How To Prepare Butternut Squash

This is a video on how to prepare butternut squash.  Devin Godbey was our Program Director for Culinary Arts on location at The University of Charleston Beckley campus .  Unfortunately, we no longer have a Culinary Arts Program however, Devin is preparing for her next big step.  She is receiving her Masters and who knows what is next for her.  I hope this video for preparing Butternut squash is helpful https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I-vFTlAYk9g Also check out the article in our local Register-Herald Newspaper http://www.register-herald.com/features/x1782774093/A-taste-embrace/?state=taberU

Savannah, GA Inspired Pralines!

I'm from the South...I'm totally SOUTHERN...so I say "ˈpräw-ˌlēen" some up north say....präy-lēn.   After two days of visiting last week in Savannah, GA and the feeling of southern comforts, I was reminded of my maternal grandmother's gift of candy making and baking the finest creamy goodies that I have ever tasted, bar none!
As we bopped in the Savannah Candy Store and were offered a warm praline sample, I was immediately reminded of my grandmother's amazing talents, candy making and baking.  I called my mom to get her old recipe. The recipe is part of the magic but mastering candy making is something else!

Brick Oven Pizza On A Grill! (My sister's recipe)

Dough

2 c flour

1tbs olive oil

1Tbs sugar or Splenda

1 tsp salt

1 cup warm water ( mix this with your package of yeast)

1 pack quick rise yeast

Mix all four ingredients then add water and yeast mixture. Knead dough adding flour as necessary until soft and pliable but not sticky. Let the dough rise about 1 hour.



Sauce

1/4 c chopped onion

2 cloves garlic crushed

1Tbs olive oil

1 small 6 ounce tomato paste

1 small 14.5 ounce can tomato sauce no salt added

2 cans of water (use sauce can)

2 tsp sugar or Splenda

salt and pepper to taste

(about 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper)

Sauté onion, garlic and olive oil (dash of salt and pepper) on low heat until tender. Stir in sauce, paste, water, sugar, salt and pepper increase heat until bubbles then turn down to low and simmer about 20 minutess. (or more)
Pat the dough out on a pizza pan or cookie sheet with cornmeal mix so that it won't stick. Make it as thin as you like it. Top with sauce, cheese and toppings of your choice, whatever you like...but roasted peppers are a must! ;0)
Heat the grill with 8 bricks lined up close together in two rows, matching end on end. Set the thermostat on high for 15-20 min. Then slide the pizza onto the bricks and cook on about 500 for 10 min.
Remove with a spatula or a wooden pizza paddle onto a pizza pan or serving dish. Cut, eat and keep eating!

My sister emailed me this recipe earlier this week after she shared it with me during a phone conversation. We had talked about this pizza place and Irish pub in Cocoa Beach, Florida that she had told us about.  We went and boy the pizza was excellent!!!  She was talking about how she was craving some pizza like that and it must have inspired her to try the grill out!   I told her that she needed to do a blog. She chuckled and said no, “I’ll send you the recipe and you can blog!”  My sister enjoys cooking and is excellent at it.  She stays abreast of new and innovative ways to cook and experiments often.  She rarely ever follows a recipe, I cook a lot like that too and my mom and grandparents were the same way.  I’m hoping that I can get my sister to share several of her best recipe ideas since she often cooks with a diabetic in mind.  That is why she often will say that you can use Splenda in place of sugar.   I’m guessing that this would be better for all of us!    

*Click on the recipe to view in a larger format and feel free to print a copy for your use.

Our Family's Seafood Gumbo Recipe

I was born in Mississippi and grew up playing along the bayou. As young children my cousins, siblings and I learned to spear fish, flounder, crab and fish with a pole too. At night we would get our gas lamps ready and head for the beach or the bayou front at low tide and wade through the water to spear a catch. We always kept crab traps out for routine checking during the day from the dock. And when we caught these bayou treasures it meant cleaning and storage or cooking. I think I have known how to clean and prepare a crab since I was about 5 years old. I never enjoyed the fish cleaning process! And I have beheaded thousands of shrimp for cooking or freezing for later use. A nasty job indeed!
We also had several ponds on our family's property, one was our swimming hole and an interesting spot to fish. The water was brackish due to its close proximity to the bayou and a culvert that ran under the road, which allowed the exchange and mixture of waters. We had an interesting mix of both saltwater and fresh water fish. And we were only minutes from the local dock where fresh shrimp and other seafood were sold, not quite a market…but fresh off the boats!
For almost every special occasion year around, we had gumbo at family gatherings. I have fond memories of family gatherings that usually added up to twenty five or more of us in the large dining room that faced the bayou. And all of our meals ended up with someone playing the grand piano. Unfortunately the old family home place was lost in Katrina. But those memories are always as sweet as ever when I begin a big pot of gumbo! I hope that you will enjoy the recipe. LEFT CLICK YOUR MOUSE OVER THE RECIPES AND IT SHOULD ENLARGE FOR PRINTING AND READING PURPOSE.