godahale

Spaghetti Chicken Casserole

2011-01-04T16:12:00.001-05:00

This is a favorite around our house when we're not watching carbs. First we take about eight skinless chicken thighs, cover with water, and bring to a boil for about twenty minutes, covered and vented. Although we used thighs, you could use any skinless chicken parts that you prefer. Remove chicken to a bowl to cool, reserving broth. Remove a half of a cup of the broth and set aside. Cook eight

Vegetable Soup

2010-12-22T10:11:00.001-05:00

Are there many things better than homemade vegetable soup on a cold day? Not no but Hell No! Ah but you say, you live in Florida, it never gets cold there. I beg to differ. Brrrrrr. We're going to make a big batch today so we can freeze some for our next cold snap. We start with about 56 ounces of crushed tomatoes and about 40 ounces of tomato sauce in a 10 quart stock pot. Begin heating over

Oyster Roast

2010-12-21T12:42:00.001-05:00

Oysters (or as my father used to call them: ersters) are to me one of the better things in life. Most folks either love 'em or they hate 'em. I'm gonna show you how to love 'em. You may think you know every possible way to cook these succulent little bi-valves but until you've tasted them this way, you really have not had them at their best. First you'll need a way to roast them. An oyster roast

Slap Your Grandma Chili

2010-12-03T08:40:00.000-05:00

OK, I'll go through this one more time for my yankee friends. Nobody wants to slap their Grandma. But what if you tasted something so good, so delicious, and you were told that the only way that you could get some more would be if you slapped your Grandma? And it was so good that you would indeed slap your Grandma to get some more. That would have to be pretty damn good. That's how good this

Mini Meatloaves

2010-09-30T11:19:00.000-04:00

I'm sure everyone has seen these before. What I like about doing meatloaf this way is that they cook so fast. For our version, this is what you will need. In a bowl cover two pounds of ground sirloin with fresh black pepper. To this add one tablespoon of Worcestershire sauce, one tablespoon of Italian seasoning, one half teaspoon of dried sage, one half teaspoon of salt, one half teaspoon of dry

Swiss Chicken Casserole

2010-09-29T13:54:00.000-04:00

This one is one of my favorite main dish casseroles because it is so easy to make but tastes so good. Be careful, you can become addicted to it. Some boneless, skinless chicken breasts and these are all that you will need. Arrange four to six chicken breasts in a lightly oiled casserole dish. Top with slices of swiss cheese. In a bowl mix together one can of cream of chicken (or mushroom) soup

Clam Fritters

2010-09-28T16:58:00.000-04:00

I got this recipe many years ago while on a camping trip from the late Charley (Chicken) Fry. The clams were fresh because we had pulled them out of the bay that afternoon. It is especially memorable to me because when I got finished cooking I went to take the skillet off the stove and forgot that it was cast iron. I burnt the piss out of my hand. Lucky for me I was full of Dutch courage and it

Clam Chowder

2010-09-28T16:14:00.000-04:00

When I was growing up I didn't know there was such a thing as white clam chowder. We always had the red kind. So that's what we're cooking today. This is what you'll need. First take the whole tomatoes (about 28 ounces) and crush them in the pot. Then add about the same amount of tomato sauce. Now coarsely chop half of a head of cabbage and add it to the pot. Mix this all together and place over

Chicken Bog

2010-09-27T16:21:00.000-04:00

Nothing sez Southern cooking like a chicken bog. This dish probably originated in the low country of South Carolina but you'll see it in various forms from Georgia through the Carolinas. This is all that you will need for my version. This is a five pound fryer and the sausage is mild Italian that I grilled the previous day while I was cooking something else. You can use any sausage that you like

Pork Barbecue II

2010-09-27T15:20:00.000-04:00

OK, sometimes it's just not convenient to grill but you still have a hankering for some butt. Hell, you might as well cook your whole meal at once. Pull out the 'ol crockpot and cover the bottom with some taters. Pour a little barbecue sauce over 'em. Add some green beans if you like(optional). Now add a pork butt. This one is five pounds. And cover it on all sides with barbecue sauce. Put the

Pork Barbecue

2010-08-20T10:02:00.000-04:00

Labor Day weekend is right around the corner and is traditionally a time for friends and family to get together for a cook out. Now if you've got enough friends and family someone might be cooking a whole pig (in Florida it's called a pig roast; in Carolina it's a pig pickin) But maybe you're not entertaining that many folks but you still want that good smokey flavor. Enter the pork butt......Oh

Cuban Sandwich

2010-08-12T11:14:00.000-04:00

In Florida, probably the most popular sandwich is the Cuban. Traditionally a Cuban consists of ham, roasted pork, Swiss cheese, dill pickles, mustard, and of course Cuban bread (if you're from Tampa you'll include salami). There are of course variations, one of the most popular is substituting chicken for the ham. Here is my variation made mostly from left overs. First you'll need a good Cuban

Fish Tacos II

2010-08-08T12:10:00.000-04:00

I'm not much on repeating recipes with minor changes but I've got to make an exception to the rule. We decided to have fish tacos the other night (using the frozen mahi that we used for blackened fish) but then I thought why not try a little avocado cream that we used with the taco burgers? You remember; a half cup of sour cream, the juice of a key lime and one avocado. Blend together and TA DA.

Shrimp and Crab Enchiladas

2010-08-03T10:56:00.000-04:00

I have not found many good Mexican seafood recipes but this is definitely one. It calls for green enchilada sauce that you can buy in a can. Unfortunately the only ones that we have found have a very high sodium content. So we make our own version. You'll need these. First you need to roast the poblano peppers. We just throw 'em on the grill while we're cooking something else. They can then be

Taco Burger

2010-08-02T11:47:00.000-04:00

So I was trying to decide what to have for Friday night supper.We usually try to keep it simple: you know like wings, burgers, tacos, things like that. We'd just had tacos a little while back and burgers also. And then I thought why not a Taco Burger? I Googled taco burger and none of the results really blew my skirt up so I decided to make my own. This is what I came up with. First, I thought

Blackened Fish

2010-07-30T08:59:00.000-04:00

Here's another quick and easy meal that is truly tasty. You will need some of these. These are Mahi fillets that we get frozen from Costco. They come individually vacuum sealed in a three pound bag so they cost less than $1.50 a piece. Needless to say they are a staple of our freezer. But you could use any skinless fish you like. Swordfish works well also. Next gather up these spices. The

Crab Cakes With Mango Salsa

2010-07-28T07:00:00.002-04:00

When I first came to Florida I had this dish at a restaurant in Anna Maria. It was so good I just had to go home and try to duplicate it. This is what I came up with. For the Mango Salsa you'll need these. Combine about a cup of chopped mango with a quarter cup of chopped plum tomatoes, a quarter cup of chopped red onion, a quarter teaspoon of salt, a drizzle of olive oil and the juice of two key

Charcoal Grilled Standing Rib Roast

2010-07-27T10:20:00.000-04:00

OK all you grill bast...uh masters out there, lets see if you got a pair or you need to put your skirt back on. Don't even think about doing this on a gas grill. I've seen it done once on gas using indirect heat and you could not tell the difference between it and an oven roast. We're talking a big, fairly expensive cut of beef here. You don't want to be ordering pizza 'cause you screwed this up.

Frog Legs

2010-07-12T11:33:00.000-04:00

Man I love frog legs! Just about every birthday frog legs will be my birthday supper. Don't they just look so cute in all their nakedness? Sometimes they like to do a little synchronized dance first. As you can clearly see, these are all females. I don't know why, but that's all that you can ever buy. However, we do occasionally find big frogs trying to hang out with our goldfish. We named this

Crock Pot Beef Stroganoff

2010-07-08T16:08:00.000-04:00

Here's another easy recipe that is so tasty. We'll start with these. First, chop the meat into bite size pieces. We used london broil because it was on sale but you could use any cut you like. It's going to cook in the crock pot for a long time. Into the pot it goes. Add a pinch of salt and a few twists of black pepper. Add a small chopped onion. Now a sprig or two of chopped rosemary and a few

'Tater Gook

2010-06-28T10:58:00.000-04:00

This is certainly a favorite around our house. And so easy to make. These are all that you will need. Cut up as many potatoes as you want, cover with a couple of inches of water, and bring to a boil. You can use any type of potato you like and you can take the skin off or not. We like to use the reds because they are a little firmer. Boil the potatoes for fifteen minutes. In the meantime slice up

Chicken Diablo

2010-06-22T08:53:00.000-04:00

You'd pay good money in a restaurant for this dish, yet still it is easy to make. You'll need four large boneless skinless chicken breasts and these. First you'll need to chop eight ounces of mushrooms (2 ounces per breast) into small pieces. Now would be a good time to beat your meat. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Heat a couple of tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat. Add a coupe of

Very Chocolate Martini

2010-06-20T13:12:00.000-04:00

In honor of Marie (Mama's) birthday, we're posting her favorite drink. To make it you'll need these. Drizzle a frozen martini glass with chocolate syrup. Don't be stingy, it's chocolate! To a shaker add a handful of ice, one jigger of vodka, one jigger of Martini Gold Chocolate Mixer, a splash of 1/2 and 1/2, a tablespoon of vanilla ice cream and of course, a squeeze of chocolate syrup. Shake

Dad's Spaghetti

2010-06-17T11:51:00.000-04:00

This is one of my favorite dishes. Although it is tomato and meat sauce based, this is not your traditional Italian style pasta. For this dish you will need these. In a twelve inch skillet heat a couple of tablespoons of olive oil over medium high heat. To this add a whole yellow onion chopped. Saute for a minute or two, then add a couple of cloves of garlic and cook for a minute longer. Now

Baby Back Ribs

2010-06-15T12:55:00.000-04:00

Here's a quick and easy way to get that great smoky flavor in your ribs without spending a lot of time doing it. And you can use your favorite BBQ sauce too! This is all you will need. Soak some wood chips (we like hickory but you can use whatever you like) for at least 20 minutes before you're ready to put the ribs on the grill. Of course you'll need some good baby backs. First salt and pepper