Funeral Potatoes & Wool Mittens

On today’s Bake With Me episode, I invite you to bake along with me as I make Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup Poppers. With just a few ingredients and a mini muffin tin, you can quickly make a batch of these poppers that all the peanut butter and chocolate lovers in my family like. Since we’re using a peanut butter cookie mix, all we need is the cookie pouch, the ingredients to make the cookies, peanut butter, and Mini Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups. And we’re doing this by hand so there’s no need to dig out your mixer. They bake in about 7-8 minutes. Here is the recipe on randomsweets.com.

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As South Dakotans love to road trip across the state, plus, hundreds of thousands of tourists vacation here throughout the summer, this episode is for anyone who wants to learn more about, and try, 26 iconic dishes and drinks that define the Mount Rushmore state. If you’re from the Midwest, you’ve probably already checked a lot of these foods off your list. And even though I’m mostly talking about South Dakota where I was born and raised, I included a few iconic dishes from neighboring states like Iowa, Nebraska, Wisconsin, North Dakota, and Minnesota, where I live now. I found some fun commonalities among foods we consider to be iconic in the upper Midwest. 

The South Dakota list includes foods with Native American influence like Indian tacos, fry bread, wojapi and wasna, and Germans from Russia influence like fleishe kuchele and kuchen, to down-home comfort meals like hot beef commercial and beer-battered and fried walleye (just a note, the restaurant mentioned no longer serves walleye or cooks a fisherman's catch of the day), to the sought-after watermelons grown in the sandy soil near the James River, the Zebra doughnut in Centerville that’s so good it has its own trademark, Dakota martinis and chokecherry wine, to the liquid gold produced by the state insect—the honeybee. 

In this episode, I reference an article I wrote and photographed in 2017 for the Food Network for its collection titled, States’ Plates. I thought it would be fun to talk about the delicious foods on a podcast episode that you can listen to while you’re driving around the state, and maybe try some new ones if you haven’t had all 26. The link to the article is in the show notes if you want to follow along and look at the mouthwatering photos in the gallery.

Since I grew up in South Dakota, I was familiar with many of these foods like lefse, chislic, and SDSU cookies ‘n cream ice cream, but there are a few that were new to me—like tiger meat, pasties, and kolache. I share which two I was most surprised that I liked, the one that I still dream about and highly recommend you try at least once in your life, the one that I now always try to eat when I’m in Rapid City, and the one dish I have not, and will never, eat.

Show Notes & Links

Food Network States’ Plate South Dakota

Wheeel Inn

Cheyenne Crossing

Watecha Bowl

WoodenKnife

Tyndall Bakery

Pietz’s Kuchen Kitchen & Specialties

Prairie Berry Winery

Schade Vineyward

Purple Pie Place

Meridian Corner

Adee Honey Farms

Fleish Kuchle recipe

Grandma’s Kuchen

Sanderson Gardens

Harriet & Oak

Lou Lou’s Bomdiggities Pasties & Coffee Shop

Dakota Life: From Cornwall to the Hills

Pasty recipe

Laughing Water Restaurant

Savor South Dakota, Wojapi recipe

Savor South Dakota Mavis Two Bulls and Rachel Nava making wojapi

Black Hills Burger & Bun

SDSU Dairy Bar

Zebra King Donuts

Dimock Dairy

Stensland Family Farms

Cattleman’s Club Steakhouse

Boat House Bar & Grill at Spring Creek (the restaurant has changed hands and no longer serves walleye and do NOT cook a fisherman's catch of the day)

The Pheasant Restaurant & Lounge

Tanka

The Cardinal Tap

Dakota Butcher

Kessler’s

Flandreau Bakery

Ruth Schumacher’s Cheese Buttons Recipe

#ourSweetMidwestLife

Website: randomsweets.com 

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Do the great outdoors beckon you to the campground all summer long? Today’s guest, Jenn Buse from Tyler, Minnesota, is such a seasoned camper, I knew we’d have fun talking about meals and snacks she shares with family—whether fireside folk singing, watching the sun set over Lake Poinsett, or cozied up in the camper on a rainy day.

Jenn has celebrated nearly all 49 of her birthdays at campgrounds. Once she became a mom, she and her husband, Brent, carried on the summer camping tradition with their children, MacKenzie and Landen. Jenn shares how she came to love Midwest summers as a bassinet camper, a few of her favorite campgrounds in South Dakota and Minnesota, the surprising way she grew up eating graham crackers for breakfast, and her approach to simplifying the dreaded unloading process on the return home. 

She is so generous to share family-favorite recipes that we can make for camping, a picnic, or a summer day at home. With breakfast being the most important meal of the day, we begin with omelets in a bag, their famous Buse flapjacks, and toad in a hole. For lunchtime and snacks, Jenn shares MacKenzie’s Mustard Dip, her mom’s horseradish pickles, and Grandma Beth’s macaroni salad that never misses a camping trip, and Grandma Henkel’s potato salad that people used to buy by the ice cream pail. Once supper rolls around, we’re firing up the grill to make hobo dinners, Jamie’s glazed ham and SPAM pizza burgers.

We leave the best for last—the sweet treats for the campfire, like what they use to switch up their s’mores, how to make pie pockets in a bonfire sandwich cooker, and the funniest story about her dad, popcorn and raccoons. 

If you like lefse, be sure to listen all the way to the end because Jenn has a little secret about how to buy it from the Lefse Ladies, which she co-owns with her sister-in-law, Amy. While you’re listening, please enjoy the recipes, links, and photos on randomsweets.com. If you aren’t already, please subscribe to this podcast so you can binge-listen while on your next camping adventure.

Show Notes & Links

Recipes and photos from this episode: https://randomsweets.com/18-camping-meals-and-snacks-plus-jenn-buses-favorite-campgrounds-in-south-dakota-and-minnesota/

Lefse Ladies

Shear Attraction

Douglas Lodge at Itasca State Park

Aebleskiver Days

Honey Days

Lake Poinsett Recreation Area

Oakwood Lakes State Park

Itasca State Park

Sleepy Eye City Park and Lake

Lake George Blueberry Festival 2023 

SPAM Museum

#ourSweetMidwestLife

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You are going to love today’s guest—my friend and a true Midwesterner, Leah Brink has lived in Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, and for nearly 20 years, she’s called Brookings, South Dakota home. She’s the kind of person who brings the fun to a party. It was her idea to start our show making strawberry daiquiris in my kitchen, and I certainly didn’t argue with that!

She speaks frankly about the influence her mom had on her philosophy regarding food, and how her short-lived rebellion led to her own goal of fitting more fruits and vegetables into her and her family’s lifestyle, in more of a lifelong, enthusiastic way. But don't worry. Along with the nutrient-packed smoothies Leah starts her day with, and the salsa, soup, Caesar dressing, bean dip, and hummus she makes in her Vitamix blender, we still talk about Cajun cream sauce, chicken alfredo, decadent fudge, and Taco John’s. See her recipes on this post on randomsweets.com.

Leah is a second-generation South Dakota State University alum, with her daughter, Maddie, a junior SDSU Political Science major with a goal to attend law school. Her son, David, will graduate Brookings High School in 2024, so she has one year left of being a busy baseball and hockey mom.

Leah has spent her professional life in a variety of careers, from property management and owning and operating a restaurant, to international services which gave her the opportunity to travel to London 15 times, to corporate recruiting, and most recently, a marketing and training executive. But she doesn’t limit herself to whatever her current job role is. Leah commits to understanding her community and using her skills to play a part in it, like serving on countless boards and commissions, performing as her church’s pianist and organist for 14 years, plus, she served three years as an elected city councilor. 

She’s one of the smartest, polished, and energetic people I know, yet, she humbly champions for her family, friends, and community of entrepreneurs. Leah loves being a South Dakotan, and she cherishes her childhood memories of picking potatoes, and tending to the raspberries and strawberries at her grandma’s farm in rural Trent. 

Leah shared her recipes for good greens smoothies and strawberry daiquiris, and photos of her family and her Vitamix blender creations so while you’re listening to this episode, visit randomsweets.com. This episode is not sponsored or endorsed by Vita-Mix Corporation. But just like friends chat about stuff that makes our lives easier, and more fun and meaningful, I’m excited to hear all about Leah’s experience with her new blender—as she says, “the kitchen tool I never knew I needed.” 

Vitamix Pro 750 Heritage Series (affiliate link)

Biscuit Love

Recipes: https://randomsweets.com/leahs-vitamix-strawberry-daiquiris-and-good-greens-smoothies/

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Today my North Dakota brother-in-law, Russell Ziegler, a coal miner and former United States Marine, joins us to talk about cold-smoking cheese, smoking pork butt, and how he turns a plain old pork shoulder into an incredibly flavorful smoked ham that practically shreds itself at the sight of a fork. You'll learn where he uses maple syrup, what’s in his brine that turns a pork shoulder into smoked shredded ham, and why he puts his smoked pork butt in a slow cooker to finish it off. We also talk about his wife Betsy’s recipe for cilantro lime slaw that is the crown to all meats, and it wouldn’t be a Midwestern show if we didn’t talk about dessert so Russell shares his thoughts on his Aunt Henrietta’s kuchen.

While you’re listening, take a look at the photos, recipes, and links from this episode on https://randomsweets.com/smoking-cheese-pulled-pork-and-ham-with-russell-ziegler.

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In this episode, my North Dakota sister-in-law Betsy Ziegler joins me to talk about the German dessert, Kuchen, Fort Abraham Lincoln State Park, beloved maple bacon long johns at Bearscat, and cruising the Missouri River and drinking blood-red cocktail pouches.

She shares her recipes, most of them using the “eyeball” method, for a non-mayo-based German potato salad, bacon and cheddar ranch dip, chicken and wild rice soup that she makes using a box of Uncle Ben’s wild rice and seasoning, Mexican corn, pickle dip, and smoked pulled pork and sauerkraut with fried knoephla, along with her secret to lightening up the “krautiness” of the sauerkraut.

While you’re listening, take a look at the photos, recipes, and all the links from this episode on Randomsweets.com.

 Fort Abraham Lincoln State Park

 Bearscat

 The Paddle Trap

 Grandma’s Kuchen

 Cattail Bakery

 grilled marinated kebabs

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It's a busy week at my house. Our daughter graduates from college and I'm making the food for her party. So come bake with me in my kitchen on this episode as I make tangled caramel peanut butter corn chips, a sweet & salty favorite and one of the most popular recipes on randomsweets.com. It's one of those snacks that's hard to stop eating once you start.

https://randomsweets.com/tangled-caramel-peanut-butter-corn-chips/

Joining us today is Ashley Rhodes-Courter, author of the New York Times and international bestselling memoir, “Three Little Words,” and its sequal, “Three More Words.” She’s an international keynote speaker, licensed clinical social worker, and founder of The Foundation for Sustainable Families. 

Since her first national keynote at age 14, Ashley has shared her story with thousands in the United States and in more than 7 countries. By the age of 3 she was in Florida’s foster care system where she spent almost 10 years being shuttled between 14 homes—some quite abusive—before being adopted from a children’s home at the age of 12.

We’re going much deeper in today’s show to discuss a topic that affects all communities—child abuse and neglect and how, through CASA, a National, non-profit court-appointed special advocate and guardian ad litem organization, communities and individuals are changing a child’s life-story by advocating for children and youth who have experienced abuse or neglect. 

And, how even just one small act of kindness or a little bit of encouragement can have a positive ripple effect on someone’s life.

In this episode, Ashley shares how the gift of a book from her fourth-grade teacher inspired her love of literature and writing, the impact her CASA had on her life, and how she came to write her first book, Three Little Words, which started in her teen years as an essay to raise money for college. The book is now being made into a major motion picture.

And joining us from East-Central CASA in South Dakota, are Julie Wermers, Terri Mielitz, and Amy Henrich. We’ll learn about the CASA organization, how it serves some of the most vulnerable children and youth in our communities, including those targeted for sex trafficking, kids affected by the opioid crisis, and advocating for children with incarcerated parents and preparing young adults to age out of the foster care system, plus we’ll talk about the many ways we can all get involved.

We hope after listening to Ashley’s powerful story, you are inspired to learn more about CASA in your area.

You can find Ashley Rhodes-Courter’s books, “Three Little Words,” and “Three More Words,”  here or at many independent bookstores. The Nook on Main Street in downtown Brookings, South Dakota will soon have copies on their shelves. Connect with Ashley Rhodes-Courter on her website rhodes-courter.com.

Learn about East Central CASA at eastcentralcasa.com and connect on Facebook East-Central CASA. Purchase tickets, bid on auction items, or donate to Fire & Ice, visit CASAgala.GiveSmart.com. For more information, call 605-697-6106 or email [email protected]. 

Learn about National CASA and find a CASA program near you at nationalcasagal.org.

(00:00) Intro

(3:27) Julie Wermers

(28:00) Terri Mielitz

(50:21) Amy Henrich

(01:21:50) Ashley Rhodes-Courter

#ThrivingFamilies

#ChildAbusePreventionMonth

#ChangeAChildsStory

It’s time to talk all things funeral potatoes. Cheesy hash brown casserole has more names than any dish I know—funeral potatoes, hash brown casserole, cheesy hash browns, party potatoes, company potatoes, Cracker Barrel potatoes, hash brown baked potatoes, taco potato casserole, hash brown potatoes, company potato casserole, and many others. 

In addition to sharing our recipes and the stories behind them on this episode, I share everything from what the common ingredients are and how people change things up like adding taco seasoning or not using cheese, to how to prep, cook and store funeral potatoes, how to make them in advance, and how much to make for a crowd. 

For the last month or two, I’ve been asking you to share your recipe for funeral potatoes or hash brown casserole with me. Thank you, Kalli Reisetter, Aimee Bastian, Amanda Runia, Kathy Rasmussen, Betsy Ziegler, Marie Mergenthal, Heidi Thomssen, and Christianne Beringer for sharing your recipe with us. 

Recipes on this episode: https://randomsweets.com/9-cheesy-hash-brown-casserole-and-funeral-potatoes-recipes-one-is-cheese-free/

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My mother-in-law, Marie Mergenthal, is giving away her secrets for tangy dill pickle pasta salad, and the calico beans she is so well known for in the family. And if you like a Dairy Queen Peanut Buster Parfait, stick around because Marie has a recipe to make it at home in a 9x13 pan. I’ve posted photos and these recipes on randomsweets dot com. She also shares a funny story about a time I brought salted peanut chews to a long weekend family outing. After you listen to this episode, you’ll know why Marie once put up a Hippy Head Shop tent.

Randomsweets.com

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