Smokin' Geezer

Lima Beans with Cajun Andouille Sausage
I wanted to share with you a recipe that I have attempted to re-create from a dish we had at local favorite restaurant in Bon Secour, Alabama. Bon Secour is on the coast near Orange Beach and Gulf Shores The name of the restaurant is Tin Top. They have some of the freshest seafood you will find anywhere as the docks are just a half a block down the street. One of our favorites is their Smoked Gouda Cheese Grits, but the best side dish (in my humble opinion) is their Lima Beans with Andouille Sausage. Here is my version and I think it is pretty close.

First, heat your 3 qt boiler to a fairly high heat. While the pot is heating, dice up about a half to 3/4 of a 12" link of Cajun Andouille Sausage into little bitty bits. Put it in the hot boiler and begin to render the sausage. After about 3 - 4 minutes and it begins to brown/carmelize and render out some of the fat, put about 2-3 tablespoons of all purpose flour in and stir. Let it coat the sausage and dredge up the fat. Stirring quickly let the flour brown. Then with the heat on high, pour in about a 1/2 cup of good chicken stock. Let deglaze all the sausage bits and flour from the bottom of the pan. Once deglazed, put in 32 oz (2 pounds) of either fresh or frozen Baby Lima Beans and add another 2 cups of chicken stock. Stir Well, cover, bring to a boil, and then let simmer for 45 minutes.
The browned flour will develop into a thin gravy and the Lima and Andouille Sausage will make you want smack yo' Mamma! Good Eatin!! Even better after a couple of days in the refrigerator after they have seasoned even more...

GREEN PORK CHILI

In our visits out in Colorado and other points west of the Mississippi, I have found a wonderful dish that is sometimes served by itself as a stew, sometimes served with rice, and sometimes served over a breakfast burrito stuffed with eggs and cheese. It is a Green Pork Chili.... It is made with a chunks of pork that have been browned. Added into this wondrous mixture are roasted green chilies - sometimes hot, sometimes not - fire roasted tomatoes, roasted tomatillos, onion, garlic and spices. I decided to try my hand at this dish today. The first task was roasting the chiles - again something I had never done before....put them on a cookie sheet on the top rack under the broiler and roasted them till they charred...put them in a ziplock bag for 15 minutes and let them sweat...then peeled the charr and split them and seeded them...chopped them and they were ready to go....here is the link to the recipe I used for the Chili and so far after three hours of simmering I would give this a thumbs up for a keeper recipe....

I wanted to tell you about an absolutely outstanding find. A couple of weeks ago, I was watching the Food Network (one of my regular weekend activities) and Paula Deen had invited this couple - Mike and Janet Johnston - from Colorado to be on her show. Mike and Janet own and operate "Savory Spice Shop" in four locations in Colorado. They opened their first shop in 2004 and only recently opened their 4th store.

What an incredible selection of individual spices, blends , sauces, extracts, and more! I was hooked. I immediately ordered a number of items that are hard to find in the more rural area of Northwest Georgia. Within one day had a personal response from Janet thanking me for the order and within 4 days had the order delivered to my door. The prices for the items and the shipping were more than reasonable for the quantities obtained. But the best surprise of all is how good they all tasted! It seemed every batch had been fresh mixed or harvested. Our favorite has quickly become the Summit County Blend - it works well on chicken, pork, or beef. I have even put some of it in a small shaker - but not much because I want to keep it all fresh - to have on the table at meal time.

It does not take anywhere near as much to season something with their products as compared to some grocery store brands! I ordered a number of Salt-Free Blends because at my age and stage of life the amount of salt begins to affect blood pressure more and more and I tend to be more particular when I cook that I want to season to my wants rather than what some company decides needs to be in their jar.

Let me say it again, the potency, freshness, quality and selection of this company's spices is the best I have ever found. I heartily recommend them to you. I know that you won't be dissappointed. Click on their logo above or below and you will be taken to their website.

June 2009 Update
While we were on vacation this year in Colorado, our very first stop, after getting out of the airport, was to go to their shop on Platte Street in Denver. There we met Mary, Mike's mom. The smell in the shop was absolutely incredible as fresh spices were being ground and hand blended. Mary was an absolute joy to be around as were all the other staff members - all them so helpful and treasure troves of information. Mary told us that The Food Network were at Mike & Janet's home that very day filming another show with the possiblity of it being a pilot for an ongoing series. We wish them the best in this endeavor and much success with their business. As you can imagine, I could not get out of there without buying some more spices to bring back home with me...

Janet Johnston, Paula Deen, & Mike Johnston on
"The Paula Deen Show"on the Food Network TV Channel

Enjoying Ribs from Wildman's BBQ - the winner of the BBQ rib portion of the Frisco BBQ Challenge 2008