We Love Snow Days!

Here in the deep south most of us don't get enough snow to cause us to hate it the way our friends in the north do.  Oh, sure, some Southerners claim they hate the stuff, but I don't think they have the right to hate it as much as someone who has snow on the ground all winter. We get snow and, at worst, it hangs around for a few days before it has completely disappeared. As children, we learned to love snow, not only for the fun we had playing in it, but also because schools were sure to be cancelled at the mere mention of snowfall.  For me, the best snow days involve staying home, reading good books and making comfort foods. Southerners can't drive in snow, so the best thing we can do is stay put and make a big pot of soup and that is just what I did today. I made my favorite tomato bisque with grilled corn, Cheddar Bay biscuits, grilled cheese sandwiches and cream cheese banana bread. The Cheddar Bay biscuit recipe can easily be found with an internet search, so I won't bother posting it here, but I thought I would share the soup and banana bread recipes.  The tomato bisque is one I have been making for several years and I have tweaked the recipe a bit.  The banana bread came from an old Southern Living cookbook, and I have also made some slight changes to that recipe as well.  I think you will enjoy both of these recipes.

Cream Cheese Banana Nut Bread

Cream Cheese Banana Nut Bread

1 (8 oz.) pkg, cream cheese, softened

¾ c. butter, softened

2 c. sugar

2 large eggs

3 c. all purpose flour

½ t. baking powder

½ t. baking soda

½ t. salt

4 very ripe medium bananas

1 c. pecans chopped and toasted

½ t. vanilla

1 c. powdered sugar

3 T. fresh orange juice

1 t. grated orange rind

Directions

Combine cream cheese and butter with electric mixer until creamy. Gradually add sugar, beating until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until just blended after each one.  In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.  Gradually add to butter mixture and mix until blended.  Add vanilla, bananas and nuts and mix until just incorporated.  Their should still be little chunks of banana.  Spoon into two (8 x 4 inch) loaf pans which have been greased and floured. Bake at 350 degrees for one hour or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.  Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pans.  Remove and cool for 30 minutes more. 

In a small bowl, combine powdered sugar, orange rind and orange juice.  Drizzle over loaves.

Creamy Tomato Bisque with Grilled Corn

1 T. butter

2 T. olive oil

2 large shallots, chopped

2 cloves garlic, pressed

1 can tomato paste

1 (28 oz.) can whole tomatoes, undrained and crushed

2 T. granulated sugar

1 c. fresh basil, chopped

1 large carton beef broth

½ t. salt

¼ t. freshly ground black pepper

1 c. whipping cream

5 oz. blue cheese

4 ears fresh corn

Directions: Melt 1 T. butter with olive oil in large Dutch oven over medium heat.  Add shallots and garlic and sauté  until tender 3-5 minutes.  Stir in tomato paste.  Add tomatoes, sugar and basil and sauté 3 minutes.  Add broth, salt and pepper.  Use immersion blender to puree at this point  Cover and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat to low, uncover and simmer 30 minutes, stirring often.  Stir in cream and blue cheese and simmer 15 minutes, stirring often.  Rub corn with olive oil and grill 12 minutes turning every 3 minutes.  Cut kernels from corn and stir unto soup.  Makes 11 cups.

Enjoy your snow day!

War Eagle, Anyway!

Our favorite college football team came out of nowhere to win the SEC Championship, which meant they were headed to play for the BCS Championship in Pasadena, California.  But...we had a different plan.  My boys thought it would be fun to go to Auburn to watch the game with a bunch of their friends, so that is just what we did.  My friend, Teresa and I loaded up two SUVs with 7 teenage boys and all their luggage and headed south to the Loveliest Village on the Plains.  The boys had a great time and would have had an even better time if their team had won the championship, but, alas...that is the way it goes in college football and in life...you win some and you lose some.  We are proud of our Auburn Tigers anyway.  They played a heck of a game and had a phenomenal season.

While we were in Auburn, we checked out a cute little restaurant called, Acre.  I was interested in Acre for a few reasons.  First, the Acre website drew me in with the beautiful pictures and the following description:

“Acre highlights new Alabama cuisine inspired by our Southern heritage. The food is responsibly grown, harvested, sourced and prepared by a staff that enjoys the extra dedication and labor required by our type of food. The menu moves with the rhythms of the seasons and the unpredictability of the harvest. Our food and service is casual but clean and focused.”

Secondly, the prices were reasonable.  This is important when you are feeding a bunch of teenage boys.  Finally, there was a wide selection of interesting food options to choose from and they didn't sound ridiculously fancy or pretentious, also important when choosing a restaurant for teenagers.  

I was impressed with the decor.  The whitewashed, wide-plank barn wood walls and the natural elements made the interior welcoming and relaxing.  The restaurant had lots of natural light from the many large windows and high ceilings.  We sat at a heavy wooden table with wooden benches for seats. Our table was located near the kitchen where we could see dishes as they were brought out.  

We started out with some homemade pimento cheese and chips.  It was so good...or at least I think it was!  The boys snatched it up pretty quick and after that I didn't get anymore, but my one or two bites were really good!

 Several of the guys ordered the Half Pound Brisket Burger with Charcoal Onion Jam, Crispy Pork Belly, Arugula, and Wright Dairy White Cheddar on a Brioche Bun.  The guys took this picture, so you can't really see just how thick and juicy the meat on the burger was, but it was probably a good inch and a half thick.  This burger was a big hit!

Most of them got the burger with a side of fries, but some of them opted for the homemade potato salad.

A couple of the boys got the Steak Frittes, which were described on the menu as Grilled Flat Iron Steak topped with Avocado Salsa Verde.  The sauce was delicious, but some of the guys forgot they didn't like avocado, so I saw them scraping the sauce off the meat.

Teresa and I both went with the Red Snapper Tacos with Red Pepper-Carrot Slaw, Avocado, Cilantro, Chipotle Aioli and served with Smoked Paprika Chips.  The tacos were wonderful and the fish was perfectly cooked!  Are you really surprised I ordered a fish taco?

Finally, JD couldn't resist the Frog Legs.  When we asked our server about them he said, "Imagine the most tender, falling off the bone chicken and that is what they taste like."  JD concurred.  He loved them! They came sitting in a puddle of some kind of white sauce.  I'm not sure what it was, but it was very citrusy and JD loved it, too.

Acre was wonderful and we will definitely be back.  Our visit to Auburn was lots of fun, even if we didn't bring home the crystal ball.

          The guys, Teresa, me and Three Friends and a Fork are proud to give Acre a championship
                                                              3 Yums UP!

100 Foods to Eat in Alabama

The Year of Alabama Food promotes 100 Dishes to Eat in Alabama Before You Die.  I was checking out the updated list, and so far, I have eaten 35 of the recommended dishes.  I have actually been to more than 35 of the establishments mentioned in the list, but I did not always order the recommended food.  Some of the recommendations I wholeheartedly agree with.  I love the Athenian fish at The Fish Market in Birmingham, but I always order Athenian Snapper rather than Athenian Grouper.  I just prefer red snapper.  The recipe is delicious, so pick your favorite fish and dive in! I also love the Chilean sea bass wrapped in banana leaves at Cosmos in Orange Beach.  From my own hometown in Scottsboro, 8 restaurants made the list.  I have been to and enjoyed all 8 of them and even tried 7 of the recommended dishes.

Many of the restaurants mentioned on the list are wonderful, and I highly recommend them even though I did not try the dish that made the list.  The SpringHouse restaurant in Alexander City is amazing, but I never made it to the S'mores.  I can tell you, everything else I had was absolutely wonderful, so I have no doubt the S'mores would be as well.  Nabeel's in Homewood is one of my all time favorite places, but I have never once tried the Camel Rider sandwich or the moussaka.  The chicken salad is delicious, however, as is the hummus and tzatziki.  I have documented the love The Three Friends had for SAW's Soul Kitchen in the Avondale neighborhood of Birmingham, but we did not go to SAW's BBQ in Homewood and order a BBQ stuffed tater.  If the BBQ tater and the restaurant in Homewood is just half as good as the food we enjoyed in Avondale, that would be one fine tater!

One dish on the list which I have tried and would not go back for is the orange roll at the All Steak in Cullman.  All Steak has always been one of my favorite restaurants.  I even had my rehearsal dinner at the original All Steak location when I married.  The restaurant subsequently moved to the top of Cullman Savings Bank building.  The food remained delicious even though ownership changed.  The famous orange rolls went through a transformation about the same time and I felt it was not a change for the better.  The rolls were smaller, less fluffy and a much brighter orange.  They were still good, just not quite as good as the original.  Recently, the restaurant has changed hands, and again, the orange rolls have suffered.  My family went to All Steak's new location on 3rd Avenue SE.  We were all disappointed in our meals, but the orange rolls were especially disappointing.  They were really underdone.  I mean the rolls were runny dough in the center.  You needed a spoon to eat them.

Next week, as a New Year's gift, I am going to give you two recipes for orange rolls.  One of them is very easy, the other a bit more complicated, but it is almost identical to the very first orange roll I remember having at All Steak the very first time I ate there.  Both recipes are delicious, a sweet end to a meal or a breakfast treat.  So, check back.  I think you will like them both. Here is a sneak peak!