IT'S BEEN A LONG, HOT, BEAUTIFUL, WONDERFUL SUMMER BUT THE THE RAIN FROM MOTHER NATURE IS LONG OVER DUE!
Morehead City will be all refreshed from the cleansing rain and is projected to have warm, beautiful, fantastic and sunny weather for the North Carolina Seafood Festival starting on Friday, October 1st this coming weekend! Make your reservations today if you plan to stay over if you aren't already booked!
Rain also brings out the best in fresh fall vegetable on the Crystal Coast. Hot peppers LOVE the Crystal Coast of NC! All kinds of hot peppers! Cayenne, Habaneras, Jalapenos and Hot Pimento Peppers go wild this time of the year. They are very easy to grow with a little care, water and a bit of fertilizer.
RECIPE FOR HOT PEPPER LOVERS!
SHRIMP & MACARONI WITH A BITE!
INGREDIENTS:
½ LB ‘SALAD’ type macaroni
Boiling Water
6 Tbsp Butter
2 c sliced or diced Portabella Mushrooms
1 Tsp garlic power or fresh diced garlic to taste
½ Bell Pepper – diced
1 Jalapeño pepper (or to taste)
½ Red Bell Pepper – diced
2 Tbsp white wine
1 Pint sour cream (or ½ pt sour cream and ½ pint mayo)
1 and ½ cups white grated Cheddar Cheese
1 LB de-veined shrimp
½ c Spring Onions
1 Tsp Paprika
Texas Pete or Tabasco Sauce to taste
Cook macaroni in boiling salted water until tender, about 10-12 minutes; drain
Melt butter in large skillet, sauté mushrooms until browned well; remove from skillet and set aside;
In buttered skilled stir in scallop; then shrimp;
Then stir in garlic; bell pepper, red pepper; Jalapeno pepper.
Remove from heat and stir in wine.
Blend in sour cream and 1 cup of grated cheese. Stir in shrimp, scallops, and all remaining ingredients in large bowl with well drained macaroni.
Heap mixture lightly into a 1-2 quart casserole dish. Sprinkle with remaining shredded cheese. Bake at 375 degrees for approximately 25-30 minutes.
(More shrimp and scallops make it better. Chunks of chicken or beef can also be substituted for seafood.)
Invite lots of company. This dish will serve the multitude if you so desire by just adding more macaroni and a bit more shrimp!
HAVE YOU EVER EXPERIENCED THE JOY OF DEVOURING 'FUNNEL CAKE'? There are many various recipes for them but all are 'sweet and delicious'! Even more so when you are tasting them right out of the pan at the North Carolina Seafood Festival coming up this weekend in Morehead City, NC.
2 1/2 c. self-rising flour
1/4 c. sugar
1 1/3 c. milk
2 eggs, slightly beaten
Vegetable oil
Sifted powdered sugar (optional)
1 tbsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
Combine flour, sugar, milk and eggs in a bowl, beating until smooth. Heat 1/4 inch oil to 375 degrees in a skillet. Cover bottom opening of a funnel with finger. (Funnel with a 3/8 inch opening works best.) Pour 1/4 cup batter into funnel. Hold funnel over skillet. Remove finger form funnel end to release batter into hot oil; move funnel in a slow, circular motion to form a spiral.
Fry each funnel cake 1 minute or until edges are golden brown, turn and fry until golden. Drain on paper towels. Repeat with remaining batter. Sprinkle with powdered sugar, if desired. Serve warm. Yield: about a dozen 5 inch cakes.
THE RAIN IS GOING AWAY AND THE WEATHER FORECASTS PROMISES TO BRING SUNSHINE ON FRIDAY!
If you are in the market for good deals on real estate on the Crystal Coast, GIVE US A CALL at 877-240-0259 Toll-free to schedule a meeting with you at our office or send us an email at Gena@GenaGilbertRealEstate.com and we will gladly provide information about our beautiful Crystal Coast area!
HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND!
FALL AT THE CRYSTAL COAST BEACHES IS AN AMAZING TIME! SOMETIMES WITH STRANGE ILLUSIONS!
All sorts of things change such as the water and the foliage. The water does get colder, however, it also becomes a lot calmer. We went out on a trip by water headed from Beaufort, NC to Ocracoke Island on the Northern Outer Banks this past weekend. The water was so smooth. There was barely a ripple to be seen from time to time and it made the water like a mirror. Strange illusions came into view. As we passed by Atlantic, NC we lost our GPS signal. It felt like we had entered the 'SOBX Triangle' (Southern Outer Banks). We spotted what we all thought was a plane of some kind going in for a landing on the water. Look closely at the picture above and tell us what you think it is.
The sky was another outstanding part of this trip because it was made in the Fall. The sky around the Crystal Coast of NC takes on all sorts changes. Color is a major change in the fall. The mountains have beautiful colors in their trees and foliage. The Crystal Coast of NC also has changes in the surrounding foliage and some are beautiful but the sky is gorgeous. Perhaps it is because of all the water and water ways surronding us including the Atlantic Ocean. Whatever it is, it makes the sky burst with shades of color very often in the late afternoon. Clouds and cloud formations add to the complexity and beauty of the sky. This was another day in 'Photography Heaven'.
To add to our excitement the dolphins were in abundance playing all around us. They circled our boat, jumped out of the water and gave us a premier example of how to catch fish! We set out our rods and reels and caught enough fish to have a delicious fish fry when we arrived back in Beaufort, NC. We caught one grey trout (limit 1 per person and must be at least 14" long); blue fish and hog fish. Don't laugh. If you are from our area in the Southern Outer Banks you 'know' how good a hog fish caught and fried fresh can be! It is a great, inexpensive way to fill your tummy and have a terrific time with your friends!
We had plenty of company along our trip along with the dolphins. Seagulls, pelicans and other seabirds.
RECIPE:
Here is a great recipe for hushpuppies to go along with those fresh fish!
1 cup of House Autry seafood breader
1 cup of white cornmeal
2 eggs
2+/- fresh diced Jalapeños (to taste)
2 cups of warm water (add water until right consistency is achieved)
ENJOY!
