Somebody call Idgie Threadgoode

Thanks to the community church garden, I turned Casa d'Akre into the Whistle Stop Cafe tonight.  Don't worry, I'm just referring to the fried green tomatoes.  Neil is alive and well; no ribs served tonight!

So, as I told you last time, I visited the garden and plucked some perfectly beautiful green tomatoes. It's funny, growing up Southern, as I have, I never heard of fried green tomatoes until Fannie Flagg's book was made into a movie. Frankly, finding out that one of the '70's Match Game regulars was an author was the first revelation. Fried green tomatoes was the other.  In fact, when I was about 4, my first major transgression in life was when I ran inside to get mommy & daddy to take them out to see my giant pile of "green balls"  -AKA- my dad's immature tomato crop. 

Back before the great fire, the original Rockaway's had someone in the kitchen that was the fried green tomato master. After seeing the movie, I started ordering these babies.  Come to think of it, this was even before my raw, red tomato epiphany.  I still miss those fried greens. Whoever you were, I miss you, tomato frying chef master.

Tonight was a simple, yet simply wonderful, dinner of grilled ham, green beans and fried green tomatoes. It's been awhile since I've made them, but Neil and I agreed this was one pretty darn good batch! 

Take advantage of all the great produce that our ridiculously hot summers create.  Channel your inner Idgie but I wouldn't recommend sticking your bare hands into a honey hole.  Ain't nobody that lucky!

Zucchini Cakes

Summer time and the livin's hot and sweaty.  Mosquitos abound and the humidity is high...

Yes, yes, I'm quite musical. It's a gift, really.

If you don't live in the South, here's something you may not know.  We can grow the bejesus outta some squash.  You plant a couple of squash and zucchini plants and before you know it, you have more than you know what to do with.  One year, my parents were out of town and one of my jobs was to go over every couple of days to check the crop.  When we get good rain, those suckers can grow about 200% overnight.  I can't tell you how many times I pulled back the leaves to be startled by a dark green torpedo that wasn't there last time.  It can really scare you.

There's a Methodist church in our neighborhood that plants a giant garden each year...for the community.  That's right, for everyone.  I stopped by there today hoping for some zucchini because I've had my eye on a recipe for months...zucchini patties. Grated zucchini, two cheeses, egg, flour, onion.  Sure enough, I found a couple of those sneaky, lurking torpedos in the church garden. Usually, once they get this big, you don't want them because they can get tough.  But, for a recipe that requires grating them, the big boys are perfect.

So, tonight, I had zucchini loaves and fishes.  I made a batch of these killer patties and 3 loaves of zucchini bread from 1 1/2 (big) zucchinis.  What a plethora of good stuff from so little!  Took a loaf of bread to mom and dad and had part of one for dessert.  So thankful for that church sharing its bounty with the whole neigborhood!

So, if you're interested, this is a new favorite around here. Especially with Neil, because he HATES mushy squash, so finding a preparation that he likes is few and far between.  He's a big fan of these now.

Zucchini Patties
2 cups grated zucchini
2 eggs, beaten
1/4 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella
1/2 tsp salt

Mix all ingredients together; stir well.  Heat about 2 Tbs veg oil in a skillet over med-high heat. Drop zucchini batter in about 1/3 cup measures into skillet. Cook until golden brown; drain on paper towels. 

Place in colander, sprinkle with salt and let sit about 20 minutes; then squeeze water out.

Zucchini patty in all its glory

This is pork tenderloin that I marinated and baked; served with mustard sauce on the side

We were surprised that they actually taste more like potato pancakes than a veggie patty, so if you have anti-veggites in your house, this may be a way to get some veggies snuck in.  I mean, who can survive without vegetables?  We served these tonight with some room-temp leftover pork tenderloin, mustard sauce for the meat and some gorgeous tomato slices with salt and basil. Summertime, summertime!

Summer is Officially Here!

When they declare "Yippee!  Summer is officially here!" what that  means here in Columbia SC is 100+ temps, 200+% humidity, frozen up a/c compressors, soaking wet clothing and afternoon storms that cause our (crumbling) roads to steam.  

Yep, you can actually see the steam rising. My sister can tell you first hand never, ever, walk home on a steamy road with nothing on your feet except pantyhose #burnedthecrapouttamyfeet #wontdothatagain...But, that's a whole other story! It also means we avoid using our dryers and ovens as much as possible because it just heats up the whole house. 


So, with all that in mind, let me share the ultimate summertime side dish that I got from a friend.  It's one of Ina Garten's recipes and it is the most awesome salad to have on a hot day. 

Cool, delicious fresh corn, red onion, basil. The cider vinegar is the trick.

Take it to your next cookout, block party, potluck, or just whip it up at home for a weeknight side.  Any day now, our famous Silver Queen corn will be hitting the markets and Silver Queen would reign supreme in this recipe.  When you read it, it doesn't sound all that exciting, but trust me.  It is delicious, it's cold, it requires minimal talent and minimal cooking.

Heat-wave Antipasti

It's summertime. This is the South. It's hot. It's damn not.  It's always damn not.  But, the last few weeks, we've endured several days with 100+ temps.  These are the days that I remember one of my mom's famous anecdotes...The only thing that separates Columbia from hell is a screened door. 

We drove up to the Upstate the other day for a couple reasons: 1) it's cooler up there and 2) peaches. After scoring giant peaches from Inman, a gallon of blueberries and the most beautiful tomatoes I've seen in a long time, we returned home around dinnertime. I determined that it was just too late to start cooking, so I told my mom and dad to give me 30 minutes and then come on over.

This is what I came up with.  I think it turned out pretty darn beautiful, if I do say so myself. 

Seriously, look at these tomatoes!

My kind of antipasti platter

 

Olive oil and herbs for our bread

So, we dined on prosciutto & cantaloupe, pepperoncini, black olives, artichoke hearts, roasted red peppers, Castelvetrano olives, hearts of palm, Caprese salad, cheese, olive oil and French bread. Not one single BTU was used to create this spread, so we could enjoy our meal in nicely air-conditioned comfort!

Simplicity

This time year often calls for the simplest preparation.  It's hot. Damn hot.  And it's not uncommon for us Southerners to feel sticky, damp and slightly brain damaged by the end of the day.  So, there are those days when a simple supper is best.  I remember as a kid having true garden dinners; like butter beans, rice, fresh tomatoes, cucumbers and corn.  Today felt like one of those days. 

I was not planning to blog about this meal because I just didn't find it all that noteworthy.  BUT...I made the Vivver's plate and she said "Wow!  Mommy, that looks great.  You need to take a picture of this one for sure!"  Well, there you have it.  How could I not oblige?  The wunderkind has been paying attention.

So, tonight we dined on some simple favorites.  I grilled a center cut ham steak.  If you've never grilled ham like this, you're missing out.  Then on the side we had fresh corn-on-the-cob and peas with mint from our patio garden.  That's it.  Nothing more.  Not terribly exciting, but man, it was good!

Here's Viv's plate that she wanted to share with you all:

Not a gourmet feature, but it was some good, satisfying chow!