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Thursday, August 26, 2010

News from Bluff Country...

Dobie Days, a salute to veterans, will be held in Harmony this Friday and Saturday August 27 and 28. There will be live bands, a poker tournament, mud volleyball (wow!), tattoo artists, and more available during these two days.

There will be an onion fest on Saturday August 28 at Dreamacres Farm outside of Wykoff. I may have to attend, as I have no idea what an onion fest could entail!!!

The Commonweal Theatre will be hosting its last production of "Over the Back Fence" on Sunday, September 5. Call Stella at 507-467-2905 ext. 212 now to reserve your tickets!

Chatfield has a "Trash and Treasure Day" coming up-- the town is joining together for fall garage sales! Also on this date, September 11, Spring Valley will be having city-wide garage sales.

More events such as Root River Trail wagon rides to come...

The weather has been perfect the past few days-- I love the sun, but it is harder to get my husband to walk around town with me when it's so steamy outside! It has worked well to take a break during the day to walk the dog alone, and then walk with Matt at night. Last night, Riverside on the Root had live outdoor music as they do every Sunday and Wednesday night. Most of my guests were there enjoying, and I just love meandering by on my way out past the library, the gas station, the Scanlan House, and finally back through town by a different route. Switching from a city life to small town living has forced me to make some adjustments (such as planning grocery lists ahead of time, since there isn't a Cub, Target, AND Walmart within 5 miles like the last place I lived), but overall I enjoy the peace and quiet. It will be interesting to see how quiet it gets during the winter, when tourists are gone, the river is frozen, and many shops close for the season. No need to think about it so soon though-- winter's coming, but soon the leaves will be turning and this place will still be bustling!

Recipe!


Breakfast pizza...most of us have heard of it, but have we made it? This is one I may need to try out soon...
Double or triple the recipe to please a crowd on a sleepy Saturday morning!

Amish Breakfast Pizza
Ready in: 30-60 minutes
Serves 4

Ingredients:
1 pound sausage
1 cup shredded potatoes, fresh or frozen
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
5 eggs
1/2 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper
Biscuits, unbaked

Directions:

Grease a 10 x 15 jelly roll pan.

Cook meat until browned; drain. Take your favorite biscuit recipe, or use refrigerated store-bought biscuits, and put in bottom of jelly-roll pan. Spoon meat over biscuits, then spread potatoes and cheese over meat.

Mix together eggs, milk, salt and pepper. Pour over all. Bake at 375 for 25-30 minutes.

This recipe from CDKitchen for Amish Breakfast Pizza serves/makes 4

The Weekly

Here again are the week's events-- lots of shows to see this weekend! Church, a one-act play, concerts, and movies. Don't forget to hit the trail though...the humidity is down so you can bike for miles!

Aug 27, 2 pm: Tours and Treasures
Historic Lanesboro Trolley Tour
467-4466
$10

Aug 28, Whalan Town HLL
Movie Night in Whalan: Remember the good ol’ days when you watched movies outdoors. Well, in Whalan, we remember. Movies were projected on the city hall of Whalan for years, and we are doing it again. FAMILY FRIENDLY. Great entertainment, popcorn and an outdoor movie. The movie will be shown on the outdoor wall of the Whalan Town Hall – as was done in the 1930’s & 40’s. 7:00 pm-- Walter Bradley & Company, 8:00 pm-- Second Hand Lion
Good will donations appreciated for the restoration of the Whalan City Hall

Aug 28 & 29, 1 pm: Sylvan Park
Curse You Jack Dalton: An Old Fashioned Melodrama In One Act presented by the Lanesboro Community Theatre. Bring your blankets or lawn chairs.

Aug 28, 1 – 4 pm: Lanesboro Arts Center
Art Demonstration: Joni Finnegan, painting - Joni Finnegan will demonstrate acrylic painting at Lanesboro Arts Center.

Aug 29, 10:30 am: Bob & Cindy Holmen Farm
Church on the Farm – Potluck lunch to follow. 31868 State Hwy 16, Lanesboro

Aug 29, 5 – 9 pm: Riverside on the Root
Tuition Daddy’s Live at the Riverside on the Root
467-3663

Aug 31
“Race. Are We So Different?”: An interactive, traveling museum exhibit that is at the Rochester Public Library through September 4.  It is the first national traveling exhibition to tell stories of race from the biological, cultural and historical points of view.  Mayo Clinic partnered with the library to bring the exhibit to Rochester where it has been viewed by thousands of youth and adults from throughout the area.  Lanesboro residents Bethany Krom and Renee Bergstrom are trained to serve as facilitators for group discussions after viewing the exhibit.  You are encouraged to view the exhibit at your convenience in the coming weeks.  Pan to attend this discussion led by Bethany and Renee. This event is co-sponsored by Bethlehem Lutheran Church of Lanesboro and the Friends of the Lanesboro Library.  It is free and open to everyone.  Refreshments will be served by the Friends of the Library.

Thursday, August 19, 2010

What to do with tomatoes...


I cannot imagine what my dad is doing with several tomato plants...Matt and I are having trouble managing just one! It is averaging 3-4 ripe tomatoes each day, and its vines are spilling out of its plot and all over the place! With 8 tomatoes in my fridge, I need to find great recipes that use them! Of course, in addition to the coming recipes, fresh tomatoes can always be diced and placed in a breakfast quiche or omelette!

Gazpacho

Ingredients:

1 cucumber, peeled, seeds removed, chopped
1 clove garlic
1 small red bell pepper, seeded and diced
1 small green bell pepper, seeded and diced
2 ripe tomatoes, seeded and chopped
3 cups tomato juice
1/4 cup dry white wine or sherry, or use chicken or vegetable broth with a few teaspoons leon juice
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1 to 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon fresh lemon or lime juice
salt, to taste
4 tablespoons sour cream or yogurt, for garnish
4 tablespoons fresh parsley or cilantro, for garnish
Preparation:

In a blender, combine first 10 ingredients; blend until juicy but still somewhat chunky. Season with lemon or lime juice and salt, to taste.

Thoroughly chill before serving. Serve garnished with sour cream and parsley sprigs, if desired.
Serves 4.

Stuffed Tomatoes With Shrimp (Yum!)

Ingredients:

1 can (approx. 15 ounces) artichoke hearts, chopped
1/2 cup chopped celery
1/2 cup chopped green onions, with most of green
1 cup mayonnaise, approximately
6 to 8 medium to large tomatoes
6 to 8 medium to large tomatoes
1 1/2 cups cooked shrimp, shelled, deveined, and coarsely chopped if large
10 slices bacon, cooked, drained, and crumbled
Preparation:

Combine artichoke hearts with celery, green onions, and enough mayonnaise to moisten to your taste. Just before serving, add shrimp to stuffing. Peel and scoop out 8 tomatoes; stuff with the shrimp mixture. Place on lettuce. Sprinkle crumbled bacon over each filled tomato.
Serves 8.

Fresh Tomato Soup (Great with grilled cheese sandwiches!)


Ingredients:

1 large onion, quartered and thinly sliced
1/2 cup finely chopped celery
1 medium carrot, sliced
3 tablespoons butter
8 large tomatoes, peeled, seeded, chop
8 cups chicken broth
3 tablespoons uncooked long-grain rice or rice blend
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon or dried leaf thyme, or to taste
freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh parsley
Preparation:

In a saucepan, sauté onion, celery and carrots in butter until softened but not browned. Add tomatoes and a small amount of chicken broth. Simmer for 15 minutes. In a Dutch oven or stock pot, combine sautéed vegetables, remaining chicken broth and rice. Season with salt, thyme and pepper. Simmer 20 to 30 minutes. Serve garnished with parsley. If desired, blend a few cups of soup and add back to the mixture for a thicker soup.
Serves 8 to 10.

These recipes brought to you by allrecipes.com

The Weekly

Only one page of events for this week! Yet town is nearly full...

Pickle It! - Visitors can observe or help out in this late summer program by assisting the gardener with the harvesting of heirloom vegetables from the garden. These vegetables will be brought to the kitchen and clean and processed using traditional pickling methods. This event features one of the main methods of food preservation in the 19th Century. It draws attention to pickling, and uses traditional techniques, hands-on demonstration and audience participation to engage visitors.
Aug 21
11 am – 5 pm
Historic Forestville

Riverside on the Root: Beef Slough Boys -play a rich gumbo of pan-fried blues, river bottom rags, organic originals and heirloom classics.
Aug 22
5-9 pm
Lanesboro

Riverside on the Root: Steve Fessler - An eclectic exciting mix of Irish, rock and blues.
Aug 25
5 – 9 pm
Lanesboro

More posts to come this week! Plus, Coffee Street Inn is now on Facebook! Find our page and "like" us! A group page to come...

Monday, August 9, 2010

Cleaning Tips

If you're like me, you have a completely unwarranted and irrational fear of spiders. So, what to do when you need to clean a basement, attic, or other such area you typically avoid? As I have been doing so recently, I have a few tips:

1) Get a good shop vacuum. Older basements such as mine tend to collect sand, small rocks, and of course-- spider webs. You do not want to get very close to these things! Make sure the vacuum has a long hose and a long attachment. If the ceiling is high in the area you are cleaning, make sure the hose comes out of the top of the vacuum-- otherwise, it is likely to tip over and stop sucking air. If this happens, your anxiety may be increased by the fact that you are surrounded by webs with no "weapon!"

2) Following the idea of high ceilings...be sure to have a ladder on hand. The short, squat type with a shelf is best, as you will feel more stable and will be able to set a flashlight facing upwards on the shelf. When there are creepy crawleys present, it is best that you be able to see what you are doing!

3) Wear gloves. With all the dust and dirt around, you will inevitably get a speck of it in your eye. When this happens, you want to have clean hands! Also, spider webs are quite sticky and can cling to the end of the vacuum hose if they are especially thick--as they were in my case (in the house-- not the Inn!!).

4) Ladies especially: wear something over your head. A bandana or hat with hair pulled up would be ideal. Again, if you're like me and the vacuum stops and you have to climb down the ladder to adjust it, you may tend to get a bit paranoid. Spiders could spin webs down from the ceiling, other insects could fall, or a number of other things that may surprise you. These are unlikely to happen-- it is simply a reaction (like in grade school when you watched that video on lice and your head suddenly felt very itchy...)

5) Actually save that hardest, dirtiest part for last! You will feel more confident and prepared since you have been using the vacuum, balancing on a ladder, and taking back the dark, dirty area you have been cleaning!

6) Have some chocolate chip cookies or another treat waiting for you when you finish (perhaps after you shower). You will have had a good workout and a great feeling of accomplishment, but a refresh is necessary.

To be clear-- all Inn rooms are VERY clean and spider-free! The key is to not let any space sit for too long...and you all can help me with that by coming to visit often!

Friday, August 6, 2010

Recipe today...


Zucchini! I grew up with this great fresh vegetable. Now is the season for zucchini, and if you're like my dad, you have an excess of it growing in your own garden! But what to do with it?? Here are a few of my favorites:

(Maybe there will be a zucchini-fest next year, along with the rhubarb festival? Unlikely... It's probably for the best, as zucchini would be much more difficult to work into breakfast foods, and a zucchini-flavored soda pop would not taste near as nice as rhubarb!)

Zucchini Bread
Ingredients

3 eggs
1 cup vegetable oil
2 cups white sugar
2 cups grated zucchini
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 cups all-purpose flour
3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Directions

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F ( 165 degrees C). Grease and flour two 8x4 inch loaf pans.
In a large bowl, beat eggs until light and frothy. Mix in oil and sugar. Stir in zucchini and vanilla. Combine flour, cinnamon, soda, baking powder, salt and nuts; stir into the egg mixture. Divide batter into prepared pans.
Bake for 60 to 70 minutes, or until done.


Grilled Zucchini

Ingredients

1 large zucchini
1/4 cup Italian-style salad dressing

Directions

Slice zucchini into 1/4 inch slices. Toss in a bowl with Italian dressing.
Place on a hot grill and grill about 4 to 5 minutes or until nice grill marks appear and the zucchini is slightly limp. Serve and enjoy.


And, of course...Fried Zucchini

Ingredients

3 zucchini
1/4 cup yellow cornmeal
2 tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Directions

Wash and dry the zucchini. Trim off ends, then slice zucchini into 1/8 inch thick rounds. Place cornmeal in a medium bowl, and toss in zucchini slices, mixing thoroughly to coat.
Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Place all of the zucchini pieces into the hot oil and fry over medium heat. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Watch zucchini closely, adding more oil if it begins to brown too quickly. When it is golden brown on one side, flip it over to brown on other side. It will clump together as it cooks, that is what you want.
When zucchini is evenly browned, turn heat down to low and cover pan with a lid. Allow it to steam until zucchini is slightly tender. Turn zucchini, replace lid, and steam until soft. Remove lid and turn heat back up to medium-high. Fry on both sides until crisp. Serve hot.

Today's recipes brought to you by allrecipes.com

Thursday, August 5, 2010

The Weekly

Buffalo Bill Days is this weekend! Plus, the weather is supposed to be great...needless to say I'm preparing for busy trails and streets, loud (but fun) guests, full rivers, and empty breakfast trays and coffee carafes. Here is the schedule for Buffalo Bill Days:

Friday, August 6:
4 pm Beer and Brat tent opens
7 pm Softball tournaments start
7 pm -11 pm Russ Guyer Band at the Legion
7:30 pm "Enchanted April" at the Commonweal Theatre
8:30 pm - 12:30 am "Trouble Shooter" Dance in front of the Fire Hall
9 pm -3 am Horse-Drawn and Sober Shuttle Rides

Saturday, August 7:
Softball Tournaments continue
Volleyball Tournament begins
9 am Farmer's Market begins
10 am Beer and Brat tent opens
10 am Market Place opens
11 am Registration for Bean Bag Tournament begins--Memorial Community Center gym. Noon start!
11 am - 1 pm "The Bandanas"-- music at the gazebo in Sylvan Park
Noon - 4 pm Pony Rides and Petting Zoo at Sylvan Park
Noon - 4 pm Kids Games at Sylvan Park (Bounce House, maze, water slide, face painting...)
1 pm - 3 pm Dave Wilson-- music at the gazebo in Sylvan Park
3 pm - 5:30 pm Walter Bradley and Steve Arnold-- music at the gazebo in Sylvan Park
7:30 pm "Picasso at the Lapin Agile" at the Commonweal Theatre
8 pm - Midnight FREE band and dance at the Beer and Brat tent..."Time Machine"
9:45 pm FIREWORKS!!
9 pm -3 am Horse-Drawn and Sober Shuttle Rides

Sunday, August 8
Softball and Volleyball tournaments continue
9 am Farmer's Market begins
10 am Beer and Brat tent opens
10 am Market Place opens
10 am Christian Music "2 Degrees" at Sylvan Park gazebo
11 am "Cannon Old West Society" Show Showdown...a bank robbery!
Noon-1 pm Dunk tank
12:30 pm "Cannon Old West Society" Show in the park-- "Shoot Out with Bounty Hunters"
1:30 pm Grand Parade!! (I will be IN the parade...watch for the float that looks like a bed!)
After the parade-- Entertainment "Irish Minstrels" at Sylvan Park gazebo
After the parade-- Dunk tank continues
After the parade-- Pedal Pull at the basketball courts
4:30- 8:30 pm DJ and Karaoke "Guido" at Beer and Brat tent
7 pm Live Radio Show "Over the Back Fence" at the Commonweal Theatre

Whew! Lots going on with Buffalo Bill Days...something for everyone! I, personally, am more the face painting, farmer's market, parade, and fireworks type. Hopefully I will be able to attend the petting zoo as well! In addition to all of that, there are many of the more regular activities available.

August 7, 3-5 pm: Eagle Bluff Root River Canoe Tour-- Adult Outdoor Seminar. The cost is just $10 per person! Participants may see Trout, Great Blue Herons, and the Historic Root River Hydroelectric Plant.

August 8, 5-9 pm: Joe Price Blues at Riverside on the Root

August 9-11: Firearms Safety Course at Eagle Bluff Environmental Center (I really need to do this sometime! Especially since I have a good hunting dog now...)

August 10, 10:30 am - 1:30 pm: Animal Tic-Tac-Toe! At Potiche Pottery, kids can make their own tic-tac-toe board along with 10 animal-shaped pieces. Participants aill play other classic board games, and a box lunch will be provided.

August 10 and 11, 7:30 pm: The Commonweal Theatre presents-- Blue Collar Diaries. Come check out this candid tribute to the simple things that make us who we are.

August 11, 10 am- Noon: Make a unique bowl, with a frog on his lily pad at the bottom!

August 11, 5-9 pm: Dave Williams at Riverside on the Root

August 12, 7:30 pm: "Picasso at the Lapin Agile" at the Commonweal Theatre