Lolly's Hot Dog Sauce

It's a rainy afternoon filled with thunderstorms. Yes, I served chili dogs last week for supper.  Yes, I was craving a hot dog tonight.  Sometimes you just have to feed the cravings.  I didn't want the usual toppings, so I thought I'd just combine them all and jazz them up a bit.

1 T. butter

3 T. finely diced yellow onion

1 t. minced garlic

dash of salt

3 T. dill (or sweet) pickle relish

3 T. yellow mustard

5 T. ketchup

dash of hot sauce

1 t. Worcestershire Sauce

In a small saucepan, melt butter over medium-high heat. Add onions and let cook until onions begin to soften, 3 - 4 minutes.  Add garlic, salt, and relish. Continue to stir and let good for another minute or so.

Add remaining ingredients, lower heat to low, and let simmer for 1 - 2 minutes.

Serve immediately over hot dogs!

Around Lolly's Table: At the Beach with the Kids!

I've been planning this table in my mind for days. After work this afternoon, I finally got to play! My thought for this table was bright, colorful and fun! Such a great mixture of this and that and pieces I've had for years that were bought separately, but really come together to make you feel like you're almost at the beach.

Blue and white cloth (almost blanket-like) tablecloth with burlap covered chargers are the base for the table. Bright red cloth napkins held securely by wooden napkin rings with sea shells affixed with the handy dandy glue gun.

I didn't want to cover up the colorful flip-flop plates with the coordinating salad plates, so I decided this would be a table with dessert plates and ice cream boats. But more on those in a few.

I can't decide which I like better, the dinner plates or the dessert plates.

The glasses are heavy plastic with a beautiful school of fish swimming around the outside!

At least 20 years ago, I bought this set of fun table accessories from Avon. The lighthouse is actually a condiment holder with small spoons.

The colorful sailboat is actually a holder with sailors as the salt and pepper shakers with a spot for napkin "sails."

And what's a kids' table without planning for some ice cream for dessert? And how better to serve that ice cream than in ice cream boats with oars for spoons?

I hope you enjoyed this table. I love it!

Black Pepper Shrimp with Garlic and Lemon

We were grilling hot dogs for the grandkids and decided we'd like something a little more upscale.  I had a pound of wild-caught Louisiana shrimp in the freezer. I wanted to cook them on the grill but wasn't in the mood for kebabs.  So a new recipe was born!

I went heavy handed on the black pepper. After all, it is THE main seasoning for this dish. With the butter, olive oil, and lemon juice a delicious sauce is developed which means one thing for me.  Grill French bread slices to get every single drop of that sauce!  If you'd like a more charred shrimp, cut back on the butter, olive oil, and lemon juice by about half.

Here's the Mise en Place which is a French culinary phrase meaning "putting in place" or "everything in its place."  This is essential for this recipe because once you start cooking, everything goes quickly.

You'll need the following:

2 T. unsalted butter

2 T. olive oil

1 lb. wild-caught shrimp, peeled and deveined

1 t. sea salt

2 T. minced garlic

1 - 2 T. McCormick pure ground black pepper (use more or less to suit your taste preference)

2 T. lemon juice

3 green onions (white and some green) thinly sliced on the diagonal

Prepare a charcoal or gas grill. I used charcoal and let the charcoal pieces burn down to an ashy gray.  Place a heavy castiron skillet on the grill grates.  Add the butter and olive oil and let heat until the butter bubbles.

Add in the shrimp and salt and cook, stirring constantly.  

When shrimp begin to cook through and turn opaque, add about half the black pepper.

Next, add in the garlic and lemon juice.

Cook, another few minutes to allow the sauce to thicken and then add the remaining black pepper and onions.

When green onions have slightly softened, carefully remove from the grill. Serve immediately with lemon slices on the side for a little extra lemon flavor.

Around Lolly's Table: Watermelon Season!

Granddaughter #1 wanted HER turn with setting the table after her twin sister set the Beachside table last week.

She went to the garage where I have everything stored and spied these glasses.  As soon as she saw them, she said, "I want a watermelon table!"  So we started here.

Then to find the perfect tablecloth.  This is a piece of material I had purchased from Hobby Lobby a few years ago. It's an ideal match for the base of the glasses.

Then she chose the rattan chargers because she wanted it to look like a summer picnic.  Then back to the Fiestaware which always has the perfect colors for any table setting.

Shamrock green to mimic the rind, white for the white of the watermelon rind, and scarlet for the red meat of the fruit.

She chose silver napkin rings and black cloth napkins.  The unique roll of the napkin is her own design.

I love how it all coordinates so well!  Did I mention she's 7??  

The finishing touch is an extra black napkin in the middle of the table (her idea) and topped with two pesky ants(!) and Fiestaware salt and pepper shakers.

I bet you're hungry for watermelon now!

Citrus and Onion Grilled Chicken Breasts

I tried a new marinade mix tonight. I had a package of Stubbs Citrus and Onion Marinade Mix in powder form which was easy to mix with oil, white wine vinegar, and a little water. I thought it needed a little more citrus flavor so next time I might add a little lemon or orange juice to the marinade.

2 lbs. boneless skinless chicken breasts  

1 package Stubbs Citrus and Onion Marinade Mix (prepared according to package directions)

Mix marinade mix and place in a glass bowl. Add chicken to the marinade and turn to coat. Let rest in marinade mix for 30 - 45 minutes in the refrigerator.

Prepare gas or charcoal grill. Grill chicken until it reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees F.  

Let rest a few minutes before serving.  I served with french cut green beans and yellow rice.  

Brown Sugar Pound Cake

My son-in-law requested a brown sugar pound cake for his birthday. I found one on the Serious Eats website. This recipe is simple to get mixed together and into the oven. I love to bake pound cakes, and I'm thrilled to add this one to my virtual recipe box. 

1 cup unsalted butter
1/2 cup shortening
1 cup white sugar
16 oz. light brown sugar
5 large eggs
3 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 t. baking powder
1 cup whole milk
1 1/2 t. vanilla
1 cup chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

In a large bowl, cream butter and shortening with electric mixer.

Add sugars and cream again. Turn the mixer on high and run for a few minutes. The batter will lighten in color.

Add eggs one at a time and stir until just incorporated.

Sift dry ingredients and add alternatively with milk and vanilla mixture. Add nuts.

Spray tube or Bundt pan with Baker's Joy spray. Pour in batter and bake at 325 degrees F. for 1 1/2 - 1 3/4 hours, or until the top of the cake is set. Let cake cool in pan 20 minutes or so.

Around Lolly's Table: Seaside!

The three granddaughters spent the night this weekend and Granddaughter #2 asked if she could "set a table at Lolly's."  She's 7!  I, of course, told her she most certainly could. With minimal help from me, she selected everything from tablecloth to napkins/napkin rings, to candles.  I'm very proud of her.  And yes, she knows how to place the silverware correctly!

The dinnerware and glassware were purchased at Kohls.  The tablecloth and napkins are Food Network brand.

The napkin rings were purchased from Hobby Lobby as a wooden ring, spray painted white, and a seashell from the beach applied with the help of a hot glue gun!

And then these two guys showed up!

Take the time to get the children and grandchildren in the kitchen and dining room with you! You may be surprised at their talents.

Around Lolly's Table for a Birthday Party!

My daughter and son in law's birthdays are 10 days apart. We usually have a joint birthday meal for them with one year one choosing the main meal menu and the other selecting the dessert.  The next year, they swap duties in picking the main course and sweets!

Here's the table for this year's celebratory meal!

The tablecloth, napkins, and table runner are from Kohls.  The dinnerware is a Bobby Flay brand also purchased at Kohls. 

I found the silverware at World Market a few years ago, the S & P shakers are Fiestaware, and the tumblers are a clearance find at J.C. Penney's.

It's so much fun for me to mix and match and set a lovely table from things bought separately, sometimes years apart!

 

Dining Out Gulf Coast: Raw Oyster (and more) Tour!

While on our recent vacation to the Florida Gulf Coast, we decided we'd take a day off from the beach and ramble around and eat raw oysters all day. At the end of the day, we had enjoyed four dozen oysters in some form or fashion. 

Let's start with my favorite of the day, Boss Oyster in Apalachicola, Florida. 

Some of the BEST oysters in the world come from Apalachicola Bay. Not only are the oysters (both raw and baked) delicious, the presentation is as it should be. But more on that a little later.

We chose to sit on the back deck near the bay.

And let's bring on the raw oysters! Notice that they are nestled around in large chunks of ice. In Florida, even in May, you need lots of ice for these fresh beauties. Served with an ample supply of lemon slices, horseradish, ketchup, and hot sauce. And don't forget the unending supply of crackers!

Then we moved on to sampling an assortment of baked oysters. Three each of steamed oysters with butter,  baked with parmesan cheese, and baked with parmesan and garlic. There was no way to choose a winner here. We enjoyed them all equally.

And, even though, we were stuffed, we had to try the smoked tuna dip. Once again, a beautiful presentation. This was actually more of a smoked tuna salad than a dip with all the vegetables served alongside. Lightly smoked and incredibly flavorful.

Sweet Harold enjoyed his time at Boss Oysters!

We said goodbye to Apalachicola and meandered back around to the Indian Pass Raw Bar near Port St. Joe, FL.  

When you're greeted with this sign, you know they mean business.

An order of a dozen raw ones, please! These were large oysters and very tasty, but see what's missing?  No ice chunks.  Just oysters on the half shell plopped on a plastic tray.  Minus points for some shell fragments in the oysters.

I tried the seafood gumbo. A dark, flavorful roux, but a little more seafood would have been nice.

Because Sweet Harold does love a good corn dog......

We are, if nothing else, willing to take one for the Fleur de Lolly team.  One last stop at Shipwreck Raw Bar at St. Joe Beach, Florida. Bonus points for serving nestled in ice chunks. But there were shell fragments in about half the oysters, and these little beauties had a distinct briny flavor. 

We waddled out to the car content that we had enjoyed a wide variety of oysters and would be able to give y'all a fair report.  Hope you had as much fun as we did!