Author Archives: southbyse

Welcome Back, Mr. Crab!

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Summer has arrived here in South Carolina in all its humid glory. While I am not too keen on 60%+ humidity, the warm tropical temps do have at least one very positive effect – male blue crabs are getting plumper as they fill up the local saltwater marshes. Catching blue crabs by hand off the dock is a summer pastime I learned on weekend jaunts to my aunt’s beach house in Garden City, SC.

That beach house saw a lot in its time, many fish stories told, re-enacted and perpetuated by members of my family. Everyone I know has at least one to tell, even if it they weren’t witness to the actual fish-story generating event.

Blue crabs, sure they’re interesting looking but they are fun to catch and delicious to eat. Watch out for the pinchers!

My personal favorite involves a 30-gallon trash can full of shrimp and some wily blue crabs caught by my Dad, uncle and older cousins in a large seine net in the creeks around our beach house. I’ll never forget almost losing my finger to one of those testy crabs when I reached into the shrimp container and then made the belated realization that I had made a very poor choice! Instantaneously, I felt panic and pain as that voracious blue caught hold of my finger. My ensuing scream heard ‘round Garden City Beach’ was followed by howls of laughter from my brother as I flung the crab across the dock where it landed squarely at my Mother’s feet. I’ll admit that it took a couple of summers to participate in catching blues again following the “crab incident”. However, these days I do take great pleasure (revenge?) in every crab crack, crab cake and crab casserole set in front of me.

Now I know you may think, 30-gallon trash cans full of shrimp and crabs? We need a fact check here. But yes, the waters along the entire coast of South Carolina are brimming with blue crabs, shrimp, oysters and flounder for the taking. Back in the day (the ‘70’s in my case) all you needed was a permit, the right equipment and some local insider knowledge to catch the limit. Today, while you may not be up for pulling a net through 3 feet of pluff mud or setting crab pots you can visit your own local seafood market. Look for a product that was caught as close to your own town/state/area of the country as possible. I was recently informed that there are no commercial crab packing facilities in SC any longer – although there are plenty of commercial “crab men” – the picking and packing is done in NC. So you may have to ask where the crab was caught, but do ask, as any good seafood market would be happy to oblige. (If they do not, I would propose buying from a different source.)

Here’s my standby recipe for crab cakes. No real secrets involved, however, I will suggest using your own freshly made breadcrumbs as well as fresh lemon juice and parsley. Here I topped them with a cold lemon dill sauce – recipe below. You can even freeze them for up to a week, so it’s a delectable, do-ahead appetizer for a party. Just freeze them on a lined cookie sheet and transfer to a large bag or plastic container (with a good sealing lid) after they harden and freeze. Easy, peasy!

Fresh blue crab, picked out by ‘moi’ just a couple of hours earlier. Less than 24 hours before this picture was taken these crabs were footloose and fancy free in a nearby marsh, now they are dinner. There is some work involved but not as much sacrifice as those ‘blues’…so thanks to them we get to eat crab cakes tonight. Hurray!

All the ingredients, sort of… you will actually need some more bread crumbs as well as the ingredients for the lemon dill sauce (lemon, mayo & dill).

I know this is a boring image but you have to start somewhere…whisk the eggs first in the one bowl you need for making these crab cakes. Then…

add all the other ingredients except the butter. Mix together and chill. I only used a 1/2 teaspoon of hot sauce as we needed ‘family-friendly’ crab cakes but feel free to add more if you like spicy.

Here is the crab cake ‘batter’. Cover and chill for at least an hour.

Coat each crab cake in fine bread crumbs. I only use fresh bread crumbs that I make in my mini food processor, never canned breadcrumbs. Go light on the bread crumbs.

Here they are, ready for the big chill. If you want you can freeze them at this point on the baking sheet. When frozen solid remove to an airtight bay or container.

After they chill, bake in a preheated 400 degree oven. Flip them over once and bake another few minutes (exactly depends on the size). I baked these 8 minutes per side.

Fresh out of the oven. I find baking the crab cakes – instead of frying – still gives me a crispy crust but is lighter tasting (not greasy) and better for you, I would think. It’s all about the crab!

Okay, so this product, a refrigerated herb by Gourmet Garden is really the bomb. I do not have room to grown fresh dill and buying it is too expensive so this works great. A tube will last me a couple of months and I’m not throwing out old withered herbs – waste makes me c-r-a-z-y. They make other ‘flavors’ but the dill is the one I have used.

Carolina Crabcakes

  • 1 lb. of crabmeat
  • 2/3 cup + extra, fine breadcrumbs
  • ½ cup sweet bell pepper, finely chopped
  • 2 eggs
  • ½ tsp. salt
  • 1 tsp. dry mustard
  • 1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
  • ½ tsp black pepper
  • ¼ cup fresh parsley, finely chopped
  • 1 tbl. fresh lemon juice
  • 1 tbl. butter
  • hot sauce, like Tabasco or Crystal, to your taste

In a medium bowl lightly whisk the eggs and all the other ingredients except the butter. Mix well, cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour. Shape into crab cakes: 18-20 bite-size or 8 meal size. Coat each in extra fine bread crumbs lightly and place on a wax paper-lined  sheet pan. Chill another hour in the refrigerator (or pop into the freezer if you want to bake* them later).

Meanwhile preheat oven to 400 degrees. Melt 1 tablespoon butter in a cookie sheet to coat. Place crab cakes on the cookie sheet and bake for 2-3 minutes for mini crab cakes and 8 minutes for large crab cakes. Turn crab cakes over once and bake another 2-3 minutes for minis and 8 minutes for large ones. Serve immediately with rémoulade, tartar or my favorite, cold lemon dill sauce.

Lemon dill sauce: Mix ½ cup mayo with 1 heaping tablespoon chopped dill weed (fresh or  “Gourmet Garden” type) and juice of ½ a lemon. Chill until ready to serve.

* Frozen crab cakes will take a bit longer to bake, 1 more minute per side for the minis and 2 more minutes per side for the large.

Got Okra?

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Okra is one of my favorite foods. Yes, I love it fried but also in gumbos, stewed with tomatoes, pickled, and even slow cooked alone for what my mother and I refer to as “slimey okra”. Has a nice ring to it, doesn’t it? When the fresh okra started coming in heavy in our garden, my Mama would prepare a small pot of slimey okra just for her and I to share. It is basically just plain okra slow cooked whole in slightly salted water. The okra releases it’s “goo” (called mucilage) and the entire okra was well, in a word, ‘slimey’. Since none of my other family members would come within 6 feet of it, the slimey okra was all ours. Yum.

If you like gumbo you know it’s this same goo that makes a traditional gumbo thick but if you cook it with tomatoes some of the sliminess is reduced (due to the acidity of the tomatoes). During my childhood, we ate many dinners of stewed okra and tomatoes – seasoned with a little bacon, salt and pepper and usually served over rice. This is very much a South Carolina dish and we ate it often during the summer months when the main ingredients were literally over flowing from our backyard garden. It made a light but filling summer supper during those hot months.

In my okra research, I recently found out that okra can also be described as a health food since it’s high in fiber, vitamin C, and folate content and contains antioxidants too. The seeds of edible okra also produce oil that is high in unsaturated fats and apparently tastes and smell pleasant, although I’ve never found okra oil for sale. I’ll have research this more. Okra seed oil is also suitable as a biofuel. Okra of different varieties is grown and eaten throughout the world – from Malaysia to Nigeria to Vietnam to the Caribbean.

Of course, here in the South we love our okra. I do believe it is a very under-rated vegetable – obviously it’s good for you and can be prepared in many ways – surely one to suit most any taste. Now frying okra is probably the least healthy but very tasty. My “died-in-the-wool non-southern food eating” husband now loves fried okra. Yes, he told me didn’t like “southern food” when we first met and yes, I married him anyway. I feel one of my goals in life is to undo the wrongs of bad food – so I’ve been converting him slowly over the past 7 years. But that’s a story for another post – or two.

Fried okra is a treat in our house and I prepare it for special occasions and/or when the first local okra comes into harvest, which is about right now. It so happens that I was testing a mustard roasted pork loin recipe when I made some fried okra so I paired them with creamy stone-ground grits. It was a wonderful combination of flavors and texture. I’ll be posting the recipes and images for the entire meal soon but I’ve included one picture now, just to whet your appetite!

Cut the washed okra into slices about a half inch in size – but smaller is okay too.

I use a little grape oil to coat the okra; it allows the cornmeal to stick better.

Sprinkle the okra with salt, pepper and the cornmeal.

Add the cornmeal coated okra to the hot oil. My cast iron skillet is perfect for frying up a pound or so of okra. Too much okra in a small pan would not cook as evenly.

The okra is getting browned. Try to avoid stirring and flipping the okra too much. Having a seasoned skillet and a familiar stove top makes this easier.

Here you can see the okra at about 10 minutes into the frying process – won’t be long now!

The okra is ready…crunchy with a great fresh flavor. Remove to a paper towel lined platter so the excess oil can drain off. Fried okra is best eaten asap!

Here is that fried okra crowning a plate of creamy stone-ground grits and mustard roasted pork loin. Delicious.

Fried Okra

  • 1 lb. fresh tender okra, washed
  • 1 tbl. grape oil*
  • 1/3 cup cornmeal
  • 1 tsp salt
  • ½ tsp. pepper
  • ¼ + 1 tbl. vegetable oil

Trim the stems from the okra and cut each pod into approximately ½ inch slices. Sprinkle the okra with grape oil and stir lightly to distribute the oil throughout. Sprinkle the okra with the salt, pepper and the cornmeal. Stir to coat.

Heat a heavy skillet (I use a seasoned cast iron skillet) and add ¼ cup plus 1 tbl. good quality vegetable oil (I use a canola blend). Heat until very hot, but not smoking. Lower the heat slightly and add the okra all at once. It may splatter, so be careful. Allow to ‘fry” for a full minute or so before turning the mixture over. Adjust temp as necessary so okra cooks at a medium high temp but does not burn. Try not to smash the okra too much and stir only as necessary to allow even cooking. Total cooking time should be 15-20 minutes depending on the size of your pan.

Remove okra to a paper towel lined plate to drain excess oil, season with more sat and pepper to taste if necessary, and serve immediately.

* Grape oil has a higher burn temp than most other oils such as olive oil, so I use it when I know I will be cooking in high heat.

Fantastic butterscotch brownies make the flax seeds go dowwwn…

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It’s fascinating how the human mind works. I wanted to post a recipe for butterscotch brownies, which is a childhood favorite of mine. I also want to find ways to make rich bakery treats like these, less caloric or at least healthier.

So I made these and tweaked my Mom’s recipe including adding some ground flax seed. Then I started thinking about how one can add or remove ingredients, change a recipe a little and make something wonderful better for you, many times with just a subtle difference.

In writing this post, the song “A Spoonful of Sugar” from the movie Mary Poppins, ‘popped’ into my mind… “just a spoonful of sugar makes the medicine go down, the medicine go dowwwn”.  Adding or altering to make the-not-so-appetizing “go down”.  This lead me to think about playing the “favorite all time” game with my husband or friends. The topic of movies is an easy one.  Mary Poppins is one of my top three movies – along with Out of Africa and wait for it, Raiders of the Lost Ark.

“Fantastic Mr. Fox” is a movie our family loves – no sugar required to make the humor in this one “go dowwwn”. Fox Searchlight Pictures.

My criteria is that I can watch the movie over and over again, without getting sick of it – well, with a limit of maybe once or twice a month a month, for years. If I can watch and enjoy it that often, then it is great. Another movie that is creeping up to the top of the pops is Fantastic Mr. Fox.

Based on the novel by Roald Dahl, it’s chocked full of adult humor and witty repartee, it is also a clean movie and even our 4-year-old loves it – although she is clueless over why we are both chuckling most of the time. It’s good like that. Looking back it should have been named “best picture” of 2009… in my opinion.

Now dear hubby is a movie buff. He knows a lot about movies, old and new, with a particular fondness for science fiction and old classics like Lawrence of Arabia. Me, I can be content with viewing a movie relaxing on the couch at home, but he loves a real movie experience, i.e. going to the theater, eating popcorn, etc. I admit I do enjoy this too, although between the prices of the tickets and the snacks, our authentic movie theater “experience” is going the way of the dodo. I can wait awhile until the movie comes to blue ray or on-demand cable, thank you very much. We save the authentic and expensive movie experience for actual, great movies we truly want to view on a big screen, not a poorly written, awfully acted romantic comedy or special effects-laden bomb with no plot.

So you ask, what about those butterscotch brownies, huh? I got off on a tangent… see how the human mind works? Or maybe it’s just my human mind. Sigh. These butterscotch chewies remind me of childhood summers… picnics at the lake, fish fry’s in our backyard, and taking turns swinging in the hammock at the beach house. And while they’re certainly not “Mrs. Bean’s Famous Nutmeg Ginger Apple Snaps”, the inclusion of healthy flax seeds makes this snack just that much more, well, fantastic. Here’s hoping Mr. Fox would agree…

Straightforward ingredients including just 2 eggs and 1/2 cup of butter. I used light brown sugar but the dark brown variety will work too.

Melt the butter in a heavy bottom medium-sized sauce pan. We mix everything in this sauce pan except beating the eggs and milk together first.

This is a good recipe for young cooks and bakers – my daughter can break the eggs (no shells, either!) and whisk in the milk.

Once the butter/sugar mixture has cooled and the egg mixture has been incorporated, we add the flour mixture and those ground flax seeds.

After adding the vanilla and nuts (I like walnuts), pour into a greased 9 x 13 inch baking pan. Pop into a preheated 350 degree oven to bake about 25 minutes. Hint: Check after 22 minutes or so just in case your oven bakes fast – you don’t want to over bake these. They should be ‘chewy’.

…and soon enough you’ll have these gooey, delicious brownies. Allow to cool for a few minutes in the pan (that is elevated on a rack) and then cut into bars. Like chocolate brownies these travel well…for picnics, cookouts, tailgating.

Butterscotch Brownies

  • 1/2 cup butter
  • 2 cups packed brown sugar
  • 1 tbl. vanilla
  • ¼ cup milk
  • 2 large eggs
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 cup chopped nuts
  • 1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 2 tbl. ground flax seed
  • 1 tsp. salt

Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease bottom and sides of 9 x 13 pan with shortening.

In a medium saucepan, melt butter over low heat and stir in sugar. Stir until edges bubble, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool 10 minutes. Mix together the flour, salt and baking soda.

In a mixing bowl whisk eggs and milk until well blended. Using the whisk quickly add in a little of the warm butter/sugar mixture in the egg mixture. Then whisk the egg mixture back into the butter/sugar mixture. Beat until very well combined.

Add in the flour mixture until just combined. Stir in the vanilla extract and nuts. Pour into the prepared pan and bake for 23-25 minutes. Do not over bake. Allow to cool on rack for 5-10 minutes before cutting into bars.

Robust rules the grill with ancho chili lime steak

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Sometimes you just feel like eating a steak and since I’ve had my cholesterol checked recently (all is well) that time is now. In recent years I have taken to buying grass fed, organic or otherwise locally farmed beef whenever my tastes turn bovine.

Small-production, grass-fed meat can be a lot more expensive than your average grain-fed beef, just as artisanal cheese costs more than industrial cheddar. So at the same time I have tended to purchase more affordable “bargain” cuts like sirloin, flank, chuck eye and skirt (my personal favorite) rather than a bone-in ribeye or porterhouse. I do realize that a bulk purchase of grass fed beef would significantly lower our over-all cost and we have considered making a freezer commitment. Unfortunately, reality set in and our current abode (a loft-style townhouse) is not roomy enough. Rest assured we will come back to this idea in the future!

Skirt and flank steak are my favorite bargain cuts. They have a rich beef flavor hiding covertly within that protein, just requiring a little thoughtful planning and a good marinade to tease what could be a tougher cut into tender submission. I play around a lot with rubs and marinades for my beef (and other meats too) and in most cases they contain garlic, some type of fruit (I’m partial to citrus) and beer, wine or alcohol, like Bourbon. Lately I’ve been loving the addition of peppers, from smoky and sublime Poblano (Ancho when dried) to kicky with chipotle, jalepeno and New Mexican varieties.

My tips for a great, marinated steak:

  • Salt just before grilling (no salt in the marinade)
  • Marinate at least 12 hours (24 is much better)
  • Allow the meat to come to room temperature (or close to it) before grilling
  • Sear the meat off on a clean, hot grill but do not flip it around too much
  • Invest in a good quality meat thermometer if you are unsure of your skills in determining meat “doneness”
  • Likewise it is not advisable to slice into a steak or other cut of beef to check its “doneness”
  • Allow the cooked meat to rest on a warmed platter, covered, before slicing and serving

Ingredients. I soak the ancho chilies in the warm syrup I make with just sugar and water.

Puree the chilies. My small food processor is the one electric kitchen tool I find indispensible. I use it almost everyday.

The chilies look like this after they are pureed.

Add the lime zest, garlic and fresh ginger to the chili puree along with the lime juice, pepper and paprika.

Beer goes in last. It doesn’t matte what brand you use – whatever brand you like. My hubby likes Belgian-style “Shock Top” so that’s what I used here.

As you may know I’m a fan of those huge zippered bags for marinating (and brining) and that’s what I’m using here too.

Sprinkle liberally with salt and sear the meat on a hot grill. I use gas but charcoal works great too. It would be a treat to use real wood coals, someday perhaps…

Here’s that beautiful flank steak, almost ready for the platter. I made this for my hubby on Father’s Day along with grilled bacon wrapped, stuffed banana peppers and grilled fresh corn on the cob. My husband’s favorites.

After removing the steak from the grill allow it to rest for a few minutes, loosely covered, before slicing. This steak was really juicy and tender to the bite with a peppery, meaty flavor.

Ancho Chili Lime Marinated Flank Steak

  • 1/3 cup Demera or brown sugar
  • 1 cup water
  • 2-3 dried ancho chili peppers
  • 2-3 inch piece of fresh ginger
  • 1 lime
  • 3-4 cloves garlic, peeled
  • 1 tbl. ground pepper
  • 1 tsp. smoked sweet paprika
  • 1 beer
  • salt
  • 2 ½ – 3 lb Flank steak (or skirt or sirloin steak)

Prepare the marinade the day before you plan to grill and serve the steak. In a saucepan heat the water and sugar and stir until the sugar dissolves. Bring to a boil for 30 seconds and then remove from the heat. Add the dried Ancho chilies and allow them to soak for at least 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, peel and then grate or finely mince the ginger. Remove the zest from the lime and squeeze the juice into a bowl. Mince or press the garlic. Set aside.

Remove any tough stems fro the Ancho chilies and grind in a food processor or blender along with the soaking liquid. When ground, pour into a bowl and add the garlic, lime zest and juice, ginger, pepper and paprika. Pour in the beer and mix well. Wash and dry the steak. Place the steak in a very large bag or glass dish, pour marinade over and secure bag (or cover with plastic wrap).

Place in the refrigerator to marinate for 24 hours, turning the bag over 2 or 3 times during this time. When ready to cook, prepare your grill. Remove steak from bag and sprinkle liberally with salt. Sear each side and grill to your desired doneness, but I suggest rare or medium rare for best results. When grilling is complete remove to a warmed platter, cover with foil and allow to rest for 5-8 minutes before slicing across the grain.

Field Trip: of goats & poetry at Connemara

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“Time is the coin of your life. It is the only coin you have, and only you can determine

how it will be spent. Be careful lest you let other people spend it for you.”

― Carl Sandburg

3-day old nubian goats at the Connemara Farm, Carl Sandburg National Historic Site. Photo courtesy of the National Park Service.

It’s no joke that I have a thing for goats. Ever since my eighth grade class took a field trip to poet Carl Sandburg’s North Carolina home they have fascinated me. I think that trip was the first time I realized that there were other people, even famous people, who lived their life sort of like my family did. In as far as my father was no Pulitzer Prize winning poet and we did not raise goats (like Lillian ‘Paula’ Sandburg), my father was a business man, my mother worked as a dietician but we did not live in a suburb; we lived in the country.

The Sandburg’s most definitely lived in the country too and they raised…goats. Well, Paula Sandburg did and my mother raised quail… at one time, at least. My three older sisters also had a goat at one time, although it was not around by the time I arrived on the scene. My well-intentioned sisters had over fed the little guy and well, he expired. His short life is a story told many times in our family, with the result being that I would never be getting a goat.

The Sandburg’s could have lived any place they wanted but they chose Flat Rock, NC, located among the picturesque, green rolling hills about one hours drive south of Asheville. I also noted that the Sandburg’s simple farmhouse was filled with bookshelves, down most of the hallways, with every cranny filled with books and reading material. They loved books too. And the furnishings and the personal effects were left in tact. It was as if Paula Sandburg just left to tend her goats and would come through the kitchen door with a big glass jar of goat’s milk at any moment.

Carl Sandburg’s study. The interior of their home is warm, comfortable and appears as if Carl and Paula will be home any minute, well, if it was 1965. Photo courtesy of the National Park Service.

Paula Sandburg took up goat–keeping as a necessity when her husband was a struggling poet in Michigan. She continued to raise and breed goats as her husband became successful, having as many 200 Nubian, Saanens and Toggenburgs in her herd (called the Chikaming herd) in it’s hey-day. While Carl spent most of his time with words, Paula spent most of hers with her goats. By the time they moved to North Carolina in 1945, Paula was as famous for her goats as he was for his poetry and writing. In 1960 her champion Chikaming Toggenburg doe, “Jennifer II” set a world record for milk production with 5,750 lbs. of milk in ten months.

The National Park Service manages their home, “Connemara Farms”, today and you can visit it and Paula’s goats. There are around a dozen or so, reportedly some with the original Sandburg champion bloodline.

The goat barn at Connemara Farms on a foggy day. Photo courtesy of the National Park Service.

Visiting the Sandburg National Historic Site made quite an impression on me. After my visit there, I read up on raising goats AND Mr. Sandburg’s works – Rootabaga Stories was a favorite. I checked, A Sandburg Treasury: Prose & Poetry for Young People, out of the public library and poured over the tome, reading its entirety within my allotted two weeks. The simple beauty of “Fog” created a poetry fan for life and moved San Francisco to the top of my “must see” travel list. Visiting that city, and the adjacent wine country, years later, inspired and reignited my love for cooking and writing.

My husband will wince when he reads this, but I still hope to someday own a goat or three. But even if that never happens, we will take our girly girl to Connemara in a few years. I think she’ll love it as much as I did. In the meantime enjoy some poetry,  I’ve got to the get to the library to check out a book…

Fog by Carl Sandburg

THE fog comes

on little cat feet.

It sits looking

over harbor and city

on silent haunches

and then moves on.

Stars, Songs, Faces by Carl Sandburg

GATHER the stars if you wish it so.

Gather the songs and keep them.

Gather the faces of women.

Gather for keeping years and years.

And then …

Loosen your hands, let go and say good-by.

Let the stars and songs go.

Let the faces and years go.

Loosen your hands and say good-by.

Something delicious this way comes… blueberry streusel cobbler

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Hey there, it’s blueberry season across the USA ya’ll. Blueberries are my favorite fruit and I am always on the lookout for new delicious ways to make use of them, especially in the summer when they are fresh. Of course, they lend themselves best to desserts and baked goods and that’s how I first enjoyed them as a kid. Being Southern I also have a love for that most quintessential of southern desserts, the cobbler.

I enjoy a cobbler of the crispy, pie crust like variety as well as the more gooey, cakey type. My favorite recipe of the latter is probably well known to you if you’re a southern cook, as the “1-cup cobbler” recipe. Over the years I have taken this recipe, played with some of the ingredients and created a variation I find perfect for blueberries. This goes together in a snap.

It works well with blackberries too or a mixture of both. Top it with a big dollop of real whipped cream, good quality vanilla ice cream or for an authentic taste of the south, homemade vanilla custard (which I posted a few weeks ago).

Ingredients for this recipe plus the baking dish I use.

The streusel topping is made by mixing 4 tablespoons softened butter with the oatmeal, some Demera sugar, flour, cornmeal, a little salt and allspice. It will be crumbly.

Melt the butter right in the baking dish (and use the preheating oven for energy efficiency). Add in the sugar, the flour mixture and the vanilla.

The cobbler “mix” is also crumbly before adding the milk.

Add the milk and stir but do not over mix. There will be some lumps.

Blueberries go on top, looks like I missed a tiny piece of stem. Oh well, good for digestion!

At last the streusel topping goes…on top!

Out of the oven. Serve immediately. Cover leftovers with plastic wrap or foil and store in the refrigerator. You could also prepare this in individual portions by using small ramekins (should fill about (8) 1/2 cup size) and bake for 20-22 minutes.

Blueberry streusel cobbler

Streusel topping:

  • 4 tbl. unsalted butter, softened
  • ½ cup oatmeal
  • 2 tbl. cornmeal
  • 1/3 cup all-purpose four
  • ½ cup Demera or light brown sugar, packed
  • ½ tsp. salt
  • 1 tsp. allspice

Mix all ingredients together. The topping will be crumbly. Set aside while you make the cobbler.

Cobbler:

  • 6 tbl. unsalted butter
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 tsp. baking powder
  • ½ tsp. salt
  • 1/2 cup milk
  • 1 ½ -2 cups fresh blueberries, washed and picked over
  • 1 tsp. vanilla extract
  • 1 recipe streusel topping

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Mix the flour, salt and baking powder together. Melt butter in an ovenproof baking dish and stir in the sugar, flour mixture and vanilla extract. It will be crumbly. Stir in the milk until just mixed together – it will have lumps. Top evenly with the blueberries and then sprinkle streusel on top of that. Bake for approximately 40 minutes. Serve with ice cream, whipped cream or custard.

Summer showstopper: tomato, herb and cheese tart

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The recipe today is not my original creation, but one I have altered slightly for my largest tart pan. I’ve been in love with this recipe since 1993 when it appeared in Bon Appetite Magazine as the first course in a French themed dinner party feature. This one recipe includes 4 of my favorite ingredients all in one recipe – fresh herbs, fresh tomatoes, Gruyère cheese and butter. The tomatoes are just coming into season in my area and these are in indeed local – from my patio!

My daughter just plucked these tomatoes – our first of the season (her first home-grown ‘maters in her life) a few days ago. They turned out to be just barely under-ripe so we had to wait an excruciating 2 more days to use (eat) them. Of course I already knew I had to make “the tart” – I had been fantasizing about it since the day we stuck those plants in their pots over 6 weeks ago. It is my traditional “first tomato” recipe – well after slicing into one of the beauties to selfishly (and secretly) build and devour a BLT – with a slather of mayo on toasted bread. Yum.

This ‘pie’ looks and smells so lovely – like summer in a tart pan. The tender crusts presents a buttery stage for the tomatoes, herbs and cheese to shine. The original recipe makes a slightly larger tart but since my largest pan with a removable bottom is 12 inches in diameter I adjusted the recipe. Usually I still have a little dough left over. This is a delicious chef’s (or chef’s helper) treat – roll out the dough thin, sprinkle with fresh Parmesan, cut into strips, bake and voilà, delicious “straws”.

You can also make this tart into individual sized portions with small tart pans and  the recipe can easily be doubled if you need tarts for a crowd. I love this as a first course with a glass of pinot noir or cool Prosecco.  Add a side salad and you’ ve got a nice light lunch. The tart keeps very well refrigerated for a day or two after baking… if any lasts that long!

Herbs from my garden (patio pots) as well the tomatoes. The crust is simple to make and I am not showing a step by step on it, but the recipe is below.

Drain the tomato slices on paper towels.

Oregano, basil and thyme washed, dried and minced.

Slice the cheese fairly thin but more importantly in an even thickness. I like Gruyère but Emmenthal is very good too.

Roll out the dough quickly and use a light touch.

With an especially buttery dough, like this recipe, I find it easier to use the rolling pin to assist in moving the rolled out dough to the pan.

remove the excess dough from around the edge of the crust and prick the bottom and sides with a fork (or use foil with pie weights). Freeze for 15 minutes before pre-baking.

Layer the cheese slices first in the cooled crust.

Next, add the drained tomato slices, overlapping a little.

Here come the herbs! Sprinkle the grated Parmesan cheese on top and a few cracks of fresh pepper add zing.

Out of the oven posing with it’s “name sake” recipe from Bon Appetite, circa 1993. Relatively few – but exceedingly fresh – ingredients and a quick-to-put-together butter crust make this a summer showstopper.

Tomato, Herb & Cheese Tart

  • 1 recipe crust (see below)
  • 3-4 ripe tomatoes, cut into ¼” slices
  • 6 ounces Emmenthal or Gruyère cheese, sliced thin
  • 1 tbl. minced fresh oregano or 1 tsp. dried
  • 1 tbl. minced fresh basil or 1 tsp dried
  • 1 tbl. minced fresh thyme or 1 tsp. dried
  • 3 tbl. freshly grated Parmesan cheese
  • Fresh cracked pepper

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Roll out crust on a lightly floured surface to approx. 12-inch diameter and turn into a 10-inch tart pan with a removable bottom. Trim edges. Freeze for 15 minutes.

Line crust with foil and use pie weights to hold the crust down while it bakes OR simply prick all around with a fork. Bake until crust is set, about 15 minutes. Cool on rack.

Cut each tomato slice in half and place on paper towels to drain 45 minutes. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Top crust with Emmenthal or Gruyère cheese. Arrange tomatoes on atop cheese overlapping slightly. Sprinkle with herbs and then the Parmesan cheese. Season with a couple of cracks of pepper if you wish.

Bake until cheese melts and tomatoes are softened, about 35 minutes. Cool slightly, remove tart pan sides. Cut into slices and serve.

Crust

  • 1 cup all purpose flour
  • ¼ tsp. salt
  • 6 oz. unsalted butter, chilled and cut into small pieces
  • 3-4 tbl. ice water

Combine flour and salt in a medium-mixing bowl. Cut in butter with a fork or pastry bender until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add enough water by tablespoons for moist clumps to form. Gather into a ball, wrap in plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator to rest for 30 minutes.

Cornbread: plain and simple

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There are basically two kinds of cornbread, sweet or savory. Being a South Carolina girl I was raised on the traditional, southern-style unsweetened type. My mother made cornbread and corn muffins quite often especially in the fall and winter. Or if she was making certain other dishes like her wonderful vegetable soup or catfish stew or hoppin’ john – there must be cornbread being baked to soak up all that good stuff in the botttom of the bowl. I love my cornbread with a heaping helping of homemade, spicy chili or better yet, a brimming bowl of seafood gumbo.

I don’t think I ever tasted sweet cornbread until I was in college. I remember thinking that’s pretty good, but… “Shouldn’t it be served at breakfast?” It was so much like a bakery muffin I was hoping for a cup of coffee to go with it.

And just like the sweet versus savory preference, most folks I know have a favorite recipe or likewise, acknowledge someone who “makes the best, ever!” In my family this would be my mother, of course. I love her cornbread. Maybe it’s the old cast iron skillet or the brand of cornmeal she uses, but hers always tastes the best. For years I have tried to duplicate her heaven-sent cornbread, but to no avail. Mine was always too dry or tasteless or hard or greasy or (insert something negative here). Well, up until today’s recipe…

After conferring with my mama once again, I challenged myself to yet another round of cornbread disappointment but, lo and behold, this go ‘round came up with a winner. It’s moist and light with a soft crumb but also a nice crunchy crust around the outside. This is thanks to my mother’s special hot grease technique – genius!

Yes, it’s still savory – no sugar – but I add in corn cut off the cob for extra texture – some nice folks dropped some fresh, local corn off at the husband’s office this week – yahoo! Yes, this recipe does call for rendered pork drippings but with only 1 egg, no sugar and healthy canola/olive oil, I think that the insalubrious factor, i.e. bacon/jowl grease, is canceled out.  I’d like to think that anyway, because the flavor it adds, along with the fresh corn and tangy buttermilk, make this recipe g-o-o-d.

Ingredients for some good cornbread. Notice the “smart balance” oil … and also the sliced “hog jowl”, much like fatty bacon. Also the black cast iron skillet – well seasoned and it’s only about 20 years old…ha-ha!

Hog jowls…not that familiar but they worked out great. Not too salty but they provided just the right amount of fat for my cornbread. Bacon… or ‘pork belly’ would work well too. If you want to be really nutritionally naughty, chop these up after cooking and add them back to the batter with the corn kernels. Remember: you did not get this tip from me…

Whisk the buttermilk into the egg. I used “full strength” buttermilk but light or low fat will work just as well.

Add the dry ingredients to the egg/buttermilk mixture.

Add the oil mixture (oil plus leftover pork grease) to the batter. The grease/oil should be room temperature so the egg in the batter will be safe from ‘cooking’. After a good stir, add the corn kernels and a few cracks of fresh pepper and you’re ready for the hot skillet.

Pour the batter into the hot skillet.

The hot skillet may sizzle when you add the batter and it will most likely start to curl and cook around the edges, like its doing here. That’s a good thing.

Bake in a HOT oven (450 degrees) for 5 or 6 minutes and then reduce the temp to 425 for another 14 or 15 minutes. Do not over bake.

Out of the oven…looks good, smells great!

We have a winner! Finally a cornbread worthy of my cast iron skillet!

Cornbread: plain & simple

  • 1 ½ cup self-rising cornmeal (good quality like White Lily or Adluh)
  • ½ cup all purpose flour
  • ¼ tsp. baking powder
  • ½ tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp. salt
  • 3 slices of bacon or 4 slices smoked hog jowl
  • 1 egg
  • 1 ¼ cup buttermilk (whole or light)
  • 2/3 cup fresh corn kernels
  • Oil (vegetable, canola or mixture)
  • Pepper, preferably fresh cracked

In a heavy ovenproof skillet – preferably cast iron – cook the bacon or hog jowls on medium high heat until the fat is rendered. Remove the meat and pour the remaining grease into a heatproof measuring cup. Add enough vegetable oil to make just under ½ cup.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. In a bowl or piece of wax paper stir together the corn meal, flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside. In a large mixing bowl whisk the egg with the buttermilk until well combined. Add 3 tablespoons of the grease/oil mixture back to the skillet and place the skillet in the preheated oven.

Complete the next tasks post haste. The oil/grease in the skillet is heating but you do not want it to smoke or worse, burn so work rather quickly. Add the flour/cornmeal mixture to the buttermilk/egg mixture. Stir in the remaining oil mixture and then the corn. Add a few cracks of fresh pepper and stir again. Carefully remove the hot skillet form the oven and pour the batter into the hot oil. Place the hot skillet back in the oven and bake 5-6 minutes. Then reduce the oven temperature to 425 degrees and bake an additional 14-15 minutes until the cornbread is baked through. Do not overcook. Cool on a rack for a minute, slice, and serve.

Surprising Summer Citrus Couscous Salad

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Today I offer up a recipe that is full of surprises. Like the first time you ever tasted salty and sweet together – who would have thought those two seemingly opposite tastes would complement each other so well? Couscous is an old grain, semolina actually, originally first used in North Africa/Andalusian regions and now widely loved from the Middle East to Europe to South America and the U.S. But the couscous is not the stunner really – well, it may be since I write about Southern-style US cooking, so the fact that I use this as a base for my salad may be out of the box. However, my recipe incorporates other ingredients in combination that are more of a revelation than any actual shock.

Over the years I’ve made this “salad”, I’ve used quite a few combinations of herbs, spices and fruit flavors. But when I stumbled upon the combination of fresh mint and thyme mixed with orange zest I was happily surprised by the overwhelming fresh taste and alluring citrus smell of this dish. I emphasize the use of fresh herbs and fresh orange, not sure anything less would work out as well. The Balsamic vinaigrette also lends the whole dish a bit of extra zing and the crunch of the bell peppers and sweetness of the craisins adds more dimension. It also looks very pretty on the plate!

You can use any flavor or brand of couscous you prefer. I like this garlic and olive oil flavor. The salad can be made ahead – some may even say its better when the flavors are allowed to meld together awhile…

Par boil (or blanche) the carrots for 2 minutes, drain and allow to cool.

Here are the pretty veggies (and craisins). You can use any color bell pepper you have or like.

Adding the Balsamic to the juice and oil.

Add the honey to vinaigrette. I happened to have some unfiltered orange blossom honey – yummy!

This is what cooked couscous looks like in the pan, before it’s been fluffed with a fork. For those who are not familiar…

Here is the mint, thyme and orange zest – looks pretty and smells heavenly!

Everything has been added and lightly mixed in. Add in the vinaigrette carefully – you may find, as I do, that you don’t need the whole recipe. Impress your family and friends at your next cook out with this salad! My husband loves this salad – it goes great along side burgers, steaks or grilled fish or chicken.

Summer Citrus Couscous Salad

  • 1 (5.8 oz) box couscous, any flavor
  • 1 large fresh orange
  • 1 cup+ chopped carrots, small chop,
  • ½ cup chopped sweet bell pepper, small chop
  • 1/3 cup dried cranberries (such as Ocean Spray Craisins), roughly chopped
  • ¼ cup fresh mint, washed and chopped
  • 2 tbl. fresh thyme, washed and minced
  • 2 tbl. Balsamic vinegar
  • 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 ½ tbl. honey
  • ¼ tsp. salt plus extra
  • fresh ground pepper

Prepare the couscous according to directions on the box. Allow to cool and fluff with fork. Set aside. In a small saucepan bring some water to a boil. Add carrots and boil approximately 2 minutes. Remove from heat and drain. Allow to cool. Grate the zest from the orange to get at least 1 tablespoon. Set aside. Squeeze the orange to get about ½ cup juice.

In a medium bowl whisk together the orange juice, olive oil, honey and vinegar. Sprinkle with ¼ tsp. salt, whisk together. You should have almost 1 cup. Set aside.

In a large serving bowl mix together the carrots, bell pepper, craisins and the cooled couscous. Mix lightly. Stir in the mint, orange zest and thyme. Pour half the vinaigrette over the mixture and carefully mix together. Add some ground pepper. You may pour in rest of vinaigrette – or not. I find I usually only use a little more half the vinaigrette. Use the leftover vinaigrette as a base for an Italian-style salad dressing or grilling marinade. It will keep in the refrigerator several days.

Adjust the couscous salad with salt and pepper to your taste. You may serve immediately or cover and store in the refrigerator until ready to use, up to a day.

Ode to Daddys Everywhere: Succulent Cheat’in Ribs

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My apologies for only posting twice this week. As it happens, ‘real’ work became a priority and dang nabbit I had to write, write, write all week long. If you’d like to see a snapshot of what I do outside of the southbyse.com blog, I invite you to pop over to the Hilton Head Island Bluffton V&CB blog site, where I make the big bucks (ha-ha) as their foodie vibe blogger.

Ingredients are basic – not too many frills. But you can see the “cheat’in” ingredient in this recipe in the upper left – liquid smoke. Don’t spill any on yourself, you’ll be bound to attract all type of pesky critters looking for barbeque.

Check out these nice juicy, meaty ribs. These are baby back ribs but I really prefer St. Louis style.

Since I feel bad about shorting the posts this week I am going to double-down with both a story-post and a recipe. Here in the states it is Father’s Day on Sunday and I would be remiss if I did not honor the Dads in my life. First there is my husband, who not only is a patient and kind father to our 4–year-old girly girl, but never complains when he gets put in time-out (again!) during ‘class’ ruled over with iron crayons, by said daughter. Cheers go out to my father-in-law Mike, who shares my love of strong coffee and red wine and actually listens to my sometimes forthright opinions on politics, world affairs, and cooking. To my older brother-in-law Lee I say, good job on raising smart, open-minded kids with the wherewithal to appreciate both creamy, slow-cooked grits and foie gras. To my newest brother-in-law, Evan, being your first father’s day and with certainly many more to come, remember to never let a day go by without hugging both your child and your wife and telling them, “I you love”. Sure they know it, but it’s always best to show it!

Make the rub. I always use salt, Demera or brown sugar and different kinds of pepper but it’s really a matter of your taste preference.

Since my own dad passed away almost 9 years ago, father’s day has been a little sad for me. But knowing my Daddy, this would not set right with him and I can imagine him say saying, “Sugar, now don’t be sad! I’m up here watching out for you, don’t you know. Go on and have yourself a big piece of that (insert: cobbler, pie, cake, fried chicken) and you’ll feel right as rain. I’ll see you again someday – not too soon, but someday”. Ah, my Daddy. He was a strong Christian and of the Baptist faith, which fit him perfectly since he was as tall, boisterous and friendly but exceedingly kind and modest, as any country preacher-man.

On the rack with the rub, ready to be covered with foil. Pour the juice or wine or beer or whatever in the bottom of the pan and add the liquid smoke. Shhh… don’t tell.

My Daddy was a friend to both neighbor and stranger, and truly aimed to live by the golden rule: “Do unto others as you would have done to yourself.” It’s a little saying that has a huge impact and to this day I try to live by the same. My father was also a tinker, a thinker, a fisherman, a gentleman farmer and a lover of nature. All traits I admire, and some of which luckily rubbed off on me. Thanks Daddy!

This is a boring picture but it is important to cover the entire pan with foil securely – no rips or missed spots.

There’s so much more good stuff to know about my dad, I could write a book. But I’ll stop here and state that above all my Dad loved his wife (my Mom), his 5 kids and our extended family. We were always his number one, second only to God and placed well above himself.

One thing my Daddy did love was to eat good food. He had a pretty strong sweet tooth and never passed up a dessert, especially my Mother’s cakes or pies. And, as I’ve mentioned before my Dad was a barbeque expert, commonly referred to as a pitmaster. He would laugh at that title, I think. But he did rule the ‘pit’ as his specialty was roasting a whole hog in a traditional method, known as Williamsburg County style. Of late, this method has garnered some fame mostly through Rodney Scott of Scott’s Bar-b-que in Hemingway, SC . TV host and foodie Andrew Zimmern called Scott’s barbeque “the best he’s ever had”. And Rodney cooked up some fine ‘Q’ at the last year’s Music to your Mouth festival at toney Palmetto Bluff. Not surprising to me at all.

Out the oven it’s not as pretty as a wood smoked rack for sure but it should be juicy and flavorful. We’re taking care of the pretties in a moment.

This method of cooking the pork is very basic, allowing the flavor of the pork and the wood smoke to shine, so as long as you don’t use overly hot coals, or otherwise overcook the meat, you’re good. The recipe I’m presenting today is NOT great barbeque on line with Scott’s or my Daddy’s. But it is pretty darn good and since I am currently at a lack for a pig pit or whole hog for that matter, I improvise my barbeque technique.

Here it goes onto the rack to sear and get some nice grill marks along with your favorite barbeque sauce.

We love pork ribs in my family so I make these racks whenever we have a hankering for barbeque. The method is the key – cook them low and slow, i.e. low temperature for a long time. I make my own rub with whatever I have available but it always includes salt, sugar, and several kinds of pepper. The cheat’in part is to make up for the lack of smoke – hard to come by without a real wood fire! And of course better quality pork makes better tasting pork ribs.

Here we go, that’s better! Finish it up on the grill and you’re all done. Easy peasy.

Succulent Cheat’in Ribs

  • 1 rack good quality pork ribs, baby backs or St. Loius preferred
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar (or Demera)
  • 1 tsp. salt
  • 1 tsp. black pepper
  • 1/2 tsp. ground chipotle pepper or red pepper
  • 2 tsp. adobo seasoning
  • 1 tsp. smoked sweet praprika
  • 1 tsp. liquid smoke (this is the cheat’in part!)
  • 1 1/2 cups liquid – fruit juice such as apple or wine or beer or a combination
  • barbeque sauce (your favorite!)

Preheat oven to 200 degrees. Wash and dry the ribs. Prepare a roasting pan with rack. Mix together all other ingredients except the liquid smoke and liquid/juice to make the rub. Sprinkle this mixture over and rub onto both sides of the ribs. Place ribs on the rack. Pour the liquid or juice into the bottom of the roasting pan and add the liquid smoke. Cover roasting pan with foil, making sure it is sealed well. Roast in the oven for 3 1/2 to 4  hours or until ribs are cooked and tender but not literally falling off the bone. Depending on what type of grill you have prepare it while the ribs are roasting.

When hot, place cooked rib on grill and brown or sear on each side. After one side is browned slather on the barbeque sauce and continue to grill until ribs are to your liking. Serve immediately with extra sauce.

* If you are using a charcoal grill and have a smoker box feel free to use it when you are grilling off the meat, even it’s just to lessen the “cheat’in” aspect of his recipe!

[Remembering] a white Christmas in June with tasty shrimp dip

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Even though summer isn’t official until June 20th, here along the coast of South Carolina we’ve had summer-like weather for a couple of months. School is out and a tropical storm passed within shout’ in distance in May. And while we haven’t landed any monster crabs yet off our community dock, local commercial shrimpers have been filling their nets for several weeks and a neighbor of ours hauled in a couple of beautiful red drum (known around here as redfish or reds) over the weekend.

Thinking about all this ocean bounty started me thing about…Christmas. Yes, I realize this makes no sense, as Christmas is in December and that means winter and cold weather (even here). Let me explain…

There are a few recipes for which I have a claim to fame, if you will. Well, I use the term ‘fame’ loosely, as the scope of my celebrité reaches the farthest corners of… family cookouts and neighborhood potlucks. Nevertheless, my shrimp dip is probably my most-requested dish.

This recipe goes back, way back – to 1989. It was created out of necessity and a snowstorm, if you can believe it. I was staying with one of my sisters and her family on the isle of Hilton Head and it was Christmas time. While I was supposed to head up to my parent’s home and my sister was supposed to travel to her in-laws in Pinehurst, NC the weather took an odd turn, with frigid temperatures and icy conditions shutting down parts of the Interstate 95 corridor. We could not travel so we went into emergency mode and stayed put at home

After running to the Piggly Wiggly on an emergency supply run, we settled in for a long winter’s nap and woke up to about 4 or 5 inches of the fluffy white stuff and no hot water. While the power was on, a pipe burst and we were without hot water. Oh well, we made due with what we had or were able to purchase the day before. My brother-in-law mentioned he had some shrimp fresh frozen so, “please try to make some kind of appetizer out it and whatever else you like.” Our family likes to snack but snack well, especially while we cook up the ‘main event’ for a holiday dinner. I was up to the challenge.

So I created this spread. The fresh parsley and lemon along with the shrimp really make this sing so I would not substitute or go for less than fresh on these items. Now I did state the shrimp were fresh frozen and they were tiny as well, if memory serves me. But they were locally caught, wild shrimp (not farmed) caught by my brother-in-law in month prior to being used in this recipe.

Letting the mixture sit makes a difference too. I made the inaugural concoction early in the day and it sat refrigerated for a few hours before being gobbled up, so the flavors had time to meld together. Lastly, I prefer noticeable chunks of shrimp in the dip so usually I roughly grind half the shrimp in the food processor and then chop the other half by hand to the perfect size – you’ll get shrimp in every bite!

This is a shrimp boat at the Bluffton Oyster Company. That big pile of shells are actually oyster shells, which will be recycled into paving and decorative building materials.

These are fresh, w-i-l-d shrimp for sale – yum! (This is Bluffton Oyster Company.)

A much smaller pile o’shrimp, ready to be lightly cooked.

Cooked shrimp have been drained and are ready to peel.

Chop the shrimp by hand or use a food processor – usually I use both so half the shrimp are finely minced and half are chopped.

I mix the cream cheese and mayo first and then add the other ingredients. I prefer homemade mayo but Duke’s is my first choice for store-bought.

Adding the hot sauce. I like Crystal or Tabasco but use your favorite!

Finally, fold in those delicious shrimp. Let the mixture rest in the refrigerator so the flavors meld – if you can keep your kids, your spouse, your friends and yourself from snatching samples!

Tasty Shrimp Dip

  • 1- 8 oz. package cream cheese, softened
  • ½ cup mayonnaise (preferably homemade)
  • 1 1/2 cups cooked shrimp, peeled with tails removed
  • 1 lemon
  • ¼ cup sweet onion (preferably Vidalia), grated
  • 1 large clove of garlic, minced or pressed
  • ½ cup fresh parsley, washed, dried and finely chopped
  • 2 tsp. Dijon mustard
  • 1 tsp. hot sauce
  • salt and pepper

Finely chop the cooked shrimp but do not pulverize. You can do this by hand or with a food processor. Grate the zest of the lemon and squeeze the juice and set aside. In a medium bowl mix all the ingredients together including the shrimp and the lemon except the salt and pepper. I suggest this order: Mix mayo and cream cheese until smooth. Then add onion, lemon zest and juice, garlic, and mustard. Mix in parsley and the hot sauce. Fold the shrimp in last. Taste the mixture, adding salt and pepper if you like.

Store in a covered bowl in the refrigerator at least 1 hour or up to 24 hours. Serve with crackers or toast points.

Farmers market pick: savory stuffed patty pan squash

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Do you like farmer’s markets? I love farmers markets. Within 20 miles of my home there are 8, yes 8, farmers markets going on during the week. Very nice for our little ‘burg. Some are relatively small and simple and some are bigger with a festival atmosphere and extras like craft vendors, live music and food trucks. I love them so much that dear Hubby has put my wallet on ‘farmers market lock-down’ and I now stick to a budget of less than $15. Well, unless we’re having a meal there or we’re having guests and I’m cooking.

The farmers market is made for browsers like me. I tend to walk around a lot before I make any purchases and this can drive those who are not browsers (like Hubby) crazy. He’s not a browser, but a git-r-done type person. It can also unnerve some of the farmers and vendors, I realized recently. I see them look at me as I pass by their stall for the third or fourth time and I can tell they are thinking, “You again…what are you up to? Just go ahead and buy something already!”

To each their own, but I like “look’ in” as my Daddy would say. It’s relaxing to me and with the variety of colors, textures and smells, my creative juices begin to flow. I am formulating a plan in my noggin. What looks great? What may be out of season and NOT available soon? What is reasonably priced? How can I combine this vegetable with some other ingredient I have a hankering to cook this weekend? Hum. At this point Hubby has taken our girl over to get lemonade or an Italian ice and left me to decide my final purchases. Smart, smart Hubby.

Thus, I come home with a bunch of patty pan squash, among other things. Over the last several weeks I had seen them at every farmers market. They are so cute with bright yellow scalloped bases splashed with dark green splotches – they can even sport hats! “They’d make the perfect vessel for something delicious”, I thought.

As it so happens, I also stopped that day by a favorite vendor, Mibek Farms, and discovered garlic sausages for sale. My brain clicked into high gear and after one mediocre attempt, the Savory Stuffed Patty Pan Squash recipe was given the thumbs up by Hubby (and me). This recipe uses a combination of fresh herbs I had available, but feel free to try your own preferred mixture and if you can’t find garlic sausage use your favorite fresh, uncured sausage.

See you at the farmers market!

Use a sharp knife to remove the top at an angle. Trim excess pulp and remove any large seeds.

Scoop pulp out of the squash. I use the knife to neatly loosen it all the way around and a spoon to remove the center. It should pop out, but don’t break through to the bottom.

Chop the pulp. Again, remove any excessively large seeds.

Brown the sausage and then drain on paper towels. You’ll use this saute pan to…

…saute the onions. No need to use a clean pan. Try to scrape up any leftover sausage bits.

Meanwhile, par boil the patty pan squash. If you have big ones, drop the bottoms in first and allow to cook about 2 minutes, then drop in the tops and remove all after another minute. The small patty squash should par boil about 1 minute for the bottoms plus 30 seconds or so for the tops.

Drain the squash in a colander. I pour some ice and water over them to stop the cooking process.

Add the cooked rice, drained sausage, herbs, chopped squash pulp and a few cracks of pepper to the sauteed onions.

Stir in the tomato paste and chopped tomato until just mixed.

Place half the filling mixture in the baking dish and place the patty pan bottoms on top. Sprinkle some salt inside the squash bottoms and spoon in the filling.

Place the tops on the squash and cover the baking dish with foil (or a cover if you have one). Out of the oven in about 45 minutes.

Savory Stuffed Patty Pan Squash

  • 4-5 large or 8-10 small patty pan squash, cleaned with pulp scooped out and chopped (save tops)
  • 1 cup brown rice
  • 2 ¼ cups vegetable stock
  • 1 tsp. olive oil
  • 2/3 cup sweet onion, small chop
  • 2-3 links garlic sausage (or your favorite fresh sausage, not breakfast sausage) casings removed
  • ½ tsp. + extra salt
  • ¼ cup fresh Italian parsley, chopped
  • ¼ cup fresh oregano, chopped
  • 1 tsp. herbs de Provence
  • ½ tsp. powdered thyme
  • 1 tbl. grape oil or vegetable oil
  • 2 tbl. tomato paste
  • 1 small tomato, small chop
  • Fresh ground pepper

Cook the rice in the vegetable stock and olive oil. Heat the grape oil in a large sauté pan and brown the sausage and drain on paper towels. Do not clean the pan but sauté the onions in the pan for about 3-4 minutes, scraping up the bits stuck in the pan. Remove form heat and set aside.

In a large pot heat water and add a few dashes of salt. When near boiling drop squash bottoms in salted water and allow to par boil about 2 minutes for the large patty pan and 1 minute for the small size. Add the tops and cook all another 1 minute. Drain all the squash in a colander and cool with water and/or ice to stop any further cooking.

Add the sausage, rice, and herbs to the onions and stir. Stir in the tomato paste, shopped tomato and a few cracks of fresh pepper and salt to taste.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a 9 x 13 oven-proof baking dish spread about half the filling. Place the patty pan bottoms on the filling and lightly sprinkle the interiors with salt. Spoon filling into each patty and place tops on each squash. Cover the baking dish with a cover or foil and bake for about 35 minutes in the preheated oven. Remove foil and bake another 5-10 minutes.