Broadmoor Culinary Students Create Stellar Cuisine

Early each morning, during the school year for the Shawnee Mission School District, a fully-equipped professional kitchen springs to life as high school culinary students begin another day of hands-on learning. These Overland Park, Kansas kids have decided, early on, that they're passionate about cooking. And they receive an incomparable education at Broadmoor Technical Center and their professional restaurant - Broadmoor Bistro.

In fact, this program has been nationally recognized for the exceptional culinary education it provides, for nearly a decade, and recently became an affiliate of the James Beard Foundation. Under the direction of Chef Bob Brassard and Chef David Finn, who both have plenty of professional restaurant experience, students create original recipes, prepare food for the Bistro, and then run the restaurant on nights when it is opened to the public. And that's in addition to the basic food prep skills, which they learn and hone daily.

Fresh ingredients, inventive flavor combinations and meticulous preparation result in restaurant menus such as: Porcini Dusted Roasted Poussin; Shrimp Cocktail with Assorted Sauces; La Rosa Lettuces Tossed with Smoked Grape Tomatoes, Baby Fennel and Peppered  Goat Cheese; and Chocolate Flourless Cake, Raspberry Ganach or Mini Truffle. Students also sell freshly baked pies, tarts, cookies and cakes during designated Broadmoor Baking Fridays.

These students often win national culinary competitions and they also are highly sought after by professional, post high school culinary programs including Johnson and Wales. In fact, program graduates have already received upwards of $750,000 in culinary scholarships.

Experienced culinary instructors, world-class facilities, and passionate students make Broadmoor Technical Center's culinary arts and baking programs among the best in the nation; and Overland Park diners among the most privileged.

PHOTOS BY LISA WATERMAN GRAY

Lisa has previously worked with Broadmoor Bistro through the Kansas City Originals - a group of locally owned restaurants.

Kansas Travel - Free State Brewing Company

It's been 20 years since Free State Brewing Company, in Lawrence, became the first legal Kansas brewery, in more than 100 years. The thriving company crafts more than 20,000 barrels of beer, annually, in its 14-barrel brewhouse, and also has its own bottling facility. And customers can watch as brewers work behind two-story floor-to-ceiling windows of this one-time trolley barn while they sip brews over lunch or dinner. 

There are plenty of choices for beer lovers. In addition to the brewery's original Ad Astra beer visitors may enjoy Copperhead Pale Ale, Ironman Imperial Stout, Oatmeal Stout, Old Backus Barleywine, Wheat State Golden, Lovejoy IPA, Old Stormy and Walloon Gold. Not sure which one to pick? Try a few samples, at $1.35 a pour, and then order a full-sized serving of your favorite.  

Free State Brewing Company also has a large menu in which many healthy and locally produced items star. Flavorful and filling black bean quesadillas come with Spanish rice with loads of cheese, sour cream and salsa.  Hand-cut fries and a dill pickle spear accompany the thick turkey bacon sandwich served on ultra-fresh foccacia bread. 

Free State Brewing Company offers great beer and good food in historic surroundings, with a clear view of the brewery. And, if you want a souvenir of your visit, they'll even sell you a T-shirt or pint glass.

Kansas Travel - Neewollah 90th Anniversary

Who would have guessed, 90 years ago, that Independence, Kansas, a town of less than 10,000 residents, would eventually host the state's largest annual festival? Held every October to coincide with Halloween, the Neewollah celebration in Independence has become a 10-day extravaganza of food, games, and hours of dynamite nightly entertainment. In fact, this year's signature Saturday evening concert event was by Smash Mouth, with tickets starting at only $25!

People from all over the state - and the world - attend this event. And locals, including public school students, often eat lunch as they walk along the main drag or sit at one of the many picnic tables placed on the sidewalk. Dozens of food vendors offer everything from luscious Strawberry Newberg to freshly squeezed limeade or chicken on a stick.

During each evening of Neewollah, and on the weekends, downtown Independence assumes the atmosphere of an old-fashioned carnival, with no cars allowed and dozens of visitors strolling from ride to game to performance stage, where they sit in the folding chairs they've brought along for the event.

If you're looking for a new way to enjoy Kansas' fall season, Neewollah is well worth making a special trip to Southeastern Kansas, and a perfect way to celebrate Halloween. But watch out - you're likely to return again and again. 

Kansas Travel - Exploring Route 66

Only 12.8 miles of historic Route 66 passes through Kansas' southeast corner - the smallest number of miles in any state along this legendary road. But there's a wealth of cool places to visit near this little stretch of pavement.

Fans of Guy Fieri's Food Network program, Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives, may remember one great dining spot that's located along the main drag of Baxter Springs - Cafe on the Route. Although I (unfortunately) didn't see the episode, that national exposure is part of what led me to the cafe. And I was blown away by this place.

After a huge breakfast at a Pittsburg, KS B & B, I wasn't ready for a big meal when I reached Baxter Springs but there was no way that I'd pass up this place. So I ordered a chicken wrap sandwich and a side of their famous fried potato salad with mustard glaze. 

The wrap tasted great but I was determined to duplicate the fried potato salad from my first bite. Skin-on potato chunks, with a bit of crunch and lots of soft, were bathed in this amazing glaze that owners, Richard and Amy Sanell, should seriously consider bottling. You get plenty of food for your money too - before the sandwich/side arrived, I also received a huge salad topped with homemade croutons and a small, light-as-air corn muffin.

Dinner entrees ranged from Chateaubriand to Apple Smoked Salmon, Pesto Pork, Honey Mustard Chicken and Nutcrusted Catfish. The Sanells also run a tasteful B & B upstairs, The Little Brick Inn.

In tiny nearby Riverton, grab a freshly made sandwich from the antique deli counter at Eisler Brothers Old Riverton Store, chow down in the sun-filled, porch-like dining area, and then browse through an amazing array of Route 66 memorabilia and souvenirs in the back room. Opened in 1925, the store draws visitors from throughout the U.S. and the world. This favorite stop for Route 66 fans gained additional exposure as inspiration for the Disney Pixar movie, Cars. After 75 years of operation, the store still offers groceries, produce, and flowers with a large side of memorabilia. 

Don't miss this spot when you cross southeastern Kansas. Better yet, make a special trip there and return home with a new appreciation of the Route and its legendary status in America's culture of the open road. And take home a Route 66 shot glass or T-shirt while you're at it.

Kansas Travel - Emporia's Granadas

Mother, Kim Redeker, and daughter, Toni Bowling, saw a perfect spot to open the chocolate business they had dreamed of, beside Emporia's Granada Theater. In anticipation of the theater's restoration, these budding chocolatiers opened The Sweet Granada - A Chocolate Cafe next door. By the time the theater's magnicent interior restoration was completed, about 18 months ago, the women already had several successful years of operation under their belts.

Redeker and Bowling have tantalized sweet tooths with a wide variety of luscious chocolates and other confections since the 2004 holiday season. Today they get rave reviews for their fudge, from creamy Amaretto Chocolate Swirl to a highly unusual Lemon Meringue variety, made with marshmallow cream. They also douse huge strawberries in chocolate, and double dip cherries so it looks like they're wearing tuxedos.

Being chocolatiers was a new venture for both ladies, who spent a year studying how to make chocolates before they opened. And their efforts have paid off in the form of multiple awards, including 2006 Emerging Business of the Year, from Kansas Small Business Development.

The pair uses only Guittard white, milk, dark, or extra dark chocolate, and hand-make every item, from chocolate covered popcorn to hand-dipped Oreos and Champagne Truffles. Visitors also can pick up assorted goodies in the shop or order online - The Sweet Granada will ship anywhere. And that's a very sweet option.

Where Veterans Day Began: Emporia, Kansas

Emporia, Kansas' population hovers around 30,000 - a fairly large place when compared with many Kansas towns, though not exactly huge. But a very big idea came out of Emporia during the 1950s.

After World War I ended, November 11, 1919 was set aside as 'Armistice Day' - a time to remember the sacrifices of American soldiers who had fought in the great war, and give thanks for the peace that had been achieved. But peace was short-lived when World War II began, in 1927.

In 1953, residents of Emporia re-christened November 11 as 'Veterans Day' in gratitude to all veterans from the city. Soon afterwards, a Kansas congressman suggested that Armistice Day be renamed Veterans Day across the nation. By the next year President Eisenhower had signed a bill renaming the federal holiday Veterans Day. Finally, President Nixon declared the second Monday in November a federal holiday called Veterans Day, in 1971.

But Emporia residents didn't stop there. On May 26, 1991 this city was the first in the United States to dedicate an All Veterans Memorial that recognized the sacrifices of all soldiers who fought in conflicts from the Civil War through the Gulf War. Today, Soden's Grove All Veterans Memorial features a World War II M-4A6 Sherman army tank, a Military Order of the Purple Heart Monument for the State of Kansas, and a Huey helicopter from the Vietnam War, as well as numerous other monuments.

In this quiet and peaceful place, soldiers are still honored and remembered daily and with reverence.

Lunch in Lawrence

It's not every day you dine with a friend who you last saw 35 years ago. I had created a profile on Facebook so I could access the page for a professional organization. Two days later, I received a message asking if I was this person's 'Irish sister from Mt. Lebanon High School.' My theater 'brother' and his family had lived only 40 minutes away from our house, for a decade. We scheduled lunch in Lawrence, Kansas - his hometown and location of the University of Kansas.

25,000 students call Lawrence home. Sprawling houses with generous porches and large front yards line Massachusetts Street before the retail district - half a dozen blocks filled with unique, student friendly shops, a sprinkling of chain stores and some truly wonderful restaurants. When I arrived early I played with my new camera. This mask and brightly painted building injected life into the chilly, gray February morning.

My 'brother,' Mark, and I ate pasta at Genovese while looking at his high school yearbook and my ancient script. A year later, we and our spouses have become friends, and Lawrence holds a special place in my heart.

Dynamic Dance

Chants and drumming filled the air with haunting melodies as the New Dawn Native Dancers created a glorious spectacle of color, movement and enthusiasm. Though only three years old, Quentin Stout, of the Chickasaw and Otoe tribes, performed in the troupe of children, age 3 to 18, as if he'd danced since birth. His nine-year-old brother, Steven Stout, Jr., demonstrated grace and dignity with every step.

The group was only one of many that perform during the Indian Art Market held at Haskell Indian Nations University, in Lawrence, Kansas, each fall. The market brings together hundreds of American Indian/Alaska Native artists who sell exquisite sterling jewelry, one-of-a-kind drums, paintings, and kachinas for two days, on the college campus. Thousands of visitors also enjoy enormous Indian tacos, freshly squeezed lemonade and other treats.

But it is in the arena where Native American participants give visitors a glimpse of their lives through dance, storytelling, and silversmithing and pottery demonstrations. The modern world recedes within moments, as history repeats itself through dedicated performance.

Gargoyle Guards

Birthplace of Amelia Earhart and known by some as the 'most haunted town in Kansas, ' Atchison, Kan. is also home to St. Benedict's Abbey, Mount St. Scholastica Convent and Benedictine College - a small, private university.

This rural town of less than 11,000 people has scores of Victorian homes lining its streets - many of which are still paved in antique brick. With exquisite attention to architectural detail, the massive homes are a feast for the eyes. My camera and I captured dozens of Victorian views on one particularly balmy and sun-drenched day last February, and these winged dragon-gargoyles stood out from all of the rest.

It seems that such gargoyles originally functioned as water spouts, to remove water from rooftops. But I prefer to think of them in their second function - as guardians of the buildings on which they sit, poised to keep bad spirits away from anyone who occupies the residence.