I saw this comment on Rechelle’s site the other day when she posted the video of Ladd on the news talking about the mustangs. I wanted to address it here.
Heather:
Lets do some math and then consider the alternative.
$1.30 per day per horse = approximately $475 per horse per year.
In the winter, a horse needs anywhere from 25-30 lbs of hay per day. The cost of hay is anywhere from $.05 – $.075 per pound = up to $2.25 worth of hay consumed by each horse in a day. For arguments sake, we’ll use the low end of $1.25 worth of hay per day.
A safe estimate for the average growing season in NE Oklahoma is 200 days per year, requiring them to provide enough supplemental hay for the horses for 165 days. That equals $206 per horse per year on the low end, and $370 per horse per year on the high end.
A years worth of salt and minerals for an average size horse costs approximately $75.
That is $281 per year to $445 per year per horse in raw costs incurred by the raches that utilize this program. Or an average of $363. $475 less $363 = $112 per horse per year difference.
$112 per horse x 2200 horse = $246,000. Add on top of that the cost of gasoline to drive out to these pastures to feed them, the cost of ranch hand’s salarys, etc, and $100,000 per year is not an unreasonable estimate.
An alternative to this is to euthanize and dispose of each of these animals from BLM land. Do you know what those costs are?
I’m all for having a little fun, but your mockery in this instance seems out of line when you look at logistics.
And Ladd said the following:
“There’s not many things you can do in agriculture to change up your cash flow so this was a good program for that,” said Ladd Drummond, a rancher in northeastern Oklahoma.
Drummond has 2,200 horses on his land. The government pays him $1.30 per horse, per day. That’s $1.04 million a year. Drummond said less than 10 percent is profit, or close to $100,000. He has to dedicate seven acres to each horse. He gives them supplemental feedings in the winter and puts out salt and mineral in the summer.
“You have a lot of expenses that go into it, but, there’s definitely a little profit built in too, it’s hard to do anything without making a little profit,” said Drummond.
$1.30 per day per horse = $475 per horse per year – AGREED
After that is where we part ways…… Yes, in the winter a horse needs about 30 lbs of hay/day but the cost of hay AT RETAIL in Drummond ranch area is $35-$50 per 1,600 round bale. Go ahead, call around to farmers down in Osage county, I did. Let’s say $50/bale, I’m feeling generous, so that comes to $.03 a pound RETAIL. But they grow their own hay and that cuts the hay bill down by half, again according to the ranchers I spoke with, so that’s ……oh really now, let’s just round up because there might be a little waste in the bale, so let’s go with $.02 a pound of hay.
I’m not sure how many mustangs you’ve observed eating grass in a pasture, Heather, but they don’t just eat it while it’s growing hon. Wild horses will eat dried up fall hay so long as they can get to it through the snow. Those horses are only needing bales in field about 4 months of the year, 16 weeks or 112 days.
So let’s refigure. $.02/per x 25 lbs/horse/day = $.50 x 112 days = $56.
I’m not sure where you got $75 a year for salt because a 50 lb block will last a year or more for 1 horse and they’re $5 retail – Ladd’s buying hundreds so trust me, he aint paying retail. But what the hell, let’s go with $50 for salt, minerals, and other shit that Ladd forgot about.
So that’s hay $56 + $50 for other shit = $106. Oh my, that’s quite a different figure. Even figuring $150 per horse to include fencing, gas and all that crap, he’s STILL easily earning $325 per horse per year in profit and that’s $715,000. FROM YOU AND ME, mind you, the taxpayers. Let’s not forget that Ladd ADMITED that the horses is where he makes his real money — not from cattle, crops, or even millions in other subsidies, FROM THE HORSES.
And don’t even get me started on the MILLIONS they earn in subsidies, you know, because they’re struggling and all and really NEED that money.
What a worthless piece of lying shit he is.
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I wasn’t buying that at all when he claimed he was only seeing $100,000 when all was said and done. Didn’t sound like good business to me. And then to say that’s where they mainly make their income?? What a joke! I’m so glad Rechelle (and you) took the time to enlighten us more on this whole BLM thing. Once again, when I first saw the photos on her site, all I thought was “oh, awesome, she’s got wild horses near her, too.”
This is a prime example of what has happened to the farm subsidy programs that a) allow what few small farmers are left in this country to survive and b) price support, by your tax dollars, the cost of our food.
We farm 160 acres in Iowa. I work full time to support this rapidly disappearing lifestyle. Our subsidies are based on the acres we farm and the production of corn and beans we get. Oh, and the prices on the commodity markets. Our crop was good last year, prices are up, income was decent. No subsidy for us this year – and frankly, none is really needed.
The BIG farmers, in effect, corporate farms whether or not their owned by a family corporate or Ted Turner or the Drummonds, always find a way to get their share.
The wild mustangs need to be euthanized. Period. There is zero reason to use my tax dollars to support them on private land. Because of a recent ban on the selling/slaughter of horses, they are being abandoned at an alarming rate. My husband was at a large livestock sale last fall and after the sale was over, there were six horses tied up and abandoned in the parking lot.
But we can’t fund education the way we need to. Or feed our hungry. Or house our poor. Hell, they eat horses in other countries. They’re livestock. Period.
End of rant.
And it pays for several $250 never-worn-flowy tops!
My question is, are they really “wild” mustangs once we start giving them supplementary hay and minerals and salt, and help them find water in the winter? Don’t truly “wild” animals fend for themselves?
When I was a child and visiting France, I ate horse meat without knowing it (until I thought to ask what exactly that tasty roast was that was showing up on the table twice a week). It didn’t taste horrible, actually very good, but of course my American programming kicked in and I could only think, “I ate Black Beauty.” We have very interesting lines drawn between animals we eat and animals we romanticize.
Hey, Jean! I live in East Central Illinois, and I am more than happy to see my tax dollars going to the local ‘small’ farmers rather than to the factory farms. They are increasingly rare. ADM is headquartered in Decatur, not far from here. I know people who have farms your size and even up to 800 acres who are hurting from the policies, but it really is the lifeblood of small communities like yours and mine all over the states. It does make me so mad. Someday, somehow, it will be regretted that we let all that go.
I wish the best of luck to you and people like you! That is why I always try to purchase (vegetables, meat, whatever) locally when it is available to me. we ALL SHOULD!!
We were talking on Rechelle’s site about how phony it all is on PW’s site. Also the likely hood that it is all written by someone else and posted when they need it to be. Well today she is having a give-away and said “today because it’s Wednesday”. REALLY? No one mentioned that I missed a day. Someone, oops, posted on the wrong day…
I am sure that her sheep will laugh about it and say it is because she is excited about travelling and blah blah blah. But we know it is a screw up by the conglomerate that is really PW.
I’m a little surprised that she’d give away an Anthropologie gift certificate considering all the sh*t that went down with Quilt-Gate. Why not for your favorite shop on Etsy or Artfire? And why all the secrecy over having a staff of people to help her?
Posted by Ree Drummond on PW site, TUESDAY, February 8, 2011:
“Today, because it’s Wednesday, because I’m on a girl’s trip with my daughters, my mother-in-law, my sister-in-law, and my niece—Oh! And because I love ya—I’m giving away three (3) $250 gift cards to Anthropologie. There, the winners will get to browse the gorgeous tops, beautiful blouses, funky shoes, and feminine purses…”
Maybe she’ll blame it on the whopping 2-hour time difference between Oklahoma and California. Note she conveniently fails to mention she’s in California to promote her latest contribution to the annals of classic American literature.
Yeah baby, this “girl’s trip” will probably get written off as a PW business expense for 2011 tax purposes. In fact, I believe PW was pouring Kool-Aid in L.A. last night. Today, the ranch guru’s in San Francisco so her legions of brainwashed can pay homage.
No one can make money off horses WITHOUT getting paid! Why else would you do it? And I would think that Wild Mustangs are the easiest and cheapest to maintain, say vs. Quarter horses.
Oh, and I agree Jean. You can’t sell them, and you can’t eat them. Now what?
Those two are such money grubbing phonies. You know where all their money comes from? Other people. People like you and me.
I would like to unofficially audition as the official Ree Recipe Critiquer. I am an active cook and frequent entrant (and sometime-winner) in recipe contests. I spend hours and hours scouring the internet and cookbooks for inspiration to make my own UNIQUE recipes. I am so urked that Ree is making millions off publishing the recipes of others, and substandard ones at that. Recipes are copyrighted material, and if you are going to use them on on the internet, you have to at least say where you got it.
I will find her out, and call out her bullshit. But, you see, I don’t have a blog. Any official food writing would exclude me from entering contests. I need a forum to expose her and her nasty, overly-buttered crocks of shit.
Now, onto my take on the Pasta ai Quattro Formagi (not an original recipe). At first glance, you may be thinking this would be a great additional to Valentine’s dinner. Don’t. Here’s why Ree’s recipe sucks:
1. The liquid to cheese ratio is all wrong. 30 seconds after that pasta hits the plate, it is going to cool off. Leaving a sticky, gloopy, dense pile of shit on your plate. In her picture, it already looks like it is at the point where you could lift up the whole pile with one fork. Delicious.
2. What a waste of goat cheese. I love goat cheese, and you never see it paired with other cheeses. That’s because it’s light and delicate. If you throw it into this dish with 3 other cheeses, you will never know it’s there, and you will have wasted your $4.99. If you really want to keep it “4-cheeses” throw in some cream cheese and you will never know the difference.
3. Parmesan AND Romano? Guess what, they are almost the same thing, if you do a taste-test, you will never be able to tell the difference of the two. Save money and buy only Parmesan.
4. You will never want to eat the leftovers of this. Trust me. The same fate befalls Fettuccini Alfredo leftovers. You re-heat them, the liquids and solids separate and you will have dry, stiff pasta sitting atop a plate of watery butter.
If you really want to make this, or something like it, double the milk/cream amount. Let it simmer longer to thicken, and leave out the goat cheese.
Be careful what you wish for my dear. You have mail.
I think common sense (which her readers seem to lack) would show that her recipes are not only copies but bad ones at that. I could not believe that cheese one from yesterday that you talk about. Ick.
I would love to read your reviews of her recipes! One that comes to mind that she posted around Christmas was for french onion soup stuffed mushrooms. She has cream cheese, and sausage included in the ingredients. WTF?? I can’t recall any french onion soup recipe that included either of these things! haha! I have my own recipe for this, much less complicated, less fattening and probably better tasting!
Hmmm, I did a little checking on this. She has 2 stuffed mushroom recipes on her site. A couple years ago she did a very standard recipe- with the italian sausage. And, last year around Thanksgiving she did a VERY popular French Onion Soup Stuffed Mushrooms. Neither recipe is even close to original. Lipton used to offer a recipe using their French Onion Soup mix in a stuffed mushroom. That is just the kind of appetizer that was wayyy popular circa 1987 or so. Ree’s recipe doesn’t call for the soup mix, she makes that herself. But, overall the recipe is FAR from creative. Many a housewife made a french onion soup mix stuffed mushroom in the late 80′s.
Probably got the recipe from that book of recipes that she claims to have absconded from her mom. That’s where she says she got the recipe for the town crackers wrapped in bacon. Some recipes are timeless, others are trendy, temporary fads. Is she sub-consciously trying to re-live the late ’80s? Ok, I’m not going to psychoanalyze, I need to get to bed!
Parm and Romano are NOT the same, they do not taste the same – one is cows milk cheese, one is sheep’s milk cheese…just sayin.
Is it wrong that this site keeps a smile on my face the entire time I’m here? I guess I’m just so angry that I let that woman deceive me, that I’m glad to see the truth in black and white. Especially since at the height of my disenchantment I spent money on her crappy “look at me” cookbook.
Also, Karen brings up a good point: At what point do the mustangs stop being “wild” when they are fed, watered, and in fenced in land?
Yea, and no way would I take on a job that pays millions, of which I only profit $100,000. Give me a break!
Don’t beat yourself up, Li. I did the same thing, but I actually ordered TWO of her cookbooks months in advance on Amazon. Wow, what a disappointment when it came. I got the other one for my daughter, who is on her own and in her own apt. now. She didn’t care for it and didn’t want it, so I pawned it off on my nephew and his new wife.
Li, not only did I buy the cookbook, but the price of the book included two tickets to see her at a book signing. The venue was a Unitarian church, and the main chapel was filled to capacity, around 2500 or so. MM was with her, as were their two boys. The kids are cute without the photoshop that she subjects them, too; they weren’t nearly as pale and sparkly eyed as I thought they would be.
My bff and I sat through her speech, and the owner of the bookshop that sponsored her visit lobbed GREEd some softball questions, which were easily answered by some of her stock phrases. We were treated to her ‘Napoleon Dynamite’ impersonation, as well as the Ethel Merman bit. Predictable!
As for the book- I think I’ve looked through it once or twice since I bought it. A good majority of the recipes are ones that she’s already had on her site, which I guess is handy if you didn’t print them off, or don’t feel like looking them up. A bajillion photos of every. single. step. of the recipes, and the photos are small because of the format. I about came unglued when I got to the fried egg recipe, because really? Mixed in with plenty of photos of that dog, the punks, who are photoshopped in to stupification and pictures of calf nuts and MMs flat butt. Doesn’t that sound like a book you want to cook from? Me neither!
I hear she’s doing another cookbook and I wonder if it will be all recipes she lifted from her Tasty Kitchen site? All those folks sending in their recipes, just waiting for Ree to pick them!
“I hear she’s doing another cookbook and I wonder if it will be all recipes she lifted from her Tasty Kitchen site? All those folks sending in their recipes, just waiting for Ree to pick them!”
There was actually a major fuss about that some time ago. When she opened Tasty Kitchen she included a clausule saying that all photos and recipes uploaded to Tasty Kitchen would then belong to her, to do with as she pleases. Basically you would hand over the copyright of whatever it was you placed on TK. Some girl on Twitter read the clausule, got pissed and made a comment about that and it became quite a fuss. Same as the thing with the girl whose food photo they lifted off of TK and aired during the infamous throwdown, for which they never asked permission.
I think that’s where the clausule became effective, even though PW pretended to know nothing about it. People are oblivious.
That is the very reason why I decided not to post any recipes on her site. I don’t want them to show up in her next cookbook and have her take credit for them.
I’m already appalled with her lifting random photos off of TK, not asking permission to republish them and then piling them up in one posting for Pioneer Woman making money off of it when she has nothing to post herself. Kinda like her photography section, where she lets her readers edit her photos, followed by 4 different postings filled with reader edits. Ka-ching. She’s so sneaky when it comes to making money. Her readers are flattered she’s posting their photos completely not realizing the amount of money she makes off of them.
An acquaintance of mine went to one of her book signings and said the boys were out of control, running around, under the table, etc., etc. I guess PW acted like it was the cutest thing in the world. MM was there and tried to stop them without much success. I would have dragged them out of there, had they been mine.
I agree, the cookbook is terrible. Too many small photos, too many simplistic recipes, and all from the site. Another cookbook? Oy! I’ll bet if you read the fine print on her cooking site, it probably says she has the right to redistribute them as she wants. I got some good recipes from people from that site but also got tired of her featuring the same cooks on the front. And is it just me, or are they all “pretty people?” I notice that her friends she all hangs around with are all “beautiful people.” No chubbies and rarely anyone even remotely on the homely side. Have to keep her site looking perfect all the time.
BA, I wonder if that was the same book signing I went to? The boys were running wild and Ree was kind of like ‘boys, whatcha gonna do?’ I have a boy, and if he acted like that in public, he would be taken out of there, pronto. MM acted like it was a major chore for him to be there. He and the boys brought in bags of PW t-shirts that she had made for the book tour. Mine’s too small, maybe I’ll make it in to a pillow! But, when he was bringing in the bags of shirts, the women in the audience went NUTS! It was like a Chippendales’ show there for a bit. Lots of hoots, hollers, whistles and catcalls. MM didn’t acknowledge it; to me it looked like he was doing a slow angry simmer. I don’t blame him. If I constantly wrote about my husband’s butt and forearms and chaps or whatever, and that happened to him in public, he would be mortified. But I don’t objectify my hubby like that.
I wonder what the reaction would be if a man would write about his wife’s ass and tits and stockings and how she would make his crothch tingle and tighten and hormones and ejacualations and….
Really, the poor guy would have to run for his life. I don’t think that is “cuter” just because a women writes about her husband like that.
Kelley, I think it was the same woman I know that said she made some items (knitted hats with a little edge to them that she sells on etsy – really cute) and gave them to PW. Enough for all 4 kids, plus the niece and nephew. Got nothing back. She was hoping she’d get a little mention on her site because the lucky few have had their sales go through the roof. No mention and never got a thank you. Instead of giving away all this overseas junk, why doesn’t she promote more of the little artists and craftspeople just trying to make a few bucks?
There are so many wonderful authentic food blogs out there . It really makes me shake my head that so many people gravitate to such a phoney and mediorce one. I too would love to see reviews here of her recipes.
I picture Ree just off the plane (and by the way all the food for the recipes she posted- no way did she rush into town (isn’t the nearest store over and hour away?) buy groceries, test the recipes that she made up herself (haha), blog, pack for the next round of her tour , do the laundry and oh yeah help feed the cattle… searching the internet for a recipe, changing an ingredient or measurement and throwing it up on the blog.
I love cooking blogs where I know the blogger has spent hours testing and tweeking and truly putting their hert into a recipe.
I will never get the appeal of PW and I will never understand why her readers don’t out their thinking caps on.
Lots of points made that have me thinking. Like…
Are the girls being schooled while in Cali on the “girls getaway”? Who is teaching the boys left behind?
From some of the responses gREEd (LOVE that! Kudos to whomever created it!) has mentioned in conversations with Ladd, he doesn’t seem to be a man of many words, or necessarily sweet words.
How many hard working people have blindly listed their recipes on Tasty Kitchen, only to have them possibly printed in gREEd’s next cookbook (sans compensation, no doubt)? Will they ever realize how rich she will get from THEIR recipes?
And, seriously, Napoleon Dynamite and Ethel Merman impersonations? What. a. show.
More like a trainwreck, really. I’ve wondered who looks after the school work for the kids that stay at the ranch, too. My husband and I homeschool our son and the schedule is fairly flexible, but say, if he’s sick, my son has a lot of catching up to do if he misses more than one day.
Another thing about Tasty Kitchen- when she first launched it, I created a profile and posted a couple of recipes. They weren’t originals, just some of my family’s favorites. But now that I want to, I can’t delete my profile! At least I can’t find a way to. Maybe it’s like joining a gang, ‘blood in, blood out’.
I posted a few recipes there. One was even featured…the cinnamon bun pancakes. Wonder if I can delete my profile…
WOW. Really sad, and intense, and embarrassing that you spend time on a blog making fun of someone. Maybe pick up a hobby instead? Spending so much time and creating a whole blog around someone and why they “suck” is quite pathetic. Rechelle (and her blog) is pathetic as well. I would call her out too if she came to my home with LICE. Disgusting. Have some common courtesy and don’t go spend the weekend at someone’s home if you have HEAD LICE…that is DISGUSTING.
Well, Speechless (which I think I should point out is a misnomer, because you clearly seem to enjoy spouting your opinion), what makes you think any of us don’t have hobbies? You admiration of gREEd must be off the charts if you think that this is ALL that anyone does. I don’t know who runs this blog, but I would be willing to bet that PWSux is not paying their bills. I bet they have a real job, and I bet a lot of the other posters do here, too. There are very few ‘career bloggers such as gREEd, herself. Most of us are hard working folks and when we see hypocrisy, we’re going to point it out. I don’t know gREEd personally, but the actions of her and her husband say a lot. If you enjoy that sort of thing, by all means, go enjoy it! I don’t get you people who feel the need to ‘Pearl Harbor’ someone’s blog to tell them how horrible you think they are, and they need a hobby, and their jealous, blah, blah, blah. If all of this makes you feel superior in some way, you might consider adjusting your meds or perhaps smoking a joint. Because you need to chill.
As for Rechelle and the head lice story, as I recall, Rechelle told that story herself, gREEd didn’t ‘call her out’.
I just think it’s funny…and sad that you waste so much time hating someone. Please write me another paragraph hahaha.
peace out.
We aren’t making fun of a person. We are making fun of a BRAND. There is no Ree, the Pioneer Woman, but there sure is hell is a Pioneer Woman BRAND. You nit wit and you are a nit wit for blinding accepting anything in life.
Seriously?! I think you are just jealous at Ree’s success. Why else would you take the time to bash someone on a consistent basis. Maybe you should start knitting or something. Obviously your life is not very exciting if this is what you have going on.
Ree never claims to be an expert. But hey, I guess all of the people on here commenting on her cooking, photography, clothes, money, etc, are experts in the field.
Kind of says a lot about your life if you have to come here try to say we don’t have lives, huh?
And I’m an awesome knitter!
I alway get a good chuckle when someone says that I must be jealous of someone else’s success if I simply do not like how they present themselves to the public.
Ree does, by virtue of publishing a cookbook, deem herself an expert in that field, people who think they aren’t experts and don’t think they have things to teach don’t write and publish cookbooks.
I do not like people who misrepresent themselves …. remember the book “A Million Little Pieces” by James Frey. He too published a “true” book and then was caught in a huge scandal when it was determined that many of his “facts” were deemed to not be quite so factual …. much like Ree is doing, no difference really.
I don’t care for people who tell other women “they can do it all” when they are not doing it all themselves ….. its belittling to women, it makes them feel small and ineffective and its wrong. And no , I don’t feel that way myself but I know of many others that do.
I don’t care for “Christians” who don’t mind screwing their neighbors, pulling one over on their readers (the shirt give-aways while she was in NYC ….. photographed on her hotel room carpet?? From her closet she says??? Really???), accepting gifts made with love from people and then never acknowledging it, accepting recipes from readers and then passing them off as her own, claiming to be “just like you” while throwing hundreds of dollars in clothes she never wears (supposedly), lodge remodels, high end kitchen gear (in this economy), pushing retail items that come from overseas when America has some of the best crafts people in the world ….. shall I go on.
I am not jealous of that at all. I have chosen a life I love, she apparently did not.
PW claimed to be keeping it real….all the time, which was a LIE. Just because some want to drink her kool-aid doesn’t mean the rest of us do. It’s not jealousy, no one is jealous of her shallow brand. And if this blog is so pathetic, waste of time etc why are the PW sheeple taking the time to read and comment here?
I actually feel very superior to her….she has crappy taste and gross yoga pants. Anyone so in love with Anthropologie is a total dolt and about 10 years behind the bus. I get the lols when she posts ugly shit on her blog and all these followers are like…..SO CUTE! It’s really funny to me and interesting on how a brand amasses a following without anyone questioning the authenticity of something not authentic.
and FUCK that shit about subsidizing wild mustangs – kids are starving in this country people! PETA can take on this cause and raise the $$ from their many celebrity friends. I pay a lot of taxes and that is the last thing I would want. Can you imagine explaining to a homeless child that the government can’t feel you because we have to keep the horses alive?
I never watched that video about the horses, but he claims they have to set aside 7 acres per horse? That’s over 15,000 acres if that claim is to be believed. Sure, sounds like just a lil’ ol’ cattle ranch operation to me.
And to those ninnies who constantly appear to call people “jealous” when they comment negatively on the way Ree presents her lil’ ol’, shucks, life: get a new line, and at least try to think like an adult for a moment rather than a junior high school girl who wants to be part of a fabulous clique to which she will never, ever belong. You’re not part of the country club scene in the same way Ree is not part of the real farming/ranching world. You think Ree will be your BFF because you’re standing up for her, but in the same way manipulators have worked since time began, you’re just cannon fodder, feeding her money machine. You remind me of the same people who defend every stupid thing that comes out of Sarah Palin’s mouth. You’re being used, cynically, to advance either the career or ego (or both) of someone untalented, unoriginal, and unworthy of the adulation heaped upon them.
Think about the 7 acres. If I told you that is how much i needed to house your horse, then you would have to pay the costs for 7 acres to house the horse (that is if you believed me). Then, think also about who has input into determining the rate per horse per day the government will pay. Surely this would have to be calculated by people in the know, who rely on information from people in the know, and i bet my bottom dollar that one of the ‘people’ that is part of this in-the-know-information system has a vested interest in the whole deal. Of course, in Oklahoma horses need 7 acres. No where else in the world…but…
Oh…and shoot i forgot to mention this…when talking profit this is after all expenses. Wages, petrol, feed, office stationery, etc etc etc. Don’t be fooled that his profit of $100K is all he gets. The other expenses and wages are coming out of the daily rate, all accounted for, all banked, all not part of the profit. Plus…he gets to go on video and say he’s only profiting $100 from the mustangs because in an absence of truth way this is the truth
I’ve visited a few blogs and message boards, but have never felt much need to comment on them because I just enjoy reading them. However, I just wanted to say thanks for this site. I live in Tulsa, just a county over from where PW lives, and am pleased to know there are other folks out there who are as tired of the excessive PW hype as I am. I am so sick of hearing about her from the local news stations, the Tulsa World newspaper, etc. I’ve read her cookbook and am thoroughly unimpressed by it — her recipes are nothing new or fabulous. I can find similar — and, in my humble opinion, better — ones in Southern Living, our local junior league cookbooks, or just about any church or school cookbook.
I view PW along the same lines as that Gosselin woman. I’m not sure how to put it into words exactly, but she’s created a brand, which people seem to be buying into as something genuine and real. It doesn’t strike me as such.
I find it amusing and a bit puzzling that when someone disagrees with something, such as those of us who don’t care for the PW hype/hypocrisy, others always swoop in with the same ol’ tired comments of “you’re just jealous” or “stop being a hater.” Can’t they come up with something more original? Also, can they not realize that not everyone agrees with them and thinks PW and her products are that wonderful? Has nothing to do with jealousy or hate and everything to do with just not caring for something and seeing it for the overhyped mess that it is.
I should also add that a family member bought the PW’s cookbook and was so “into” it that she decided to make our entire holiday dinner using the PW’s recipes. I have never had such awful food, nor have I felt so yucky and after eating it. It was so bad that I barely ate any of it and still felt gross afterward. The mashed potato recipe alone would give you indigestion for a week! But then again, I am somewhat of a food purist and believe the only things needed for good mashed potatoes are potatoes, salt, pepper, butter and a bit of hot milk.
I agree, mashed potatoes are their best at their simplest. Not every dish at a meal has to be pimped out.
For anyone that wants to read a blog about a REAL country gal, I’d encourage you to check out http://chickensintheroad.com/ . Suzanne McMinn is the real deal, running a small farm in rural West Virginia. Her recipe section is filled with lots of recipes from real cooks, and when she uses someone else’s recipe, she gives credit.
I know I’m late to the party, but I’m always puzzled when someone comes to a blog to bash it and/or the commenters. We’re told to find hobbies and lives because all we’re doing is sitting around hating on someone and posting our opinions on the internet. But isn’t the basher doing the SAME THING… hating on someone and posting that opinion on the internet? What is the difference? Such hypocrites.
And like all the other posters here, I have a very fulfilling life. I just like to use some of my downtime to check out interesting things on the internet. I’m not going to apologize because I find this blog interesting. It really does say something to me about the people who cannot handle others having opinions that differ from their own.
I love this site! I came across a blog today that featured a recipe from PW’s cookbook. All of the comments were “WOW!”, “I have to get that cookbook!”, etc.
I got the same recipe from Taste of Home Magazine years ago and left a comment as to where it *originally* came from. My comment got deleted, I assume because I wasn’t gushing about it.
I don’t think the assertion that Ladd Drummond is making a killing off this ranch and bilking taxpayers out of millions in federal aid holds much water. His family was already wealthy, which enabled them to purchase a lot of land and start this outfit in the first place. People don’t get into ranching to get rich, you pretty much have to be rich already and then hope you don’t lose your shirt.
I can’t comment on specifics like the cost to keep wild mustangs vs. what the gov’t pays them per horse, b/c the gov’t doesn’t pay us anything for our horses and cows, but the costs associated with livestock are exorbitant. I don’t doubt that the ranch’s profit is paltry when compared to the federal aid it receives, after you factor in all the required expenses (feed, hay, vet bills, tack, farrier bills, tractors and balers to make the hay if you don’t buy it, trucks, diesel and maintenance on the tractors/trucks/equipment, maintenance on buildings, the list is endless). A ranch of that size profiting $100k annually doesn’t sound like much of a stretch to me. I would, however, like to know what Ladd’s annual income is and how much the ranch hands are paid. Generally they’re not paid much b/c they’re given housing on the ranch as part of their compensation (at least here, that is usually the case).
I’ve heard my dad say numerous times that if it weren’t for the ag exemption on the property taxes and the fact that we enjoy rodeoing, he wouldn’t have any of it b/c the work going into it isn’t worth the return, and that’s why he had a day job.
PW and her family may be hate worthy in other areas, but I don’t think the ranch’s cash flow is one of them.
Are you under the impression that they do anything for those horses other than give them some hay in the winter and minerals? Because they do NOT provide farrier, vet care, worming or anything else. ALL they do is hay in the winter and minerals. And I said the RETAIL cost of hay, which means the farmer’s who provided that price to me have ALREADY included overhead, diesel, trucks, balers, etc and STILL allows for profit.
Trust me, Ladd Drummond is making a KILLING off those horses. Those 2,200 horses bring him more than all the cattle, crop subsidies, and everything else – the horses are where he earns his living as he so proudly told Rechelle during her visit.
No, I am not under the impression that they are giving the mustangs anything other than hay and salt. However, those horses are not the only animals on the ranch either, and livestock in general is a huge resource suck. Ranches cost gobs of money to operate; there’s no two ways about it.
I think you are completely missing the point.
I don’t disagree that livestock are expensive to raise – that’s the choice of the individual rancher and whether or not they make a profit off said livestock isn’t any of my business. In the Drummond’s case, however, WE (that’s YOU and ME, the taxpayer) are giving them millions of dollars each year to care for those mustangs (not any other livestock — not cattle and not ranch horses, JUST the mustangs) and he claims to only net a profit of $100,000. Those mustangs are wild and in, per Ladd himself, 7 acres per horse (I don’t believe that for a minute) which is MORE than enough land to provide completely for the horse except in the absolute dead of winter – thus the hay and mineral supplement. But that is ALL they do for those horses and that’s the figure I was disputing.
I couldn’t care less what his costs are for his cattle and ranch horses, that’s not what we were talking about here at all. But I do absolutely agree that the costs for THOSE animals is exorbant – they’re worming, farrier, vet care, etc. I get that.
When you add the farming subsidies to the BLM contract, the Drummond’s get several million dollars a year off the taxpayers (that’s YOU and ME). And THAT’S why Ree portraying herself as a just a sweet normal lil rancher’s wife jes like you and me is crazy.
WOW! Lots of people make money (a little or a lot) off the gov’t, which is the backs of people like you and me. I would, too, if I could figure out a way to do it. The Pioneer Woman is just like any other business, and her books are just like any other book, and her website, too, for that matter……We have a choice to enjoy and/or support, or not. If not, you have the freedom to choose to enjoy and/or support something different. That’s the beauty of America!
WHO CARES?!?!? What ever happened to “The American Dream”?!? These people work HARD for that money. They are up super early in the morning to take care of their farm, they raise their family, they pay their taxes… WHO CARES if they make good money while doing it? They deserve it…
The reality is that YOUR GOVERNMENT has been taking care of these Horses for a VERY long time and the reality is that The Drummonds simply participated in a program that YOUR GOVERNMENT runs. The Drummonds are NOT criminals. They are making LEGITIMATE money in a LEGITIMATE way.
WHOOOOOOO CARES?!?!?!?
Maybe if you weren’t so busy whining about other people’s successes, you would find a way to create some success, happiness, and gratitude in your own life.
You guys are funny. Us fighting over a successful woman. Why don’t we get together and make us the successful female millionaires? We certainly have the energy to do that! O.k. enough said…..
I am a professional chef who teaches baking and pastry at the college level. This deal of hers to take someone’s recipe or idea is a big mess. I bought her book at Target and I returned it because the only recipe I tried that was successful was the ‘egg in the hole’. I have had a lot of experience working with recipes and they just didn’t have a lot going for them. Her job seems to be set in entertaining us. Unfortunately, this seems to be the trend on the foodnetwork. If her book is any indidcation, she has no busineess having her own cooking show. I mean I demonstrate cooking pastries all the time and I would have a hard time putting enough original material together for a show! It is unfortunate for chefs, cooks, housewives, etc., that their work is not respected like it is in the music industry.If you put more than 2 notes together that sound like the Stones you find yourself in court. Maybe we can use all this to change that. Let me know…..Enjoy a wonderful holiday weekend with your friends, family and the millions of recipes handed down from our parents and grandparents. I think my grandma’s fudge borwnies need to make an appearance soon….:>)
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