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Catholic Schools Week is Jan. 25-31, so we are featuring St. Mary’s School new assistant principals, Kate Besch and Amanda Woodall. This year’s theme is United in Faith and Community.
Amanda Woodall lives with her family on a farm by Sutherland. Her husband Chris does crop farming and also raises cattle.
They have three sons: Everett, 12, Eivin, 11 and August, seven years old.
Besides her position as assistant principal, Amanda is director of Early Childhood and after school programming. She previously taught third grade for nine years at Spencer Sacred Heart School and six years as administrator there. She also worked for the Area Education Agency on school improvement facilities.
“I love being back with kids and being in the school,” Amanda commented.
In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her kids, following their sports and 4-H activities, in addition to gardening flowers and plants.
“I like being outside; we have goats, sheep and our dog,” she mentioned.
Kate previously worked as special ed teacher in Alta and Storm Lake schools. She was assigned to St. Mary’s as AEA special ed consultant.
Besides her position as assistant principal, she is also director of student services and dean of students.
“I love working with the students, supporting the students and staff and seeing the growth of the diverse students,” she remarked.
Her husband is Kevin Besch who teaches PE and coaches at the Storm Lake public school since 1987.
Kate explained that she has three “bonus kids” - K.J. Besch in Alta, Mary Jo Besch Ocegueda who lives in Idaho with her three children and Toni Besch in Des Moines.
Her biological kids are Kylee Shannon in Newell and Kail Shannon currently in Fort Campbell, Ky. where he works in military intelligence. Kate mentioned that she was co-leader of a family support group when she was in Ft. Riley, Kan.
“We are a big cribbage family; we love to play cards,” Kate smiled. “We love spending time with our family and love to travel to see our kids.”
These are several of the Woodall and Besch families favorite recipes.
Amanda Woodall
2c. flour
2 tsp.baking powder
1/2 tsp. Salt
1 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. cinnamon
2 c. sugar
Mix well together.
Add:
1 c. vegetable oil
2 c. pumpkin
4 eggs, beaten
Bake in greased jelly roll pan for 20-25 min @ 350 degrees. Don’t overcook.
Amanda Woodall
1 c. diced bacon
1 c. sliced celery
1 c. chopped onions
Fry and keep out 4 tbsp. of fat.
Bring to boil in bacon fat-
2 tsp. salt
3 tbsp. flour
2/3 c. vinegar
2/3 c. sugar
1/2 tsp. pepper
1⅓ c. water
Pour over eight cups sliced cooked potatoes in a baking dish. Bake 30 minutes at 350 degrees.
1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2 inch cubes or shredded
1 medium onion, chopped
1½ tsp. garlic powder
1 tbsp. vegetable oil
2 cans (15½ oz. each) great northern beans, drained and rinsed
1 can (14½ oz.) chicken broth
2 cans (4 oz. each) chopped green chilies
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. dried oregano
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
1 c. (8 oz.) sour cream
1/2 c. heavy whipping cream
In a large saucepan, cook the chicken, onion and garlic powder in the oil until the chicken is no longer pink. Add the beans, broth, chilies, and seasonings. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer uncovered for 30 minutes. Remove from the heat; stir in sour cream and heavy cream. Serve immediately.
1 lb. ground beef
3/4 lb. ground pork sausage (I like to substitute ground Italian sausage)
3 cans (8 oz. each) tomato sauce
2 cans (6 oz. each) tomato paste
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp. sugar
1 tsp. Italian seasoning
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. black pepper
3 eggs
3 c. cottage cheese (small curd or whipped)
8 oz. of ricotta cheese
1/2 c. grated Parmesan cheese
3 tbsp. minced fresh parsley
9 lasagna noodles, cooked and drained (I use the oven-ready noodles)
6 slices of provolone chees
3 c. shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
In a large skillet, cook the beef and sausage over medium heat until no longer pink; drain. Add the tomato sauce, tomato paste, and seasonings. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 1 hour, stirring occasionally. In a bowl, combine eggs, cottage cheese, ricotta, Parmesan cheese, and parsley. Spread 1 c. of meat sauce in an ungreased 13x9x2 inch baking dish. Layer with three noodles, provolone cheese, 2 c.of cottage cheese mixture, and 1 c. of mozzarella. Start another layer with three noodles, 2 c. of meat sauce, the remaining cottage cheese mixture, and 1 cup of mozzarella. Top with the remaining noodles, meat sauce, and mozzarella. (Dish will be full.)
Cover and bake at 375 degrees for 50 minutes. Uncover; bake 20 minutes longer. Let stand for 15 minutes before cutting.
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