Recipe Review: Southern Living's Okra and Corn Maque Choux

The heat of the summer has left me craving lighter meals, and this month's issue of Southern Living Magazine delivered some great inspirations! The "Summer's Glorious Trinity" article of recipes using tomatoes, okra, and sweet corn had us positively salivating! At first glance we were both agreed that we had to try the Okra and Corn Maque Choux. If you're not familiar with Maque Choux (pronounced mock-shoe), it originated in Louisiana and I believe it was a Cajun spin on a Native American dish.

I faithfully followed Southern Living's recipe, which isn't an easy thing for me to do, resisting the temptation to add Herbs de Provence, which I add to most everything I cook. This was such an easy dish to make and it was so tasty. Here are a few of my notes on the newest staple to our summer recipe collection:

• I used Rodger Wood Polish style smoked sausage, which is made here locally in Savannah. This sausage gave a nice smoky flavor to the dish and had a nice texture. Next time I think I would use their spicy version, as Southern Living used a spicy smoked sausage when testing the recipe for the magazine.
• I chopped all of the vegetables before hand, mixing them in two separate bowls per steps of cooking. That way everything was prepared and I only had to dump in the bowl of vegetables that were required at each step. The corn took the longest to prepare, so it was well worth doing in advance.
• OK, I didn't completely follow their instructions. Since I wasn't using spicy sausage, I added a sprinkle of red pepper flakes with the green peppers, onion, and garlic.
• I found that 6 ears of corn yielded 3 cups. Most of the ears were fairly large too.
• For a vegetarian version, omit the sausage but do add a few drops of liquid smoke as the vegetables used really benefit from having that smoky flavor. You could even add tofu or mushrooms, adding them at a later stage than the sausage so that they are not over cooked.
• As with most dishes, this was tastier on the second day.
• We chose Jacob's Creek 2008 Riesling to have with this, which we thought turned out to be the perfect pairing.
• Left overs: we made amazing wraps with the left overs and some BBQ pulled pork. Such a fantastic combination. Am thinking this was better than eating it on its own. If I made it specifically for wraps, I would leave out the sausage as the pulled pork would be enough meat. For me at least.

With a few ears of corn left, I'm looking forward to trying their Tomato and Corn Pizza!

Pimento Cheese: My Latest Food Obsession

Pimento Cheese is an iconic food in the South. Most Southerners have idyllic childhood memories of eating Pimento Cheese Sandwiches on a hot summers day. This is one food that most people are passionate about, I've heard few negative comments about Pimento Cheese. My recent run in with the stuff at the Happy Tomato Cafe in Fernandina Beach has sparked my latest food obsession. Lucky for you, you don't have to live in the South to eat it, and it couldn't be easier to make. Ingredients:

• Cheddar cheese, shredded
• Mayonnaise (Dukes is THE only mayonnaise in my opinion!)
• Jarred roasted peppers, chopped
• Olives, chopped
• Hot Sauce (Cholula rocks my world)
• Fresh cracked black pepper

Mix it all together:

You have probably noticed that I don't give measurements. That is because you really don't need them. You can make this with any amount of cheese you have on hand, though you will probably want to use at least one 8 oz block to start with.

Put cheese in a mixing bowl and add a little bit of mayonnaise to bind. Stir, if it seems dry, just add a bit more.

Next I add the chopped pepper (pimento) and olives. For 8 oz cheese, I use about 1 whole pepper from a jar of roasted peppers. Adjust to your taste. This also goes for the amount of olives you use. I just use a few olives to enhance the flavor, but not overwhelm the taste of the cheese mixture.

Once the pimento and olives have been mixed in, add a few dashes of hot sauce and fresh cracked black pepper to taste. Mix well.

At this point, some like to process the mixture in a food processor to blend into a smooth mixture and create more of a uniform taste. I like to keep mine rugged. The good thing about Pimento Cheese is that there really is no right or wrong way of making it, add or omit what suits your taste buds. I've seen many recipes that call for chopped dill pickles or absolutely no extra add ins at all. In true Southern fashion, just have fun with it and enjoy!

What to do with Pimento Cheese?

Pimento Cheese is traditionally used as a sandwich spread. In fact, the Pimento Cheese sandwich is the official food of the Masters Golf Tournament in Augusta, Georgia. Served with a little chopped sweet onion and some watercress, this is a sandwich even non-sandwich lovers can't resist. You could also use it as a dip for chips, or even top a steak with it.

A new favorite of ours is to have it on a pulled pork sandwich. You'll have to excuse the quality of my photos (or lack there of), my priority was getting to the main event of delighting my taste buds:

The next night we had it on a burger. That was divine! Seriously divine. My one tip would be to put the cheese on the top of the bun, then add lettuce, tomato, pickle, etc. so that the cheese does not come in direct contact with the burger. I put the cheese directly on the burger and the heat from the meat melted the cheese, causing most to run off. Yum, can't wait to try that again!

The Happy Tomato Cafe ~ Fernandina Beach, Amelia Island

The first week of November was very exciting for me. My friend Jane (from Cakebook) came over from England to visit us for 10 days. Our friendship formed 10 years ago over our mutual love of food and we've been great friend ever since. While I haven't seen Jane in 4 years, there is rarely a day that passes that I don't speak to her in some way; e-mail, Facebook - it's amazing how you can keep in touch these days. We had been planning what to do for months and seemed to come up with a Southern food theme. We took a trip up to Fernandina Beach on Amelia Island (close to the northern boarder of Florida's east coast) and had great expectations of a lovely Southern lunch.

Noon rolled around and we were in search of somewhere to eat. While on the way to a place on 3rd Street I wanted to try, our noses were treated to the most heavenly, smokey BBQ smell. It was a good thing the place I wanted to go to was closed for the day, as it gave us no choice but to follow our noses back to the Happy Tomato Cafe...
The cafe itself is in a small wooden building with an outside deck...

... and courtyard seating...

We had a quick look at the menu and got in line as the place was quickly filling up. This place seemed to be very popular with the locals, which is always a good sign.

My Dad and James were with us and there was one item on the menu that caught all of our attention: THE WORKS. The Works is a pulled pork sandwich with pimento cheese! Yes, pimento cheese!!! This isn't the sort of thing I would eat on a daily basis, but it did sound good and we were on vacation after all. It's not everyday I get to have lunch with Jane! We were all very happy with our choice. The Works is served with a side of BBQ sauce (I highly recommend the Mustard based sauce) and dill pickles. Jane ordered a side of coleslaw, which was also very good.

Enjoy a close up glimpse...

The sandwich was so filling there is no way I could have eaten anything else. Sitting outside on a sunny day with great company was the icing on the cake. I can't wait to go back!

The Happy Tomato Courtyard Cafe & BBQ

7 S. 3rd St, Fernandina Beach, FL 32034

(904) 321-0707

Easy Provençal Pork Ragoût

This is one of my favorite week night treats. Pork makes a lighter summer alternative to the heavier taste of beef. You could also make a vegetarian version by substituting the pork with lentils ~ very French, or meat substitute. You will see that I'm using a jarred Italian Sausage Sauce, but the flavoring of Herbes de Provence and the use of a Rosé wine give it a Provençal twist. Using a jarred sauce is what makes this dish so forgiving: you're adding other flavors, but since the base had a head start, if you don't have the time, you don't have to simmer the sauce all day.

• 1 pound ground pork


• 1 small onion, chopped


• 1 rib celery, chopped


• 1 medium carrot, chopped


• 1/2 bell pepper, chopped


• 2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped


• 1 jar of Italian Sausage Pasta Sauce


• 1 6 oz can of tomato paste


• 3 oz Rosé wine


• 1/2 tablespoon Herbes de Provence


• 1 spring rosemary


• 3 springs of thyme


• 1 bay leaf


• sea salt and freshly cracked pepper to taste

Start off by sautéing pork in a large saucepan over medium-low heat. As the pork slowly browns, chop vegetables and garlic, placing in a bowl.

Once pork is half cooked, add the garlic and vegetable mixture, stirring well.Next add the Herbes de Provence, rosemary, thyme, bay leaf, and a pinch of sea salt. Cook over medium heat until pork is cooked and vegetables have started to soften. Next add in the Sausage flavored sauce. I'm not loyal to any one brand, most likely choosing whatever is on sale, or better yet ~ buy one get one free!
Then add the can of tomato paste and wine. For this recipe, you'll need to use a proper dry Rosé, not White Zinfandel or the like which are way too sweet.Stir meat, vegetables, and sauce to mix well. Once mixed, cover and simmer. It really doesn't take long to make. If you're pressed for time, follow the instructions above for the sauce. Once the sauce is mixed, start to prepare your pasta. While the water is heating up and then the pasta is cooking, simmer the sauce on medium heat. Once your pasta is cooked, the sauce will be ready to eat. If you have a little longer, turn the heat down to medium-low and let simmer. While it simmers away, you can read a chapter or two of your book, look through a new magazine, call your mother, or do the laundry. Once you have relaxed or caught up on your chores, boil some pasta and you have a sauce that has slowly simmered, letting the flavors develop a little more.Taste before serving. I almost always have to add some more sea salt at this point. Season with freshly ground pepper.

Makes 4 generous servings.

Enjoy! x

Easter Feast #2 ~ Roasted Marinated Pork and Purple Asparagus

On a recent shopping trip the the Fresh Market, we spotted this gorgeous Purple Asparagus and decided that we had to have it for Easter Dinner. I had seen purple asparagus in photos before, but had never tried it. I would be lying if I said it was easy leaving this alone until Easter day, I was absolutely giddy with anticipation of trying, and wasn't disappointed in the end.When my mom arrived, she came with this lovely Easter Basket. Now I don't care how old I am, each year I never get any less excited about having an Easter basket. This was a particularly lovely basket as the contents were more suited to my age... With the pork finishing up in the oven, my wait for the purple asparagus was coming to an end. I coated in some olive oil and sprinkled with Maldon sale, then cooked on a Medium flame for about 10 minutes. Once the pork came out of the over to rest, I turned the heat up to 400F and finished off the asparagus in the over, about another 5-10 minutes, checking frequently as I didn't want them to burn.

One thing I would like to mention, and I had a sneaking suspicion that this would happen, is that they turn green when cooking. They did retain a bit of the purple, but the majority turned a deep green.

Backing up a bit, the pork was marinated for 8 hours in a mixture of:

• 1 large tbsp prepared vinaigrette
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• vegetable oil to thin (about 1/4-1/2 cup)
• few good shape of Tamari sauce
• 3 clove garlic
• Herbs de Provence
• 5 sprigs of Lemon Thyme
• 2 sprigs Rosemary
• good pinch each of sale and pepper
• a splash of lemonade

When ready to cook, I shook access marinade off and roasted at 325F for 35-40 minutes. What a fantastic combination...The pork was moist and flavorful. The asparagus was divine. It had a slightly sweeter taste than regular green asparagus. The smokiness of roasting it was a good compliment to the natural flavor. This would be a good introduction for someone that doesn't think they like asparagus. We also had kohlrabi remoulade and an artichoke/green olive pesto pasta salad. Not your traditional Easter feast, but most enjoyable!

Afterwards we had lovely lemon cupcakes that my mom had made, but sadly my camera had retired for the night, so I can't share them with you.

Culinary Creations: Carolina Pulled Pork Sandwich

This first time we had this flavor combination was at the Bubble Room on Captiva Island. As I'm not a huge fan of cole slaw, I thought combining BBQ pork and cole slaw sounded absolutely vile. It appealed to James, so he ordered it, and I'm glad he did. The flavors of the cole slaw really did compliment the flavors of the BBQ pork, and I've since (sort of) become a fan of cole slaw. We've had this sandwich at various places since then, one of James's favorites coming in the form of a wrap at the Southend Brewery in Charleston.

The "Boston Butt" cut of pork works best for shredding. While the pork is coming up to room temperature, I heat my slow cooker on "low" for about 30 minutes, adding 1 small sliced onion to the bottom. Next I add the pork, lightly seasoned, adding a roughly sliced clove of garlic or two and various fresh herbs to the crevasses. If I have extra veggies like carrots or celery in my fridge, I like to add them to the bottom of the slow cooker as I use the juices at the end of cooking at a later date. Cook for 6-8 hours, until pork is easy to separate with a fork (usually about 6 hours).After I put the lid on the pork, I move on to making the cole slaw:

* 1/8 cup of white-wine vinegar

* 1/4 cup of Duke's Mayonnaise

* 1 tsp Dijon mustard

* 1 bag of Cole Slaw Blend (cabbage & carrot mix)

* celery salt to taste

Combine the wet ingredients, whisk, then pour over Cole Slaw Blend. Stir and refrigerate while to pork continues to cook.

Once the pork has finished cooking, let cool for around 1/2 hour. While the pork is cooling, I transfer the liquids from the slow cooker into a freezer safe container to be used for soup or sauces (I usually leave about 1/4 cup of the liquids in the pot). Once the pork has cooled, take two forks and start pulling ir apart, returning it to the slow cooker.At this point, you can use any type of BBQ sauce. My favorite is Sticky Fingers Mustard based sauce, but as I was out of it I used a smoky tomato BBQ sauce. Coat to your liking. I add a little more sauce as it will absorb into the pork while reheating. Once coated, put the lid back on and let heat for about 1/2 hour. If your slow cooker runs on the hot side, you might want to turn it down to the "keep warm" setting to do this.

While the pork and sauce are warming, I get the buns ready. First I fire up my broiler to the highest setting. Next I butter the buns, season with a salt free garlic blend, then broil until nicely toasted.
Once everything is ready, I slap a nice amount of pork onto the toasted bun, topping with cole slaw.Not only will your taste buds thank you, but so will your nose as it makes your house smell divine! Enjoy!!!

Culinary Creations: British Sausage Rolls (With a Twist)

For Christmas, I tried making James his favorite British treat, the sausage roll. In England, Christmas just isn't Christmas without sausage rolls. It is a family tradition to have them with Champagne, very civilized. While I'm not a huge fan of sausage, pair it with Champagne and brown sauce, and I'm happy to partake. This is what a sausage roll is supposed to look like. Mine didn't quite turn out this way... (photo from Sainsbury's Magazine November 2006 issue) Looking to Delia Smith and Sainsbury's Magazine for guidance, this is what I came up with:
*1 lb pork sausage meet
*1 small onion, grated
*dried herbs of choice (I used a poultry blend)
*1 box Puff Pastry sheets, thawed
*1 egg to brush pastry
Mix sausage, onion (or leek), and herbs - seasoning with a little salt and pepper.
The puff pastry I chose had 2 packets. I opened one and spread it out on a cutting board.

Next I took half of the sausage mixture, placed it on the pastry, then rolled.

When I had finished, it was a little fatter than I thought it should be, but pressed on. I sliced the roll and brushed with the egg wash.

These were placed onto a baking sheet, lined with parchment paper and baked at 425F for 20-25 minutes.

As you can tell from the photo at the beginning of the post, mine didn't come out to desired size. Mine were more like coasters. But with a nice brown sauce and a glass a bubbly, we managed to work our way through them. Despite it being 85F outside, I think it did feel like Christmas Eve to James.

A few days later... this is what I did with the other packet of pastry and the remaining sausage. Thinking the "pinwheel" effect would probably be more successful, I spread the sausage mixture across 2/3 of the pastry, then rolled.

Once rolled, I brushed again with egg, sliced and baked at 400F for 15-20 minutes, or until brown.

They weren't quite the same to James, but I was much happier with the results. While they were different from what he is used to, it didn't stop him from devouring them.

All this talk of British classics makes me think of another iconic British 'roll': Cliff Roles. While I try to paint a nice picture of Sarasota and the area, Cliff is truly "in the know" of all current events. Not only a local Award Winning Actor, Cliff has a fantastic local daily radio show with the best guests on the Sun Coast. I am very excited to be assisting Cliff at next month's Murder Mystery Night for the Sarasota British Club. I thank him in advance for hosting our "Am-Dram" night, and might make this dish in his honor.

Culinary Creations: Jamaican Jerk Pork Burgers

I love Jamaican Jerk anything, and as the weather is warming up again, it's time to dust off the BBQ and come up with a few new tropical recipes. I suppose this really isn't a recipe, per se, as more of how I seasoned ground pork and buns.

I started with 1 pound of ground pork, added a healthy dose of Jamaican Jerk seasoning, and made 2 burgers. Yes, we are pigs. To be fair, we did only have breakfast that day, and weren't serving anything else with the burgers. OK, back on track - and cooked on medium heat about 5-7 minutes each side.
While this burgers were cooking, I "made" a sauce for the buns. In a small bowl, I combined about 2 tablespoons of Dukes mayonnaise with 1 tablespoon of HP Curry Sauce. Make this to taste, you could add more or less of whichever to your liking. I also added a dash or two of the Jerk seasoning for a little heat.

Next I sliced the buns, buttered, and then toasted under my broiler.

Once everything was ready, I slathered the sauce on the buns, added a thick slice of sharp Cheddar cheese, dill pickles, lettuce and sliced herbed yellow tomatoes*.

These are by no means the most appetizing photos I've ever taken as I was in more "experimental" mode, but the results were fantastic. They were so full of flavor and will definitely become part of my regular "recipe box".

* In my opinion, the lower acidity of the yellow tomato complimented the spiciness of the jerk seasoning better than a red tomato. Red tomato would work, but as I was also having dill pickle slices, it was yet another reason to go with the more mellow option. After slicing, I sprinkled with sea salt, basil, rosemary, and thyme. If you wanted to add a little more heat to your burger (they had a slight kick but were by no means hot) you could also sprinkle with dried red pepper flakes or hot sauce.

Culinary Creations: Oven Roasted Pork Chops with Mushrooms, Leeks, and Garlic Tomatoes

This recipe is the a prime example of why I created this blog: whenever I come up with a new recipe, and we really like it, I never remember what I did or how long I cooked it. Many a conversation in my house consist of: "It doesn't taste like it did last time" or "This isn't how I remember it at all". In addition, when I'm following a recipe from a book or magazine, I always add or change things around, and like to make notes on what I'd do differently next time. I've got an extensive collection of Sainsbury's Magazines, so remembering which issue what recipe came from can be a bit of a problem. One night after I made something we really like (which no doubtedly didn't get recorded and will never be remembered), I had the epiphany that if it were all in one place, on-line, I will never have to strain my brain/search/forget again!

This an idea that has been going around in my mind for a week: the ingredients were chosen, it was going to be something cooked on the stove, but 1/2 hour before cooking, I decided that bunging it all in the over would leave me free to do other things. This is what I came up with. Serves 4.

* 4 boneless pork chops
* Dijon mustard
* breadcrumbs
* 1 large tomato, cut into large chunks
* 1 clove of garlic, more if you want to roast whole cloves in dish
* 2 thin leeks (not links) (inside joke), thickly sliced
* 8oz Portobello mushrooms, halved
* 4 slices of smoked bacon, roughly chopped
* olive oil for drizzling
* 1/4 wine for drizzling, red or white
* salt, pepper, herbs to taste

1) Half hour before cooking, put a dollop of mustard on each chop, spread to cover, set aside. Then chop 1 clove of garlic, sprinkle over chopped tomato along with a good pinch of salt. Also set aside, both out of the refrigerator. You could use this half hour to clean and prepare the rest of your veg and any side you might serve with it. Duh, I didn't have to tell you that.
2) When half hour is up, pre-heat oven to 350F. While oven is pre-heating, place pork in a large oven safe dish. Sprinkle with breadcrumbs, any type will do, I like to season mine with Herbs de Provence and a little Parmesan cheese. Next add mushrooms, leeks, tomatoes, and bacon. Drizzle with olive oil, wine, season with salt, pepper, and herbs - to your liking.
3) Bake for 30-35 minutes, stirring the veggies after 15 minutes.
I served it with some bow-tie pasta that was tossed in a garlic and herb butter and some white beans with yellow carrots, spinach, also in a garlic butter (compliments to Mr. Green Giant). Keeping the sides simple made it a really easy dish to make, I was glad that I decided to let the oven do all the work. This was all washed down by a lovely sparkling rosé that really complimented the meal. James gave it a 9 out of 10 and said it was restaurant quality. I'm just hoping he didn't mean Denny's. He once rated something I made a 10 out of 10, now if only I could remember what that was...