I'm baaaack!

It has been one heck of a week! I have been so sick and just plain weary. I have not cooked or done anything but sit on the couch with hot tea or orange juice. I have had some upper respiratory issues and just can't quite shake it. Needless to say my cooking was put on the back burner and my family has enjoyed some take out or frozen food. (Well, enjoyed may not be the right word here! ;)
I started to feel better and with that energy came a craving. I wanted a shrimp po' boy and I wanted one bad! My wonderful hubs decided to indulge his croaky, coughing wife and drove me to get the ingredients. I love how appropriate life is sometimes. I love frogs, so much so I named my blog after them. I now sound like one! Funny! I don't think I love them enough that I want to sound like one, but one day I will sound like myself again. In the mean time imagine a frog croaking to you, and that is me talking. Back to yummy shrimp. Here is a quick recipe for quick, yummy shrimp po' boys!

The most important ingredient of this batter is the beer. I like a good dark beer for this batter. So I use Guinness, about a cup full in a bowl. I add 1 tablespoon of lemon juice to the beer. 

I put the batter in a bowl and add salt, pepper, and cayenne pepper to your liking. 

I make an assembly line at this point. Starting left to right (bowl to stove): beer/lemon in a bowl, batter in a bowl, pot full of hot oil, plate next to stove with paper towels on top. Take a big heaping handful of the shrimp and drown them in the beer mixture and let them sit for about two minutes. Dredge the shrimp in the shrimp fry. Here comes the fun part! To make sure the oil is hot enough, drop a little tiny, teeny drop of water into the oil. It should immediately sizzle and a cloud of steam should arise. Now make sure not to get the oil too hot, it will burn the batter on the shrimp and that does NOT taste good! So now that the oil is good and hot, drop those little balls of goodness into the oil and let it cook for about 2 minutes, or until golden. Take them out of the oil and put them onto the plate. Onto round two! Do this until you have cooked through all of the shrimp.  

These are an example of what your shrimp should look like. Pretty and tasty!  

Now time to make the sauce that goes on the french bread. French bread is the traditional bread used in po' boys. That does not mean that you can not use another type of bread, it just may not taste as good. But taste is in the mouth of the beholder. Do what you like! Make it your own! For my sauce, I just throw a bunch of ingredients together in a bowl and stir. Start with 1/2 cup of mayonnaise, 1 tablespoon of parsley, 1/2 tablespoon of black pepper, 1/2 tablespoon of salt, 1 tablespoon of hot sauce, 1/2 teaspoon of worcestershire sauce, 1 tablespoon of Dijon mustard, and 1 tablespoon of pickle relish. Mix other ingredients in if you like, or use smaller quantities, whatever tastes good to you! Toast your french bread and then spread the sauce on the top or bottom. Lay your shrimp down on the bottom of the bread and cover with lettuce, tomato, and sliced pickles. Now enjoy! So good! Yum!  

Enjoy!

Thursday's Tip: Homemade Taco Seasoning

In our house tacos reign supreme! We have a serious love for tacos. I used to buy the little packet of taco seasoning and think nothing of it. As I started trying to feed our family on a tighter budget I started cutting out small things that are easy to make at home. Taco seasoning is one of them. It is so super easy to make, minutes people! I like to make a large batch and freeze it. It lasts longer and is ready to use whenever I need it. Remember a dollar here and there adds up!

Taco Seasoning:

2 tablespoon chili powder

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon onion powder

1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 tablespoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon black pepper

Mix it all up in a bowl. Store in an airtight container in the freezer. Done! Easy peasy!

 Happy Mixing!

Blueberry Lemon Loaf

In an effort to keep from going to the grocery store at 10pm, I decided to make breakfast for the morning. The good thing about this is that I used up some blueberries that were getting ready to go bad. This recipe came from everything I already had which made it cheap too! Bonus! I love the flavor you get from combining blueberries and lemons. They mesh well! YUM!

Here is the recipe for Blueberry Lemon Loaf! Enjoy!

Ingredients:

1 cup fresh blueberries

1 2/3 cup flour 

1 Tbsp flour

1/2 cup butter, at room temp

1 cup sugar 

2 eggs

1 Tbsp lemon extract (or you can use lemon juice) 

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 cup milk 

Preheat the oven to 350.

Spray a 9 x 5 inch loaf pan with cooking spray.

Take the blueberries and mix them with 1 Tbsp flour and set aside.

Cream the butter and sugar until fluffy, 2-3 minutes.

Add the eggs and lemon extract and beat until creamy.

In a big bowl mix together the flour, baking powder, and salt.

Add half of the flour mixture to the egg mixture and mix on low speed just until combined.

Add the milk and mix on low speed just until combined.

Add the remaining flour, mixing just until combined.

Add blueberries and hand mix with a wooden spoon.

Pour the batter into the pan and bake 45 minutes, until a fork comes out clean.

Enjoy the moist blueberry, lemony flavor on your tongue! Glass of milk please.

School of Big Green Egg: Lighting the Grill

I have expressed my love for my Big Green Egg before. But I don't think you really understand the passion I have for my Egg. This is not just a grill. This is a smoker, an oven, and a grill that makes my food taste amazing. The best part......I get to take all the credit. 

Since I often express my love for my grill I get asked questions about it. I have decided to start a little series of posts teaching you how to use a Big Green Egg. In this section we are going to go over how to get your grill going. Now please excuse the condition of my Egg. It is old and has been used many, many, many times. It is going to get a makeover this Spring, but until then he is an old man. 

A Big Green Egg is a charcoal grill, but it does not use just any charcoal. Think of the Egg as a big cast iron skillet. The more you cook on it the more it seasons your food. Well because of this you want to use a natural lump charcoal. Now, you may think that you can just go get some regular charcoal and use it. And you could..BUUUUUTTTT.....do you really want your food to taste like chemicals? I know I don't. So natural lump charcoal! There is also an up side to using natural lump charcoal. I promise! It is reusable. Say what!!!! Yep, you heard right. Whatever you don't burn through during your cooking session, you can use again. Where can you buy said charcoal? Anywhere! Beware about some brands. Some don't even let you get through one cooking session before you burn through it. Big Green Egg dealers sell Big Green Egg charcoal and you can't go wrong with that! I have also used the Primo brand and I like that brand as well.

Okay, so look for that little 100% mark and you got yourself some charcoal. 

On to cooking! When you first open up your grill (unless it is brand new) it will look like this.  

                           
Take your trusty old shop vac and clean out the ashes. It is very important to start with a clean grill. If you leave the ashes in it keeps the air from flowing like it needs to. This will effect your temperature. You start your charcoal, not with lighter fluid, but with firelight's or firestarters. These help keep the flavor natural.

So you break your starters up and place them in the charcoal. Make sure your draft door is open all the way. Now light those firestarters and watch the magic happen.

It takes anywhere from 10 - 15 minutes and the coals will be ready.

Now that you can start the grill you are ready to go! Next week we will talk about how to control the temperature.

Have fun!

Pulled Pork BBQ Nachos

I love all things nachos. Almost every time we go out for Mexican you can count on me ordering nachos. It is a sad obsession that I have! Hey, the first step is admitting there is a problem. Right?! So tonight I needed something fast and easy for the leftovers from last night. Should we have pulled pork sandwiches? Nope, we have those often. Hmmm.......something different......and then it hits me, NACHOS! I raided my pantry and this is what I came up with. BTW, so yummy!

Pulled Pork Nachos:

leftover pulled pork

1 can of pinto beans

BBQ Sauce

White BBQ Sauce (find recipe here) 

Shredded Cheese (flavor of your choice, I used cheddar) 

Tortilla Chips

Feta Cheese (because Feta makes EVERYTHING betta)

jalapenos or other peppers

The first thing we want to do is warm up the pulled pork. You can do this in the microwave or on the stove top. I got home very late and was running short on time so I choose the microwave. I warmed it up for about 30 seconds. Go ahead and place your oven on broil so it can warm up while you assemble. Line a large baking sheet with aluminum foil and then spray with PAM. Place your chips down and cover the pan. Next, place the meat over the chips. I don't like to see tortilla chip so I use a lot of meat. Now sprinkle the pinto beans, feta cheese, and your peppers. Take your shredded cheese and cover all of those peppers up. Pop the pan into the oven until the cheese is melted and gooey. Plate and top with both BBQ sauces. Enjoy! Super easy and quick and packed with flavor! 

Enjoy!

The Froggy Mom

Slow Goin' Pulled Pork

I work six days a week. Some days I want to come home and just pass out on the couch and let the family fend for themselves for dinner. If I know I am going to have a hard week or that I am going to be working late, I will make a big batch of pulled pork. Pulled pork makes my taste buds sing! It also goes a long way. I try to keep one of these in the freezer for when I know I won't be able to get to the store for a couple of days. I will slow cook it one day and we eat off of it for two or three days after! Talk about an easy dinner! This is the dinner that keeps on giving....it gave us dinner Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. You can make this in either a crock pot or in the oven. Personal preference, or the size of the shoulder can help finalize that decision. In my case the size dictated that I cook this one in the oven. 

Slow Goin' Pulled Pork:

2 - Apples (Doesn't matter what brand or color) 

5 - 8lb Pork Shoulder

2 - Cans of Root beer (A&W)

1 - Onion, quartered

2 - Tbs of grape jelly

1/2 Cup of BBQ Sauce

Salt 

Pepper

Meat Tenderizer

First thing's first, quarter your onions and one apple. Lay them down on the bottom of the pan so that you can lay the pork shoulder on top.  Take your jelly and scoop it out on top of the pork and rub it all around with your hands. Yep, you gotta get those hands dirty! Lay the pork on the apple and onion. Season with your salt, pepper, and meat tenderizer. Flip the pork over carefully and do the same to the other side. Now take root beer and pour it into the pan, both cans......don't be shy! Quarter your other apple and lay the pieces over the top of the meat. Pour your BBQ sauce on top and cover. Place the meat in a preheated oven at 200 degrees and let it cook for 6 hours. About half way through you want to come back and flip the shoulder and baste. When you pull this out of the oven it is falling apart! I put it on the counter to shred the meat and most of it was already shredded! Love it when the meat does all the work. Take two forks and shred all of the meat. Place all of your shredded meat into a large bowl and add a couple of spoon fulls of the remaining liquid from the pan over the top! Yummo! Ready, Set, EAT!!!!!!

 

Stop by tomorrow to see how we put the leftovers to good use! 

Enjoy!
The Froggy Mom

Mashed Potatoes

Mashed potatoes are a staple. Their recipes have been handed down from Mom's to Daughter's for years. I used to go through all these steps and ingredients to make my mashed potatoes. Here lately I have tried substituting some ingredients and there is absolutely no difference. And, these mashed potatoes are better for you than adding an entire block of cream cheese. (At least that is what I keep telling myself!) So because we have these every time we have meatloaf, chicken fried steak, BBQ anything, and whenever we get a craving I wanted them to be easy to whip up. I hope you enjoy!

Easiest Mashed Potatoes I Have Ever Made:

6-8 Yukon Gold Potatoes

1 Stick Butter

1/2 Cup Greek Yogurt (Trust Me!)

1/4 - 1/2 Cup Half & Half

Salt 

Pepper

Peel your potatoes, quarter them, and throw them into some boiling water. Let the potatoes cook for about 30 minutes or until you can slide a fork into them with no resistance. Drain the water and place the potatoes into a large bowl.

 Add your butter into the potatoes and let it melt. Now add in your Half & Half and start mashing. Pause for a second and lets talk about the entire mashing process. Mash with a hand masher, always mash by hand. I used to use a mixer and I would end up with mashed potatoes that looked like grits. Potatoes have starch in them and when you use an electric mixer it breaks that starch up and you end up with goo. So moral of the story, hand mash! OK, back to mashing. I only mash a little before I add in the yogurt, salt, and pepper. Now it is time to roll your sleeves up and get down to business. Mash until they are the consistency that you like. We like ours slightly lumpy, so when I get all of the big lumps mashed, I stop.

Look at that creamy, lumpy, goodness! YUMMY! 

 

See, the easiest way to make mashed potatoes! The longest part of making these is boiling them. Time to eat!

Froggy Mom