Taste of Morrisville: Smokey's BBQ Shack

Just off of the beaten path... (I'm singing an Alabama song as I write that) - in Morrisville is a little trailer type restaurant on the side of the ride, picnic table outside, gravel parking lots, red front door.

Smokey's BBQ Shack just started opening on the weekends and by the time we left it was definitely pretty full by the locals. It was NC bbq - smoked meat (I tried the pork and chicken, taking most of the chicken as leftovers) with a vinegar based sauce. The pork was good - wasn't dry and tasted good with the sauce. The sides I ordered: green beans and french fries - neither were as good as Sonny's. But...the pork and the little hushpuppies made up for it.

What was the two best things about this restaurant: the atmosphere (roll of paper towels on each table, laid back, unpretentious in every way) and the company. This is a place my friend would always go to when she lived there. Janel moved to the Windy City but got her sweet tea fix just minutes after the airport yesterday.

Foodie Night with Brandi

I love my foodie friends!

Brandi and I worked together at SBTS before she went and had a baby. Last night was our last time to get together and hang out before I move on as well. Such is the life of seminary workers!

We had so much fun and I personally ate too much!

I made a huge salad: green leaf lettuce, roma tomato, cuk, feta cheese, pecans, dried cherries. YUM

Brandi made chuck bbq with Sweet Baby Rays sauce that she had slow cooked and then shredded. We ate it the only way you can: on a yellow bread roll that was garlic-ized in the oven on broil.

We also had baked doritos and baked ruffles.

For dessert: an eggo waffle topped with fruit, cinnamon, and maple syrup.

End the night with a Diet Doctor Pepper and my fave dude on TV solving a food-related murder - could it get any better?

I'll definitely miss Brandi - and am thankful for social media and email!

Lemon and Herb Roasted Turkey Breast

This might be the best turkey I've ever cooked - Thanksgiving or not! :)

Ina Garten comes through again as her little Barefoot Contessa. So thankful she did. I am trying to use things in my freezer so they won't get to waste when I move at the end of March, and I found this turkey in the back of it. Don't even remember why I bought it - maybe just b/c it was on sale. So, I looked on line. This morning I had plenty of time on my hands (after my 12 hours of sleep, 745-745, I was so tired and it was needed, some AWESOME sleep) so I just let it cook in the oven.

It was SO MOIST and flavorful! Loved it. I'm going to be using it on salads, maybe for a sandwich, mostly for turkey tetrazzini I am making for a family with a new baby on Tuesday.

Yum!

(slightly changed from original recipe because size of my turkey)

1 8 lb turkey breast

2 mega garlic cloves, minced

2 tsp dry mustard

1 tsp pepper

1 1/2 tsp rosemary

2 tsp italian seasonings

2 tsp kosher salt

1 lemon - juiced

2 1/2 T olive oil - very good, fruity olive oil works best

1 cup blush or white wine

Dry turkey breast with a paper towel. Mix garlic through oil into a paste - smear on and under the turkey (under the skin). Place skin side up in a roasting pan (or on a rack). Pour wine in the bottom of the dish. Bake for about 2.15 hours at 325 covering about halfway through because the skin will get too dark.

This is so moist, and the wine and lemon and olive oil are very good things!

Red Wine Beef Stew

I made some yummy and healthy beef stew this weekend. Its good when you are sick, having company over, need something to last you all week, and to use up some yummy Sweet Red wine that is in the fridge. I picked up some good stuff at Trader Joes last weekend and this was a good use for it.

1.5 lbs lean beef chopped for stew

evoo

8 cups broth and wine combined (I used 7 cups chicken stock and 1 cup red wine)

1 onion, chopped

3 lbs red potatoes, chopped left skin on

2 carrots, chopped

5 celery stalks, chopped, plus leaves

2 T dried italian herbs

2 T worcestershire sauce

s/p to taste

Sear meat on both sides. Simmer in 4 cups of stock for 1 hour. Add all veggies, herbs, and rest of stock and wine. Let simmer for another 1 hr to 90 minutes. Eat with some bread.

We had 5 grain bread from Plehns (nearby bakery), a strawberry, walnut, feta, salad, and oreo cheesecake (bday celebration) for dessert. Then I went out and walked 2.5 miles!

Foster's Pulled NC Turkey BBQ

I loved this recipe - much more so than I thought I would. The turkey was very moist - and the spice level on the meat itself was perfect (the sauce though is a tad warm, so be prepared). This has lots of ingredients - but I had most of it on hand (another good reason for a well-stocked cupboard). Yummy. this isn't the best picture of it, but it was very good - with some KFC copycat coleslaw, free Panera bread (maybe not what I would have chosen, but free, so that is all that matters), and some Foster's Corn Pudding. Perfect meal for our non-progressive progressive dinner - summer style.

5 lb turkey breast
2 cups apple cider vinegar
1 cup apple juice
1/2 cup worcestershire sauce
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1 T red pepper flakes
1 T ground black pepper

Sauce:
28 oz can crushed tomatoes
1 cup light brown sugar
1 cup apple cider vinegar
3/4 cup worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup coffee
juice of 1 orange
2 T fresh peeled and zested ginger
juice of 2 lemons
1 T dry mustard
1 T black pepper
1 T red pepper flakes

Turn oven on to 300. Put turkey in 9x13 pan. Pour juice over. Cover. Bake for 3-3 1/2 hours until done, basting with marinade about every 30 minutes.
Discard marinade. Pull apart with fork. Mix in 2 cups sauce. Serve with rest of sauce.

Sauce: Mix all together in a big pot. Let boil, turn down to simmer for about 45 minutes until reduced some.
Sauce will stay good in fridge for about a week. SO YUMMY! Since when have I gone for vinegar bbq? :)

Turkey and Sausage Mother's Day Meatloaf Muffins

I asked my mom a week ago what her favorite healthier meal was. And she said her sister's meatloaf with okra and tomatoes. So, that is what I made today for her, on mother's day. My Aunt Sandy lives in CA and we see her every now and then. Probably 5 times in my life - but, hey she's cool!

2 lbs ground turkey breast
1 lb spicy pork ground sausage
1/2 c chopped green pepper
1/2 c chopped onion
1 cup bread crumbs (I used most of 3 pieces of whole wheat bread)

2/3 cup ketchup (how do you spell this word?)
2 T worcestershire sauce
2 eggs
1 T A-1 steak sauce
1 t dry mustard
1/2 tsp ground sage
s/p to taste

Mix the first, add in the second group. Bake in 24 muffin pans - 400 for 20 minutes. Take out and put on paper towels to let drain a little. Enjoy!
If you use the two types of meat I did, these are 3 points each. The sausage makes these different than your normal meatloaf. I liked it.

Taste of Fern Creek: Bootleg BBQ

Hole in the wall all the way.
A few months ago, a co-worker brought in Bootleg BBQ leftovers. I got to try their pulled pork. It was great. Smoked, no sauce on it at the time - and I really liked it - straight from the microwave.
Well, my parents love bbq. We love to try different places. So, while they were here, we decided to go to this place. We drove out and spent some time in Bardstown, then on our way back we stopped in Fern Creek to eat.
We got there before the lunch rush which was nice. We were the only ones in there. We got 2 rib tip plates (the special) and a pulled pork sandwich plate. My sides were the smoke house beans and cole slaw. The beans were great. Cole slaw not so much. Mom got the potato salad and green beans - both were really good. Dad got the same sides as me, and ate both. I still liked the pulled pork better - and would have liked it without the sauce. It was a little sweet for me and I like my bbq sauce more mild or hot than sweet.
But, we all ate it. And they served it all on baby shower plates. The lady told Mom that we just use what people give us!

Friday Night Dinner In and Pear Cranberry Crisp

I had some great new friends over for dinner tonight. It has definitely become my love language to cook for people (acts of service if you follow the Gary Chapman guideline). I just love sharing my love for food with others.
So...here's the menu:
Pear/Cherry/Gorgonzola/Spinach Salad with Honey Mustard Vinaigrette (1 pear, spinach, 1/2 cup dried cherries, 1/4 cup gorgonzola cheese) - Vinaigrette was out of the Butterfly Garden Cafe cookbook (honey, dijon mustard, red wine vinegar, and olive oil)
Flat Iron Steak with Marsala Reduction and Sauteed Onions (3.5 lbs of flat iron - s/p/garlic/thyme). 1 1/2 cup each of beef broth and marsala wine - reduced 3/4 to a glaze. 2 onion sauteed in olive oil and 3 T butter). Chris actually finished off the steak and it was so yummy - thanks to his cooking it to perfection (medium or medium rare). It was so tender. The reduction was so good and how can you go wrong with the onions!
Roasted Brussel Sprouts with Bacon and Lemon - 2 lbs brussel sprouts, cleaned and halved. 425 with olive oil, s/p and lemon zest for 18 minutes, stir, 12 minutes, crumble bacon and add some lemon juice.
Creamy Parmesan Orzo. This was good but the only thing that wasn't to my definite liking just because it had sat too long by the time we ate it. Find this recipe on http://www.myrecipes.com/.
Pear Cranberry Crisp - (Fosters, yes the cookbook I use for everything!) - what I liked about this. It was a warm way to end the meal and it cooked while we were eating our dinner.

6 pears - peeled, cored, sliced thin
1 cup fresh cranberries
1/2 cup apple juice
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 T vanilla
1 tsp cinnamon
pinch salt
1 tsp cornstarch
1/2 tsp all-spice
Mix all together and pour into deep dish pie pan or 9 in pan.

1/2 cup oats
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
4 T unsalted cold butter
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1/4 cup chopped pecans
1 t vanilla
1/4 tsp salt
Crumble together and put on top.
Bake at 375 for 40 minutes or until fruit is bubbly. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream!
YUMMY. The sauce mixes with the melted ice cream - oh I love warm desserts in the winter!
It was fun getting to cook for a change (instead of just bake). Glad my guests enjoyed it. And glad I have some leftovers (I sent the dessert to the drum session down the road).

Taste of Owensboro: Rolling Pin and Moonlite BBQ

Went to Owensboro this weekend to hang out with new friends, the Martins and Whitakers. Saturday morning tradition at the Martin's house is donuts from the Rolling Pin. I did have a little bit of a chocolate glazed no filling long john and a donut hole. The dough itself was so soft and tender - not tough like some donuts. Chocolate was more icing then glaze. Donut hold was amazing - good flavor. Better then KK donut holes. Thanks Kerry for going out in 15 degree weather to get them - I was very glad to distract Andrew while you got out the door!
For dinner we went to the famed O-boro BBQ joint - Moonlite BBQ Inn. Known for its buffet and home cooking - I was thankful to hang out with the family and enjoy bbq. They had bbqd beef, pork ribs, mutton, chopped pork, bbq chicken. I didn't get any of the beef or mutton, but out of everything - the only thing I didn't like was the bbqd chicken - it was dry and overcooked. Sonny's is much better. The sides were amazing - mac and cheese, corn, green beans, cheesy broccoli, yeast rolls - you can't go wrong with country cooking! The desserts were a buffet in themselves - everything you could think of. I had a little bit of carrot cake and a little bit of coconut cream pie. Full and satisfied with good company - I journeyed back to the ville.

Tex-Mex Flat Iron Steak

I don't grill that often, but I found a recipe in a Weight Watchers cookbook, and found this piece of steak on sale - so why not? My Le Creuset grill pan has gotten a lot of work this summer, and I'm getting better - but still not as good as Alan at the outdoor grill! My friend brought some fresh green beans and caprese stacks (tomatoes, mozz, basil with a delicious balsamic, evoo, sugar, basil sauce - thanks Lisa).

3 T tomato paste

1 chili in adobe

2 T adobe sauce

1 tsp cumin powder

3 pinches kosher salt

zest and juice of one lime

1 lb flat iron steak

Take all and put in a big ziplock bag, marinate over night. Grill in a hot pan with olive oil for about 6 min on each side for medium (like in pictures). Alan would have flipped out if he saw me eating steak this raw - but it was yummy! I wish I could have gotten the marinade more even on the meat, but one end of the meat definitely had more of the "kick" then the other. But, it was good. Flat iron is a tender cut of meat as well - also tenderized with the acid from the tomatoes and lime juice.