Okra Fritters and Grits and Groceries Favorite

GRITS and GROCERIES: Real food, done real good

Okra Fritters

½ cup cornmeal
½ cup All Purpose Flour
1 tsp salt
½ tsp Creole Seasoning (available at Grits and Groceries)
½ tsp black pepper
1 tsp baking powder
1 egg, beaten
½ cup buttermilk
½ cup grated onion
2 cups sliced okra
Oil for frying

Sift together the dry ingredients. Mix together the egg, buttermilk and onion. Stir in dry ingredients until well combined. Fold in okra. Heat a lightly greased skillet over medium heat and drop batter by the tablespoon full. Cook like pancakes until golden brown on both sides.  Serve with sour cream.

Grits and Groceries' Louisiana Beer-B-Que Shrimp

Louisiana Beer-B-Que Shrimp

Yield: 8 servings

5 lbs jumbo shrimp

1 T. Low Country Seasoning (available at www.gritsandgroceries.com)

1 c Louisiana Beer-B-Que Sauce (available at www.gritsandgroceries.com )

½ lb butter

4 c white mushrooms, halved

1 can beer, preferably malt liquor

Salt and pepper, to taste

¼ c finely chopped fresh parsley

Season shrimp with Low Country Seasoning. Combine sauce and butter in

a large sauté pan or saucepan over medium heat and cook until butter

melts, stirring to combine. Add the shrimp, mushrooms and beer, stir

to combine and then cover. Cook until shrimp are pink and firm, about

10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve with grits,

rice or mashed potatoes. Garnish with parsley. This is a play on the

New Orleans dish of barbecue shrimp. I decided that we had to make it

in a South Carolina Style – so, I started using my Carolina – inspired

Beer-B-Que Sauce.

Yield: 8 servings

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Crispy Breaded Pork Chops with Milk Gravy

For a full video of this recipe visit here.

Ingredients

• 4 Pork Chops (I prefer thicker, boneless ones but you can use whatever type you like)
• 1 sleeve saltine crackers
• 2 eggs
Milk Gravy
• 3 tablespoons bacon grease (optional but sure is good)
• 1/4 cup all purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper, or to taste
• 1 1/2 cups milk

Instructions

1. Place vegetable oil to a depth of about 1/4 of an inch in a large heavy bottomed skillet. Place over medium high heat while you prepare the pork chops.
2. Crush saltines and place in a shallow bowl or plate (I use pie plates). Beat eggs and pour into bowl.
3. Dip each pork chop in eggs on both sides, then press both sides down into cracker crumbs.
4. Reduce oil temperature to medium. Add in pork chops to hot oil. Cook until browned on both sides (will need to turn) until completely done and no longer pink in the center.
5. Remove to paper towel lined plate.
For the Gravy
6. Pour the bacon grease into a medium skillet over medium heat. Add flour and stir to combine. Add salt and pepper. Cook, stirring constantly until flour begins to brown. Slowly pour in the milk while stirring constantly with wire whisk to break up any lumps. Lower heat to low and continue cooking and stirring until gravy thickens. If you prefer a thinner gravy, add more milk. Serve over mashed potatoes, pork chops, biscuits, and anything else you can come up with!

Recipe Courtesy of the SouthernPlate.com

Hattie Mae's Tomato Pie

Hattie Mae’s Tomato Pie (from Grits and Groceries)

Yield: 6 servings

4 sliced tomatoes

1 9-inch pie shell, chilled

1 c. finely diced onions

½ cup chopped fresh herbs, such as tarragon, oregano, parsley, basil

Salt and Pepper, to taste

1 c. mayonnaise

1 c. grated cheddar cheese

-Preheat oven 350 degrees

Place tomatoes on a cookie sheet and season with salt. Allow to sit for a few minutes until some of their water is drawn out. Rinse under cold water. Pat dry with a paper towel. Lay one-third of tomatoes in pie shell. Top with half of the onions, one-third of the herbs and season with salt and pepper. Add the remaining tomatoes. Season with salt and pepper. Combine remaining herbs with mayonnaise and cheese in a small bowl. Spread this mixture on top of the pie. Bake until golden brown. 

A full menu and more information here

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The Best Southern Buttermilk Biscuit

This biscuit recipe is from Sandy Woodward, one of the best cooks I know, and I am proud to have known her more than half a century, who is also the author of at least one cookbook. She is also the co-host of Your Day, a radio program which can be heard weekly on the etv network or by visiting http://yourday.clemson.edu 

Sandy credits the core of the recipe to be back of the White Lily self-rising flour bag, although for this recipe we won’t use self-rising flour.

• 2 cups White Lily All-Purpose flour
• 4 teaspoons Rumford baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 2 tablespoons Crisco
• 1 cup buttermilk, chilled

Directions

Preheat oven to 500 degrees.

Mix the ingredients making sure the Crisco is cut into the flour well, and then just barely toss the dough with barely enough flour to keep it from being sticky. Pat the dough with the palm of your hand to about 3/4 inch thick (don't use a rolling pin) and use a sharp biscuit cutter, not a glass, to cut. Make sure the oven is 500 degrees HOT HOT HOT. 

Bake 8-12 minutes, depending on your oven.

Makes about a dozen biscuits.