Lake Lure Cottage Kitchen

We attended our friend’s Celebration of Life event last weekend.  It was a perfect remembrance of Karen, replete with her favorite food and music.  Shrimp and grits were passed in small mason jars with spoons. Kentucky fried chicken legs in the signature buckets centered one table.  Oysters, crab cakes and biscuits adorned another table.  But my favorite food offering was the deviled eggs with bacon jam.

With Easter approaching, I can’t think of a better choice for your holiday table.  I have been wanting to make bacon jam for quite a while.  It is actually very easy and can even be done in the crock pot. Bacon, in combination with strong coffee, brown sugar, vinegar and maple syrup cooked to a jam consistency is a unique experience. There are so many uses for it too.  Slather it on hamburgers, use as a topping for crostini, add to grilled cheese sandwiches or top deviled eggs as I did.  Store the leftover jam in mason jars in the refrigerator.

This is so good that we are having a hard time stopping before we eat the entire tray.  Spring is in the air and these deviled eggs are perfect for Easter.

BACON JAM ( Leite’s Culinaria )

INGREDIENTS

DIRECTIONS

Brown rice has never been a favorite in our house.  But its nutritional value is so much better than white rice.  I was going through my stash of ancient Gourmet Magazines the other day and found this recipe for Herbed Brown Rice Stuffing to accompany a roasted chicken.  We had just gotten home from our 6 weeks in Florida and cooking was not high on my “to do” list. I put the rice on to cook (It takes 40 minutes), headed for the grocery store for a rotisserie chicken and finished the additions to the rice when I got home.

The boring brown rice was transformed with the addition of roasted red peppers, chopped vegetables, bacon, tomato paste, parsley and chicken broth.  Plus, we had enough to go with our pork chops for the next night.

I lost a friend last month.  So many memories.  We went on a girls’ trip to New York City a few years ago and posed for this picture in the “Friends” fountain in Central Park.  Karen (center), you will live on in our hearts always.

HERBED BROWN-RICE STUFFING ( Gourmet Magazine May 1992 )

3 slices bacon, chopped
1 small onion, chopped fine
1 rib of celery, chopped fine
1 small green pepper, chopped fine
1 garlic clove, minced
7 ounce jar roasted red peppers, rinsed, drained and puréed in a food processor
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 cup chicken broth
1 cup minced fresh parsley leaves
1/2 cup finely chopped scallion greens
4 cups cooked brown rice

In a heavy saucepan cook the bacon over moderate heat, stirring, until it is crisp and transfer it with a slotted spoon to paper towels to drain.  In the fat remaining in the pan cook the onion, the celery, the bell pepper, and the garlic over moderately low heat, stirring, until the vegetables are softened, add the red pepper purée, the tomato paste, and the broth, and simmer the mixture, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes, or until it is thickened.  In a bowl stir together the vegetable mixture, the bacon, the parsley, the scallion, the rice, and salt and pepper to taste, transfer the stuffing to a baking dish, and heat it in a 325 degree oven for 15 minutes, or until it is hot.  Serves 4 to 6.

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In a twist of fate, serving beef stew in sunny Florida turned out to be just the right thing to do.  With company coming, I wanted to make my Guinness Beef Stew in honor of St. Paddy’s Day but had reservations about serving stew in 80 degree temperatures.  On cue a cold front swept through and temperatures were in the 40’s and 50’s.  We ate this warming stew on the patio wearing sweaters.

My Guinness Beef Stew is best cooked the day ahead so that you can remove the solid fats that come to the top.  This also allows the stew to develop greater flavor.  It incorporates Guinness Stout, Beef broth, carrots, celery, onions and the beef.  Cooked slowly the meat becomes very tender.  I usually serve this with mashed potatoes garnished with buttered breadcrumbs.

Instead of Corned Beef and Cabbage for St. Patrick’s Day, you may want to try this Guinness Beef Stew.  Guinness is an Irish Stout developed by Arthur Guinness in his St. James Brewery in Dublin, Ireland.

We will be heading back to North Carolina over the weekend.  It has been a relaxing 6 weeks in New Smyrna Beach Florida.  We have enjoyed it so much that we will be returning next year.  Finding short term rental properties is challenging in this popular community.  We were lucky to find this charming Spanish styled bungalow for our next visit.  The owners are a delightful couple and we feel honored that they are willing to allow us to rent their vacation home.

 

GUINNESS BEEF STEW

2 1/2 to 3 lbs chuck roast, cut into large cubes
3 Tbls olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
3 stalks of celery, chopped
3 large carrots, cut into large rounds
2 to 3 Tbls flour
1 16 oz can Guinness Stout
1 14.5 oz.can beef broth
1 bay leaf
1/2 tsp. thyme
Salt and Pepper to taste

Dry and salt and pepper the beef cubes.  Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven.  Brown the beef in batches until nicely browned.  Remove beef to plate.  Add the vegetables to the pot and cook over medium heat until softened.  Add the flour and cook for a few minutes.  Return the beef to the pot and pour in the Guinness Stout and the beef broth.  Add the flavorings and bring pot to a boil.  Cover with lid and place in a preheated 325 degree oven.

Braise the stew for 3 to 3 1/2 hours.  It can be served at this point, but it is better to let cool and then place in the refrigerator over night.  Remove the solid fats that have accumulated on the top.  Put the stew back into a preheated 325 degree oven and cook until heated through.  Serve with mashed potatoes or Colcannon.

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We picked up some fresh shrimp at the Farmers’ Market last week.  It was expensive.  I decided to use the shrimp sparingly over several meals. By combining it with rice and beans we hardly missed the quantity of shrimp with the quality of the overall dish.  This made a perfect luncheon meal.

The white bean mixture includes canned diced tomatoes and jarred pesto; easy to pull together.  I used left- over Caribbean rice, but you could use any type of rice that you would like.

I know it has been a while since I have published a blog post, but I have been spending very little time in the kitchen. There are so many great restaurants in New Smyrna Beach that we have been eating out quite often.  The above picture was taken with our friends Mark and Ruth at Riverside Grill on the Indian River (IntraCoastal Waterway). Most of the boats going under the drawbridge were headed South.  Winter doesn’t want to give up and it is going to be much colder even here next week; just in time for bike week.

I’m hoping to post a recipe for my Guinness Beef Stew in honor of St. Paddy’s Day soon.  I am making it for friends next week.

In the meantime, hope you enjoy this easy Shrimp Bowl recipe.

SHRIMP BOWLS

3 Tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 shallot, thinly sliced
1 can diced tomatoes
salt and pepper to taste
1 15 oz. can cannellini beans, drained
1/4 cup jarred pesto sauce
8 oz. shrimp, peeled and deveined

Cooked rice of your choice

Heat 2 Tablespoons oil in a large skillet over medium heat and cook until shallot is softened.  Add tomatoes with their juices and salt and pepper to taste.  Cook until sauce thickens slightly, about 5 minutes.  Reduce heat to low, add beans and the pesto sauce.  Cook until heated through.  Remove bean mixture to a bowl.

Heat remaining 1 tablespoon oil in skillet over medium high heat.  Add shrimp and cook, stirring often until shrimp os cooked through, about 3 minutes.

Add cooked rice to 2 bowls, top with bean mixture and place cooked shrimp over all.  Serves 2.

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We have been very busy in our rental house in New Smyrna Beach.  As it turns out, we have had lots of get togethers with friends and family.  High School friends were here at the same time that we were.  We hosted a dinner for ten before we all headed to town (within walking distance) for music and dancing.  It felt like being in high school again accept for my aching back the next morning.  I planned a very simple dinner for the crowd.  Everything can be done ahead of time, except the rice.  We had my friend Barbara’s Chicken Poppy Seed Casserole, two do ahead salads; Corn, celery and roasted red pepper salad and 3 bean salad, Zatarain’s Caribbean Rice mix, and Ina Garten’s Chocolate Chunk Blondies.

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On another occasion we drove to Sanford to have dinner with David’s Finnish relatives.  It is a long story, but in brief, David’s Mother grew up in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.  Her parents had immigrated there from Finland.  David had very little contact with the extended family until a few years ago when our friend Ruth brought him together with his cousin Don.  The family now spend time in Florida.  It means a lot to David to have this connection.

We were treated to delicious pizzas cooked on the grill by grill master Jon.  The above pizza has sausage, bacon and roasted vegies.

This is Jon’s speciality pizza.  It is a Barbecued Chicken Pizza with red onions, goat cheese and cilantro. It was fun watching him maneuver the pizzas around with his giant pizza peel.

We enjoyed our evening spending time with wonderful family and friends.

On another matter, I am happy to say that my friend Penny, of the blog Enjoying the Simple Things, has started an Etsy Shop selling her Artisan made European French Style Bread Boards.  She and her husband are making these beautiful boards and the workmanship and quality are outstanding.  They also sell for a lot less than others I have seen online.  Here is the link to her Etsy Shop.

Also there are links above for the rice and Chocolate Chunk Blondies.  Here is the recipe for the Chicken Poppy Seed Casserole.

BARBARA’S CHICKEN POPPY SEED CASSEROLE

6 Chicken Breasts – Cooked and Cubed
8 oz. Crushed Ritz Crackers
1 1/2 sticks Butter
1 1/2 Tablespoon Poppy Seeds
2 cans Cream of Chicken Soup
8 oz. Sour Cream

Melt butter and mix with crackers and poppy seeds.  In another bowl, mix soup and sour cream.  Add chicken to this.

Line greased 9×13 inch dish with 1/2 of the cracker mixture.  Pour chicken mixture over and top with remaining crackers.  Bake at 350 degrees for 35 to 40 minutes.

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