Author: megsas87

I don’t know what’s more southern than fried green tomatoes! These are so tasty and always make me think of the end of summer. My great grandmother told me stories of how she would get so sick of these after eating so many of them when the weather turned cold since you would pull off all the tomatoes (red or green) off your tomatoes plants before the first fall frost as not to waste anything. I like to make a Cajun remoulade-type sauce to go with mine similar to those I’ve had while in vacation in Charleston. If you have some bacon and bread handy you could make my mom’s favorite, fried green tomato BLTs!

One thing to note when frying raw vegetables, especially tomatoes with a lot of moisture, its best to salt both sides of the tomato slices and let them rest on paper towel for an hour or so to leach out some of the excess water. And regardless of what you are frying, remember to always use a cast iron pan!

Fried Green Tomatoes

Ingredients

– green tomatoes cut into thick slices
– buttermilk
– egg
– flour
– cornmeal
– salt and pepper and/or Cajun seasoning
– oil for frying
Cajun Remoulade – to taste combine:
– mayonnaise
– sour cream
– creole mustard
– hot sauce
– lemon juice
– Cajun seasoning

Directions

Heat oil in a cast iron skillet to approximately 350° (about a half inch of oil is all you need).

Assemble a breading station with 1 bowl of flour, 1 bowl of egg and buttermilk, and 1 bowl with the cornmeal and flour (1:1 ratio) with seasoning.

When the oil is hot, take a slice of the salted green tomato and toss in flour, buttermilk mixture, and then in the cornmeal mixture.

Fry in the hot oil until golden brown on both sides (make sure to flip over half way through).

Drain on a plate lined with paper towel.

Serve warm with Cajun remoulade and enjoy!

Much Love,

M

Growing up my mom never fried chicken – maybe its because she’s from the Midwest, I’ve never really asked her. So one day I decided that being a southern girl, I needed to know how to make good fried chicken. So I researched like crazy and found a ton of recipes and decided I’d just take a little of each and wing it. This is normally what I do for other recipes but I don’t think I payed enough attention to the details – and I think that’s where I went wrong… Three kitchen fires later I deduced that my chicken breasts were too big, there was too much oil in my pot, and I put too much chicken in the oil. Since it is going to be a while before I decide to attempt frying chicken, I decided that I should just perfect my crunchy baked chicken recipe. And besides, its not only easier to make with far less cleanup but its better for you too! And just as tasty!

A few things to note – I always bread my chicken in some sort of mix of crushed corn flakes, panko breadcrumbs, and regular seasoned breadcrumbs. I think this gives the best amount of coating and crunch. I also prefer to use chicken tenderloins or strips so the breading doesn’t get burned while the chicken is still cooking.

I have three go-to baked chicken recipes that I like – honey mustard, vidalia onion, and ranch flavors! Each of these recipes uses the same basic method and just swaps a few ingredients. I’ll post the variations at the end of the basic instructions.

Crunchy Baked Chicken

Ingredients

chicken breast tenderloins
wet marinade
dry breading
cooking spray

Directions

Dip the chicken strips/tenderloins in the wet marinade and then dredge through the dry breadcrumb coating and press to set.

Place on a foil-lined baking sheet and spray the tops of each with cooking spray to allow for browning.

Bake the chicken at 425 for 15-20 minutes until the breading is browned and crunchy and chicken is cooked through.

Flavor Variations

Honey Mustard Baked Chicken – honey mustard dressing marinade with breading mixture

Vidalia Onion Baked Chicken – vidalia onion dressing marinade with fried onions crushed and mixed into the breading mixture

Ranch Baked Chicken – ranch dressing (with extra ranch seasoning) marinade with breading mixture

Serve with your favorite sides.

Enjoy!

Much Love,

M

There is nothing better than good burger hot off a charcoal grill! I have burgers at home quite a bit in the summer because they are easy, pretty inexpensive, and tasty! I’ve tried several variations but I think I’ve finally perfected a “go-to” recipe. Almost always I top mine with LTO and sweet pickles.

Funny story about sweet pickles… my great grandmother, who grew up during the great depression, would not pay for bread and butter pickles because there were “too expensive”.  Ever the frugalista, she would instead buy a big jar of dill pickles (significantly cheaper) then proceed to dump out all but 1/4 of the brine, fill the jar back up with sugar, shake well, and store in the fridge until she had perfectly sweet pickles. Every time I buy a jar of bread and butter pickles in the grocery store, I can’t help but look up and sheepishly smile for her forgiveness. I’m a generation Y after all so I am all about convenience! 🙂

Best Burgers

Ingredients

ground beef (80/20)
Worcestershire sauce
A1 Steak sauce
Cajun seasoning
salt and pepper

Directions

In a large mixing bowl, combine ground beef, Worcestershire sauce (about 2 tablespoons per pound of beef), A1 sauce (about 1 tablespoons per pound of beef), Cajun seasoning (about 2 teaspoons per pound of ground beef) and mix thoroughly, but not over-mixing.

Form into balls and then into patties.

Place on wax paper and sprinkle with more Worcestershire sauce and salt and pepper.

Put the patties seasoned side down on a hot grill and then top the bare side with Worcestershire sauce and salt and pepper.

Grilled until your desired temperate (medium-well preferred) and top with your favorite cheese.

Allow burgers to rest a few minutes before serving to preserved juices.

Enjoy with your favorite toppings.

Much Love,

M

I am constantly on the hunt for ways to mix up chicken. With it being summer time, I much prefer to grill on the weekends but BBQ chicken gets really old really quick. In addition to Tye Club Chicken, this grilled chicken variation is one of my favorites!

I’m not even going to bother posting this “recipe” in my typical format because its too easy!! You just marinate you chicken in some Vidalia Onion Dressing like this here and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Grill and enjoy! YUM YUM!

Much Love,

M

This pie is so easy, I almost feel guilty posting this as a “recipe”!  I love the taste of anything lemon and one of my favorite things to have is lemon bars but those are more time consuming to make and sometimes can even be too sweet. That is why I love this pie so much! It is the perfect easy summer dessert because its cool, light, and refreshing and comes together super fast AND its not too sweet. PERFECT! Don’t get me wrong, made from scratch lemon pies are great! In fact, my great grandmother has a really good recipe for lemon pie with homemade meringue topping and I’ve made it several times.  But for some crazy reason, I still prefer this recipe. You can blame my mother as she does too! 🙂

Another great dessert is to skip the pie crust and put the filling in some small glasses topped with cool whip. Hello lemon shooters!

Lemon Pie

Ingredients

1 prepared pie shell, baked according to package directions and cooled to room temperature
1 box of Jello Cook & Serve lemon pudding mix, prepared according to box directions
cool whip

Directions

Pour the slightly cooled, cooked pie filling into the room temperature pie crust and refrigerate for several hours until cooled.

Top with cool whip and serve!

Enjoy!

Much love,

M

I’ve never been a big fan of creamy pastas but something about Cajun pasta blows my skirt up. It must be the spice! This is a similar copy-cat recipe to Chili’s Cajun chicken pasta except he first few times I made this I made a fair bit of tweaking with changing the amount and type of cream and cheese as well as upping the seasonings. I think the next time I make it, I will add some sauteed bell peppers!

Creamy Cajun Chicken Pasta

Ingredients

2-3 boneless/skinless chicken breasts, pounded even
2 teaspoons Cajun seasoning, plus extra for dusting chicken
4 tablespoons butter
2 pints of heavy cream
1 pint of half & half
1 teaspoon lemon pepper seasoning
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 pound of penne pasta
roma tomatoes, diced (optional)
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, plus more for garnish

Directions

Bring a large pot of water to a boil to cook the pasta.

Meanwhile, sprinkle chicken breasts with cajun season and heat a large cast iron skillet to high heat.

Add two tablespoons of the butter to the hot skillet and then add the chicken. Brown each side and cook the chicken through, then remove and place on a cutting board to cool and allow juices to redistribute.

In the same skillet with all of the good crusty chicken bits, combine the cream, half & half, remaining butter and seasonings over medium heat, stirring often until the mixture starts to bubble.

Once the cream mixture starts to thicken, sprinkle in the ½ cup of Parmesan cheese, mix well, then pour the sauce over the cooked and drained pasta and toss to coat.

While the pasta and sauce are setting up, cut up the chicken into slices or large diced chucks.

In each bowl, add the creamy pasta and top with cajun chicken pieces, diced tomatoes, and Parmesan cheese.

Serve with a thick slice of garlic toast and enjoy!

Much Love,

M

Football is big in our house, especially ACC football. What that means for me is football snacks!!! Lets get real for a minute – while I can get excited about some games (like UNC games, games with former UNC players, or games with my fantasy team players) most of the time I get a little bored, especially towards the end of the season. My solution? Making fun, tasty, football food! This also is an appropriate time to confess that I have a borderline obsession with the Pioneer Woman. I really do love her! I think she is so witty, down to earth, and makes really good and approachable food. Football is big in her house too and she has a lot of great game-day recipes! One day while watching a marathon of her show on TV, I saw her make her Spicy Whiskey BBQ Sliders and knew that I would have to try my own spin on them. I knew right away that I wanted to make a few variations to her recipe, namely adding cheddar cheese and caramelized onions! Since I would be adding caramelized onions to the top of the burger I decided to omit the onions in the sauce and upped the amount of jalapenos for some extra spice! I also added more BBQ sauce to the sauce base to allow for a thicker sauce. Since I didn’t have an bourbon handy I decided to omit the alcohol. I’m sure it would have been tasty but I honestly didn’t miss anything. I also think that making these in a cast iron skillet is a must. If you don’t have one, you should definitely get one! Even if you don’t think you would like a BBQ burger, try these, they will change your life! Not really, but really! 🙂

Bold Bourbon BBQ Sliders

Ingredients

1.25-1.5 lbs ground beef
1 large onion, sliced
a bottle of BBQ sauce (KC Masterpiece or Jack Daniels are great)
1/2 cup sliced jarred jalapenos, drained and diced
butter
salt and pepper
12 dinner rolls or slider buns
sliced sharp cheddar cheese

Directions

Form the beef into 12 thin, miniature patties, making them thinner than you would think, and sprinkle salt and pepper on both sides. In a smaller skillet, start to cook the onions with a tablespoon of butter. Allow them to continue cooking on medium low heat until caramelized. In another skillet (preferably cast-iron) melt a few tablespoons of butter in a skillet over medium-high heat and cook the patties until just about done in the middle (medium), about 3-4 minutes. Remove the patties from the skillet and set aside. Drain off excess grease. Reduce the heat to low and add in about 1/2 to 2/3 of the bottle of BBQ sauce and diced jalapenos. Once the sauce is combined, place the patties in the barbecue sauce, turning to coat. Allow the patties to simmer in the sauce until everything’s hot and bubbly, being careful not to overcook the meat. While everything is cooking, slice the buns/rolls in half and place a piece of sliced sharp cheddar on each half. Toast in a 375° oven until the cheese is melted and the buns are warm and slightly crusty. Place the patties on individual buns and be sure to spoon extra sauce (with the jalapenos!) over the top and add the caramelized onions before topping with the other half of the cheesy bun. Enjoy with some extra napkins!

Much Love,
M

If I had to pick a favorite way to have potatoes, this would probably be it! I think its the combination of the seasonings and caramelized onions that make these potatoes so good!

The key to this recipe is the seasoning – herb de Provence. Herb de Provence is a mix of several different kinds of herbs such as savory, rosemary, thyme, basil, oregano, marjoram, fennel and lavender. You can find herb de Provence seasoning mix at most any specialty food store. I know William Sonoma has some and occasionally Home Goods does too. I’m sure World Market and any upscale grocery store would also have it. If you feel adventurous, you could even make your own.

Roasted Provencal Potatoes

Ingredients

potatoes, washed and diced, skin on
onion, diced
herb de provence
oil, olive or canola

Directions

Toss the potatoes and onions in oil and sprinkle with seasoning.

Spread out over a greased baking sheet.

Bake at 400° for 20-40 minutes until onions are caramelized and potatoes are cooked and golden brown.

Enjoy!

Much love,

M

One of the best ways to have steak is the grill a well-marinated London broil. Beef is so expensive so when I have a hankering for steak I just have to be a little more economical about it.

This all started with my mom who would always buy this cut of steak when feeding the family or a crowd because it is a nice and juicy cut of steak when marinated and sliced thin and it is very economical in terms of cost per pound. So when you see a London broil go on sale, buy that baby, take it home, put it in a dish and cover it with Italian dressing. Skeeerrrt! What?! No fancy marinade? Nope! Don’t bother with that – plain ol’ Italian dressing from a bottle works fabulously! Trust me on this one! If you wanted to you could choose most any vinaigrette salad dressing – balsamic works great too! Let it marinate for at least several house (preferably all day) and then slap that puppy on a hot grill. I couldn’t tell you much about what to do next as my cooking expertise stops at the back door. I pretty much rely on a thermometric. My only other tip is not to flip it too much so you get a good sear on the outside to lock in the moisture. And what ever you do, you must allow your steak to rest for at-least 10 minutes to allow all the juices to redistribute back into the meat!

Serve with your favorite sides and enjoy!

Much Love,

M

I love jalapeno poppers and make them for different occasions, but unless I’m hosting a party I don’t make them. So one day, while on the hunt for some new and exciting chicken recipes (because lets face it, chicken can get pretty boring) I came across a recipe for Jalapeno Popper Stuffed Chicken from SkinnyTaste and knew I had make my spin on them.

My jalapeno popper recipe calls for cumin and I love that flavor so I decided to add it to this recipe. You could definitely leave it out off you don’t have it or do like it but I think it adds something special! I also prefer to shred my own cheese, mainly because it melts better. For the breading I like to mix both regular breadcrumbs and panko breadcrumbs to add a bit of extra crunch. If you want to cut some calories you can use reduced fat or fat free cheeses, but they just doesn’t melt as well.  I also decided to omit the bacon and the scallions from the original recipe just because I didn’t feel they added anything vital and I prefer for just the simple ingredients to shine. I like things pretty spicy so I kept about half of the jalapeno seeds in. If you want to tone down the heat, take all of the seeds out. Or, if you have no feeling in your mouth, then by all means, leave the seeds in! WOWZA!

Jalapeno Popper Stuffed Chicken

Ingredients

thin sliced chicken breast fillets

1/4 cup seasoned breadcrumbs

1/4 cup of panko breadcrumbs

1/4 cup lime juice

3 tablespoons of vegetable or olive oil

1/4 block (2oz) cream cheese, softened

1 heaping cup of shredded cheddar cheese

3 small/medium or 2 medium/large jalapenos mostly seeded and diced fine

1/2 teaspoon of cumin

salt and pepper

cooking spray

Directions

In a bowl, combine cream cheese, cheddar cheese, jalapenos, and cumin and mix well to make a thick cheese spread.

Make a breading station by combining oil and lime juice with salt and pepper in one small bowl and combine two breadcrumbs in another small bowl.

Lay each breast fillet down and place two heaping tablespoons of cheese filling in the center.

Roll the chicken breast fillet starting with the narrow end of the filet  towards the middle and secure with toothpicks.

Dip the stuffed chicken “roll” in the olive oil/lime juice mixture and then toss in breadcrumbs to coat.

Place each breaded piece on a foil-lined and greased baking sheet.

Spray the top of each filet with cooking spray to assist with browning.

Bake in a 425 degree oven for 20-30 minutes.

Enjoy!

Much Love,

M