Hoppin' John

Here's a spicy version of hoppin' john that is delicious with this week's fresh Georgia purple hull peas!

Ingredients:
-1 1/2 pounds purple hull or black eyed peas
-water
-1 large onion, chopped
-1 large bell pepper, chopped
-1 clove garlic, chopped
-1/4 cup olive oil
-salt & pepper to taste
-1/2 tsp dried cayenne pepper
-1 tsp spicy brown mustard
-1 cup rice, cooked
-8 ounces hot sausage, cooked

1- Place peas in a sauce pan, cover with water, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium and continue to cook peas until tender (approximately 1 hour).
2-Saute onion, bell pepper, garlic, and olive oil.
3-Combine peas, vegetables, brown mustard, rice, and sausage in sauce pan. Heat until the mixture is consistent and serve.

Taste of Monroe Menu

It's only one week away and I have just finalized the Honey General Store menu for the Taste of Monroe. If you haven't bought tickets yet, you can still get them at Honey for $20 per ticket (they'll be $25 at the door). The Taste of Monroe will be held at the Van Horne Manor, 410 East Church Street, Monroe, GA 30655 from 5:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. You will have the unique opportunity to taste menu items from local restaurants and stores, do some early Christmas shopping at our silent auction, and enjoy our cash bar...all in one of our favorite downtown neighborhoods! The following restaurants and businesses will be participating in the tasting: Twisted Oak Woodfire Grill, Blue Marley Cafe, Van Horne Manor, Fox's Pizza Den, Nature's Magik Garden, Bella Cucina, A Better Bite Catering, SD Smokehouse, John's Supermarket, Bruser's Ice Cream, Robison's BBQ, Creative Dinner Solutions, Country Beginnings, Honey General Store, and a few more! All of the proceeds from this event will go towards the Downtown Development Authority of Monroe.
A few of these recipes will be posted individually, but I'd like to share a little about each of them first...Keep in mind that these items are available at my booth, but all of the other vendors will have 3+ items at their table for you to try!

• Pop's Nassau Grits: This recipe was given to my mother by a dear family friend, Harold Byrd, who now resides in Apalachicola Bay, Florida. He has been so kind to our family and we've spent several wonderful family vacations relaxing, scalloping, fishing, and enjoying Aunt Ebby's Ice Cream at his home! If you love grits, this is for you! If you're not from around here, haven't tried grits, or question the taste value of this Southern staple, this is for you! This recipe originated in Pop's area and the Red Mule Grits are from Athens, GA! Tim and Alice Mills and their mule, Luke, create a few quality corn products: grits, polenta, cornmeal, and porridge. You can find them at Honey!
  


• Caprese Cups: Caprese salad reinvented! Bright green (spinach) and red (tomato) fillo shells hold an all organic carprese salad mixture and are topped with a fresh local basil leaf.


• Asiago Flatbread: Fresh, cheesy, delicious asiago cheese flatbread from Big City Bakery in Athens, GA will be served in small bites for tasting. This bread is available at Honey General Store each Wednesday and is currently my best seller!
  


• Pumpernickel Bread: This yummy bread will be served with a soft honey butter. Also from Big City Bakery in Athens, GA.


• Sourdough Everything Baguette: We will have some dipping oils available when you try this Big City Bakery treasure!
  


• Chocolate, Chocolate, Chocolate Cookies and Ginger & Molasses Cookies: The names say it all! Order these for your sweetheart in a Christmas Cookie Box! Big City has a large variety of cookies for you to choose from.
  


• Cream Cheese Brownies: You won't be able to resist these treats from Big City! Also available in fancy holiday boxes.

I hope to see you at the Taste!

Vegan Spaghetti Squash Recipe

This is definitely the best recipe that I've created in a while! I can't wait for you to try it! I used soy imitation mozzarella cheese by a company called Soya Kaas. Their "cheese" is lactose free and has no cholesterol or hydrogenated oils. It works well in any recipe as a cheese substitute and tastes much better than the other vegan "cheeses" that I have tried...and you can get it at Honey General Store!

Vegan Spaghetti Squash

Ingredients:
1 large spaghetti squash cut into long halves, seeds removed
Water
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp dried oregano
1/2 cup shredded soy imitation mozzarella cheese (or regular mozzarella if you aren't avoiding dairy)
3 large olives, pitted and chopped
salt & pepper to taste

1- Preheat oven to 375 F. Place squash in a casserole dish, open side facing down and fill the dish with 1/4 inch of water. Bake for 30 minutes.
2- Remove the squash from the oven and scrape the stringy flesh out of the squash with a fork.
3- Over medium heat, saute garlic with extra virgin olive oil and oregano for about 3 minutes. Add spaghetti squash, cheese, olives, and salt and pepper. Serve when the cheese melts!

Mushroom Pizza

1 baked thin pizza crust
1 tablespoon olive oil
8 ounces mushrooms, sliced
1 small red onion, sliced
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 cup marinara sauce
1/4 cup sliced tomatoes
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1/4 cup parmesan
1/4 cup fresh basil leaves

1- Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.

2- Heat the oil in a skillet over a medium heat. Add the onions, garlic, and mushrooms and saute until tender, about 5 minutes.

3- Place the pizza crust on a baking sheet. Spread the sauce over the crust leaving a 1-inch border. Sprinkle with the mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses. Top with the mushroom mixture and tomatoes. Bake until the crust is crisp and the cheese is melted, about 10 minutes. Sprinkle with basil, slice, and serve!

Aloo Gobi

Ok...we'll just call this dish Potatoes & Cauliflower Indian Style!


Ingredients:

• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/4 teaspoon mustard seed
• 1/4 teaspoon cumin seeds
• 1 pinch ground turmeric
• 1 hot green pepper, split down its length (optional)
• 2 tablespoons minced fresh ginger root
• 1 potato, cubed
• 1 head cauliflower, broken into small florets
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar
• salt to taste

Directions:

1. Heat oil over a medium-high heat. Toss in the mustard seeds; when they start spluttering, add cumin seeds, turmeric powder and the green pepper. Add the chopped ginger. Stir and saute for a few minutes.
2. Add the potato, cauliflower florets, sugar and salt; stir well and cook until the potatoes are cooked and the cauliflower tender yet crunchy. (For a crunchier cauliflower, add it when the potatoes are just getting done but not quite finished cooking).

Carrot Surplus Recipe!

We have tons of extra carrots this week! Come and pick yours up and try this carrot recipe!

Curry Glazed Carrots

Ingredients:
-1/4 cup olive oil
-3 tsp honey
-1 tsp curry powder
-1/2 tsp fresh or 1/4 tsp dried oregano
-3/4 pound of carrots

1. Slice carrots into thin strips and place in a casserole dish.
2. Pour olive oil and honey over carrots and stir.
3. Add herbs and spices and bake in 350 degree oven for 30 minutes.

Gumbo with Whippoorwill Hollow Farm's Okra!

Whippoorwill Hollow Farm's Okra is in this week and we found this gumbo recipe to highlight our favorite local veggie!

INGREDIENTS:

• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 pound smoked sausage, cut into 1/2 inch slices
• 3/4 to 1 pound boneless chicken thighs, cut in bite-size pieces
• 1 1/2 to 2 cups frozen cut okra
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper, or to taste
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 2 cups diced tomatoes, undrained
• 1 cup medium shrimp, cleaned and cooked
• 1 1/2 cups uncooked regular long-grain white rice

PREPARATION:

In small saucepan, combine flour and oil; mix well. Cook, stirring constantly, over medium-high heat for 5 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low; cook, stirring constantly, about 8 to 12 minutes or until mixture turns a light red-brown.

Place flour and oil mixture in 3 1/2 to 4-quart crockpot. Stir in all remaining ingredients except shrimp and rice. Cover and cook on LOW for 7 to 9 hours. Add cooked shrimp to the gumbo; mix well. Cover and continue to cook on LOW for 20 minutes longer. Meanwhile, cook rice according to package directions. Serve gumbo over hot cooked rice.

Shallots aren't scary...

This week's produce box included shallots as a choice and people seemed frightened of the onion's sweeter cousin! We also have some green beans from Whippoorwill Hollow Farms in Walnut Grove, Georgia. They team up for this easy side dish:

Green Beans & Shallots

2 large shallots
1/4 cup olive oil
sea salt
4 cups green beans

• Peel and slice the shallots into thin strips.
• Combine shallots & olive oil in a sauce pan over medium heat.
• Saute the shallots until caramelized, about 15 minutes.
• Remove stems from green beans and steam them briefly. They should be tender, but still a little crisp.
• Add the beans to the shallots and oil.
• Season with sea salt and serve!
  

Honey's Espresso Cake Made with 1,000 Faces Coffee:

Try this yummy cake with 1,000 Faces Coffee (Available at Honey General Store)!

INGREDIENTS

	2/3 cup whole wheat pastry flour
	1/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
	1 cup raw sugar
	2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
	1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
	1/4 teaspoon baking soda
	1/4 teaspoon salt
	1/2 cup sweetened applesauce or pureed dried plums
	3 egg whites
	1 teaspoon vanilla
	1 cup brewed espresso coffee from 1,000 faces (available at Honey General Store)

Preheat oven to 350°. Grease a 9-inch cake pan with butter. Line bottom of pan with waxed paper; grease paper. Dust bottom and side of pan with cocoa powder, tapping out excess; set aside.

In a medium bowl, combine flours, sugar, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt; set aside. In another bowl, combine applesauce, egg whites, vanilla and coffee. Mix wet ingredients into dry ingredients and pour into prepared pan.

Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in middle of cake comes out clean. Cool cake in pan on a wire rack 10 minutes. Run a knife around edge of cake and invert onto a wire rack; peel off waxed paper. Invert again onto rack to cool completely. Serve with fresh whipped cream and berries!

Yum! Plums!

Plum Sorbet!

Plum sorbet...a sweet way to end any summer meal! Sorbet is a a flavored syrup with a slushy consistency that contains no dairy. Serve this treat in a chilled martini glass or small ice cream dish. Garnish with an sugared orange peel twist and mint leaves!

Plum puree:
3 cups ripe red fleshed plums
1 cup boiling water
2 cups superfine sugar
1 vanilla pod
1 cinnamon stick

Plum Puree: Place the boiling water and sugar in a saucepan and stir them together until the sugar has dissolved. Add the vanilla pod, cinnamon stick and plums to the syrup and place the saucepan over a moderate heat. Bring the syrup to a simmer and reduce the temperature slightly. Leave the plums to cook gently for 10 minutes. Remove the saucepan from the heat and remove the plums with a slotted spoon and leave them and the syrup to cool. Cut the plums in half and remove the pits from them. Roughly dice the plums and place them in a food processor or blender and puree them with cooking syrup. Set the puree aside until well cooled.

Sorbet: Place the puree and syrup in an ice cream machine and allow it to churn until the mixture becomes firm. Place the sorbet in a well sealed freezer proof container and freeze until ready to serve. If you don't have an ice cream machine place it in a freezer proof sealed container and place it in the freezer for 1 hour then remove it and stir, then return to the freezer and take it out and stir it every 30 minutes for 2 hours then freeze it until ready to serve. Remove the sorbet from the freezer 15 minutes before serving.