Memorial Day Ribs

We really love the "minor" holidays - you know the ones you get off work for but no one really expects you to travel? The first Memorial Day we lived in Jackson all our friends who moved here at the same time we did for pharmacy school had just left, and we couldn't find anyone to come celebrate the day with us. Nevertheless we decided just to grill out ribs on our own. It was hot and fabulous! And we fell in love with our patio.

We had no clue how to cook ribs on the grill so we called Net for advice (always) and then went to Kroger. We were looking lost on the BBQ aisle and a man comes us to us and says: You know a black man knows how to B-B-Q, here's what you do:

Five hours before grilling, rub in: lemon juice, pepper, Tony's, salt, garlic powder, Worcestershire, rendezvous seasoning

Wrap baby back ribs in heavy foil and put in fridge.

Right before grilling re-rub in previous seasonings

Grill over charcoal two hours in foil when meat pulls away from bone take out of foil and grill 20 minutes. Baste at 20 minutes and 10 minutes in Neely's BBQ sauce.

We've done exactly that ever since on Memorial Day. Here's some other great grilling recipes for a hot day. Have a great weekend!

Another great recipe: Pepper Nachos on the Grill

Image from: http://www.desktopwallpaper.org/wallpaper/American-Flag/

Senatobia for a Vote

Senatobia is collecting signatures for a petition to allow for an alcohol vote. My uncle is spokesman for the group "Senatobia for a Vote" and was interviewed by WMCTV in Memphis. I think he did a great job!

Dry Mississippi town pushes for alcohol vote

I really hope this at least comes to a vote. It's ridiculously that Hernando and Como are getting so many dollars that should be staying in the city. Not that I want a liquor store on every corner but I'd love to have a good meal and glass of wine on Main Street. It has long been said that the "Baptists and bootleggers" will keep this from ever passing. The last time we voted on this I was a junior or senior at Ole Miss and I wrote my final feature story on the issue. If I can find it, I'll share it on here!

The "I'm Feeling Richer Effect"

Have you seen this commercial?

Doc (someone finally read my blog last night and said not to use his name!) says this is what happens to me when I drive his car. I drove it Monday to work to take some tires to the shop, and while waiting on said tires, did a little shopping!

My mom loves to give us a hard time about our "Sunday car" and says we are like "old people" because we usually just drive it to church, on long road trips or to carry big loads.

For some reason, Cornish game hens aren't much fun to buy in a 13 year old Honda Accord.

Grillin' Time

Just about every Saturday morning the Williams-Sanoma here offers a free cooking demonstration and last weekend Net and I took advantage. It was fabulous.

Menu: grilled flank steak with a grilled salad with feta and a lime vinaigrette dressing. And bagettes.

I was so eager to try it at home, I made the meal the next night for our supper and Ryan was very impressed. I made a few subsitutions: You can't find skirt steak in this area so I used flank steak (look for one with marble in it). I think it was $12 at Kroger and would feed 4 to 6 easily. I cooked it on my Lodge cast iron grill pan about 6 to 7 minutes per side.

When it's finished you pour on 2 T belted butter, 2 gloves peeled garlic and 3 spings of fresh thyme. Melt all this in a small sauce pan while the meat is cooking and baste meat occasionally. After the meat is cooked (we cooke to med-well at 165 degrees) let it "rest" for 10 minutes before you slice - this is very important or only the first slice will have juice. Next time we're going to cook it on the grill outside and I think it will cook a little faster and be more tender.

On Monday for lunch we still had boiled shrimp and romaine lettuce leftoves and so we just whipped up this little lunch:

I felt like I should get to go sit on the beach with a good book after such a great meal and not go back to work! But back to work I went.

For the lettuce: Heat grill pan to medium-hot heat. Cut romaine hearts lengthwise  and grill about 20 seconds until slightly charred. Transfer to plate and cover with any kind of crumbling cheese (feta, cotija cheese, blue cheese, etc).

For the lime vinaigrette: Juice 3 limes plus zest of 1 lime. Whisk together the lime juice, zest, 3 T fresh orange juice, 1/4 c chopped cilantro, 1 chopped garlic clove and pinch of sugar. Gradually whisk in 3/4 cup of EVOO and season with salt and pepper. (I'm about out of olive oil so I did about 1/4 cup EVOO and 1/2 cup canola oil - that's what many restaurants do to make olive oil stretch faster).

To grill baguetts drizzle with olive oil and rub peeled garlic over bread. Grill and set aside.

*Let me take a second to brag on Jackson - the lady who gave the cooking demo at Williams-Sanoma said our store was the only one in the country who did the cooking demos on Saturdays instead of Sundays since the store managment had quickly discovered there wasn't a big enough of a Sunday crowd since nearly everyone goes to church.

Happy Birthday to Net

Happy Birthday to Net! Net came to Jackson on Friday and we had a birthday celebration that evening and then "played" all weekend. We went to a cooking demonstration at William Sanoma, ran errands and visited with friends on both the front porch and back patio. And had a birthday party with Laura and Thomas. Hurry back, Net!

After we sang "Happy Birthday," Thomas remarked that he remembered Net saying after some other birthday singing that none of us could carry a tune. I will spare you the video of us serenading her with our off-key voices (we were missing our musically-talented cousins)! Net cooked an amazing meal for us to eat - boiled shrimp, a stir-fry and new potatoes from Tate County.

I re-purposed this centerpiece from the Junior League Luncheon last week. It's a plastic drip tray with florist foam. The flowers are arranged in a heart (about 2 inch stems) and moss is arranged around it to hide the tray. Some people are so clever!

For the cake, I made a recipe that was in the latest issue of Mississippi Magazine. It's an Ombre Cake and was really a "piece of cake" to make but looked fancy. Basically, you make two white cake mixes (the recipe said to add 1/2 teaspoon of almond flavoring to each mix but I left this out since I didn't have any) and then a buttercream frosting.

As you divided the cake mixes into four separate pans add varying amounts of food coloring. Next time, I will be more precise in measuring out the layers.

For buttercream frosting: (1 c shortening,1/4 t salt, 1 t butter flavoring, 1/4 t almond extract (I subbed vanilla extract), 1/2 c water and 32 oz bag confectioners' sugar). Beat shortening until light and fluffy. Combine flavorings and water. Add sugar and water alternately. Beat until combined. Use an "L" shaped icing knife to make the icing smooth.

Katelyn's Recital

Katelyn had her very first ballet recital today. It was precious. She did wonderful! The program was an underwater themed and all the groups had on costumes like sailors, starfish, mermaids, etc. Katelyn was a coral, or, as her grandmother said "a very cute rock." The music made me want to watch the Little Mermaid. So proud of Katelyn!

Net is here visiting and we are having a great time. More on that later!

South of the Border Vension & Carolina Slaw

I feel like I go in rounds with my cooking. Some weeks we will eat the same thing over and over and some weeks I get "inspired" to try something new. This usually happens after a night out at a really nice restaurant. I tried two new recipes this week and they were both really good! Our friend Daniel had graciously shared some of his venison with us (and you can so tell his dad is a butcher!) during deer season, and we've had fun trying new recipes with it. The Carolina Coleslaw was inspired by Nick's in Fondren - it's the only slaw I like and this isn't as good, but it is a close second.

South of the Border Venison
100 Venison Recipes by Henry Sinkus

Ingredients:
2 pounds boneless venison roast
2 cups cranberry juice
1 tbsp. minced garlic
1/4 tsp. white pepper
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tbsp. chili powder
1/4 tsp. ground cumin
1 tbsp. Dijon mustard
1 large onion, peeled and chopped
1 tsp. beef base or 1 bouillon cube
1 15-oz can sliced stewed tomatoes, chopped
1 16-oz can kidney beans

Slice the venison 1/2" thick then cut into strips about 1" wide. Dust the venison with salt, pepper, chili powder and cumin. Place venison, onion and tomatoes in a large bowl.

Mix the beef base with the mustard. Slowly whisk in the cranberry juice and garlic and add to the venison. Cover and cook on low for at least 6 hours. Add the beans and cook, covered, for 30 minutes. Serve over steamed rice with cheese and sliced green onions.

*I didn't bother with cutting up the roast. I dumped the thing in the crock pot (after soaking in milk overnight) and dumped in everything else. I cooked on low for about 8 hours. I don't usually like venison and this was really good! The first night we had it over rice and the second night we put it in hamburger buns like a BBQ sandwich.

I gave this book to Ryan for Christmas and we have loved it! Each recipe has whether it should be served with beer or wine and a difficulty rating of one to four forks. This recipe is one fork and suggests beer.

Carolina Slaw
from: http://southernfood.about.com/od/coleslawcabbagesalads/r/bl90612a.htm

Ingredients:
1 large head of cabbage, finely shredded
1 medium bell pepper, finely chopped
1 medium sweet onions, finely chopped
2 carrots, grated

Dressing:
•1 cup sugar
•1 teaspoon salt
•2/3 cup vegetable oil
•1 teaspoon dry mustard
•1 teaspoon celery seed
•1 cup cider vinegar

Preparation:
Combine coleslaw vegetable ingredients; chopped cabbage, chopped bell pepper, chopped onions, and grated carrots in a large serving bowl.

In a saucepan over medium heat, combine remaining ingredients; bring to a boil. Simmer, stirring, until sugar is dissolved; pour over vegetables and toss well. Cover and refrigerate until thoroughly chilled. Enough slaw for 8 to 10 servings.