Grillades

This weeks meals, all prepared at home:
Grilled mahi and sauteed broccoli topped with lemon vinaigrette.
Grilled chicken in a pita with yogurt sauce, tomatoes, cucumber, and greens.
Stir fry with ground turkey, green beans, and spinach over brown rice.

I feel your pain with getting stuck in the same rotation. I, too, am always looking for new ideas for quick recipes. Good luck.

Alonso's drought is due to his horrid career moves (McLaren, Alpine, Team Stroll) not his skill or motivation. It's almost like he sought out the worst teams. Very strange.

I am a 58 year old male. I take my BP at least once a week. This week, 100/59. Last week, 106/59. Resting heart rate is around 50-52.

Two years ago, my BP was 140/100. Started eating right and exercising. Lost 70 lbs. Now, I have to watch that my BP does not drop too low. It's a much better problem to have than 140/100. Live healthy.

Hate to hear that. He was one of the great F1 characters. Loud, brash, energetic, fun, and loved F1 as much as anyone could. It's a sad day.

Here is my family's recipe. Enjoy.

GRILLADES INGREDIENTS:
2 lbs of thinly sliced pork
Salt
2 Tbsp. of Creole seasoning
A few Tbsp. of Flour to coat the meat
A few Tablespoons Oil
3 Tablespoons Butter
1 Large onion
1 Red Bell Pepper
2 Ribs Celery
2 Cloves roughly chopped Garlic
1 quarts Beef or Chicken Stock
1 Tbsp of Soy Sauce
2 Tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
8oz Tomato puree
2 Bay Leaves
Hot Sauce to taste
1 Tablespoon Corn Starch
Salt & Pepper to taste

GRITS INGREDIENTS:
2 cups Uncooked Stone-ground yellow grits
4 Cups Heavy cream
4 Cups Chicken Stock

COOK THE GRILLADES:
1. Pound the pork on both sides to about 1/4 inch thickness then cut into 4 inch squares. Season the grillades with the salt & Cajun seasoning. Dip the grillades one at a time into the flour and shake off any excess. In a cast iron dutch oven or similar, heat the oil over medium heat until very hot, but not smoking. Brown the grillades well on both sides without burning. Transfer the grillades to a plate. NOTE: ** You do not need to brown all of the meat since that takes a long time. The more fond you develop the better but the dish comes out great even if you only brown a batch or two. Just make sure that you end up with a layer of brown bits covering most of the bottom of the pot.
2. Drain off the excess oil and melt the butter over medium heat. Add the Onions, Bell Pepper, Celery, Garlic and 2 tbsp. Creole seasoning, stirring frequently. Cook until the vegetables are soft. Stir in the stock, soy sauce, Worcestershire, Tomato puree, and bay leaves. Bring the mixture to a boil then reduce the heat to medium-low.
3. Return the grillades and the accumulated juice from the plate back to the pot. Submerge the grillades in the sauce and simmer for about 1 ½ hours or until they're very tender. To simmer, you can either put the Dutch oven in a 325 degree oven or leave it on the stove over low-heat.
4. When the grillades are tender remove them to a plate and bring the sauce to a boil. Add the corn starch mixture and whisk until the sauce is slightly thickened. If you like a thicker sauce, double the cornstarch/water mixture. Stir in the hot sauce (to taste) and adjust salt & pepper. Place grillades back into the sauce.

COOK THE GRITS:
1. Pour the heavy cream and chicken stock into a pot. Heat until the liquid comes to a boil. Add dry grits and cover the pot. Stir the grits every two minutes or so until the grits are cooked, about 20 minutes. Adjust salt, if needed, and add 1/2 cup of water or stock if the grits are thicker than you like.

SERVE:
Portion approximately 1/2 cup of grillades/sauce on top of 1 cup of cooked grits per bowl. Serve immediately. Sliced green onions make a nice garnish.

Makes 10 servings.

Tom was the last vestige of a glorious era of New Orleanians. He wasn't consumed with just the food about which he spoke and taught. Tom held onto the sentiment of the traditional, pre-Saints New Orleans culture. Tom has passed and with him so have the last remnants of glory of the city of my youth. I hope St. Peter had some hors d'oeuvres at the gates when Tom passed through.

I use both depending on what I am eating. It's hard to eat green peas Continental style.

I am looking for a place to visit for a week or so where I can surf fish and my wife can lay on the beach. The criteria are:
1. Fishing good enough that I can catch dinner each day from the beach. Optimally, I would like cook it on the beach over coals. That is probably not possible at most spots in the US, though.
2. Not overly crowded. It's summertime, there will be people but a Destin-like scene is not one I would entertain.
3. Reasonable priced. The max budget for a week-long trip for two is $8,000. Neither of us require a swanky resort but would not rule it out if it meets all criteria.

I am open to locations on oceans, rivers, and inland lakes. I've read a little about the following but need many more suggestions as I don't see any of these hitting the mark.
North Florida coast - the beaches are great for her but I never found the fishing very good and it is outrageously crowded.
Outer Banks, NC - seems like the fishing is good but I know nothing else about it.
Seattle - Fishing is great but are there any beaches at all?
Florida Keys - never been but it seems to have both activities. Wil they be overrun with tourists?

Thanks for any suggestions.

Thanks for all of the responses. Much appreciated...especially since its Barolo we are talking about.

What Purple said.

It will be very hot in late June. If you go south, stay near water. It will be warm in the north, too, but not as bad. I can't imagine how incredibly crowded the Amalfi coast will be in late June. The Cinque Terre won't exactly be barren but it offers a similar experience in a less crowded environment. In fact, the further north you go up the coast, the better. Riomaggiore will be impossible to navigate due to crowds. Monterosso al Mare will be far less packed but it is beautiful, as well.

One last thing...I want to plug Florence. It is my favorite city on the planet. More history than you could ever absorb, less busy than Rome, cleaner than Naples or Venice, and tons of shopping for the women if they like that. My wife and daughters loved the custom leather work that can be found all over Florence. They each bought multiple purses. Anyhow, Tuscany, overall, is fantastic. Lucca is absolutely worth a day or two. So is Siena.

Wherever y'all go, you will have memories for a lifetime.