Croatian Classic from Kansas City Kansas

When Croatian immigrants flocked to Kansas City, Kansas, just over a century ago, baking povitica bread was one of many customs they continued in their new 'Strawberry Hill' neighborhood. Today, Strawberry Hill Povitica Company's delicate dough dips and swirls around endless layers of fillings, which may be sweetened with apples, strawberries, blueberries, or raisins, enhanced with silky cream cheese and/or punctuated with poppy seeds, chocolate chips or traditional chopped walnuts.

After 25 years, they've got it down to a delicious science. And, when you buy a loaf of Straberry Hill Povitica, you're getting a dense, 2 1/2 pound treat that doesn't even need butter. Customers with smaller appetites or curious palates may want to try a Mini Loaf Sampler Pack. Or, stop by the retail store in Overland Park, Kansas, where you may even get a free sample.

Coconut Cupcakes with White Chocolate Icing

I don't know whether its present economic conditions or a desire to test my ingenuity that's recently found me 'foraging' for ingredients I already have in my kitchen before creating a new recipe. Perhaps it's a little of both. Today, I combined sweetened flaked coconut, white chocolate chips, and coconut rum left from a party, in a surprisingly healthy cupcake recipe:

Coconut Cupcakes with White Chocolate Icing
Makes 12

1 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1/2 cup canola oil
1/2 cup honey
1 tablespoon coconut rum (may substitute one teaspoon coconut or vanilla extract)
1/2 cup sweetened flaked coconut

Icing

1/2 cup white chocolate chips
2 tablespoons coconut rum (may use milk and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract instead)
1/4 cup coconut

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine the first three ingredients. Add eggs, oil and honey and then beat all ingredients together on medium high speed for 3-5 minutes. Fold in coconut. Fill 12 muffin papers, approximately 2/3s full. Bake for 15-17 minutes or until tops are light brown.

While cupcakes bake, melt white chocolate in microwave or double boiler, checking frequently to avoid burning the bottom. Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly. Stir in coconut rum thoroughly and then add coconut. Cover each still-warm cupcake with a heaping teaspoon of icing. Enjoy!

Hanging Chiles in the Land of Enchantment

New Mexico visitors are accustomed to seeing red chiles that decorate adobe buildings in the form of 'ristras,' as they twist and twirl in gentle breezes. But there's more to strings of hanging chiles than decoration. Throughout the rural countryside between Santa Fe and Taos, chile growers know the best way to dry their chiles for use in cooking is by tying them together on long strands, and then allowing them to hang until they wrinkle and shrink under the state's intense sun rays.

For farmers with crops that yield a dozen or even 16 bushels, vertical strings may not sufficiently accommodate the massive quantities of chiles that must be dried. Clotheslines morph into drying apparatus and random pieces of rope strung below house eaves offer extra drying space. During the early fall harvest season chiles simultaneously become revered cooking ingredient and integral decorative element throughout New Mexican farm land.

Santa Fe's Portal Program

It's barely 10 a.m. and dozens of people have already reached the portal at Santa Fe's Palace of the Governors. Individual artisans offer everything from sterling and turquoise bracelets to hand-beaded necklaces, one-of-a-kind sand paintings, and hand thrown pottery. Some artisans make their living at the portal, while others supplement a primary income. Customers arrive with cash and checkbooks in hand - no credit cards allowed.

This is the Portal Native American Artisans Program where upwards of 60 artisans display their exquisite wares on the building's front sidewalk, 360 days per year. More than 900 certified program members from 41 pueblos, tribes, chapters and villages scattered throughout New Mexico and parts of Arizona, participate in a longstanding lottery system for the honor of selling here each day.

And, whether you purchase a clay figure whose paint color comes from spinach, a turquoise-encrusted bola tie, or a refrigerator magnet decorated with a sun god made from sand, each item is guaranteed authentic. Every participant in the portal program follows strict artistic guidelines and, most importantly, signs their work.

Making Margaritas at Aldaco's

My travels increasingly include food and beverage classes or lessons and such was the case at Aldaco's Mexican Cuisine, in San Antonio. Margaritas are this restaurant's signature beverage, for which it has already received several awards. And owner, Blanca Aldaco, revels in teaching guests how to create perfect ones.

Before our evening meal, Aldaco gave hands-on instructions to each of half a dozen people about making classic and specialty margaritas. I especially enjoyed shaking the concoction the prescribed 20 times to make sure all ingredients thoroughly merged, although the result was a bit strong for my taste.

Not so with Aldaco's avocado margarita, a fabulous frozen version that pairs the creamy texture of avocado with premium tequila and Triple Sec, tangy, fresh lime juice, and a spicy, chili-lime rim of salt. Soon after sharing one enormous glass with six straws, we asked for separate glasses so we could sip easily while enjoying our food. And I definitely would have ordered another avocado margarita if I wasn't so full.

Rustic Turkey Soup

For me, cool weather and soup are synonymous. When I was growing up, my mom made soup frequently during the winter months, from minestrone to black bean and split pea. My husband, on the other hand, didn't eat homemade soups as a child so when he couldn't get enough of this one I knew I had created a winner. Serve with crackers or thick slices of crusty bread, and a salad, and you've got a hearty meal for only a few bucks.

Rustic Turkey Soup
makes 4-6 servings

1/2 large onion, minced
2 celery stalks, minced
olive oil
1 medium zucchini, diced and lightly sauteed
4 cups low-sodium chicken stock
1 can low-sodium cream of chicken soup
2 cups cooked wild rice (may use canned)
1 pound white and dark turkey meat, cut in bite-sized pieces
2 tablespoons dried sage
salt and pepper to taste

Saute zucchini in olive oil, on medium, until lightly browned. Set aside. Saute onion and celery in olive oil and large pan. Maintaining medium-high heat, add stock, soup, rice, turkey, zucchini and seasonings. Bring to a boil and then let simmer for minimum of 25-30 minutes. To thicken, simmer uncovered for some or all of the cooking time.

Beluga Kisses in San Antonio

When belluga whales leave the performance pool at San Antonio's Sea World for their calm open-air tanks, they sometimes kiss visitors. A photograph of my recent kiss on the cheek sits beside my desk.

But this Sea World is about more than mesmerizing performances by and interactions with massive sea creatures - the kiss was only one surprise. Despite the fact that Sea World in Orlando and San Diego lie closer to coastline, the San Antonio facility is actually larger than the other two combined. With 250 developed acres and 200 'cushion' acres nearby, this park also features the only roller coasters located in any Sea World facility.

Another surprise? Water may be Sea World San Antonio's lifeblood, but conservation efforts saved upwards of 20 million gallons during 2007. Animal 'conservation' is also a focus here - the facility houses one of only a few Manatee Rescue operations in the United States, where rescued and rehabilitated creatures thrive as they entertain guests.

Clearly, there's more to this beloved tourist attraction than meets the eye.