Evelyn's Blog - Taste of Gourmet

Thinking of Mother's Day.....

"Sweets for the Sweet" - yes, I know that is an OLD, OLD saying.  But what is more true or logical for a Mother's Day Present?   Desserts from Taste of Gourmet for your Mom to make for herself....or for YOU to prepare and take to her on Mother's Day! 

Speaking as a Mother (and Grandmother) I LOVE the idea of one of my precious family walking through the door with a Mississippi Mud Cake ready to slice....or an Apple Cake topped with Toffee Crunch!  Or a bowl of homemade Chili!  So YUMMY!  No matter how good a cook you are or how long you've been cooking or how much you enjoy cooking (now THAT I really do enjoy).......there is still a tremendous joy in receiving a Gift of Food....it's a GIFT of LOVE!

We can sure take care of all the Mothers with our Taste of Gourmet Food Gifts!  Look and order on line at www.tasteofgourmet.com or call us for suggestions and to put together a box of LOVE!

 

New Orleans Beef is a WINNER....

This message was on the Comments section of our website!  I loved the praise for The Crown and our products AND that young grandchildren ALSO loved our products!  What I particularly loved was the reference to the "old pot roast with cream of mushroom soup!"  My mother made that exact same roast EVERY Sunday for years!  It was always ready when we got home from church and it was good!  She could put it on before Sunday School and forget about it! 

Tony ate Sunday lunch with us when he was in college for about a year and a half....he did request that we should NOT have that particular meal really often after we got married!  And we didn't!  But I may have to make it the Sunday after Easter..... just for old times sake!  Thanks for a great Comment and your very kind words!!

"My husband and I drove down recently to have lunch and buy Catfish and Capers. Did both..great lunch...also bought New Orleans Beef and Vidalia Onion Dressing among other things. My family loved both items. My 11 year old grandson ate three helpings of the beef for dinner Sunday. My son told me I should give up the old pot roast with cream of mushroom soup and just make this. From one mother/grandmother to another..thank-you for all of your wonderful products."

Sauces to create yourself....

I love reading menus (and eating of course)....the sauces for the meat and fish dishes sound so exotic and exciting....some with French names and some just unusual combinations of ingredients!  (I can actually gain weight just READING and VISUALIZING wonderful food.) 

So I thought I'd give you some of MY creative sauce ideas - using my Taste of Gourmet products of course!  Then you give me YOURS!  We use these ideas at The Crown!

Chipotle Mayonnaise - for sandwiches or drizzled over grilled fish, chicken or beef.  2 Tablespoons Chipotle Sauce mixed with 3 Tbsp. mayonnaise (use low-fat if you choose...the flavor is in the Chipotle)

Chimmi Mayonnaise - wonderful on sandwiches, burgers, or on top of a steak! 3 Tbsp. mayo to 1 teaspoon (or more to taste) of Chimmi!

Garlic Herb Dip - made with butter and cream cheese - it becomes a French Boursin cheese and is fabulous on top of a steak or grilled chicken breast - and just to eat with crackers!!!!

Cranberry-Chipotle - mix 1 teapoon Chipotle with 2 Tablespoons Cranberry Chutney for a great dipping sauce or to dollop on top of a grilled pork chop!  It's enough for two chops!

Chimmi Butter - mix 1 stick softened butter with 1 Tablespoon Chimmi Sauce (or to taste) and use as a finishing sauce for a chicken breast, pork chop or as a spread for a roast beef sandwich!

Suddenly Fruit Salsa - equal parts of our prepared Suddenly Salsa mixed with Peach or Apricot Jam...wonderful on top of a burger or to eat with chips!

New Orleans Beef is a family favorite....

Our house smelled SO good last night!  The New Orleans Beef was simmering on the stove and everyone loved Supper! I put it on to cook at the plant yesterday morning....cooking real slow on top of the stove.  I just put cut up the meat, added the beef broth and a can of tomato sauce, popped on the lid and walked away!  Does it get any easier? 

Well, I guess I could have bought already cut up stew meat instead of cutting my own...but I think a chuck roast is perfect and usually much less expensive than the stew meat.  You really need to use the full 5 pounds of beef with the one bag of mix!  Spend a little more on the beef because you'll enjoy SEVERAL meals out of the one cooking! 

Another hint....I always cook New Orleans Beef early in the day if possible so I can refrigerate the pot, skim off any fat that rises to the top and heat it all up again just before supper!  That way you can enjoy a much healthier meal!  And no last minute prep!  This is one dish that tastes even better a day later!

We ate the Beef over rice last night (the rice comes in the box too) but Prescott kept dipping his bread into the juices....we should have made him an open face New Orleans Beef "sandwich" instead!  I divided up the "bonus Beef" this morning and have enough for 3 more meals in the freezer!  I love stocking the freezer with ready to thaw and enjoy!

In Louisiana they call this dish Grillades - but when we made a mix of it....New Orleans Beef was easier to explain!  You'll find it on some menus in New Orleans...usually Grillades and Grits!  It's so good served in the middle of a big pile of grits!  YUM!  One of those 3 containers is coming out of the freezer tomorrow night!

Condiments.....what's in your fridge?

What do you keep in your fridge to add flavor and "OOMPH!" and just plain "YUM!" to your meals?  Are there some products that you just MUST HAVE on hand at all times? 

Now I'm not talking about mustard and ketchup...even though the kids demand those two!  Our Chimmi Sauce and Chipotle Sauce are the ones I Must Have....just a 1/2 teaspoon of either makes a HUGE difference in a sauce or making that pork chop even better!  Then there is the Peach Pecan Pepper Preserves.....that's my back up for appetizer and for chicken breasts (rubbed on the top after grilling!)  Then I can't do without......well, I might be prejudiced but all of our jars have their own special "Need to be" in my kitchen!

Think about what's always on YOUR shopping list?  Customers at The Crown love our Vidalia Onion Salad Dressing and Crispy Crumbles.....and the Peach PPPreserves fly off the shelf too!  What is your favorite Taste of Gourmet product?  

New Gift Collection from The Crown....

Our Newest Gift Collection is called:
A Taste of The Crown     # 827     $41.75  
The gift includes: Vidalia Salad Dressing and Crispy Crumbles, Bayou Beer Bread (2 mixes in the box) 1 box of Creole File Gumbo and a box of Mississippi Delta Fudge Pie for dessert!  YUM!
Ground shipping is $8.95 with your personal message on a card INSIDE the box!
Browse our Gourmet Gifts page  - A Taste of The Crown is the third gift on the page!  All our Combo gifts are delicious or you can create your own favorite......
And don't forget to come for lunch at The Crown when you are anywhere NEAR Indianola, Mississippi!  Our food and hospitality and Christmas Gift selection at The Crown are just wonderful!

We've been shipping so many dessert mixes this week.....I think Taste of Gourmet will be making a lot of Thanksgiving guests VERY HAPPY when the desserts are served!

Our Thanksgiving Sale lasts through NEXT Monday....Nov. 21st...Get your "Eating List" and Gift List together and place your order!
20% Discount Code is ......ThanksgivingSale.....enter the code after your Credit Card info.
Have a Blessed and Delicious Thanksgiving!







Thanksgiving Sale ......time to order for the Holidays!

We're enjoying Sweet Potato Muffins this morning....sprinkled with the Crunchy Sugar Topping that comes in the box!  It's heavenly to eat and such wonderful aromas coming from the kitchen!  I made the Muffin batter yesterday so all I had to do is spoon it into the muffin cups this morning!  How easy is that?   And the batter will last for a week in the fridge....if you can stay out of it!

Go on line today and order all the Taste of Gourmet goodies you'll need for the Holidays at a 20% Discount!  Then your cupboard is stocked and you can relax and enjoy Thanksgiving and Christmas...knowing you have deliciously easy food to serve your family and friends!  AND give as gifts!

Go to www.tasteofgourmet.com and in the check out area of the ordering....
use the code ThanksgivingSale for your 20% Discount!

Be sure to order $40.00 (after discount) so you can choose a Customer Half-price Special!  The Dessert Trio is perfect for the "eating season!"
Apple Cake, Mississippi Delta Fudge Pie and Chocolate Truffle Cheese Cake Ball for just $12.50!  
Just 12 Days before Thanksgiving!  And we have so much to be thankful for!  
 

Guests from Great Britain...

Yesterday we hosted a luncheon for 49 visitors from all over Great Britain....and loved every minute!  The tour from Travelsphere was in Indianola to tour the B.B. King Museum, hear some wonderful live music and to enjoy a Southern Luncheon at The Crown!  What a great group they were!

The blues and jazz music of Alfonso Sanders, head of the Fine Arts and Music Department at Mississippi Valley University, was absolutely perfect.  He sat in a corner of The Crown singing and talking to the crowd.  We had lots of other diners in addition to the tour group and what a treat for them too!  When Alfonso sings "Summertime"  you just have to sing along.  But I did it in a whisper....Alfonso's voice is too smooth and gorgeous!

Lots of the group were eating Catfish for the very first time (I served the Catfish Allison and Creole Catfish Cakes as well as Chicken Allison) and they loved it!  I promised that the recipe would be on the blog....so here it is again and easy to find!  Hope you all enjoy trying this recipe at home...but don't forget to come to Indianola to visit the museum, ride down the Indian Bayou and enjoy lunch with us at The Crown!

Our visitors really enjoyed my Dessert Table and they finished off two of the Sherry Trifles and Southern Praline Pies as well as getting a sample of everthing on the table!  Love it when my guests are in love with our desserts!  Several took Mississippi Delta Fudge Pies with them! 

Allison Butter - Especially for my new British friends!
1 stick (4 oz) of Butter
½ cup mayonnaise
1 cup Parmesan cheese
4 green onions – finely chopped
1 teaspoon of Worcestershire Sauce
Dash of Tabasco
Put everything in the mixer, let soften and then mix well!  Will keep in the refrigerator for 2 to 3 weeks.
To serve:   Spread Allison Butter over poached fillets of catfish or chicken pieces – (Cod will work well too.)
Broil until very browned and serve over rice.

 

Gulf Shrimp for Supper.....

I've got some beautiful Gulf Coast Shrimp in my freezer and THIS is what I'm cooking for supper tonight!   It just could NOT be easier and it is scrumptious!  And yes.....I do love butter - real butter!

Texas Shrimp

1stick of butter
1 to 2 lbs. fresh peeled shrimp
2 Tablespoons Taste of Gourmet's Chipotle Sauce

Melt butter in a skillet.  Add 1 Tbsp. of Chipotle Sauce and stir.  Add shrimp and cook while stirring and shaking pan until shrimp are pink and done (2 to 3 minutes at most)
Add the second Tbsp. of Chipotle, stir well and serve immediately over freshly cooked pasta!
You can add 3 or 4 chopped green onions for color if you choose....but the flavor is fabulous just like this!
If you want to use chicken instead of shrimp....cut 2 or more boneless chicken breasts in bite size pieces and cook them the same way.  Yummy!

Rosemary Roasted Chicken Salad last night...

And it was GOOD  I roasted the chicken breasts for supper on Tuesday night and just put the "bonus breasts" in the fridge.   I made a pile of romaine lettuce on our plates, cut the chicken off the bone and into small pieces scattering them over the lettuce.  Added chopped tomatoes, some Feta cheese, slivered onion and cucumbers.  Drizzled our Vidalia Onion dressing over the top and YUM!  Supper was cool, simple and delicious!

Try this chicken....it's one of our favorites!

Rosemary Roasted Chicken Breasts
        Bone-in chicken breasts with skin on
        Sprigs of rosemary
        Lemons slices
        Sassy Seasoning from Taste of Gourmet

Place Rosemary in the bottom of your roasting pan. 
Place chicken breasts on top of the rosemary.
Place one 2 inch sprig (or so) of rosemary under the skin of the chicken
Sprinkle lightly with Sassy Seasoning
Put 1 or 2 lemon slices on top of the chicken
Roast in a preheated 500 degree oven  for about 20 minutes - until the skin is crisping and juices running clear.  Enjoy hot or cold on a salad!