Southern Cooking

So it's the last day of our sojourn in Texas and I'm sad to go. I spent yesterday in an orgy of Texas womanliness, accompanying J's mother on her trips to Jo-Ann's Fabrics (I'm making her a quilt), Hancock Fabrics (more quilting), Michael's (Half price wrapping paper and gift labels), and World Market (gift basket fillers). My only regret is that we can't stay until New Year's and crash the Gourmet Club progressive dinner where my in-laws will host the salad course and someone who hates cooking will host the entree. BTW if any of y'all have a suggestion on a salad that will knock the socks off of the Adult Active Living Community Gourmet Club, send them over.

I have cooked every single day of our eight day trip to Texas and loved every single minute of it. We arrived Tuesday night at midnight so that doesn't count.

Wednesday - Made pie crust for apple crostadas and blueberry pie.

Thursday - Made spinach and ricotta filling and chicken sausage and pepperoni filling for calzones. Made the blueberry pie. If any of you are out in the Dallas area, hit the Gaylord Texan buffet. Unlike normal troughlike buffets, this has a focus on traditional Tex-Mex dishes ewhich leads to a consistency of quality that most buffets can't acheive. I highly recommend the pork mole and the tortilla soup.

Friday - Made the apple crostadas for Saturday's lunch. Dinner with friends. On the menu was a salad with cranberries and sugared pecans, two kinds of calzones (actually four if you count the ones made with Pillsbury Crescent Dough), and a blueberry pie for dessert.

Saturday - The lunch with the BIG family that included all of J's cousins and their families. There are two forms of jell-o salad.

Sunday - Made won tons and Barefoot Contessa sour cream coffee cake for Monday. Repurposed leftover calzone filling to make a deep dish Chicago style pizza. Made an heirloom tomato salad with a balsamic reduction (mmmmm reduction!). Dessert was a calvacade of Christmas cookies.

Monday - Christmas with the immediate family. MIL make her famous cheese grits along with roasted fruit and what is just called "egg dish." Won tons and coffe cake are eaten.

Tuesday - We had all this leftover shrimp from the won tons so I made Paula Deens shrimp croquettes with homemade aioli and sauteed some sugar snap peas in butter, garlic and a touch of maple syrup.

It's been nice to have the time and the kitchen and the mother in law who keeps the kitchen spotless. No seriously, I haven't had to do any cleaning this entire week. I just keep cooking and the kicthen get magically cleaned. Merry post Christmas y'all. We'll give a report from New Year's!