Category Archives: Lunch

Southern Macaroni and Cheese

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Macaroni and cheese

Southern Macaroni and Cheese

Ingredients:

  • 3 cups elbow macaroni uncooked
  • 1 ½ cups milk
  • 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
  • 1 cup Colby & Monterey Jack shredded (cheese blend)
  • 6-8 oz Velveeta cheese shredded (feel free to cut back on the Velveeta if you don’t want it to be super creamy)
  • 1 cup sharp cheddar shredded (can use less if you don’t like a sharp taste in your mac n cheese)
  • salt & pepper to taste
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 cup smoked cheddar cheese shredded (a must)
  • paprika optional

Directions:

  • Preheat oven to 350 F.
  • Cook macaroni until just al dente or a little under al dente. (Look on the back of the box to see how long you need to cook your pasta for it to reach al dente.) Be careful not to overcook.
  • Drain pasta and set aside.
  • In a large bowl, add milk, heavy cream & cheeses (except for the smoked cheddar).
  • Stir to combine.
  • Taste the milk mixture and add salt & pepper until it has a good taste. (You can also add in other seasonings like onion powder, paprika, etc. Tasting will help avoid having a plain, bland baked macaroni & cheese.)
  • When you are content with the taste, add the eggs.
  • Stir well until combined.
  • Butter a 9 x 9-inch baking dish.
  • Add macaroni to the baking dish.
  • Pour cheese mixture over macaroni.
  • Make sure the cheese is distributed well.
  • Top with the smoked cheddar cheese. (I add a little more Colby jack as well.) Sprinkle with paprika and/or black pepper, if desired.
  • Bake for 35-45 minutes. Do not overbake. It may be a bit jiggly when you take it out of the oven. It will firm up as it cool.
  • Let cool for about 10-15 minutes or until fully set.
  • Enjoy!

***Recipe from Divascancook***

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Asparagus and Pea Soup

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Tasty asparagus soup on table

Asparagus and Pea Soup

Instructions:

  • 12 oz green asparagus
  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 1 leek, chopped
  • 1 1/4 cups fresh or frozen peas, 1/4 reserved for garnish
  • 1 tablespoon parsley, chopped
  • 5 cups vegetable stock
  • 1/2 cup heavy cream
  • Zest of 1 lemon, 1 tablespoon reserved for garnish
  • Salt and pepper, to taste
  • Mint leaves, for garnish
  • Parmesan cheese, shaved for garnish
  • Parmesan crackers

Directions:

  1. Remove the base of the asparagus and discard. Separate the spears, remove this tips and reserve for garnish, and chop up the remaining pieces.
  2. In a medium saucepan, add the butter and cook over medium heat until melted. Add the leeks and cook for 5 minutes, or until they have softened.
  3. Add the chopped asparagus, 1 cup of the peas, and the parsley. Cook for 3 minutes, add the vegetable stock, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat so that the soup simmers and cook for 6 to 8 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender.
  4. Transfer the soup to a food processor, puree until smooth, and strain through a fine sieve.
  5. Place soup in a clean pan. Add cream and lemon zest, season with salt and pepper, and bring to a simmer.
  6. Bring a small pan of salted water to a boil. Place the asparagus tips in the pan and cook for 3 to 4 minutes, or until tender. Remove tips, submerge in ice water, dry, and set aside.
  7. Ladle the soup into warm bowls, garnish with the asparagus tips, reserved peas, mint leaves, reserved lemon zest, and parmesan, and serve with Parmesan Crackers.

Southern Seafood Gumbo

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Homemade Shrimp and Sausage Cajun Gumbo

Southern Seafood Gumbo

Ingredients:

  • 4 tbsp. butter
  • 1/4 c. all-purpose flour
  • 1 small yellow onion
  • 1 medium green bell pepper, chopped
  • 2 celery ribs, chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 12 oz. andouille sausage, sliced into 1/2″ pieces
  • 1 tbsp. cajun seasoning (without salt)
  • kosher salt
  • Freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 (15-oz.) can fire-roasted diced tomatoes
  • 4 c. chicken broth
  • 1 lb. shrimp, peeled and deveined
  • 3 green onions, sliced
  • cooked white rice, for serving

Directions:

  1. In a large, deep skillet over medium-low heat, melt butter, then add flour. Cook, stirring constantly, until dark caramel colored, about 10 minutes.
  2. Add onions, peppers, and celery, and stir until softened, about 5 minutes more. Stir in garlic and sausage, then season with Cajun seasoning, salt, and pepper. Stir in bay leaf, diced tomatoes, and chicken broth and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer until thickened, stirring occasionally, about 1 hour.
  3. In the last 10 minutes of cooking, add shrimp. Once shrimp is pink and cooked through, taste and adjust seasonings. Stir in green onions, reserving some for garnish.
  4. Serve spooned on top of white rice.

Pickled Red Onions

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Pickled red onions

Pickled Red Onions

Ingredients:

  •  1 red onion, thinly sliced (use a mandoline if you have one)
  •  1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
  •  1 tablespoon granulated sugar
  • 1 teaspoon whole cloves (optional)
  •  1 1/2 teaspoons salt
  •  1 cup hot or warm water

Directions:

  1. Slice the red onions as thin as you can. I use a mandoline.
  2. Stuff all the red onions in the jar of your choice. A bowl will work too.
  3. In a measuring cup, combine apple cider vinegar, salt, sugar, and warm water. Stir to dissolve the sugar and salt. Pour this pickling mixture over your sliced onions, making sure they are immersed in the liquid, and let them set for an hour. After an hour, cover and store in the fridge for up to three weeks.

Ham-wich

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Ham-wich

Ingredients:

  • 1/3 cup butter, melted
  • 2 tablespoons prepared mustard
  • 1 small chopped onion
  • 1 tablespoon poppy seeds
  • 1 package of Hawaiian Sweet Rolls
  • 6 slices of ham
  • 6 slices Swiss cheese

Directions:

  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
  2. Remove all rolls from the package in one piece and place on a cookie sheet. Slice horizontally through all 12 rolls at once. Remove the top and set aside.
  3. Combine butter, mustard, onion, and poppy seeds. Spread 1/2 of the mixture across the lower half of the rolls.
  4. Place the slices of ham across the rolls so all 12 are covered. Repeat with the Swiss.
  5. Return the top half of the rolls to complete the sandwich.
  6. Spread the remaining sauce across the top.
  7. Heat for 15 minutes and remove.
  8. Run a knife through the lines of the rolls to make 12 mini sandwiches.

Elote Hot Dogs with Garlic Fries

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Picture1

Elote Hot Dogs

Ingredients:

For the lime mayonnaise:

  • 4 tablespoons mayonnaise
  • 1 teaspoon lime juice
  • ¼ teaspoon smoked paprika
  • ⅛ teaspoon ground cumin
  • Pinch of chili powder

For the hot dogs:

  • 4 hot dogs
  • ¾ cup corn
  • 4 hot dog buns
  • 1 tablespoon butter, melted
  • Chili powder or smoked paprika
  • ¼ cup crumbled cotija cheese
  • 1 tablespoon cilantro leaves, chopped
  • Lime wedges, for serving

For the street corn:

  • 4 ears corn, cut off the cob
  • 2 teaspoons olive oil
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
  • 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
  • 1/2 cup crumbled cotija cheese
  • squeeze of lime
  • 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro
  • pinch of salt

Directions:

For the lime mayonnaise:

  1. Stir together the mayonnaise, lime juice, smoked paprika and ground cumin. Add the chili powder to taste.

For the street corn:

  1. Heat a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add the olive oil and garlic and sauté for 30 seconds or until fragrant. Add the corn and chili powder and cook for another two minutes, stirring frequently.
  2. Add the two tablespoons of mayo, a squeeze of lime, and a pinch of salt and stir to combine. Add the cilantro and cotija and stir again to combine. Remove from heat and set aside.

For the hot dogs:

  1. Grill the hot dogs.
  2. While the hot dogs are grilling, char the corn and prepare the buns. Char the corn in a small skillet over medium high-heat, stirring occasionally, until it’s lightly browned. Remove from the heat.
  3. Brush the tops of the buns with the melted butter then lightly sprinkle with either chili powder (spicy) or smoked paprika (not spicy) depending on whether your preference. Toast the buns.
  4. Put a hot dog in each bun. Divide the lime mayo between the hot dogs. Use half the cotija cheese to sprinkle over the mayo, reserve the other half. Divide the corn between the hot dogs then top with the remaining cotija cheese. Garnish with the chopped cilantro, lime wedges and a dusting of chili powder and/or smoked paprika.

 

Garlic fries

Ingredients:

  • 1 bag frozen french fries
  • 6 cloves of garlic , very finely minced
  • 1 teaspoon Kosher salt
  • 2 tablespoons canola oil
  • chopped parsley for garnish

Directions:

  1. Cook the fries according to the directions on the bag.
  2. When the fries come out of the oven, put them in a large bowl.
  3. A minute or so before serving the fries, put the garlic in a small fry pan with the oil.
  4. Heat on medium and cook for 15-30 seconds, not long enough to brown the garlic, just long enough to take mute the raw garlic flavor.
  5. Toss the fries with the garlic oil mixture and salt.
  6. Serve hot and garnish with parsley if desired.

She-Crab Soup

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Creamy crab soup bisque with spices

She-Crab Soup

Ingredients:

  • 1/4 cup butter
  • 1/4 cup onion minced
  • 1/4 cup flour
  • 3 cups seafood stock
  • 2 cups heavy cream set out for a few minutes to prevent curdling when added to hot stock
  • 1/2 tsp Worcestershire
  • 1/2 tsp lemon zest
  • 1/2 tsp mace
  • 1 tsp Old Bay Seasoning
  • 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
  • 1-1/2 tsp salt divided
  • 1 lb lump crab meat picked through and divided
  • 1/4 cup dry sherry

Directions:

  1. Melt butter of medium heat in large stock pot. Cook onion until soft (about 3 mins)
  2. Add flour and combine to make roux.
  3. Add seafood stock to roux. Reduce to low heat and stir until thickened (about 5 mins)
  4. Add cream and bring to a boil.
  5. Reduce heat to low. Add next 5 ingredients, 1 tsp of salt, and 1/2 of the crab. Simmer 5 mins.
  6. Combine remaining crab meat, salt, and sherry in a small bowl. When you divide the soup into individual bowls, top with a scoop of the crab mixture in the center of the bowl.

***Recipe from Biscuits and Burlap***

Shrimp Salad

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Shrimp Salad

  • 2 pounds of shrimp, cooked, peeled, and deveined
  • ½ cup of mayonnaise
  • ½ teaspoon liquid crab boil
  • ¼ cup finely diced celery
  • ¼ cup of peeled and finely diced cucumber
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Chop the shrimp into 1-inch pieces. Mix together all of the ingredients in a large bowl. Cover and chill until ready to serve.

Southern Coastal Cornbread Skillet

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IMG_7208

Southern Coastal Cornbread Skillet

Ingredients:

  • 1 package of chorizo, sliced and chopped
  • 1 cup of crab meat, chopped
  • 1/2 pound of raw shrimp, chopped
  • 1 small onion, chopped
  • 1 cup of corn
  • 2 tablespoons of seafood seasoning
  • 2 tablespoons of olive oil
  • 2 cups of self-rising corn meal
  • 1 1/2 cup of milk
  • 1/3 cup of vegetable oil
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 cup of sour cream
  • 1/4 cup of chopped chives
  • 1/4 teaspoon of black pepper

How to make:

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

In a large cast-iron skillet or oven proof skillet, heat the olive oil over medium.

Saute together the first four ingredients until onions are translucent and shrimp are pink. Add in the seafood seasoning and corn. Remove from heat.

In a large mixing bowl, combine corn meal, milk, vegetable oil, and eggs until well blended. Pour corn meal batter over sauteed skillet ingredients.

Bake for 30 minutes or until top is golden brown.

In a small bowl, combine sour cream, chives, and black pepper.

Slice and serve. Top with sour cream mixture.

Serves 6-8.

Southern Chicken Salad

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IMG_7182

Southern Chicken Salad

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups of chicken, chopped
  • 2 stalks of celery, chopped
  • 1 cup of grapes, sliced in quarters
  • 1/2 cup of pecans, chopped
  • 1/2 cup of mayonnaise
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 4 large croissants

How to make:

In a large mixing bowl, combine chicken, celery, grapes, pecans, mayonnaise, pepper, and salt.

Slice the croissants in half, or use bread of choice.

Serves 4.