If you have been watching how people are moving to Southern Delaware you can also see that there is no housing inventory. A house goes on the market and in a day it is sold. I have seen that most of the houses have awesome outdoor living areas. My deck and outdoor areas are not the most fancy ones but I have enjoyed them for a long time.
They say that eating outdoors actually makes food taste better. You are more relaxed. You pay attention what’s around you. Being outside is a mood booster. This particular week-end in Rehoboth Beach was so crowded and Memorial is not even here yet. People are ready to mingle and sit outside and continue to enjoy life as it should.
Let me get back to barbecuing. My favorite is cooking with charcoal. Chicken, I do like to marinade. Then put the homemade barbecue sauce afterwards. This chicken was from Lloyd’s in Lewes. It is the best chicken in the area.
I prefer the breast and others prefer the dark meat. Don’t mind eating it, don’t get me wrong. But I do like my chicken well done. I don’t want to see any red when I cut into it.
And cucumbers in vinegar, oil, and a little sugar or sugar substitute is it perfect. Looking forward to that summer corn we get here in Southern Delaware.
Grilling Shrimp is another favorite. These gigantic shrimp were from Big Fish Grill in Rehoboth Beach. Butterfly them, marinate them and takes no time to grill.
Veggies are great grilled as well. Love eggplant. These ones were from the Brush Factory in Lewes. All you do is peel it, cut lengthwise, brush with a lot of olive oil on both sides, sprinkle salt and pepper and both sides, and cover them with flat leaf parsley. The parsley even though it will mostly fall when turned over, it will still have that flavor all over the eggplant. So delicious.
Look how delicious it looks.
This whole meal is perfect for today since it is Meatless Monday. Just a day out of the week to forget about meat and eat something very healthy.
Enjoy your time here in Southern Delaware whether you are a resident or a visitor for a short while.
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What a gorgeous Easter Weekend here in Rehoboth Beach, DE. The main roads were heavy with traffic, and I was just thinking what will it look like this summer. I will have to plan to go to the grocery store either at midnight or at the crack of dawn. Not kidding.
On Monday temperatures were warm and my sister in law, Susie, and I took off to check Downtown Rehoboth. A lot of people had left and the boardwalk was just delightful for a power walk.
What to have for lunch? Indian, Pizza, Salad, or seafood? Our choice was Henlopen City Oyster House located on 50 Wilmington Ave. This restaurant I have posted before here or shared photos on my FB page. Fresh seafood, amazing salty oysters, and great Bloody Marys.
I call it the Oyster House and it is great that they are opened year round for lunch and dinner and carry out, as well. Their website? http://www.hcoysterhouse.com
An order of smelts to share. It has been some time since I have had those. Lightly fried with a lemony sauce.
New on the menu is a King Crab Salad. Very well received by my sister in law. Having seafood and salads on this day after all our Easter delicacies.
It does not fail. I usually order one of their salads with scallops. Today they were grilled scallops. There is plenty on the menu and it is all good but this is a favorite.
While in Rehoboth, check them out. You will not be disappointed.
Want to leave a comment? Please visit my Facebook Page AboutMyBeaches and put your 2 cents in.
Have a great day!!
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I remember when I was young Sunday was a day to gather at my grandmother’s house. After church it was the satisfaction of gathering with cousins and with good comfort food. My grandmother was a very good cook; always cooking with the best ingredients she could fine.
Not sure why I think of Cornish Game Hens as a Sunday Supper dish. I have stuffed them, cooked them with prosciutto and figs as well. They have great flavor. And what are they, really? I found out that they are the product from a cross between the Cornish and White Plymouth Rock chicken breeds, that it is served young and immature, weighing no more than two pounds ready to cook.
We have a good butcher here in Rehoboth Beach. Hickmans!! I picked these Cornish Game Hens around the holidays. They were pretty big. Last week I made this recipe. By no means the recipe is my own, but I did give it my own spin.
They are easy to prepare. I usually do not serve a guest a whole hen even though you could depending on the size.
2 Cornish Game Hens
salt and pepper to taste
1 lemon, cut in half
rosemary sprigs (2 per hen)
olive oil
15 cloves of garlic and more if you do like garlic like I do
2/3 cup of white wine (it is a great additions to the sauce)
2/3 cup of chicken broth (I used chicken stock)
More fresh rosemary sprigs for garnish
honey
The first thing to do is to preheat the oven to 450 degrees.
Then take gizzards and neck from the hens and put them aside. You will use them in the broth.
Rub the hens with salt and pepper. Place one of the lemon wedges in the cavity along with a sprig of rosemary. Also put one garlic clove in each of them. If you look closely you can see that I drizzled honey over the top. Very yummy!!
Arrange them in a heavy roasting pan. Take some of the rosemary leaves and spread them around the pan. Put the whole garlic cloves around the hens in the pan. In order to avoid the garlic to burn since you at first will be cooking on a high temperature, take some extra chicken stock and pour into the pan in order to cover the cloves a bit.
This is how they will look before going into the oven.
You are going to roast them in that temperature for 25 minutes.
The gizzards and neck that you took from the oven place in a pot and cook for 10 or 15 minutes. Once that is done, cut the gizzards, heart and set aside. This is totally optional. I just think it adds to the broth.
In a mixing bowl, whisk together wine, chicken broth, 2 tablespoons of olive oil and the cut gizzards, etc.
Reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees. Pour the broth above the hens and continue roasting about 25 minutes longer or until hens are golden brown. Baste with the pan juices every 10 minutes.
Transfer the hens to a platter, pouring any cavity juices into the roasting pan. You can put the pan on top of your burners and heat up the juices, smashing those garlic cloves which will be amazing combining them in the broth. I used a little bit of corn starch because I wanted the broth to be a tad thicker.
You can cut them in half or serve them whole. Cranberry looked pretty and appropriate with them. And, those veggies? I will give you the recipe because they went perfectly with the hens. Easy too. Next post.
Here is a photo of the hen in half. It depends how hungry your guests are. And please make sure to put a lot of broth in the plate.
Enjoy!! Talk to you later.
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Pies are comfort foods. When you hear the word pie immediately thoughts come to holiday pies. Apple Pie being the most popular pie.
Meat Pies and vegetable pies are very popular, as well. Some weeks ago I found a Crab Meat Pie and being that we live on the coast and crabs are all around us, I decided to make it. It, actually, makes 2 pies but if you want a pie with more height you can probably just put it in one pie plate and you will also have to adjust the cooking time accordingly.
I get my crab meat locally and at this time of the year to get fresh one you will pay the price. Thought about if it was worth to put it in a pie vs using it for crab cakes. What the heck, I wanted to do something different.
Ingredients:
1 lb of fresh crab meat (don’t like the pasteurized one)
4 eggs
2 Tbsp. flour
1 cup mayonnaise (love Duke’s)
8 ounces of extra sharp Cheddar cheese
8 ounces shredded Swiss cheese
1 Tbsp. minced onion
1 Tbsp. minced green pepper
2 tsp. pimentos
2 9 inch deep dish pie shells or any other pie shell crusts you may want
A little Old Bay Seasoning
Instructions:
Combine eggs, flour, mayonnaise and milk in a bowl and mix well.
Stir in the rest of the ingredients but do it gently. You want that crab meat lumps to stay intact as much as you can.
Bake the pie shells at 350 degree for 5 minutes. Cool pie shells.
Spoon crab mixture into pie shells. Sprinkle a little dusting of Old Bay Seasoning because what good are crabs if you don’t have Old Bay, right?
Bake at 350 degrees for 50 minutes or until knife inserted in center comes out clean. Remember to adjust cooking if you will be using just one pie shell.
This crab meat pie goes well for lunch or dinner. It is tasty and so easy to make. Just add a salad or a green veggie and you are good to go. Enjoy!!
TGIF….Hope your long week-end is filled with fun.
AboutMyBeaches is a blog started in 2009 to promote our beaches and other cool places to visit. To discover the great foods around us. Check the Facebook Page and leave me a note.
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Henlopen City Oyster House is located in Downtown Rehoboth Beach, Delaware at 50 Wilmington Avenue. It is one of the few restaurants that, at this time of the year, are open for lunch and dinner. It closes on Tuesdays.
We sat at the oyster bar. Perfect seating watching the guys shucking oysters. We had 3 varieties….the saltier the better in my book.
You see that glass of wine there? We asked for a suggestion of what would pair well with the oysters. It was called Barbara Ohlzelt and it is a Gruner Veltliner type of wine from Austria. It was perfection with our oysters and seafood choices.
A New England Clam Chowder was ordered. It had plenty of clams, smoked bacon, potatoes and veggies. Look how good it looked.
Up and down the beaches I have my favorite restaurants for a particular food. Henlopen City Oyster House is a favorite of mine for scallops. Any which way they fix them, I love them. Always perfectly cooked. So my choice last night was Seared Massachusetts Scallops with saffron migas, tangerine-meyer lemon emulsion, butternut squash, and sage and speck. Speck is a pork fat with or without some meat in it. It is sort of a type of prosciutto. My review? Excellent!!
I usually rave about the grilled octopus in another local restaurant in town. So I was very excited when the Grilled Octopus was order at Henlopen City Oyster House. I tasted a little bite and it was up there with my other favorite one. Tender and very well seasoned. Braised in red wine, with bay water purple sweet potatoes, bravas sauce, crispy capers, olive oil and parsley. Both the octopus and the clam chowder were appetizers that were ordered as a main entree.
Even through a Pandemic, Rehoboth Beach continues to be a foodie’s destination with our restaurants offering really good food. There is something for everyone in this town.
AboutMyBeaches has a Facebook Page. Leave me a message will you?
TGIF
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In the winter there is nothing like a warming bowl of soup. It was cold on Sunday. But, today at the Delaware Beaches the temperatures will rise to the upper 40’s. I’ll take that.
Over the years I have bought tons of magazines. A lot of them have been food oriented. I go through them many times and then I start cutting recipes out and putting them in folders. With a morning coffee I go through them and if something catches my eye, I take it out.
I picked an Onion Soup Recipe that got my attention back in 2013 in a Food & Wine Magazine. It is a healthier version of the traditional French Onion Soup. Traditional soups are fantastic but making them healthier while conserving flavor it’s the trick. That hunk of bread and thick layer of melting cheese makes it high in calories and sodium. Sorry, but it is true.
For Meatless Monday and being that it is a cloudy day this onion soup might be just what you need. I made it yesterday and it is a keeper.
Meatless Monday is a worldwide organization trying to have folks like us eat meatless at least one day per week.
The Recipe
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 large onions, (sweet or regular) halved and thinly sliced
Kosher Salt
1/4 cup of dry white wine
1 tablespoon soy sauce
6 cups of beef stock or low sodium broth
Baguettes (either cut your own or buy prepared ones) I used small ones for my large bowl.
Gruyere shredded cheese. I packed that cheese on the baguettes.
In a large pot heat oil until shimmering. Add the onions and cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until the onions are softened and just starting to brown. Maybe about 7 minutes or so. Taste the broth and add a bit of salt and continue to cook over moderate low heat, stirring occasionally until the onions are soft and golden. I would say 20 minutes?
Add the wine and soy sauce to the pot. Cook for a few more minutes.
Add the stock and bring to a boil. Then, simmer over low to moderate heat, again stirring occasionally until the onion broth is well flavored and slightly reduced. Taste again and if needed add more salt.
You can make the soup ahead of time until this point.
Then pre-heat the broiler and arrange the baguettes on a baking sheet and top with the Gruyere cheese. Broil until melted.
To serve this onion soup, ladle it into bowls and top with the cheese toasts. You may sprinkle a little bit of cheese all over the soup prior to placing the cheese toasts, as well.
Hope this will be a keeper for you too. Remember AboutMyBeaches has a FB page just in case you want to chime in.
This blog started in 2009 with the idea of offering the readers who want to be in the know about events, restaurants, reviews, where to shop and what to cook for dinner.
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Don’t you love those recipes that you keep making them year after year. At times they are only made at certain times. Could be holidays, birthdays, or just because.
I call these recipes Keepers. We keep them close and even though they may not be an original recipe, then you make it your own by adding a little bit of this or a little bit of that.
In 2007 Rachel Ray shared one of her mother’s recipes. It is called Elsa’s Cider Beef With Smashed Cheddar Potatoes. Over the years I have made it and truly love it.
Following is the recipe for this comfort food, more so on a chilly winter night like tonight.
2 tablespoons of extra-virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons of butter
2 lbs. top sirloin, trimmed and cut into 1 1/2 inch cubes
salt and black pepper
1 large onion, chopped
3 medium carrots, peeled and chopped (I added an extra carrot)
1 lb turnips, peeled and chopped
4 tablespoons of all purpose flour (If you make this recipe gluten free you need another type of flour. It will work.)
2 cups good quality apple cider (dark and cloudy) 100% cider, not juice
1 15 ounce can of beef stock
3 lbs of Idaho potatoes. I did half and half adding sweet potatoes, peeled and chopped.
1/2 cup milk (I used fat free half and half)
1/2 cup sour cream (I used light sour cream)
2 cups shredded sharp white cheese (I used extra sharp)
3 tablespoons chopped or snipped fresh chives.
Pre heat oven to 425 degrees.
Place a large stew pot or Dutch oven with a lid over medium-high heat. Add the olive oil and butter. When the butter melts, season the beef with salt and pepper. I used rock salt. Add to the pot. Brown on all sides about 7 to 8 minutes.
Add the onions, carrots, and turnips and cook for about 5 minutes.
Sprinkle the veggies and meat with the flour and stir to combine for about 1 minute.
Stir in the apple cider and the beef stock, bring to a boil, cover the pan and transfer to the oven. Braise it for 45 minutes.
In 15 minutes boil the potatoes in salted water. Make sure the water covers the potatoes. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat a bit. Cook about 15 minutes until tender.
Drain the potatoes, return to the pot and add the milk, sour cream, and cheese. To mash the potatoes I used a hand blender, then added a bit of salt and pepper (optional) and the chives. Cover and keep warm. If they cool off then place in microwave and reheat.
To serve, ladle the stew into bowls. Make a well in the center and fill with the potatoes. I put the potatoes first and made the well and then fill with the stew. Your choice.
It is delicious. The combination of beef, turnips and apple cider gives a distinct flavor.
Hope you like it.
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Hello there. It is Saturday, January 9th. Life continues as it should and here in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, we continue to experience great food even through a pandemic.
The Rehoboth Foodie, our local celebrity when it comes to restaurant reviews has a weekly radio show on 92.7 FM where he invites guests and have a one on one chat. I was honored to have been invited for today’s show. It will take place at 2 p.m. If you are a local then you can tune in but you can also stream it on http://www.wgmd.com.
My talk with Bob included the traditions of my Puertorican heritage. It was Three Kings Day or the Epiphany when we taped so I was able to bring him some pasteles, fried plantains, mojito, arroz con gandules (pigeon peas) and Puertorican famous Coquito which the eggnog.
It was a lot of fun and I got to know Bob better and experience his sense of humor.
Also on the radio show you will hear from SoDel Concepts’ Corporate Pastry Chef Dru Tevis and Baywood’s Head Pastry Chef Ellie Keck for a behind-the scenes peek at how they keep 12 restaurants in fresh, new desserts.
Have a beautiful day. It is chilly in Southern Delaware but the sun is out!!
Remember AboutMyBeaches has a Facebook Page where you can read what’s going on and leave me some comments.
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