Five O'Clock Friday: Mint Juleps

This weekend, a very famous Southern tradition will take place. It is the 136th running of the Kentucky Derby. (That's a horse race, my friends. Its for 3-year-old thoroughbreds.) Its kind of a big deal.

One tradition that is synonymous with the Derby concerns fashionable hats. This particular event gives ladies (and some men) the excuse to go all out and wear the biggest, most ridiculous looking hats you have ever seen! I love it! Its so British.

Ever since my appearance as Eulalie Mackecknie Shinn (the mayor's wife in The Music Man) in high school, I have been obsessed with hats. I love them, but don't have the occasion to wear them often. When I was in New Orleans recently, there was a display for a hat shop at the Ritz. I just stood and stared at them for a while. It reminded me of when Scarlet O'Hara and Rhett Butler went on their honeymoon. She had hats like that. (Okay, so maybe my hat fascination dates back to the junior high days when I was completely obsessed with Gone With the Wind.)

Anyway, if I ever go to the Kentucky Derby, then I'm totally spending a whopping load of money at the New Orleans hat shop, Fleur de Paris. I don't care how much it costs. I think it would be completely decadent to have an original hat from a proper shop.

Enough about hats....

That brings me to the actual point of today's post. Another famous Derby tradition concerns booze. More specifically, whiskey. Or bourbon. Or Kentucky whiskey, which is bourbon. I honestly don't know much about booze, so I really don't know the difference. But, whatever-you-call-it-booze is mixed with mint and sugar, and turns into mint julep. This is a very famous Kentucky tradition, or so I hear.

In honor of the Kentucky Derby, which takes place this weekend, let's drink mint juleps and wear hats. I bet it would be fun!

The Early Times Mint Julep Recipe
Taken from the Kentucky Derby website

Ingredients:
2 cups sugar
2 cups water
Sprigs of fresh mint
Crushed ice
Early Times Kentucky Whisky
Silver Julep Cups

Directions: Make a simple syrup by boiling sugar and water together for five minutes. Cool and place in a covered container with six or eight sprigs of fresh mint, then refrigerate overnight. Make one julep at a time by filling a julep cup with crushed ice, adding one tablespoon mint syrup and two ounces of Early Times Kentucky Whisky. Stir rapidly with a spoon to frost the outside of the cup. Garnish with a sprig of fresh mint.

The best times are enjoyed responsibly. Early Times Distillery Co., Kentucky Whisky. 40 percent Alc. By Volume. Louisville, KY 2006.

And since I was on the site, I'll post a bonus recipe because 1. I like vodka, and 2. this sounds good!

The Oaks Lily®

Ingredients:
1 oz. Vodka
1 oz. Sweet and Sour Mix
3 oz. Cranberry Juice
Splash of Triple Sec

Directions: When the ingredients are mixed, place the pinkish cocktail in an official Oaks Lily® glass (stem-less wine glass) with crushed ice, add a straw and garnish with an orange wedge and cherry.


SIDE NOTE: While updating my blog, I realized I haven't posted since last Friday. Its been such a busy week. Don't judge me for posting two boozy recipes in a row. I'll get some food on here soon. Maybe I'll post something special from the grandmother birthday party I'm attending on Saturday!


Happy cooking! Don't drink and drive, and drink responsibly!

Waiting out the storm....

Did you know you can have a more serious tornado watch than just a regular ole tornado watch? Yes, its called a PDS watch. That means…holy crap you better look out and nail down your petunias watch…or, in technical terms, a “potentially dangerous situation” tornado watch. We’re under one of those right now, and I’m just sitting at home waiting for something bad to happen.

You know what’s weird? I used to be super scared of storms…but today I’m sitting here kinda wanting one to happen, but at the same time, as a homeowner, insurance carrier, not super rich person…not wanting one to happen. I like the excitement and drama of tragedy, but I really don’t like the effects of it. Am I totally weird or what?

When I was in college I went through a couple of…incidents…that made me scared of storms. The first was my junior year in college. I was at home painting my kitchen, and it was raining. All of a sudden, you couldn’t see outside because of all of the wind, rain and debris flying by. My roommate was on her way home from school, and called as the sirens went off. She couldn’t make it home, so I recommended she get out of the car and in the ditch. Then I frantically tried to scoop up the cats and get in the bathroom. It was really scary. I called my mom, and she told me just to call down and it would be okay. (She didn’t realize what was going on outside.)

After the fact they said it wasn’t a tornado, but straight line winds. They were in excess of 100 miles per hour. That’s like a big ole hurricane hitting land 5 hours north of the coast. It was crazy. The roommate finally made it home, with thanks to some city workers who found her and brought her and her car to the house, and we sat in the bathroom with no power for a while. We finally got out and drove around. It was bad.

I had no more fence in my backyard, and a few missing shingles, but that was, rather luckily, all the damage to my house. The way the storm passed over, my home was protected by the ones around me. However, the bank on the edge of my neighborhood lost a brick wall. Wal-Mart, a stone's throw away, lost a big part of the roof. Some of my neighbors had major damage. A HUGE old, oak tree was completely uprooted. It was scary stuff.

Not long after that…incident…I went to work for the second summer in a row at a church camp on the MS coast. We watched a major tropical storm hit Houston and flood the city, waiting for it to make its way east. It came. We had lots of tornados, and we spent the night sitting in the stairwell of our staff house waiting to see what was going to happen.

The next morning I woke up and went to work. I had about a 2-3 block walk from my house to the office. I probably could have taken a boat to work that way. The water in the parking lot was up to mid-calf. I can’t believe I walked through that in flip flops…

Several of us checked on the 700+ guests we had on campus. Everyone was okay, but we had no power and we were flooded in parts. As the public relations intern for the summer, I answered the phones. Concerned parents and friends called trying to decide if they should come get their kids. At this point, they were okay. We just were water logged.

I worked my first crisis communication situation as a 20 about three-fourths of her way through her college education. Talk about trial by fire! I was working with about 2 hours of sleep under an intense amount of stress. I remember snapping terribly at one of my friends that day, but I don’t think they knew the kind of calls I was fielding at the time. I learned a lot about that storm, Tropical Storm Allison, to be exact. I learned a lot about being a communicator and a lot about how to handle stress in very serious situations.

I think I’m actually better at keeping calm when something super important is on the line. I mean, I totally stress myself out at work sometimes. I tend to be…a little tightly wound…to quote my boss. I know this. I’m a perfectionist. However, when it comes to a crazy, scary situation, like bad weather, I can keep my calm. Hmmmm….

It took a while for me to get over my fear of storms after that. But not long after these incidents I moved to Texas. I lived through lots of storms in my near 7 years there. I’m okay with storms now, though I do admit I get a bit nervous. I just don’t freak out like I used to.

So, I’m sitting here, watching the news…realizing we are under a PDS tornado watch, and keeping my cool. I’m waiting for it to come, but not too expectantly. I don’t think anything bad will hit my area. I know I said I kinda wanted it to, but really…if I think about it…I don’t. I like my house intact. And I just redid my yard.

I do have to send thoughts and prayers to my fellow Mississippians who have been hit by tornados today. They are out there. There has been some major damage in some areas. I hope everyone is okay.

God, watch over us. Protect us. Guide us. Be with us.

Notice the lack of photos on my blog? Its because I need a new camera. I'm just sayin....

Five O'Clock Friday: Sweet Tea Vodka

So, the other day I was catching up on some Google reader action, and I came across a post on iced tea. I love tea. I'm Southern, though, so down here we drink tea instead of water. Tea with lots of sugar in it. Its really healthy, I promise.... *crickets...*

In the post, the blogger introduced me to something I have never heard of before - Sweet Tea Vodka. WHAT???? Someone made vodka taste like sweet tea? I love vodka (in moderation). I love sweet tea (but weak and only slightly sweetened). I can't believe some drunky drunk went off and combined the two! They must be Southern.

As soon as I read about this, I was sitting in my office in giddy shock...wondering if anyone in town carries this new mysterious wonderfulness. Then in walks my VP coming to congratulate me on a job well done. And what do I do?

Me: "Did you know they make sweet tea vodka?"
diarrhea of the mouth
VP: rather enthusiastically - "YES!! My friend in blahblahblah introduced it to me!"

Crap.

The first words that come out of my mouth to the boss at 8:30 in the morning were about booze. I bet his thinks I'm a lush. But, honestly, I think he knows me better than that. And...during our discussion on sweet tea vodka, he did say this was the best conversation he had all day. Whew!

So far I haven't been fired from my job for talking to the boss about booze early in the morning. He did go on to thank me for helping with an important project we were working on. So I think I'm okay! But still....talk about open mouth, insert foot! I still can't believe I blurted that out to my boss.

Moving on....

Today's Five O'Clock Friday is in ode to the new found sweet tea vodka...I must locate some. And when I do, I'm making this:

Mighty Mint Tea

Ingredients:
Fresh mint
ice
sweet tea vodka
lemon wedges
sugar

Directions:
1. Place a few (6-10) mint leaves in the bottom of a lowball/old fashioned glass. Sprinkle with sugar and muddle leaves. (Basically, muddling requires you to put mint in the bottom of a glass and crush it with the end of a wooden spoon. Or you can use a mortar and pestle.)
2. Drop in a few ice cubes and pour in vodka. If you don't want an entire glass of vodka, mix half and half with tonic water or club soda.
3. Stir and garnish with a lemon wedge. Serve and enjoy!

Remember kids...only drink in moderation, and DON'T drink and drive!

An Open Letter...to...a really, really mean person...

Dear evil thief who keeps stealing my Diet Coke's at work,

I HATE YOU! No, seriously...I do. I know hate is a strong word. I was taught not to use it. But you keep freakin stealing my Diet Cokes. WHHHHHYYYYY????? Why do you have to do it on those days when I'm having a really bad day and am in need of a Diet Coke? Why do you steal at all? Why are you so dishonest and unethical?

I'm sorry if you can't afford the $0.75 machine in our kitchen. That's why I bring my own. So I don't have to spend so much. But then YOU keep stealing from me...so I end up not saving any money anyway!

I'm a nice enough person, and I don't steal from you. I even buy candy and put it on my desk for the entire building to come enjoy! Sometimes I even bake treats! So, why steal from me? Seriously???

I just want you to know, in this open letter to whoever you are, that I lick all of my Diet Coke cans PRIOR TO putting them in the kitchen. So...that means you are getting a bunch of my slobbery spit when you steal my drinks? Revenge? I think not. I call that justice! If you get sick...its your own damn fault for being a thieving liar! That's the price you pay for dishonesty! So take that, sucka!

I realize I'm being harsh. But that's because I'm a victim. And when something as precious as a Diet Coke is stolen...well...there's no more Miss Nice Girl!

Stop stealing from me. Its not very nice.

Thanks
sp

PS - To my readers. I'm frustrated. I like open letters. I think this will be a new regular on my blog.

The best turkey meatloaf EVER!!!!

Last night I decided to use the leftover meat I had from Saturday's cookout to make a meatloaf. It was already seasoned, and all I needed to do was a few things to make it more loafy. Turned out to be the best turkey meatloaf I have ever made! And...I make a pretty darn good turkey meatloaf! Here's what happened:

Ingredients:
**All of my measurements are estimates. I eyeball the ingredients and feel it out as I go....

1 to 1.5 lb. ground turkey
2 tbsp. Chicken Marinade (Worcestershire)
1 tbsp (or palmful) parsley flakes or 2 tbsp. freshly chopped parsley
2 tbsp chopped cilantro
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1.5 teaspoon Cavendar's Greek Seasoning
salt and pepper to taste
1 cup bread crumbs
1 teaspoon ground oregano
1 tbsp horseradish
1/2 medium yellow onion, chopped & sauteed
1/2 bell pepper, chopped & sauteed & sauteed
1/4 cup mushrooms, chopped & sauteed
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 to 1 cups shredded mozzarella
4 oz. tomato sauce

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Chop and saute onions, bell pepper and mushrooms. Set aside. Mix meat, all seasonings, eggs, and bread crumbs. Add sauteed vegetables and mix well.

Transfer meat to loaf pan and form into a loaf. Spread tomato sauce over meat and bake in oven for 1 hour.

Remove meatloaf from oven and top with shredded mozzarella. Bake for an additional 15 minutes.

Side suggestions: Mashed sweet or regular potatoes, salad, baked or boiled vegetables.

Leftover suggestions: Slice two thin pieces of meatloaf and microwave for 1 minutes. Throw on a slice of mozzarella cheese. Toast two pieces of bread, and spread mayo on each side. Lay on meat and have a meatloaf sandwich. Yum-o!

Trust me when I say this meatloaf was fantstico! LOVED IT!!!!

Happy cooking!

Greek-Style Stuffed Turkey Burgers

This weekend was spring homecoming at the ole alma mater. My brother and sister-in-law came to visit, and we tooled around town, grilled out, and hung at my house. The weather was beautiful, and it was a super fun Super Bulldog Weekend!

Saturday night I invited some friends over for a little homecoming cookout. I was inspired to create a new turkey burger after watching an episode of Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives on Food Network. They didn't use turkey, I don't think, but some of the same ingredients.

The family helped with the creation, and we ended up with massively large and delicious, and somewhat healthy, burgers.

Ingredients:
**All of my measurements are estimates. I eyeball the ingredients and feel it out as I go....
1.5 to 2 lb. ground turkey
2 to 4 tbsp. Chicken Marinade (Worcestershire)
3 to 4 tbsp (or palmful) parsley flakes or freshly chopped parsley
3 to 4 tbsp chopped cilantro
1/2-1 tbsp ground cumin
1/2-1 tbsp Cavendar's Greek Seasoning
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1/2-1 tbsp ground oregano
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
1 bell pepper, chopped
1/2 cup mushrooms, chopped
1-2 cups shredded mozzarella
EVOO

Directions:
1. Heat grill on high heat.
2. Saute onions and bell pepper in olive oil for about 5-7 minutes. Add mushrooms and saute until all vegetables are soft. (About 3-5 more minutes)
3. Mix remaining ingredients together in a large bowl.
4. Take palm size of meat mixture and form into a thin patty.
5. Spoon sauteed vegetables on top of patty and sprinkle with mozzarella.
6. Take another palm size of meat and form another patty. Place on top of patty and vegetables, and crimp size to enclose vegetables and cheese.
7. Repeat 7 more times.
8. Grill burgers for about 10-15 minutes per side, or until juice squeezes out clear.
9. Serve on whole wheat bun with tomatoes, lettuce, and condiments.

Side suggestions: Potato salad, grilled squash and zucchini, chips, baked fries, etc.
Wine pairing: Biltmore Malbec or a Syrah

I do have to admit these burgers take a little more prep time than usual, but they were SOOOO worth it! Plus, I had a sous chef, aka my brother, aka grillmaster and master chopper. He cut all of the vegetables in record time and grilled the meat. Okay, he did most of the work. I just figured out the seasonings and put it all together. We were co-chefs. And Lauren helped too. We had three cooks in the kitchen, and actually prepared it quite fast....

I, rather unfortunately, had leftover raw turkey. I bought and mixed too much, and only made 8 burgers. (I wasn't sure how much meat I needed.) So, with the leftovers I made THE MOST AMAZING TURKEY MEATLOAF EVER tonight. I'll make you wait in suspense for that recipe!

After dinner was done, we spent the evening in the backyard taking and hanging out with friends. New friends and old friends, but all great company. It was a perfect spring night, and I can't wait to have many more like it to come!

Happy cooking!