Frogmore Stew or Low Country Boil

As you know, I’m a Southern girl, born & bred and though I’ve traveled a lot, I’ve never lived outside of the South.  Here’s a brief history of Frogmore Stew, aka Beaufort Stew (pronounced Bu-fort) or Lowcountry Boil.  It’s been a part of family & friends tradition for my entire life and it just seems to be the perfect thing for a Memorial Weekend get-together!

OK, relax a bit… really there are NO frogs in Frogmore Stew!  Come casual because this dish is usually served on a newspaper covered picnic table and eaten with your hands (rest assured that plenty of hand wipes and paper towels will be available!).   Frogmore stew is a down  home, stick to your ribs, event that brings friends & family together.  You can make it for 4 or 400!

It actually originates from a small fishing community near Beaufort, SC named Frogmore and though the town no longer exists, the stew carries on the great tradition started there!
Legend has it a shrimper in Frogmore was running low on food and couldn’t decide what to cook for dinner. He chose to boil up some potatoes, sausage, and corn together and added some shrimp since there was never a short supply of shrimp around his home. He soon realized how great the items complemented each other and the recipe was passed around to some local seafood restaurants. From then on Frogmore Stew has become a family tradition in many homes on the Carolina coast and it can be found at many restaurants along the coast as well.

Here's our family's recipe:

You will need a large steamer pot or stock pot.  I like the steamer pot because it's easier to drain.
 

New potatoes (4 per person)

Kielbasa sausage (1/4 lb per person)

Corn on cob (1-2 half ears per person)

Unpeeled, uncooked, headless shrimp (1/3 lb per person)

Shrimp or seafood seasoning (Old Bay or such) (I use this liberally!)

Boil potatoes (in plenty of water to cover) 20 minutes.  I generally add one bottle of beer to the water, but that's truly optional.  Add Old Bay seasoning to taste.  Cut sausage in 3-inch sections; add to potatoes and cook 10 more minutes.  Add corn and cook 7 minutes, then add shrimp.  Boil 3 more minutes (until shrimp turns pink) and drain well.

Drain and "dump" into large serving bowl.  Serve with cocktail sauce, butter, tabasco, etc.  Great served with crusty bread and sweet southern cole slaw.

Roasted Potatoes with Spinach

This side dish is quick and easy and I just love the addition of spinach! You can easily double or triple the recipe to serve more people.

  Serves 2

Ingredients:

6 small red potatoes, quartered 2 tablespoons olive oil 2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, chopped sea salt and ground black pepper to taste 1 cup fresh spinach leaves

Directions:

	Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
	Place the potatoes in a single layer in a ceramic casserole dish.  Mix together the olive oil, garlic and rosemary and pour over the potatoes in the dish.  Stir to make sure all are coated.  Season with sea salt and pepper.
	Roast uncovered for about 30 minutes in the preheated oven, until the potatoes are fork tender. Remove from the oven, and toss with the spinach leaves. Return to the oven for 3-5 minutes, until the spinach has wilted. Finish with a good shredded hard cheese like Parmesan or Pecorino.

Grilled Meatloaf

A couple of weeks ago while shopping in Williams Sonoma, I discovered a steel grill meatloaf pan and purchased it promptly.  Ken loves meatloaf and the thought of grilling it was not to be resisted!  We tried it out last night and it worked great.  Here's my recipe:

Spray the pan with Pam or grease it with a bit of olive oil.
Heat your grill to about 350 degrees.

1 pound ground sirloin
1/2 cup ketchup
1 Tablespoon worcestershire sauce
1 small onion, diced (optional)
1/2 cup Italian seasoned bread crumbs
1 Tablespoon milk
1 teaspoon basil
1 teaspoon oregano
salt & pepper to taste

Glaze: Top the meat loaf with glaze after about 30 minutes of cooking time.
Mix together
1/4 cup ketchup 
1 TBSP brown sugar 
1 tsp dry mustard


Mix together everything except the glaze ingredients.  Place the meatloaf mixture into the pan, leaving about 1/2 inch of space at the top. 

Place the meatloaf pan on a grill safe drip pan and you're ready to start grilling!  Cook with the grill closed over indirect heat about an hour or until a thermometer inserted into the center of the meat loaf registers 165 degrees. Remove from heat and let rest in the pan for about 5 minutes. 

Easy Breezy Stuffed Chicken Parmesan

As I've declared previously, I just love Italian cuisine!  And I am ever so thankful to be going to Italy again this summer!  I will be touring some vineyards and participating in wine tastings and hopefully will join a cooking class or two.  In the meantime, I am always in search of a Sunday supper that is delicious, simple, and easy.  This one fits the bill.  I hope you will enjoy it as much as we did!

Stuffed Chicken Parmesan

 serves 4

• 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts (the thin sliced ones)*
• ½  cup ricotta cheese
• ½  cup Italian shredded cheese blend
• ¼  cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 2 eggs (or if you prefer ½ cup low fat mayonnaise works well!)
• 1 cup Italian seasoned Panko bread crumbs
• 1 small box of thin spaghetti
• 1 jar of your favorite pasta or marinara sauce
• *If you don't purchase the thinly sliced chicken breasts, then you will have to pound them until they are thin so that  you can roll them

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
2. In a small mixing bowl, combine ricotta, Italian cheese blend and grated Parmesan cheeses
3. In a small dish beat two eggs, In a medium dish put the Panko bread crumbs
4. Spoon and spread enough of the cheese mixture to cover the chicken breast
5. Starting at the most narrow end, roll chicken breast tightly and secure with a tooth pick, place it through the entire chicken bundle
6. Coat in egg (or mayonnaise), then roll in cracker crumbs
7. In a greased baking dish, spread 1/2 of the pasta sauce
8. Place each chicken bundle over the sauce layer and bake for 35 minutes.
9. Spread over remaining pasta sauce and top with shredded cheese, continue baking for 5 – 10 minutes
10. Serve over cooked pasta 
11. Remember to remove the toothpicks before you bite into them!!!