Barbecue cookies, Memorial Day treats

I'm a stealer.  Yep, found these on a close acquaintance's blog (that would be one of my sisters). 

I really love novel foods.  This is one of them.  

I think we are going to make these for a barbecue - Memorial Day possibly? 

Simple, quick, novel...right up my alley. 

Thanks Ames.  I know...thou shalt not steal.  But then, how could I resist? 

What you need:

Vanilla Wafers

Grasshopper cookies

Frosting

Coconut 

What to do:

• Scoop out frosting into three bowls.  Leave one bowl white and add red food coloring to one, and yellow food coloring to the other.
• Take a vanilla wafer and spread white frosting on the bottom.  Make it sloppy.  You want the white to spill over the edge a bit.
• Put one of the grasshopper cookies on top of the white frosting.
• Spread yellow frosting on half the grasshopper cookie.
• Spread red frosting on the other half of the cookie.  Remember, you want it to be sloppy and spill over the edges.
• Put your shredded coconut in a bag with green food coloring and mix it all around to coat evenly.
• Sprinkle some of the coconut on top of the red and yellow frosting. 
• Put another vanilla wafer on top of the whole ensemble. 
• Eat.
• Repeat.

Southern Scramble - with Grits

My husband and I recently spent some time in South Carolina.  There we tried a myriad of foods.  Among them, fried pickles, fried okra, sweet potato french fries, sweet potato souffle, hash, ribs, barbecue (how could you visit the south without ribs or barbecue?), and my favorite GRITS.   
Honestly, several years ago I thought I'd try my hand at grits and had a disastrous experience with them.  We all thought they were pretty gross.

For some unknown reason, I put the box in the pantry and forgot about them.
When we returned from SC, I pulled out the box determined to figure out how to make these the right way since I'd enjoyed them so much.

Here's a recipe I found on the back of the box, that I just happened to have ingredients for on hand.

1.5 c. water

1/2 c. Quaker Quick Grits, uncooked

1 T. margarine or butter

1 c. shredded Swiss cheese

6 beaten eggs

1 c. cubed ham

2 T. sliced green onions (or whatever is on hand)

1/2 t. salt (optional)

1/8 t. pepper

In large skillet, bring water to a boil, and slowly stir in grits.  Reduce heat and simmer 3-5 minutes, or until thickened - stirring frequently. 

Stir in margarine. 

Combine 1/2 c. cheese with remaining ingredients; mix well. 

Pour into grits, stir lightly. 

Cook over medium heat until eggs are soft set and cheese is melted, stirring occasionally. 

Sprinkle with remaining cheese. 

Note - Once grits and egg mixture are combined, do no over mix.  

Serves 6

German or Puff Pancakes

This morning I decided to make something domestic for my family since I've been out of town a lot in the past couple of weeks. It is nice to get back into my routine, and put something tempting on the table for my family.

While I have several recipes for german pancakes, most of them have a ton of butter and turn out super greasy.

I went in search of something new this morning, and happened across a recipe from The Food Network.

I actually followed this recipe almost to the T (not a common occurence), and I loved how it turned out. Due to the addition of a little bit of sugar and vanilla, this didn't taste eggy, and had more of a custard like taste.

Here's a link. 

Here's the recipe~hope you enjoy it as much as my family did - we'll be making this one over and over!

• 3 large eggs
• 1/2 teaspoon fine salt
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 1 cup milk, warmed
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted (OR I Can't believe it's not butter)
• 1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons vegetable shortening
• Confectioners' sugar, canned peaches or pears, berries, or maple syrup

Directions

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.  Place a well seasoned 10 inch cast iron skillet in the oven for 10 minutes (or as oven is preheating.)

In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, salt, sugar, milk, vanilla, and butter. Whisk in the flour to make a smooth batter.

Remove skillet from oven, and brush the inside with the shortening. Pour in the batter and bake for 15 minutes.

Lower the oven to 350 degrees F. and continue baking until puffed and golden brown, about 13 to 15 minutes more. Run a knife around the edge of the skillet. Sift the confectioners' sugar over the pancake. Serve immediately in the skillet with maple syrup, marinated berries, or glazed apples and pears.