Thirsty Thursday: Bourbon Slush (Sequiota Bike Shop)

Hey--remember those crazy kids who used to own an ice cream shop as a "side business" because they thought it'd be "easy"?  What a hoot!

Oh wait...that was us.

So, if you recall, a few years ago we sold our business to some friends (veteran restauranteurs). I can't recall if we ever did an update, but they have truly transformed that location. It's now the Sequiota Bike Shop--they have a great menu of sandwiches, a full-on outdoor dining area and bar, just a really fun space.  They even do bike rentals. 

Our formerly awkward parking lot is now a lovely covered seating area (perfect for those drizzly-but-still-warm days)...

And for every other day, there's an outdoor bar in the back, plenty of seating, oh, and they even added a fire pit for those slightly cooler days.

The interior of the building was reorganized and the indoor seating was removed to give them some much needed additional space inside for workers, where they crank out some of the tastiest sandwiches in town.  No fryers to mess with, so they serve up sides like chips, housemade soup, and potato salad instead.  It's a really smart use of a small space (about 600 sq feet).

Jamis Roast Beef sandwich.

The Hubs & I like to stop by periodically to have a drink (great local beer selection) and share a sandwich (our personal favorite is the Finnegan's Reuben). 

Soooo good.

It's always a little bittersweet because we have so many stressful memories tied to that business and location, but I'm honestly very happy for our friends.  They've done more with it than we ever could have.

Anyway, enough gushing.  Bring on the booze!

Sweet tea bourbon slush.

So, Bike Shop has a rotating menu of slush cocktails, made with Four Roses Bourbon.  As much as I love my beer, it's hard to not get a slush when I go.

Watermelon mint slush.

Simple, cold, refreshing. And I do not have the recipe, so I cannot replicate it here.  So I guess you're just going to have to go try one for yourself.

Granted, we are in October....in Missouri.  Where it can be 70 one day and 40 the next.  But I still think Bike Shop is a great destination for this time of year.  Because if it's 70, you get a slush. If it's 40, then you grab a chair by the fire and ask for a spiked cocoa,coffee, or chai instead.

They also frequently have live music, so if you don't have a kiddo (or are lucky enough to have one old enough to leave at home, or better yet, be your DD), it's a great place to kick back in the evenings.  It's like your own back yard...but better.

Cheers!

Pizza is Not an Emergency, and Other Personal Finance Lessons I Learned the Hard Way

So, real quick, before we get started:

What this is: 
One human's unique personal life experience with money over the long haul.

What it is not: 
- A list of tips & advice for obvious money saving techniques (aka-"stop going to Starbucks so much!");
- A get rich quick scheme or advertisement for any particular money saving strategy; or
- Humblebrag about a "hashtag-blessed" life.

I entered college in 1998, the only child of two great parents who were blue collar factory workers in rural Missouri.  My folks didn't impart much money-knowledge on me, but they taught me how to be thrifty, have a savings account, balance my checkbook, work hard for the money that I get, and never burn bridges.  And that's about it. I didn't have a finance class in high school (or college), nobody taught me about loans or credit scores, taxes, 401(k), etc. I'm pretty sure I didn't even have a debit card at that point.

Junior prom: young, innocent, and completely unaware of what "compound interest" is.

So when I went off to college, I, like most college students, was inundated by credit card offers.  They showed up in the mail, and there were booths scattered across campus offering free t-shirts in exchange for filling out an application. Stupid Me thought, "hah, they'll never approve me, so yeah, I'll fill out your form and get a free shirt!" 

And then...the credit cards arrived.  Small at first--my first card only had a limit of $500.  And I said, "I'll only use these for emergencies."  And that lasted about 6 months.  Because to an 18 year old, pizza can be an emergency.  By the time I graduated in 2003, I had over $15,000 in credit card debt, a high interest $2,000 "rent-to-own" loan on a crappy laptop, a $4,500 car loan, $1,600 in "Stupid Tax" I'd accumulated by paying bills for roommates that never paid me back (despite taking them to small claims court), a judgment against me for a card I'd defaulted on, a credit score in the 500s...oh, and of course, now $25k in student loans that I needed to start paying on.  

Note: I went to a state school so my tuition was pretty reasonable, and my folks pushed me to apply for scholarships and fill out my FAFSA. My parents told me to "only take what I needed"--so each semester I only took out a subsidized Stafford loan which covered my books & tuition with a few hundred bucks leftover. My student loan debt could have been WAY worse if they hadn't given me that direction.  I worked through college to pay for rent and living expenses (usually 2 part-time minimum wage jobs at a time: errand runner, pizza delivery, retail/cashier, bartender, photographer for the student paper, etc.). Because I was working, I took a smaller course load (~12 credit hours) each spring & fall, and then also took summer classes.   But in retrospect, I wish I would have known more about community colleges. I had a really snobbish opinion about 2-year schools as a young adult, but I wish someone would have told me that they're a great tool for knocking out gen-ed classes at a deeply discounted rate.

After college, a coworker introduced me to Dave Ramsey's radio show (while I was working my second job as a pizza delivery driver, because surprise surprise, entry level jobs, even in your career field once you have a degree, still don't pay that great). I started my Debt Snowball, and threw every extra penny (after rent, utilities, groceries, and a little bit of pocket cash) at my debt. And I made a lot of headway in that year.

But then, I decided to move to Louisiana for grad school in 2004 (more loans & out of state tuition), had a bad breakup with a live-in boyfriend (so now paying all of the bills instead of splitting them), and lost my job and graduate assistantship to Hurricane Katrina in 2005 (buh-bye savings).  Back in the hole I go.  

Eventually I got a new job, graduated, started the cycle again. Lived on a cash budget for a while.  But in 2008, I decided that because I'd gotten a promotion at work and had the word "manager" in my job title that I needed a nicer car.  Got $15,000 in car loan debt with a high interest rate (because of my crappy credit score, then somewhere in the low 600s).  But otherwise, continued to live modestly and pay down the debts.  I can't say I had the best money management habits, though--I dined out for lunch with coworkers most days of the week and did my share to keep coffee shops in bankroll.  I was also horrible about keeping track of how much I had in the bank, and at one point had EIGHT overdrafts ($35/each) in one month.  Probably for purchases that were about $10-15.  Stupid.

In 2009, I finally paid off all of my debts except the car and the student loans. I decided to move back to Missouri for a job that paid less, but allowed me to be closer to my family.  I started dating a really nice guy, who was actually great with his own money, and who inspired me to be more responsible with mine.  He also inspired me to start tithing, which I know seems contradictory to throwing all your money at your debt, but I decided to go by faith....and got a promotion/raise at work not long after, so I 100% believe that's a God-thing.

At the 2011 World Series, Game One. Go Cards!

Then the nice guy proposes (in case you haven't figured out, this is now "The Hubs"), and we decide--we will pay for our wedding and honeymoon with cash, no credit card debt. Which we did.  And I also managed to pay off the car that year (2011, so 4 years after purchase).  Then two become one, and I moved into the modest 3BR/2BA house he had bought in 2004.  So now we share a joint bank account, his mortgage, and my student loans.  We made a budget (which included some monthly allowance for personal spending), and then we started throwing all of our extra money at the student loans and mortgage.  We still liked to dine out a couple times a week, and hang out with friends every Wednesday to play trivia at a local pub, go to the movies, and travel a bit, but otherwise, we lived pretty cheap. 

In 2012, a horrible tragedy... my aunt was killed in a car accident.  My family was devastated and completely caught off-guard.  My cousin & I decided to step up and become the executors of her estate, because our aunt didn't have a will and our parents were grieving and shouldn't have to think about money and all of the stressful little things that come with a horrible event like that. Unbeknownst to us, this Aunt had a life insurance policy...listing me & my cousin as beneficiaries.  As her executors, we used the insurance money to pay for legal fees, funeral expenses, and her outstanding personal debts, and after everything was said and done, had some left over.  I used part of my share to pay off student loans, we used another portion to pay down our house, and then the rest we put into savings until we could think of something to do that would honor her memory.  While I would rather have my aunt back than even a million dollars in the bank, I'm including this bit because that "inheritance" played a big role in our finances. 

Me & my cousin with our Aunt at her wedding in 1995. We miss you so much.

Later that same year, the owner of my company passed away in a plane crash...2012 was a really rough year. So maybe the Mayans were a little right.  But these things inspired us to make sure we had a will in place, because life is short and you really never know what could happen.  On the flip side of that--we paid off our house AND my student loans by the end of the year. But it was very bittersweet.

In early 2013, we had some savings amassed from being debt-free, so we decided to invest--in ourselves--and buy a business. We bought a small ice cream shop that was sold to us as a "great seasonal absentee-owner opportunity for side income" (this is HILARIOUS now).  We committed to a 2 year lease, paid for the business with our savings, and never had any debt on it.  Running that business was the most stressful time of my life (we were both still working our regular full time jobs).  It definitely wasn't a cash cow (and the "side income" didn't really off-set all the man-hours we put into it), but we learned A LOT, and we both have a much greater respect for the small business owners of the world.  After the 2 year lease was up, we sold the business to friends who are veteran restaurateurs in this area, and they've transformed that location into a hugely successful restaurant...which is a little bittersweet, but I'm glad for them.  The money from the sale of the business went into the stock market, retirement savings, and savings for fertility treatments, with the remainder to eventually go into a college savings plan for our (hopeful) future kid.

In late 2015, after 2 years of trying, we had our son--I was 35.  Since he was VERY much planned, I'd been working on a "baby budget" for years. I knew how much day care would cost, and what the best price point for diapers was, and had short-term disability coverage to help with lost pay during maternity leave.  We were incredibly blessed with hand-me- downs from friends and family, so his first year of life cost us very little (other than sleep, our sanity, and my ability to not pee when I sneeze.)

Now...here we are.  In our late 30s, "old but experienced" parents, but incredibly blessed.  I have a 6 year old car, purchased with cash, that runs well (despite having over 180k miles and the imprint of a deer on the passenger side).  We moved into a bigger house in November of last year, and between savings and a 401(k) loan (that we paid off once the old house sold) were able to buy the new house without a mortgage.  We have good paying jobs (for this area), but it took over a decade of work experience each to get to that point.  Lil' Man's day care is our biggest monthly expense (day care is stupid-expensive).  Since we have no debt, The Hubs & I max out our retirement contributions each year, contribute to a college savings account for the Kiddo, and I've recently started maxxing out my Health Savings Account (HSA) as well, which we can use down the road...because we'll almost be senior citizens when our kid graduates from high school, so we'll likely be falling apart and in need of new bionic 3D-printed body parts.  We also still tithe and donate, because we are supernaturally blessed and believe we should give back generously.  That all means that we still live very modestly--living on about 20% of our gross income for our 3 person family.

I don't dare take credit for this.  I KNOW I've been lucky. I believe my life has been blessed in supernatural ways. I hate that part of the reason we became debt-free when we did is because I lost someone I loved.  Yes, I've worked hard, but that's only a small part of this equation.  I married someone who was good with money.  We had a lot more to throw at our debt because we waited so long to have children. I've always lived in relatively "cheap" areas of the country (except the year in New Orleans, but it WAS considerably cheaper before Katrina than it is now). And there's the whole inherent "white privilege" thing. My situation is very unique.  And I know it can all change in a matter of seconds in the future.  But I'm no less grateful for all of it, the entire experience.

And honestly, I'm really proud. To know where I was 15 years ago, I honestly thought I would just always be broke. That broke-ness would just be my lot in life, because that's all I saw around me--everyone was broke and in debt.  Debt was normal.  Which sort of made it seem okay...sad, but okay.  Now, I can see how hard I worked, and that it didn't happen overnight.  It sort of snuck up on me.  And that's pretty amazing.  

The Grilled Club (An Inside Scoop recipe)

This was probably the most popular sandwich we had on our menu--which is understandable since it was super-tasty. I still make them at home on occasion.  We initially introduced it as a "Special of the Month" early in Year Two, and it sold so well that we made it a permanent addition.

This is easiest to make if you have a George Foreman grill, panini press, or similar.  If you don't, you can still make it in a skillet or on a flat top like a traditional grilled cheese, but with all the fillings it can be tough to flip.  It will also cook faster in a grill/press, which is nice if you're in a rush or have several to make.

INGREDIENTS: (per sandwich)

• 2 slices good bread (we like Orowheat 12-Grain, but anything more substantial than typical thin sandwich bread will work)
• 1 Tbsp Herb Mayo
• 2 slices provolone cheese
• 4 slices Black Forest ham
• 2-3 slices tomato
• small handful fresh baby spinach
• 2 small slices bacon, or crumbled bacon 

DIRECTIONS:

Heat up your grill/press/skillet/flat top; then spread half the herb mayo on the OUTSIDE of the first piece of bread.  Yes, you read that right.  You're using it to "butter" your bread.  Just trust me. (Sciency bit--the smoke point of mayo is higher than butter, so it's less likely to burn the bread before the guts of the sandwich get melty & hot.  And the oil & egg in mayo make for crispier, more evenly grilled bread.  And the fact that we're using the herb mayo gives a HUGE wallop of flavor.)

Lay that piece down, then begin assembly: 1 piece of cheese, ham, spinach, tomato, bacon, other piece of cheese, and then the last piece of bread, with the rest of the herb mayo facing OUT.

Grill until golden and the cheese is melty.  Serve warm with chips.

NutriFacts:

Calories		423.7
Total Fat		17.5 g
	Saturated Fat	7.5 g
	Polyunsaturated Fat	1.0 g
	Monounsaturated Fat	2.0 g
Cholesterol		70.0 mg
Sodium		1,230.9 mg
Potassium		41.9 mg
Total Carbohydrate		38.3 g
	Dietary Fiber	6.2 g
	Sugars	7.0 g
Protein		28.2 g

Herb Mayo & the BLT Dog (An Inside Scoop recipe)

Of all the recipes we used at The Scoop, this one is probably my favorite—and the one I still make on the regular.  We used it on several of our sandwiches and always got rave reviews.  I kept the recipe under wraps while we were open, but now I’m happy to share it!

In addition to the mayo recipe, I’m sharing one of the things we used it on—our BLT Dog. (I’ll share more of the herb mayo-infused recipes later on.)

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 cup mayo (NOT Miracle Whip—you can make this from scratch if you prefer)
• 1 Tbsp dried parsley
• 1/2 Tbsp garlic powder
• 1 Tbsp Italian seasoning
• 1/4 tsp cracked black pepper
• 1/2 Tbsp dried chives

DIRECTIONS:

Combine well in a medium bowl so that the herbs are fully integrated throughout the mayo.  Transfer into a sterilized glass jar or a plastic squeeze bottle.  The flavor is better after at least a day in the fridge.

 

For the BLT Dog, you’ll want:

A) A Nathan’s Famous all beef frank, cooked using your preferred method (I like them grilled the best, but we steamed our dogs at The Scoop)

B) hot dog bun

C) Shredded lettuce

D) Diced tomatoes

E) Crumbled bacon

F) and a drizzle of the herb mayo

 

I know, I know…the idea of mayo on a hot dog kinda weirded me out too at first.  But this was probably my favorite of all the hot dogs we served up.  GOOOOOD STUFF.

Chocolate Raspberry Smoothie (From The Inside Scoop)

So... it occurred to me.  Granted...occurred very slllloooowwwllllyyy (because I'm a little short on both sleep and coffee at the moment), but now that our precious baby The Inside Scoop is closed... I have a crap-load of recipes from our restaurant that I could share with the world.  We've shared a few previously, but this seems like a good venue to share them with (plus I already have pretty promo shots that I took of them for our menus and social media, so DOUBLE easy!)

If you're new to reading this blog--a few years ago my husband & I decided to buy a little seasonal ice cream shop in our city, to run as a "side business" in addition to our full time jobs.  We naively had no idea how much time, effort, and work would be needed to undertake such a task, and the first season was full of learning experiences, tears, and eating our emotions.  But after that we finally got a handle on things.  It still ended up being too much for us as a "side business" and since we couldn't give it the attention it really needed in order to thrive without one of us quitting our jobs, we decided to sell it in October 2014.  It was a wonderful experience and we learned a lot those years (examples include "Breaking into the breakfast market is next to impossible with an ice cream cone on your sign").  

We primarily served ice cream & shakes, but also made custom smoothies, a variety of sandwiches, and some delicious Nathan's Famous hot dogs with a diverse array of toppings.

This smoothie was probably one of my favorites...which is surprising, since I usually hate anything raspberry.  This was one of the last Specials of the Month that we ran (September 2014, I believe).  In the restaurant biz, you run specials on whatever you have too much of or need to get rid of, and we had a surplus of raspberries at the time.  And of course, customer service is all about what the CUSTOMER likes, not what I like, and I know there are some weirdos people out there who think raspberries are delightful.  So, we concocted this.  And...in this case, those weirdos were right.

This smoothie can either be a great breakfast (about 280 calories, 17g of protein, 9g of fiber) or a delicious low-guilt dessert replacement.  If the calories feel like too much for a snack, split it in half & save 8oz or share with a friend!

INGREDIENTS: (Makes 1 16-oz smoothie)
1 cup frozen raspberries
4 oz vanilla greek yogurt
4 oz skim milk (soy or almond milk also work well)
2 Tbsp hot cocoa mix (we used milk chocolate, but I think dark chocolate mix would also go great in this)

DIRECTIONS:
Combine all ingredients in blender--mix on High or Ice Crush until well combined and fruit is thoroughly integrated.

NUTRIFACTS:

Calories		276.5
Total Fat		3.1 g
	Saturated Fat	2.1 g
	Polyunsaturated Fat	0.0 g
	Monounsaturated Fat	0.1 g
Cholesterol		2.5 mg
Sodium		271.5 mg
Potassium		401.0 mg
Total Carbohydrate		47.1 g
	Dietary Fiber	9.0 g
	Sugars	32.7 g
Protein		17.2 g

BBQ Nachos!

Hi Friends!  Taking a quick break from the chaotic world of business ownership.  Seriously…it’s a bit ridonkulous.  Between the operating licenses and re-programming the cash register and doing price comparisons with other local businesses and redesigning the wall menu (and take-away menu) and logo/sign design and writing an employee handbook… it’s nuts.  I am utterly exhausted.

But the NICE thing about owning a food establishment—eating is now “market research”.  So when the Hubs’ sister recommended this pulled pork from Sam’s, we decided to buy some and taste test it out.  On the fancy-schmancy rolls that our prospective food vendor gave us as samples, no less.

It’s actually pretty tasty—especially when you add some extra Sweet Baby Ray’s to it.  And a couple pickle slices.  YUM.

However…when your household consists of only two people…do you have any idea how long it takes to go through 64 oz of BBQ pork?  Yeah.  Like, two weeks.  We’ve been eating BBQ pork for TWO WEEKS.

I’d had my fill of BBQ sandwiches, but you can’t just let it go to waste.  So, I did what I do best… KITCHEN IMPROV!

 

Ingredients: (serves two)

two handfuls of tortilla chips (one handful per person)

8 oz pulled pork (with 2 tbsp of extra BBQ sauce mixed in)

1 handful fresh cilantro, chopped

1/4-1/2 fresh tomato, diced

1/2 cup shredded 2% fiesta-blend cheese

2 tbsp bacon crumbles (optional—this is just another thing we bought as “market research” for the shop to go with one of the other sandwiches we’re testing out.)

A smattering of pickled jalapeno slices

 

Directions:

Heat the BBQ pork in the microwave for about 1:30 minutes.  Meanwhile, chop your cilantro & tomatoes, and cover your plate with the tortilla chips.  I like to spread them out so that you don’t end up with “naked chips” toward the end.

Use a fork to drop your heated BBQ evenly across the chips, and then immediately cover with cheese.  Heat the plate for an additional 20-25 seconds if you like to get the cheese really melty.

Then scatter your cilantro, tomatoes, bacon and jalapenos across the top. 

And voila!  A delicious, fun, quick & easy meal.  And quick & easy is DEFINITELY necessary when you’re also filling out credit applications for food service vendors with one hand while you stuff your face with the other.  And it’s a great way to get some fresh greens and veggies into your system…especially when you’ve been eating pre-packaged pulled pork for two weeks. :)

(As a note—we’re not 100% sure if we’re going to be offering this pulled pork at the Shoppe, as the pieces of meat in it were kind of small and overly shredded, making the texture almost mushy, even though the flavor is delicious.  The texture was actually perfect for these nachos, though.  So we may just step it up and get some pre-smoked pork butt & shred & sauce it ourselves.  We were trying to keep it simple, but I don’t necessarily want to sacrifice quality for convenience.)

And as always, I’ll throw it out there, if you’re interested in following the progress of our ice cream shoppe, you can follow us on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter!  (I update Facebook most—I’m still getting the hang of the whole “tweeting/instagrammy” thing.)