilled, somewhere between medium and medium well

3. What’s your favorite use for fresh tomatoes?

D: Definitely BLTs, but I'll take a good slice on a grilled burger too.

K: BLTs, but they are also really good on homemade pizza

4. What’s your go-to dinner when you haven’t planned anything in advance and you don’t feel like going out?

D: When do I ever not feel like going out? I guess probably a lettuce salad or a can of soup.

K: frozen pizza or homemade pizza using frozen crust. sometimes spaghetti. hot dogs in the summer. pretty much all of my meals are go-to dinners cooked in under 30 minutes. go me!

5. What’s your favorite snack food lately?

D: Little Debbie Ho Hos and apples

K: goldfish crackers and apple slices

6. What’s your favorite weekend breakfast to make at home?

D: Cornbread. Actually anything with maple syrup is good and if there's bacon on the side it's a huge bonus.

K: scrambled eggs, bacon, and hashbrowns.

7. What’s your favorite thing to grill? How do you do it?

D: Steaks or bugers. How do I do it? I hand it to my husband.

K: potatoes. I slice them up thin, and throw in some salt & pepper, butter and cheese. mmm

8. What’s your favorite wine for under $10? If you’re not a wine person, what brand of beer is your favorite?

D: I'm out on both accounts. I'll take a Mtn. Dew any day. If I drink caffeine free I feel ultra healthy.

K: Oh man, I'm such and expert on alcohol. Not. I do like Boulevard beer on tap, but its near impossible to find here. So I just drink Dew :)

9. Give us your most delicious cocktail recipe.
D: Cocktail recipe? Like cocktail weenies or what? 1. Defrost package of cocktail weenies 2. Add brown sugar and ketchup 3. Heat and eat. There, that wasn't so hard.
K: I'll refrain because in order to give a recipe, I'd have to look one up online and I wouldn't even know if it's delicious

10. How do you like your eggs?
D: I don't like them very well in any form. But if I have to, I'll eat them scrambled.
K: egg salad

Exhibit A

Dana's birthday party when we were in Kindergarten.

What you need to know:
1) It was the first time I visited a friend's house.
2) We decorated our own cupcakes. I'm quite certain mine was the one with candy falling off.
3) Dana's mom (hey Bev!) set up some sort of game in which we followed string to prizes. My prize was a bar of soap in the coolest little pink Barbie soap holder. I kept it in a drawer in my bedroom until the soap dried up. I probably threw it away when I moved to college.
4) I spent a lot more time at Dana's house than she spent at mine. They had a four wheeler. (remember that, there will be a quiz later).
5) The four girls in this picture started Kindergarten together, graduated high school together, and then went on to four different colleges. We now live in three different states. We've shared together in proms, field trips, first loves, broken hearts, weddings, babies, careers, successes and disappointments. I love them.
6) We have recreated 'the cupcake pose' a couple of times in our adulthood. If you're nice, we will share proof at a later date.
7) What we are doing in this picture, taken when we were 5 and 6 years old, says so much about our personalities. Its one of my favorite pictures.
8) Dana loves lists.
9) I don't love lists as much.
10) But I do love even numbers.

What is this?

Look, we have a blog!!

We (Kim and Dana) met in Kindergarten and after our parents conducted routine background checks on the other family (no kidding!) developed a friendship that has continued to grow for over 20 years. We grew up on farms in southeastern South Dakota surrounded by pigs, cattle and cornfields. Visit this website to hear our stories. Meet our growing families. Check out what we love. Laugh and cry with us. And if you're lucky, see pictures of our awkward teenage years. But don't take anything we say too seriously.

Cool stuff posted by even cooler people. Probably.