Ally, Jerry, Jasper, and Ella come to the beach!

Ella is old enough to travel and Jerry has some time off. We met in Birmingham for Grandmother's birthday and then caravanned back to Perdido. We all had fun at the pool and we kept Ella and Jasper at the condo some so Ally & Jerry they could enjoy the beach and some adult time.

Jerry & Ally were also able to have a couple of "dates" while LaLa and Pepere enjoyed the babies.

What we cooked while they were here:

Denis made Chicken and Bows, Fish Tacos, Sauteed Red Snapper,& a Low-Country Boil.

I made the frittata and an original Shrimp & Grits with left-overs from the low-country boil.

Zucchini-Tomato Fritta

This is really good! It's a great way to use up zucchini and adds some vegetables to breakfast. Ally liked it and she had developed an aversion to squash during her pregnancy with Ella.


Covering the onion and zucchini for a few minutes while they cook helps them steam evenly; once the pan is uncovered, let the liquid evaporate so the frittata will be firm.

Yields: 8 servings
Ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 small onion, finely diced
3 medium zucchini, (1½ pounds), cut into ¼-inch-thick rounds
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves (or 1 teaspoon dried)
Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
8 large eggs
¼ cup milk
¾ cup shredded shredded white cheddar
3 medium (1 pound) vine ripe tomatoes, cored and thinly sliced crosswise
Directions

Directions

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. In a 10-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat, warm oil. Add onion, zucchini, and thyme; cook, covered, stirring often, until tender but not browned, 8 to 10 minutes. Uncover, and cook until all the liquid in the pan evaporates. Season with salt and pepper; remove skillet from heat.

In a medium bowl, whisk eggs, milk, and cheese, salt, and pepper. Pour egg mixture over zucchini, gently lifting zucchini to allow eggs to coat bottom of pan. Arrange tomatoes in an overlapping pattern on top.

Return skillet to medium-low heat, and cook until sides are set yet still slightly runny on top, 15 to 20 minutes. Place in oven, and cook until the center is cooked through when tested with a wooden skewer, and the tomatoes are browned, 10 to 15 minutes. Remove from oven; gently slide a heatproof spatula around the edges and underneath to loosen from skillet. Serve immediately.

From Everyday Food,

May 2004

LaLa's Shrimp & Grits (made with left-overs from Denis' Lo-Country Boil)

1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 small onion, diced
1 garlic clove, diced
1/2 poblano pepper, diced
2 fresh tomatoes, diced
Hot sauce to taste
salt & pepper to taste
Left-over boiled shrimp, chopped into bite-sized pieces (about 4 large shrimp per portion)
Left-over cooked spicy sausage, diced
Cooked grits
Shredded sharp white cheddar cheese

In a medium saucepan, drizzle olive oil and add onions, garlic, and poblano and then bring to medium low heat. I like to add garlic to cold oil and bring up to heat so that it doesn't burn and get bitter. Saute vegetables until tender. Add in diced tomatoes, hot sauce and salt and pepper and simmer for about 5 minutes.

Meantime, cook grits according to package directions.

When the tomato sauce has cooked, add in the shrimp and sausage and bring back to simmer.

To serve: Fix individual bowls of grits and stir in desired amount of cheese. When cheese has melted, spoon shrimp mixture over grits.

July beach fun!

Some family visits just don't go as planned........Forrest came down to the beach on Tuesday night and I had to wake him up Wednesday morning for a trip to the ER. Evidently I have a kidney stone that doesn't want to leave. At any rate, they dosed me up on pain medicine and sent me home. Forrest knew I had planned to make some brownies and some pound cake (just like Grandmother!) so he decided to make them for me. I read the recipes to him and gave him a little direction and he whipped up some fabulous brownies and pound cake.

Lisa and the kids got in late Wednesday night and Tracy, Charlotte and Ben got in Thursday late afternoon. We had a great visit but missed Ally, Jerry, Jasper and baby Ella. Charlotte and Ben got together with Payton and put on a production of LoLa - who knew there was more to the story than the show girl? They pulled LaLa and Pepere into the production and we all had a good time playing our parts.

Denis made fish tacos for us on Thursday night. Always a big hit at our house. We went to Shucker's at The Wharf on Friday night and then to Adventure Island. Charlotte, Ben and Payton had a blast! The pictures are great

but you have to see the movies to really appreciate how much fun they had. Saturday was overcast but we loaded everybody up to at least get a few pictures at the beach with Denis and Lisa's new camera. The rain never happened so we got great pix and had great fun. Hannah has decided that she loves her LaLa and stayed close to me the entire morning.

Back home for wings, onion rings, and oven fries. Denis had never made onion rings before and of course they were fantastic. We went to the pool in the afternoon and then came back home for kids movies and a low country boil - another favorite at our house. You just can't beat it for a large group. One pot of fabulousness!

Sunday morning Forrest and family had to get back home. Sad to see them go. Boy does this house get quiet without them. It was pouring down rain so we took Charlotte and Ben to the Shark souvenir shop. Have no idea what the real name is but the draw is walking through the shark's mouth to get inside. Ben wondered where his uvula was......that kid! Had lunch at the Hangout and then we picked up Denis for a trip to Joe Pattie's Seafood Shop. (http://www.joepattis.com/) Charlotte and Ben had cooked up some octopus and squid two years ago when they came to the beach and really wanted to do that again. We bought frog legs, mussels, squid, octopus and lobster. The kids had a lot of fun cleaning squid and watching lobsters move around. Denis made a really good mixed seafood pasta.

I'll try to get him to recreate it from memory and post it. It was a good way to get all the goodies (except lobster) into one dish. Everybody ate some of everything and we loved it! I love that the kids have such a great sense of adventure and will try exotic food.

The only downside to the meal was Ben's choking on octopus - gave us all, and him, a really good scare. Once the crisis was over, we distracted him with lessons on twirling spaghetti with his fork and a spoon and all was right with the world again. Denis cooked the lobster but we were all too full to eat it. Tracy had never had it cooked at home so she did get to see how it's done and got some lessons on cracking a lobster.

Monday morning and everyone is gone. Now it's really really quiet. I always miss them more right after they've been here for a visit. I just love having them here. I wish we all lived a little closer together.

This is the recipe for the brownies from Cook's Illustrated that Forrest made. It's a really good recipe and wasn't much trouble. I cut them into fairly small square because they're so rich and wonderful - 1 1/2" square is a good size.


CHEWY BROWNIES


Published March 1, 2010. From Cook’s Illustrated.

WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS:
To devise a properly chewy brownie recipe, we first had to discover the perfect ratio of oil to butter. We then combated greasiness by replacing some of the oil with egg yolks, whose emulsifiers prevent fat from separating and leaking out during baking. We found that unsweetened chocolate provides the strongest chocolate flavor. Finally, folding in bittersweet chocolate chunks just before baking gave our chewy brownies gooey pockets of melted chocolate and rounded out their complex flavor. (less)

MAKES TWENTY-FOUR 2-INCH BROWNIES
For the chewiest texture, it is important to let the brownies cool thoroughly before cutting. If your baking dish is glass, cool the brownies 10 minutes, then remove them promptly from the pan (otherwise, the superior heat retention of glass can lead to overbaking). While any high-quality chocolate can be used in this recipe, our preferred brands of bittersweet chocolate are Callebaut Intense Dark Chocolate L-60-40NV and Ghirardelli Bittersweet Chocolate Baking Bar. Our preferred brand of unsweetened chocolate is Scharffen Berger. Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days.

Yields: 20 servings
Ingredients

⅓ cup Dutch-processed cocoa
1½ teaspoons instant espresso (optional)
½ cup plus 2 tablespoons boiling water
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate , finely chopped (see note and related illustration)
4 tablespoons (½ stick) unsalted butter , melted
½ cup plus 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 large eggs
2 large egg yolks
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2½ cups (17½ ounces) sugar
1¾ cups (8¾ ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour
¾ teaspoon table salt
6 ounces bittersweet chocolate , cut into ½-inch pieces (see note)
Directions

1. Adjust oven rack to lowest position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Referring to directions in Making a Foil Sling (related), make sling using the following steps: Cut 18-inch length foil and fold lengthwise to 8-inch width. Fit foil into length of 13 by 9-inch baking pan, pushing it into corners and up sides of pan; allow excess to overhang pan edges. Cut 14-inch length foil and fit into width of pan in the same manner, perpendicular to the first sheet (if using extra-wide foil, fold second sheet lengthwise to 12-inch width). Spray with nonstick cooking spray.
2. Whisk cocoa, espresso powder (if using), and boiling water together in large bowl until smooth. Add unsweetened chocolate and whisk until chocolate is melted. Whisk in melted butter and oil. (Mixture may look curdled.) Add eggs, yolks, and vanilla and continue to whisk until smooth and homogeneous. Whisk in sugar until fully incorporated. Add flour and salt and mix with rubber spatula until combined. Fold in bittersweet chocolate pieces.
3. Scrape batter into prepared pan and bake until toothpick inserted halfway between edge and center comes out with just a few moist crumbs attached, 30 to 35 minutes. Transfer pan to wire rack and cool 1 hours.
4. Using foil overhang, lift brownies from pan. Return brownies to wire rack and let cool completely, about 1 hour. Cut into 2-inch squares and serve.



Sour Cream Pound Cake

From: Anita Guidry, Church Point, Louisiana Southern Living

JUNE 2006

Yields: 10-12 servings
Ingredients

1½ cups butter, softened
3 cups sugar
6 large eggs
3 cups all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon baking soda
1 (8-oz.) container sour cream
1 teaspoon lemon extract
¼ teaspoon almond extract
Directions

1. Beat butter at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy. Gradually add sugar, beating at medium speed until light and fluffy. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating just until the yolk disappears.

2. Sift together flour, salt, and baking soda. Add to butter mixture alternately with sour cream, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Beat batter at low speed just until blended after each addition. Stir in extracts. Pour into a greased and floured 12-cup tube pan.

3. Bake at 325° for 1 hour and 20 minutes to 1 hour and 30 minutes or until a long wooden pick inserted in center of cake comes out clean. Cool in pan on a wire rack 10 minutes. Remove cake from pan, and cool completely on wire rack.





We had this for breakfast one morning and decided it would taste even better if we diced up some jalepenos and added them in for a little kick. It serves way more than 4. There were four of us and we ate them for breakfast twice. We don't count Denis - doesn't eat breakfast and doesn't like grits! He did actually taste one and finished it so I took that as a "two thumbs up"!


Bacon-Grits Fritters

Southern Living Make ahead and freeze – see below


Yields: 4 servings
Ingredients

1 cup uncooked quick-cooking grits
4 cups milk
1 teaspoon salt
1½ cups (6 oz.) shredded extra-sharp white Cheddar cheese
½ cup cooked and finely crumbled bacon (about 8 slices)
2 green onions, minced
½ teaspoon freshly ground pepper
2 large eggs
3 cups Japanese breadcrumbs (panko)
Vegetable oil
Directions

1. Prepare grits according to package directions, using 4 cups milk and 1 tsp. salt. Remove from heat, and let stand 5 minutes. Stir in cheese and next 3 ingredients, stirring until cheese is melted. Spoon mixture into a lightly-greased 8-inch square baking dish or pan, and chill 4 to 24 hours.

2. Roll grits into 1½-inch balls. Whisk together eggs and ¼ cup water. Dip balls in egg wash, and roll in breadcrumbs.

3. Pour oil to depth of 3 inches in a large, heavy skillet; heat over medium-high heat to 350°. Fry fritters, in batches, 3 to 4 minutes or until golden brown. Drain on paper towels. Keep fritters warm on a wire rack in a pan in a 225° oven up to 30 minutes. Serve warm.
Make ahead: Prepare recipe as directed through Step 2. Cover and chill in a single layer up to 4 hours. Fry as directed. You may also prepare through Step 2 and freeze on a baking sheet for 30 minutes or until firm. Transfer to a zip-top plastic bag, and freeze. Cook frozen fritters as directed in Step 3, increasing cooking time to 5 to 6 minutes or until golden and centers are thoroughly heated.

My favorite breakfast!

It's a rainy morning and we're home for a couple of weeks. I love to make this oatmeal and have it in the fridge for the entire week. I haven't used the ground flaxseed yet but would like to try it. I cook the oatmeal with cinnamon and salt and then put in the fridge. I add the dried fruit, honey and nuts on the morning I'm going to eat it. The toasting of this oatmeal really makes it good. I always use McCann's Steel-Cut Oats. It doesn't work with anything but steel-cut.

Toasted Oatmeal with Walnuts and Apricots

NOTES : 1.2008 – I really like the oatmeal this way. Didn’t use quite as many apricots and didn’t have flaxseed. Stores well for the entire week.

Yields: 0.8 servings
Ingredients

1 ounce walnut halves -- 1/4 cup
1 1/4 cups steel-cut oats
5 cups water
5 ounces dried apricots -- chopped (1 cup)
pinch ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
2 teaspoons freshly ground flaxseed
4 teaspoons honey -- or to taste
Directions

Preheat oven to 350. Spread walnuts and oats on 2 rimmed baking sheets. Bake until walnuts are toasted and oats are golden brown, about 10 minutes for walnuts and 12 minutes for oats.

Bring water to a boil in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir in oats, apricots, cinnamon, and salt. Return to a boil. Reduce heat; partially cover, and simmer, stirring occasional, until oats are tender and mixture has thickened, about 25 minutes. Meanwhile, chop walnuts.

Spoon oatmeal into 4 bowls. Sprinkle each serving with some of the walnuts and flaxseed, and drizzle with honey. Serve immediately.