Lisa Jeffries Nobling – Raleigh, NC

Category: Southern Favorites

  • Manfriend Meals: Texas Caviar

    Texas Caviar. Redneck Caviar. Southern Caviar. Redneck Salsa.

    I’ve seen recipes of this variety called a lot of different names. No matter what you call it, or what combination of flavors you include, it’s probably going to be ridiculously addicting.

    While not a “meal”, my manfriend would gladly make a meal of this recipe: Texas Caviar

    A few cans of beans, several cut peppers, herbs, garlic, red wine vinegar, olive oil and boom. Delicious mixed up in a bowl and no cooking required. Put it in the ‘fridge for an hour and it’s ready to go or leave it overnight to really marinate. We snack on it for days and while it doesn’t last more than two days due to constant enjoyment, I’m not sure it would really even go bad for a few days long as long as you keep it chilled.

    This is a tailgate must and a quick mix for anytime in between football seasons. It’s delicious with tortilla chips, as a salsa/relish, as a side dish… practically any way.

    Cheers, y’all!

  • I’m Still Here… I’m Just “in a Southern State of Mind”

    Sorry for disappearing on everyone! I spend so much time on my computer and online for work+work that I’m spending less and less of my personal time anywhere near either these days. I’m looking for a little more normalcy these days though, so hopefully I’ll be back to some enjoyable blogging soon!

    In the meantime, I had to share a snippet from my friend Nikki’s new blog: Southern State of Mind.

    Guess who is going to download this Darius Rucker song promptly? (Me!)

    “You can see it in the clothes I wear you can hear it when I talk
    Ball cap, boots, and jeans and a little southern drawl
    I could be up in Ohio or back home in Caroline
    No matter what state I’m in
    I’m in a Southern state of mind“

    And yes, I’m going to be a good blogging friend and encourage Nikki to not make her blog private so that way more of you fantastic readers can readily follow along with her posts. 🙂

  • The Hushpuppies are a Big Deal

    I almost laughed out loud when I read this line from George Cox’s review of Garner’s (somewhat new) Shuck ‘Em Shack:

    Hushpuppies are not bad for a commercial product, though the Southerner in me cringes at paying $1.99 for a dozen.

    I can remember going to Dockside at some point in college, one of the best locations in Wilmington for a great coastal view – paired with a bite to eat and a tasty drink. only to find out at that point they had decided to not offer hushpuppies at all. (Something about space for the fryer or it being the off-season… clearly I was in no mind for any excuses.) Everyone at our table heavily considered just leaving before ordering anything. What’s a Po’ Boy sandwich with a no hushpuppies? (The answer: not much.)

    Same situation with the ill-fated Sunny Side Too, which also called Garner home. (I can name more than a handful of reasons this local restaurant didn’t last, sadly. But I won’t.)

    My point is this: in Carolina, and much of the South, hushpuppies are expected. And we more often than not expect them to be yummy and a complimentary part of the Southern seafood meal.

    You can read Greg’s entire report on the Shuck ‘Em Shack online at http://www.newsobserver.com/2011/01/14/917251/where-you-can-shuck-to-your-hearts.html.

  • Happy New Year!

    Nick and I went to Nashville this past week/weekend for a few days, so I didn’t get a chance to wish everyone a Happy New Year’s Eve… or even New Year’s Day. However, I don’t believe January 2nd is too late to start the year off right!

    We have dinner at my parents’ house every Sunday, so of course tonight we had to have our traditional New Year’s dinner: pork, greens, black-eyed peas, potatoes, and cake. Nom, nom, nom – it is by far my favorite meal of the year!

    When Nick and I were driving back to Raleigh from Nashville yesterday, we were curious about the tradition behind the New Year’s meal and found this great resource on Epicurious (thank you, Google), that I wanted to share: Lucky Foods for the New Year.

    Greens and black-eyed peas (or legumes) are symbolic of economic good fortune or wealth, pork symbolizes progress, and so on. Next year, I’m adding wine to the menu since the article covers the superstition of grapes, too!

    Welcome to 2011 and best wishes for a wonderful year, y’all!

  • Put the Boys to Work… at Hardly Working

    I realize Thanksgiving has just come and gone, but Christmas dinner is right around the corner. I love Andrea Weigl’s suggestion of putting the boys to work!

    Thursday when I serve Thanksgiving dinner to a small group of friends, everyone will contribute. I will bake a pecan pie and a pumpkin cheesecake. My husband will cook leg of lamb on the smoker. (One tip for holiday sanity is cooking the meat outside on the grill, in the smoker or in the deep-fryer. Luckily, many men who like to cook don’t mind spending the day outside, drinking a beer and minding the meat.) A friend will make stuffed acorn squash and the homemade noodles that are his family’s tradition. A third will clear the table.

    She’s right – it’s not at all an up-hill battle to suggest that the man (and his buddies) hang around outside with beer, a fried turkey, and perhaps even a fire pit.

  • 2010 NC State Fair in Review

    Went a total of four times this year – all four were fantastic, per the usual.


    http://www.flickr.com/photos/ncsulilwolf/sets/72157625109184059/

    Tuesday: The boys wanted to go for dinner. Saw a cow utterly object (nice play on words, right?) to practicing in the show circle any longer by hopping over the fence and running out of the building… with about 10 folks chasing her. Classic! Kicking myself for being too engaged in watching the action to take a video or get a picture of this.

    Thursday: We went again for dinner, dragged Little Sister along for the fun, too. It was Can Day, but we forgot to help out this great cause and just paid at the gate. (Darn it!)

    Saturday: Saw Hoooootie! (Aka: Darius Rucker). One of the best country shows I’ve seen in quite some time. Included Darius songs, a Toby Keith song (“God Love Her”), a few classic country hits, and three Hootie hits. Perfection!

    Sunday: Breakfast and lunch with the family – NC State fair style! Did the Turkey Shoot. I missed the entire paper target, naturally.

    Got a little education in under my belt, too – courtesy of this Deep Fried (NC State Fair) blog post:

    NC is ranked 2nd in egg production in the U.S.
    NC produces about 25% of the nation’s Christmas Trees
    NC grows 45% of the nation’s sweet potatoes…    Also, I found the following items to be newly-vegetarian approved at this year’s State Fair (in no particular order):Mt. Olive pickles, peanuts, fried pickles, fried Oreos, fried honey buns, Al’s French Fries, candy apples, egg biscuits, hush puppies, veggie plate at the Amran Shriners tent, etc.
    PS – I also just read that the NC State Fair had 1,000,000 visitors this year… a NC State Fair First!

  • If you’ve ever had lunch or dinner with me…

    … then you’ve probably observed that everyone who does not eat pickles will give me theirs. (Love my friends!)

    I am also a potato chip connoisseur. Not just any potato chips will do. I’m a big fan of the really crunchy ones – generally known as kettle-cooked chips.

    I picked up lunch from Durham’s Parker & Otis the other day and found something that was made JUST FOR ME (or at least it seems).

    You can order them in bulk on their website: http://www.rt11.com/cfmodules/ObjMgr.cfm?Obj=OrderHere.

    So much for that eating healthy thing! 😉

    PS – And don’t think that I won’t take a side trip on my next DC visit to go watch them make these small batch wonders of the potato chip world. That ok with you Adrianne?

    FTC blogger disclosure: I was not contacted by Rt. 11 to blog about this post or compensated. But I would SO not object to a box of dill pickle potato chips. Nom, nom, nom! 🙂

  • I Knew I Liked Her…

    Carrie Underwood just seems like my kind of girl. If someone was to ask me “Who would you like to be for a day?”… I think she’d probably make a good answer.

    From my pal Broadway on Air (we don’t actually know each other either, but Broadway also seems like my kind of guy and I used to love listening to him on 106.1FM when they were country):

    While chatting with media on the red carpet at the People’s Choice Awards, Carrie Underwood told People.com what she hopes to have for her wedding day.

    “[I want] a groom, good food and an open bar,”

    Carrie also plans to channel her deep southern roots when it comes to her wedding day ‘do.’

    “I’m Southern,” she says. “I like big hair and eyeliner. I want my wedding day to be me, so I’ll probably be rocking some big hair and some eyeliner.”

    Read the whole feature here!

    {Image: Baltimore Sun}

  • Local Raves: Lemon Poppyseed Scones from SBSTeas.com

    At a recent Chix in Business Marketing Committee meeting, Barb, the owner of SBSTeas.com, brought us some of her yummy inventory: loose leaf teas and scones.

    Right now, I’m enjoying the Lemon Poppyseed Scones and a lemonade and it’s pretty much about the best thing ever.

    They were super easy to make – just add buttermilk, lemon juice, and butter to the scone dry ingredients, mix well, spoon, and bake! 15 minutes later, you’re enjoying! They really don’t even need anything added to them, but anything from apple butter to jelly to honey would be delicious.

    Perfect for any breakfast tailgates this year? I think so! (You can tell it’s football time when I’m deciding which kinds of foods would be tailgate appropriate.)

  • Southern Giveaway

    Just a quick post here:

    A Southern Accent is hosting a cute *super southern* giveaway on her blog this week – check it out!

    She’s giving away the following books:
    Suck Your Stomach In and Put Some Color On!: What Southern Mamas Tell Their Daughters that the Rest of Y’all Should Know Too

    Puttin’ on the Grits: A Guide to Southern Entertaining

    Enjoy!