Red Velvet Wisdom

Well, this weekend was Mother’s birthday weekend, and we threw her a birthday celebration.  Per her request, the main dish for the meal was chicken spaghetti, that has been previously posted on here, with garlic biscuits on the side.  Of course it’s not a birthday party without cake, and we indulged Mother in several varieties so that she could have a good sampling of things that she liked.

Joy was in charge of the salad and the relish platters, and she did her absolute best to make them as decorative and Martha-like as possible.  And then she made sure to tell everybody that she was in charge of it so that everybody could fawn over her decision to stick onions in a vase.

However, the big hit of the party was neither salad, cake, nor the main course.  It was the delicious cheddar biscuits that our niece Whittney (also the organizer of the party) had made to serve on the side.   They are fairly simple to make, and thankfully they had the good sense to triple the recipe because the 20 people at the party motored through them!  Pictured below is the starting point of the glaze that goes over the top, and the glaze being drizzled over the top of the hot steamy biscuits.

To get some of these you need 2 cups of Bisquick, 2/3 cup of buttermilk (the buttermilk makes ALL the difference on these, don’t sub with regular milk). and 1 1/3 cups of finely grated sharp cheddar cheese.  Mix all three ingredients together, and be mindful that Bisquick can sometimes run a little dry, and you may need to add a little more buttermilk if you feel like it’s not quite moist enough.  Drop them by the tablespoon on a cooking sheet, and bake for about 10 minutes at 350.  When they come out, while they are still hot and steamy, brush over a glaze of 1 stick of melted butter, 2 tablespoons of parsley and 1 heaping tablespoon of garlic powder.

These were so good, our dad ate 4 and actually told one guest to ignore the bread sticks and just have the biscuits!  Overall the party was a great success with lots of great food and gifts, and we couldn’t wait to share this recipe with  you all so that  you could devour a pan yourself!

My mom loves all things coconut. Anytime she ever made anything requiring coconut she tried to use fresh. Joy and I recently laughed about the time she brought one home and the dog went berserk when he stared at the at it after it rolled out of a sack. He thought it was staring at him and wouldn’t shut up until it was in a bowl as ambrosia.

I decided to make a coconut cake for Mom’s birthday this week.

I know someone who makes the best coconut cake I”ve ever had and she is going to give my her recipe. But…it will be next week before I get it. I figured, no problem, I will make something different. I decided to pull out the old family cookbook and find something. I found a recipe for a coconut poundcake and knew I had cake. If only things were ever that easy.

I should have suspected when I saw that the recipe had no name on it that I might should just skip this but no, I kept going. I went to the store, armed with a list. When it came to canned coconut, I was stumped. None to be found. Some ever so kind ladies advised me to use half a bag of shredded coconut and it would be the same. (doesn’t everyone take advice from strangers in the grocery store?)

Family Coconut Pound Cake

• 2 c. flour
• 2 c. sugar
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 and 1/2 tsp baking powder (as I am typing I realize I used SODA instead. Oops)
• 1 c. cooking oil
• 1/2 c. milk
• 5 eggs
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 2 tsp. coconut flavoring (the recipe called for 1 cup, but that is impossible. The bottles are 1 oz!)
• 1 can Angel Flake Coconut (or half a bag)

Mix well and bake in a bundt pan at 350º until brown or a toothpick comes out clean. (it was about 40 minutes for me)

There is a glaze recipe and I think it was written by someone who mixed things without measuring. I tried it and ended up pouring it out. I am looking for a new one as soon as I finish this. Basically, it was sugar, oleo, (I had to google that to make sure it was margarine) water, and coconut flavoring. I used powdered sugar and thought it too thin so I added sugar. You can see where this is going and getting there fast.

I’m not sure how the family cookbook really came to be, or who put that crazy pound cake in there.  I’m not sure how Mom ever grated coconut, or how long we let the dog bark at the one he was afraid of. I do know that my mom is now 69, and we are grateful that she is here to celebrate.

Happy Birthday Mom.

I saw an appetizer that fit my style the other day. I know it doesn’t really go along with our dedication old style, made from scratch recipes, but I had to share it anyway. It reminds me of spring and my spring break starts at 3:45 today!

Strawberry Appetizers

• fresh strawberries
• creme horns

Slice the creme horns and lay the circles on a serving tray. Top with sliced strawberries.  They are easy, beautiful, and delicious.

Spring break to-d0 list:

1. Have fun at Mother’s 69th birthday party tomorrow!
2. Shop for Boo, since she is growing taller each day and outgrowing everything.
3. Organize closets/cabinets. (fun, no)
4. MOVIES!
5. Red Velvet Roadtrip where we travel to three states in one day, finding cool places to eat in each one.
6. Have a snooza palooza each morning, sleeping until at least 7:30.

Hopefully, I can cross these off  and add a few more.

Once I had made it to New Orleans with Natalie and Kelly, we decided that after we got checked into the hotel, it would be time to venture onto Bourbon Street and find something for dinner.  Once we wandered toward the French Quarter, there was truly no shortage of places to eat (or drink).  We were looking for a moderately priced meal, preferably of the Cajun/Creole variety.  At the edge of the Quarter were several upscale fine dining establishments, who had entrees priced in the $30-$50 range.  Since we had left our rich sugar daddies behind for the weekend, we kept walking until we came to La Bayou directly on Bourbon.  It had meals priced more in the $15-$20 range, and it had a nice menu loaded with all sorts of Louisiana-style fare.

The restaurant was fairly busy but we were able to get a table quickly.  The place had a very and casual atmosphere, with lots of patrons enjoying their food and the cocktails that flowed from the very busy bar.   Being that we were hungry, Natalie had the fabulous idea of ordering gator bites.  I have had gator before and it can sometimes be tough and chewy, but this was buttery soft and fresh, and was served with a spicy mustard that I literally could have eaten my weight in.  (special thanks to Natalie for snapping all of these pictures for me!)

Next came the entrees.  Kelly had a Cajun pasta that looked delicious.  Natalie had shrimp and grits that came stacked up with fried green tomatoes and smothered in some sort of creamy sauce.  I picked the Big Easy po boy that came complete with shrimp, remoulade, and fried green tomatoes.  It was so huge there was no eating with your hands.  We all sampled each other dishes, and I can tell you they were all a good decision.

cajun pasta

shrimp and grits

Big Easy Po Boy

I had decided pretty much before I had even ordered my entree that I was going to order bread pudding, but ONLY if Natalie and Kelly would share.  They of course needed tons of begging to help me with this (feel the sarcasm).  The pudding came and was filled with peaches and raisins, and covered in a creamy rum sauce, and was a perfect way to end an authentic New Orleans meal.

bread pudding

There were more food adventures at Pat O’Brien’s on Saturday night, but I was too hungry to even remember the idea of getting pix (I’m sure the giant Hurricane cocktails they serve had nothing to do with it).  It was also delicious New Orleans fare, and overall I have to say my NOLA experience was filled with good food and great people, and I literally can’t wait to go back!

It’s been a few days since we had a post, because both Dena and I have been MIA.  She was at a conference in San Antonio, and I was lucky enough to have district meeting in New Orleans.  I was beyond excited to get down there and soak up some of the culture.  I very quickly learned that there is all sorts of culture to be soaked up in the state, not just in NOLA.

I was scheduled to meet up with my partners in crime, Kelly and Natalie in Pineville, but before I got all the way there, I did a little detour into Natchitoches, home to world famous meat pies (and an amazing Christmas festival).  I knew that anywhere I stopped that wasn’t a fast food place would have a meat pie of some variety, and I rolled into an Exxon that did not disappoint.  It advertised boudin balls, meat pies, and fresh cracklins.  Not the hard kind you find in your local grocery store, but the real kind, which are a staple in Louisiana.

the cracklins stand

I went in and discovered that this is apparently a fairly popular place, with a long line of people waiting for some of the fried goodies in the deli case, which had a constantly rotating flow of all things greasy and delicious.  There were corn nuggets, and whole fried corn on the cob, meat pies, and crawfish pies.  However, the big deal in that particular gas station appeared to be…………..gizzards.

various meat filled dough products

I don’t eat gizzards, and after I get done with this post I am probably going to have to get on Google and see just exactly where a gizzard is located on a chicken (at least I think it comes from a chicken).  Every person in the line besides me ordered gizzards, and one woman even yelled, “IS THAT FRESH GIZZARDS???!!!!” when a new tray came out.  I played it somewhat safe and got a crawfish pie, which was like an empanada stuffed with crawfish, rice, celery, and onions.  It was kind of like a thick gumbo encased in a crispy fried pie shell.  So I left Natchitoches with my crawfish pie and a serving of corn nuggets, and headed to Pineville, where Kelly and Natalie would lead me on to further food adventures in New Orleans.  Come back tomorrow and read about all the delicious food (and cocktails) we filled up with in the French Quarter!