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Move over Bric, I have a new love!

Cinnamon Honey Fried Plantains

And OhMyStinkinHeck are they ever good!

Such an easy and delicious snack or desert without a ton of calories. The problem is, we all love them. So I have to make a ton in order for everyone to get their fill…or only make them when no one else is at home so I can have them all to myself!

Fried Plantains with honey and cinnamon

There are no right or wrong measurements here. Which is one of the reasons these are so easy to make.

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Plantains look a lot like a banana. But they are much harder to peel, the skin is much thicker. To open the plantains, I cut off each end and then I run a slit down the side with my knife and open them that way. Whether it is correct or not, it is how I find it easiest.

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Once I have the peeling off I slice them at a diagonal.

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I melt about 2 tablespoons of coconut oil over medium heat in a large frying pan. You can use other oil, I just happen to like coconut oil for these. The key is to make sure not to have your oil too hot. I am always tempted to turn it up so they will cook faster, but slow and patient is the best. You also don’t want to crowd them in the pan, let them breathe. It also makes it much easier when the time comes to turn them over.

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And use a light hand…otherwise they just mush up and fall apart. You want them to brown on each side, and I turn mine pretty often just to make sure they cook evenly.

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Once they are browned to your liking, remove from the pan and allow to drain on a paper towel, then sprinkle with a little cinnamon powder.

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And then drizzle with honey.

And they are now ready to eat!

 

 

 

Fried Stuffing Balls

 

 

Southern Fried Stuffing Balls – It just doesn’t get much better than this! This is the one thing that we all hope shows up on the table at Thanksgiving. More than any other dish. Seriously. They are a staple at our meal…but they never make it to meal time. Everytime someone walks by they have to grab a few, then as they go back by, a few more. It is always so sad when they have all disappeared and the only thought you have is “But I wanted one more”.

We never, ever make enough. Ever.

Here in the South so many of our traditions and memories revolve around food. I am thankful for each and every one. That might have a little to do with just how much I like good food…but I also relish in fond memories of loved ones and the precious times we have had together. With Thanksgiving just around the corner, these are at the front of my mind and I wanted to share the recipe with you so that you can enjoy them as much as we do!

I highly recommend that you not discount this recipe. These little babies are heaven to your taste buds. I mean really: sausage, stuffing, and fried. There just isn’t much better.

ingredients for stuffing balls

These are all the ingredients that you will need other than water and butter. Here, let me show you what’s involved:

 

8 ounces of spicy sausage (can use mild if you like)

Canola Oil (can use Vegetable oil)

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 box of chicken flavored stuffing mix

1 tablespoon of parsley (optional)

1 tablespoon of thyme (optional)

mix stuffing according to directions

Make your stuffing mix according to the directions on the package. That way it can be cooling. And, if you want a little extra seasoning add the parsley and thyme to it. Sometimes I do, sometimes I don’t. It is really just a personal taste thing.

roll sausage into little balls and fry

Now pour some oil to a depth of about 1/4 of an inch in a large skillet and heat while you roll your sausage into small balls. Once the oil is heated, cook your sausage balls on medium heat until golden brown.  Remove from the pan and place in a bowl with a paper towel to drain.

encase each sausage in stuffing, roll in flour

Now that you have your sausage browned and drained, you want to encase each sausage ball in stuffing and set aside on a plate.  You will then roll each one in the all-purpose flour.

fry for about 3 minutes

Meanwhile you want your canola oil to be heating in a large skillet to about 350 degrees.  Once your oil is thoroughly heated you will carefully drop each of your sausage stuffing balls into the oil and cook for about 3 minutes or until golden brown.

 

Then, place the cooked sausage stuffing balls back into your bowl for serving.I hope you enjoy these as much as we do…just don’t tell my family when you are making them. We might just all show up on your doorstep!

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Yep, THE number one staple to any Southerner’s picnic, family gathering, church social, funeral, reunion or party of any kind.

southern style fried chicken

Fried Chicken

There are so many different ways to cook fried chicken and they are all correct. It just depends on what region you live in and how your Momma and Grandmomma done it as to which you probably use in your home.  Growing up I didn’t care to much about cooking. My Daddy was always in the kitchen cooking up something and while I remember it being a passion of his I didn’t hang out with him in there too much. Now, I regret that and I wish I had made a pest out of myself and made him show me what he was doing. So many of his recipes went to the grave with him, lost forever. So, when I started looking for a fried chicken recipe I went to my Great Aunt Ruth. With both of my Grandmomma’s and my Dad gone I had to look somewhere. My Momma didn’t like to cook a lot when we were young and since my Daddy did it was usually his job.  Ya’ll have heard me talk about my Aunt Ruth many times and she is one of the best cooks I know…and I have ALWAYS loved her fried chicken.

Ruth told me that the trick to any good fried chicken is to marinate it in a mix of buttermilk and egg for at least several hours, preferably overnight.

chicken soaking in buttermilk and egg

After your chicken has marinated you want to gather your other ingredients.

fried chicken ingredients

 Flour, Salt and Pepper.It doesn’t really matter if you use self-rising flour or all-purpose flour. Just flour.

I know you see the ranch dressing up there, I am getting to it…

…you see, we have experimented with adding many flavors to the mix and the one that is requested the most is Ranch Dressing mix. We also like adding some cayenne pepper or chili powder and cajun seasoning for a spicy fried chicken. Or add a little powdered sugar for a taste more in line with Chick-Fil-A chicken. We also like to add dry Italian dressing. Or just Italian seasoning. You can also do lemon pepper seasoning. See where this is going? The possibilities are limitless.

bread chicken for frying

Mix all your dry ingredients together and dredge your chicken in it.

 Cast Iron Deep fryer

Ruth also told me to always fry my chicken in Peanut Oil.

So that is what I use. Heat your oil in a heavy pan on medium-high, then drop your chicken in, just be careful of oil splatters.

 southern style fried chicken

Remove it from the oil and place on a paper towel to drain when it is golden brown.

 Fried Chicken

Chicken  (I use chicken tenders)

Buttermilk

1 egg

Flour

Salt and Pepper to taste

Seasonings of your choice (Ranch was used in this batch)

Directions:

Whip one egg and add to buttermilk. You will use enough buttermilk to cover your chicken and marinate at least 4 hours, preferably over-night. Heat oil in a heavy pot on medium-high heat. After chicken has marinated mix flour, salt, pepper and seasonings of choice together. Dredge chicken in the flour mix coating well. Place chicken, one at a time, in oil. Fry until golden brown.

If your oil is too hot your chicken will cook too quickly on the outside and be raw on the inside so make sure not to use too high of heat.

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fried okra

I reckon fried okra is a dish you will only find in the South.  It took me a long time to learn how to make okra the right way. It is one of those dishes that never tastes right unless it is like your Granny used to make. So after much trial and error, I finally got it, thanks to my Aunt Ruth. She sat down and told me step by step what I needed to do and then she put it in her cookbook just for me. Ok, so it wasn’t just for me but I felt like it was. It was actually just a manual directory submission, one of those must have’s in any Southern cookbook because what southern meal would be complete without fried okra?

FRIED OKRA

1 quart fresh okra, sliced

1/2 cup Vegetable oil

1/2 cup flour

1/2 cup cornmeal

1/4 teaspoon salt, more or less as desired

In a large bowl salt the sliced okra. Sprinkle the flour over the okra, using only as much as it takes to coat the okra,  stirring with your hands until it is well coated. Repeat with the cornmeal, using only as much as it takes to coat the okra.

Heat the vegetable oil in a large iron skillet and cook the okra slow over low heat, stirring often until it is brown to your taste.

If you are using frozen okra just thaw the okra and then follow the directions as if using fresh.

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