KANSAS! Magazine | Fall 2012

farm tough: kansas’

$4.99

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Fall

eat:

kansasmag.com

vol 68 issue 3

Leading ladies

Powerhouse

Steaks

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f tours e doi toi od n haunted

Loving

contents features

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Reasons We Love Kansas

This fall we share a variety of reasons to love Kansas, from affordable cabins to Mrs. Kansas Written by Gloria Gale

16 The Real Farmwives of Kansas Kansas farm and ranch women are as comfortable out on the range as in front of one Written by Lou Ann Thomas

24 Kansas’ Powerhouse Steaks Steakhouses and restaurants across Kansas continue to serve up the best Written by Sally M. Snell

34 Roasting Away

Kansas coffee roasters are taking their craft to new brews Written by Amy Bickel

50 Mix Mastering

Three Kansas mixologists quench discerning tastes with handcrafted cocktails Written by Gloria Gale

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Kansas’ Powerhouse Steaks from the editor

O

ur fall issue will delight your fancies. Hop on our foodie tour this season as we traverse the state and take your tastebuds on a pleasant journey.

Begin your morning with a tasty cup of locally roasted coffee from Blacksmith Coffee Roastery in Lindsborg or Fresh Roast Coffee Co. in Wichita. Using the finest beans and roasting methods, they guarantee a fine cup of joe. Enjoy this java jolt with one of Alma Bakery & Sweet Shoppe’s velvety cinnamon rolls to tide you over til lunch.

Heading toward Northeast Kansas where this season’s Our Town, Leavenworth, will create a tough decision for lunch; there’s something for everyone in this historic city.

Wherever your journey may take you, a delicious steak awaits you for supper. The great staffs at The Grand Central Hotel in Cottonwood Falls, Bichelmeyer’s Steakhouse in Tonganoxie or Little Apple Brewing Company in Manhattan are ready to serve you one of Kansas’ best steaks.

I know the fall issue will make your mouths water.

Thank you for reading … and eating!

Jennifer Haugh, Editor

leavenworth

our town

alma

on the cover

The Real Farmwives of Kansas in Morris County Photograph by Jason Dailey

KANSAS!

Send your story ideas to or to KANSAS!, 1020 S. Kansas Ave., Suite 200, Topeka, KS 66612. ksmagazine@sunflowerpub.com

bakery treats manhattan

little apple brewery 70

tonganoxie

bichelmeyer’s lindsborg

blacksmith coffee roastery

135

wichita

fresh roast coffee co.

35 cottonwood falls

grand central hotel

find us on facebook: facebook.com/kansasMagazine follow us on twitter: @kansasMag

kansasmag .com • kansas!

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Taste of Kansas: Welcome to Alma departments

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The Making of KANSAS!

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Letters

14 Kansas Events 30 Our Town: Leavenworth

Kansas’ First City offers an escape into its colorful past—and modern-day disposition Written by Kimberly Winter Stern

38 Tour Kansas: Spirit Guide Various ghost and haunted tours abound in Kansas this fall Written by Cecilia Harris

42 Gallery 52 Taste of Kansas: Welcome to Alma Cheese and sweets keep this community full Written by Kristin Kemerling

56 Milestone: City Cycle Sales

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Our Town: Leavenworth

GO MOBILE! Scan our QR code with your smartphone for the latest from KANSAS! magazine.

the making of

fe ood dit ion

People behind the scenes

TWEET TWEET

7 Freelance Writers Peninnah Ziegler @P9A

12 Gallery Photographers

I like @KANSASMag because it has brilliant suggestions for Kansas roadtrips!

High Plains Museum @HighPlainsMuse @KANSASMag We are so proud to be featured! For your Kansas Adventure this summer, be sure to stop in Goodland!

NEW MASCOT 4 Contributing Photographers Roo, the Australian Shepherd/Blue Heeler mix, made quite an appearance at our Farmwives photo shoot. She was in frame when we didn’t need her and out of frame when we did. She was a clever little pup who ultimately was ready for her closeup.

sweet tooth

Honorable Calendar Submissions

sipping shutterbugs Boozy Shoot

“mix mastering” page 50

Espresso Shoot

“roasting away” page 34

Jeanette Rohleder of the Alma Bakery & Sweet Shoppe couldn’t resist our plea for her snickerdoodle recipe after we tasted the divine cookie at Symphony in the Flint Hills.

Managing Editor Katy Ibsen traveled to Alma to snap a shot of the cookies for the magazine, then took a bag home.

lunch bunch While on assignment for our Farmwives story, photographer Jason Dailey enjoyed homemade quiche, courtesy of Debbie Lyons-Blythe. Simply put, he was in heaven and regretted not getting seconds.

This fall we began work on the 2013 Calendar.

Here are two honorable submissions we must share.

Rob Graham

steak reflection

“During my research visit to Bichelmeyer’s Steakhouse in Tonganoxie, I was delighted to be asked to speak about Kansas! Magazine to the crowd that had gathered for Open Mic night. If only I’d brought a stack of subscription cards with me!” — Sally Snell, writer

Rita Stephens

kansasmag .com • kansas!

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letters Drive-In chatter on Facebook photography by

2012

Summer

SN AE DRT ITIO

WE SCREAM for ice cream

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REASONS to love Kansas

PARK IT

VOL 68 ISSUE 2

Michael c. snell

K A N S A S

Drive-Ins

the legendary Boulevard Drive In

big screen As drive-in theaters become a thing of the past, some Kansas proprietors believe the show must go on

EXPERIENCE

the Art of a Kansas Summer KANSASMAG.COM

Congratulations on the summer issue of the magazine. This is probably the best issue of KANSAS! magazine I have yet received.

The articles are excellent, and the photography is stunning! You all have done a great job.

When I did my story, there were 11 drive-in theaters still operating in the state. Now we’re down to seven.

Thanks for checking them out. I enjoyed all of your advice on things to see and do during the summer as well.

This is truly a magazine to be proud of. Thank you all.

Bill Shaffer KTWU/11, Sunflower Journeys

Magical Issue Every time you wave your magic wand, you cover an ever wider, more relevant swath of KANSAS! Another grand issue, Jennifer! You hit the bull’s-eye with ARTS in a Kansas summer.

I remember taking our girls to see Casper the Friendly Ghost at the Iola Drive-In. We had sleeping bags, pillows, picnic food, and we backed the car into the spot so we could open up the back of the minivan.

We all laid in the back and watched the movie. It is one of my daughters’ fondest memories. I miss the Iola drive-in. I was sad when they dozed the Highway 54 drive-in. Thank goodness there is still a drive-in between Osawatomie and Paola.

Nancy Martin Shadden Pleasanton

editor

Sam Brownback governor

Becky Blake

Director, tourism division

www.sunflowerpub.com lawrence, kansas

Katy Ibsen

managing editor

Jason Dailey

Summer Relaxation

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photographer

Bert Hull

general manager

reASonS we ❤ KANSAS

Written by Gloria Gale

1 travelin’ man

flying high

looKing for exquisite lanDscape art? Photographer Kevin Venator’s intrepid wanderlust will solve the problem. The Kansas native’s stunning images captured on his treks from sea to sea can be found on his website. Never been to Castle rock, Kauai and everywhere in-between? No problem. americaswonderlands.com

Summer is the perfect time to pay homage to our sunflower state—from festivities to fishing trips, we find plenty of reasons to celebrate the season.

Share your Reasons to Love Kansas (see page 13).

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KAnSAS!

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heaD for the hills

one of the best Ways to explore Kansas is by staying overnight. When you rent a home from Vacation rental by Owner, you’ll enjoy the luxury of a house, not just a hotel room. The rental properties provide detailed online photos plus a decent overview of the area. if sitting on an authentic Victorian porch watching the sunset in Waterville is just what you had in mind, Vacation rental by Owner will get you there. vrbo.com

facebooK: vrbo

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Look! Up in the sky, it’s a bird—it’s a plane —no, it’s a flotilla of creatively designed hot air balloons. Plan on staking out your perfect spot to watch the third annual great midwest balloon fest, August 10-12 at the great mall of the great Plains, Olathe.

Over 50 balloons will ascend at dawn and again for an evening show with glow. food and entertainment are also on tap. greatmidwestballoonfest.org facebooK: gmbfest

tWitter: @gmbfeST

tWitter: @VrbO

home on the range

earl Kuhn has the touch. As a watercolor artist who just happens to paint the American cowboy, Kuhn paints western scenes portraying contemporary ranching heritage from his home base of medicine lodge. Whether it’s herding cattle, the stunning backdrop of medicine lodge’s gypsum Hills or a prized portrait of a favorite horse, Kuhn’s watercolor paintings truly celebrate Kansas’ ranching lifestyle. earlkuhn.com facebooK: earlkuhnfinewesternart

reASonS we ❤ KANSAS

• Sum m er 2012

KM12su.indd 6-7

4/16/12 1:18 PM

While relaxing in our Mission, Kansas, home today, I picked up our copy of the summer 2012 issue of the KANSAS! magazine. While glancing through it, I became fascinated by its coverage and reflected upon its material, the “Reasons to Love Kansas.” Because of my pleasant reviews I wanted to submit my thanks to you and your wonderful acknowledgements of our state.

Dr. Francis E. Cuppage Mission

Editor, KANSAS!, 1020 S. Kansas Ave., Suite 200, Topeka, KS 66612 or e-mail ksmagazine@sunflowerpub.com

fa ll 2012

Jennifer T. Haugh

Shelly Bryant

send your letters to:

kansas! •

Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism

Designer/art director

Eileen Robertson Humboldt

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Fall issue 2012

design & production

PhotograPhs: (CloCkwise from left) Courtesy of kevin venator ameriCaswonderlands.Com, shutterstoCk, Courtesy of the great midwest Balloon fest, Courtesy of earl kuhn

The Journalist

KANSAS! (ISSN 0022-8435) is published quarterly by the Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism 1020 S. Kansas Ave., Suite 200 Topeka, KS 66612; (785) 296-3479; TTY Hearing Impaired: (785) 296-3487.

Periodical postage paid at Topeka, KS, and at additional mailing offices.

Newsstand price $4.99 per issue; subscription price $18 per year; international subscription price $22 per year.

All prices include all applicable sales tax.

Please address subscription inquiries to: Toll-free: (800) 678-6424 KANSAS!, P.O. Box 146 Topeka, KS 66601-0146 e-mail: ksmagazine@sunflowerpub.com Website: www.KansasMag.com POSTMASTER: Send address change to: KANSAS! P.O. Box 146, Topeka, KS 66601-0146.

Please mail all editorial inquiries to: KANSAS!, 1020 S. Kansas Ave., Suite 200, Topeka, KS 66612 e-mail: ksmagazine@sunflowerpub.com The articles and photographs that appear in KANSAS! magazine may not be broadcast, published or otherwise reproduced without the express written consent of Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism or the appropriate copyright owner. Unauthorized use is prohibited. Additional restrictions may apply.

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Reasons we ❤ KANSAS Written by Gloria Gale

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To infinity and beyond

There are those citizen scientists who are determined to launch their amateur rockets into the wild blue. In Kansas, budding astro-geeks like members of Kloudbusters are pouring their energy into creating amazing flying machines.

Kloudbusters is an amateur rocketry enthusiasts’ group composed of 120 members.

We gather monthly on 40 acres called the Rocket Pasture near Argonia to launch our model rockets we’ve built that are too big to fly in parks. Permission has been obtained from the FAA to fly our rockets up to 50,000 feet. Our big launch is on Labor Day weekend when 400 flyers from around the country will launch 1,000 high-powered flights. Kloudbusters.org KOSMO (Kansas Organization for Spacemodeling) is another family-friendly group that launches six or seven times a year (check the website for locations) and encourages anyone interested in highpowered amateur rocketry to join the group. KOSMO427.org KCAR (Kansas City Association of Rocketry) is a 12-year-old organization promoting the sport of competition rocketry in and around the Kansas City area. Ten launches are organized annually by this chartered section of the National Association of Rocketry. KCAR strives to boost enthusiasm for model rocketry with library displays and demonstration launches throughout the community. kcrockets.org

This fall we share a variety of reasons to love Kansas, from affordable cabins to Mrs. Kansas. Share your Reasons we Love Kansas (see page 13).

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The price: $45

If you are A camper, angler, boater, hunter, swimmer, horseback rider, model airplane flyer, hiker, naturalist, picnicker, photographer or just a sightseer, then experience the outdoors from your own log cabin available for rent by the night or weekly in one of Kansas’ state parks. Throughout the year, you’ll find a list of cabins with specific amenities on the Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism website. http://www.kdwpt.state.ks.us/ Decide on your preferred location, and this website will link you directly to Reserve America, where you can see a photo of your cabin and the particulars of how to rent. You may reserve a cabin from April 1 to September 30 and from October 1 to March 31. But hurry, cabins are only available on a first-come, first-served basis. Fees range from $45 to $110 per night. reserveamerica.com. for additional information contact 620-672-

A sense of place

Printmaker, writer and retired landscape architect Stephen Perry will admit he isn’t formally trained as an artist. However, he has spent his life appreciating the natural landscape and working to interpret that appreciation for others. In his printmaking studio, Perry creates etchings and relief prints that depict the rural Kansas landscape in a traditional, regionalist style. Inspired by his grandfather’s Prairie Printmaker collection, and by his father, a newspaper journalist, last fall Perry, of Wichita, published a creative and heartfelt book about wandering the Kansas Flint Hills. He extols some of his philosophy in this passage from his book: “Drive a few country roads. Stop and listen to the sounds of the prairie. Feel the wind in your hair and the sun on your face … Learn to love the land.” backroadspress.com Facebook: Backroads-Press-Stephen-Perry

5911. facebook: facebook.com/kdwpt

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twitter: @KDWPT

Share the love

The Faces and Places Tour is off and running.

With a decked-out minivan and plenty of folks behind the mission of Kansas tourism, the tour will travel to various destinations around Kansas through October. travelks.com facebook: facebook.com/TravelKS

twitter: @TravelKS

Reasons we ❤ KANSAS 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Photographs: (Clockwise from left) Shutterstock (2), Courtesy of Stephen Perry, TravelKS

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Blue highways

The cool thing about Kansas is there are so many back roads and rural places filled with quirky, impressive and astounding features. Kansas Explorers Club salutes rural tourism and seeks to keep it viable. Preserving and sustaining rural culture were the goals founder and tireless advocate Marci Penner targeted when she started the club in the 1990s. Annual membership is so nominal you’ll want to order more for your friends: $18.61 single/$30 family. Members receive fascinating information, including six newsletters a year and lists of interesting sites and events across the state. There’s also the camaraderie of like-minded folks. You’re bound to find that Kansas has more to offer than the 8 Wonders—pack the car now. explorekansas.org Facebook: Kansas-Explorers-Club

twitter: @GetRuralKansas

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Silent siren

Lawrence author Laura Moriarty has always been intrigued with the tug between generations. She’s written The Chaperone, a novel of historical fiction centered on a young Louise Brooks and her chaperone as they travel from Wichita to New York. Louise is beautiful, young and bound for stardom, while her chaperone, neither mother nor friend, is 36-year old Cora Carlisle. Set in the summer of 1922, the book reveals how each woman discovers what it means to be alive in the bustling world of post-World War I America. Moriarty teaches creative writing at the University of Kansas and loves living and writing from middle America. The Chaperone, Riverhead Hardcover 2012 ($26.95 list), 384 pages. lauramoriarty.net facebook: facebook.com/LauraMoriartyNovelist

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twitter: @moriarty_laura

Water works

Though a dot on the map, a drive by tiny Canton nearly always conjures the question: Why two water towers, and why are they designated HOT and COLD? Not many residents seem to know the history, but apparently “W.T. Rogers, mayor, and Myron Fisher, council member, came up with the idea for the twin towers in the 1940s. It was all for fun,” says Betty Gage, a lifelong resident and former editor of the Canton Pilot newspaper.

Here’s your lifeline

Ever wonder about who your great-great-great-grandparents, aunts and uncles were and what life was like more than a century ago? The Kansas Historical Society, in partnership with Ancestry.com, will give you clues for free. At the Kansas Historical Society’s State Archives you can log into www.kshs.org/ancestry and enter your name, date of birth and driver’s license number. You’ll be privy to a family history that could reveal your Kansas lineage. Accompanying your finds, the Historical Society provides nearly 200,000 digital images in its memory bank. The Chronicling America project also offers digital images of some of Kansas’ select newspapers online. Now you’ll know where your cowlick came from. kshs.org facebook: www.facebook.com/KsHistoricalSociety

twitter: @kansashistory

Reasons we ❤ KANSAS Dave Kendall 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

Photographs: (Clockwise from top left) Kansas Sampler Foundation, Laura Moriarty, screen shot, Shutterstock, Jim Good

Reasons we ❤ KANSAS 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

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Navi-gadget

One of the wonders of the electronic age is the ability to tour a specific attraction through audio and visual navigation afforded by a hand-held GPS Ranger Tour. Great Bend’s Convention and Visitors Bureau GPS ranger tour, developed in conjunction with an Attraction Development Grant from Kansas Tourism, is a novel way to explore a specific, natural attraction. From the comfort of your own car the GPS Ranger Tour coordinates your route and provides wildlife identification, history and geography, all at your own pace. The Ranger Tour for Great Bend brings the vast ecosystem of the magnificent 41,000-acre Cheyenne Bottoms Preserve and the Wetland and Wildlife National Scenic Byway, two dramatic inland marshes, to life. You’ll discover why this ancient and internationally significant interior marshland is an irreplaceable roost for thousands of birds. The GPS is available at the Great Bend CVB and area motels for people to check out. visitgreatbend.com facebook: facebook.com/GreatBendKS

twitter: @greatbendks

GOODLAND • COLBY • OAKLEY WAKEENEY • HAYS • RUSSELL • SALINA • ABILENE JUNCTION CITY • MANHATTAN • TOPEKA • LECOMPTON LAWRENCE • BONNER SPRINGS • KANSAS CITY

Chow down

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Celebrating the love of the land and the rich history surrounding ranching in the Flint Hills is the annual Pioneer Bluffs Fall Festival and Hog Roast. Nestled into the crook of the Cottonwood River, Pioneer Bluffs is front and center in the Flint Hills. “A rip-roaring good time is expected for this year’s event, scheduled October 6, 2012,” says executive director Lynn Smith. The festival is open to all and includes arts and crafts, a small auction, petting zoo, and old-time games for the young and young-at-heart.

Watch and learn spinning, solar cooking and trickroping demonstrations followed by a delicious hog roast plus additional local food, including vegetarian choices. Music and fun last until dusk. pioneerbluffs.org facebook: facebook.com/pioneerbluffs

twitter: @PIoneerBluffs

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Knock on wood

It doesn’t take long to discover that Ella Maune is a revelation. This spry, 92-year-old Kendall resident has devoted much of her life working with three generations of children in the community, teaching them sewing and woodworking. Maune, an articulate great-grandmother, still lives on the 1,600-acre cattle farm she shared with her late husband.

Ask her what keeps her going, and she quickly replies, “My pickup truck, sewing a clean seam and, of course, woodworking.” Self-taught, Maune delights teaching the children in and around Kendall how to use a radial arm saw, spindle sander or one of dozens of hand tools in her home woodworking shop. Maune has no problem staying busy. When she and 13 other farmwomen gather once a month at the community building, they chat about flowers and food—Maune talks about her Grizzly bandsaw.

“I’m most at home working in and around the farm,” she says. “As you can tell, I love to dabble.”

Sunflower Showdown

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For the past 110 years, the University of Kansas and Kansas State University have been rivals in more ways than one. Competitors on the field and the hardwoods have legions of fans eager to see which team will pounce and become this year’s victor. The Wildcats will take on the Jayhawks in the legendary Sunflower Showdown October 6, 2012, in Bill Snyder Family Stadium in Manhattan.

Reasons we ❤ KANSAS 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Photographs: (Clockwise from top left) Courtesy of Pioneer Bluffs (2), Ella Maune, Shutterstock, Bobbie Padgett (2), Shutterstock, The Lawrence Journal-World

Reasons we ❤ KANSAS 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

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Meet, greet and eat

There’s so much to like about Neighbors Café in McPherson that Shelly and Cameron Wiggins would love to pull up a chair and chat. But they’re far too busy dishing. They’ve been creatively cooking their “down-home comfort food” since 1997 and pride themselves on making each and every one of their friends feel full ... and very special. Steak and eggs, fancy omelets, and biscuits and gravy are their specialty. Everything sizzles at the cafe housed in a 70-year-old building in the heart of downtown McPherson, Tuesday through Saturday. You definitely won’t leave hungry. neighborscafe.com

The Number 8

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Discover all 216 entries in the 8 wonders of kansas contests in the 8 Wonders of Kansas Guidebook.

The one-time series of contests ran from 2007-2010 and are now permanently archived in this book.

8wonders.org

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Meet Mrs. Kansas

Here’s a role model mom to behold: Bobbie Padgett, Topeka resident, mother of five and a beauty queen after being crowned Mrs. Kansas 2012 last Labor Day. Entering the pageant was her idea. Just shy of two years ago, the Padgetts received a phone call asking them to adopt a child. They pondered and decided it was the right thing to do. “That is exactly why I decided to do the pageant. I wanted to do something that would help motivate me to become more fit and focus on my speaking skills, Padgett says.

Nothing motivates one to become fit more than wearing a swimsuit on a stage in front of strangers. I also wanted to do something ‘fun’ for myself. It has, in fact, been fun. I didn’t think about winning the title, because as far as I was concerned I had already accomplished what I set out to do. I am happy to be Mrs. Kansas, and I hope to represent married women with the grace and dignity that our vocation in life deserves. My hope is that by being Mrs. Kansas for a year I will be able to inspire married women to believe in themselves and embrace all that life brings them.” The Mrs. America Pageant will be in Tucson on August 23-29.

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Kansas Baja

Your tastebuds are in for a zesty south-ofthe-border treat right in the middle of Kansas.

Wamego’s Toto’s Tacoz! is renowned for fresh and healthy Mexican fare that has won over local business folk and residents who make it their regular haunt.

Owners Colleen and Craig Lord pride themselves on fresh salsa, tortilla soup, Toto’s Tacoz and the Yellow Brick Road Buro’d, aptly named considering the restaurant is located in downtown Wamego next to the Oz Museum. totostacoz.com

VOL 68 ISSUE 2

fall 2011 volume 67 issue 3

$4.99

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winter 2011 volume 67 issue 4 $4.99

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spring 2012 volume 68 issue 1

2012

Summer

ADRI TTI OSN E

WE SCREAM for ice cream

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REASONS to love Kansas

PARK IT

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The price: $30

K A N S A S

Drive-Ins

$4.99

EXPERIENCE

The grandness of fall's

fo e d i od Tio n

bountiful harvest

e ion pee doi tpl

sharing stories

of kansas’ cultures

enjoying spring’s $4.99

outd edi

oor

tio

the Art of a Kansas Summer

n

outdoor wonders KANSASMAG.COM

Subscribe to KANSAS! magazine for two years for only $30.

Regular annual subscription price is $18.

Knock out a few Christmas gifts today. kansasmag.com facebook: facebook.com/KansasMagazine twitter: @KANSASmag

Frozen in time

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Noted historian and photographer Greg A. Hoots is wild about the Flint Hills.

His book Flint Hills is a compendium of more than 200 historic pictures of the Tallgrass Prairie in the middle of Kansas. The Flint Hills was dubbed the “Great American Desert” by pioneers who settled or eventually pushed westward, and the book vividly captures the vastness of the prairie and concludes with historic photographs of the area’s cowboys.

Details from old scenic byways, aerial views, personal accounts and portraits make this book a must for those who value the remnants and inhabitants of this one-time inland sea. arcadiapublishing. com Celebrating the history, culture and heritage of the Flint Hills, the recently opened Flint Hills Discovery Center based in Manhattan is a landmark documenting the history and beauty of the area.

Housed in an imposing three-story glass, concrete and limestone building, the story of the Tallgrass Prairie unfolds with interactive exhibits, video, artifacts and multimedia designed to instill a reverence for the Prairie’s past, present and future. flinthillsdiscovery.org

Reasons we ❤ KANSAS 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Photographs: (Clockwise from top left) Toto’s Tacoz (2), Reprinted with permission from Images of America: The Flint Hills by Greg A. Hoots (Available from the publisher online at www.arcadiapublishing.com or by calling (888) 313-2665), Shutterstock, Vicki Cooper of Needles & Friends Quilt Guild

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The Number 125

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The Kansas Forest Service celebrated its 125th anniversary on March 10, but all the festivities will culminate with the October 4 Open House in Manhattan. Come honor the fine folks who continue to protect our natural forests. kansasforests.org

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Patchworkers

Liberal’s Needles & Friends Quilt Guild are quite the masters of their craft. Monthly, these talented quilters gather and share everything surrounding the art of quilting. Their next event is the second Auntie Em’s Quilt and Home Tour, scheduled for October 13-14.

Approximately 700 quilts will be on display in five homes and various locations in Liberal. Tickets are $5 and will be available from guild members and at all tour locations.

Don’t miss this chance to study the beauty and skill of these timeless designs. wequilt.net

REASONS WE LOVE KANSAS

Send your “Reasons We Love Kansas” to ksreasons@sunflowerpub.com

or to Reasons, KANSAS!, 1020 S. Kansas Ave., Suite 200, Topeka, KS 66612.

fall 2012 KANSAS EVENTS Old Timey Rock & Roll and Vintage Country Jam COTTONWOOD FALLS January 27-December 31 Monthly Rock & Roll jam session on the fourth Friday. Begins at 7:30 p.m. emmachasecafe.com

Silver Flyer Railbus

Paint America

ABILENE August 25

TOPEKA September 8-January 20, 2013

All aboard the Silver Flyer Railbus for this ride and meal. Tickets are $40, adult; $30, children under 12. Abilene & Smoky Valley Railroad. Begins at 10 a.m. asvrr.org

Paint America at the Mulvane Museum on the Washburn Campus. washburn.edu/

WASHINGTON September 14-16 MANHATTAN August 30-31

Bring your horse and ride into the fall among the beautiful Gypsum Hills across Gant-Larson Ranch. gypsumhillstrailrides.com

Kick off the Kansas State University football season at Manhattan’s huge pep rally and largest street festival.

Begins at 5 p.m. on Saturday.

Haymarket Flea Market

purplepowerplay.com

LEAVENWORTH May-October 13 Flea market in historic downtown Leavenworth’s Haymarket Square.

Begins at 6 a.m. the second Saturday of the month. leavenworthmainstreet.com

7th Annual U.S. Hwy 36 Treasure Hunt

Purple Power Play on Poyntz

Gypsum Hills Trail Rides MEDICINE LODGE May 1-October 10

mulvane

Labor Day Celebration at Fort Larned

400-mile-long Treasure Hunt (garage sale) along U.S. Highway 36 between Elwood and St. Francis. Most vendors will open at 8 a.m. ushwy36.com

9th Annual Bald Eagle Rendezvous 2012 LECOMPTON September 20-22

LARNED September 1-3

19th century Fur Trade living history encampment at Lecompton’s scenic Bald Eagle Park. lecomptonkansas.com

Living history of daily life at Fort Larned plus local activities. nps.gov/fols

Mad About Monarchs

Rooks County Free Fair

GREAT BEND September 22 Participants can catch and tag butterflies at the Kansas Wetland Education Center’s second annual Mad About Monarchs event.

Begins at 9 a.m. http://wetlandscenter.fhsu.edu

STOCKTON August 13-18 The 133rd fair features concerts, races, demolition derby, exhibits and carnival. rookscountyfreefair.com

Cowgirl Getaway

find more events

BUCKLIN August 16-17

at travelks.com

Women head out to the ranch to learn cowgirl skills like roping and riding.

Begins at 8:30 a.m. on Saturday. moorelonghornranch.com

Artist Alley Festival

Twine-a-thon

CHANUTE September 29

CAWKER CITY August 17-18

Arts, crafts, live entertainment, food, parade and train rides. Fun for the entire family.

Begins at 9 a.m. chanutemainstreet.com

This is an invitation to add to the largest ball of sisal twine in the world. Begins at 7 p.m. on Saturday. (785) 781-4470

Old Settler’s Day

Youth Outdoor Festival

MARION September 29

HAYS August 18

Kansas State Fair

Day of supervised target shooting at the Hays City Sportsman’s Club for youth ages 17 and under. Begins at 9 a.m. (785) 726-3212

HUTCHINSON September 7-16

marionks.com

State fair, Kansas’ largest event. kansasstatefair.com

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Annual event featuring a large parade, followed by food and games in shady park.

fall 2012 KANSAS EVENTS

2012 Volga German Society Oktoberfest

Pome on the Range Fall Festival

HAYS October 5

WILLIAMSBURG October 13-14

Celebration of the Volga German Heritage of Ellis County at the S Main Frontier Park. Begins at 11 a.m. http://goforthaysstate.com

A great day of family fun at the apple orchard minutes from Ottawa.

Begins at 10 a.m. on Saturday, noon on Sunday. pomeontherange.com

Goessel Harvest Festival

John Lithgow Stories by Heart

GOESSEL September 30-October 1

LAWRENCE October 20

Family Fun at the Goessel Harvest Festival with pumpkin decorating, wagon rides and good food. Begins at 7 a.m.

A fun and touching performance of John Lithgow’s memoirs at the Lied Center at the University of Kansas. Begins at 7:30. lied.ku.edu

goesselks.com

Masquerade Ball Burnin’ Down Main Cook-Off COTTONWOOD FALLS October 27 McPHERSON October 6 Competition, live entertainment and concessions on Main Street.

Victorian Masquerade Ball at the Emma Chase Music Hall begins at 7:30 p.m. emmachasecafe.com

mcphersonks.org

Psycho 43 Adventure Race

Photographs: shutterstock

MILFORD October 6 Enjoy the beauty of Milford Lake and the Flint Hills while adventure racing. adventureracekansas.com

COME SEE WHAT GRANT COUNTY HAS TO OFFER!

A Taste of Downtown Hays HAYS October 9 Several downtown businesses open their doors for an evening of fun and taste testing in the Chestnut Street District. Begins at 6 p.m. ChestnutStreetDistrict.com

/ 620-356-4700 50TH ANNIVERSARY HOME PRODUCTS DINNER:

OCTOBER FALL FEST:

SEPT. 18, 2012

OCTOBER 6, 2012

T h e

o f

K a n s a s

Kansas farm and ranch women are as comfortable out on the range as in front of one

Photography by Jason Dailey

Kansas’ leading ladies, Lori Deyoe, Cherie Schenker, Debbie LyonsBlythe and Abby Amick.

of the home or are the ones running the agricultural operation, farm and ranch women wear many hats—and shoes. They fill the more traditional roles of homemakers, mothers, and school, church and 4-H volunteers, but they also handle accounting tasks, market commodities, drive harvest and cattle trucks, and perform general farm and ranch labor.

Promoting Kansas Products The Schenker farm, near McCune in southeast Kansas, has been in the Schenker family since the turn of the 20th century. Cherie Schenker and her husband, Kevin, now farm the land and produce many of the Kansas products Cherie sells online and through distributors.

“Farming is in my blood. So few people have ever had the blessing of growing up in the farming community, so there’s a tremendous amount of misunderstanding and miseducation about where our food comes from and how it is raised and handled,” Cherie says.

That’s why part of their mission is to help educate people about Kansas products, which she has done through the business, Schenker Family Farms, since 2008.

“We are, after all, first and foremost, consumers like everyone else, and we’re not going to feed our families anything but the best products we can find. And that’s what we grow here on Kansas’ family farms and ranches,” says Cherie.

Schenker Family Farms sells certified, naturally grown meat and farm products, which means they don’t use chemical pesticides or herbicides, and routine use of antibiotics, steroids and growth hormones is prohibited. In addition the farm is Animal Welfare Approved.

Many of these products are available through retail outlets in Kansas City, Wichita, Lawrence and in Missouri, Colorado, Florida and Nebraska. But Schenker farm products have traveled much farther than any of those places. Cherie has sent Kansas meat to U.S. troops in Afghanistan, Africa and other locations around the world.

This outreach began when Kevin, now retired from the Kansas National Guard, was deployed to Afghanistan.

“He was going to be there over his birthday, and I wanted to do “When you work on and with the land you something special for him, so I came up with the idea of shipping him some Kansas steaks for a taste of home. After several months of dederive a tremendous sense of satisfaction, but velopment and testing, the rest, as they say, is history,” Cherie says. also a tremendous sense of peace. Every farm Word of someone getting steaks from home spreads quickly on our country’s military bases, and Cherie soon realized she had disand ranch woman I know seems to have a real, covered a niche market for Kansas beef. Since that first shipment the almost spiritual, connection to the land and what family has adopted several platoons that have received Kansas steaks, they are doing.” summer sausages and beef sticks from Schenker Family Farms. ­— Cherie Schenker “It’s a very complicated process and very expensive, but also very rewarding. The coolest thing is to get a ‘fan letter’ from some kid who is about 19 years old serving somewhere far away from home and he’s just received a great steak from Kansas and realizes someone here is thinking about him,” Cherie says. www.schenkerfarms.com

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Women often have been unseen partners on the farm, essential but largely unacknowledged. But things are changing, and women are stepping out of the shadows and putting a new face on American agriculture.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture predicts that by 2014 as much as 75 percent of U.S. farmland will be owned by women. If Kansas farm and ranch women are any indication, that land, and the products that are produced on it, will be in good hands.

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FarmGirl to FarmWife For some, being part of a farm or ranch operation begins at an early age. That is certainly true of Abby Amick, who grew up on a crop farm near Garden City. It’s the same farm where her father was raised, so her roots run deep into the fertile soil of Western Kansas. As a student in animal science with a special interest in business and international agriculture at Kansas State University, Abby met Winston Amick. Although Winston, a native of Independence, didn’t grow up in the country, he spent his summers helping his grandparents on their ranch near Alma. He learned to love the land and work the cattle.

Shortly after marrying, Winston and Abby decided to take over management of the ranch.

“The ranching lifestyle allows you to live and work in an environment that you love.

Spending every day with the livestock, crops and prairie is a unique occupation. Ranching is our business, but it’s not an 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. job. It’s 24 hours a day, 365 days a year,” Abby says.

In fact, the couple planned their wedding in May 2010 around the ranch and cattle’s timeline. “It was on the only open weekend after the cattle began calving,” she says, adding it was also before hay season.

Abby is the economic development director for Wabaunsee County and is active in the state and national Agri-Women organizations. She has served as president and is currently serving as newsletter editor for Kansas Agri-Women and is vice president of communications for American Agri-Women. She keeps the books for the ranch and spends her evenings, weekends and holidays working with the cattle, fixing fences, repairing creek gaps, checking on the livestock in the pasture and staying up all night, when needed, to check on the calves.

“It may not sound like a good “Farm and ranch wives are an important part of any operation these days. We are also very bonding experience to be up all involved in other parts of our communities. We serve on school boards, church councils, are night traipsing through pastures, but it is,” Abby says. “I know I’m 4-H and Girl Scout leaders. I encourage people to make contact with a farm near them. contributing and am playing an We love to talk about our lives, our families and show others how we live.” important role in our business.”

­— Abby Amick

Runs in the family Five generations of Lori Deyoe’s family have been Kansas farmers near Ulysses.

“It was my destiny. I knew from a very young age that I would be in some form of agriculture, and I eventually came home to help preserve my family’s farm,” Lori says.

After completing a degree in agricultural economics with minors in animal science and women’s studies from K-State, Lori moved back to Ulysses to work as a grain originator at the Cropland Co-Op, which is now United Prairie Ag. The mother of two, Baylor, 5, and Teagan, 3, she is also a spokesperson for CommonGround, a grass-roots effort to connect to consumers about the food they eat.

“We want to start a conversation with people who buy our food about how we grow it, why it’s safe, and point out the fact you can come to us—the source—with questions instead of relying on third-party information,” Lori says.

Values like hard work, dedication and perseverance that Lori learned growing up on her family’s farm are the same values she uses in her various roles running a cattle operation with her husband, Matt.

“My role is no different than many wives on farms and ranches across Kansas. We all wear many hats. Mine include buying our inputs, hedging cattle and/or grain purchases, accounting and pen health records, and truck logistics. I also function as general laborer and help with haying fresh calves, working calves and cleaning tanks,” says Lori.

The reward for all this hard work is seeing a successful crop being harvested or raising healthy calves. But farming and ranching is a lifestyle that requires total commitment to the land and the livestock.

“Just like an Olympic athlete eats, breathes and lives his or her sport, a farmer or rancher, eats, breathes and lives “The values agriculture teaches us is what draws me back to it time and farming or ranching,” Lori says. “We don’t get to sleep in on the weekends or snuggle up during a blizzard, because our again. It teaches you hard work and dedication along with persistence cattle depend on us to keep them safe and nourished, and in and patience while waiting for your crop or pen of cattle to grow.” turn, we depend on them to help make a living.” ­— Lori Deyoe

Molley the trolley

Iola the home of the largest Downtown Square west of the Mississippi welcomes you! Shop at the unique shops and flea markets that surround the square.

Attend a show at the Bowlus Fine Arts Center, the Cultural Gem of Southeast Kansas.

Ask how you can take one of the many tours aboard Molley the Trolley or just let us guide you.

Tour The boyhood home of major General fredirick funsTon

These are just a few of the great adventures waiting for you in Iola.

620.365.5252 chamber@iolachamber.org

www.iolachamber.org

“I think there are a lot of women out there like me, doing the ranching and being a wife and mother.”

­— Debbie Lyons-Blythe

Sharing her story Debbie Lyons-Blythe is another Kansas ranch wife who manages cattle, raises kids, takes care of a house and home, as well as the pasture, and somehow finds time to tell anyone interested all about it through her blog, Life on a Kansas Cattle Ranch.

“I think it’s really important to talk about what we do and to show people our way of life here on the ranches and farms of Kansas. It’s not fair to simply expect people who have never been on a farm or ranch to ‘get it.’ That’s why I blog,” Debbie says.

For readers, her blog offers insight and inspiration, but mostly it provides a glimpse into the life of a dedicated rancher and her love of the land, her family and her life. It is a life that has always involved agriculture and ranching. Debbie’s mother, Jan Lyons, is also a cattle rancher and served as the first woman president of the Kansas Livestock Association.

“Mom was at the forefront of breaking down barriers for women in ranching. I grew up knowing if I wanted to be a rancher I could do it. It didn’t matter what gender I was,” Debbie says.

So after graduating with a degree in ag journalism from K-State and marrying Duane Blythe, it seemed a natural transition to run a cattle operation. Now, Debbie, mother of five— Meghan, 21, Allie, 19, Trent, 18, and twins Tyler and Eric, 16—handles Debbie Lyons-Blythe recently was named the the day-to-day work on the family 2012 America’s Farmers Mom of the Year. ranch south of White City. Duane works in Junction City and helps America’s Farmers Mom of the Year is part Debbie on the ranch on weekends of Monsanto’s America’s Farmers program, and evenings, and whenever else which celebrates the contributions of America’s he can. They own and manage 3,500 acres of pasture and run 250 farmers who provide food, energy and clothing cows, as well as a separate heifer for a growing planet. Debbie was named the development program of 350 commercial-bred heifers. winner for the southwest region in the contest, “I feel accepted as a cattle which qualified her to compete for the rancher, not a woman cattle ranchnational title. er, but as just a cattle rancher,” Debbie says.

Writer Lou Ann Thomas is happy to be back on her own Kansas farm near Belvue.

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www.kansascattleranch.blogspot.com

Blythe’s Super Secret Beef Seasoning 1 16-ounce bottle of seasoning salt ¼ cup paprika 1/8 cup garlic salt 1 2.5-ounce bottle mesquite-flavored seasoning mix 1 tablespoon black pepper 1 .25-ounce bottle dried oregano leaves 1 cup packed brown sugar

Beef Enchilada Soup from Debbie Lyons-Blythe 4 pounds ground beef, browned and drained 1 28-ounce can tomatoes (crushed, diced or sauce—whichever you prefer) 1 16-ounce can black beans 1 16-ounce can kidney beans 1 15.25-ounce can sweet corn 1 4-ounce can green chilis 1 10-ounce can enchilada sauce 2 10½-ounce cans beef broth 2 1-ounce envelopes taco seasoning

In a large bowl, combine all spices, mixing well. Store in a large quart canning jar in a cool, dark place—not in the cabinet above your stove. Use on every kind of meat that you cook—on the grill or oven or broiler.

Makes about 4 cups and can be saved for a year in an airtight container.

Put ingredients into a slow cooker on low for the day, or on high for a couple of hours. It can also be cooked on the stovetop.The key is to heat through and allow flavors to meld … it will also make your house smell wonderful and drive the family nuts.Top with sliced flour tortillas—this is important.They act like noodles and are delicious. Also offer shredded cheese, avocado, cilantro, sour cream, additional seasoning … anything that sounds good. Serves about 10.

Kansas’ powerhouse

Photography by Michael C. Snell

Steakhouses and restaurants

across Kansas

continue to serve up the best

The Flint Hills of Kansas has become a destination for domestic and international travelers drawn to its beauty and heritage.

“They seem to be enthralled with the cowboy culture,” says Grand Central Hotel owner Suzan Barnes, speaking of the German guests who frequent the hotel in the summer. “They want to come where it’s real. We don’t round up cattle on a four-wheeler out here.”

Kansas’ roots in beef date back to 1867 when the Texas cowboys drove herds of longhorn cattle north to the railhead at Abilene, then was crystallized when settlers discovered the richness of the Flint Hills, where cattle can gain up to 2 pounds a day grazing on its bluestem grasses. By the turn of the 19th century, the Kansas City Stock Yards was ranked second busiest in the nation.

As Kansans, we know our steak.

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the grand central hotel cottonwood falls | 215 broadway |

When Barnes bought the derelict former hotel, which was previously purchased at an auction on the courthouse steps for $41, “Chickens and pigeons were roosting in the second story,” she says. “As you can imagine, a lot of people said it would never work.” But with hard work and vision she transformed the property into an AAA diamond-rated hotel and restaurant.

Floors of the revamped dining room are paved with brick from the former Kansas City Stock Yards, and the horns mounted on the wall are from the second-largest steer to ever pass through its gates—so long, in fact, that it had to be guided in with its head sideways. The sheaves of big bluestem grass, tall wooden shutters and exposed brick walls lend a rustic backdrop to the fine dining atmosphere.

Barnes draws on her extensive corporate travel experience with meeting and menu planning, both domestically and abroad.

“I know what fine dining is, and that’s what I want,” she says.

“We have featured Sterling Silver Beef ever since the beginning,” says Barnes, who selected it for its “proper aging and consistently high quality.” A half-grade down from prime, Sterling Silver Beef is judged on the carcass, not the hoof, so the designation reflects the final quality of the beef rather than its specific cattle breed.

The beef, which has never been frozen, is cut to order, so guests can buy the exact portion they want. “If someone wants a 16-ounce filet, they can have it,” Barnes says. Her favorite cut is the filet prepared medium to medium rare because it’s so tender, while many of her customers prefer the rib eye “because it’s so flavorful.”

Steak sauce is available upon request, but most people find they don’t need it. Barnes orders boxes of a custom “spicette” from a chef in Waco, Texas. “We put it on steaks, steak fries, chicken, hamburgers—we put it on everything,” she says. “I have a lot of customers tell me this is the best steak they’ve ever had.”

The Grand Central Hotel has twice won the Beef Backer Award and was named Best Hamburger in Kansas by the Kansas Beef Council.

While beef is a focal point to her menu, she also serves fish, chicken and vegetarian options.

Autumn Beef and Cider Stew 2 pounds beef for stew, cut into 1-1/½-inch pieces 2 slices bacon, cut into ½-inch pieces 1 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon pepper 1 can (10-12 ounces) condensed French onion soup 1 cup apple cider 1 pound sweet potatoes, peeled, cut into 1-inch pieces (about 3 cups) ½ cup unsweetened dried cranberries

Fall recipes courtesy of the Kansas Beef Council

Cook bacon in stockpot over medium heat until crisp; remove with slotted spoon to paper-towel-lined plate. Brown half of beef in bacon drippings over medium heat; remove from stockpot. Repeat with remaining beef; season with salt and pepper. Return beef and bacon to stockpot. Add soup and cider; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover tightly and simmer 1 3/4 hours. Add sweet potatoes and cranberries to stockpot; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; continue simmering, covered, 20-30 minutes or until beef and potatoes are fork-tender.

Makes 4-6 servings.

topping

4 beef tenderloin steaks, cut 1-inch thick (about 1 pound) 1 large clove garlic, halved ½ teaspoon salt 2 teaspoons chopped fresh parsley 2 tablespoons cream cheese 4 teaspoons crumbled blue cheese 4 teaspoons plain yogurt 2 teaspoons minced onion Dash ground white pepper

Combine topping ingredients in small bowl. Rub beef steaks with garlic.

Place steaks on rack in broiler pan so surface of beef is 2 to 3 inches from heat. Broil 13-16 minutes for medium rare (145 degrees) to medium (160 degrees) doneness, turning once. One to two minutes before steaks are done, top evenly with topping. Season with salt; sprinkle with parsley.

Makes 4 servings.

| 1110 westloop | manhattan

Beef Tenderloin Steaks with Blue Cheese Topping

little apple brewing company

“Charbroiler, high heat. I think it’s the best way to prepare a steak,” says Russ Loub, co-owner of Little Apple Brewing Company in Manhattan.

“We have a big natural gas charbroiler. Pretty much every steak hits that charbroiler.”

Little Apple was founded in 1995 by a group of Angus cattle producers and breeders who were interested in opening a steakhouse where they could entertain clients. “At the time there really wasn’t a top-notch or even a notable steakhouse in town,” and no brewery, says Russ.

Along with his wife, Kelly, Russ owns the brewery and restaurant with two of the original investors, Galen and Lori Fink.

“Since day one we have focused on handcrafted beer and [serve only] Certified Angus Beef,” says Russ, who attended Johnson & Wales University’s culinary school in Rhode Island.

Bar seating is at the front of the house, while the main restaurant dining is deep inside. Soft lighting, honey walls and brown craft paper sheets topping the tables give the restaurant a casual atmosphere with broad market appeal. “We’ll have bankers in suits seated next to kids in cut-off jeans,” he says.

“When people come to Kansas, they want to have a great steak,” says Russ. “Beef is 50 percent of our business, so it’s important that we know what the product is about.” The owners are very involved with the beef industry, catering for beef industry events and attending chef’s tours, where they go behind the scenes to learn about their product “from pasture to plate, tail to table,” says Kelly.

“My go-to is our Mediterranean Steak Salad,” she says, served with a lemon oregano vinaigrette.

“That’s a huge seller for us,” adds Russ, as is the Black and Bleu Salad. “But I have to be honest, I love our burgers. It’s hard to pass up a burger. I love sitting down to eat a steak, but we often don’t have time.”

In addition to the standard menu, Little Apple carries a “white menu,” which allows them to feature edgier dishes and locally sourced seasonal food. “During the summer, we shop at the farmer’s market twice a week, and we feature a lot of fresh local produce, along with local lamb and pork,” says Kelly.

Little Apple Brewing Company received the National Beef Backer Award for Independent Restaurants in 2011.

Bichelmeyer’s Steakhouse | Tonganoxie | 427 E. Fourth St.

You might say that steak is in Matt Bichelmeyer’s DNA. Matt and his wife, Vicki, own Bichelmeyer’s Steakhouse. The Bichelmeyer family has been in the meat business in northeast Kansas for over a century, making for quite a legacy.

The couple decided to open a restaurant in downtown Tonganoxie in 2000 to meet the changing trends in American shopping and dining habits. “Being that my family had a meat market, we decided to make [the restaurant] a steakhouse,” says Matt.

Black-and-white photos of their extended family hang on the walls of the restaurant, alongside Marilyn Monroe and Elvis memorabilia—favorites of Matt and Vicki, respectively. The tin ceiling dates to the building’s construction in the 1880s, and the antique mirrored Brunswick back bar is from the Old Spaghetti Factory in Kansas City.

“The first thing you have to know if you’re going to own a restaurant, you have to know what meats you’re serving,” says Matt. “You’ve got to know the marbling inside the beef and the age.” A professional meat cutter from the age of 17 to 36, Matt knows his beef and is extremely selective about the type of beef he serves. He buys primal cuts, aged 21 days, sourcing his meat based on the cattle’s specific feed schedule. “There’s a difference in the way beef takes on fat in the process,” he says.

Matt’s favorite cut is the rib eye prepared medium rare. “It’s because of the marbling. It’s a great, flavorful piece of meat. It seems that the front-quarter meats have more flavor to them. That’s the steak we sell more of than anything,” he says. Matt seasons his steaks with a special seasoning from a gentleman out of Perry. “We’ve been using them since day one.”

Steak sauce is available upon request. “But 90 percent of the time they don’t ask,” says Matt.

Prime rib is also popular, as well as comfort foods like hot beef sandwiches and chicken fried steak. Musicians are invited to bring their instruments on Wednesday evenings when the banquet room is set up for an open mic jam session. Friday is karaoke night, and Matt has begun opening his venue to comedy on Saturdays.

“It’s all about service to people, to give them a good time, to show them a heartfelt dining experience when they come in. It’s all about family and camaraderie more than anything. This business is built on friendship,” says Matt.

“If you didn’t have the faith and love of the people around you, you wouldn’t have a restaurant. Life has a lot to offer when you’re smack dab in the middle of it,” says Matt.

After researching this story, Lawrence writer Sally M. Snell anticipates beef will be on the grill more than usual this year.

little apple brewing company manhattan

bichelmeyer’s steakhouse tonganoxie

bunker hill cafe

beethoven’s #9 the restaurant paola

bunker hill

renaissance cafe assaria

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scotch & sirloin wichita

tavern on the plaza coffeyville

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the grand central hotel cottonwood falls

KANSAS galleries There is plenty to see and do in Kansas.

Be sure to call ahead for complete directions.

buzz blodgett Fine Art Glass Blodgett Glass

Paintings, Glass Art, Jewelry, Photography, Pottery, Wood Carving, Wheat Weaving and more.

125 N. Main St. • Lindsborg, KS 67456 785-227-3007 • www.courtyardgallery.com

www.artglassexpressions.com Look for us on Facebook search “Art Glass Expressions”

POTTERY—GALLERY HAND-THROWN STONEWARE

300 LINCOLN WAMEGO, KS.

NOW SHOP US ON-LINE! WHIRLINGEARTH.COM

LAWRENCE, KS

Fine Arts Unique • Affordable • Functional Featuring the original handmade works of local, regional and national artisans.

Pottery • Blown Glass • Jewelry • Woodwork • Textiles & much more!

825 Massachusetts street, Lawrence Ks • 785.843.0080

www.phoenixgalleryks.com

Home of National Geographic photographer Jim Richardson GALLERY HOURS 10-5 M-S | 12-4 Sunday

www.smallworldgallery.net

our town

Leavenworth

Kansas’ First City offers an escape into its colorful past—and modern-day disposition.

Photography by Jason Dailey

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kansas! •

fa ll 2012

★

L

eavenworth is more than likable—it’s downright agreeable.

Set against a rich stew of frontier-building pioneers and the patina of a past that declared it as the “Post that opened the West,” Leavenworth’s charm transcends the rough edges of its most famous structure—the United States Penitentiary. Today’s Leavenworth, the birthplace of popular rock singer-songwriter Melissa Etheridge, storms along with 21st century attitude—including distinctive shopping, locavore dining and proud business owners who pull out the red carpet for visitors.

Before spending a day exploring the area’s one-of-a-kind pleasures, play tourist. Take a leisurely stroll around the riverfront’s scenic Leavenworth Landing Park to help put the city in its proper perspective.

History speaking A deep current of history runs through the city of about 35,000 that hugs the west bank of the Missouri River in the Sunflower State’s northeast region. The Indians first left their mark on Leavenworth, along with the French, who traded with them. Incorporated in 1854 as the first city in Kansas, Leavenworth witnessed some of the nation’s inaugural footprints and wagon wheels as it marched and rolled westward. Colorful characters like William “Buffalo Bill” Cody and Wild Bill Hickok roamed unpaved streets, and in 1859, Abraham Lincoln canvassed for potential presidential votes in the fledgling frontier town.

Visit one of the many attractions where history has been meticulously preserved, including the 1867 Victorian Carroll Mansion (pick up a bauble at the Victorian Shoppe). The C.W. Parker Carousel Museum, named one of the 8 Wonders of Kansas by the Kansas Sampler Foundation, displays the oldest primitive carousel in the United States—along with a restored, fully operational 1913 carousel made in Leavenworth.

Immediately north of the city is Fort Leavenworth—the oldest active Army post west of Washington, D.C. The combined arms center brings in military personnel from across the country.

This vibrant city has plenty of other offerings—including friendly shopkeepers and restaurateurs—that give Leavenworth an artsy swagger accented by a quaint persona.

Ready, set, shop!

Local entrepreneurs have established roots in Leavenworth, investing and developing in its modern commercial landscape. Many are women whose creative and artistic flair are helping to redefine the community.

Step inside Artistic Works by LU! on Delaware Street and be transported to an urban-trendy boutique that carries the stamp of a big city’s funky neighborhood. Owned by Lu Knueven, the spunky wife of an Air Force officer, the studio carries one-of-a-kind, handcrafted jewelry, including necklaces, bracelets, earrings and pendants.

Perched on the corner of Shawnee Street in downtown Leavenworth, the cotton candy-pink exterior of Candle Queen Candles promises an unusual shopping experience. Brimming with artfully displayed clothing, jewelry, handbags, candles, home décor and gift items, the store is a delightful carnival of delicious treats. Owner Stacey McCowen, wife of a retired Army officer, appreciates the store’s extensive collection of gifts handmade by military wives.

OPPOSITE The entrance at the Turquoise Fish, an artisan boutique.

ABOVE Leavenworth’s downtown boasts locally owned boutiques and restaurants and cafes with delicious fare.

kansasmag .com • kansas!

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our town

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kansas! •

artisticworksbylu.com

221 Delaware St. | (913) 758-0754 Candle Queen Candles

junescottage.com

216 N. Broadway | (913) 651-7000

Leavenworth Convention and Visitor’s Bureau lvarea.com

518 Shawnee | (913) 628-4113

candlequeencandles.com

Charlemagne’s German Restaurant

500 Shawnee St. | (913) 682-7724

Charlemagnesrestaurant.com

Carroll Mansion/Leavenworth County Historical Society

604 Cherokee | (913) 250-5126

leavenworthhistory.org

1128 Fifth Ave. | (913) 682-7759

The Pot Rack thepotracklv.com

626 Cherokee St. | (913) 364-5038 Leavenworth Antique Mall

The Corner Pharmacy 429 Delaware St. | (913) 682-1602

lamforantiques.com

High Noon Saloon & Brewery

505 Delaware St. | (913) 758-0193

thehighnoon.com

206 Choctaw St. | (913) 682-4876 Turquoise fish 412 Delaware St. | (913) 682-4348

fa ll 2012

tour

June’s Cottage & Cafe

Artistic Works by Lu!

dine

SHOP

Leavenworth is perfect for a day or overnight escape. Whether you choose to shop ‘til you drop, get your fill of the city’s cuisine or take a brief step back in time—or all three—you won’t be disappointed.

leavenworth

Fort Leavenworth Main Entrance: Seventh and Metropolitan Avenue (913) 684-3600 C.W. Parker Carousel Museum firstcitymuseums.org

320 S. Esplanade | (913) 682-1331

KANSAS

Bonner Springs

Topeka

destinations & attractions

Stock up on gourmet kitchen supplies at The Pot Rack, also located in the historic downtown district and owned by a retired military couple, Ollie and Kathryn West. From French cookware to high-end bakeware and artisan condiments, coffees and teas, rubs and sauces to gadgets and gorgeous tabletop pieces, this stylish and well-stocked store aims to please the novice or advanced cook. Thumb through the store’s well-curated collection of cookbooks— there’s something for everyone, even kids—and buy a pound of roasted coffee beans as a fragrant souvenir of your day in Leavenworth.

No visit to Leavenworth would be complete without browsing antiques. The 9,000-square-feet Antique Mall in the heart of downtown is chock full of merchandise from more than 70 dealers. Treasures include period furniture, Depression glass, primitives and architectural salvage finds.

Full plate Rest your shop-worn feet and grab a bite. Dining options are varied in Leavenworth, but you’ll want to savor some of the from-scratch, homegrown cafes, diners and soda fountains that boast plenty of hometown personality.

Homey and inviting, June’s Cottage & Cafe combines the best of both worlds: shopping and tasty food. Work up an appetite admiring antiques and home accessories for purchase in the cottage and then retire to the cafe for a hearty bite.

Owner June Meyer has created an inspiring environment that beckons you to relax and rejuvenate.

Charlemagne’s German Restaurant relocated from the historic Missouri burg Weston to Leavenworth earlier this year and has already developed a throng of regulars. Authentic German dishes, including schnitzel, sausages and sauerbraten and a handpicked selection of German wine and beer, are served in a captivating setting that transports you back to the old country. Lunch, dinner and Sunday brunch are available; reservations are accepted but not required.

Wrap up your day in Leavenworth by raising a glass of award-winning craft beer at High Noon Saloon & Brewery. The lively establishment is keeping with the tradition of Leavenworth’s thirst-quenching history of being home to 69 saloons and 10 German breweries at the turn of the 20th century. High Noon serves up pints and glasses of darned good brew, including Annie’s Amber Ale, a silver medal-winning beer that received a coveted “Simply Kansas” label from the Kansas Department of Commerce. Pair your beer with a burger, steak or satisfying home-style comfort dish and stay for live entertainment. Bottoms up.

Overland Park writer Kimberly Winter Stern loves the short drive from Kansas City to Leavenworth for a day of shopping, eating and soaking in the city’s history.

Baldwin City Winfield

There is plenty to see and do in Kansas.

Be sure to call ahead for complete directions.

Now thru Oct. 31st

enrich your life through the arts Winfield Art in the PArk

first Saturday of October 10 am to 5 pm Island Park, Winfield, KS 67156 entry fee: $2 donation requested 620 221-2161 for information entertainment, free children’s activities, food and lots of exhibitors

ank, Sponsored by Recreation, CornerB & Tourism City of Winfield, Winfield Winfield Convention Citizens Bank of KS and

0) 221-2161 , KS 67156 • Phone: (62 700 Gary Street • Winfield infieldarts.com

www.w

Fresh Roast Coffee Co. tim wiesner | wichita

Favorite coffee: Celebes kalossi from Indonesia Its profile: A bold coffee with a bittersweet chocolate taste that is heavy on the tongue. But Tim Wiesner adds, “Coffee is like fine wine. It’s subjective. What [customers] taste might be different than what I taste. People will taste different things and get different aromas out of it.” freshroastcoffeecompany.com

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Tim Wiesner’s coffee packs a punch out of his petite Wichita roastery.

Mark Galloway insists that he knows, better than anyone, just how coffee should taste. The high-octane beans he roasts, after all, aren’t just coffee. They become an artisan beverage like fine wine or a craft beer.

“Roasting coffee is part-art, part-science,” he says. “Handcrafted, ultrapremium coffee—that really is what we are doing.”

In a little town known for its Swedish heritage, Mark and Nancy Galloway are creating a connoisseurship of sorts far from the state’s big cities. Tucked away in Lindsborg’s old blacksmith shop, the Galloways are forging coffee rather than metal. They call it Blacksmith Coffee Roastery and market their concoction to nearly 70 independent grocers and coffee shops in Kansas, as well as an online community from around the United States and Canada.

Across Kansas, a wave of pioneering small roasters like the Galloways are doing the same thing—providing a crafted cup of joe to those with a craving palate. These pioneers, like most before them, have left other fields to pursue their java passion.

Wichita roaster Tim Wiesner is a former advanced registered nurse practitioner who traveled the nation for his pharmaceutical research company business. For years he had been drinking what he now calls terrible coffee, one that can be purchased off most supermarket shelves.

It was in San Francisco where “I found there was a whole world I never even knew about,” Wiesner says.

It began a love affair that led him to Alfred Peet, famous among coffee enthusiasts for his Peet’s Coffee, where he learned his roasting skill. He began roasting coffee for his own use until he decided to quit his job and open his own business in Wichita selling wholesale specialty coffees.

A few years ago, he opened the tiny retail shop Fresh Roast Coffee Co. in Wichita’s Clifton Square, serving his own roast.

Each roaster has his or her own preferences when creating a coffee, Wiesner says. He uses a larger roaster machine that churns out coffee 25 pounds at a time, the beans tumbling over and over again in a big drum. Beans are roasted from seven to 18 minutes with Wiesner using all his senses to produce the best cup.

He listens for the cracking of the beans in the roaster. He takes them out, smells their aroma and tastes a couple to check the flavor.

He uses more instinct than science, he says—“You use all your senses when you roast.

You trust your senses.”

This is why, he says, he offers a unique, flavorful brew at his tiny roastery.

“By the cup or by the pound, it’s the best coffee around,” Wiesner says with a chuckle as he prepared a latte for customer Sandy Foster on a chilly morning.

“I live on the other side of town, but I come in once a week,” Foster says, adding that what

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brings her to Wiesner’s on her Saturday jaunt is “the taste, the detail they put into a single cup.”

The end result, after all, isn’t just a cup of coffee.

“Premium coffee is a gift from God to humanity,” says Mark. “Each bean’s origin, along with the cultivation and processing methods employed by the grower, combined with the specific roast profile we create, result in the taste you experience in the cup.

“It is not all about cupping scores,” he says of a method that ranks coffee. “It’s about the whole picture.”

For instance, the Galloways sell Jamaica Blue Mountain Coffee—a coffee considered one of the finest in the world. They also have beans from Nepal. It’s the northernmost place coffee can be grown in the world, in a valley where it never freezes.

“We are the exclusive importer of that coffee in the United States,” he says. “The flavor of it just explodes.”

As for Nancy, her favorite coffee is their Espresso Especiale. “We roast it currently for several coffee shops in Kansas, and it is a delicious cup of coffee. The blend of beans in our Espresso is phenomenal,” she says.

Another bean Mark has had, on occasion, is Lake Tana Monastery Island Coffee—a bean grown in Ethiopia and harvested by monks since 1250 A.D. Profits help run the monastery.

Besides where it is grown, the roasting process also creates the coffee’s unique flavoring. “Each bean is different, and each bean requires its own special roast to bring out its fullest potential,” Mark says.

Mark says this as he helps Salina resident Mike Weis, a loyal customer who frequents the shop every two weeks.

“What I like is the freshness,” Weis says.

“I’d rather have one good cup of coffee than several bad cups.”

Writer Amy Bickel hails from the small Kansas town of Burrton where she and her husband, John, are busy raising their three girls. Coffee comes in handy quite often at their home.

The Bourgeois Pig in Lawrence proudly serves PT’s Coffee from Topeka. But it’s the creative staff that has developed a few “Corrected Coffee” delights that have become favorites for local coffee connoisseurs.

Traditional Irish Coffee 1 tablespoon raw sugar 2 ounces Irish whiskey, such as Powers, Clontarf or Jameson 8 ounces brewed black coffee Top with whipped cream.

Originally the drink was topped with a thick layer of heavy cream, and the coffee was drunk through the cream, but most modern variations of the drink call for whipped cream.

El Zocalo 1 ounce Patron XO (sweet, coffee-flavored tequila) poured over ice Top with soda water Stir in half and half (optional) This drink is a summertime favorite of bartender Katy Wade. It tastes like a sweet coffee soda, and it is easy to keep the ingredients on hand and make at home, perfect if you are looking for something without caffeine.

Blacksmith Coffee roastery mark Galloway | Lindsborg

favorite coffee: “The honest answer is whatever I’m drinking,” says Mark Galloway, co-owner and co-roaster of Blacksmith Coffee.

All the different coffee beans Mark and his wife, Nancy, roast at their Lindsborg shop are coffees of their liking. If he had to choose a favorite, it might be Nepal Mt. Everest Supreme. Its profile includes undertones of jasmine and vanilla. The aromatic coffee also has hints of candied orange. “It’s smooth but complex,” he says. “It’s a nice, comfortably rich cup of coffee.” http://blacksmithcoffee.com

Mark and Nancy Galloway in their Lindsborg shop, Blacksmith Coffee Roastery.

Photo illustration by Jason Dailey

Tour Kansas

Spirit Guide

A petite, middle-age woman in a turn-of-the-century, long, black dress and a little black hat walks in and out of the dining room as though she’s checking on the waitstaff at Lopez de Mexico Restaurante in Atchison. Owner Anne Pruett says no employee fits this description and she’s never encountered the ghostly figure seen by some customers in her establishment.

Haunted Atchison Tours Atchison may be the most ghostly city in Kansas, drawing national attention when The Travel Channel featured the community’s chilling stories in a documentary, Haunted Town, in 2003. Jann Weatherford-Wessel, tourism coordinator at the Atchison Chamber of Commerce, has spent time researching why the community has an abundance of paranormal activity and indicates it is all because of location.

“Atchison was built on a river, we have train tracks, and we are built on top of limestone,” she says. “Those three things bring the spirits out.”

The Chamber’s Haunted Atchison Tour, a narrated trolley ride, reveals the many eerie ways apparitions make their presence known to owners of historic homes and buildings as the tour winds through the city. WeatherfordWessel’s former residence, where she admits “unexplained things happen,” is one of the featured homes.

She has been startled by the sound of china crashing on the floor but finds nothing out of place, and she discovered lights and fans turned on in the middle of the night. “It’s very frightening at first when you wake up and all this is on when you knew it was shut off when you went to bed,” she says.

After the trolley tour, summon your courage and take a self-guided tour of the Sallie House, Atchison’s most ghostly home, rumored to be haunted by a young girl who underwent surgery in the structure and died there. Then listen to history of the supernatural on the guided History/Mystery Walking Tour as you stroll through the city’s historic neighborhoods.

Not quite as alarming is the Cemetery Walking Tour, where you learn about funeral and mourning customs of the past and the meaning of symbols etched in tombstones.

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Various ghost and haunted tours abound in Kansas this fall

Whether you are adamantly interested in paranormal activity or simply enjoy hearing about odd incidents that have no explanations, there are numerous tales of poltergeists in Kansas. In response to this growing interest, several communities offer tours to give you the goose bumps during this season of ghosts and goblins.

A tt e n t i o n

ghost hunters Catch A Ghost Tours of Kansas: catchaghosttoursofkansas.com haunted Atchison Tours: atchisonkansas.net/HauntedAtchison/tours.html Iola Molly Trolley Haunted Tour: iolachamber.org Ghost Stories of Historic Delano Tour: http://historicdelano.com/ghoststories/

Molly Trolley Haunted Tour, Iola For a spine-chilling experience, ride the Molly Trolley in Iola. Donna Houser, a volunteer tour guide known locally as the “trolley lady,” mixes stories of suspense with historical facts during the Haunted Tour through the city.

“Some of it’s funny, some of it is scary, and some of it is true,” Houser says of her narrative, a portion of which is based on legendary people in the area she discovered after researching the history of Iola and Allen County.

Houser times the climax of each to coincide with the trolley’s arrival at the story’s location, where a spooky character or two may lurk to portray the incident.

One tale is of a cavalry sergeant, John Bell, who was convicted of a crime in the 1800s, hanged and buried in the local cemetery. Years later, when the graves in the cemetery were transferred to a new location, one was left undisturbed. “The disgraced soldier’s body was not moved but was left by itself in the old cemetery,” Houser says. “We have Bell walking through the cemetery looking for the others as I tell the story.”

Another account, which Houser says she read in an early edition of the local newspaper, is of a shadowy demon with fiery eyes that visited a zinc smelter on the west edge of town.

At the end of the story, Houser screams at a spooky appearance, terrifying the trolley riders.

5th Annual Ghost Stories of Historic Delano, Wichita Walk Douglas Avenue in Delano, a former cattle town at the end of the Chisholm Trail, on a frightful self-guided tour of historic buildings.

The free tour includes eight locations where tales are told of loud banging noises, cold spots, peculiar odors and orbs of light.

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Tour Kansas “The owner of each building or business invites people inside and tells their own stories,” says Nancy Lawrence of Historic Delano Inc. “We tell them why we think we have ghosts in our buildings.”

At her store, Central Plains Novelty Shop, tour participants are invited to explore part of the second floor. It is here that Lawrence’s sister, Zandra Troeger, experienced one of the building’s daunting incidences. Once during the Halloween season, Troeger had won several hands of solitaire while also catering to customers coming in and out. After a trip down to the store’s main level, Troeger returned to the game but couldn’t win. Suddenly, a never-used door in the room opened. She got up to close the door and returned to her card game. Still unable to win at solitaire, she decided to count her cards. “Two cards were missing, and she still hasn’t found those cards,” Lawrence says.

Abilene writer Cecilia Harris doesn’t mind hearing a good ghost story, but she’s a real scaredy-cat when it comes to meeting a ghost up close and personal.

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Ghost hunting

the real deal Catch A Ghost Tours of Kansas offers training on scientific paranormal research equipment and the opportunity to use these ghost hunting tools during an investigation at one of six haunted locations in the western part of the state.

“Ours is more of an intense, if-youwant-to-be-a-ghost-hunter tour,” says owner Terry Rowe, Stockton. “Educating people is the number one thing we do.”

A certified paranormal investigator, Rowe is the founder of Kansas Researchers of Unexplained Phenomenon and the Kansas Paranormal Alliance, and owns Catch a Ghost Paranormal Equipment Co., which builds custom products for paranormal research such as lasers and ion generators.

“We build the equipment we do our research with and then we let them (the tour participants) use the equipment we design,” he says.

Some of the tours include dinner and a historical overview of the site; all include Rowe’s Introduction to Ghost Hunting class, covering basic research skills and training on use of the equipment. “I give them my theories on different ways to catch a ghost,” he says. Once trained, the participants then explore a haunted site in either Larned, Wilson, Hays, Scott City, Studley or Hill City.

infield, VqiusinittessW t n e ial Kansas to wn

the

!

Contact our office for visitor information, or go to

VisitWinfield.com

Winfield Convention and Tourism 123 E. Ninth Avenue, Winfield, KS 67156 877-729-7440 tourism@winfieldpartners.org

Take a stroll amid historic buildings and beautiful flowers downtown, or along the tree-lined streets and lush gardens in Winfield’s beautiful neighborhoods. Enjoy eating at one of the unique, locally-owned restaurants after shopping Winfield’s one-of-a-kind stores.

Make Winfield your next travel destination!

VisitWinfield.com

gallery

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Fall’s vibrant hues

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After sweltering temperatures, a new season enters with a haze and iconic scenes.

(Opposite)

Fall Pasture Brad Neff, Douglas County (From top)

Restless Redwings Bob Regier, Stafford County When I Grow Up Sarah Dick, Riley County

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(Above)

Sumac and Sunset Scott Bean, Geary County (Opposite, from top)

A Whitetail Buck in Velvet J.C. Boyce, Butler County Prairie Wagon Marciana Vequist, Douglas County

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(From top)

Berry Bunch Dick Herpich, Douglas County Ready for Fall Harvest Jana Carlson, Cloud County (Opposite)

Liftoff at the Huff ’n Puff Balloon Rally Harland J. Schuster, Shawnee County

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(Opposite, from top)

Old Farm Truck in a Field Gunnar Williams, Franklin County Family Foto Dick Stine, Chautauqua County (Left)

Morning Dew Bill Fales, Greenwood County

gallery

Send your scenic photos to Gallery, KANSAS!, 1020 S. Kansas Ave., Suite 200, Topeka, KS 66612.

Visit kansasmag.com for submission guidelines and deadlines.

Three Kansas ‘mixologists’ quench discerning tastes with handcrafted cocktails

Mix Mastering Photography by Jason Dailey

James Bond’s memorable catchphrase “shaken, not stirred” would likely be greeted with a sly grin by a savvy mixologist who understands the implications of not bruising the gin.

These modern alchemists are not only skillful but nimble, aiming to please an increasingly sophisticated audience hungry for new twists on classic and contemporary cocktails.

“They have to be,” says Brandon Cummins, co-founder of the Paris of the Plains Cocktail Festival and the Greater Kansas City Bartending Competition. “Bartenders are part historian, anthropologist, entertainer, chef, craftsman, artist, apothecary, caretaker and scientist all rolled into one.”

Harkening back to the 1920s Golden Age of cocktails, handcrafting a mixed drink is resuming its status as an art form distilled by the spirit-handler.

Here’s a look at the magic created in Kansas.

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w ic cl hi u ta mi bi ke ’s w & ndig o in ed ive

Brad Steven, owner of two clubs in Wichita, Club Indigo and Mike’s Wine Dive, acknowledges he threw himself to the wolves—essentially learning on the job.

“I opened up two bar and restaurants and didn’t have a clue about bartending.

I’m literally self-taught having watched videos, read books and observed,” he says.

Steven’s fascination with the business of bartending has only heightened since opening Mike’s Wine Dive, heady with a sophisticated wine list and high expectations for unique cocktails.

“In my observation, people are ready to wait for an incredible cocktail,” he says. “To meet their standards, becoming an excellent mixologist is so important.”

A trip to New York hastened his desire to “mix.” “During my stay I went in search of the artfully crafted cocktail. Watching bartenders take that extra effort was daunting. One ingredient that I found interesting at the Flatiron Lounge was pureed kiwi. I loved how the seeds floated in the drink, adding to the visual and textural effect,” he says. “I immediately wanted to try using kiwi in my own crafted drink I call Diving Sapphire.”

Diving Sapphire In a pint glass add 2 ounces Bombay Sapphire Gin 1.5 ounces kiwi puree 1 ounce Domaine de Canton ½ ounce agave nectar ½ ounce Midori Fill with ice Shake well and garnish with a brown raw sugar rim and a peeled kiwi wheel.

pa law ch re am nce am

as

Senior bartender Dan Sieber is a fiveyear veteran at Pachamamas in Lawrence.

Crediting his years in the kitchen, Sieber translated his experience from food to drink.

He admits he’s finally learned how to balance all the facets of mixing and serving on the job.

“Not only is there a great deal of creativity in crafting cocktails, the study of human behavior is equally intriguing to me. I’m all about forging a good customer relationship—it’s what makes this job so challenging,” he says.

Regulars at Pachamamas appreciate Sieber’s diligence as a good listener and his way around his inventory. Crafting is serious business, and Sieber delights in pleasing his customers. His inspiration comes from a variety of sources: memories, a song and customer requests, for example, the A-Train.

“A gentleman challenged me to create the ultimate drink using Hendrix, a Scottish gin flavored with cucumbers and rose petals,” he says.

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Scott Benjamin, executive chef and owner of 4 Olives Restaurant and Wine Bar in Manhattan, is a traditionalist.

“The cocktail is experiencing a Renaissance. It’s one of the best times in history to learn how to mix. Personally, I love to read old books that detail ingredients. What I digest from my research is focusing on the constants of those cocktails that are classics like the Old Fashioned. I use the base recipe and figure out a way to add a twist,” he says. “For example, I may use white dog (a legal moonshine) instead of rye and not muddle the drink.”

Benjamin also makes his own bitters. “Bitters are distilled alcoholic tinctures strongly infused with the essences of aromatic herbs and roots. They are the salt and pepper of cocktails. Our Bear Shaker cocktail, for example, uses corn whiskey, root beer bitters and pineapple gum syrup topped off with applewood smoked ice.”

Among the 60-plus cocktails offered at 4 Olives Restaurant and Wine Bar, the Bear Shaker is an original and, happily, a popular choice.

Clear-headed and typically the designated driver, Kansas City writer Gloria Gale appreciates a twist now and then.

A-Train Gently bruise 4-5 basil leaves in the bottom of a Collins glass Fill the glass with ice Add 2 ounces Hendrix gin Juice of half a lemon Splash of simple syrup to taste Top with soda

Bear Shaker Combine in iced mixing glass 2.5 ounces Trybox Rye White Dog Whiskey 0.75 ounces pineapple gum syrup 2 dashes of Angostura bitters Stir with a bar spoon for 30 seconds, strain into rocks (old fashioned) glass Add large smoked ice cube (made by putting a pan of water in a smoker and letting it run for an hour, then freeze the smoked water into large cubes) Garnish with lemon twist

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Welcome to Alma Cheese and sweets keep this community full Photography by Cathy Mores

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Rolls begin to rise at the Alma Bakery & Sweet Shoppe in Wabaunsee County.

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recipe

D

riving down Interstate 70, food connoisseurs will find a taste of heaven with all the deliciousness wrapped up in the town of Alma, a community of 800 people located in the heart of the Flint Hills. The Alma Bakery & Sweet Shoppe presents a sweet deal with its wide variety of homemade bakery products, and the Alma Creamery offers a nibble of only the finest natural, handmade cheeses.

Worth Savoring Jeanette Rohleder, owner of The Alma Bakery & Sweet Shoppe, arrives at her bakery around 4 a.m. every day to begin making her delicious cinnamon rolls and scrumptious cookies. She has customers from Denver to Kansas City congregate to her bakery just for her beloved cinnamon rolls.

“What sets my cinnamon rolls apart from others are that mine are light and fluffy. They are not a heavy dough,” says Jeanette. “I have never found another cinnamon roll I have liked better than mine.”

Besides cinnamon rolls, Jeanette specializes in wedding cakes; a dozen varieties of cookies, the Monster Cookie being the most popular; homemade candies, including fudge and toffee, and pies. In a typical day, she uses anywhere from 10 dozen eggs, 50 pounds of flour, 15 pounds of margarine and 25 pounds of sugar to make her delectable goodies.

“Baking is relaxing to me. I get lost back there,” she says. “My mind doesn’t think about other things. I can con-

centrate on what I’m doing, and it’s my therapy.”

Jeanette, who has owned the bakery for the past 11 years, began cooking at age 10 when she baked for her large family. She now continues the family tradition with her own five children, ages 12 to 20, who all help their mom on occasion at the bakery.

In May 2011 Jeanette received the special request from Boston food truck Roxy’s Gourmet Grilled Cheese, as they were competing in the Food Network’s Great Food Truck Race in Manhattan.

“We made all the bread for the gourmet cheeses. They wanted sourdough and not just a plain white, and they wanted it sliced, too,” she says. “It was fun doing something different like that, and it was so spur of the moment.”

Jeanette’s yummy creations can be found at the Eastside and Westside Markets in Manhattan as well as the bakery.

Say Cheese Alma Creamery has been making cheese in the Alma community since 1946.

Through their family business, brothers Todd and Shon Hansen operate the creamery that makes this famous dairy product. The creamery specializes in cheddar and jack cheeses as well as curds.

“We are one of the few companies out there that presses the cheese into a horn,” says Shon. “We do an all-natural cheese, and the texture is a lot different than an automated piece of cheese. We use whole milk and butter fat to get a good taste, and it’s all local product.”

Recipe courtesy of

The alma bakery & sweet shoppe

T h e Fa m o u s Snickerdoodle 1 cup shortening 1¼ cup sugar 1 teaspoon vanilla ¼ cup white syrup 2 eggs 3 cups flour ½ teaspoon salt ½ teaspoon baking soda ¼ tablespoon baking powder Mix 3 tablespoons sugar and 3 tablespoons cinnamon to roll cookies in.

Beat shortening, sugar, vanilla, white syrup and eggs until fluffy. Add flour, salt, baking soda and baking powder. Blend well. Roll balls into cinnamon and sugar mixture and bake at 350 degrees until cookie lifts on pan. find More recipes online at kansasmag.com

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The Hansen family bought the business in spring 1986. In 1998 they sold the creamery, which closed right away under the new owner. So the Hansen family decided to get back to doing what they do best: They reopened the Creamery in 2004.

“It was never our intention for it to ever close, but unfortunately that is what happened,” says Shon. “It has been a part of our family for many years and a staple in the Alma community.”

During high school, Shon first learned the trade of cheese making from Alma’s master cheese maker, Alvin Kahle, who began his trade in 1949. A typical day in the cheese business starts around 4 or 5 a.m. and includes sanitizing the entire building and then pasteurizing the milk. The next step is processing the cheese and putting it in block molds or horns and pressing it overnight. The next day the cheese is ready to be wrapped and packaged.

“All of our processes are by hand. If we are dealing with 2,500 pounds of cheese, that means we have worked with 2,500 pounds of cheese,” says Shon.

“We’re hand-turning, working the cheese, salting and putting it in blocks and horns all by hand.”

The delicious cheese products of the Alma Creamery not only are offered in its retail store just three miles off of Interstate 70 but also across the state at Dillons, Hy-Vee, Checkers and Ray’s Apple Market grocery stores. The products can even be found on the menu at Colbert’s at the Colbert Hills Golf Course restaurant in Manhattan and at Free State Brewing Co. in Lawrence in its everpopular cheddar ale soup.

“We’ve been buying Alma cheese for the past 23 years. It is good quality and a fair price. They treat us well, and the cheese has a great flavor,” says Chuck Magerl, owner of Free State Brewing Co. “Plus it gives our customers a good sense of the local food suppliers in this area.”

“We’ve been buying Alma cheese for the past 23 years. It is good quality and a fair price. They treat us well, and the cheese has a great flavor.”

—Chuck Magerl owner of Free State Brewing Co.

Former Manhattan writer Kristin Kemerling will miss the Kansas landscape and delicious fare after moving to Indiana with her family.

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LEFT Jeanette Rohleder and her daughter Alayna are busy in the kitchen.

OPPOSITE Shon Hansen, of the Alma Creamery, continues to run the family business with his brother Todd.

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City Cycle Sales in Junction City is the crown prince of HarleyDavidson dealers—bringing some throttle-choking notoriety to Kansas. Wayne A. Jaecke opened the dealership in 1962 as a part-time hobby. During this time, a stigma came with the rebellious machine, but Jaecke persevered with his mom-andpop operation. In 2012 while celebrating their 50th anniversary in business, Dealernews magazine named City Cycle Sales Dealer of the Year. In April and in May they received a plaque from Harley-Davidson commemorating 50 years as a dealer. Bravo to a great ride!

Photography courtesy of Trudy L. Quelch

milestone City Cycle Sales

KANSAS museums There is plenty to see and do in Kansas.

Be sure to call ahead for complete directions.

Ag HeritAge PArk

103 South Main, Alta Vista, Kansas To schedule bus tours or individual family tours, please call 785-482-3865 or cell 620-767-2715 www.AgHeritagePark.com

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ABOUT US P E R M A N E N T E X H I B The Wyandotte County Historical Museum opened in 1956. The first museum was located in Memorial Hall in downtown Kansas City, Kansas. In 1962, the Wyandotte County Commission approved a 99-year lease with the Wyandotte County Historical Society for land in the Wyandotte Historical Lecompton

County Park. An effort Civil War Birthplace by the Society and the Museum was started to collect artifacts and archives for a new museum facility and in December 1962, the Society broke ground for the first stage of a new museum.

In 1967, the Museum was opened to the public in the Wyandotte County Park in Bonner Visit Constitution Hall & Territorial Capital Springs, Museum Kansas. The Museum houses the 10-5 pm Wed-Sat • 1-5Trowbridge pm Sun Research Library, two permanent Tours (785) 887-6148 exhibition galleries and an auditorium. www.lecomptonkansas.com

Trowbridge/Barker Gallery

East Gallery

The East Gallery fe The West Gallery features early Wyandotte and cities in Wya County history; Native American collections, Metropolitan hor including 2000 year old Hopewell artifacts, a fire engine, one-r 300 year old dug-out canoe found on the Kaw barbershop, you c River and the stories of the three immigrant of Wyandotte Cou tribes of Wyandotte an actual KCK fire County- the Shawnee, Delaware and in KANSAS! Wyandot.

In addition Magazine to the museum displays, TROWBRIDG For details contact hands-on educational Bert Hull stations include an (888) 497-8668Historic photogr a r ch a e o lo g ic a l d i g sunpubads@sunflowerpub.com records, marriag box, Native American newspapers, ob language station, cemetery record corn grinding and a materials housed pot shard puzzle. can assist visitors Wyandotte Coun

advertise

631 N. 126tH Street BoNNer SpriNgS, KS 66012 913.573.5002 www.wycomuseum.org Summer Hours Monday–Friday:

9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Saturday:

9 a.m. to 12 p.m.