Sherry – Rosemary and the Goat

Rose and Pistachio Crinkle Cake

Ruffles and pink rosebuds!

This is a pretty little dessert to have with your morning pot of tea or coffee. It’s not really a cake or a pie it’s just ruffles of phyllo and a few other ingredients.

My daughter use to say that she doesn’t like to wear pink because I had her wearing pink most of her childhood. Not really maybe when she was a baby and toddler she had a LOT of little onesies and outfits that had little pink rosebuds on them and pink ribbons etc. I do really like pink; so much that in our new house being build will have a pink bedroom. Not girly or baby girl pink but one wall is going to be a nice pink shiplap (maybe grayish pink, not mauve but just the right shade that it will remind me of her being a little girl who didn’t like her hair combed before school and I always had to turn it into a contest too see how fast I could get it fixed. And as far as the room goes, it’s only one wall and maybe a little pink in the bathroom wallpaper Why not, it’s only paint and I like color.

August 31, 2023 By Sherry

Entree/ Pork

Baby Back Finger Chops

I want my baby back, baby back!

Remember that old jingle from chilis about their baby back ribs? I never had those and no way could they be as good as any bbq someone would/could smoke/grill at home.

These little loin back finger chops caught my eye one day at the grocery. I first thought they were un-frenched lamb chops but the closer I got to them I realized they were pork so I was interested enough I bought a package. They were somewhere over $5 a lb.. They were good the first time we grilled and we just used some Montreal Steak seasoning (one of my favorite seasoning). The second time I bought them I bought a package and also bought a rack of baby back ribs thinking I could cut them up and they would be half the price of the little loin baby back loin chopsl, after I got home with them and inspected before tossing in the freezer I did notice they they didn’t have the large chunk of meat on the end. So my theory didn’t hold up BUT the slab will live another day and show up on our grill one night.

August 7, 2023 By Sherry

Salads/ Side dish

Corn and Tomatillo Relish

Summer time corn!

For the last few months I have been driving by this field of corn outside Roundtop. Watching it grow from tiny stalks to larger stalks, then with ears of corn and wanting to find out who owns this field so I can go beggin’ for a few ears to make my mother’s fried corn.

Well the corn kept growing and growing and then started turning brown and my chance of finding the owner was gone. Of course this corn didn’t die before it got into the markets, it was a field of “field corn” or “cow corn” that is grown especially for cow feed. But this kind of corn makes the best fried corn but better than the sweet corn sold in the groceries.

July 22, 2023 By Sherry

Salads

Summer Coleslaw with Apple and Peanuts

Coleslaw? Slaw? What’s the difference?

I’ve had this debate with myself for years because I love all kinds of slaws/coleslaws. In my mind a coleslaw is a salad made of cabbage and other ingredients and with a mayonnaise based dressing. Slaw on the other hand (to me) is a cabbage and other ingredient salad but with no mayonnaise and usually an oil vinegar and even sugar (plus other ingredients) type dressing. Both will make the salad limp, I think, if left over so I always let the slaws refrigerate along with the dressing in a separate bottle and dress right before serving.

While doing our country morning drive here in Round Top on Memorial Day I was trying to decide what type of dressing to go with our bbqued chicken legs. I love legs and since it was going to be just the two of us (can’t wait to get that new home and kitchen because all holidays will always be celebrated with lots of food and people to enjoy it.) I knew I was making the cheese grits that I seem to make anytime there is bbq involved. I thought the coleslaw with apples, green onions, cabbage and a few other ingredients sounded perfect and why not throw in some candied peanuts. After making these candied peanuts I’ve decided to always just buy them already sweetened.

June 26, 2023 By Sherry

Bread/ Morning Foods/ Scones

Blackberry Lime Scones with Blackberry Whip

Every scone I’ve made was the best until the next.

Every scone I’ve ever made I thought was the best until the next recipe. Every scone I have eaten out I tell myself I can do better. I don’t really care for just a plain cream scone; I like the fixins in them. Whether it is tiny currants, black walnut (one of my favorite), pistachio and blueberry, they are delicious hot out of the oven with some type of jam/cream/honey butter.

Blackberry is absolutely my favorite berry and fruit and I’m hoping when our house is underway enough that we can start our garden we can get some berries planted. I have an idea for putting some old split rail fencing someplace in the garden in a zig-zag pattern and have it loaded with blackberry and raspberry plants. I’m a big talker when it comes to gardening, I have the ideas and hub executes them. And when it gets really hot here in Texas I don’t want to be out in the heat. Now, there will be another thing to watch out for — snakes!!!

May 29, 2023 By Sherry

Entree/ Fish/Seafood/ Pasta

Shrimp and Bucatini Primavera

Not a shortage of veggies in this dish!

Love shrimp, love pasta? Love veggies? You’ll love this dish.

I’m trying to work my way through bags of pasta I bought over the last several months. When I get out of town to larger grocery stores and see so many beautiful pasta shapes, I can’t resist buying a bunch. Well I have enough to feed an army in my tiny pantry.

I can’t wait to have a whole pasta section in my new pantry. NEWS: Our slab is being poured this Thursday so once I see those walls go up, I’ll be measuring off my 10×7′ pantry to see what all I can get in there. Presently in our 800 sq. ft house we have been renting for almost three years I have what use to be a broom closet that GA did a great job making shelving in almost every square inch minus room for a broom. So to have a big pantry plus a butler’s pantry and wet bar with storage I will not know what to do with all that space. I will do my best to fill it all up.

May 16, 2023 By Sherry

Bread/ Breads/Biscuits/ Morning Foods/ Scones

Macadamia Nut Scones with Blackberry Jam

My sister, my friend, my wingman (girl) 'till the end

A few lyrics from an old Diana Ross song "when we grow up"

🎼When I grow up, I’m gonna be happy and do what I like to do,

Like making noise and making faces and making friends like you.

And when we grow up, do you think we’ll see

That I’m still like you and you’re still like me?

I might be pretty; you might grow tall.

But we don’t have to change at all.

So, my twin sister, Terry, just left from her visit to Round Top. It’s always great having her visit because we can catch up on what’s going on, play my new favorite game (Five Crowns) she taught me, shop or do nothing at all and we are still much on the same page of what’s going on in our lives. She loved visiting Round Top Brewing (Paul & Brooke) and trying their Duck Confit Taco (and his delicious gumbo) and we played many a game of FC on the porch at the brewery.

I cooked a few new things while she was here (new for her) like my Halal Cart Style Chicken (she liked) and we tried our hand at Crispy Fried Rice & Green Beans after sampling it at a local venue. I feel like we have the recipe spot on now and have to say ours was pretty darn good.

April 13, 2023 By Sherry

Entree/ Game/ Poultry

Asian Grilled Quail with Brown Rice

Love the Asian flavors of this dish.

Well, it’s about time for the Round Top Spring Antique Show to begin and I may not be doing a lot of cooking (at home at least) for the next 2 1/2 weeks. But here’s a recipe I did a few weeks ago that, if you like quail, you will surely like.

Annie Oakley I’m not and I couldn’t shoot a bird the size of goose. Don’t get me wrong, I could shoot a quail or any other bird if I wanted to have it for dinner BUT I couldn’t aim and get one out of the air.

My sister, Terry, use to dove hunt with her husband and they had a special way of doing them on the grill. Can’t say I’ve ever eaten dove. She got all the athletic genes out of the twin thing — racketball, tennis, golf, and hunting. I got the “cooking” gene but of course she can cook too. She got the “tamale” gene for sure and makes the best tamales I’ve tasted. When she visits in a week or so she’s helping me make some for the freezer; so I better get cooking up some of that frozen food I have stashed in my freezer to make room.

March 14, 2023 By Sherry

Entree/ Poultry

Orange Chicken with White Fluffy Rice

No fuss orange chicken!

Ya know, before moving to Round Top if we wanted Chinese food we would have many places to choose from and I would always say why eat out when I can do better at home. Well, now that we are in Round Top and there’s not a Chinese restaurant nearby, I’m back to making my own Asian flavored dishes.

I remember the first time I had chicken chow mien and it was at my mother-in-law’s house and I was dating my husband (in high school) and he told me I was really going to like her chow mien; and I did. I don’t remember my mother ever making Chinese dishes; a little bit of everything else but no Chinese.

February 15, 2023 By Sherry

Soup

Chicken, Asparagus and Pasta Soup

Soups on!

A good soup recipe is something I’m always up for trying. Growing up I remember delicious stews and chilis but those are really the only soups I remember. My grandmothers chili was great and I always loved how small she could get her ground beef chopped up. She must have stood for an hour making it. My mothers chili started with Chili-O seasoning pack and then she added her own ingredients. Now when it comes to my chili my husband use to say it never tasted the same twice. Over the years the only chili I have been able to make and like is using Wick Fowler’s 2 Alarm Chili seasoning; and of course I like beans and a bunch of other add ons to my chili.

What’s good about making a good chicken soup is that you can add just about any vegetable to it and it will be delicious. Even though we are having a cold front here in my part of Texas right now, Spring isn’t far away and asparagus will be plentiful in the grocery. Of course we can get asparagus years around but something about Spring makes me start thinking of asparagus recipes.

January 22, 2023 By Sherry

Pork

Papa G’s Herbed Pork Chops

🎼Anything you can do I can do better,

I can do anything better than you!🎼

No you can’t, Yes, I can, Yes I can — Well that’s not true when it comes to the outdoor cooking in this family. Whether it’s grillin’, fryin’, or smoking. GA (the person I have shared most of my life with and 53 years of marriage) has been taught by the best — my dad. Even back when we were dating in high school he was learning things that would stay with him and add to his cooking skills.

I’ve always done most of the cooking in the kitchen but over the last 10 years that’s changed. When I had both knees replaced years ago, he was preparing me wonderful “eats”. And, always for the family feast we had the day after Thanksgiving he had his own item he would prepare and present to the group. (These were the best dinners ever! See blast from the past below to get an idea of what went on at a MFF).

January 20, 2023 By Sherry

Appetizers/ Fish/Seafood/ HotApp

Scallops and Shrimp with Jalapeño Cream Sauce

All Shrimp or scallops or both and with or without pasta.

This recipe can be made as a first course appetizer or you could add some pasta for a main course.

The scallop shells I used to hold this recipe came from a friend who was cleaning out things she never used and I volunteered to take them off her hands. I will have a perfect place to put them when I get my very large pantry (top on my list for things I wanted in our new home); but for now they are in a under the bed box until I’m ready to use them again.

There are all kinds of cute little dishes hiding under my two beds right now (until we get out of this 800 sq ft house) that I want to use for dinner guest; especially my cute little glass espresso cups that will hold some kind of yummy decadent dessert and my tiny stemmed glasses that would be a great vessel for my date nut shake or mini chocolate martinis.

My first thought for these shells was to use them for a first course appetizer with one very large scallop with some kind of sauce poured over it. There are several other sauces I want to try once I can get larger scallops. Since I couldn’t find the extra large scallops, I had to settle for sea scallops so then decided to add shrimp to the recipe.

January 9, 2023 By Sherry

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