Feb 17, 2015 | Diner, host, Seafood
Pan Roasted Brussel Sprouts with Shrimp We visited my brother Dwayne’s house for Christmas. While there, my lovely niece, Rebecca, and her good friend, Shelby, whipped up a Brussel sprouts side dish that hit the spot. I didn’t get Becky’s recipe,...
Feb 14, 2015 | Diner, host, Meat
Italian Sausage and Spinach I made up some spaghetti sauce out of turkey Italian sausage. At the last minute, Sherry said it was okay with her if we decide not to serve it over pasta. So – I added a bag of pre-rinsed spinach right at the very end. Then I cooked...
Feb 3, 2015 | Diner, host, Poultry
Turkey Italian Sausage We like Johnsonville Italian Sausage, but we also need to watch the fat intake. Thus, experiments with ground turkey. Ingredients 1 pound lean ground turkey2 teaspoons garlic powder1-1/2 teaspoons fennel seed, crushed1-1/2 teaspoons sugar1...
Jan 26, 2015 | Diner, host, Poultry
Soy Chorizo and Turkey Chili Our grocery stocks a Chorizo made from soy. It’s really tasty, and reminds me of a chili mix we used to buy 40 years ago. This is pretty darned good. Ingredients 2 large yellow onions (or more), peeled and sliced into slivers 2...
Jan 4, 2015 | Diner, host, Seafood
Shrimp Etouffee I used poblano peppers rather than green bell peppers, and I skipped the celery. I peeled and deveined the shrimp first and began my shrimp stock. In the meantime, I allowed the shrimp to sit in the fridge mixed with a blend of the salt, peppers,...
Dec 15, 2014 | Diner, host, Poultry
Giada’s BBQ Chicken Ingredients: 1 cup Balsamic vinegar3/4 cups catsup1 T Worchestershire1/3 cup brown sugar1T Dijon mustard1 clove garlic, mincedpinch of salt and someblack pepper Chicken thighs and breasts Directions: Combine all ingredients except chicken in...
Dec 8, 2014 | Dessert, Diner, host
Strawberry Créme Pie Ingredients 1 10 oz tub frozen sliced strawberries in sugar, thawed1 3 oz package cream cheese, softened3 cups frozen whipped topping, thawed1 graham cracker pie crustDirections Drain the strawberries. Use an electric mixer to combine the...
Dec 3, 2014 | Diner, host, Meat
Green Beans, Potatoes, and Sausage Casserole Ingredients 12 oz pack of frozen cut green beans 1 lb smoked pork sausage (Kielbasa, etc.); sliced 1 medium onion, peeled and diced 3 medium potatoes, diced 1/2 cup Parmesan or other similar cheese (I like Cotijo.), grated...
Dec 1, 2014 | Casseroles, Diner, host, Meat
Spinach, Potato, and Italian Sausage Casserole I threw this together this evening, and it was pretty darned good.Ingredients 12 oz. bag frozen spinach; thawed and excess water squeezed out1 lb Italian Sausage2 medium onions, diced4 medium potatoes, diced1 poblano...
Oct 6, 2014 | Church, Diner, host
My Sweet Emily I had a GREAT day at church yesterday. A 2nd grader I’m TOTALLY in love with all of the sudden began paying attention to me. She has always been timid around me; but yesterday, she started talking to me, smiling, etc….. And after the...
Sep 26, 2014 | Casseroles, Diner, host
Macaroni & Cheese We picked up some good looking turnip greens at Fiesta Market. Smoke pork neckbones, sausages, turnips, potatoes, carrots and potatoes make this a special southern comfort. We hope you enjoy. I saw this recipe on a package of cheese from Walmart....
Aug 29, 2014 | Diner, host, Seafood
Drum Fish I love to shop at our Fiesta Mart near Reliant Stadium. The Seafood Department lady has taken a liking to me, and that suits me just fine. The seafood lady at Kroger in Memphis seemed to like me too. I’m not complaining. Yesterday, Blanca recommended...
Jul 1, 2014 | Diner, host, Poultry, Soup
Chicken Vegetable Soup I usually buy a couple of family-packs of leg quarters, boil up the chicken; debone the chicken; then make a stock from the bones. Then, after all that is done, I get around to putting together the pot of soup. Yesterday, though, I decided to...
Jun 21, 2014 | Diner, host, Music
Music Links Realizing that I’d had so much fun viewing so many different music items on the web, I began to wonder where all of those links were; and I hoped that I could preserve them. They are scattered all over a variety of book marks on several different...
May 5, 2014 | Dessert, Diner, host
Oatmeal Cookies Sherry mentioned that her boss is having a birthday tomorrow; so I’m thinking of a treat. I’m not much on desserts, but this looks easy. I saw the recipe on the inside of the lid of a box of Quaker Oats. Vanishing Oatmeal Raisin Cookies...
May 4, 2014 | Diner, host
Collard Greens with Rutabaga I went to the Foodarama today with the thought of cooking up some chicken-vegetable soup for Sherry’s lunches next week. I love to browse around the market; see what looks good; mull over my choices; then change my mind three or...
Apr 21, 2014 | Diner, host, Lagniappe
Easter Dinner! Sam had to work so we didn’t make big plans for dinner; but then he called and said he’d “like to drop by for a while,” and of course he suggested dinner would be nice. Fortunately the stores were still open (Foodarama had...
Apr 17, 2014 | Diner, host, Seafood
Seared Ahi Tuna Our neighbor, Chef Joel St. John, treats us now and then to his wonderful cooking. Almost as good, is he sometimes treats us to some of his ingredients and lets us do the cooking. (Not that he didn’t volunteer to cook for us; he did.) This time,...
Apr 15, 2014 | Diner, host, Seafood
Shrimp Po Boy There are a million recipes for po-boys out there. I borrowed heavily from Emiril for this one. Don’t be afraid to try different recipes and modify to suit your tastes. Ingredients 1 lb. fresh shrimp; peeled and deveined 1 tsp. cayenne 1/2 tsp....
Apr 13, 2014 | Diner, host
Stuffed Mushrooms I make up stuffed mushrooms from time to time and really don’t have a set recipe for them. But usually it is something like this. This time, I did these in the Nuwave Oven. No, I’m not selling Nuwave Ovens, but I do find mine to be...
Apr 9, 2014 | Diner, host, Meat
Sausage Meat Balls I made some Italian sausage meat balls the other day and I felt like I needed to add a binder. I had no bread crumbs on hand, but I did have some oat meal. To my surprise a few raisins had somehow gotten into the box of oatmeal and then found their...
Mar 14, 2014 | Diner, host
Stewed Onions, with Kale and Turnips I threw this one together in a 12″ skillet that has a nice tight fitting lid. It’s a joy cooking with that skillet. And it’s a joy cooking fresh veggies for Sherry. She loves me to do this. Ingredients 5-6 small...
Mar 5, 2014 | Diner, host, Meat
Wailted Kale and Spinach with Ham It’s so much fun cooking for Sherry; and it’s easy too. She loves fresh vegetables – especially fresh leafy greens. This is a winner, and the whole thing takes only a few minutes once the greens are cleaned....
Mar 1, 2014 | Diner, host
Wilted Spinach with Broccoli and Asparagus The neat thing about this meal is I cooked it with three different appliances; and if you REALLY want to jazz things up, fire up the broiler and toast some ham and cheese on French bread to make it four. If you don’t...
Feb 26, 2014 | Casseroles, Diner, host
Chinese "Stir Fry" Casserole I started out with a casserole in mind; but I didn’t want to put in any sort of starch binder like rice or pasta. But I DID want some cheese. And PLENTY of mushrooms. What resulted turned out tasting like a Chinese stir-fry...
Feb 14, 2014 | Diner, host, Seafood
Fish with Clam and Mushroom Sauce I picked up a nice Red Snapper filet today and figured I’d make some sort of sauce to smother it in. I tried this, and the sauce was as good or better than the snapper. Ingredients 1/2 pound fresh mushrooms, sliced 4 cloves of...
Feb 13, 2014 | Diner, host, Soup
Green Pea Soup Sherry loves green pea soup; and it’s easy to make. Try it; you’ll like it! This is GOOD stuff! Ingredients 1 pound dried split peas 1-2 pounds smoked pork neck bones 3 T butter 1 onion, chopped 2 sticks celery, chopped 2 carrots, chopped...
Feb 12, 2014 | Diner, host, Lagniappe
Cajun Seasoning I don’t know where I got this recipe; it might have been from a chef friend back in Memphis, Buddy Bland. But I just don’t remember. Ingredients 3 tsp salt6 tsp Paprika4 T onion powder3 tsp garlic powder3 tsp...
Feb 12, 2014 | Diner, host, Salad, Sauces & Dressings
Rachel’s French Dressing We have this recipe hand written by Rachel taped to the inside of one of our cabinet doors. I don’t know when Rachel wrote this. Ingredients 1 cup salad oil 3/4 cup sugar 1/4 cup white vinegar 1/3 cup ketchup 1 clove of garlic,...
Jan 31, 2014 | chicken, Diner, host, Poultry
Smothered Cornish Hens Ingredients 10 cloves garlic, finely minced 2 Cornish hens olive oil salt and pepper Directions Stuff garlic under skins of hens. Truss the hens and place in baking pan breast side up. Pre-heat oven to 375. Allow hens to come to room...
