The Season 12 premier of Next Food Network Star debuted tonight and I am so excited for its return! I’m going to be on this show one day, so I watch it while taking notes with great anticipation. Did you watch? In case you missed it, I’ll provide a quick recap here including my top picks right off the bat. Continue reading “Next Food Network Star Premier Episode Recap”
The return of the Farmers’ Market for me each season is just about as exciting as Christmas Day. With fresh herbs and local produce on my mind, I love getting up on Saturday morning, throwing on my yoga pants, a tank top, a pair of favorite flip flops and my over-sized sunglasses and heading out the door. Sometimes, I even pack up my 11-pound Shih Tzu, Ewok, and we ride with the radio up and the windows down on the way. Continue reading “5 Farmers’ Market Recipes to Make Right Now”
Sometimes all it takes to inspire change is trying something new. I went grocery shopping this week and bought some light English muffins. I never buy English muffins, always whole wheat bread or occasionally even small bagels, but never English muffins. That changes now! The spongy, holey dough is truly a vehicle for any topping you can imagine. Crispy when toasted, English muffins have officially breathed life into my breakfast routine. Suddenly I find myself mashing avocado, slicing tomatoes and poaching eggs (trying to poach eggs, I should say. I tried and failed, but hey – the point is, I am inspired to try.) Continue reading “Breakfast Just Got Better”
It’s that infamous time of year in The Hostess City when everyone, no matter who your people are, becomes Irish for a day. Since I met and married a bonafide Savannahian, my life has never been the same. On March 17 each year, come rain or shine, we will don our green and orange, raise our glasses, pack our picnic baskets and join the hundreds of thousands of others in the Spanish moss-covered oak tree city of Savannah, Georgia.
Continue reading “Have a Sweet St. Patrick’s Day with Green Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies”
Benton Lee’s Steakhouse
Uvalda, Georgia
There are steakhouses, and then there’s Benton Lee’s. I have discovered the place to eat meat in South Georgia, y’all. If you’re looking for a good steak, stop your search right now and hop in your car for a drive through the country. Known for it’s large portions and family-centered atmosphere, the restaurant, with its wide front porch and back deck, overlooks the Altamaha River. For many reading this though, it won’t be a surprise. The locals of this community have enjoyed Benton Lee’s Steakhouse for 48 years.
My good lookin’ husband, Kurt, and I drove over to the restaurant from Claxton, Georgia on a Friday night, just in time to catch the sunset.
We ordered gator nuggets to start, because that’s what you do when you live in The Fruitcake Capital of the World and no restaurant within a 30-mile radius has it on the menu. Much to my dismay, the gator served at Benton Lee’s is not wrestled and caught from the muddy waters of the Altamaha (ha!), but sourced from a gator farm in Odom, Georgia about 300 miles away. Gator has a tough and chewy consistency, but everyone should try it once. Our server said he liked it better than chicken, but I’ll stick with poultry (spoken like a true resident of Evans County).
The straightforward menu features steaks of all cuts and sizes, plus seafood–shrimp, oysters and catfish–chicken tenders and wild game like quail, gator and frog legs. Staples including hamburger steak, pork chops and chef salad also are available. We ordered the Sirloin for Two: each serving is individually cooked and is at least 12 ounces. In the causal atmosphere, tea and water are self-serve.
The hand-cut fries are perfectly salted and crunchy. My steak was cooked to a medium temperature, juicy and just right. Tender and warm from the grill, the steak melts in your mouth. Beautiful grill marks make an appetizing presentation, and a standard salad and roll round out the meal. I am told that once upon a time Benton Lee’s Steakhouse hosted a competition where if you ate six pounds worth of beef, you would get it for free. I don’t understand why anyone would want to do this.
The patrons at Benton Lee’s Steakhouse are the same folks you see on the church pew Sunday morning, the moms of the elementary school drop-off line and dads of the community ball field. They’re Southern folks that do life together, that appreciate a good slab of beef when they see it. This is not an audience concerned about locally sourced ingredients, a five star plate presentation, house-made sauces or compound butters. They’re not seeking white tablecloths or organic produce, just a place they can go with the family in tow for a hearty meal and a break from cooking themselves. Down home, friendly and no nonsense. My kind of place!
Celebrity guests have included country music sensation Travis Tritt, the late actress Donna Douglas (a.k.a Ellie May Clampett from The Beverly Hillbillies TV Show), Troy and Jacob Landry from the History Channel’s Swamp People and Duck Dynasty’s Si Robertson. It doesn’t get more country than that, folks!
The walls contain an eclectic mix of taxidermy and farm equipment familiar to the South Georgia region. An antique hand mixer and some old Coca-Cola bottles decorated the shelf above our table. Every booth and table in the restaurant houses everything you need – paper towels, salt & pepper, ketchup, steak sauces and hot sauce. A well-lit jukebox stands near the doorway. Attentive servers wear bright pink t-shirts displaying the “Don’t Tread On Me” Gadsden Flag.
A sign posted on the front porch of the property sums up the philosophy of Benton Lee’s well. Come hungry and come as you are.
New to Some Kinda Good?
Georgia native Rebekah Faulk Lingenfelser is a freelance writer, entertainer and food enthusiast who writes and speaks about her love of good food and the Coastal South. A Season 2 Contestant on ABC’s “The Taste,” she is the former Statesboro Herald food columnist and past host of the television program “Statesboro Cooks.” From 2012 – ’14, she appeared regularly as Celebrity Chef at the Statesboro Main Street Farmers’ Market and wrote as a guest blogger for Visit Savannah and The Local Palate. In addition, her work is published in Moments magazine and Connect Statesboro. Her culinary accomplishments are recognized in two publications: She is a featured alumna in Georgia Southern Magazine (Spring ’14) and the “Go Girl!” in Moments magazine (March 2104), a tabloid for moms and modern women. To learn more, visit RebekahFaulk.wix.com/RebekahFaulk.
When certain fresh vegetables are not in season, frozen ones are the next best thing – and March just so happens to be National Frozen Food Month. Today, I’m taking this opportunity to share my favorite side dish: Chili-Lime Jalapeno Corn. Continue reading “Wake Up Dinner with Chili-Lime Jalapeno Corn”
They say the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach, and with Valentine’s Day just a few days away, it’s time to get cookin’! All jokes aside, I don’t think there’s a better way to show you care than by cooking or baking for someone you love. I’ve got a special recipe to share today, and it’s exciting for two reasons: 1) It’s seriously Some Kinda Good (you get to bake with champagne!), and 2) It’s developed by a really inspirational person I had the privilege of meeting and competing with on ABC’s The Taste. Continue reading “Champagne Cupcakes: A Labor of Love”
I’ve never been one to show a lot of interest in food trends or new kitchen gadgets, but there’s one craze on food TV lately that’s got my attention. For all intents and purposes, we’re going to call it The Waffle Iron Movement. Have you seen the chatter? Evidently, the waffle iron, that little machine we plug into the wall to make fluffy buttermilk waffles, is capable of so much more. I’d like to preface this post by saying today’s “recipe” requires zero cooking ability.
Enter canned cinnamon rolls.
The Food Network’s Sunny Anderson taught me this trick while I was watching The Kitchen earlier this week. As they say on the show, “I tried it, and I liked it!” Essentially, the waffle iron can cook cinnamon rolls in less than half the time it takes to cook them in the oven. And yes, the waffle iron cooks them all the way through.
When cooked, the cinnamon rolls take on a crunchy exterior and remain tender on the inside. It’s amazing how this works!
How’s that for breakfast on-the-go? Golden brown with great texture, you don’t even have to worry about the dough oozing out from the sides of the waffle iron. Clean up is easy!
They look and taste like real waffles. Ideal for college students in a dorm room, or apartment dwellers with galley kitchens, this trick is super fun. Plus, using an appliance to create something it wasn’t designed for makes me feel like a true rebel. I’m living on the edge these days.
Now, I’m not saying this idea trumps the good ol’ cinnamon roll every time. There’s not too much that can replace the soft, ooey-gooey pleasure that a properly cooked cinnamon roll elicits. But, if you’re in a hurry (and who isn’t in the mornings?), this trick is worth the minimal effort. Are you likely to try it?
Have you used your waffle iron or another kitchen appliance for something inventive lately? Let me know in the comments below!
I love quick cooking tips that pack big flavor punch! Today, we’re talking butter…that little stick of happiness that literally makes everything better. Julia Child said it herself: “With enough butter, anything is good.” For a cook, room temperature butter is like a blank canvas. If you’ve never tried flavored butters, they’re really great for enhancing bread, sandwiches, seafood, chicken and even steaks! They make even the most mundane meal special. As if butter could get any better, right? In this post, I’m sharing a three-ingredient recipe for garlic-herb butter that will take bread from basic to gourmet in minutes!
If you’re anything like me, it’s often you end up with leftover or day-old baguette. I can never seem to use the entire thing! I bought a loaf of French bread for the purpose of making bruschetta the other day, and when I was finished, there sat over half a loaf. So, when spaghetti was the main course for dinner the next day, the softened butter in my dish on the counter top held all the more appeal. What better side dish to round out the meal than with crusty slices of garlic-herb bread? With half a stick of my room temperature butter in a bowl, I simply minced one large clove of garlic, chopped about 3-4 tablespoons of parsley and added a pinch of sea salt. You can use any combination of fresh herbs you have on hand. Thyme, basil, you name it!
If you’d like to try the same thing, here’s how: Using a serrated knife, slice the French loaf right down the center, place the halves on a large baking sheet and prepare it for slathering.
Smear the butter mixture all over the bread, taking extra care to get the mixture into all those little crevices. Pop the pan in the oven and bake at 425 degrees for 10 minutes.
When the bread has finished baking, the garlic looks as if it has attained the ultimate tan. The combination of the garlic and herb mixture makes your home smell like a neighborhood bakery!
Tucked next to a plate of spaghetti, the garlic-herb bread makes the meal Some Kinda Good!
Flavored butters can be sweet or savory. Here are a few other recipe ideas to pair with softened butter:
The possibilities are endless. How do you dress up your meals with flavored butters? Share your recipes with me using #SomeKindaGood!
It’s a brand new year, and 2017 finds Some Kinda Good in its sixth year of inception. I wanted to take a moment to thank you for reading my posts and to share with you what this blog is all about. Continue reading “A Post to You, My Audience”
Some Kinda Good® 