My Favorite Recipes: Meet Kyle and Whitney Bond

Both Kyle and Whitney Bond grew up in Roseburg, Ore. Meeting in 2008, they have been best friends ever since.

"I can't imagine living my life without him," Whitney said. Having established families and two children together, it was a terrifying decision to pack up and leave everything they knew to move here to Whitman County three years ago.

When Whitney was speaking with a friend, she heard about a job opening at Soncarty Farms and upon hearing this Kyle decided to apply. When he got the job, they packed up and left all the comforts of home and headed to Whitman County.

"If it didn't work out, we could always go back home, but we wanted to give it a try," Whitney said.

Kyle started his job at the pig farms, and Whitney quickly saw an opportunity for a dedicated clothing store in Colfax.

"I saw a need, and I wanted to fill it." As Whitney was learning how to open a store and speaking to owners about renting property, she learned she was pregnant with their third child.

Taking a break from throwing herself into starting a new business, she took this time to research how to deal with vendors, buy wholesale and run a business with all the details. Once Monroe was born, she jumped right in. She located at the former Events on Main site next to Hen House Chicks.

She feels the two businesses have a great connection. Customers can walk from one to the other.

Whitney's store, 'Truly You' carries womens' clothing, including a plus size line.

Between both Kyle and Whitney working full-time and caring for their three children, Adyson is in 6th grade, Kali is in 1st grade, and Monroe is now 16 months old, they travel back to Oregon often to see family and friends as well.

Recipes

The Best Soft Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 egg

8 Tbsp. salted butter

1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/4 cup brown sugar, packed

3/4 cup chocolate chips

1/4 tsp. salt

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 cup white sugar

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Microwave the butter for about 40 seconds to just barley melt it. It shouldn't be hot, but should be almost liquid form.

Beat butter with sugars until creamy. Add the vanilla and the egg; beat on low speed until just incorporated, for 10-15 seconds or so.

Add the flour, baking soda and salt. Mix until crumbles form. Use your hands to press the crumbles together into dough. It should form one large ball that is easy to handle (right at the stage between "wet" dough and "dry" dough.) Add the chocolate chips and incorporate by hand.

Roll the dough into 12 large balls and place on a cookie sheet. Bake for nine to 11 minutes until the cookies look puffy and dry and just barley golden. DO NOT OVER BAKE! Take them out even if they look like they're not done, they will be pale and puffy.

Let them cool on the pan for 30 minutes or so. They will sink down and turn into dense, buttery, soft cookies that are the best in all the land. These will stay soft for many days and are also freezable.

Philly Cheese Steak Sloppy Joes

1 lb. lean ground beef or turkey

1 small yellow onion, diced

1 green pepper

8 oz. mushrooms, chopped

1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce

2 Tbsp. tomato paste

1/2 tsp. garlic powder

1 tsp. steak seasoning

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. pepper

1 cup beef broth

1-1/2 Tbsp. cornstarch

8 oz. provolone cheese slices (stack them and cut into cubes)

6 hamburger buns

Cook beef or turkey half way and add onion, green pepper and mushrooms. Cook stirring occasionally, until meat is almost brown. Stir in the Worcestershire Sauce, tomato paste, garlic powder, steak seasoning, salt and pepper. Cook until the meat is done.

Whisk the cornstarch with the beef broth and pour into the meat mixture. Continue cooking and stirring until thickened. Serve on buns and enjoy.