Food & Recipes - grace grits and gardening

Low Calorie Dill Dip

June 27, 2014 By Talya Tate Boerner

Growing up our favorite dips were Ro-tel cheese and French onion dip. Both delicious. Both high fat. (Okay I admit I still love Ro-tel, but I don’t need the calories.) I’m growing dill in my garden. It smells so wonderful, and I’m constantly looking for ways to use it. This dill dip recipe is a great alternative to the calorie-laden dips made with sour cream. When it gets warm and the party moves poolside, snacking on chips and dip is always part of the equation. This recipe will not add to your waistline. And I promise you will not realize this is made with Greek yogurt. Give it a try. The fresh dill and lemon juice make it fresh and flavorful.

Low Calorie Dill Dip

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Ingredients Method

Ingredients

1 cup Greek Yogurt I use Fage
1 clove garlic minced
1 Tablespoon fresh dill chopped
1 teaspoon lemon juice
Sea salt and pepper to taste

Method

Mix everything together. Serve with chips. I love these black bean chips pictured.

Only 7 days until Fourth of July!! Perfect chip and dip holiday:)

Grace Grits and Gardening

Farm. Food. Garden. Life.

Musical Pairing:

Chicago – Saturday in the Park

Fried Green Tomato Recipe. Yes!

June 10, 2014 By Talya Tate Boerner

The fried green tomato recipe did not originate in the South. Crazy, huh? We all know necessity is the mother of invention, and if you think about it, this makes sense. Down south while we leisurely enjoyed juicy red tomato sandwiches with no thought of winter, our northern friends were in an all out panic trying to use unripe tomatoes before the first freeze.

They outdid themselves.

But let’s be real. Southerners embraced the fried green tomato. And now we claim it as our own.

Since I was planning to be out of town when my tomatoes ripened, I fried a couple of green ones. After reading several recipes on the Food Network and Allrecipes, I came up with this version. The best I’ve ever eaten! You’re gonna want to try this today.

Fried Green Tomatoes.

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Ingredients Method

Ingredients

Oil
2 medium sized green tomatoes cut into 1/4-inch slices
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
6 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 tablespoon garlic powder
2 eggs
1 tablespoons buttermilk
3/4 cups Italian-seasoned bread crumbs
Pinch cayenne pepper
Parmesan Reggianno
Chopped Green Onions

Method

Pour oil in skillet and warm to medium heat. (About a half inch of oil.)
Lightly salt and pepper both sides of tomatoes.
Mix flour and garlic powder in a shallow dish.
In another shallow dish, beat eggs with buttermilk.
In a third dish, combine bread crumbs with cayenne.
Dredge tomatoes through the flour, then the eggs, and then the bread crumbs.
When oil is hot, add a few pieces at a time. Don't crowd them. Cook about 2-3 minutes. Drain on paper towels. Sprinkle with Parmesan and chopped green onions (optional).
Serve with your favorite dipping sauce, but they don't really need anything else...

The best fried green tomato recipe. Ever.

Oh yes.

Happy eating!

Grace Grits and Gardening

Farm. Food. Garden. Life.

Musical Pairing: (not really)

Spicy Barbecued Cauliflower

June 2, 2014 By Talya Tate Boerner

(I was provided free barbecue sauce; however opinions are my own. I swear.)

A few years ago, I discovered cauliflower. I mean really discovered it. Oh sure, I always knew about eating it raw with Ranch dressing. Cauliflower was never my favorite of the dip vehicles. Standing at a party veggie tray, I rotated through the choices not wanting to be that person hogging the carrot sticks or cucumber slices.

And steamed cauliflower with a thin cheese sauce? I consider that hospital food.

But the same head of cauliflower tossed with olive oil and sea salt, roasted in a 400 degree oven is a vegetable game changer. Heat brings out the caramelized flavor. The dark (almost burnt) bits taste like onion rings. Try it. You’ll agree.

Now that summer is (almost) here, I’ve been thinking about ways to spice up my regular recipes. This barbecued cauliflower—made with my favorite barbecue sauce, Bentley’s Batch 5—will complement all your summer meals.

Before we get to the recipe, let me tell you a bit about Bentley’s Batch 5. Bentley’s is a stick-to-your-ribs sort of sauce, not one of those namby-pamby thin vinegary concoctions. The flavor is robust as a Texas barbecue sauce should be.

I’m not just saying all this because it’s made by my Munger Place friends Harold and Gale, but this does make it more special. I know the history and all the work that went into it. After years of making his Dad’s family recipe, Harold and Gale perfected it. Now you can purchase Bentley’s at several Texas locations (more retailers added daily).

I love it on grilled shrimp, chicken, pork and all sorts of vegetables, which brings me back to cauliflower.