Shrimp and Grits

At the end of July Dear Husband and I visited Savannah for the day as we were traveling home from St. Augustine. We had planned to eat at The Lady and Sons, however, we didn't get there early enough to get on the list. We opted for Uncle Bubba's Oyster House instead.....afterall, it is Paula's brother's place.

I ordered the Shrimp and Grits. It was great....to die for! Ever since I've been looking for a recipe that came close to Uncle Bubba's.

Here are a few pictures from my Creative Saturday....where I fixed the dish and the recipe follows:

The plate of veggies and shrimp I set aside while I made the cream gravy.

The cream gravy, shrimp and loaf of bread I baked.

Our table setting....

Shrimp and Grits

4 servings cooked grits
2 T. olive oil
½ cup diced tasso ham
2 T. diced leeks
2 T. diced onions
2 T. diced green peppers
20 medium to large shrimp, peeled and de-veined with tails on
1-2 T. dry white wine
1 cup heavy cream
Salt and pepper
Green onion tops, chopped

*****note: tasso ham is Cajun ham an often hard to find outside of Louisana….substitute salt pork, pancetta, or prosciutto. I used 4 slices of thick-sliced bacon….chopped. Then cooked the veggies in the bacon drippings.

Cook grits according to package directions; set aside and keep warm.

Heat oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add tasso and sauté until crisp. Add diced vegetables and sauté until onions are transluscent. Add shrimp and sauté for 30-45 seconds, or until pink. Remove from the pan and set aside. Deglaze the pan with the wine. Slowly add the cream and let reduce until thickened. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Divide grits among four plates. Line plate edges with shrimp. Pour sauce over grits. Garnish with green onion tops.

For a great wedding idea, use martini glasses to serve shrimp and grits, with the grits on the bottom and the shrimp on top.

Birthday Breakfast

Today is my husband’s 50th birthday, and he’s the one that got up and fixed pancakes.

Am I blessed or what?

After hearing a song called Banana Pancakes by Jack Johnson he got a hankering for them. All he did was mash up a couple of bananas and put the mixture in the pancake batter…..made from Bisquick.

Mmmmmmm….the only thing I would have done different was add some pecans.

He also took some bananas…sliced them up…sauted them in butter….and topped them with brown sugar.

During our breakfast he fessed up and told me the song I’ve added below was his inspiration for banana pancakes....It's called Banana Pancakes by Jack Johnson.

Greek Stuffed Peppers

My husband found this recipe on delish.com. We’ve been trying to eliminate so much meat from our diet and this dish looked like a perfect fit. I had intestinal surgery back in August, so the spinach wasn’t my friend, however, my family really loved the dish.

Here is the list of ingredients:

4 multi-colored bell peppers

½ cup whole –wheat orzo

1 can (15 oz.) chickpeas, drained and rinsed

1 T. extra virgin olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped

6 oz. baby spinach, coarsely chopped

1 T. chopped fresh oregano or 1 teaspooon dried

¾ cup crumbled feta, divided

¼ cup sun-dried tomatos (not oil packed), chopped

1 T. sherry vinegar or red wine vinegar

¼ teaspoon salt

Halve peppers lengthwise through stems, leaving steam attached. Remove seeds and white membranes. Place peppers cut side down in a large microwave-safe dish. Add ½-inch water, cover and microwave the peppers on high until the peppers are just softened, 7-9 minutes. Let cool slightly, drain, and set aside.

Meanwhile bring a large saucepan of water to a boil. Add orzo and cook until till just tender, 8-10 minutes or according to package directions. Drain and rinse with cool water.

Mash chickpeas into a chunky paste with a fork leaving a few of the peas whole.


Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add onion and cook stirring until soft, about four minutes. Add spinach and oregano and cook until the spinach is wilted, about one minute. Stir the orzo, chickpeas, ½ cup feta cheese, tomatos, vinegar, and salt. Cook until heated through about one minute.

Divide the filling among the pepper halves and sprinkle the remaining ¼ cup feta cheese over the peppers. Place peppers in a 350-degree oven until cheese melts a bit and peppers and filling are heated through.

Private Quarters Party

I hosted a Private Quarters party last night. I had been to a couple and decided to host my own to share the wonderful products with more people. Several ladies in my circle of friends are familiar with Private Quarters, so we keep having the parties to provide each other the opportunity to purchase items on our wish lists.

My theme for the evening was Tuscan…..When I looked up Tuscan foods I discovered the dishes included a lot of beans and meat….not what you generally think of when you think “Italy”, so I went off the menu a bit and had things that were simple and easy.

Mainly I opened up a bunch of packages and jars.

I purchased some Classico brand bruchetta, and I served with Garlic and Parmesan toasts I got from Publix. The bread slices were very hard, but after spreading the Bruchetta on and allowing it to sit for a bit it was very chewy.

I used a long skinny basket I've had for years to fashion a centerpiece. I used a tupperware container in one end to hold some crackers. I draped a cloth napkin over the tupperware to hide it. In the other side of the basket I used a couple of small silk ivey bushes.

I used my “Taste of Home” appetizer server/cake server to hold some fresh fruit and I mixed up some Ricotta Fruit Dip in my blender. Mix ½ cup low fat ricotta cheese; 4 oz. cream cheese, softened; 3 T. orange juice; 2 T. powdered sugar in the blender. Add mixture to one 6 oz. container vanilla low fat yogurt. Stir well and transfer to serving bowl. Serve with cut up fruit.

For the marinated mozzarella I took a pound and a half of cheese and sliced it into chunks. I mixed up 6-8 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, 1 T. chopped basil ( I used dried, but the recipe called for fresh), ½ t. crushed red pepper, and ¼ t. ground sea salt. I put the cheese in my serving bowl and drizzled the olive oil mixture over it. Very pretty…very good.

The chickpea salad came from the Publix deli.

I also sliced up some salami and had some garlic and herb cheese spread for the crackers.

Lemon Glazed Poundcake from the Publix bakery.

We had tea and coffee to drink, and since the invites stated I would have wine (the Private Quarters representative did the invites for me) I picked up a bottle each of white and red suitable for light appetizer fare including fruits.

I purchased Beringer California collection. The red wine was actually a white merlot (2007). The white was a Moscato (2008) and the label states it is a floral-scented wine with the aroma of honeysuckle and fruity flavors.

It was not to be, however. I didn’t have any takers for a glass of wine, so hubby and I will enjoy it over the weekend as we finish off the leftovers.

Our tea....

Savory Spinach and Cheese bites from the freezer section....

....and some coffee all set up and ready to go if someone wanted it.

Here are some of the party guests:

Dinner for Nine

My husband and I are members of a small fellowship group from our church. There are nine members….four men and five women, or four couples and one widow. We get together once a month for dinner, fellowship, prayer, and the host always provides some type of Bible lesson or devotion.

We’ve been members of the group since last August, but my health concerns over the last few months have kept us from hosting until our March meeting.

I wanted everything to be “just so”, and it was.

Since none of us have a dining table that seats nine we usually have a men's table and a ladies' table.

Here are some shots of the ladies' table....click on each image for a better view.



The table cloth was white linen from Ralph Lauren...found on sale at Kohls. I got such a good deal with the cloth that I purchased the matching white napkins as well. The placemats are also from Ralph Lauren. I found them for $2.00 each at Dillards right after Christmas....they had been $25!

The glassware came from Target.

I wish I could say the gold silverware is mine, but it is available to me when I need it. It belongs to my sister. I'm thinking I may ask for my own set for next Christmas. Isn't it lovely.....it looked great with the gold dishes.




The flower pots in the middle of the table were purchased at Michaels...on sale. I had worried I would have too much white with the table covering being white, the white pots and flowers.....

To break the white I purchased some brown laquered nesting boxes that came in four sizes. I ordered two sets, so I would have plenty of different options. I opted for using one box in the middle and two boxes underneath each pot on the outside.

The butterflies were also found at Michaels....the butterfly just happens to be the women's symbol of the group we belong to. I had thought about purchasing some gold napkin rings and wrapping the wire the butterflies were on around the ring, but opted instead just to nest one butterfly in each arrangement.

I have printed roman shades to go on my French doors, but haven't gotten them up yet.....I'm going to miss all the light early in the morning when they do go up. Notice the kitty by door.....

Here's a better shot of the flower arrangements down the middle of the table.

I also found gold covered placecard holders at Michaels in the wedding section. I printed out the everyone's name on cardstock and then cut them to fit the frame. The cardholders are just paper/cardboard and pretty cheap, so I believe I'll purchase some mini-frames next time to hold the cards.

I have several cut glass votive holders, so to place a little candlelight at each place I put a votive holder in front of each place setting. Instead of regular votives I used gold colored ones. The votives work the best because I don't have to worry about messing up my candleholders with wax.

For dessert we had Key Lime Cake. No......I didn't make it. I bought it at a local bakery. It was very good. Lots of good lime taste with a lemon curd filling. Yum!

Here's a shot of the men's table I set up in the Great Room. I tried to stick to manly colors and no fru-fru.

The folding table was purchased at Bed Bath and Beyond. It is all wood. The top of the table is a leather inset with a wooden frame around it. It was just too lovely and manish to cover, so I opted for placemats only in a dark red tone.

The napkins were ringed, and I just sat them inside the salad bowl.

Every place had a green plate, but I alternated my green and dark red salad bowls. I placed a hurricane lamp in the middle of the table with brown tones.

For dinner we had a marinated pork loin, asparagus with hollandaise, salad, wild rice, crescent rolls, and the key lime cake.

Playing the Coupon Game...Again

I used to use coupons all the time when I shopped for groceries, however, when I worked a full-time job I got away from the practice. Now that I’m home again and with the economy being like it is I’ve decided to become a coupon professional again.

I used coupons on 4-11-09 at my local Publix. My total purchase was $137.07, and my ticket indicates a total savings of $37.46 which breaks down to $7.50 store coupons, $12.95 vendor coupons, $16.49 advertised special savings, and $0.52 advantage buy savings.

I visited my local Kroger this past Saturday….5-2-09. My total purchase was $186.10, and my ticket indicates a total savings of $53.62 which breaks down to $16.65 manufacturer’s coupons, $1.80 bonus coupon savings, $35.17 store coupons and Kroger Plus Savings.

One thing I like about the Kroger receipt that I didn’t get with Publix was the number of items purchased….I purchased 67 items at Kroger.

Another thing....while I'm impressed by what I save using my Kroger Plus card or buy purchasing the bonus buys at Publix, I don't really gauge my savings on those items. Seems like they jack up the price and then lull you into thinking you are actually saving something. I tend to use the manufacturer coupon amount as a sign that I've really done well at the store. The rest seems like gravy.

These four sites came up as the top four Google sites when I searched for “grocery coupons”.

Coupons from Smartsource.com – this is the site for the company that prints the coupons I receive in my Sunday paper.

CouponMom.com

The Grocery Game

GroceryCoupons.com

Easter, 2009

It was a beautiful day here west of Atlanta. We churched, went out for lunch, and then I cooked a family Easter dinner. My menu included Pork Loin Roast, Asparagus with Hollandaise Sauce, Wild Rice , Crescent Rolls, and homemade Peach Cobbler.

I made it easy on myself and didn’t really follow a recipe for the roast. I lightly coated it with olive oil and then used McCormick Crusting Blends. It contains spices and panco bread crumbs.

The wild rice was the same rice I had served at a dinner party….ended up with too much, so I froze it for later.

I trimmed the asparagus and steamed it. The Hollandaise was one of those Knorr mixes with a little lemon juice added to it at the end.

The crescent rolls were from Pillsbury.

Since we didn’t do Easter baskets this year…none of us need the calories and my kids are 23 and 16…I bought Lindt chocolate bunnies to put at each place setting.

The Peach Cobbler was spectacular. Here’s the recipe:

If you are using an 8 x 8 pan melt 1 stick of butter in the pan while the oven preheats to 350-degrees. Mix together 1 cup sugar with 1 cup Bisquick. Add 1 cup milk. I stir it together long enough to remove the large lumps.

Pour the sugar/flour/milk mixture into the pan on top of the butter. Open a can of pie filling such as apple, peach, etc. I used peach pie filling. Spoon the contents of the can over the flour mixture. Swirl the pie filling mixture through the sugar/flour/milk mixture.

Bake approximately 30 minutes at 350-degrees or until the crust is brown. After removing the cobbler from the oven sprinkle it with granulated sugar.

For our Easter dinner or when I want to serve more folks I use my glass 9 x 13 casserole dish. I double the amounts given above including the pie filling and the cobbler turns out great.