My golly, where has the time gone! Prairie Pearl had a busy winter spending the holiday with family. The Craft business slows in the winter time, since the town closes down after the holidays. My items were available all winter at the Ozark Rag Craft Emporium in Branson West, Missouri, and shoppers were still looking for Christmas and Valentine gifts. Now it is time to start restocking the shop making and updating some packaging, trying out new recipes and getting ready for some spring craft shows. I officially retired from work, allowing me to work full time on Prairie Pearl. You can look forward to more posts, new products and new blog updates!

Right now, I am signed up to participate at the Cajun Days festival in Reeds Spring, Missouri in May 18th. I will have the best of Prairie Pearl products as well as some new and limited edition items. If you are in the Branson area on May 18th be sure to check out Cajun Days in Reeds Spring. Reeds Spring Cajun Days is an outdoor festival that features live music, food vendors, and craft booths. Money raised from sponsors and vendor fees is used to fund the Rotary Club of Table Rock Lake's many community enrichment projects. And yes, they DO have shrimp and craw fish! I will need to be sure I have a big stock of my Cajun dip. Just a bit of heat. Come by and take a taste!

Pearl was busy this week getting out the first of her Fall/Winter specials! Mulling spice bags. These little bags are perfect for Mulled (spiced) wine or cider. These have all those welcoming spices like cinnamon, clove, nutmeg and more. You can even just simmer these on the stove top to give your home that seasonal aroma without the chemicals of room spray. These would make wonderful hostess gifts for holiday parties or as a little gift for co-workers. These are now available now in my Etsy store and will be stocked at Ozark Rag on Tuesday.

Speaking about the Etsy store. My production will be closed on October 24th and 25th. Prairie Pearl and her sidekick Jojo are going on a little road trip. Any orders will be processed as soon as we return on the 26th.

What is coming up next? Soup!

Are you ready for fall?

I don't know about you, but here in the Ozarks, the past few days have been damp and cool. Makes you start to think of Fall. When I think of fall, I think of soups and warm casseroles. Prairie Pearl has a couple of different soup ideas that will come out in a few weeks, but this week she is getting ready to stock her rice mixes. First there is her Spanish Rice. Great side dish with your taco and enchilada dinners. There are diced peppers, onions and just a hint of spice. The other mix is a Herbed Rice. The perfect sidekick for pork, chicken or beef. Both have suggestions to make them a complete one dish meal with the addition of your own veggies and meat. Bring home a rotisserie chicken from the deli and whip together with a rice mix... dinner in no time at all. Don't forget, I look for only the best ingredients, meaning no stabilizers, preservatives or MSG. Both Rice mixes will be available in the booth at the Ozark Rag Craft Emporium later this week as well as by order at the PrairiePearlShop on Etsy. As we get closer to the holidays, I will be available at the Craft Emporium live in person with samples. Like and follow the Ozark Rag Craft Emporium on Facebook for the announcements when those dates occur.

Where has August gone?

Prairie Pearl has been busy getting her craft booth at the Ozark Rag Craft Emporium that she is sharing with Stitching 9 to 5 up and running and I have to say, it is pretty darn cute! With a lot of help from my neighbor, Karron, who I have to give kudos for the signage. It is ALmost done. Still need to change the tablecloth out for a "fall cloth". There is still some tweaking to do, but we will do that when it comes time to decorate for Christmas. Speaking of Christmas. Prairie Pearl will do custom gift bags. Just contact me and let me know what mixes you want in the bag, and I will tie it all up pretty with a bow! I have had quite a few requests for Rubs for meats. I  have some ideas and will do some taste testing in the next few weeks and will try to get a couple of choices. If you ever have requests, be sure to ask and maybe I can just come up with some ideas. I still have my online store open at  www.etsy.com/shop/PrairiePearlShop. While I may swap out some mixes at the store to make room for some new choices, I will always have everything available through the Etsy store or by request at Ozark Rag.

I really thought Jojo and I would be getting out an about more, but it just seems like time this summer has flown by. We both are definitely looking forward to some cooler days. She is enrolled in some doggy classes. Now mind you, these were supposed to be hour long classes for 4 weeks... well, she is such the baby, after 30 min, she just lays down as much as to say "ok, I am bored with this, I'm done!". So we are having 30 min classes for 8 weeks. She is catching on to most of the ideal behaviors, but like her mom, she will do anything for treats! If you know anything about Shih Tzus, they can be pretty stubborn! But they are really charming too, so they tend to get their way! The trainer has some amazing dogs and we do get to watch her work them before and after class. You can tell they are in competition.

Mix of the Day:

Chipotle Ranch Dressing! Do you love Ranch Dressing? Do you like a little heat? Then Chipotle Ranch is the choice for you. It is Ranch with a kick. Even though it is tagged as a dressing, you can totally use it as a dip. Wonderful as a topping on baked potatoes too. How about serving it with Chicken wings or fingers at your next football gathering? It is sure to be a hit. What is super about my dips and dressings is that you know what is in them. The ingredients are listed on the backs, but the difference from what you buy in the grocery store, is that you can pronounce every word. Those ingredients in store bought mixes that you can't pronounce are known as preservatives and stabilizers. My mixs have none of those, but will last a year if you keep them in a cool dry cabinet  (away from the stove). 

It's August!

I don't know about where you live, but here in the Ozarks, it is actually milder than July which is totally weird! Still hot, but not as bad. But in the Prairie Pearl work room, Christmas is in the works. Coming up with some new winter products like soup and mulling spices for wine, cider or just giving your home that warm cozy feeling around the holidays. Will also be adding some gift baskets ideas that you can buy as is, or request a custom made one by a simple phone call or email and I will have it for you to pick up at the Ozark Rag. I will also offer those gift baskets in the Prairie Pearl Shop on Etsy. That is just a hint of what is to come.

This week, Stitching 9 to 5 has joined Prairie Pearl at the Ozark Rag Craft Emporium in Branson West, MO with the cutest dolls I have ever seen. They all are slightly different with cute clothes and hair styles and color. Run over to the Ozark Rag Craft Emporium Facebook page, or Prairie Pearl or Stitching 9 to 5 and check out those dolls! There is also an adorable tooth fairy doll with a pocket to hide the tooth in.

One of my neighbors is in the process of developing a brochure! I've seen the first version and it is incredible! Now she is just waiting for me to produce some pictures for her. She is also going to help me decorate the Prairie Pearl/Stitching 9 to 5 craft booth. Together we have come up with some great ideas. I will post pictures once the final version of our little booth is accomplished.

This week's product highlight is... Celery Seed Dressing! Also one of my newer mix's that isn't available on Etsy yet, but will be added soon. This is a light dressing with a touch of sweetness that would be wonderful not only on just a plain salad, but what about a salad of baby spinach and sliced strawberries! It would also be wonderful in a potato salad. Mixed in while the potatoes are still a little bit warm so the flavor really gets into the salad. Mix in the rest of your favorite Potato Salad ingredients. Or, Mix the dry ingredients into Mayonnaise if you prefer a creamy Potato Salad. I haven't played around with this much yet so I am sure there are loads of other ideas for use. What ideas do you come up with when you think of Celery Seed Dressing? 

See you next week!! 

Hello Summer!

I can't believe how fast this summer is going! And what happened to Spring? It seems like one day it was snowing and the next it was 100 and hasn't dropped since.

Prairie Pearl has branched off into a new venue! While earlier in the summer, I took up selling my famous dips and dressings at a local farmers market. I was just starting to really get into that entire scene when the farmers market just wasn't picking up speed and the shop owners decided to call it off. This old gal, wasn't too broken hearted as it was a mighty warm place to be on Saturday mornings! I noticed on a facebook post that the Ozark Rag Craft Emporium had booth spaces available. I know my friend Melanie who lives in Seattle and makes dolls was talking about this exact venue as a possibility. I went and looked to see what they had available. Well, I decided on this small  L shaped booth. It's small, but it would give us an opportunity to see how our wares would peek peoples attention. It is a project in the making and even though I have it stocked with most all of my dips and dressings, The over all look still needs to be tweaked. But the bottom line is I am really excited to be there! This week, as soon as I get stock from Melanie, the Prairie Pearl and Stitching 9 to 5 will be on display at the Ozark Rag Craft Emporium in Branson West. If you are in the Branson area, come check us out (and all the other vendors too). If you are not in the Branson area, everything is also available at the "PrairiePearlShop@etsy.com

So, lets start exploring these delicious offerings. 

My favorite salad dressing is Opa! Greek dressing. Of course, Greece was my favorite country back in the old days when I took time off College to wander around Europe with a friend. The aroma of Greek food was intoxicating. We would stop by street vendors to buy a Gyro for lunch. I can still smell it like it was yesterday. When I developed my Greek Salad dressing, The aroma took me back to a younger time. Not only is this dressing terrific on your basic green salad, but it is also wonderful as a marinade for Chicken, either grilled or baked. It contains all the typical flavors of Greek food; oregano, basil, garlic.. just to name a few. Tomatoes are in season here in the Ozarks. Slice some fresh tomatoes, layer them with fresh cucumbers and drizzle with the Opa Greek Dressing and top with fresh feta cheese. Opa!! Greek Salad!  

Check back on Friday when we explore another delicious Prairie Pearl product! 

seriously? Not since December?

I knew it had been a while since I have posted but my oh my... I had no idea. Where did the time go? Jojo and I have been enjoying the spring like weather. Today is May 5. We had a boring winter which may be why the delay in keeping up the blog. In February, however we did go to Florida to visit with some old friends. Jojo made a new friend, Cuddles, my friends, new Chug.... half Pug and half Chihuahua. They went to the dog park together and Jojo had a good time. Cuddles, not so much. But Cuddles has not been around people and other dogs much. I hear that she is doing well at the park now. Jojo loves to be off leash. My only concern is her behaving well and coming when I call. But, I decided to get her a membership to the local park. We went there today and tried out our "come" skills. Fortunately this time we were the only small dog in the small dog park. I did find she would come running from all the way at the other end if I yelled "COOKIE" and back that up with a couple "cookies" that I had in my pocket. (she pretty much ignored her name and the command "come here") Smart dog. I would come running too if someone held up a chocolate chip cookie! Anyway, Jojo and I enjoyed our trip to Florida. She is a good travel buddy.

What is in store for Prairie Pearl this spring? You will be able to find us at the Notch Area Farmers Market every other Saturday from 8am till noon. Come see both of us! Like and Follow their Face book page!