What's your favorite thing to make during the summer? Last night Master V and I grilled a pork tenderloin, and made a pasta salad with capellini, pimiento, jalapeno, celery, bell pepper, and lots of Tony Chachere's. Mmmmm.

-- Anonymous, July 31, 2001

Answers

I made a pasta salad with pine nuts, garlic flavored olive oil, feta cheese and sliced green olives the other day. That was yummy.

And, hey, Older Hannah- are going to get crabby if I post here as Hannah, too? Will it confuse people?

-- Anonymous, July 31, 2001

Grilled potatoes ... w/Olive Oil, fresh rosemary, basil and freshly ground pepper. I made this killer tri-color veggie pasta over romaine lettuce with a lemon-caesar dressing. Now I'm getting hungry ...

-- Anonymous, July 31, 2001

I like to make phone calls! During which I request nice people fetch food straight to my door, in exchange for which I will pay them cash money. Or, alternatively, sign the little credit card slip.

But I have a wonderful excuse, which isn't just laziness: my apartment is teeny. And also tiny. Before she got her stomach stapled, Carnie Wilson would not haven been able to turn around in my living room. And when you turn on the oven, even to just boil water, the whole room is set on fire, and becomes more unbearably hot than it already is, seeing how we're on the top floor, and heat rises, and all that other exciting science stuff. Delivery is the way to go.

Also, we're lazy.

Can I come over to your house, AB?

-- Anonymous, July 31, 2001

Jen, you can only come to my house if you bring the wine. Which I know you will.

And dude! Making fun of the Carnie! No way to live.

-- Anonymous, July 31, 2001

okay, Anna Beth, if you are asking MOI then you so did not read my update because I don' tole you already.

Ceviche. MMMM. The Other Raw Fish. (tm)

-- Anonymous, July 31, 2001

I did SO read your update! But not everyone has--perhaps you could post the recipe for us, pretty please?

-- Anonymous, July 31, 2001

okay, this is either a dish that you would love or hate, so don't gross out if it's not your thing, and don't eat it if you are pregnant (you know, all the sushi concerns).

Ceviche my way:

10 large sea scallops 10 jumbo shrimp (both fresh, or thawed if frozen) 3 or 4 roma tomatoes, diced 1 small white onion, diced 1 avocado, peeled and cubed 1/2 bunch cilantro leaves, finely chopped 8 limes 1 orange

Wash the seafood. Peel and devein shrimp. Juice the limes into a non- reactive container (like plastic or glass) and add seafood. Let mixture sit for one hour in refrigerator. Add onion chunks and cilantro. Add juice of the orange. Put back in fridge 1.5 hours. Add tomatoes and avocado, and salt/pepper/Tony's if you like. Let sit 30 minutes, or until the scrimps are all pinked up.

I don't like mine soupy, so I drain off about 3/4 of the liquid at this point before serving. Also, I don't love love love cilantro - so I only use about 1/4 of the leaves and I add it with the tomatoes so the flavor isn't too strong. You can reduce or increase the amount of the veggies if you like, but be sure to leave the tomatoes and avocado chunks for the last phase, or that lime juice will just decimate them - I like them to still be firm, not all jelly-like. You can use any kind of white fish in this recipe, like mahi-mahi chunks - or even ahi or salmon. I think I'd skip the scrod, though. Also maybe the grouper.

-- Anonymous, July 31, 2001

forgot to add, this recipe makes a meal for two or an appetizer for four to six. Also forgot to add that the formatting in this DOS- lookin' forum screwed me on the ingredients, above. I swear they were in a pretty table when I posted.

-- Anonymous, July 31, 2001

God, that sounds good. And cold, for summer!

Break tags, baby, break tags. And don't be talkin' no smack about Greenspun.

-- Anonymous, July 31, 2001

The recipe I've been faithfully following all summer:

1. Pour chilled milk into a glass. 2. Add 3-4 spoonfuls of Ovaltine, depending on size of glass. 3. Stir. 4. Drink.

-- Anonymous, July 31, 2001

So, WG, you weigh about 85 pounds now or what?

I'm mailing you a steak ASAP.

-- Anonymous, July 31, 2001

Painkillers.

1 can Coco Lopez
1 regular sized can of pineapple juice
1 carton of orange juice
1 bottle of Pusser's rum or Mount Gay Sugar Cane rum

Then it's a 4-1-1 combo: 1 Coco Lopez, fill again with orange juice, then four Coco Lopez cans full of pineapple juice. You add rum to taste, but I usually put two cans worth.

Serve over ice, drink, and chew.

-- Anonymous, July 31, 2001

Because I can't cook, and my roommate and I are poor, we eat out a lot. (How those are connected, I don't know. But the poor thing is in reference to this one dish we always make. It costs like $2. Don Pablo's? $30. But they bring it to you.)

Anyway. I'm embarassed cause y'all all make ceviche or pork tenderloin or pot roast.

We make brown rice mixed with chili beans, chicken and Taco Bell seasoning, but I swear to you, it is the best thing ever.

-- Anonymous, July 31, 2001

Hey, H, where do you get Taco Bell seasoning?

Hee.

-- Anonymous, July 31, 2001

131, AB, if you must know.

Supplemented with a steady diet of egg-salad-on-a-seven-grain-bagel, Entemann's chocolate frosted donuts, black beans & rice (and tell T, if she ever shows up, that I do not skimp on the cumin), and various attempts to combine tofu and soy sauce in a frying pan. Y'all, how hard can it be to do things to tofu? And yet.

-- Anonymous, August 01, 2001

Jen said: And when you turn on the oven, even to just boil water, the whole room is set on fire

So then after the fireman comes and puts out the fire (while Anthony waves his arms in the air yelling "Fire!") do you eat $5 Ruffles from the Fridge or do you call the Caterer to come bring you a buffet and a pretty pineapple?

The Sims: It's What's For Dinner

-- Anonymous, August 01, 2001

Hah! Shae, I was thinking the same thing. It just took your genius to put it into words.

The Sims are my favorite things ever. I mean, next to rice and gravy, which I make better than your mama does.

-- Anonymous, August 01, 2001

Chris and I made a pot roast on Sunday that was so good, our eyes rolled back in our heads. I was extremely proud of our crock pot prowess.

-- Anonymous, August 01, 2001

You have to share the recipe, Al.

-- Anonymous, August 01, 2001

Define gravy, AB. Cause these Yankees in MA seem to think it's brown and belongs on meat. But it should be off white with flecks of sausage (or bacon! or chicken if it's chicken gravy) and should be on biscuits or rice. You give me a good gravy and rice recipe and I'll name my first child after you.

-- Anonymous, August 01, 2001

I don't care what is cooking, as long as it is cooking on a George Foreman Lean Mean Fat-Reducing Grilling Machine. Al picked one up last week and we've used it almost every night. Except for the above mentioned pot roast.

It is DA BOMB!

-- Anonymous, August 01, 2001

I bought this big jug of white pre-mixed drink called a Snowslide. It turns out that they didn't put enough rum in, but blended with ice it is the most exquisite thing I have ever put on my tongue. And it goes with any fruit that you want to toss in, but the fruit adds too many calories for me.

-- Anonymous, August 01, 2001

Ok, the pot roast. This is the way JoLo, my mother, makes it, and it's totally easy and great.

Take a thawed roast, but it in the crockpot, pour a package of Lipton Onion Soup Mix over it, set on high and walk away for three hours. Check back every once in a while to make sure it's not dry, and if it is, add just a little water.

After a few hours, chop up some potatoes and carrots and throw them in there. Turn the heat down a notch, come back in two hours and eat the thing.

It's awesome.

Oh yes, the George Foreman Grill.... I have to tell y'all, I bought it just to see how it would be, and was sort of ashamed of myself, but DAMN it's awesome.

We don't have an outdoor grill, and this thing is the PERFECT replacement. I grilled two chicken breasts on it in SEVEN minutes, and they were DELICIOUS.

-- Anonymous, August 01, 2001

Whenever the Foreman Grill pops up, I have to inform whoever will listen that it was MADE for quesadillas. MADE, I tell you.

-- Anonymous, August 01, 2001

Excellent... I'll never have to use my stove again!

Just kidding, T, wherever you are.

-- Anonymous, August 01, 2001

Define gravy, AB.

Gravy, my love, is what had happened to the roast after it had cooked for about eight hours. What I had did after that, was stir in a little flour, and some secret seasonings, and then put it over rice. It will make you lay down and die.

It's Anna Elizabeth for your firstborn, then, right?

-- Anonymous, August 01, 2001

Yes, AB, that is exactly how JoLo makes hers.

I didn't make any Sunday, because we weren't having no rice or mashed potatoes. Am I spelling that right? The word potato(e) makes me nervous. I'm like Dan Quayle with that word.

-- Anonymous, August 01, 2001

Sadly, my firstborn will have to be stuck with our former first choice name, Paprika. That brown stuff, while technically gravy, is not what I'm craving. I want chicken with country gravy on rice.

BTW, I don't really cook but I bake and I make amazingly good pumpkin cookies with chocolate chips and almond flakes.

-- Anonymous, August 01, 2001

Lord, Slickery. Hand over the recipe. That sounds great. Chris makes some ass kicking pumpkin bread, so I'm sure he would like those. He'd like them better if there was cheese in them and you could cook them on the George Foreman Grill, but whatever.

-- Anonymous, August 01, 2001

Alrighty, here you go. These turn out with a more cake-like than cookie-like texture but they are very tasty and keep well.

1/2 cup butter, softened 1 1/2 cups sugar 1 cup pumpkin (can or cooked & pureed fresh) 1 tsp vanilla 1 egg 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 1 tsp baking powder 1 tsp baking soda 1/2 tsp salt 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon 1/2 tsp nutmeg (I actually use 1 tsp cause I dig nutmeg) 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips (I use bittersweet/dark; sometimes I use 1/2 dark and 1/2 white) 1/2 cup chopped roasted salted almonds (I can never find these in the stores; I use sliced blanched almonds)

Preheat oven to 350. Line baking sheets with parchment paper. (I never do this but I have really good nonstick pans. Silpat would work too.)

In large bowl beat butter and sugar at medium speed until light and fluffy.

Beat in pumpkin, vanilla and egg.

Mix together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg. Add flour mixture to butter mixture just until well blended.

Stir in chips and almonds.

Drop by tsps onto baking sheets.

Bake 12 to 14 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove from sheet and cool on wire rack. Makes about 3 dzn cookies.

-- Anonymous, August 01, 2001

I just made AB's fried spaghetti recipe.

It's interesting. Everyone should try it.

-- Anonymous, August 01, 2001

Interesting? It's from God, sister. Just ask Jateke--she told a lady the recipe in the grocery store.

My fried spaghetti is going to make me famous one of these days.

-- Anonymous, August 01, 2001

Y'all, I did the coolest thing: I figured out how to make a version of La Madeleine-style tomato basil soup without the heavy cream and butter. I think it was pretty damn tasty - Allison will have to give her opinion. If she thinks it was nonfat and all that, I'll post the recipe here.

-- Anonymous, August 02, 2001

Oh, T, pleeeeease post it. I have dreams about that stuff.

-- Anonymous, August 02, 2001

It was both non-fat AND all that. It really was. I would never have guessed it was healthy based on its deliciousness.

AB, please post the fried-spaghetti recipe here. Or the link.

-- Anonymous, August 02, 2001

The link, because I'm lazy:

Fried Spaghetti

-- Anonymous, August 02, 2001

AB, that sounds so tasty. Wow.

Here's my latest beverage obsession: caipirinhas. They are delicious, they are easy to make, and they are deadly.

4 T superfine sugar (the kind that dissolves instantly, not powdered sugar, b/c the cornstarch in that will nastify your drinks something awful)

4 thin-skinned limes, cut into 8 wedges lengthwise, with white pith removed

8 oz cachaca (pronounced ca-SHAH-sah), which is Brazilian sugar cane liquor and can be found among the tequilas in your local liquor store

put the limes & the sugar into a heavy-bottmed glass and smush with a spoon for a good 30-60 seconds. You want to get the oils in the peel to mix w/the juice & the sugar. (If you're a rockstar pharmacist, you probably have a mortar & pestle, which is what you're really supposed to use, but we're all ghetto and like to improvise around here.)

chuck the lime/sugar mixture into a cocktail shaker w/the cachaca & shake vigourously for a minute. Pour over glasses with lots of ice. Drink.

Makes 4.

You can alter the proportions of the three ingredients to suit your tastebuds, but the trick is to drink them as cold as possible, and to watch out for the floor on the way down.

-- Anonymous, August 02, 2001

Sophie - I think there was a story about those drinks in the NY Times, either this Wednesday or last week. Thanks for the recipe - those suckers sound good.

I made the tomatobasil soup again tonight. Here's the recipe:

10-12 Roma tomatoes, peeled, or a 28 oz. can of whole tomatoes 1.4 cup julienned sun-dried tomatoes (the kind that aren't packed in oil), optional 1 14.5 oz. can of Swanson's low-sodium chicken broth 3 cups tomato juice 15-20 basil leaves 1 8 oz. container plain nonfat yogurt (I like Dannon's) 1 tbsp. nonfat sour cream 2 tbsp. skim milk 2 tbsp. light butter (or the real stuff, if you're not that stringent) salt and pepper to taste (you won't need that much salt, if any)

In a large saucepan, combine the tomatoes, chicken broth, and the tomato juice. Add the sun-dried tomatoes, if desired (I find that they lend a rich flavor) Simmer for 30 minutes. Add the whole basil leaves and simmer for a few more minutes.

In small batches, transfer the mixture to a food processor (about two ladel-fulls at a time, unless you have a big-ass Cuisinart. I only have a medium-sized Black & Decker) and process until smooth. Return the soup to the pot and reheat.

In a small bowl, whisk (you'll have a better texture with whisking, rather than stirring) the yogurt, the sour cream, and the skim milk. Pour the mixture into the soup in a slow stream, whisking it in with the tomato mixture. Add the butter and whisk until it melts. Add salt and pepper to taste.

I like to serve this with fresh bread and maybe a salad. It's goooood. And, if you want the full-fat version, make it with a cup and a half of heavy cream and stick and a half of butter, rather than the yogurt mixture and the light butter.

-- Anonymous, August 02, 2001

Oh my God. Sophie. Say it with me: knocked my hat in the dirt.

Thank you.

-- Anonymous, August 03, 2001

I love getting all these recipes! I'm moving this weekend, and we'll finally have a full complement of kitchen items. Mmmm, blender. Mmmm, food processor. Most of all, mmmmm, stand mixer. That soup sounds so delicious, T. If I weren't in insane mid-packing mode, I would make some right now.

You're so welcome, Anna Beth. It's my pleasure to open folks' eyes to a new world of extremely potent potables.

-- Anonymous, August 03, 2001

Red beans and rice. It's the perfect after-work dinner. It's easy comfort food, fast, cheap and filling. And it goes great with a cold beer.

-- Anonymous, August 07, 2001

I was watching Emeril last night and have found what I am making for New Year's next year.

http://www.foodtv.com/foodtv/recipe/0,6255,9014,FF.html

-- Anonymous, August 09, 2001

Suz, you must share your red beans secret that makes it fast. Right now, I make my red beans in big-ass batches so I can freeze them to have red beans on-hand, but it take hours.

-- Anonymous, August 09, 2001

Chicken pot pie. So easy, your cat could make it.

Take two chicken breasts, boil them on the stove.

Stir together two cans of cream of chicken soup, and one can of Veg-All (or use fresh vegetables, or frozen ones).

When chicken is done, cut it up and stir it into the other stuff.

Put one pie crust in the bottom of a casserole dish. (You can get the fold-up kind in the grocery store where they sell the canned buscuits.) Score it in several places.

Pour in the stuff.

Put the other pie crust (they come two to a box) over the top. Score it.

Stick it in a pre-heated 325 degree oven for 45 minutes or until the top is golden brown and the inside is sort of bubbling.

It's the best. Serve it with rice and black-eyed peas.

AB, I wish you'd put up the shrimp recipe. I know you've sent it to me hundred times. It's Death By Shrimp. I love it.

-- Anonymous, August 09, 2001

This is not really a summer dish, per se.

But, you see, what had happened was, last night I was negligently overserved at one of the local public houses. And, then, I came home and decided to whip up my super-good super-cheap lunch-stir-fry. This was not for eating last night, mind you - but for bringing to work today.

I was drunk, and I had three pans on the stove. Great idea.

There is no real recipe - you just wing it. You get mushrooms, a white onion, a 10-oz. box of frozen spinach (the same size that goes in the Knorr's dip), a package of your favorite flavor Ramen (I pick chicken because it goes with the -->), and a chicken breast.

Slice mushrooms and mince onions, then saute. Thaw spinach, rinse and drain and squish all water out. Add to the mushrooms and onions sauteeing. Boil water, cook the ramen for 2-3 minutes, add some of the flavor packet. Drain noodles, add to skillet. Saute a chicken breast, chop it up, toss it in. (the Japanese girl that gave me this recipe was a vegetarian and would use tofu chunks instead of the chicken. I. Think. Not.)

-- Anonymous, August 09, 2001

Okay, here is shrimp recipe, Al. Now, y'all, I've seen this recipe in several incarnations, but this one's the best. My Auntie gave it to me.

Auntie's Shrimp

1 or 2 lbs. shrimp, shells still on
1 small bottle Lea & Perrins worcestershire
3 or 4 sticks Land O'Lakes butter
Juice of one large lemon
1 small jar minced garlic (or crushed if you can't find it)
Tabasco
Tony's
Black pepper

In a saucepan, melt butter and mix in 3/4 bottle of worcestershire, lemon, about 1/2 the jar of garlic (I use a little more), and Tabasco and Tony's to taste.

Lay the shrimp flat in a casserole dish (one layer) and pour the butter mixture over them until only the tops of the shells are showing. Take your black pepper and pepper the shrimp shells only. When you think you've put too much pepper, add more. (I'm serious here, y'all. That pepper has to go through the shells.)

Either bake the shrimp at 350, covered, for about 10 minutes, or broil them, turning once (this one is faster but messier, maybe 4 minutes on each side). Watch them, though, and don't let them overcook.

Sop up the juice with a big ol' warm loaf of French bread. (Sop. Hee.)

-- Anonymous, August 09, 2001

It's so good. I mean, it's better than anything. Drink with Stoli Vanil and Coke.

-- Anonymous, August 09, 2001

Quick question- do you still turn them if you bake them, or just if you broil them?

-- Anonymous, August 09, 2001

Only if you broil them, because they'll be under the broiler and only get cooked on one side if you don't turn them.

-- Anonymous, August 09, 2001

Ok. What is Tony's?

-- Anonymous, August 09, 2001

Hee. Tony's is Tony Chachere's. It's in a green can and it's a "Cajun spice blend" but I put it on everything. I can't cook without it - sounds like AB is the same way. It went into the aforementioned lunch stir-fry.

-- Anonymous, August 09, 2001

Tony Chachere!

So, is this the part where I can step in and claim that my uncle's father invented Barbecued (Auntie's) Shrimp? It's true. Ask Hannah Beth.

-- Anonymous, August 09, 2001

Do y'all remember a few years back when Tony Chachere had a larger- than-usual marketing budget, and they had those great tv spots?

"Tonyyyy CHI-CHI!"

-- Anonymous, August 09, 2001

Oh, poor, sweet Robyn. Here, baby.

-- Anonymous, August 09, 2001

So, is this the part where I can step in and claim that my uncle's father invented Barbecued (Auntie's) Shrimp?

Them's fightin' words, sister.

Also, for your edification, y'all, "Auntie" is pronounced "ain't-ee."

-- Anonymous, August 09, 2001

oh Lord, Tony's site is way cooler than my own.

And what is this "advertising budget" of which you speak? They never advertise in Texas - least nowhere I've ever seen.

While we are on odd condiments and seasonings that might be regional -
have any of you ever heard of Durkee's Famous Sauce? see, in my house, no sandwich will be made without the Durkee's, ever. If a tomato is going to touch bread, there must be Durkee's. It is the husband to mayo, and together they are the happy couple that defines lunch food. But, no-one outside of my own family seems to have heard of or use the stuff.

But they sell it at the HEB! and Randall's! so I can't be crazy. Wahh.

-- Anonymous, August 09, 2001

I've SEEN Durkee's. But never used it. What's it like?

-- Anonymous, August 09, 2001

well, it's odd. It's kind of tangy, but not ketchup-y. The best way I know to describe it is a dijon mustard - mayo blend, only it doesn't taste like either of those.

-- Anonymous, August 09, 2001

AB, it's true, I swear. Scroll down to the Restaurant Report:

http://www.insideneworleans.com/restaurants/food/menu_daily_5_30_01.ht ml

That's not to say that other folks don't make it, and make it really well. What's amazing about the original Manale's recipe is that it's deceptively simple. Too often, people try to make barbequed shrimp and include so much extra in the recipe - I've even seen a recipe that calls for liquid smoke.

-- Anonymous, August 09, 2001

Here's another link:

http://www.betterthanmost.com/goodfolks/recipes/shrimp-bbq.htm

This lady puts way, way too much stuff in her barbequed shrimp. I mean, thyme and basil? Completely unnecessary.

(Now, I'm going to be really nitpicky. I mean, "Cajun country"? This recipe is from New Orleans, not Lafayette or St. Francisville. New Orleans is about as Cajun as Emeril is. That sticks in my craw, I swear.)

-- Anonymous, August 09, 2001

Slickery, did you ever get your white gravy recipe?

In case you didn't, here's mine:

Fry up a bunch of bacon, or use some leftover grease - about 3 tablespoons. It's better to do this after frying up a slab of pork, because then you can leave all the tasty cracklin's in there.

Heat the oil and add enough flour to make a thick, bubbly, sludgy roux (sp?). Stir continuously, or it will get lumpy. If it gets too thick, add more oil. The roux should be the consistency of paste.

After that, simply add milk, a cup at a time, stirring continuously until the gravy starts to thicken. I usually start with about 3 cups of milk, then slowly add. It will ALWAYS seem too thin at first, but just keep stirring and boiling and it thickens up nicely. I'd add more milk for a thinner gravy if you're going to be adding bacon, sausage, or chipped beef to it; but it's easier to carry a gravy- slathered biscuit around the house if it's nice and thick. To each his own, and all.

Man, I didn't realize until I started writing out the recipe how much of it is "by sight" for me. Hopefully those measurements will work for you - after the first time, you'll be able to "see" when you've got it right.

-- Anonymous, August 17, 2001

AB and T, whoever's relative invented BBQ shrimp, I made it for a potluck this weekend and everyone loved it. There were a few leftover and the host refused to let me take them home b/c he wanted them.

-- Anonymous, October 11, 2001

Bumping....T, I've looked around here for your asparagus recipe and can't seem to find it. Could you please post it again. It would be lovely for Easter. Thanks

-- Anonymous, March 26, 2002

I'm making barbequed shrimp for dinner tonight. The Jeff and I ordered some at a restaurant last week and y'all, it was very wrong. Among other things, they had rosemary in it. Rosemary. I told him I had to cook it for him for real so he'd understand why it was so wrong.

-- Anonymous, June 04, 2002

See, the beauty of barbecued shrimp is that it's nothing more than a pound of shrimp coated in black pepper and covered with a stick of butter melted with one tablespoon vegetable oil (one stick and one tbsp oil per pound of shrimp). Bake it at 350 until it's done, and eat it with a lot of French bread. I guess if you wanted you could add some whole garlic cloves to mash on your bread, but really, that's not even necessary.

-- Anonymous, June 05, 2002

There's a squint in my head when I read that post... "barbecued" combined with "bake at 350". Now during the snowy days, that's perfectly sensible but if you can stand outside, light a fire and do it right. Smoke is where the flavor comes from, that's why it's not called "air". Just trying to promote food & fire for the outcome is lovely.

-- Anonymous, June 05, 2002

Ah, _rog, I see where you might get confused. The term barbecue is used loosely here. There is actually no grilling or even any sauce - you know, except the pound of butter. Ahem.

-- Anonymous, June 05, 2002

So, I had pulled some chicken tenders from the freezer in anticipation of making chicken enchiladas for dinner last night. But, when the time came to make dinner, I realized that I did not have any enchilada sauce in my pantry so I decided to improvise.

I carmelized the hell out of some white onions and then the chicken tenders were sauteed in the skillet with olive oil, salt, pepper and Tony's (yes, I had some shipped to me). Then, I put crumbled blue cheese over the whole thing and popped the lid on for about a minute to allow the blue cheese to get kind of melty. Served on toasted onion rolls.

Oh. My. God.

-- Anonymous, June 06, 2002