Savannah Red Rice

This is recipe that my family has been making for years. We eat it on weeknights and my sister and I

always make it as a side dish on Thanksgiving. It's the perfect dish to take to an oyster roast.

Chop two bell peppers. I used one orange one thinking it would be nice for color, turns out green

 really shows up better anyway. Traditionally this dish is made with green bell peppers. 

                                          Chop one Vidalia onion. Vidalia is kind of important because they hail from
                                          Georgia, as does this recipe. If you can't get one, a large yellow onion will do.

                                                                         Saute the peppers and onions in olive oil.

                                                  While the vegetables are sauteing chop two cups of smoked sausage.

                                                                       Add the sausage to the mixture on the stove.

                                                                                 Add 4 cups of crushed tomatoes

                                                                           And two cups of uncooked white rice.

                                                             Stir the mixture together while cooking at medium.
          

                                                                           Add 1 Tablespoon of creole seasoning.

                                                                                    Add 1 Tablespoon of Texas Pete.

     Put the mixture in a greased casserole dish.  

  Seal tightly with aluminum foil. 

       Bake at 350 for 1.5 hours or until rice is tender. 

                                                                                                      Enjoy!

Mayhaw Jelly and Biscuits

A mayhaw is a fruit that grows in the swamps and bogs of South Georgia, Alabama, Louisiana and Texas. The fruit ripens in April and May, hence the name mayhaw. It's a mix between an apple and a berry, if you can imagine that.

My granddad was raised in Donalsonville, GA just a couple counties over from the annual Mayhaw Festival. A good friend travels to Donalsonville each year for a family reunion and I always beg her to  bring back a jar.  They claim to have the best jelly on earth, and I am here to tell you it is amazing.

                                      

You can eat it on everything from toast to hoecakes, but the best way is on a biscuit. Sadly, I do not have the biscuit making skills of my grandparents... I guess when I am there age I will have it down pat. Nathalie Dupree just came out with a new cookbook called Southern Biscuits which will hopefully give me a good start. Do you have a good biscuit recipe? What's your favorite kind of jam or jelly?