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The Best Crab Cakes in The World

Published on September 10, 2012March 8, 2016 by Rebekah4 Comments

Some folks say “Yum!” Some let off a long, low “mmmmmm.” Me? I praise the Lord. I mean, I have church. It’s the perfect bite that brings it out of me. It can happen anywhere–in a restaurant, at my mama’s table. When I taste it, the words just naturally roll off my tongue. Crunch. Thank you holy Jesus. Taste. Glory to your name Father. Swallow. Halleluiah. It’s not every time I eat, but when it happens, you’ll know. I raise my hands in praise and get the oddest looks from those around me. When I made these crab cakes, it happened.

This is what a crab cake should be. This my friends, is the best crab cake in the world. If heaven were a taste, you’re looking at it. Made up of lump crab meat and a few spices with only an egg white to bind everything together, the flavor of crab meat is the main event. No saltines, no breading–this is a true crab cake. Inspired by the King of the Lowcountry himself, the late beloved writer Pat Conroy, this recipe comes from “The Pat Conroy Cookbook.”

Any good cook will tell you, a beautiful meal starts with the finest ingredients. Prosser’s Wholesale Shrimp is a hidden gem in Brooklet, Georgia. It’s where the locals go to get wild Georgia shrimp, crab legs, crab meat and all the fixin’s for their lowcountry boils. It’s where I went to get my crab meat. Even while I shopped, the owner’s father was shrimping on the Southern seacoast.

At the Statesboro Mainstreet Farmers’ Market, I picked up some homegrown hot peppers and a bunch of garlic chives. I seeded and chopped the pepper, and it gave my crab cakes a nice kick and punch of color.

Combine one pound of lump crab meat with chopped pepper and garlic chives, then season with cayenne pepper, freshly ground black pepper and kosher salt.

Beat one egg white lightly and pour over the crab mixture.

Fold everything together gently. Once the crab meat has absorbed the egg white and is sticky to the touch, sift one tablespoon of all-purpose flour into the mix.

The recipe makes eight cakes. They are very fragile. To form the cakes, divide the crab mixture into eight balls. Then flatten each one slightly with the palm of your hand. Season each one with a little more kosher salt. Refrigerate the cakes for at least an hour.

Combine a teaspoon of peanut oil and about a tablespoon of butter in a skillet and let it get hot. This is the secret to a beautiful, crunchy crust.

Gently lay the crab cakes in the skillet. I put my first one in the pan as if it were a hamburger and it immediately crumbled. It’s all good though, because you’ll have eight chances to get it right. When you flip them, a small flat spatula will make the job easiest. Keep them very close to the bottom of the pan and be as delicate as possible. Not going to lie, flipping crab cakes is a stressful experience. Here’s the good news: they’re edible no matter what their shape. 😉

Serve them on a bed of greens with lemon wedges, a side of grits and a cold glass of sweet tea. It’s sure to be a lowcountry experience no matter where you live.

Recipe Recap
Excerpted from “The Pat Conroy Cookbook” by Pat Conroy copyright © 2004

Pat Conroy’s Crab Cakes

Ingredients

1 pound lump crabmeat, picked over and cleaned, with all shell fragments removed
1 egg white, lightly beaten (until just foamy, not stiff)
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons fresh chives, finely snipped
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 teaspoons coarse or kosher salt
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 teaspoons peanut oil
Lemon wedges

Cooking Directions

Place the cleaned crabmeat in a medium mixing bowl. Pour the egg white over crabmeat slowly, stopping occasionally to mix it through. When the crabmeat has absorbed the egg white and feels slightly sticky to the touch, sift the flour over crabmeat and sprinkle the chives, black pepper, cayenne, and 1 teaspoon of the salt evenly over the top. Lift the crabmeat from the bottom of the bowl, turning it over gently, to mix the ingredients without overhandling.

Separate the crabmeat into 8 equal portions and gently roll each between the flattened palms of your hands to form loose balls. Flatten slightly and transfer to a plate. Sprinkle both sides liberally with the remaining 1 teaspoon salt and refrigerate for at least 1 hour before cooking.

Line a baking pan with paper towels. Fry the crab cakes in two batches to ensure a crisp crust. Using a small (8-inch) heavy skillet that conducts heat well, melt half the butter and oil together until the mixture is foamy and begins to brown. Carefully place the crab cakes in the hot fat and fry until a crust forms, turning only once, about 2 minutes per side. (The fat should be sizzling hot, enabling a crisp crust to form before the crab absorbs the cooking fat. This is the Southern secret to perfect crab cakes.) A small pastry spatula (with a thin tongue) will make lifting and turning the delicate crab cakes a lot easier. Remove the crab cakes and drain in the prepared pan. Cover loosely with aluminum foil to keep warm while you make the second batch.

Carefully pour off the cooking fat from the first batch, wipe out the pan, and return it to the heat. Prepare the second batch of crab cakes using the remaining butter and oil.

Serve hot with lemon wedges. Makes 8 crab cakes.

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.

Passion Meets Barbeque in Coastal Southeast Georgia

Published on September 2, 2012December 5, 2013 by Rebekah3 Comments

Southern Soul Barbeque
St. Simons Island, Georgia

In the South, barbeque is a holy subject. Opinions about it begin forming at a very early age. At an after-church dinner recently, my sister-in-law and I were serving our plates and chatting about how good the barbeque looked, when a young boy not more than ten spoke up, confidence in motion, to let us know that while lunch was nice, it was his dad who made the best barbeque in all of Bulloch County. We take our pork seriously. Harrison and the staff at Southern Soul Barbeque on St. Simons Island get that. It’s an expression from their very soul, spoken in tender pork, slow cooked and oak-smoked for hours over burning coals and served to anyone with sense enough to stop. You can see the smoke and smell that barbeque coming from the outdoor pits as soon as you hit the parking lot.

That’s Harrison Sapp, the owner. He was an all around nice guy and made me and my Shih Tzu, Ewok, feel as welcome as a whelk in its shell. This guy gets up at 4 a.m. everyday and begins cooking at 6:30 a.m. to have lunch ready for all the hungry folks in the Golden Isles. Passion is the only thing that would motivate one to do something so well 7 days a week.

He showed me around and lifted the lid on the smoker to reveal these beauties. Seasoned with a sweet dry rub and sprayed with a little apple juice throughout the cooking process, the result is pure pork flavor, juicy and tender.

Ewok made himself right at home on the cool cement floor while I waited for my sandwich. The staff even brought him a bowl of water to drink. These long picnic tables are situated on the porch under a vaulted ceiling with big fans and drop lighting. It’s the kind of casual atmosphere where it’s perfectly acceptable to stroll over off the beach in your swim suit.

Served on a toasted bun with pickles, the Jumbo Pulled Pork Sandwich is a beautiful display of the restaurant’s finest. I ordered creamy mac & cheese as my side with a tall, cold glass of sweet tea. Suffice it to say, it’s the best $6.50 I’ve ever spent.

Is your mouth watering yet? I drizzled my sandwich with a little Sweet Georgia Soul Sauce and dug in. Jars of sweet and hot sauce, vinegar and Texas Pete grace the tables. If slaw suits your fancy, they’ll top your sandwich with it at no charge.

Formerly a 1940’s gas station, tag plates and catchy signs decorate the restaurant front and posters advertising local events fill the windows, giving the place that hometown, log cabin-like feel. I particularly love the Dig on Pig sign. On the menu, you’ll find grilled pimento cheese sandwiches, beef brisket, chicken strips, ribs, even sausage and burgers. The sides are soulful too including selections like Brunswick stew, hoppin’ john, fried okra and fried green beans.

No worries for all of you that prefer to beat the heat. Pull up a bar stool inside in the air conditioning and have a cold one. Southern Soul Barbeque is open Monday – Saturday from 11 a.m. – 10 p.m. and Sunday from 11 a.m. – 4 p.m.

For a taste of Southern Soul at home, pick up a bottle of one of their Georgia Soul sauces.

As seen in leading magazines like Georgia Trend, Garden & Gun and Southern Living and on major television networks like TLC and Food Network, Southern Soul Barbeque is no secret. Guy Fieri himself has been here and has featured the restaurant on his show, Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives. This Southeast Coastal Georgia Smoke Joint gets around.

Not in the South? Not a problem. Now, Southern Soul Barbeque offers nationwide shipping! Located on the round about at 2020 Demere Road, be sure to pull in on your next visit to the Golden Isles of Georgia. It’s worth the stop and good for your soul. 😉

Savory Pie Boasts Heirloom Tomatoes with Pesto and Goat Cheese

Published on August 22, 2012December 5, 2013 by Rebekah6 Comments

Heirloom tomatoes. What a nice name for a fruit. Attach the word heirloom to anything and you immediately get that fuzzy feeling. Try it: Heirloom necklace. Heirloom desk. Heirloom antiques. Suddenly, I’m drawn to anything heirloom. The word is nostalgic, making you wonder about the subject’s history. When you think about it, having an heirloom tomato in your kitchen is pretty fascinating. It’s like cooking with a little piece of history. Here’s why: Since the 1940’s, farmers have saved the seeds and passed them down from generation to generation. Available in many different sizes and colors, my heirloom tomatoes were purple and yellow. With caramelized onions, these beauties made a gorgeous filling for my savory heirloom tomato pie with goat cheese and toasted pine nuts.

Open any leading food magazine today and there they’ll be: colorful, unique and bursting with flavor. Heirloom tomatoes are often the celebrity in soups, salads and tarts. If the heirloom tomato is there, the party is on.

The recipe starts with a cornmeal crust. Combine 1 cup of unbleached, all-purpose flour with 3/4 cup of yellow cornmeal and a stick of cold butter in a food processor. Add fine sea salt and ice-cold water and this is the result. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface, form it into a disk, cover in plastic wrap and chill it in the freezer for about 45 minutes.

Meanwhile, salt your tomatoes and let them drain. You wouldn’t want a watery pie, now.

Once your dough has chilled, you’ll roll it out and place it in your pie crust, then crimp the edges. It’s not finished chilling, just yet. Place it in the refrigerator to let it set for about 20 minutes.

Cover the crust with aluminum foil and weight it down with something heavy like beans or rice. I thought I would be clever and kill two birds with one stone–I used pine nuts thinking they would keep my crust from puffing up while toasting at the same time. Unfortunately, they weren’t actually heavy enough. No worries, everything still turned out alright.

I am not above using what you have on hand. Though I did not have any fresh basil to make my pesto from scratch, I did have a sauce mix. It came together easily with water and extra virgin olive oil and served as the perfect base for my tomatoes.

The assembly is so much fun. Spread a thin layer of pesto into the golden brown, cooled crust…

…then top with gorgeous, caramelized onions. I sautéed these in a skillet with butter for about 15 minutes and added a tablespoon of sugar for a little sweetness.

Next, I layered in my tomatoes, alternating colors, then topped them with crumbled tomato & basil flavored goat cheese. Mild and creamy, the goat cheese is a nice bite with that cornmeal crust.

Flat leaf parsley adds a freshness and a nice pop of color to the pie when it comes out of the oven. Of course the key to any amazing dish is quality ingredients.

Bake in a 375 degree oven for 50 minutes. Top with toasted pine nuts and parsley. The goat cheese browns up so beautifully!

My savory heirloom tomato pie will be a welcome guest at any table. Enjoy it with a good glass of red wine and let this 50-year-old fruit take you back.

Culinary Event Celebrates Georgia Coast Bounty, Benefits Local Non-Profit

Published on August 16, 2012October 9, 2012 by Rebekah2 Comments

I couldn’t be more excited to tell y’all about the Inaugural Saint Simons Food & Spirits Festival happening this September at Gascoigne Bluff in my favorite vacation destination…the beautiful Golden Isles of Georgia.

If you’re like me and love seafood and Southern cuisine, this is an event you won’t want to miss. Headlined by James Beard – award-winning television personality, cookbook author and grand dame of Southern cooking – Nathalie Dupree and her co-author, Cynthia Graubart, the festival will highlight the talents of many major players in the culinary world.

Nathalie Dupree was a household name when I was growing up and like many of you, I am a very big fan of her cookbooks. Other participants will include Atlanta chef of No. 246 Restaurant, Ford Fry; food blogger and cookbook author Libbie Summers and Saint Simons’ own beekeeper, Ted Dennard, founder of Savannah Bee Company.

Think wild Georgia shrimp & grits. Crab cakes. Local honey. Fine wine. The food is sure to be Some Kinda Good, but the cause is even better.

While celebrating the bounty of Georgia’s Golden Isles, the Saint Simons Food & Spirits Festival will raise dollars and awareness for Hospice of the Golden Isles, the only community-based, non-profit hospice serving the area. A variety of ticket prices will cater to every budget.

Culinary talent, bluegrass musical performances and local, coastal cuisine–what’s not to love? I hope you’ll join me and area restaurants, regional farmers and artisans at the first event of its kind September 21 – 23.

Find out who’ll be there, learn more about volunteer opportunities and get the full event schedule by visiting The Saint Simons Food & Spirits Festival website.

Never been to the Golden Isles? Check out my photo gallery to get a glimpse.

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Fried Pie Features Georgia’s Finest Fruit

Published on August 14, 2012September 8, 2016 by Rebekah2 Comments

If Georgia were a food, it would be a fried peach pie with bourbon and cinnamon. Nothing says pride in the Peach State like a made from scratch buttery pie pastry, filled with local, sweet peaches fresh from the Farmers’ Market. At first taste of Fried Peach Pies with Bourbon and Cinnamon , you won’t even need to visit the fair when it comes to town. The flaky, crunchy exterior of this turnover with soft, bright red-orange peaches in the center, dusted with cinnamon sugar is one fine way to celebrate this summer fruit. Don’t limit these peach pies to dessert–pour yourself a glass of sweet tea and savor one for breakfast!

First things first. I’m all about a short cut folks, but nothing beats homemade pie dough. Combine self-rising flour, sugar and kosher salt with cold, cubed butter and a little egg wash and you’ve got yourself something to write home about. A food processor is the quickest way to bring everything together. Divide the dough onto a floured surface into 10 equal discs. Then cover with plastic wrap and chill in the freezer for at least 45 minutes.

Now, while everything gets underway, go ahead and crank up Georgia Blues by Jimi Hendricks and Lonnie Youngblood.

Lately, Saturday morning finds me at the Statesboro Mainstreet Farmers’ Market. I really enjoy talking with the area farmers and learning about what they grow and how they like to cook their crops. These were some of the most beautiful peaches I’ve ever seen, grown by Jacob’s Produce, a family farm located off of GA Hwy 17 in Screven County.

To peel peaches, forgo the vegetable peeler. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add peaches one at a time with a slotted spoon. Let them boil for about 45 seconds, then remove them from the boiling water and put them directly into an ice bath for about 20 seconds. This is the best way to get the most fruit out of your peach. Man alive, those are pretty!

Once your peaches are peeled and sliced, transfer them to a large skillet and add in a good quality bourbon (I like Bulleit Rye American Whiskey), lemon juice, brown sugar, tapioca and cinnamon. You’ll let those flavors marry for about 10 minutes before cooking them.

In an earlier blog post, I mentioned tapioca and many of my readers had questions about it. This is tapioca. Tapioca is an ingredient in tapioca pudding. It can be found on the baking aisle of your grocery store near the cornstarch and baking powder. Tapioca is used as a thickening agent and to sweeten fruit pies.

Once the peach mixture has set and cooled in the freezer for about 20 minutes, create an assembly line for the fun part! You can use water to moisten the edges of your pie dough, but I used milk for added flavor.

Roll out each disc of dough six inches wide. Fill the center with about a teaspoon of the peach mixture, but don’t overfill it. Then, paint the edges with milk, fold over and seal.

I like to use a fork to seal the edges because it makes a pretty pattern. 🙂

Fry the pies in vegetable oil by the batch. The length of time you’ll fry them will depend on how hot your oil is. My first batch took a little longer than the others. You just want to achieve that deep, dark golden brown color. Remove them from the oil and onto a paper towel-lined plate and immediately dust them with cinnamon sugar. The kitchen is smelling Some Kinda Good at this point, y’all.

These peach pies are a real treat. It doesn’t get more Southern than this.

Homemade Pimiento-Cheese, A Revelation

Published on August 8, 2012April 22, 2013 by Rebekah8 Comments

“Juicy tomatoes and pimiento cheese are dreamy together. Especially when they’re in bite-size form.” – Denise Gee, Porch Parties

If I’m being honest, my memories of pimiento cheese are not fond. The words alone make me envision those store-bought, orange-colored round tubs that my grandma kept faithfully on the second shelf of the refrigerator growing up, at eye level next to the sweet tea. I will never forget her spreading that unappetizing orange substance between two pieces of white bread. Fortunately, however, making pimento cheese at home takes on a whole new meaning. This Southern classic is really nothing more than a combination of garden-fresh vegetables and delicious cheeses bound by mayonnaise and seasoned to taste. It’s really quite versatile–spread it on crackers, use it to top off your hamburger or in this case, fill up plump cherry tomatoes.

This recipe was inspired by Porch Parties, a fantastic entertaining book I picked up on St. Simons Island. With only a few ingredients, the most time-consuming part about it is slicing the tomatoes and removing the pulp. You’ll need a small onion, 3 fresh garlic cloves, some jalapeno peppers, cherry tomatoes and of course a 7 ounce jar of sliced pimientos. As for the cheese, you’ll use a 1/2 pound of yellow mild cheddar and 1/2 pound of white sharp cheddar, shredded. The mixture is then seasoned with white pepper and held together with a cup of mayonnaise.

A pimento or cherry pepper is a variety of a large, red, heart-shaped chili pepper that’s sweet, succulent and more aromatic than the red bell pepper. In my grocery store, they were located on the international aisle with the salsa, not on the aisle with the pickles and olives, like you might think.

Slice off the stems of your cherry tomatoes, then with a melon baller, scoop out the pulp. You’ll need about 24 tomatoes.
While the tomatoes drain on paper towels, remove the seeds and the veins from your jalapeno peppers, de-skin the onion and hull your garlic cloves. Quarter the onion to help your food processor out, throw everything in and give it a whirl…

They smell really good all diced up! Drain the vegetable mixture to get rid of the natural water from the peppers and onions. This will help your mixture to be less runny.

Meanwhile, shred up your cheeses.
Combine the drained pimientos and the chopped vegetables with the cheese. Then add in your mayonnaise. The recipe called for 1 cup, but in hindsight, I would’ve only added about half. I ended up adding more cheese to balance things out. I am not a fan of mayonnaise so, if you’re like me–there’s good news! You can’t taste it. The mayonnaise really just serves as a binder, the taste is very subtle. Season generously with white pepper and a little salt.

Put about a teaspoon of the mixture in each cherry tomato halve, then top them off with slivered jalapeno peppers. They make such pretty, colorful bites and are fun to serve.

Be sure to try the spread on crackers too.

The jalapeno-pimiento cheese stuffed cherry tomatoes are sweet with a little heat and the flavor of the sharp cheese is a nice bite. On the next go ’round, I’ll make just a few tweaks: include less mayo, cut back on the onion, include more cheese–add Wickles.

What’s your take on pimiento cheese? If you’ve never made it at home, give it a chance!

Georgia Blueberries Star in Summer Tart

Published on July 22, 2012September 27, 2019 by Rebekah1 Comment

I’ve always loved the concept of a tart. I think it’s the ease of preparation that appeals to me. The idea that you can whip up a pastry base and fill it with anything you like, whether sweet or savory is just exciting, and the ridges–I can’t get over the ridges. Any combination of summer fruit will make a beautiful tart. This buttery, comforting blueberry tart was inspired by The New York Times Dining & Wine Recipes of Summer Fruit. Continue reading “Georgia Blueberries Star in Summer Tart” →

Start the Day at Palmer’s Village Cafe

Published on July 15, 2012February 4, 2013 by RebekahLeave a comment

Palmer’s Village Cafe
St. Simons Island, Georgia

Breakfast on vacation. It’s probably my favorite meal. Whether you rise with the sun or sleep until 10 a.m., the food at Palmer’s Village Cafe on St. Simons Island will motivate you to get up and moving. They take pride in their ingredients and present plates with no detail undone. I’ve never been when there isn’t a crowd and that’s because, where there’s good food, you’ll find people.

I appreciate the thoughtfulness of the menu items. There aren’t many places you can go to find an omelet with crab meat and homemade pimento cheese garnished with grilled, pickled okra. The dishes are regional too, like the Coastal Delight: an open-faced whole egg omelet topped with goat cheese, sautéed shrimp, spiced pecans and arugula. The breakfast items range from $3.95 to about $12.

Smack dab between the Island hardware store and a small real estate company on Mallery Street, locals and vacationers fill the seats at Palmer’s. It’s my favorite place to start the day on the Island.

I ordered the Challah Bread French Toast served with Palmer’s Village Cafe signature maple syrup. You won’t find Aunt Jemima here. The Fresh Fruit side dish had juicy orange segments, sliced bananas and red strawberries.

Now, y’all didn’t think I forgot the meat, did you? Not just bacon or sausage…country ham. Salty and seasoned just right. That’s what I’m talkin’ ’bout!

Artwork by local artist Cathie Parmelee decorates the walls and is available for purchase.

This is my favorite piece.

Colorful coffee mugs bring in fun pops of color.

Open for breakfast and lunch Tuesday – Sunday from 7:30 a.m. – 2 p.m., you’ll feel welcome from the moment you step inside the creaking front door. No matter how busy Palmer’s may be, the staff members will make sure your coffee cup is full and you’ve always got everything you need.

Farm to Table Fried Green Tomatoes

Published on July 10, 2012April 10, 2017 by Rebekah11 Comments

A visit to the lowcountry these days or any seafood restaurant worth its weight wouldn’t be complete without a taste of Fried Green Tomatoes. Once considered a poor man’s food, today the dish is served with fancy dipping sauces all over the South and prices range anywhere from $7 for an appetizer to $16 or more for an entrée. For me, the Fried Green Tomato symbolizes stories of days gone by and aside from their crunchy, salty exterior, it’s the farm to table concept and nostalgia factor that make them so appealing.

It’s been said that Fried Green Tomatoes came about because when there was little to nothing to eat, farmers would harvest the green tomatoes before they ripened and fry them up. I don’t have a farm, but thankfully, you can purchase green tomatoes at Farmers Markets and in most produce sections of the grocery store.

I prefer my Fried Green Tomatoes crunchy, so I like to slice them thin, but it’s personal preference. My mom prefers hers on the thicker side.

Once your tomatoes are sliced, you’ll want to lay them on a baking sheet and salt them well. I used kosher salt because the pebbles are bigger and it really brings out the flavor. The salt also will draw the moisture out of the tomatoes.

I took this tip from Paula Deen. Put your salted tomatoes in a colander in the sink and allow them to drain for about 30 minutes before cooking. There’s nothing worse than a soggy, fried…anything.

My Great Aunt had 1 brother and 2 sisters, and recently shared with me that my Great-Grandmother would fix fried green tomatoes in a cast iron skillet, using cornmeal ground from fresh corn on the family farm in the 1950s. These are the stories that make a recipe rich. I used equal parts cornmeal and self-rising flour, then seasoned the mixture with 2 tsp of Old Bay and a healthy dash of black pepper. I’ve seen many variations of the recipe, but no buttermilk is needed!

After the tomato is coated good on each side, shake off any excess before dropping it into the hot vegetable oil. Be sure to roll the sides of the tomato in the flour mixture too, for a nice, even coating.

Fry the tomatoes, flipping once during cooking, just until golden…

…then remove and drain on paper towels.

This was my first time making the lowcountry dish, and I gotta tell ya, it wasn’t hard at all. Look how pretty they turned out! Serve them hot.

My favorite way to eat a Fried Green Tomato is on a BLT (bacon, lettuce and tomato) sandwich. Now, there’s a way to elevate a classic to the next level.

What’s your take on the Fried Green Tomato? Love it? Hate it? Tell me how you like them! Is there a certain sauce you enjoy eating with them? I asked two of my favorite chefs to recommend a sauce, and one recommends a goat cheese basil sauce and the other, a zesty citrus remoulade.

I’m looking forward to experimenting.

Ingredients
3 Large Green Tomatoes
½ cup cornmeal
½ cup self-rising flour
2 Teaspoons Old Bay Seasoning
Kosher Salt and Freshly Ground Black Pepper to taste
Vegetable Oil for frying
Green Onion for garnish, optional

Directions:
Slice tomatoes about ¼ of an inch thick. Place them on a flat surface and season with salt. Transfer the tomatoes to a colander and allow them to drain in the sink for at least 30 minutes. Meanwhile, fill a cast iron skillet or 10-inch frying pan with vegetable oil halfway full and set over medium heat. The oil will be ready for frying when sizzling occurs after gently sprinkled with water. In a small dish, use a fork to combine the cornmeal, flour, Old Bay, salt and pepper. Dredge the tomatoes in the flour mixture on each side. Roll the sides of the tomato in the flour mixture too, to ensure an even coating. Shake off any excess before dropping the tomato slices into the hot oil. Fry the tomato slices until golden brown, turning once during cooking. Remove them from the oil and drain on paper towels. Garnish with green onion. Serve warm with Ranch Dressing if desired.

Watch me cook this recipe of fried green tomatoes on an episode of Statesboro Cooks!

Toasted Almond Berry Bites Perfect for Cocktails

Published on July 9, 2012July 23, 2012 by RebekahLeave a comment

I hadn’t planned to blog about these, but they were just too cute not to share. With a package of sugar cookie dough and a little creativity, the options are endless! I created these Toasted Almond Berry Bites with Independence Day in mind, but this dainty dessert is elegant enough for an afternoon tea or to serve as an attractive appetizer with cocktails.

My Toasted Almond Berry Bites took less than 30 minutes to prepare and you’ll only need a few ingredients. Cream cheese is like a blank canvas. You can flavor it however you wish! The kosher salt and lemon juice will just enhance whichever flavors you choose to use. Is there a flavored wine you like? Use it instead of the coffee. Don’t like vanilla extract? Use coconut or lemon extract. What’s your favorite fruit? Dice strawberries for the topping or toss on freshly picked blackberries. Be creative and have fun!

You’ll need a mini cupcake pan. This pan makes everything cute! It’s one of my favorite baking supplies. Of course, roasted almond slivers would have been perfect to top off these berry bites, but I didn’t have any, so I used Honey Roasted Peanuts. I put a few handfuls in a Zip Lock bag and beat them on the counter top with my rolling-pin until they were the right consistency for sprinkling. I was still able to achieve the crunch I was looking for with the peanuts.

Fill your mini cupcake pan with little balls of sugar cookie dough, pressing your thumb print in the center of each to make a whole for the filling. Then bake your sugar cookie tarts in a pre-heated 375 degree oven for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, whip up your filling. Whisk the cream cheese together with the Toasted Almond Coffee, vanilla extract, lemon juice and sugar. Once the cookie tarts have cooled, add your filling and then decorate with fresh berries. Sprinkle with nuts. If you’d prefer, you can put them in the fridge to allow them to set but this isn’t absolutely necessary.

Place them on a pretty platter and enjoy! These are especially good with a cold glass of Pinot Grigio.