Oysters!

It's cold today, so Junior and Reba are happily spending it in front of the fire.

Happy puppies!
Have you noticed that the bigger dogs always get the smaller bed and the smaller dogs always claim the bigger bed?

Mr. H. knows his oysters. He breaded and fried these very lightly and they're perfect- with a crisp coating and an oyster flavor that's not overpowered by the breading.




Today on the Hawthorne Menu, we have fried oysters, cole slaw, hush puppies, and two sauces - a remoulade and a cocktail.
And, of course, the recipes for everything.
Hope you enjoy.
And now, for all the recipes.

First, the hush puppies. 
I tried yet another hush puppy recipe and I'm quite pleased with it.

Hush Puppies

1/2 cup cornmeal
1/2 cup flour
2 TB sugar
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 TB vegetable oil
1 egg, beaten
1/4 cup minced onion

Combine all dry ingredients, whisking well.  Whisk in buttermilk, oil, and egg.
You'll have a light, wet batter.

Heat peanut oil in a deep fry pan to 350°-375°.  Drop batter by tablespoon-fulls into the hot oil, submerging, about 6 at a time, turning the puppies to cook evenly until golden brown.  Cook about 5 minutes, then drain on paper towels.

Here's the batter consistency you want.

I gently submerged the spoonful of batter in the hot oil.

Keep turning the hush puppies to cook evenly.

Golden brown is what you want.

Crisp on the outside.  Nice crumb on the inside.

Now, for the oysters.

 Oyster Breading Mixture
1 cup flour
1/2 cup cornmeal
1/2 cup cornstarch
1/2 cup panko breadcrumbs
2 TB Old Bay seasoning
1 tsp paprika
Mix all ingredients in a container and combine well.


Toss oysters in the breading mixture.  I cover with the top, then shake, shake, shake until coated.  Fry at 350°-375° for about a minute.  My oil of choice is peanut oil.  Do not crowd the pan.  We fried about 8 oysters at a time in a deep pot - 8 inch diameter with about 3 inches of peanut oil.  Too many oysters at one time will lower the temperature and you'll end up with greasy instead of crisp.  Drain on racks.

Perfect!

Again, I'm very happy with these hush puppies.

I know there are a gazillion "recipes" for cole slaw.  You can use your favorite or try Rosie's for a change of pace.



 I like to shred my cabbage, then chop it up so it has the texture of the cole slaw at KFC.  I also like to add in some shredded carrot.  Here's the recipe for the dressing which is good for about 2 cups of slaw. (I like my cole slaw lightly dressed.) If you'd like more dressing, adjust accordingly.

 Rosie's Cole Slaw Dressing
2 TB cider vinegar
1 TB sugar
1/4 cup mayonnaise
2 TB buttermilk
kosher salt and freshly ground pepper and celery seed, to taste

Combine all together then pour over slaw and toss to coat.  Adjust seasonings if desired.

I'm going with a quick and easy Remoulade sauce:
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1 TB sweet pickle relish
2 tsp Dijon mustard
Combine well.

When it comes to mustard, I use Gray Poupon Dijon mustard.  This is one of those items that you can't substitute the cheaper FoodLion brand for (another being Nestle's chocolate chips).  USE Gray Poupon Dijon!

And here's a basic Cocktail Sauce, which you can adjust to your own taste.

Cocktail Sauce
1/3 cup ketchup
2 TB horseradish
2 TB Lea and Perrins Worcestershire sauce
1 TB lemon juice
Stir until just barely combined.  I prefer to have what I call "pockets of flavors."

Enjoy!