Caesar salad has been one of the most popular salads since it was first created by the folks at Caesar Cardini’s restaurant in 1924.

Rich in flavor and easy to make, Caesar salad often appears at parties…perhaps a little too often.

The truth is, most people serve Caesar salad almost the same way everytime they make it. And that’s a shame, because with a few twists, Caesar salad can be an exciting part of almost any gathering, party, or holiday.

One interesting variation on Caesar salad that we’ve come across for a Deconstructed Caesar Salad With Parmesan Toasts from the folks at Once Upon a Plate is definitely a twist worth taking.

Pared down to its most flavorful components, this party friendly Caesar salad is just the thing to make when you seek a low maintenance salad that looks as fresh as it tastes.

Looking for more delicious things to make with romaine lettuce? Then you also won’t want to miss this original recipe for Quick and Creamy Three Lettuce Enoki Mushroom Soup.

Enjoy!

Ingredients for the Caesar Salad:

1 medium garlic clove
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup fresh parsley, packed
3 canned anchovy fillets (or 1 to 1 1/2 teaspoons anchovy paste)
1 1/2 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/2 cup sour cream
1 to 2 heads romaine lettuce, depending upon size of the heads

Ingredients for the Parmesan Toasts:

1/2 baguette
1 T. olive oil (add a minced garlic clove to oil if you want garlicky toasts)
1/8 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

How to Make Party Caesar Salad With Parmesan Toasts Recipe.

You can also see our growing list of delicious salad recipe ideas, to help inspire your gatherings with friends and family throughout the year.

Also, here’s some convenient links to our first 100 Original Recipes on Hugging the Coast to make it easier for you to find culinary inspiration and ideas beyond appetizers.

Please join us soon to see our latest daily food and cooking article: BBQ Salmon in Foil With Tarragon, Chives and Vermouth.

If you liked this article on HuggingtheCoast.Com, you might also enjoy:

• 10 Refreshing Salad Recipes and Ideas That Won’t Put You to Sleep
• Outrageous Oranges: 10 Recipes With the Flavor of Oranges or Orange Juice
• Grilled Greek Zucchini Salad Recipe (Salad Recipe Ideas)
• Easy Last Minute Baked Goat Cheese Recipe (Party Appetizer Recipes)

(Photo Credit: Crunchy Romaine Lettuce by Lawrenceville Farmer’s Market on Flickr.)

Got oranges (or orange juice)?

Oranges add flavor and zest to our lives, whether they’re served fresh, as preserves, or squeezed for juice.

High in Vitamin C, oranges also make a wonderful ngredient in desserts, salads, appetizers, and main meals as you can see in the 10 recipes below that will help you easily add more of the flavor of this popular citrus fruit to your cooking and entertaining.

Enjoy!

• Orange Fig Chorizos with Brandy & Pine Nuts Recipe

• Sangria Upside Down Cake Recipe

• Easy BBQ Grilled Fruit Dessert Recipe Ideas

• Pomegranate-Infused Ginger Chicken With Sesame Scallion Dumplings

• Sun and Moon Orange and Sweet Onion Salad Recipe

• Pina Colada Blossoms Dessert Recipe

• Cooking With Zest: Recipes That Make the Most of Fresh Orange, Lemon, and Lime Fruit Zest

• Homemade Tortilla Chips With Tropical Seafood Nachos Recipe

• Orange Creamsicle Frozen Yogurt For Adults Recipe

• Easy Ecuadorian Shrimp Ceviche Recipe

Please join us soon to read our newest daily food and cooking feature on HuggingtheCoast.Com: A Party Caesar Salad With Parmesan Toasts Recipe.

If you liked this article on HuggingtheCoast.Com, you might also enjoy:

• Coconut Recipe Celebration: 18 Recipes Featuring the Versatile Coconut
• Grilled Shrimp With Green Papaya and Mango Salad Recipe (Fish For Friday Recipe)
• Southern Hummingbird Cake Recipe With Pineapple and Bananas (Fruit Dessert Recipes)
• 9 Delicious Things to Cook With Pineapple

(Photo Credit: The Joy of Fresh Oranges by Cobalt 123 on Flickr.)

Here’s a look back at the food, cooking, and recipe posts that appeared earlier in the week here on HuggingtheCoast.Com…please join us tomorrow for the start of next week’s exciting food features!

Looking Back: 8/23/2010-8/29/2010

Tuesday: Orange Creamsicle Frozen Yogurt For Adults Recipe (Fruit Dessert Recipes)

Wednesday: White Bean Dip With Feta and Black Olives Recipe (Party Appetizer Recipes)

Friday: Homemade Tortilla Chips With Seafood Nachos Recipe (Fish For Friday Recipe)

Sunday: You are here

Please join us soon to read our newest daily food and cooking article: Outrageous Oranges: 10 Recipes With the Flavor of Oranges or Orange Juice.

At the end of a long day (or a long week), kicking back with some nachos can be like taking a mini vacation.

But even better than that is when the nachos are made with still warm tortilla chips fresh from the pan in all their corn-y goodness.

Although these tortilla chips are technically semi-homemade because you start with a package of small soft tortillas to save time, these are a truly wonderful upgrade from the dry tortilla chips usually found in the snack aisle.

(If you’d prefer to make your corn tortillas from scratch with masa harina, you might try this homemade corn tortilla recipe here.)

Mexican and Tex-Mex food is more popular than ever, so you can find the soft corn tortillas you need in either the international or bread aisle of most grocery stores and supermarkets, or at your local latino market.

Warning: once you’ve fried up your own tortillas, those packaged corn chips just won’t satisfy you quite the way they used to.

Below is a delicious step-by-step recipe for Homemade Tortilla Chips With Seafood Nachos from the folks at Macheesmo that is the perfect excuse to enjoy some richly flavored warm tortillas while you relax.

Ingredients For the Tortillas:

12 small corn tortillas cut into 6. (Makes 72 chips)
Vegetable oil for cooking the chips
2/3 pound cod or other white fish

Ingredients for the Guacamole:

1 avocado
2 Tablespoons greek yogurt or sour cream

Ingredients for the Pineapple Salsa:

1/2 pineapple, diced. (About 2-3 cups)
1 red pepper, diced
3 jalepenos
1 lime, juice only
1/4 Cup orange juice

Other Ingredients:

Kosher salt
Cayenne pepper (optional)

How to Make Homemade Tortilla Chips With Seafood Nachos.

Enjoy!

You can also see our list of delicious seafood recipes, organized by type of fish to help you eat more seafood throughout the year.

Also, here’s some convenient links to our first 100 Original Recipes on Hugging the Coast to make it easier for you to find culinary inspiration and ideas.

Please join us soon to see our latest food and cooking article.

If you liked this article on HuggingtheCoast.Com, you might also enjoy:

• Homemade Flour Tortilla Recipe (Weekend Video Spotlight)
• Edamame Guacamole Recipe for Nachos and Tacos (Party Appetizer Recipes)
• Rick Bayless Tomatillo Shrimp Tacos With Honey-Lime Slaw Recipe (Fish For Friday Recipe)
• Seared Salmon Soft Tacos Recipe (Fish For Friday Recipe)
• White Bean Dip With Feta and Black Olives Recipe (Party Appetizer Recipes)

(Photo Credit:The Perfect Meal by Bookgirl on Flickr

File this under Things That Make You Go Ahhhh….

This party friendly appetizer recipe for White Bean Dip With Feta and Black Olives from the folks at the Choosy Beggars Food Blog is an easy Mediterranean version of the classically crowd-pleasing white bean party dip.

This is the kind of richly flavored dip that just begs to be served with hunks of good rustic bread and a nice red wine.

Even better, double the recipe and serve it in a large bread bowl or a bunch of mini bread bowls (find out how to make a homemade bread bowl here) with some celery or carrot sticks for dipping.

Looking for more wonderful ideas for dips and spreads? Then you definitely won’t want to miss the delicious and easy recipe links at the bottom of this food article.

Enjoy!

Ingredients:

1 can (19 0z) navy beans
1 large clove garlic
4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 smallish lemon
1 small sprig fresh rosemary (about 4- 6″ long)
1 cup feta cheese
1/2 cup oil packed sundried black olives
freshly ground black pepper to taste

How to Make White Bean Dip With Feta and Black Olives.

You can also see our growing list of delicious party appetizer recipes, to help inspire your gatherings with friends and family throughout the year.

Also, here’s some convenient links to our first 100 Original Recipes on Hugging the Coast to make it easier for you to find culinary inspiration and ideas beyond appetizers.

Please join us tomorrow to see our latest daily food and cooking article: Homemade Tortilla Chips With Seafood Nachos.

If you liked this article on HuggingtheCoast.Com, you might also enjoy:

• Feta Cheese Pepperdew Dip Recipe (Party Appetizer Recipes)
• Meyer Lemon and Sumac Hummus Dip Recipe (Party Appetizer Recipes)
• Crowd Pleasing Mozzarella Sticks With Buttermilk Dip
• Easy Guacamole Dip Recipe For Burgers and Chips (Weekend Video Spotlight)

(Photo Credit: Black Olive by Firemind on Flickr.)

Whether you have children or not, sometimes it’s fun to get in touch with your inner adult when you’re looking for a fun way to cool down.

Featuring triple sec or your favorite orange liqueur, this delicious fruit dessert recipe for an easy Orange Creamsicle Frozen Yogurt For Adults from the folks at The Hungry Mouse may give you just the relief you need from this punishing Summer heat.

One of the great things about this adult frozen yogurt creamsicle recipe is that you can easily make it without an ice cream maker.

Since almost any orange liqueur you choose will work (think Grand Marnier, Triple Sec, or Cointreau for a traditional orange flavor or Curacao if you prefer the taste of bitter orange) it’s easy to customize this recipe to showcase your favorite tipple.

For a nice change, you can also squeeze the juice of such popular citrus fruits as clementines, blood oranges, or pink grapefruit and use it in place of the orange juice in the recipe. (Pomegranate juice would also work well.)

Serve the frozen yogurt in your favorite glasses and artfully garnish them with some leftover curled citrus peels or fruit slices and you’ll have the makings of a rather sophisticated but fun year-round holiday dessert you can make ahead the night before your party.

Looking for more cooling fruit desserts for Summer? This Rum Watermelon For the Adults and Wiggly Watermelon For the Kids Recipe definitely has something for everyone.

Enjoy!

Ingredients:

1 tsp. unflavored gelatin
1 1/2 cups orange juice
2/3 cup sugar
2 Tbls. honey
1 1/2 cups plain, unflavored yogurt
1 Tbls. triple sec or other orange liqueur

How to Make Orange Creamsicle Frozen Yogurt For Adults.

You can also see our list of delicious fruit dessert recipes to help you enjoy and eat more fruit throughout the year.

Also, here’s some convenient links to our first 100 Original Recipes on Hugging the Coast to make it easier for you to find culinary inspiration and ideas beyond dessert.

Please join us tomorrow to see our newest food and cooking article: A White Bean Dip With Feta and Black Olives Recipe.

If you liked this article on HuggingtheCoast.Com, you might also enjoy:

• Carefree Cooking With Rum: 5 Rum Flavored Recipes to Make Your Day
• Tres Leches Marble Cake With Strawberries and Chocolate Ganache Recipe (Fruit Dessert Recipes)
• BBQ Grilled Fruit Dessert Recipe Ideas (Fruit Dessert Recipes)
• How Many Oranges (Yes Oranges) Does it Take to Power an iPhone? (Weekend Video Spotlight)

(Photo Credit: Fruity Ice Cream by M is For Matthijs on Flickr.)

Here’s a look back at the food, cooking, and recipe posts that appeared earlier in the week here on HuggingtheCoast.Com…please join us tomorrow for the start of next week’s exciting food features!

Looking Back: 8/16/2010-8/22/2010

Monday: Coconut Recipe Celebration: 18 Recipes Featuring the Versatile Coconut

Wednesday: Grilled Greek Zucchini Salad Recipe (Salad Recipe Ideas)

Thursday: Pink Grapefruit and Strawberry Granita Recipe For Easy Summer Fun (Fruit Dessert Recipes)

Friday: Grilled Shrimp With Green Papaya and Mango Salad Recipe (Fish For Friday Recipe)

Sunday: You are here

Please join us soon to read our newest daily food and cooking article: Orange Creamsicle Frozen Yogurt For Adults.

Full of the fresh flavors of Vietnamese cuisine, this crowd pleasing shrimp salad features papaya, mango, and (the sadly underrated) jicama.

Ingredients for the Vietnamese Dressing:

1/2 teaspoon garlic-chili paste
1 tablespoon light brown sugar
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
1/4 cup Thai fish sauce
1 tablespoon chopped mint
1 tablespoon chopped cilantro stems

Ingredients for the Salad:

1 green papaya, julienned
1 green mango, julienned
1/2 jicama, julienned
1 carrot, julienned
1/2 cup chopped peanuts
Fresh mint, roughly chopped
Fresh cilantro, roughly chopped
1 thai bird chile, sliced (optional)

Ingredients for the Shrimp:

16 jumbo shrimp
salt and pepper
Wooden skewers

How to Make Grilled Shrimp With Green Papaya and Mango Salad.

Enjoy!

You can also see our list of delicious seafood recipes, organized by type of fish to help you eat more seafood throughout the year.

Also, here’s some convenient links to our first 100 Original Recipes on Hugging the Coast to make it easier for you to find culinary inspiration and ideas.

Please join us soon to see The Week in Review.

If you liked this article on HuggingtheCoast.Com, you might also enjoy:

• Cedar Plank Grilled Salmon With Tropical Fruit Salsa Recipe (Fish For Friday Recipe)
• Coconut Recipe Celebration: 18 Recipes Featuring the Versatile Coconut
• Tropical Pineapple Fried Rice Recipe (Party Appetizer Recipes)
• 100+ Popular Fish and Seafood Recipes to Celebrate My New Cookbook

Here’s a delicious fruit dessert recipe for a Pink Grapefruit and Strawberry Granita from the folks at Back to the Cutting Board that requires just 3 ingredients and is extremely easy to make.

One of the great things about making granitas is that depending on what fruit juices you choose, there’s a granita to fit every mood and gathering from sophisticated to refreshing. Best of all, no special equpment is required.

This week’s Pink Grapefruit and Strawberry Granita is as festive tasting as it appears, and would look great garnished with a fresh strawberry (or two) and served in your favorite bowl or glass.

If you’d like to see how granitas are made, you might want to watch this short video recipe for an Italian Lime Pomegranate Granita for a preview that shows just how easy it is to make these at home.

Looking for even more ways to cool off? Please see the recipe links at the bottom of this article for more tasty ways to get the refreshment you need.

Enjoy!

Ingredients:

2 cups pink grapefruit juice (I used fresh squeezed, but store bought is probably fine)
2 cups fresh or thawed frozen strawberries (or raspberries)
1/2 -1 cup superfine sugar

How to Make Pink Grapefruit and Strawberry Granita.

You can also see our list of delicious fruit dessert recipes to help you enjoy and eat more fruit throughout the year.

Also, here’s some convenient links to our first 100 Original Recipes on Hugging the Coast to make it easier for you to find culinary inspiration and ideas beyond dessert.

Please join us tomorrow to see our newest food and cooking article: A Grilled Shrimp With Green Papaya and Mango Salad Recipe.

If you liked this article on HuggingtheCoast.Com, you might also enjoy:

• Layered Banana Pudding, Low Country Style (Fruit Dessert Recipes)
• Rum Watermelon For the Adults and Wiggly Watermelon For the Kids (Fruit Dessert Recipes)
• Best Gourmet Ice Cream Recipe Ideas for National Ice Cream Month
• 18 Refreshing Fruit Drink Recipes to Sip Your Thirst Away

(Photo Credit: All Fruit Dessert Recipe photos are courtesy of the featured blog, in this case, Back to the Cutting Board.)

One of the most important pillars of Mediterranean cuisine, Greek food empasizes fresh flavors from natural ingredients prepared for leisurely meals with friends and family.

Since this is the time of year where many of us are enjoying a zucchini surplus from our gardens or local markets, I thought I would share this simple (and simply wonderful) salad recipe for Grilled Greek Zucchini Salad from the folks at Kalyn’s Kitchen.

Low in carbs but packed with flavor, this refreshing salad is great for anyone looking for an easy but sensual salad pick-me-up that can either be made outdoors on a BBQ grill or indoors in a grill pan or on an electric grill.

Looking for more recipes for foods inspired by the cuisine of Greece? You won’t want to miss some of the delicious links at the bottom of this article.

Enjoy!

Ingredients:

1 zucchini about 10 inches long
2 medium summer tomatoes (or 5-6 cherry tomatoes), chopped into bite-sized pieces
1/4 cup Kalamata olives, about 8 olives (Use pitted olives)
1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese (or less)
olive oil, to brush on zucchini
1 tsp. Greek seasoning
1 T + 2 T vinaigrette dressing
fresh ground black pepper to taste

How to Make Grilled Greek Zucchini Salad.

You can also see our growing list of delicious salad recipe ideas, to help inspire your gatherings with friends and family throughout the year.

Also, here’s some convenient links to our first 100 Original Recipes on Hugging the Coast to make it easier for you to find culinary inspiration and ideas beyond appetizers.

Please join us tomorrow to see our latest daily food and cooking article: Pink Grapefruit and Strawberry Granita Recipe For Easy Summer Fun.

If you liked this article on HuggingtheCoast.Com, you might also enjoy:

• Greek Parsley Salad With Homemade Tahini Recipe (Salad Recipe Ideas)
• Make Easy Gourmet Greek Yogurt at Home (Weekend Video Recipe Spotlight)
• Red Pepper Hummus in Cucumber Cups Recipe (Party Appetizer Recipes)
• Grilled Lamb Chops Recipe From the BBQ Pit Boys (Weekend Video Spotlight)

(Photo Credit: Salad Recipe photos are courtesy of the featured blog, in this case, Kalyn’s Kitchen.)

Think about it; how many fruits are more versatile than the coconut?

Beyond the tasty “meat” of the coconut that so many of us love adding to our favorite main meals, appetizers, and desserts, coconut milk, coconut oil, and coconut water all have many culinary uses which have been celebrated for thousands of years around the world.

Below are 18 recipes which feature the delicious flavor of the coconut.

(I knew there was a reason I loved palm trees so much!)

Enjoy!

• Mango, Avocado, and Grilled Shrimp Salad With Peanut Dressing Recipe

• Sesame Coconut Cod in Asian Taco Shells Recipe

• Scallion Lime Shrimp Cakes Recipe

• Thai Coconut Curry Mussels Recipe

• Easy Ecuadorian Shrimp Ceviche Recipe

• Coconut Shrimp with Pineapple-Habanero Dip Recipe

• Crab and Coconut Risotto with Mango Recipes

• Salmon, Mango and Rice Casserole

• Royal Tilapia Fish Empanadas and Coconut Rice

• Baked Coconut Shrimp With Avocado Dressing Recipe

• Coconut Chipotle Mojo Shrimp With Pomegranate Relish Recipe

• Grilled Chocolate Banana Boats Recipe

• Alton Brown’s Gourmet Chocolate Truffles Recipe

• Grilled Rum Pineapple Topped With Ice Cream

• Coconut Flan Recipe from Coastal Columbia

• Pina Colada Blossoms Recipe

• Hawaiian Sesame Coconut Onion Rings Recipe

• Mulligatawny Indian Soup Recipe

Please join us tomorrow to read our newest daily food and cooking feature on HuggingtheCoast.Com: A Grilled Greek Zucchini Salad Recipe.

If you liked this article on HuggingtheCoast.Com, you might also enjoy:

• 9 Delicious Things to Cook With Pineapple
• Carefree Cooking With Rum: 5 Rum Flavored Recipes to Make Your Day
• Avocado Power: 12 Recipes That Make the Most of Avocados

(Photo Credit: Coconut by BionicTeaching on Flickr.)

Here’s a look back at the food, cooking, and recipe posts that appeared earlier in the week here on HuggingtheCoast.Com…please join us tomorrow for the start of next week’s exciting food features!

Looking Back: 8/9/2010-8/15/2010

Monday: Avocado Power: 12 Recipes That Make the Most of Avocados

Tuesday: Calamari and Watermelon Salad Recipe by Rocco Dispirito (Salad Recipe Ideas)

Wednesday: Calamari and Watermelon Salad Recipe by Rocco Dispirito (Salad Recipe Ideas)

Thursday: Southern Hummingbird Cake Recipe With Pineapple and Bananas (Fruit Dessert Recipes)

Friday: Cedar Plank Grilled Salmon With Tropical Fruit Salsa Recipe (Fish For Friday Recipe)

Saturday: Julia Child David Letterman Cooking Disaster (Weekend Video Spotlight)

Sunday: You are here

Please join us tomorrow to read our newest daily food and cooking article: Coconut Recipe Celebration: 18 Recipes Featuring the Versatile Coconut.

The kind of days where you burn the garlic bread beyond recognition, drop a pan of bubbly lasagna onto the floor, and turn the kitchen into a culinary disaster area just before the guests arrive.

Luckily, for most of us, we don’t have to experience that feeling on television, as the great Julia Child did in her funny and remarkable 1987 appearance on David Letterman below where she tries to cook a burger on live TV but the stove doesn’t work.

Tomorrow, would have been Julia Child’s 98th birthday, a cooking pioneer who inspired millions around the world to cook fearlessly for their friends and family.

Enjoy!

You can also watch this humorous video featuring Julia Child on the David Letterman show here.

If you enjoyed this video, you might also want to see Meryl Streep vs. Julia Child, a video featuring clips from the film Julie & Julia and The French Chef, so you can compare Streep’s impersonation of Julia Child with the original.

Also, here’s an easy recipe for Julia Child’s Cooling Cucumber Salad. You can enjoy even more Julia Child recipes here.

You can also see HuggingtheCoast.com’s growing collection of food, cooking, and travel videos here.

Please join us tomorrow to see this week’s Hugging the Coast.Com Week in Review, an overview of last week’s special food features (as well as selected previews from the week to come).

If you liked this video on HuggingtheCoast.Com, you might also enjoy:

• The Jumbo Shrimp Death March: A Culinary Catastrophe With a Side of Remoulade
• Cooking With Ease and Grace With Nathalie Dupree
• Fish For Friday Recipe: Chef Frank Stitt’s Lowcountry Pickled Shrimp
• If the Hitchcock Film, The Birds Was Made With Yellow Peeps (Weekend Video Spotlight)

With a little advance planning, cedar plank grilling is an excellent way to add much more aromatic flavor to the seafood you cook outdoors. The flavor of salmon is especially well suited to this quick smoking cooking technique.

You’ll want to select a piece of untreated cedar (very important, as you don’t want to impart any chemical flavors to your food) and soak it in water for at least an hour before you plan to grill on it.

Cedar planks for grilling can be found in the kitchen supply aisle of most good supermarkets and department stores, however you’ll also find untreated cedar planks in the BBQ grill area of many hardware stores.

Below is a delicious recipe for Cedar Plank Grilled Salmon With Tropical Fruit Salsa from the folks at Aggie’s Kitchen to help you make the most of this easy and rewarding cooking technique.

This is an improvisational recipe, so feel free to let the relaxed feeling of this recipe express itself when choosing additional spices and side dishes to accompany it.

Ingredients for the Tropical Fruit Salsa:

1/2 cup fresh diced kiwi
1/2 cup fresh diced mango
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
1/4 cup orange juice

How to Make Cedar Plank Grilled Salmon With Tropical Fruit Salsa.

Enjoy!

You can also see our list of delicious seafood recipes, organized by type of fish to help you eat more seafood throughout the year.

Also, here’s some convenient links to our first 100 Original Recipes on Hugging the Coast to make it easier for you to find culinary inspiration and ideas.

Please join us tomorrow to see this week’s culinary Weekend Video Spotlight: The Julia Child David Letterman Cooking Disaster.

If you liked this article on HuggingtheCoast.Com, you might also enjoy:

• Salmon Fish Sticks With Pimento-Caper Sauce Recipe (Fish For Friday Recipe)
• Weekend Video Spotlight: How to Grill Shrimp, Tuna, and Salmon for a Delicious Seafood Cookout
• Avocado Power: 12 Recipes That Make the Most of Avocados
• Angel Hair Pasta Cakes With Salmon and Lavender Goat Cheese: (Fish For Friday Recipe)
• Fish For Friday Recipe: Salmon Tower Sandwich

(Photo Credit: All Fish For Friday Recipe of the Week photos are courtesy of the featured blog, in this case, Aggie’s Kitchen.)

Featuring the tropical flavors of pineapples and bananas (but no hummingbirds), there may be some historical debate over where Hummingbird Cake was first created, but there’s no controversary over how truly good this cake really tastes.

One of the most popular cakes in the South since it was first mentioned in a 1978 issue of Southern Living, this recipe for Hummingbird Cake Made With Pineapple and Bananas from the folks at CakeSpy tastes as sweet as Summer and is the perfect dessert to serve after a day of grilling or entertaining outdoors.

The Hummingbird cake in the photo above is topped with sliced strawberries which you can omit if you’d like your Hummingbird Cake to have a more traditional appearance.

If you love a good pineapple cake as much as I do, you also won’t want to miss this recipe for Pineapple Upside Down Cake Made in a Cast Iron Skillet.

Enjoy!

Ingredients for the Cake:

3 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
3 eggs, beaten
1 1/4 cups vegetable oil
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 oz crushed pineapple, well drained
1 cup coarsely chopped pecans
2 cups very ripe bananas

Ingredients for the Frosting:

16 ounces cream cheese, softened
1 cup butter, room temperature
2 pounds confectioners sugar (I know, I know)
Extra nuts for garnish (if desired)

How to Make Southern Hummingbird Cake Made With Pineapple and Bananas.

You can also see our list of delicious fruit dessert recipes to help you enjoy and eat more fruit throughout the year.

Also, here’s some convenient links to our first 100 Original Recipes on Hugging the Coast to make it easier for you to find culinary inspiration and ideas beyond dessert.

Please join us tomorrow to see our newest food and cooking article: A Cedar Plank Grilled Salmon With Tropical Fruit Salsa Recipe.

If you liked this article on HuggingtheCoast.Com, you might also enjoy:

• Apple Beignets With Butter-Rum Caramel Sauce Recipe (Fruit Dessert Recipes)
• Italian Lime Pomegranate Granita Recipe (Weekend Video Spotlight)
• Sangria Upside Down Cake Recipe (Fruit Dessert Recipes)
• Tres Leches Marble Cake With Strawberries and Chocolate Ganache Recipe (Fruit Dessert Recipes)
• Easy Chocolate Cherry Cordial Ice Cream Cake Recipe (Weekend Video Spotlight)

(Photo Credit: All Fruit Dessert Recipe photos are courtesy of the featured blog, in this case, CakeSpy.)

Adapted from a calamari recipe by James Beard Award winning chef, Rocco Dispirito, this is definitely not your run of the mill salad recipe.

Shared by the folks at East Village Kitchen, the watermelon and avocado in this recipe serves as a Summer infused counterpoint to the breaded calamari that fans of squid know and love.

Summer may not be here forever, but the flavor of the season will linger on when you serve the sweet and savory watermelon salad below to your friends and family.

Looking for more wonderful watermelon recipes to lift your spirits? You might also want to see these recipes for Rum Watermelon For the Adults and Wiggly Watermelon For the Kids and A Grilled Watermelon Salad Recipe to Refresh You.

Enjoy!

Ingredients:

2 teaspoons ground coriander seed
1/4 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
2 cranks on a black peppermill, plus more to taste
1/2 lb. whole squid, cleaned and cut into rings and tentacles
Approximately 1-2 cups grapeseed, corn, or canola oil
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon olive oil
zest of 1 lemon
1 shallot, peeled and minced
approximately three cups of watermelon, sliced thin
1 avocado, peeled, pitted, and cut into thin slices
flour for breading the calamari

How to Make Calamari and Watermelon Salad.

You can also see our growing list of delicious salad recipe ideas, to help inspire your gatherings with friends and family throughout the year.

Also, here’s some convenient links to our first 100 Original Recipes on Hugging the Coast to make it easier for you to find culinary inspiration and ideas beyond appetizers.

Please join us to see our latest daily food and cooking article: Southern Hummingbird Cake Recipe With Pineapple and Bananas.

If you liked this article on HuggingtheCoast.Com, you might also enjoy:

• Julia Child’s Cooling Cucumber Salad Recipe (Salad Recipe Ideas)
• Avocado Power: 12 Recipes That Make the Most of Avocados
• Best Gourmet Ice Cream Recipe Ideas for National Ice Cream Month
• 16 Refreshing Summer Fruit Drink Recipes and Ideas to Help You Cool Off and Quench Your Thirst

(Photo Credit: Salad Recipe photos are courtesy of the featured blog, in this case, East Village Kitchen.)

With apologies to author Jonathan Swift, it may have been a brave man that first ate an oyster…but it was a happy man that first ate an avocado.

One taste of its creamy, dreamy goodness inevitably leads to another of this high fiber fruit which has 60% more potassium than the banana.

Below are 12 delicious avocado recipes that will help you explore its flavor in new and exciting ways.

Enjoy!

• Edamame Guacamole Recipe for Nachos and Tacos

• Pinto Bean Salad Recipe With Avocado, Tomatoes, Red Onion, and Cilantro

• Mango, Avocado, and Grilled Shrimp Salad With Peanut Dressing Recipe

• Shrimp Salad With Smoked Bacon, Corn, Avocado, Tomatoes and Fava Beans Recipe

• Roasted Garlic, Poblano, and Red Pepper Guacamole Recipe

• Tequila Lime Crab Salad Recipe

• Monterey Muenster Mash Gourmet Grilled Cheese Recipe

• Mexican Guacamole Onion Soup With Cheesy Tostadas Recipe

• Gazpacho With Grilled Shrimp and Avocado Recipe

• Easy Guacamole Dip Recipe For Burgers and Chips

• Avocado Shrimp Seafood Salad Recipe

• Shrimp Stuffed Avocados

Please join us tomorrow to read our newest daily food and cooking feature on HuggingtheCoast.Com: A Calamari and Watermelon Salad Recipe by James Beard Award Winner Rocco Dispirito.

If you liked this article on HuggingtheCoast.Com, you might also enjoy:

• 100+ Popular Fish and Seafood Recipes to Celebrate My New Cookbook
• A Grilled Watermelon Salad Recipe to Refresh You (Salad Recipe Ideas)
• Salmon Sliders With Lemon Dill Cream Cheese Recipe (Fish For Friday Recipe)
• Grilled Pineapple Salsa Recipe For a Taste of Sunshine (Party Appetizer Recipes)

(Photo Credit: Avocados: Street Art by The Grocer on Flickr.)

Here’s a look back at the food, cooking, and recipe posts that appeared earlier in the week here on HuggingtheCoast.Com…please join us tomorrow for the start of next week’s exciting food features!

Looking Back: 8/2/2010-8/8/2010

Monday: 9 Delicious Things to Cook With Pineapple

Tuesday: A Lifetime of Homework: Writing’s Odd Rewards

Wednesday: No Mayo Yukon Gold Potato Salad With Feta Cream Dressing Recipe (Salad Recipe Ideas)

Thursday: Sangria Upside Down Cake Recipe (Fruit Dessert Recipes)

Friday: Salmon Sliders With Lemon Dill Cream Cheese Recipe (Fish For Friday Recipe)

Saturday: How to Prepare Shrimp For Cooking (Weekend Video Spotlight)

Sunday: You are here

Please join us tomorrow to read our newest daily food and cooking article: Avocado Power: 12 Recipes That Make the Most of Avocados.

(Please see my humorous true story about my early battles with head-on shrimp: The Jumbo Shrimp Death March: A Culinary Catastrophe With a Side of Remoulade.)

However, buying shrimp this way can be a great way to save money and get more shrimp for your buck. Also, if you have access to seafood at your local farmer’s market or you have a fisherman in your family, learning how to prepare fresh, unprocessed shrimp can really come in handy.

Luckily, removing the head and tail of shrimp is far easier than it looks, as you can see in our shrimp preparation video below which shares a few quick tips to help you learn how to do this with grace and ease.

Bring on the grilled shrimp, Spanish paella, fried shrimp, and shrimp salad! Let the eating begin!

Enjoy!

You can also watch this easy shrimp preparation video recipe here.

You can also see HuggingtheCoast.com’s growing collection of food, cooking, and travel videos here.

Please join us tomorrow to see this week’s Hugging the Coast.Com Week in Review, an overview of last week’s special food features (as well as selected previews from the week to come).

If you liked this video on HuggingtheCoast.Com, you might also enjoy:

• Mango, Avocado, and Grilled Shrimp Salad With Peanut Dressing Recipe (Fish For Friday Recipe)
• Spicy Grilled Shrimp With Cayenne Lime Cream Recipe (Fish For Friday Recipe)
• Shrimp Salad With Smoked Bacon, Corn, Avocado, Tomatoes and Fava Beans Recipe (Fish For Friday Recipe)
• Party Spanish Paella For a Crowd (Fish For Friday Recipe)
• 7 Seafood Salad Recipe Ideas For Picnics and Parties

These salmon sliders are aptly named. They go down all too easy…and strike the perfect balance between gourmet and comfort food that’s just right for these dog days of Summer.

Looking for more recipes that use salmon? You don’t want to miss this recipe for Salmon and Cream Cheese Crepe Appetizers.

(There are even more links to delcious salmon recipes at the bottom of this article.)

Ingredients For the Salmon Sliders:

15 ounces canned Pink Salmon, boneless, drained and flaked
1 egg, beaten
1/4 cup Onion, minced
3 tablespoons Mayonnaise
2 teaspoons Dijon Mustard
1/4 cup Fresh Parsley, chopped
1 heaping tablespoon Fresh Dill or 1 teaspoon Dried
3/4 cup Fresh Bread Crumbs or 1/2 cup Panko or Seasoned Bread Crumbs
1/2 teaspoon Sea or Kosher Salt
1/8 teaspoon Black Pepper
1 teaspoon Lemon Juice
Panko or Seasoned Crumbs for coating, optional
Canola Oil for pan-frying

Other Ingredients

Small buns, dinner rolls, or a fresh baquette, thinly sliced
Your choice of sauce(s) (see the link below for your choice of easy sauces to make)
Lettuce and sliced tomato, optional

How to Make Salmon Sliders With Lemon Dill Cream Cheese.

Enjoy!

You can also see our list of delicious seafood recipes, organized by type of fish to help you eat more seafood throughout the year.

Also, here’s some convenient links to our first 100 Original Recipes on Hugging the Coast to make it easier for you to find culinary inspiration and ideas.

Please join us tomorrow to see this week’s culinary Weekend Video Spotlight: How to Prepare Shrimp For Cooking.

If you liked this article on HuggingtheCoast.Com, you might also enjoy:

• Be Your Own Hero: Gourmet Sandwich Recipes and Ideas for Work and School
• Smoked Salmon and Wasabi Rolls Recipe (Fish For Friday Recipe)
• No Mayo Yukon Gold Potato Salad With Feta Cream Dressing Recipe (Salad Recipe Ideas)
• Seared Salmon Soft Tacos Recipe (Fish For Friday Recipe)

(Photo Credit: All Fish For Friday Recipe of the Week photos are courtesy of the featured blog, in this case, Cinnamon Spice & Everything Nice.)

Featuring kiwi fruit, plums, and oranges, this is just the cake to serve out on the back porch on a bright, sunny day.

Enjoy!

Ingredients for the Glaze:

2 tablespoons butter
1/2-1 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon red wine
1-2 tablespoon brandy, triple sec, or other fruit-flavored liqueur

Ingredients for the Topping:

1 kiwi fruit, peeled and sliced across into 1/4-inch thick discs
2 unpeeled plums, pitted and sliced into 1/4-inch thick wedges
2 small oranges, peeled and sliced across into 1/4-inch thick discs (removing any seeds as you go along)

Ingredients for the Cake:

1 1/2 cups unbleached flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter, at room temperature
3/4 cup white sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1/2 cup red wine

How to Make Sangria Upside Down Cake.

You can also see our list of delicious fruit dessert recipes to help you enjoy and eat more fruit throughout the year.

Also, here’s some convenient links to our first 100 Original Recipes on Hugging the Coast to make it easier for you to find culinary inspiration and ideas beyond dessert.

Please join us tomorrow to see our newest food and cooking article: Salmon Sliders With Lemon Dill Cream Cheese.

If you liked this article on HuggingtheCoast.Com, you might also enjoy:

• Carefree Cooking With Rum: 5 Rum Flavored Recipes to Make Your Day
• Cooking With Beer: Grilled Chicken Legs With Jalapeno Beer BBQ Sauce Recipe
• Feta Cheese Pepperdew Dip Recipe (Party Appetizer Recipes)
• Honey Butter Yogurt French Toast Recipe (Weekend Video Spotlight)

(Photo Credit: All Fruit Dessert Recipe photos are courtesy of the featured blog, in this case, Modern Comfort Food.)

A creamy, zesty Yukon Gold potato salad good enough to serve at any party, this is the potato salad that you won’t stop thinking about long after the last bite has been scooped from the bowl.

Enjoy!

Ingredients:

3 pounds small Yukon gold potatoes
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons capers, drained and dried on paper towels
4 ounces feta cheese plus more for garnish
3/4 cup heavy cream
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
black pepper
juice of 1/2 lemon
1/4 cup sour gherkins, finely diced
2 tablespoons minced fresh dill
2 tablespoons minced fresh oregano
1 cup roughly chopped fresh parsley leaves plus more for garnish
4 green onions, white parts only, thinly sliced
chive blossoms (optional)

How to Make No Mayo Yukon Gold Potato Salad With Feta Cream Dressing.

You can also see our growing list of delicious salad recipe ideas, to help inspire your gatherings with friends and family throughout the year.

Also, here’s some convenient links to our first 100 Original Recipes on Hugging the Coast to make it easier for you to find culinary inspiration and ideas beyond appetizers.

Please join us tomorrow to see our latest daily food and cooking article: A Wonderful Sangria Upside Down Cake.

If you liked this article on HuggingtheCoast.Com, you might also enjoy:

• 20 Exciting Party Friendly Potato and Sweet Potato Recipe Ideas to Jazz Up Your Meals
• Miniature Red Potato and Smoked Salmon Appetizers Recipe (Party Appetizer Recipes)
• Bacon Wrapped Potato Bites with Spicy Sour Cream Dipping Sauce Recipe (Party Appetizer Recipes)
• Italian Foods Series: Delicata Mezza Luna
• A Week of Onion Rings: Stuffed Potato Skin Onion Rings

Last year, as I was working on the Hugging The Coast book, I was asked by Globe Pequot Press to co-author the Fish and Seafood volume of their growing Knack: Make it Easy series of richly illustrated how-to books. It is a handsome series of books on a wide range of topics, and I am delighted to be part of the project.

Today, 200+ original recipes and one year later, the Knack Fish & Seafood Cookbook: Delicious Recipes for All Seasons, is making its debut in bookstores nationwide.

On this special day, I’d like to say thanks to my editor at Knack Books, Katie Benoit, for her kindness and expert guidance; to my James Beard Award-winning co-author, Linda Beaulieu, for her all-around excellence; and to all the talented folks who made this book happen.

Most especially, thanks to all of you who visit, enjoy, and keep coming back to HuggingTheCoast.com. It’s you who have made this site the success that it is.

I hope you enjoy the book; may it give you many delicious meals and many happy memories. Best wishes to all of you.

–Doug DuCap

Writing is, at least on the surface, a peculiar activity. For starters, it’s a deeply antisocial behavior whose end product provokes another antisocial behavior (i.e., reading) in others. For the practitioner it’s often inexplicable and for the casual observer utterly incomprehensible. And reasonably so, I’m inclined to believe.

There are indeed many who cannot understand why any sane person would voluntarily write anything they didn’t absolutely have to. To them, choosing to write is like a student volunteering for extra homework. It isn’t a question of there being something pathologically screwy with writers; the question is whether, like swine flu or the clap, it is somehow transmissible.

(UPDATE: the CDC in Atlanta assures me that there is no evidence of the ‘writing bug’ being caused by an airborne pathogen, and that, to the best of their knowledge, no one has ever become a writer ‘by injection’.)

The non-writing masses may have a point. Here’s a question to consider: In literature, how many novels about writers have happy endings? Go ahead – name as many as you can in one minute. No, better yet, take your time and name as many as you can in an hour.

(Sound of crickets chirping)

Don’t feel bad. I can’t think of any either. Novels about writers are invariably tales of alcohol abuse, drug addiction, unsatisfying infidelity, stroke-inducing frustration, shattered hopes, unbearable disappointment, abject misery, and suicide. Why? Because writers write about what they know, that’s why!

Maybe that’s a bit dramatic, but it’s not far off. Here in the South, there’s never been a shortage of novelists willing to wring the last sweaty drop of drama from their own lives (and the lives of others, of course.) They just do it with quiet dignity while wearing white suits.

But literature isn’t the only whipping post for writers. Even on film, writing is never depicted as anything like fun – at worst it’s a toxic chore and at best a compulsive, often-lethal hobby.

SCENE: (Mid 20th century. Interior. Night.) A neon sign outside the rain-streaked window intermittently illuminates the seedy hotel room. A slow pull back & pan reveals a mesh trash can with a few crumpled balls of paper inside and a writer staring at a blank sheet of paper in an old Underwood typewriter. Writer rubs his five o’clock shadow and stubs out a cigarette in a half empty glass ashtray. Fade out. (Melodramatic music rises to indicate time passing)

FADE IN: Writer opening a quart bottle and pouring brown liquor into a shot glass.

CUT TO: The trash can, overflowing. Sound of writer ripping paper from typewriter, crumpling. (Melodramatic music gets louder.)

CLOSE UP: Writer’s hand stubbing out cigarette onto desk next to wildly overflowing ashtray, then pouring brown liquor into a highball glass.

CLOSE UP: Writer’s forehead; drops of blood forming.

CUT TO: Writer’s hand, sloshing last of brown liquor into a large mason jar.

MEDIUM SHOT: Wall clock in shadow; empty bottle crashing into clock (melodramatic music reaches crescendo).

CUT TO: Exterior. Day. Rain. Mourners quietly assembling at graveside.

Well, to be fair, that’s not always the case. There are actually times when the writing goes well:

SCENE: (Mid-1700s. Interior. Late afternoon) A slow pull back from a window overlooking a formal garden reveals a well-appointed drawing room. A bewigged manservant lights long tapers in baroque candelabra.

CUT TO: A healthy, pink-cheeked young man in his early 20s, sitting at a handsome writing desk, holding a very long quill over an inkpot as he stares, smiling, into the middle distance. The opening notes of a J.S. Bach concerto signal the strike of inspiration.

CLOSE UP: Quill tip moving quickly across page.

CUT TO: Writer loosening his cravat; night falling.

CLOSE UP: Inkpot, now nearly empty.

CUT TO: Slow panning shot across candelabra showing candles burned down almost to their bases; camera continues pan across desk to see the writer’s ink-stained hand laying down a two-inch nub of quill.

CUT TO: Writer, in dim light of fading candles, leans back behind stack of manuscript sheets, looking pale and exhausted, but happy. Writer coughs briefly.

CUT TO: Exterior. Day. Rain. Mourners quietly assembling at graveside.

On balance, I’d have to say that, yes, writing is often a peculiar, inexplicable, apparently thankless, and occasionally fatal activity, and that doing it voluntarily certainly could seem as ridiculous as, say, volunteering for an IMAX colonoscopy.

However, (and the governor of a certain southern state in which I happen to reside might agree with me on this) sense and reason aren’t always the primary compelling forces behind human decisions.

Sometimes, it’s passion.

And as anyone who’s ever felt it knows, passion is a flood. A forest fire. An awesome, irresistible force whose voice causes immoveable objects to tremble. For some, passion can be the trumpet call to greatness; for others, the Siren’s call to disaster.

Sometimes, though, passion’s voice is quiet. Sometimes it whispers and speaks only to you. Sometimes it tells you where to dig to unearth the treasure that is your life’s work, your soul’s fulfillment – whatever that treasure is. And nothing on earth feels quite as good as when that shovel strikes pay dirt.

Whether it’s writing or some other apparently thankless pursuit (and there are many), there are times when our choices might confuse others. “C’mon,” they urge, “Let’s grab a couple of beers and a cheeseburger down at the pub.” Well-meaning as they may be, those people will never understand what would make someone refuse the opportunity to ‘cut loose’ or ‘have a good time’

But then, they’ve probably never heard passion’s awesome, irresistible whisper. “Hurry! Grab your shovel,” it says, “Let’s go!”

(This piece first appeared on the outstanding and ever-engaging website, WanderingEducators.com. Special thanks go out to Wandering Educator’s editor, Dr. Jessie Voigts, for her encouragement and generosity of spirit.)

Please join us tomorrow to read our newest daily food and cooking feature on HuggingtheCoast.Com: No Mayo Yukon Gold Potato Salad With Feta Cream Dressing.

If you liked this article on HuggingtheCoast.Com, you might also enjoy:

• Original Recipes from Hugging the Coast
• 75+ Recipes From James Beard Award Winning Chefs
• Mexican Guacamole Onion Soup With Cheesy Tostadas Recipe
• 10 Refreshing Salad Recipes and Ideas That Won’t Put You to Sleep
• Million Dollar Winning Contest Recipes from the Pillsbury Bake-Off

(Photo Credit: Keyboard Blue Glow by AhhYeah and Shift Key by Leo Reynolds.)

The pineapple. When it comes to tropical fruits, the mighty pineapp, er…pineapple might just be the killer app of the produce world.

Why? Incredibly tasty and naturally sweet, the pineapple is particularly high in manganese and bromelain and is said to have anti-inflammatory properties. Eating pineapples is also a delcious way to get more Vitamin C and Vitamin B1.

Below are 9 wonderful recipes to help you make the most out of the pineapples you buy from your supermarket or local farmer’s market.

On a related note, you can find out how to easily cut a fresh pineapple here.

Enjoy!

• Spicy Pineapple Ginger Leek Cole Slaw Recipe

• Tropical Pineapple Fried Rice Recipe

• Seared Scallops With Pineapple, Ginger and Lemongrass Salsa Recipe (Fish For Friday Recipe)

• Coconut Shrimp with Pineapple-Habanero Dip Recipe

• Grilled Pineapple Salsa Recipe For a Taste of Sunshine

• Caribbean Salmon Fillets En Papillotte Recipe

• Inauguration Week Recipe: Pineapple Macadamia Spam Musubi

• Grilled Rum Pineapple Topped With Ice Cream (Fruit Dessert Recipes)

• Pineapple Upside Down Cake Made in a Cast Iron Skillet

Enjoy!

Please join us tomorrow to read our newest food and cooking article: A Lifetime of Homework: Writing’s Odd Rewards.

If you liked this article on HuggingtheCoast.Com, you might also enjoy:

• Carefree Cooking With Rum: 5 Rum Flavored Recipes to Make Your Day
• Italian Lime Pomegranate Granita Recipe (Weekend Video Spotlight)
• Weekend Video Spotlight: How to Make Fried Ice Cream in Honor of National Ice Cream Month

(Photo Credit: Pineapple by Giniger on Flickr.)

Here’s a look back at the food, cooking, and recipe posts that appeared earlier in the week here on HuggingtheCoast.Com…please join us tomorrow for the start of next week’s exciting food features!

Looking Back: 7/26/2010-8/1/2010

Monday: Carefree Cooking With Rum: 5 Rum Flavored Recipes to Make Your Day

Tuesday: Tropical Pineapple Fried Rice Recipe (Party Appetizer Recipes)

Wednesday: Rare Day Off…Did Not Post.

Thursday: Greek Parsley Salad With Homemade Tahini Recipe (Salad Recipe Ideas)

Friday: Seared Scallops With Pineapple, Ginger and Lemongrass Salsa Recipe (Fish For Friday Recipe)

Saturday: Man Vs. the Hottest Pepper in the World, the Bhut Jolokia (Weekend Video Spotlight)

Sunday: You are here

Please join us tomorrow to read our newest daily food and cooking article: 9 Delicious Things to Cook With Pineapple.