Happy National Pancake Day

Tuesday, February 27 is National Pancake Day (with International Pancake Day on March Sunday March 4 following close behind). Historically hosted as the last day before Lent, the date moves yearly and always occurs on Fat Tuesday (also known as Mardi Gras).

Since pancakes are universally loved, we thought we’d share out favorite recipes from around campus.

Jim’s Homemade by Hand Pancakes

Food & Water Security Coordinator, Jim Chamberlin thinks it’s better to take your time with your batter and that it’s not too important to be exact.

Chamberlin begins, “I start with four hand fulls of Natural Way Mills Gold N White Flour. Then I add two eggs, a couple capfuls of raw apple cider vinegar, and a couple blobs of melted butter. I pour in milk until I get a consistency of wet cement. Then I let it stand for two to 12 hours.”

I went to the St. Cloud IHOP to research some other famous pancake recipes.

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How to Read a Seed Packet

When you finally get the itch to start planting, you’ll find that can get your seeds anywhere. You can go through online sources. You can order through seed catalogs. You can go to Costco. You can go to your local hardware store. You can probably go into one of your own kitchen drawers and find some.

The seed quality will vary. The packaging will be different at each place, but, they will almost always have information that you need to know about the seed you hold in your hand.

Even dark mage Yordles take the time to learn what their seed packet can teach.

I had my good friend Veigar find some seed packets from his dark wizard tool shed and he kindly took the time to show me what kind of information they have on the front and back of each packet.

Top 5 Indoor Garden Ideas

1) Indoor Succulent Garden 

One of the best things about succulents is their variety. You can fill your dining room table with so many varieties of succulents without repeating that you may have to eat your dinners in the kitchen. Not requiring constant attention, succulents are a perfect entry to putting some green in your house.

Go to Jessica’s Design Blog for more ideas.

2) Regrowing Veggies from scraps

Getting your kids to eat their veggies can be difficult sometimes, but now you’ve got a trick up your sleeve. Tell your child that once they eat their green deliciousness, they can turn their scraps into a living, growing plant. Some tasty veggies only require being set in a cup of water to get it sprouted again, such as celery, bok choi, and cabbage. Super easy and a great way to reuse. Check out here for more ideas.

B2B 2018 Keynote Address – Phil Hunsicker & Mike Duvall

If you missed out on the keynote address, Phil and Mike sang, told jokes, and even taught a thing or two. Thanks to the dynamic duo for taking the time to share topics like Aquatic Invasive Species and Climate Change, two topics crucially important to central Minnesota. If you’d like to learn more about Back to Basics, go to http://bit.ly/HDTB2B18.

 

Window Sill Gardens

It’s snowing outside. Right now, I can look outside my window and see the beginnings of (yet another) snowstorm. These are nothing new in Central Minnesota. As hearty Minnesotans, we’re raised to endure the cold. We have flannel pajamas given to us for our first Christmas. We endure, and like your kind old neighbor will have you know, we are nurtured to endure quietly and stoically, one hand on our snow shovel, and when not accelerating, one foot always hovering over the brake.

While not as edible as some plants, succulents can add green to your dreary winter.

With this recent (of many) snowstorms, I’m here to tell you that life is more than white landscapes inter speckled with black-barked trees and grey skies. I’m here to remind you that green is still a color. Remember green? Remember color? We can have color, even in the cold snowy winter. Even in Central Minnesota! But, instead of growing your entire garden indoors, let’s start a little smaller. Let’s start with windowsill gardens!