HerKentucky's 2014 Summer Fun List: Northern Kentucky Edition
Summer is here, y'all, and Kentucky has so much fun to offer! We've found the best ways to have fun in cities and regions across the Commonwealth, and we're thrilled to share them with you! Click here to download our
2014 Summer Fun List: Northern Kentucky Edition
. Print it out, check off the fun events you experience, and have a great summer!
I just love HerKentucky readers! We've posted our Summer Fun Lists throughout the month of June, and so many of y'all have chimed in on Facebook and Instagram about things you love about summer in Kentucky -- especially the
Tangerine Twist from Crisp's in Ashland!
One reader -- my elementary school friend Myra Patton Newman (we were co-editors of the fifth grade newspaper together!) -- even sent in her own list to share the best of Northern Kentucky. There are a few on here, like Rabbit Hash and Elk Creek, that I've always wanted to visit, and several more that are new to me! Thanks so much to Myra for sharing this awesome summer fun list!!
HerKentucky has #HopeforKatherineBelle!
As longtime HerKentucky fans know, Glenda is an amazing photographer and has documented Katherine Belle's journey though an amazing series of photographs. She has asked that as many folks as possible take photos of themselves holding a #HopeforKatherineBelle sign, or create any other photo expressing this message of hope. She, David, and Katherine Belle are finding amazing strength in these images. I hope y'all will post photos to the Hope for Katherine Belle Facebook page, include the hashtag #hopeforkatherinebelle on twitter, instagram, or Facebook, or you can email me at heather@herkentucky.com, and I'll make sure Glenda and KB get them!
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| My "babies" have Hope for Katherine Belle! |
HerKentucky 2014 Summer Fun List: Ashland Edition
Summer is here, y'all, and Kentucky has so much fun to offer! We've found the best ways to have fun in cities and regions across the Commonwealth, and we're thrilled to share them with you! Click here to download our
2014 Summer Fun List: Ashland Edition
. Print it out, check off the fun events you experience, and have a great summer!
Today's Summer Fun List takes you to Ashland, the river town at the very northeastern corner of the Commonwealth. My beau's family lives there, and I've gotten to know it pretty well over the years. Here are some recommendations for enjoying summertime in Ashland!
A hamburger and a frozen treat from
Tangerine Dream from Crisp's
at
Log Cabin in Central Park
Bourbon Ball Eclairs
Move over donuts, It's time to celebrate your fancy French friend the Eclair. This deliciously delicate pastry typically has an oblong shape and can be filled with pastry cream, whipped cream or chiboust cream (pastry cream that is lightened up with stiffly beaten egg whites and is traditionally used in fancy Millefeuilles) and topped with frosting. Ooh la la! So much excitement in one perfect little elegant eclair! Its name means 'flash of lightening' en francais, and like our friend the donut, it has its very own day of celebration.
So in honor of National Eclair Day, today, I decided to whip up a batch of eclairs with a very Kentucky twist!
Bourbon Ball Eclairs
Pastry
- I am not a baker, so I used Paula Deen's recipe for the pastry.
- 1 cup water
- 1 stick of butter
- 1 cup sifted all-purpose flour
- 4 eggs
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
Bring water and butter to a boil and add flour. Stir your mixture constantly until it is smooth and forms a ball when tested in cold water. Remove mixture from heat and let cool and beat in your eggs, one at a time. Pipe or drop* your eclairs onto a greased baking sheet and bake for approximately 30 minutes or until light brown.
*I used a 2 tablespoon cookie scoop to make mine because I wanted them to look like bourbon balls. They also expanded more than I expected so I would use a smaller scoop if you want them to look more petite.
Bourbon Whipped Cream
- 1 cup extra creamy whipped topping
- 1/4 cup Makers Mark Bourbon
- 1/2-1 cup of powdered sugar
Combine bourbon and whipped cream in bowl and add powdered sugar until it stiffens to the consistency of a pastry cream. Apparently, pastry cream does not enjoy when you upset its delicate balance by adding alcohol. I tried a few times to make it work and alas, it did not. I came up with this solution which I like even more! The powdered sugar really makes it taste like the inside of a bourbon ball!
Bourbon Chocolate Ganache
- 1 bag of milk chocolate chips
- 1/2 cup of heavy cream
- 2 tablespoons or more of Makers Mark Bourbon
In a double boiler, combine 1/2 of the bag of chocolate chips with with the heavy cream and stir until melted. Remove double boiler from heat and add bourbon and remaining chocolate chips. Stir until smooth and dunk your eclairs. Top with a pecan half, chill and serve!
HerKentucky 2014 Summer Fun List: Lexington Edition
Summer is here, y'all, and Kentucky has so much fun to offer! We've found the best ways to have fun in cities and regions across the Commonwealth, and we're thrilled to share them with you! Click here to download our
2014 Summer Fun List: Lexington Edition
. Print it out, check off the fun events you experience, and have a great summer!
My cousin Amy and me, just after the 2012 Midsummer Night's Runn
(American Cancer Society Gala)
at Ashland, The Henry Clay Estate.
Classic Film Series at the
Most cities have a farmers' market. Few have one that look like this.
The best hamburger in Kentucky at
{Photo circa my "artsy" Hipstamatic phase. Stella's is awesome, though.}
One more meal at Jonathan's at Gratz Park Inn
before it closes at the end of this month.
HerKentucky 2014 Summer Fun List: Prestonsburg Edition
Summer is here, y'all, and Kentucky has so much fun to offer! We've found the best ways to have fun in cities and regions across the Commonwealth, and we're thrilled to share them with you! Click here to download our
2014 Summer Fun List: Prestonsburg Edition
. Print it out, check off the fun events you experience, and have a great summer!
My hometown is a wild and wonderful place.
Not. Even. Kidding. I once had to stop the car on my way to Thanksgiving dinner to let this guy pass.
Located deep in the Appalachian region of Eastern Kentucky, Prestonsburg, the county seat of Floyd County, is a charming small town that celebrates its mountain roots. The scenery there is simply stunning. I've put together a list of some of my own must-do summer events that I try to squeeze in every time I visit my parents, as well as a few favorites that my family and friends recommend.
A
Show at the
A drive around
A trip to the
East Kentucky Science Center & Planetarium
Fresh Veggies from a Roadside Stand (or a relative's backyard!)
What's on your hometown summer fun list?
HerKentucky 2014 Summer Fun List: Frankfort Edition
Summer is here, y'all, and Kentucky has so much fun to offer! We've found the best ways to have fun in cities and regions across the Commonwealth, and we're thrilled to share them with you! Click here to download our
2014 Summer Fun List: Frankfort Edition
. Print it out, check off the fun events you experience, and have a great summer!
Today, our friend LR Kindel of the blog
is sharing her hometown favorites for the Commonwealth's capital city, proving that there's way more to Frankfort than just politics!
There's history...
Kentucky History Society
Kentucky Military Museum
Old State Capitol
Frankfort Cemetery (Graves of Daniel Boone and Paul Sawyier)
and art...
Buffalo Trace Tours and Tastings
Capital Cellars Wine & Spirits Cafe & Market
Dragon Pub
Downtown Bar
Franklin County Farmers Market
Thanks so much to LR for taking us on this great tour of the Capital City!