Sense of Community

KSMU’s Jessica Balisle’s brings us a special family recipe from her mother, Suzy Gray, with help from Jessica’s sister, Emily Gray. Knedlíky and zelí is a Bohemian dish of potato dumplings and sauerkraut. The recipe comes from Suzy’s parents, John and Mary Frances Ruzicka, and was passed on to them through many generations.

Bohemia is the westernmost region of the Czech Republic.

Suzy has done a little prep work before we begin – peeling and boiling potatoes until they’re soft.

KSMU's Jess Balisle joins her dad, Steve Gray, in making his uncle Frank Galbraith’s waffles.

Galbraith was born in 1909 and was Gray’s mother’s older brother. When he passed away in the early 1980s, Gray was involved in dismantling the household. There, he found an old waffle iron. His cousin, Nancy Karoll, said he could have it.

Sarah Diouf, who recently joined the Corporate Support staff here at Ozarks Public Broadcasting, shared a very special recipe with us for our "Table Traditions" series.                                                                

You probably know Jeff Houghton as the host of "The Mystery Hour" TV talk show on the local Fox affiliate. He and his wife Michelle have two children, ages 2 and 7. When she and Jeff decided to contact KSMU to get in on our Sense of Community "Table Traditions" series, Michelle told us straightaway: "This may not be exactly what you're looking for, because it's pretty basic food as far as most people are concerned. But--we live and die by 'basic' food as parents with young children."                                                                                 

As part of our Sense of Community series, "Table Traditions," Ann Marie Baker shared a family recipe referred to as "cranberry relish."

This holiday recipe fits in a small white bowl, on a plate next to a stack of saltine crackers and slices of cheese. The sweetness of the dish mixes with a bright tartness.

“The cranberry relish recipe is a family favorite, and we’ve been having it at the holidays for as long as I can remember," Ann Marie Baker said. "My mother made it my grandmother made it, my great-grandmother made it, and it was always around.”

Today we meet, talk, and cook with Yolanda Lorge, who in 1987 with her American husband, moved from Mexico City to Springfield, Missouri, and will share some of the stories behind the table traditions of her youth. Yolanda was born in the northern city of Juarez. But at age 5 following the death of her father, with her pregnant mother and eight brothers and sisters, Yolanda moved to the city of Morelia in central Mexico.

Shishki is a Christmas dish that dates back to Czechoslovakia where Francis and Albert Skalicky’s ancestors are from.  Their mother and father, Albert and Mary, were full-blooded Czech.  Albert’s father came over from Czechoslovakia and his mother's grandparents came over.   It was Mary’s grandparents, who came to the U.S. from Czechoslovakia, and they were part of a Czech community in Polk County in the early 20th Century.

Shishki is made from a potato dough that’s rolled into small pieces and fried, then coated with honey and sprinkled with poppyseeds.

Cornbread dressing has been a staple on Jeannette and Don Erter’s Thanksgiving table for many years.

Jeannette isn’t sure how far back the recipe dates, but she’s pretty sure it can be traced at least to Don’s great-grandmother, Leitha “Leithy” Darby.  It was Leithy’s daughter, Grace, born in 1896, who taught Jeannette to make the dish.  Grace was Don’s grandmother (his mom’s mom), and they called her Granny Cotten.

As our Sense of Community series “Table Traditions” continues, we head into the kitchen of Jane Ann Johnson, of Ozark, who shares her Texan great-grandmother’s cornbread recipe.

“It's probably a recipe that would give a cardiologist a heart attack. But I'm fortunate enough to be married to a cardiologist who loves it, so I get to make it still,” she said.

She uses bacon drippings in the batter and in the cast iron skillet the cornbread is cooked in.

Join KSMU this week for our Sense of Community series, "Table Traditions," looking at 10 family recipes handed down through the generations.  

Christine Temple, of Springfield, shared her great-grandmother’s recipe for

Risgrynsgröt, a Swedish rice pudding in which the predominant flavor is cinnamon.

“My great-grandmother was born in Sweden and she came to the United States through Ellis Island in 1912 when she was 16 years old,” Temple said.

“My mom was pregnant with me when she passed away, so I never got to meet her,” Temple said.

To cap off our 10-part Sense of Community series, Take It Outside, we’re hitting the trails at Wilson’s Creek National Battlefield, just 20 minutes from Springfield. 

Wilson’s Creek is a mix of natural beauty and history, where these lush hills met with the human horror of war. 

According to the National Park Service, the battlefield has five trails off the tour road, and they range from a quarter of a mile to three-quarters of a mile long.   Many of those trails meet up for longer hikes.

It’s mid-morning at Rutledge-Wilson Farm Park in west Springfield, which connects to the Ozark Greenways trail.  It’s a beautiful area, with rolling hills, fields of crops, a chicken coop and a large pond. However, one thing that makes this park unique is that it has some extra options for people with disabilities in the form of three very special bicycles. They’re available for anyone to use.

In this segment of KSMU’s Sense of Community series “Take It Outside: 10 Unique Spots to Enjoy the Natural Ozarks,” Jess Balisle takes listeners to the top of White Rock Mountain for a weekend of driving dirt roads, swimming and sunset watching.

We've just hit the dirt road on our way to White Rock. I’m so excited to be taking you guys to this very special place that I have grown up going to.

White Rock Mountain is situated in the middle of the Boston Mountains on the west end of the Ozark National Forest in Northwest Arkansas. It’s become my second home over the years.

In this segment of KSMU’s Sense of Community series “Take It Outside,” Jess Balisle takes us to Blanchard Springs Caverns, just north of Mountain View, Arkansas.

Branson is known for its wide variety of shows, attractions and shopping opportunities.  But there’s a place west of town where you can get out in nature and take a break from the hustle and bustle.