Southern purple hull peas are cooked down with salt pork or bacon, onion and simple seasonings, then finished with a Creole-style stewed tomato.

Purple Hull Peas with Creole Stewed Tomatoes

Summer is winding down and I sure hope y'all put up some purple hulls - I sure did!

Simple process really - good rinse, pick through, toss in some boiling water, boil for about 2 minutes, drain, plunge in ice water till cool, drain and bag. I've tried several methods of putting up, and in my experience, blanching keeps them better and they retain a fresher taste for a longer period of time in your freezer. I use my FoodSaver so I don't freeze them in water, though some folks do. So good to pull out a bag of fresh purple hulls in the middle of the winter, I'm tellin' ya!

A skillet meal made from the best of summer veggies - squash, zucchini, bell pepper, green beans, Vidalia onions and tomatoes, with red potatoes and fresh garden herbs and the addition of some pan-seared fresh wild-caught Gulf shrimp.

Garden Vegetable Skillet with Shrimp

I get strange cravings, and most times, they're not at all what you'd expect in the way of a craving.

I get very strong cravings out of the blue for beef. For McDonald's french fries. Or their iced coffee. Homemade chicken noodle soup and creamy Chicken and Noodles. Egg drop soup from the local Chinese restaurant. And vegetables, in general. It was that way in my pregnancy - I didn't crave sweets, or odd combinations. I craved a meat and three dinner!

 

Tri-color rotini pasta is paired with some of my favorite pizza toppings, purple onion, green and red bell pepper, black olives, pepperoni, bacon, mushrooms, grape tomatoes and mozzarella and dressed with a spicy tomato dressing.

Pizza Pasta Salad

Hey, y'all should be very proud of me!! I have managed to post more than two recipes in August so far. Seems Grandma Mary needed to get her back-to-school routine going too I guess. :) Just in time too, because fall is right around the corner now, and I've still got some summer left to share yet!

I love a good pasta salad in the summer and I sure can make a meal of this one.

Southern Caviar - a vinaigrette dressed, festive southern vegetable salad twist on salsa, made with black-eyed peas, celery, pimentos, jalapeno, garlic, green onion and fresh tomato, and beloved on the church supper, potluck and entertaining circuits.

Southern Caviar - Black Eyed Pea Salad

I spent the weekend clearing away clutter and doing a bit of organizing. Seems like I had a pile of this and that, here and there and everywhere! Course, I've never been one of those folks who has had a "magazine" house, where it all looks beautiful and pristine, with the latest furniture and decorating trends, and not a thing out of place, as if nobody actually lived there, but... things are lookin' just a tad bit too lived-in around here lately.

Apparently I can either spend time with my grandbabies, review products, develop recipes, write columns, style and photograph food, blog, cook or clean... but not any one of them simultaneously, never mind several at the same time. (Y'all already know which one of these takes priority though, right? ::smile::) And to think... I used to be such a great multi-tasker, ha!

Country style ribs baked or grilled over indirect heat and brushed with a pepper jelly barbecue sauce.

Country Style Ribs with Pepper Jelly Barbecue Sauce

Well, the grandkids are in their last week of freedom with school just about to start here. We got to spend lots of time with them in between all of their summer activities and I know they've had a blast this summer, but I think they've also missed their routine and structure from school just a bit to be honest.

They are still at the age where they are also excited about going back actually, and shopping for school supplies and clothes. That used to be my favorite thing!

An old fashioned dish made from tuna, macaroni, chopped egg, celery, peas, salt and pepper - and for my additions, Old Bay and Cajun seasoning. Lots of potential add-ins will make this your own too!

Old Fashioned Tuna Macaroni Salad

Along with tomatoes, cucumbers and watermelon, I have eaten this macaroni salad so many times over the summer, I figured it was about time to share it!

It's not anything new of course, or even anything I've created - frankly it's been around longer then me - but if you're a little younger than me, you may have grown up with it. If you're closer to my age, you may remember it through your early days of marriage, or those struggling first apartment or college years, because it was both easy to make and economical. I'd be willing to bet that at least some of you also still make it yourself!

Mrs G's Pepper Jelly

Mrs. G's Pepper Jellies are not your average pepper jellies. Loaded with flavors from sweet and hot peppers, like jalapeno and habanero, garlic, lime, ginger, mango and peaches, and hand-crafted in small batches, there's no commercial taste here - you'll swear these were made in your own kitchen y'all!

This has sure been one hot summer down south y'all! Has it always been this hot? Seems not to me but I reckon I probably say that about this time every summer. Mercy!

Now that I have a nice, shady covered patio with a ceiling fan though, since early spring I have sure been working my grills around here... instead of my oven. I don't mind cooking in the kitchen during the summer really - I just crank down the air and put a fan at the door - but grilling is faster, easier and doesn't heat up the kitchen at all, so it's an awfully nice alternative.