The Hungry Preacher

Grand Asian Market - Stallings, NC

2011-08-29T14:11:00.001-04:00

A few months ago our Asian Market on Park Rd closed without warning. I hated this because I had an almost perfect loop around south Charlotte. Trader Joe's, Jin's, Mexican market, Sam's, and What's your Beef Butcher.

I have been trying out several other Asian Stores. I really liked this one. They have a Cafeteria style restaurant that serves a box dinner; rice and three chooses from a selection of twenty plus items. The have a cook to order menu and will cook fresh seafood from the market.

Good Eatings!

The Hungry Preacher

Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Peter's cake 2nd shot

2011-06-21T12:37:00.000-04:00

Star wars characters make this cake!
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Peter's Birthday cake

2011-06-21T12:35:00.000-04:00

Kelly and Izzy's hard work.
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Questions about Thanksgiving

2010-11-04T22:22:00.005-04:00

Thanksgiving is just around the corner, what is your Thanksgiving tradition?

Growing up it was Roasted Turkey, Dressing, Cranberry Sauce (the jelly kind in the can), my great aunt Lola Mae's Cole Slaw.

When you get married your traditions change. I started going with my in-laws to the family gathering in Greenwood where in addition to the normal Thanksgiving fare, we have broccoli salad and pineapple casserole. This is a huge meal which is followed about four hours later with the meal from above when get to my mom's house. Well we now have cranberry sauce that is made with real cranberries. Actually, I think mom alway had the homemade sauce, I just liked the canned. I know, do not ask.

What are your traditions?

Anyone break with the normal Turkey?

Anyone do something very different?

What are your sides for this Thanksgiving?

What do you do with the leftovers?

Good Eatings!

The Hungry Preacher

Question for All "What is your food cure for the common cold?"

2010-10-12T21:52:00.004-04:00

I have had a cold now for several days. I have my own little saying to deal with sickness; "feed a cold and feed a fever!" I watched Andrew Zimmerman while laying in bed. He was in Singapore and went to a restaurant that had a Eastern Doctor write you out a menu that was a prescription to improve your health.

With this in mind? I ask you, "What is your best or favorite food cure for the common cold?"

The Sniffly Hungry Preacher

Mamama making Biscuits with Spencer

2010-09-20T09:24:00.000-04:00

Kids enjoy cooking with my Mom!
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Charleston - Land of Dreams

2010-09-10T09:21:00.002-04:00

Charleston has always been a land of dreams for me. It had a charm that Columbia can never muster. It has an aged patina that makes Greenville look like the modern city it is. Charleston is a land of dreams.

Charleston has always been a place I have associated with food. It was in Charleston that I first remember eating Taco Bell. Now that was back in the day before every town had a Mexican restaurant for every 30 citizens. It may have been the first Taco Bell in the State. I still remember having tacos and tostadas. It seems to me that the quality was much better way back then, it may just be my memory playing tricks on me. We would stop into the Taco Bell on the Savannah Highway in the West Ashley. We vacationed at Edisto Island and usually took one day to go and look around Charleston. My parents met and married while they were in Charleston, so they loved to go back.

I miss the old Charleston of my youth. They had some great mom and pop shoppes around the city and now it seems to be more like a strip mall. I am sure that there are some great shoppes around town, it just not the same. Maybe that again is just my memory playing tricks or maybe with the Internet and shipping there is really nothing we cannot get at anytime. Charleston uses to be special for there you could find things that you just did not see anywhere else. Charleston has historical been a international city, with the historic and still busy port bringing in ships from around the world. In the early days of our state, Charleston was a link to the rest of the world.

I still love Charleston and we go as much as we can. We have tried several restaurants in the last few years that we liked and hope to go back to. I know that Hyman's is a tourist trap, but I have been eating there for years. The food is good, sometimes it has been just OK, but for the most part it has been good. I remember eating with my family there and my friend Sandy.

The Noisy Oyster our kids liked with the giant open windows to the street. Yes, I know this is a tourist thing to do, but they loved the hustle of the street and all the people walking by near the market. There are too many great places to try and name where you can get a good meal. Just ask around, read the travel blogs, and you will find a place I am sure.

My wife is a huge Wild Wings fan. We would eat at the downtown location and sometimes over at the one in Mount Pleasant. She is not the biggest seafood fan, but I love her and she is trying.

I think for me Charleston is as much about the memories as the food. Eating with Mom and Dad, Shea and I going Fall Break of my Senior year at Erskine. Kelly and I on our honeymoon. Many a trip with my wife and family since then and the many adventures with the Lake boys from nearby Mount Pleasant.

If you are a home cook then you need to go see Fred. It is a cooking store on King Street near the Charleston Place Hotel. This was a unique store that had many things that in the days before the Internet were very hard to find. The owner was a wonderful lady who we love to go by and speak to every time that we are on that side of town.

Yes, while Charleston has changed it is a land of dreams. It is place with many memories for me. It reminds me of my youth and the hopes and dreams that I had as a child. It is a place where if you love to eat, you will not be disappointed.

Good Eatings!

The Hungry Preacher!

Buble Tea

2010-09-03T19:37:00.004-04:00

A few weeks ago I was watching an episode of "No Reservations" when the host decided to have some Buble Tea. I thought well that sounds interesting. Not long after that show aired I was with my children, minus Pete, at the Asian Grocery Store we frequent in Pineville, North Carolina. I knew they had a little deli section that served Vietnamese sandwiches, but I had never notice the sign for Buble tea. So we decided to split one and I being the one with the money said we would have a coconut flavored Buble tea.

Now understand what this is. It is like a fruit drink with little tapioca pearls (balls) at the bottom. These pearls have a gummy bear quality to them. It takes a little getting use to them, but I like it. They give you an oversized straw to suck up the pearls. My oldest two are not big fans, but the two little ones cannot get enough.

We tried a mango today. I am not a big mango fan. The wife was with us today and she got to choose the flavor. I was surprised at how smooth the mango was, to me Mango is often a bit sharp in flavor. This was very sweet and the wife thought too sweet. I would say if you like sweet drinks, give this a try. They are a little expensive at Four dollars a pop, but they are really good to split.

Good Eatings,

The Hungry Preacher

The Cordial Churchman

2010-09-03T19:34:00.002-04:00

We want to welcome to our Website a new ad. These are good friends of mine and they have a wonderful bow tie business. Click on the ad and it will take you to their site.

The hungry preacher

We have become a Sam's Family

2010-08-27T05:13:00.001-04:00

With food cost on the rise and my children growing and eating in exponential proportion to their growth; we are feeling the food budget crunch in the Sims family home. We have started to do a few things to help with these "growing" problem.

1. Try and plan a menu for each week. This way you only get the food you need and you schedule out to eat times based on what works and is needed for your schedule, not just when you do not feel like cooking. This is harder than it looks and we are still trying to implement this completely.

2. Stop eating out. We now play a game, how much would this have cost if we would have eaten out. Mexican kills me. I can feed 20 people for what it cost me to take 3 adults and 3 children out for one meal at the Mexican Restaurant. When we do eat out we make it count. We love Tin Tin's in Pineville for Lunch. For about $35 we take the whole family for all you can eat Chinese. It is excellent food too! Chick-fil-a has family night on Mondays here in Lancaster. We can eat as a family for about $18. Planning is the key.

3. When you eat out, order water. If everyone in our family gets tea it is $12 before you order your first meal. How much does it cost to make a gallon of tea at home? Let's just say, drink tea at home and not out.

4. Make a food budget and stick with it. It is amazing the stuff that I will buy, just to have on hand. Do I really need four cans of Anchovies, five different styles of mustards, or three styles of olive oil. By having a budget and a calculator (I use my blackberry) it will help you put back things you want, but do not need.

5. Sam's is your friend. I would much rather eat meat from Trader Joe's or Earth Fare. Yet, I would also like to eat everyday. At Sam's we can get a large cut of meat, a whole pork loin, or large cut of beef and then eat all week off of it. This week I got a whole pork loin for about $12. We had fried pork tortilla wraps on Sunday Night, Fried Pork Sandwiches on Monday night, and Roasted Pork Tenderloin on Wednesday night. I really could have had better portion control and it would have made four meals. That works out to about $0.50 a person per meal. We also buy the large tub of organic mixed salad and that serves us for both salads and sandwiches. I think at Christmas I may buy a whole beef tenderloin and have three meals off of it. Yummy!

We are not perfect in these things, but we are trying to save a little money and still eat well. It just takes a bit of work, but it can be done.

Good Eatings!

The Hungry Preacher

Singapore Noodles

2010-08-20T22:56:00.000-04:00

Made noodles tonight kids loved it and ate it up!

The Mobile Hungry Preacher
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Jagerschnitzel

2010-07-28T13:33:00.000-04:00

Fried pork cutlet with mushroom gravy and roasted potatoes. Haus Heidelberg in Hendersonville, NC.

Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Lunch with a View

2010-07-27T12:16:00.000-04:00

Frozen California pizza Kitchen thin crust spinach and Artichoke with salad.

It was really good for frozen and it was easy!

The Mobile Hungry Preacher!
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

vacation mid morning snack

2010-07-27T11:44:00.000-04:00

Multigrain Flax cracker, whole grain dijon mustard, Parrano Cheese, white wine Artisan Salami (trader joes) with grape tomatoes. yummy!
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Euro Cafe

2010-06-11T22:58:00.001-04:00

We met Mom at the Euro Cafe between Boiling Springs and Lake Bowen on SC 9. They have a cafeteria style set up with some classic European food. I spoke with several of the employees who said they were from Belarus and the had many classic dishes. Meat pies, cabbage rolls, rice, noodles, they prices are very good as are the portion. The plate above was $7.95 and it was huge. If you are in the Spartanburg area give this a try!

Good Eatings!

The Mobile Hungry Preacher

Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Paper Moon Italian Restaurant

2010-05-29T21:38:00.000-04:00

My Aunt is not a big Kabob fan. So I was sent by the family to get her some Lasagna. I also ordered one of my most favorite things - Calmari. Fried squid is great! The only thing was that I opened mine first and the famished kids ate more than me. I am just glad that I have kids who will eat it.

My aunt liked her Lasagna. I would also say that these where some of the nicest people that I have encountered all week.

The Mobile Hungry Preacher
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Moby Dick House of Kabob

2010-05-29T21:10:00.000-04:00

Walking around Georgetown we saw a little place on a side street off of M street. It was run by some fellows from Afghanistan. We ordered three plates and had a picnic in the room.

The Mobile Hungry Preacher
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Vie de France in DC

2010-05-29T14:24:00.000-04:00

We ate lunch at Vie de France. This is a small place near the hotel Mom, Izzy, and I stayed in for our trip in December 2008. We had sandwiches, salads, quiche, and some of the wonderful french pastries seen in the photo above, my favorite is the raspberry and cream cheese.

The Mobile Hungry Preacher
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Fresh Pretzels and Lemonade

2010-05-28T19:08:00.000-04:00

We had a snack of soft pretzels and homemade Lemonade it was really good. The boys and #4 really like the soft pretzels. I would have liked some mustard.

The Mobile Hungry Preacher
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Stoltzfus Farm restaurant

2010-05-28T15:22:00.000-04:00

After riding the train we went to Intercourse, PA in Amish country. This was your typical family style restaurant you will find in this area. Good Fried Chicken and Sausages along with green beans and corn. The apple butter, Pepper Cabbage, applesauce, and a relish they call chow chow were very good. The chow chow is more like three bean salad than the spicy relish we have by the same name in the South.

I don't think I will eat supper.

The Mobile Hungry Preacher
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Cumin Beef

2010-05-27T21:15:00.000-04:00

We had a picnic at the van after mom and I got back from Chinatown and the Pho soup. The family inhaled the made every day. The Vietnamese sandwich of grilled pork was excellent. They ate the shredded pork over vermicelli before I even got a bite. I was late because I stopped at a szechuan Chinese restaurant. I asked for the house specialty and I was told to get Beef with cumin. I said not too hot, a one out of four in spice. Let's just say it was one of the hottest things I have but in my mouth, but in a really good way. It was nice to have a relaxing picnic at the van after a long day of sightseeing in Philadelphia.

The mobile hungry Preacher
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Scrapple and Bananas Foster French Toast

2010-05-27T21:03:00.000-04:00

This was breakfast on Thursday morning back at Fay's country kitchen. Yummy!

The Mobile Hungry Preacher
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Pho Soup Chinatown Philadelphia

2010-05-27T18:57:00.000-04:00

This might be last meal. We left Kelly and the kids with Aunt Martha at the car while we ran just down the street for a second. Note we are sitting and eating a meal. I hope the spring rolls, Vietnamese Sandwich, and pork over vermicelli will be enough to make them happy with our side stop. The soup was great. Pho Cali on Arch Street in Chinatown Philadelphia. Mom and I give two thumbs up.

The mobile hungry preacher
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Jim's Steaks

2010-05-27T15:03:00.000-04:00

we were told 4 blocks, it was more like 12 but they were good.

The Mobile hungry preacher
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Fay's Country kitchen

2010-05-27T08:37:00.000-04:00

A tradition of out banner trip is to eat here before we spend hours buying books. We have a great time with our Canadian ARP brothers and other friends too.

The mobile hungry preacher

Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Michie Tavern

2010-05-27T08:34:00.001-04:00

Outside of Montichello we are at Michie Tavern. Fried Chicken, Mashed Potatoes, Beets, Beans, and more! Buffet open only for lunch.

The Mobile Hungry Preacher
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

The Family Road Trip

2010-05-24T09:28:00.001-04:00

The Sims Family, plus Mamama and Aunt Martha have piled into the van for a road trip to VA, PA, and DC. We have planned to eat at some neat places and I hope to have pictures and reports on all of them.

We have started the day with homemade bacon egg biscuits.

Good eating!

The Mobile Hungry Preacher
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Church Picnic

2010-05-23T16:29:00.001-04:00

The Strengthening of the Church committee did a great job providing a meal for the church after our worship in the Fellowship hall.

Fried Chicken, Potatoe Salad, Cole Slaw, Baked beans, and a variety of desserts. It was a good day.

Good Eating!

The Hungry Preacher
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

New Erskine President - Dr. David Norman

2010-05-21T17:05:00.002-04:00

The Hungry Preacher wants to express his great joy in the selection of Dr. David Norman to be the next president of Erskine College and Seminary. I ask all those who follow this blog to please keep Erskine and their new president in your prayers.

God Bless and Good Eating!

The Hungry Preacher

The Degree is over!

2010-05-20T20:03:00.000-04:00

I have finished my D. Min degree. I am looking forward to writing for the hungry preacher again!

The Hungry Preacher
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Salmon

2010-05-06T19:46:00.000-04:00

MJ loves the salmon with garlic salt, but not the salmon with jerk seasoning. She said that was hot.

The Mobile Hungry Preacher
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

The End of School

2010-05-04T09:30:00.004-04:00

I have finally come to the end of my Doctor of Ministry program. The final portion of this degree is the conducting of a project within a local congregation and writing up a dissertation that is an account of that project with the theological and biblical foundations that supported the project.

Needless to say, I have been doing a lot of writing for school and not a lot for the Hungry Preacher. I hope that will change very soon. Thanks for all your support.

The Hungry Preacher

1st ARP Relay Team

2010-04-23T18:16:00.000-04:00

Loaded Baked Potatoes!

The mobile hungry preacher

Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Bangers and Mash

2010-03-17T12:43:00.001-04:00

Kelly cooked this for us for St. Patrick's day lunch. Maybe next year it will be Shepherd's Pie, this would be good again next year too!

The Mobile Hungry Preacher
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

IKEA #2

2010-03-05T20:38:00.000-05:00

Little man enjoys another cinnamon roll at the end of a long IKEA day.

The Mobile Hungry Preacher!
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

IKEA

2010-03-05T17:27:00.001-05:00

Friday is my day off so I only worked part of the day. Actually I was just trying to catch up from being gone to Synod this week!

Mom, Shea, & her kids came up and met us at IKEA. We ate at their cafe. They had ten meatballs, mashed potatoes with gravy, and Ligonberry sauce for $1! This is a limited time offer. The kicker is that the food was really good for the price.

IKEA is a really cool store it is north of Charlotte off I-85.

The Mobile Hungry Preacher

(That's mom at the cafe in the pic)
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Valentine's dinner

2010-02-13T20:50:00.000-05:00

My dinner for Kelly!

The Mobile Hungry Preacher!
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

A Pita House Story

2010-02-09T01:25:00.002-05:00

Having endured sickness and the constant danger of a family around me with a stomach bug, you would think that I would avoid anything dealing with food. In fact most of my food at the end of last week was rather bland, just in case. Being sick is really no fun, but I was able to catch up on some Food Network Shows (Oh how I miss Mario!). One thing that I heard over and over again was this idea of making food with love. I am really about tired of the phrase. I have made food with love before. In college I cooked a meal for my now wife that was made with love, I have made her Chocolate Truffles, and several meals that were special for her over the years. I have bake cookies and such for friends and family; all in love.

What I object to are these cooks who are supposedly cooking with love and then charge outrages prices. I do not know if I am right about this or not it is 1:32AM and I can not sleep so I may be a bit cranky. It is not about the love as much is it is about the money. I guess I could be wrong.

I think about the Pita House boys, I don't think I would say they cook with love. Although they do love and care for their customers. I think that they would fall more into the Gordon Ramsey idea of "Good Honest food". I have been eating at the Pita House for 20 years and I can honestly say that I have never had a bad meal there. The consistency has always been excellent and the quality top notch.

I had a meeting in Greenville today or I guess now yesterday. My wife and I were able to go on a real date by ourselves. We decided to go to the Pita House. It was so much fun to go back and eat with it being just the two of us. We had our last date before we got married at the Pita House. It was almost weird to sit on the side with the small tables. I enjoyed a lovely plate of Jerusalem Kabobs over Rice Pilaf. Kelly ate most of my salad which was fine as she shared her Falafels and Hummos.

I find myself as I grow older still looking for new adventures in eating. Yet, at the same time, I am having a stronger longing to return to the old favorites. To places that have special meaning to me. The Pita House is such a place. My late father was the one who introduced our family to the place. It was were Kelly ate with my family for the first time. I have fond memories of the owners trying to help me with my Hebrew for seminary (I was hopeless).

I hope that maybe you have some places that you can go that bring back memories and are special to you. Maybe you should make a special effort to get back soon.

Good Eatings!

The Hungry (and Sleepy) Preacher

Sausage and Onion Quiche

2010-01-25T12:30:00.000-05:00

Yes- real men do eat quiche! This was from an internet recipe that I had to "save" from being a disaster. It was still very good.
Was suppose to make two quiches but it actually made three.
The Mobile Hungry Preacher!
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Some Favorites from Charlotte, NC

2010-01-23T22:21:00.004-05:00

We live just on the border of North Carolina and not far outside what is called the Charlotte Metro region. We enjoy the variety of things that we can find in the big city including several interesting places to eat.

Big Ben's English Pub is located on Providence Road in Myers Park. Big Ben has excellent Fish and Chips. No I mean really excellent fish and chips. Even my wife who does not like fish eats their fish and chips. They also have a variety of English pub fare. Bangers and mash, Shepherd's pie, lamb, Yorkshire pudding. They are open for Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner. We ate here for lunch recently with my whole family, five adults and seven children. The service was friendly and accommodating. The old house has been decorated to give it a pub feel. What we really like is on a pretty day to eat on the patio.

Tin Tin is located on Park Road near CMC-Pineville. This is an Oriental Buffet. Please do not think that I am talking about the Chinese Buffet down the street. Where do we start! First, they have handmade fresh sushi. Let me clarify that even more. There is at least on person making the sushi while you are eating. It is not the best sushi that I have eaten but it is still very good, outstanding for a buffet. The next thing that sets Tin Tin apart is the soups. They have a soup bar where you chose your fillings and a choice between the hot or regular soup base. There are a variety of things that you would find on most normal Chinese buffets, I do not eat any of these at Tin Tin because they have so much more to offer. My mother is a huge fan of their dumplings. They have savory dumpling as well as sweet. My favorite by far is the Butter Shrimp. These are very similar to what you would get at a fish camp by the name of green shrimp. These are excellent. The Thai chicken is also very tasty. One thing that you will notice very quickly is the number of Asian Americans who eat here. That to me is always a good sign.

Sir Edmund Halley's Restaurant and Freehouse is located in the Park Rd Shopping Center. I first discovered this place while I was looking for fish and chips. I like to eat here for lunch they have a nine dollar lunch which includes a tea or coke. The two things that I love are their Fries and gravy and the Chicken with Mashed Potatoes and Creamed Spinach. Yum!

South 21 Drive-in is located on Independence just down from the Bojangles Arena, or whatever they are calling it now. I remember hearing about this little Drive-in in 1996 while working as a Temp in Charlotte. Honestly, we do not get over to Independence a whole lot during our normal travels in and around Charlotte. I made a special trip because I saw it on Feasting on Asphalt with Alton Brown. It was what I thought it would be: Greek Fast Food. I have written about these small Greek family owned short-order restaurants. The South 21 was a great example of this type of cooking. We all had Cheeseburgers with Fries, we split an order of onion rings. My 3 year old said very clearly and enthusiastically, "These are very good!" He was right. There are times in this life we just have to have a good Cheeseburger and fries. The Fast food places just are not the same. The sweet tea at South 21 was perfect. It has a good tea flavor; not too strong or too weak. It was also sweetened to perfection. Not at all sugary sweet like coke but enough to be pleasantly sweet. A great meal all the way around. Oh yeah! It is a true drive-in so they take your order over a vintage speaker and you eat in the car. It was fun!

Well those are some of my recommendations for Charlotte. If you are in the Queen City and are looking for a place to eat give one of them a try.

Good Eating!

The Hungry Preacher

Excuses, Excuses, Excuses

2010-01-23T22:18:00.002-05:00

We have been a little busy over the last few months with the holidays. I am also finishing up my Doctor of Ministry degree and am now in the middle of doing the project and writing the dissertation. This has consumed both my time and energies. Another good distraction has been coaching the church basketball team that my daughter plays on. All this to say I have been busy.

Hoping to pick it up through the spring.

Keep checking back!

The Hungry Preacher!

Christmas Dinner Party

2009-12-24T00:56:00.003-05:00

Over the last few years, Kelly and I have tried to be more intentional with our holiday planning. We have tried to have the 25 days of Christmas for our family. These are events such as the Christmas parade, Choir Cantata, Church Christmas party, and the like. There are also things that we want to do like my mom making ginger bread men with the kids, or making choclate Candies for the Firefighters.

One thing that we have tried to do more of this holiday season is to have people over for dinner. On Monday night we had my secretary and her husband over for dinner. She is the best secretary in the world and it was fun to just relax and talk with them. Tonight we had over three ministers. One is a bachlor, one is married with no kids, and the other is married with two kid. So there were four ministers, three wives, and six children. You would not have believed the noise that we made but we had a great time. On both of these occasions I cooked Chinese/Thai favorites. Monday night was Tom Kai Gai (Coconut Chicken Soup), Fried Rice, and Egg Rolls. Tonight we had Egg Drop Soup, Egg Rolls, Prig King (Thai Curry Chicken and Bean Dish, and Fried Rice. This was a lot of work to clean the house and to cook the food, but it is well worth the time to spend it with good friends; not to mention spending time with my daughter cooking.

Mom's Egg Roll recipe is the champ. My wife and I have made them most of our married lives. We have made them for Church members, Friends, and our Youth Group. Every year we would make Chinese for our youth group. One year we made 125 egg rolls and served a gallon of soup. It was great. I have some very fond memories of those Christmas parties. Even the people that do not like chinese or egg rolls love mom's egg rolls. Technically they are spring rolls, but they are good no matter what you call them.

Tomorrow we have two couples coming over for dinner. We are going to have a Boneless Rib Roast I got from Trader Joe's. We will have potatoes and salad too. This is my families traditional Christmas Eve Dinner. I do hope you have some good traditions for the Christmas season and that you will be cooking food that will create memories and recall memories.

Good Eating!

The Hungry Preacher

Rambling Thoughts about Thanksgiving

2009-11-29T19:04:00.004-05:00

A Bird of a Different Feather

This Thanksgiving we had Homemade or should I say home grown turkey. Yes, that is right. My family in Easley got a shipment of little turkeys and have fattened them up for Thanksgiving. The Turkey was dispatched on Wednesday and then placed in a brine. It cooked up to be a very flavorful and moist bird. Unfortunatly since I was on my second Thanksgiving dinner in five hours I was not able to try the dark meat. Maybe next year.

Canned Jelly???

I uploaded some photos from Thanksgiving of our youngest daughter. She decided that she really liked the mom's cranberry sauces. I am usually all for home-made over the canned, but I really do like the can cranberry sauce. I know this is heresy for a foodie, but I do not care. It's not that I do not like the real cranberries. It is that the canned Jelly type just reminds me of my childhood.

All Dressed Up!

If you forced me to choose just one Thanksgiving favorite, I know it would have to be the dressing. This year mom made it with cornbread and biscuits. It was wonderful! Well I hope that you all had a wonderful thanksgiving and are thinking about your Christmas foods!

Excuses, Excuses!
I have not been writting much this month. You can see from my post that I was in Grand Rapids for a few days. There is a lot of good things happening at the Church and in the Community, that just means that I stay busy.

Good Eatings!

The Hungry Preacher

Another of Baby and the Sauce!

2009-11-26T19:43:00.001-05:00

This message has been sent using the picture and Video service from Verizon Wireless!

To learn how you can snap pictures and capture videos with your wireless phone visit www.verizonwireless.com/picture.

Note: To play video messages sent to email, Quicktime@ 6.5 or higher is required.

Baby and Cranberry sauce

2009-11-26T19:40:00.000-05:00

The baby likes Mamama's Cranberry Sauce.

The Mobile Hungry Preacher
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

The Cottage Bar, est 1927.

2009-11-16T21:31:00.000-05:00

In Grand Rapids for NAPARC. Good fish and chips at local favorite.

The Mobile Hungry Preacher
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Happy Reformation Day!

2009-10-31T15:11:00.000-04:00

Hope you all are having a great day. The Pumpkin is for our church's Fall Festival carving contest.

The Mobile Hungry Preacher!
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Trick or Treat Candy

2009-10-30T18:24:00.000-04:00

Trick or Treat was a huge part of my life growing up. We would get all the cousins together and go around the mill hill at Arial and to our friends and family around the community between Easley and Pickens. Then came the Tylenol scare and it seems like Trick or Treat dried up. Was it the scare or had I just gotten to the age that I did not care about it anymore. Really it was hard being a six-foot tall, 11 year old. Here is how it would go:

"Aren't you a little old for Trick or Treat?" they would say.
Then I would respond "I am only 11!"
Then they would say "sure you are."
Like I did not know how old I was.

My favorite thing to get was Reese's Cup. Peanut Butter and Chocolate really do go together (Olives and Peanut Butter not so much). I also liked Candy Corn and Circus Peanuts. I wish I could give out something a little less processed. Trader Joe's Belgium Milk Chocolate bars are good, but at $1.79 for 3 that is a little expensive for your average Trick or Treat bucket. Beside the quality of Belgium chocolate is lost on most kids. Maybe I could give out their suckers they are really good, especially the Pomegranate. Yet the joy of a pomegranate sucker is lost on most kids as well.

I had thought about making homemade suckers, in all my spare time. So I do not know what we will do. We actually Trunk or Treat at our Fall Festival. Church folks sit by their car trunks and give out candy at the end of the Fall Festival. While not as much fun as wandering the neighborhood, it is much safer and a lot less walking.

If anyone has any suggestions for homemade trick or treat (trunk or treat in our case) candy let us know. All of you in and around Lancaster come to First ARP for our Fall Festival, October 31. It will begin around 6pm with Hot dogs, games, contests, and all the fun stuff. We are having a pumpkin carving contest this year so have your entries in by 6:30! Trunk or Treat is at the end around 8pm.

Good Eatings and Boo!

The Hungry Preacher

Church Traditions

2009-10-30T18:21:00.003-04:00

I love traditions. They connect us to the past and they often serve to keep us connect to each other. Slowing down to cook for a fundraiser or dinner gives time for fellowship and to take stock of relationships. When I was at the Smyrna ARP church, we started having a once a month Deacon's dinner. On Saturday or Sunday night, the deacons of the church would cook a meal together for the whole church. We had Country Fried Steak, Fried Chicken, Salmon Stew, and Oyster Stew dinners, just to name a few. Those were fun time with wonderful people and really good food.

The Bethany ARP church, near Clover, had a tradition where each fall the men of the church would eat Oyster stew together. Families in the church owned hunting land on the coast and on returning from hunting would bring back several bushels of oysters and make stew. I know this was still going on when I was at Smyrna from 1997 to 2005.

Several Churches have BBQ fundraisers. The Coddle Creek ARP Church has a very famous one from what I hear. This weekend the Shiloh ARP Church in Lancaster is having their annual BBQ. Some would say why do this? Well it is not always about the money. There is something important about men spending time together cooking and serving BBQ. I know some of you are saying "What?" Trust me this is male bonding at its best.

I think that too often we are driven by the bottom line in church. We often think that the goal is to raise money, fix the lights, clean the church, in other words to accomplish the goal. These things need to be done but at the same time when we do them together something else happens that is important. The journey is just as important as the destination. We become a family and we connect with one another. The Shiloh ARP Church men get together every other Saturday during the grass cutting season to eat breakfast and cut the grass together. Now they could pay someone to do this for them, but there is something special about getting together and working together.

Think about this, if you have a new young man in the church and he is willing to come. What an opprotunity for fellowship over breakfast and for him to feel like he is contributing to the church. Even more important is feeling like a part of the church.

These traditions are not just things we always have done or just a way to fund mission projects or youth group trips. These are opportunities to help us bind ourselves together and make new people feel apart of something. It can even remind older missing members part of what they are missing. Yes, these BBQs, Hash Dinners, Hot Dog Suppers, and the like are an important part of our church lives beyond the money raised and the food consumed.

So does your church not have a tradition? Have you not been a part of your church's tradition? Then go get involved. Tomorrow you can get involved by buying some BBQ at Shiloh ARP. You know it has to be good! The BBQ connoisseur is the pastor there.

Good Eatings!

The Hungry Preacher

Restaurant of the month - The Pita House

2009-10-30T18:20:00.000-04:00

The Pita House is a rare combination of everything that makes a great restaurant. First, there is the food. It is Mediterranean and most of it is made from scratch. The Pita bread is baked fresh everyday in-house. They make their own yogurt, their own salads, their own marinades for the meats. What I am trying to say is that they actually cook real food! The exceptions being things like gyro meat which requires a special machine or the pastries which are bought pre-made. The menu is mainly made up of food which was really cooked there in the kitchen. You do realize if you eat at Applebee's or places like that, you can not say the same thing.

The owners are special. Three brothers run the place and they are about as nice a group of guys as you will ever meet. They showed special kindness to our family and mourned with us at the death of my father. They celebrated with us when Kelly and I got married. Most of all they are friends. When I walk in, for close to 20 years now, I am greeted with; "Hello Kyle". OK, so I am seven foot tall and easy to remember. When Colin Martin, an Erskine Classmate and resident of Greenville, came in and they called him by his first name too.

There are regular customers. Any place that is really good is going to have a regular faithful following. I eat there every time I am able to. There are some that eat there every week, many who eat there more than once a week, and I think some that are there almost everyday.

The memories from the Pita house are very special to me. There were the first times we ate there with dad while he was still working as a policeman. Then there was Kelly meeting my family for the first time. Greg Willis crying because we went there instead of McGuffy's (Sorry Greg), Greg did not cry when we had our groom's lunch there on the day of my wedding. Kelly and I had our last date before our marriage at the Pita House. It is loaded with memories. I have a college friend who I saw there several times. I thought it was odd, then I came to find out that he was going to Turkey to be a missionary. There are hundreds of memories like this for us there.

What to eat when you get there? If you are not an adventurous eater, then get the Chicken Salad pita. Homemade Chicken Salad on fresh baked pita with a bag of chips. If you want to try something a bit more Mediterranean, go for the Mediterranean plate. The Falafels are great especially with Hummus; think vegetarian meatballs with a thick bean dipping sauce. I have always liked everything I have had to eat at the Pita House. At night they have different Grilled Kabobs. I like Jerusalem Kabobs which are grilled lamb and beef sausages. Kelly likes the Chicken Kabobs, Mom likes the Lamb Kabobs. It is served over rice pilaf and with a wonderful salad. My daughter really likes to get the half tea and half lemonade to drink.

When you go in you will order at the counter. Look first for the specials they will be on two boards as you walk up. You will then want to look at the photos they have of all their plates. They are on top of the counter. You will order, then pay, and grab a seat. The food comes out quickly. Now this place is very simple, the food does the talking, not fancy decor. It is clean and bright with charming items from around the Middle East hanging on the wall.

In addition to the restaurant there is a small store. They sell Pita bread both fresh or frozen and regular white or whole wheat. There are all sorts of items for sale. They have a good selection of bulk olives and olive oils. There is also several types of cheeses, my favorite is an excellent string cheese.

The Pita House is located in Greenville on Pleasantburg Drive (SC 291) at the intersection of Farris Rd. This is near the Greenville Tech Main Campus. They are open from 11-9 Monday through Saturday. They are closed on Sunday and they do not take any cards, Cash and Check only!

Good Eatings!

The Hungry Preacher!

John Jost Fundraiser

2009-10-23T21:48:00.001-04:00

One of the real joys of living in a small town is the sense of community. Our church hosted a fund raising event today in our kitchen and fellowship hall. The Sworn Few Motorcycle club along with county and city law enforcement personnel spent many hours working together to serve hot dogs for one of their own.

Now there was nothing fancy or gourmet about the food, it was just good old hot dogs with a few topping, a coke, and a bag of chips. What made it special was the spirit in which the dinner came together. Often we here the phrase: "food made with love". This was truly food prepared, served, and eaten in love.

Today was one of those times that I felt transported back to my youth. I helped my father, a Greenville South Carolina Policeman, with events like this. It was fun to be back around policemen and see the brotherhood they have. I see it with the fireman I work with, but today reminded me of dad. I helped today because I was taught to love policemen. I do not know John Jost. Yet he is my late father's brother because of the badge that he wears and the under appreciated service he provides.

Those two hot dogs were really good today. They were for a good cause and served by people who really care. Food does not have to be gourmet to be special, sometime it is a catalyst to some thing greater than culinary enjoyment, it can be a simple way of expressing love to someone in need. God bless John Jost and God bless all those who helped and supported the fundraiser today.

Good Eatings!

The Mobile Hungry Preacher

Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

How do you like your Burger?

2009-10-17T14:41:00.000-04:00

The hamburger is an American Icon. Burger King's slogan is "have it your way!" What way do you like it? My favorite is mayo, onion, lettuce. The juices from the burger form a sauce with the mayo, YUM!

Please take a moment and comment on how you like your burger!

The Mobile Hungry Preacher!
www.thehungrypreacher.com
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Bread at Home in Five Minutes a Day???

2009-10-16T21:06:00.007-04:00

I always had a desire to live in New York City. Where you could walk to a butcher, local market, or a bakery. I think it would be awesome to have so much readily available just outside your door and a short walk away. Maybe if you lived in Downtown Charleston, Columbia, or Greenville you might have had this experince years ago. But today we are stuck driving to get our food. I now drive 30 minutes to buy most of my groceries from Trader Joe's in Charlotte.

I wish that we had a bakery that was convenient and affordable. There are bakeries in Charlotte but they are not convenient and they are not affordable. For a family on a budget it is hard not to go to the mega store and for lest than two dollars get a loaf of dead lifeless loaf bread. For three dollars you can get something a little more akin to really bread. One bakery in Charlotte, has beautiful loaves and the samples are great, but it cost five dollars a loaf. What to do?

I tried to convince my wife that we could make our own bread.... everyday.... from scratch....? Lets just say that she won that argument. Just as I was about to give up hope I came across a blog, At the Baker's Bench, in which the lady was talking about her attempt to eat only her own bread for an entire year. I was intrigued. She had been inspired by the book, "Artisan Bread in Just Five Minutes a Day". I went out and got the book. It is a very interesting idea. You just mix everything up in a big bowl and then between three hours and fourteen days you take a one pound hunk of dough and "cloak" it, let it rise for 40 minutes, and then bake for about 30 minutes. There is no kneading of the bread. The five minute part is the actual hands on time. The rest of the time it just sits on your counter.

I made my first batch last night. I made enough dough for four boules of bread. The results are alright. They said in the book you have to play with the recipe and times to get it right for your kitchen and taste. It was good and it is cheap.

I challenge any of you wanting real bread to go out and get you a copy of the book and try it yourself. There is nothing better than the smell of fresh bread, except for maybe the taste.

Good Eatings!

The Hungry Preacher

Kelly eating the crayfish

2009-10-16T12:26:00.001-04:00

Izzy convinced mom to try it but not P.
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Izzy eating mudbugs

2009-10-16T12:24:00.001-04:00

Izzy decided to try the crayfish at Tin Tin's in Pineville. This is a lovely picture of her sucking the fat out of the head. She really liked it. P on the other hand swore that they snapped at him.

The mobile hungry preacher
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Significant Meals

2009-10-09T14:16:00.006-04:00

In life we have some very significant meals. Many are planned such as rehearsal dinner at a wedding, Christmas dinner, Easter lunch, meal after a baptism, etc. Others are only significant after we look back on them. I had lunch one day at the Black-Eye Pea in Greenville. It was a chain meat and three place. Nothing special about the place or the meal except that was the first date with my now wife.

Some meals are themselves special and we are reminded of the past through them. Christmas Eve for me is steaks cooked on the grill, potatoes, and a big salad. Thanksgiving is dressing made in a pan, not shoved in the bacteria filled void of a dead turkey. Low Country Boil is the beach. A Falafels and Hummus plate at the Pita House reminds me of my late father. Salmon patties are my grandmother. Just the other day I saw a jar of peanut butter sitting on the shelf beside a can of olives, it reminded me of a weekend, ten years ago, when my then teenage sister-in-law stayed with us and a food experience that went very wrong.

There are times that we need to stop reaching for the freezer and prepared food and instead actually cook. So that we can have some real food memories! This I guess leads me to my first ever food maxim: artificial food leads to artificial memories.

So with Christmas coming up what are you going to cook? Do you need a food tradition for the holidays? How about Roast Goose or Oysters. Do something special to help link food to your memories and your memories to your food.

A few more samples before I go:
Onion Rings - Greek Fast food with my dad, the policeman, in Greenville
Meatloaf - Watching Happy Days (The Cunningham's had Meatloaf every Thursday)
Cornbread - My Grandfather
Oyster Stew - The worst sickness of my childhood
Oysters on the half shell - Papa Peanut and Grandma Sims at the Hungry Fisherman
Grilled Fish - Trip to Bahamas
Steamed Blue Clams - Edisto Beach with the Gothards (Brown Beer)
Brunswick Stew - A cold night on the farm and mom's fresh baked rolls
County Fried Steak with gravy - Ken Vanvoorhis learning to make gravy at a Deacon's Dinner.
Anything on the McDonald's Menu - Road Trips with Erskine Basketball Team (McRib!!!)
Baked Chicken - Sprained Ankle against Limestone 2/92 (don't eat it still today)
KFC Chicken Breast - Papa Peanut's Funeral

Some foods are a venerable album of memories, one example for me is Red Velvet Cake.

What do I think of when I think Red Velvet Cake?

1. Steel Magnolia (The groom's cake) and my first girl friend
2. A cub scout father son baking contest (mom baked the cake - oh the shame)
3. A cake that Aunt Sarah made for the Christmas Family Reunion that I won!
4. A birthday cake that caused my mom's hand to breakout from the red food coloring (mom loves me)
5. A particularly good one from a First ARP Lancaster Cover Dish Dinner.
6. Numerous bad Red Velvet Cake - Mom and Aunt Sarah can cook!

Another is Roast Goose.

1. Christmas 2006

2. Birth of our second Son

3. In-laws here for Christmas

4. My Wife's reaction when she found out I paid $40 for a frozen fowl

What are your food memories? Are you making them now?

Good Eatings!

The Hungry Preacher

Kelly's Birthday Lunch

2009-10-06T08:45:00.000-04:00

On the way to Bonclarken last Friday, we stopped at the Wagon Wheel in Fort Lawn, SC. I meet with people there all the time, but Kelly does not get to go a lot. So we had her Birthday lunch there. Friday is a great day because the have Marinated sirloin tips. We always get the fried squash, they are famous for it.

The mobile hungry preacher!
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

C & W Grill Master's BBQ - Fort Mill

2009-10-02T00:32:00.000-04:00

Labor day weekend in the South has little to do with the celebration of organized unions or the end of summer. We Southerner's have a general mistrust of unions and it is hot here on into October. Labor day is more associated with the opening of Dove season and the beginning of College football. It is also the end of the seersucker suits until Easter.

It is a weekend for festivals. We went to the small community of Van Wyck, South Carolina. It is located about 8 or 9 miles north of Lancaster and about 20 miles south of Charlotte, NC. It is the home to Olympic Star Shawn Crawford and is part of the area known as Indianland for the Catawba's who lived there.

This was a small little festival, but a lot of fun. They had silly games for the kids, bands, a go-cart train thing, and the usually crafts and such. The food was what you might have expected. The community was selling BBQ and Hamburgers, the food gypsies in there white carnival trailer were there selling everything from funnel cakes to fried Oreos. However, I was intrigued by the numerous people carrying around giant grilled turkey legs.

I Like eating things that you can not get everyday. My friends often get upset with me because I am so difficult to please on trips. I tell them, "I didn't drive 500 miles to eat at McDonald's or Shoneys!" Now that is not a hard and fast rule, but one that I try to observe as much as possible.

I tracked down the Turkey Legs to the tent and grill of C & W Grill Master's BBQ. They were from nearby Fort Mill. They had a giant turkey leg for $7. It was interesting and I am not sure the entire cooking process. I know that they came to Van Wyck frozen and were finished on the Grill. I had one massive turkey leg and a hand squeezed Lemonade. It was pretty good, I thought it tasted more like pork. I ate a good bit of it and then shared it with my wife and four kids. They had hamburgers and hot dogs before I got my giant turkey leg.

I went back and talked to the owners of C & W Grill Master's BBQ, they even poised for a picture. Stupid Kyle had an equipment error and could not get the brand new camera to operate so I took one with the blackberry. So much for my start at interviewing food people.

In addition to the Turkey they were selling BBQ Chicken Leg Quarters. They also do various types of BBQ, but I would imagine they did not want to be in competition with the local community BBQ sale. They were extremely nice. They do not work out of a restaurant but BBQ on the side. They are available for catering and if you live in Fort Mill or surrounding area you might give them a try: C & W Grill Master's BBQ.

Good Eatings!

The Hungry Preacher!

Food Readings

2009-10-01T23:57:00.003-04:00

I am presently about halfway through "In Defense of Food" by Micael Pollan. It is really thought provoking about how we have approached healthy eating as a culture. He is arguing that we need to be thinking about food as a whole and not just nutrients contained within it. It is very good and I feel a book review coming on soon!

The Hungry Preacher

Lunch at Home

2009-09-23T12:42:00.002-04:00

As food cost go up and with money tight, we have instituted a new out to eat policy. I am proud of the family we came home and made turkey sandwiches. We are going to have Bratwursts with Red Beans and rice for supper. It would have been easy to go out today but I am glad we did not. Sometimes the best part of the meal is who you are with and not what you are eating.

The Mobile Hungry Preacher!
Sent from my Verizon Wireless Blackberry

Odd! Another coffee sugar no cream.

2009-09-22T20:38:00.000-04:00

Is it the cold medicine? The sniffles and congested head, but I like it.
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Coffee with Sugar NO CREAM!

2009-09-22T13:30:00.001-04:00

I took a cup of coffee from the pot that was about to be poured out. I had sweetner but no cream, usually I would perfer the opposite combination. Is this a change in tastes? Am I one step closer to Black Coffee? Time and the avalibility of creamer will only tell!

The Mobile Hungry Preacher

Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Mom and Peter's Pickles.

2009-09-18T17:21:00.001-04:00

My mother and my oldest son making refrigator pickels using Alton Brown's recipe. These are very good. You can get the recipe at www.foodnetwork.com and searching AB's B and B's. I usually cut back a little on the sugar.

The Mobile Hungry Preacher!

Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Kudos to Big View Diner - Pineville NC

2009-09-17T22:46:00.001-04:00

At 9:30PM I walked in with party of ten with six of the being kids. Only one kid was over five years old. The service was excellent and though it is not in SC, you can see SC from here.

They have a $5.99 kids meal that includes drink, dessert, and a huge meal. Big thumbs up!

The Mobile Hungry Preacher
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Product of the Month - Kosher Salt

2009-09-12T16:30:00.000-04:00

Alton Brown is one of my favorite food personalities. He brings humor and science to the whole cooking process. When my wife calls the ring tone is the theme from Good Eats. So you might think that my use of kosher salt would come from the influence of AB. Not so! It was actually Michael Chiarello when he was still on PBS. He made Yellow Squash and Zucchini fries and seasoned them with kosher salt. We did not get Satellite TV until the fall of 2003. We now only have basic cable so no Good Eats, No Reservation, or Dinners, Drive-ins, and Dives!

I know that a lot of praise has been put on sea salt, but my old standby is always Kosher Salt. I have a whole bag of sea salt at home that I do not uses because it has the texture and feel of small rocks in the mouth. This is not unusually because salt is actually a rock. My sister tells me I need to get a ceramic sea salt grinder. I think that is a uni-tasker and my kids need clothes more than freshly ground sea salt. Kosher salt is cheap and ready to go out of the box. However, I have had excellent sea salts that add a lot to a dish, just my everyday salt for me is kosher salt.

I keep several salts in my pantry. Kosher salt for everyday use, table salt for uses in certain recipes and popcorn, Rock Salt for Ice cream and for encasing fish or shrimp for cooking, sea salt I have been using it in my Neti pot. I have a variety of season salts and such too. I vary the types that I put on the slugs that frequent the back steps. Table salt is still the champ for that!

I do recommend that everyone try kosher salt, it is easy to pinch and sprinkle and it gives a big salt flavor. Kosher salt crystals are flat squares. It is "kosher" because it was useful to butchers to pull out blood from meat without desolving. This would help render them "kosher". Well, this is another product that is not a big investment only a few dollars. You do not have to be Jewish butcher to know the benefits of kosher salt.

While Michael Chiarello might have put me on kosher salt it was AB who introduced me to the flip top salt cellar. I have two.

Good Eatings,

The Hungry Preacher

The after Picture!

2009-09-12T14:13:00.001-04:00

Papa ate the whole thing, but then again I ate my whole cheesesteak and a slice of pizza!

The mobile hungry preacher!
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Papa's Big Greek Salad

2009-09-12T13:50:00.002-04:00

Mellow Mushroom in Greenville SC. Izzy Birthday Lunch!

Papa's Big Greek Salad! Yummy!

The Mobile Hungry Preacher!

Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Van Wyck

2009-09-05T13:25:00.001-04:00

The Family and some friends went to the Van Wyck Festival. I had a grilled turkey leg and fresh squeezed lemonade. This I got from a nice couple from Ft. Mill, SC. More on them to come.

The Mobile Hungry Preacher
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Lone Star Ho Down!

2009-09-04T20:15:00.002-04:00

We went to Lone Star BBQ today after a visit to the State Museum. We were surprised to find the Lone Star Ho Down. So after a great meal we were treated to Bluegrass music on a beautiful September evening. If you are near Santee, SC and are free tomorrow you might want to come down for some great food and good music!

The Mobile Hungry Preacher!
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Product of the week - Ball's Freezer Jam

2009-08-29T00:40:00.004-04:00

Every Wednesday Morning for close to four or five years, I would make the drive over to the Sharon ARP church for their breakfast Bible Study. My buddy, Dr. Meredith Cavin would lead the Bible Study and Prayer time. He also assisted Fred Lewis in the Kitchen with breakfast. The food was so good! Fred's wife Betty would bring some strawberry freezer jam to put on the hot biscuits. Yum!

Freezer jam is one of the easiest things you can make. Betty laughed when we asked her for the recipe. It is even more simple now with the convenient Ball Freezer Jars. I prefer the 8 oz. for freezer jams. You take your strawberries, pear, or other fruit and crush it up. Then you mix the package with the prescribed amount of sugar then stir in the fruit and keep stirring for about 3 minutes. Then put it in the jars, leave it to set up, and then freeze. I like the little jars because it only keeps about a week in the fridge so you have to uses it quickly. I am afraid that a large jar would only go to waste.

I decided to put up part of a basket of pears using this method it was easy and it is good. This would be a great project to do with your kids. They could almost do the whole thing themselves.

So maybe you are like me and want to try and "put something up" for the winter. If you are short on time, money, and know-how; then give freezer jam a try!

Good Eating!

The Hungry Preacher

A Busy Day Off - Pears

2009-08-29T00:10:00.005-04:00

I finally got a chance to do something with this big basket of pears that a couple in my church gave me. I was so excited to be "putting up" something after our porch micro tomato farm failed to produce enough to can. I should have staked the tomatoes but Synod comes at the absolute wrong time and they were too far gone to stake up by the time I got back. They were good though!

What to do with a basket of pears? Here is the yield: five (8oz) Pear Freezer Jam Jars, six (half-pint) Pear Honey Jars, 3 (quart) Pears in light syrup Jars. See the picture above!

I also made a really good and simple Okra Soup. We had it for supper. Both of these came from a cookbook my mother bought me a long time ago called Charleston Entertains: Season by Season. It is a season by season look at some Charleston favorites. I think that Rachel Ray bought it in her $40 a day trip to Charleston. She at least looked at it. The Soup was really good and really simple. Beef Stew meat, okra, onion, can of tomato put in a pot and simmered for 2 hours. (There was a little more to it but you get the idea)

It was a good meal to cook while I slaved away at the pears. My daughter helped me cook a cake of cornbread. We crumbled up the cornbread into the soup, it was very filling!

Alright I am tired, my back hurts, and I am still very full from supper (and 3 Oreos) so I will say good night.

Good Eating!

The Hungry Preacher

Greek Fast Food

2009-08-21T11:00:00.000-04:00

In a recent visit to the doctor, I was once again reminded of my need to lose weight. My mother is constantly reminding me of our family history of type-II diabetes. It gets me to wondering, what happen to the 250 lb. basketball player that could run for miles? Well I think that at least 40lbs of what happen can be attibuted to what I like to call: Greek Fast Food!

What is Greek fast food? It is a type of short order restaurant that is located in the upstate of South Carolina. After college, I worked for a little over 2 years at the Greenville Indoor Shooting Range on Poinsett Hwy. in Greenville. This was the first time that I had a constant supply of money and no bills. I ate out everyday for three months. First, it was the chill chesseburger with fries and tea. Then it was a chesseburger with fries, then it was Fish sandwich, then chuckwagon, chicken fingers, steak fingers, and often an order of onion rings in addition to the fries and tea. It was all good! That is until I looked at the scales and tried to run a couple of miles one day. Ugh!

Many of the Greek people moved to America after World War II and the Greek Civil War. As they would get established they would send for family and friends to come to work with them. As there businesses grew they would help other greek families get established in the food business. There are several names that are associated with Greek fast food: Pete's, The Clock, The Rainbow Drive-in, The Dixie, The Little Rebel, just to name a few. I don't have a clue how many Pete's there are in the upstate. I grew up eating at the Petes on Hwy 123 in Easley. There are several in Greenville, and even one in Gaffney that my wife and I loved to visit when we lived in Western York Co.

The consistancy was amazing. There was system that the Greeks had for teaching the trade to each other. So when we would eat in Gaffney at the new Pete's it was very much the same thing we had eaten at our Pete's in Greenville. Many of the restaurants have been sold off and some of that consistancy is gone. If you want to try it go the Rainbow Drive-In or to Como's on August Rd. they will treat you right!

Jimmy Como was a super nice fellow and community minded fellow I remember him helping the police department with their summer youth programs. Leon at the Rainbow became a friend and we would often talk, if he was not busy, when I would go into eat or pick up my food. It remindes me of an age gone by. Today when I cannot even get a hello from the burger joint people, it was always nice to walk in and for them to call out "Hey Kyle!"

My favorite thing of all time would have to be the onion rings. Real onions cut in house, soaked, breaded, and fried! They are marvolus! I have got to get to Greenville or at least Gaffney soon!

Good Eating!

The Hungry Preacher

Product of the Week: Okra

2009-08-21T10:18:00.006-04:00

When I am faced with an odd or strange looking food, I always remind myself that we eat okra. Many of us grew up eating okra and it is familiar to us. We forget it is an odd pod. Gooey and sticky with little rough skin. To many okra is an odd little thing and wonder how we eat it or even why we eat it. My father-in-law was forced to eat boiled okra as a kid and he still does not like okra in any form; pity, but probably understandable!

The most common way that okra is consumed is sliced and fried. I prefer the homemade version to the frozen okra. The frozen is still good, but in my opinion it has too much breading. I can remember the way my grandparents made okra. They would cut up the little pods, big pods are tough, put them in an old loaf bread bag with flour, salt and pepper. Then they would shake to coat the okra. The okra was then fried in an electric frying pan until it was very golden brown and crisp.

Now to me okra and creamed corn go together like peanut butter and chocolate or roast lamb and mint jelly. As a child I would pile up a mess of okra and then cover it with creamed corn. Creamed corn was a valued commodity in my childhood because I had to help stir the corn while it was cooking to keep it from burning. My arm still suffers from the hours and hours of stiring. OK, it was ten minutes and I whined so much they usually relieved me after about 2 minutes. I still remember it as being tough! Yet, what a result, golden goodness in creamed corn. To me Summertime is defined by fried okra, creamed corn and fresh tomatoes!

Okra can be pickled, I like that OK! It is a key component in homemade vegetable soup. There is gumbo and all sorts of New Orleans' creole or Louisiana's Cajun applications.

So I encourage while okra can still be found this summer, go get you a mess!

Good Eating!

The Hungry Preacher

Awesome Cake!

2009-08-20T20:09:00.001-04:00

My sister made my youngest daughter's birthday cake. She is an awesome cake maker! I do not how much this would have cost from a cake decorator but it is priceless; not only because it is awesome but because it is from her Aunt: "made with love!"

If you are in the Greenville, SC area then you might get her to make a cake. (She charges for outside the family)

Good Eating!

The Mobile Hungry Preacher!
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Product of the Week - Parmesan Chesse

2009-08-15T17:15:00.004-04:00

Pizza in a box! It was the 1970's Carter and Ford were running for President and convenience was the key to food. I remember that we would have pizza that came in a prepackaged box. In that box would be a small foil envelop containing what looked liked and most of the time tasted like saw dust. This was my first encounter with Parmesan cheese. The stuff that I discovered at the Pizza Inn was not much better. It would not be till much later that I would know the joy of real Parmesan cheese.

Why is it that most people have a green can of sawdust in their refrigerator or pantry? Parmesan cheese is not that hard to grate fresh. I like the Zyliss Cylinder grater for a crowd or just a micro-plane for the family. Parmesan is not that expensive if you will remember you get what you pay for. I will often buy Parmesan cheese produced in Argentina. It is much cheaper and still taste great.

We need to move Parmesan into new areas of our eating. I love it on salad, my mom uses it in Chicken Cordon Bleu, Alton Brown makes Cheese Cracker things with it too.

Alright if you have a green can, go throw it away. Love yourself and your family enough to buy a $5 hunk of goodness that will last for sometime.

Happy Eating,

The Hungry Preacher

Out of State Special - China Delight Dim Sum (Atlanta)

2009-08-15T16:22:00.005-04:00

My Wife looked at my with that lost look as we drove from the beach to my mother's home in Easley. We had been discussing the plans for the next few days with my mom. It would involve a trip to the mountains to see Thomas the Train, a trip to Atlanta to eat Dim Sum, and shop at the international markets that same day. It was the Dim Sum that was the cause of the look.

My wife asks me "What is Dim Sum?"

My response was not well thought out, think maybe something along the line of George from Seinfeld. I said " You know it's Dim Sum!"

This of course was not the right thing to say. The problem was that she needed reassurance that this was not going to be weird or strange. Being a great mother she was also concerned about the baby, there is no need to every be concerned about the older three. Two of them eat everything and the other eats nothing; but there is also the 11 month old who needs to eat something that she can handle. Yet I responded with a answer that carried with it an attitude as if she had asked "what color is the sky?" or "do birds fly?"

How we present food, even in conversation with someone can directly affect how we like it. I know that some people can be turned off by a dirty restaurant or by a poor presentation. A bad review can really hurt your image of a place or a food even before you have tried it. So foodies out there be careful what you say.

We made it to the Dim Sum place a little late. It was the third day of our visit and I think "I" was starting to stink as Ben Franklin's saying goes. Yet the food was good. We were cramped because we were not thinking to ask to pull tables together. That was our fault not the restaurants.

The food was good. We had a host of things. Now if you are like my wife and you are still wondering what is Dim Sum think of a Chinese cross between brunch and tapas. The waitress comes by your table and there are small plates of food that are offered to your table. You point at what you want, you have to point because they do not speak English very well. This goes on for as long as you are hungry. At the end you count up your plates and that is the bill. It is served with hot tea.

This is a great meal for a large group of people so that you can try many different things. I really liked the fried shrimp ball skewerd on sugar cane. They have soup and egg rolls that most people would be familiar with from the Chinese buffet down the street. They had all sorts of dumplins, the shark fin had cartlidge in it (yuk!) but the rest were great. It is better to go earlier in the day they have more selection and yes, we found food for the baby!

Dim Sum is an early day meal, the restaurant serves very good Chinese food at night. If you are over near Chamblee, in northeast Atlanta, you should give it a try!

I look forward to going with my family again. We will get there early and EVERYONE will order a water (that's is an inside joke!). I think that my wife will enjoy it more, she also said she would sit by my sister next time and not me. What does that mean?

Good Eating!

The Hungry Preacher

R.I.P. - Milton Elihu Jordan

2009-08-15T16:16:00.002-04:00

The Hungry Preacher Blog wants to send our condolences to the BBQ connoisseur on the passing of his grandfather. Milton Elihu Jordan was raised in Eastern North Carolina and has been a great influence on his grandson's life and love of BBQ.

May God bless you and your family, BBQ man!

The Hungry Preacher

Shealy's BBQ

2009-08-15T15:07:00.005-04:00

There are some BBQ places that you simply go for the meat. It is all about the meat! They will give you a scoop of canned baked beans, Cole slaw out of a white plastic tub and top it with a roll out of a plastic bag. It is not about the sides it is about the meat only. Those things are only put on there to give some semblance of the food pyramid, only upside down, because again it is only about the meat.

Shealy's BBQ is not this type of BBQ House. I can still remember my first encounters with Shealy's. The BBQ was very good, but I can still remember the vegetables, the corn, and especially the green beans that were just excellent. They were seasoned and had pork fat of some sort that just made them delicious!

Shealy's BBQ caters in the Columbia area. My college friend Eric Dell's parents had Shealy's cater a graduation party in Cayce, SC. I was glad I drove down that day not only to see my friend but also to eat that food! Another memorable event was the 1999 Spring Meeting of Catawba Presbytery at the Edward's Memorial Church. This was the meeting where I was examined and licenced to preach. Shealy's BBQ catered lunch that day, my stomach was so upset from the exam. The Chicken stood out to me that day, it was just what I needed!

The BBQ Connoisseur gives Shealy's a thumbs up! My Daughter, BBQ man, and I went there in June of 2008. We were at a funeral in Hilda, SC and worked our way back over to Shealy's. I ate too much! Why is it when you eat pork it is delicious, but then you take one bite too much and it makes you feel so bad? I ate in excess of my limit and was miserable from Batesburg to Columbia. So when you go to Shealy's make sure you have a plan of attack. Remember you are there for the green beans and corn too! Plan room for Bannana Pudding as well.

This summer on my way from Myrtle Beach to Easley, my whole family stopped by for lunch on a Friday. It was consistent with every other time I had eaten their food. I took some hash home for my mom and sister and they said it was excellent.

So if you are married to someone who doesn't like the usually BBQ joint or maybe you would like a little vegetation with your smoked meats, then take a trip to Batesville, South Carolina and eat at Shealy's BBQ.

Good Eating!

The Hungry Preacher

Product of the Week: Canned Anchovies

2009-08-08T11:19:00.006-04:00

Alright, I know what you are thinking, what is so special about canned little fish. There is a lot of culinary firepower in those little cans of fish. Personally I always have anchovies in my pantry, but I never ever put them on Pizza.

I remember my first introduction to the Anchovy. It was on pizza. I had heard all these people rave about them on Pizza. One day I said Cheese and Anchovy at the pizza parlor. This is not one of my favorite combinations. So I let anchovies remain outside of my culinary life.

Then one day at the Freshmarket in Greenville, SC. I was talking to a women as we shopped and she picked up several cans of anchovies. I asked her if she put them on Pizza and she said "no." So I said "What do you do with them?" She went on to talk about the joy of an anchovy on a cracker with wine or sometimes just out of the can.

Sometimes you just have to risk the $1.79 and try it. I found that on a cracker or with some cheese was not bad. My real love for anchovies is in the technique of using them in cooking. I have a Mediterranean cookbook that uses anchovies as a first ingredient in a Tuna with Pasta recipe. The Anchovies are mashed up and provide a salty base flavor for the dish that is not fishy. It is awesome!

Mario Batali says that the best anchovies are the salt packed ones but I have never ever seen them. So I uses the oil packed.

Do not be afraid of a little fish, try the anchovy especially in recipes!

Good Eating!

The Hungry Preacher

Orange Cake from a Phone?

2009-08-03T20:49:00.000-04:00

Orange Cake from the Brookgreen Garden Restaraunt. My two youngest loved it!

The Mobile Hungry Preacher
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

New Skill

2009-08-03T20:46:00.000-04:00

I have learned to post from my blackberry. I hope this will mean mobile dinning updates!

Product of the Week: Trader Joe's Wasabi Mayonnaise

2009-08-01T16:53:00.000-04:00

Trader Joe's is one of my favorite places to shop. It is not a very big store but it is loaded with all different kinds of products that I just love. A new discovery is their Wasabi Mayonnaise. Since I have four children and they are already showing signs of eating us out of house and home, we eat a lot of sandwiches. I am not speaking of the artisan bread and fancy cold cut type sandwiches either. Loaf bread with turkey is a more normal lunch. Yet even this lowly everyday sandwich can be made special with an addition of Wasabi Mayo. Now if you do not like any type of spicy this might not be for you. But if you like a little or a lot I think you should give it a try.

I like to put a very, very thin layer of Wasabi Mayo on one side of the sandwich and regular Duke's Mayo on the other. This produces just a little bite of hot that jumps up and gets you for about two seconds and then disappears. Every now and then you will get a bigger hit that might last for four or five seconds. The good thing is that it quickly is gone and does not leave you with a burnt mouth sensation like other peppers and spices tend to do.

Trader Joe's says that this is great on fish and I would think so. Also I think it would be great on a burger. I will have to try that soon! The Mayo comes in a twelve ounce jar. This goes a long way because a little is a lot. Next time you are at Trader Joe's pick up a jar and try it out!

Happy Eating!

The Hungry Preacher

Welcome back!

2009-08-01T16:41:00.000-04:00

This summer was very busy with a lot of travel for both work and vacation. So I decided to not post for a while. But I have been planning some new regular features to The Hungry Preacher Blog. The Product of the Week will feature an item that I find to be helpful or delicious in the kitchen. Restaurant of the Month will feature a eating place that I would like to recommend to you all. With these regular features will be special articles about things that are happening in the culinary world of Kyle!

I hope you enjoy and it is good to be back!

Happy Eating!

The Hungry Preacher

Newberry County - Eggs, Milk, and Goodness

2009-04-25T18:25:00.001-04:00

Late winter of 2004, I was invited to speak at the Smyrna Presbyterian Church in Newberry County. The address was given to the Men of the Church, which had the odd starting time of 8:00pm. Most Church going people like for things to be over around 8:00pm, maybe even 7:30pm. So I thought this was most unusually especially for a Tuesday night.

The dinner started first and to my surprise it was breakfast. I innocently asked if they like to have breakfast as a break from cooking. I was told they have breakfast every month. Now I had driven up and down I-26 all my life. I had seen the egg shaped water tower. But I was unaware of the serious impact that the Dairy and Egg Farmers were still having on Newberry.

You see, the reason they started at 8:00pm was because this was the earliest the dairy farmers could get there. Breakfast was natural meal for Egg and Dairy Farmers. I was a little slow on the uptake but see it clearly now.

Newberry County holds a odd childhood memory for me. My Grandfather and I on the way back from Edisto stopped at a Gas Station Restaurant right off I-26. I remember getting a spaghetti dinner. I was so impressed for $3.00 you got a huge plate of Spaghetti, Salad and Garlic toast. I often wonder: was food like this better back then or was this just my youthful desire for the most food possible. Where quantity usually trumped quality? I can still see myself sitting inside the restaurant with my Papa, the noodles were thick like we got at school and the garlic toast had the green parsley specks. Maybe this was such a good memory because I was with my grandfather and we had just been to Edisto. Yet I still remember sitting down to this large meal and being happy.

Newberry County is also the home of great BBQ. I would argue some of the best in the state. Wise's BBQ is located on US 76 just in Newberry County on the way to Clinton. I have already mentioned Wise's in a previous article. They are a simple BBQ house that holds many fond memories.

Playing Basketball for Erskine College meant eating a lot of fast food. During my freshman year we ate at 15 different McDonald's at least. I had memorized the whole menu and had eaten almost everything at least once. The return of the McRib was a cause for celebration. Newberry had several Fast food chains beside each other which means when we played the Indians of Newberry College we were going to have a choice. We still went to Lou & Perry's after we got back. Due West was only about an hour away.

Newberry County is home to its famous Opera House, Newberry College, is still a heavily Lutheran area denominational, and is also the home of my wife's grandfather's family. In general a wonderful little town that I have always enjoyed visiting very much.

These are some of my favorite memories of eating in Newberry County. Please comment and suggested any other restaurants that you think deserve a mention.

Good Eating's,

The Hungry Preacher

Bread - No Carb Diets Must Die!

2009-04-25T10:30:00.000-04:00

I pity those that only know bread as something that comes into the home cold and wrapped in plastic. Even if you get it from a local bakery, if you find one let me know where it is, it is still not the same as homemade bread. The smell in the house alone is worth the little trouble it takes to make homemade bread.

As a human being I am concerned that we are losing very basic life skills, baking is one of those simple skills that is dying. Bread to many is a lifeless loaf that has more air between the crust than glutton. How many people know the joy of kneading a yeast dough and watching those little yeasts burp gas that causes the dough to rise. How many people know the joy of knowing what is in their bread? How many people would die in a house stocked with only basic supplies and not frozen, canned, or otherwise prepared and prepackaged food?

The why question is probably bouncing around in some heads by this point. Why do I want to take 3 hours out of a day to make bread? Why do I want to do something that I do not really have time to do? Hogwash! Most people watch TV that much. Heck for most of the three hours it takes to make bread you can watch TV. People, many of us need to slow down, we need to spend time with our kids teaching them about life and life skills. We need to take time to reflect on our lives and our world. Yes, I mean you need to make your own bread! Well at least sometimes.

Bread itself is thought provoking! Most Americans are spoiled and we live in an over abundance. My favorite bread story comes from a friend of mine from Israel who is a Christian Arab. He told me about how in their country they never threw away bread, but if the lady of the house had to throw it away she would wrap it up and kiss it and thank God for such abundance that she could throw bread away. I had much guilt about the half a loaf of moldy bread I have thrown away plenty of times.

Think of the religious significance of bread. Jesus Christ teaches us to pray that God will give us our daily bread. It is common bread that is used to represent the body of Christ given for us in the Lord's Supper. See what one afternoon every couple of weeks can do! Not only will it give you bread for a few weeks but it will stimulate your mind about the world around us and the God who created it!

So your a cynic, pagan, atheist, or materialist; I have a reason for you! Cold hard cash, have you seen what they are charging for a pound of bread! Day old supermarket bread that has a crust and some protein structure will run you $4 a loaf. What if I told you that you could make $20 by mainly watching TV for the better part of three hours? Would you take me up on the offer? Well you can just make bread!

Bread, it is good for you! Just don't eat all five loaves in two days. Pace yourself! Bread is a good part of a healthy diet if it is eaten properly and if maybe it even has some whole grains in it. So pass by the long cold lifeless bread aisle and head on over and get some bread flour and yeast. Make some bread and relax; you will love it!

Looking for a bread recipe? My mom made five loaves with my kids today and it is awesome. It freezes well so you can make the five loaves and freeze a few for next week. It is real simple and all the hard work is done by the mixer. Click Here for the recipe!

(PS- the recipe says six loafs, mom made five so I do know if she changed something or not you can comment and I am sure you will get an answer!)

Good Eating's,

The Hungry Preacher

Food that Takes Us Back: Wise's BBQ

2009-04-24T02:59:00.000-04:00

I will always remember Russell Liner, big Russ! We were freshman together on third floor Pressly Hall at Erskine College. Many moons ago now! We both had a love for history and for food. Once in class, Russell who could be a little over the top was in some discussion with a fellow classmate over something. Russell arose with an air of disdain from his desk and said "just hit me, just hit me then". It was at this point, I nailed him in the back with my clip board. It was only years latter that I found out I almost got ejected from the class by Dr. Grier. Whew!

Russell and I had a wonderful dinner with Dr. Fry and his family. They invited us over for dinner one evening. I think Russell and I were a little more exciting than the usually chemistry type students Fry-guy was uses to being around. We had taken his Interim class on the chemistry of photography and become friends with he and his family. We showed up in navy blazers and ties with flowers no less. I think that Mrs. Fry was a little surprised. It was a wonderful meal. Every time I think of tea and lemonade mixed together I think of that day. Miss the Fry Family!

The greatest culinary event in our relationship was his introducing me to Wise's BBQ in Newberry County. Let me take an aside here; I have been informed by the BBQ connoisseur that I need to get my nomenclature correct. There are BBQ "places" and then there are BBQ "houses". Houses being the superlative. To give you some idea of the quality of Wise's, the BBQ connoisseur used it as an example of a BBQ house as he was educating me as to the difference. High praise for a Irdell County boy to give a mustard base restaurant the "house designation".

Oh if you could have met Russell's Dad, that man loved him some BBQ! We had a great time eating and hanging out with Russell's family. Russell and I are still friends today. He works in August, GA and is now a work-out fanatic! We have just got back in touch again. I hope to see him soon and eat some BBQ!

Wise's BBQ is near Kinards, South Carolina between Clinton and Newberry on US 76. It is just on the Newberry county side of the line. In 1989 for $5.25 you got all you can eat pulled pork, smoked chicken, hash with rice, slaw, pickles, and white loaf bread. If you got there early enough you can eat ribs, but these often ran out early. Sweet tea was also included. I went back there a few years ago and to my surprise everything was pretty much the same that I remember it. The price had only gone up to $7.25 a person. Not bad for 15+ years of inflation.

I would have to say this is some of my favorite BBQ!

I remember taking several people during my years at Erskine. Bryan Bult and I had a fun trip there one time, I think Molly Greene went with us. I am sure they hated to see Bryan and I come in there together. I can't remember what Molly thought about it, I am sure she had a good time, she was with Bryan and Kyle. I think my favorite trips there would have to be with Russell and his parents.

Now do not be suprised when you pull up and say, "this is it?" It is not much to look at. Think old church fellowship hall, but you are not there for the decor. The food is what you are there for and what has kept bring many loyal customers back month after month. In the case of Russell's parents, I think it was week after week.

The same family still runs Wise BBQ, at least the last time I was in there, it was started in the early 70's and has been a local favorite for years. They are open from 9:00 AM to 9:30PM Friday and Saturday only. It is worth the trip!

Good Eatings,

The Hungry Preacher

My Favorite Meal - Chicken Cordon Bleu

2009-04-19T01:21:00.000-04:00

Are there some meals that you just do not need the recipe for? Not that you do not want the recipe, but you know that it would just be bad for you to have it. There is a little Mom and Pop restaurant off of Exit 65 on I-77, The Front Porch, and they have excellent fried pork chops. I decided I needed to know how to make these fabulous fried porcine chops. So I made several batches over a few weeks. I finally perfected the recipe and then realized that this was not a good thing. Either familiarity breeds contempt or a worry about my expanding waist line caused me to let go of my recipe.

I say this because some people think it is funny that I do not know how to fix my favorite meal. What might be the result? Could it become something too familiar? Could the mystique of its lushes gravy and subtle melting of flavors be lost if I knew its creation? Maybe I am being mellow dramatic or maybe it is the cold medicine finally kicking in at 1:30 AM. (I am not preaching in the morning.) I just rather mother make it for me.

I think that I can remember the first time that I had this wonderful creation. I was a little boy and I believe that we were still in the old house on 8th street in Arial. My mouth exploded with the joys of this dish. Through the years it has been my all time favorite. I am not sure of all the ingredients, but I know that primarily it is a chicken breast flattened and rolled with ham and Swiss cheese. A toothpick or two are used to hold it together. These toothpicks could be tricky when I was a child. The gravy is the spectacular part. The goodness of the chicken, ham, and cheese mixing with the gravy. Aunt Martha and I are known for our battles to scrap the pan of every morsel. We would come away with sore hands from the blow of the other's spoon, but our mouths would be happy with the joy of that gravy.

Mom says that she got the original recipe from the Dinah Shore Show. I think mom might have made a few adjustments through the years. One year for my birthday she made a big pan. When I got home from work that night there were around 10 rolls. The next morning when she came in she asked where the left over chicken was? My response was "Left overs?"

So there it is my favorite meal: Mommy's Chicken Cordon Bleu, Noodles, and Steamed Broccoli.

The Hungry Preacher

Lone Star BBQ - Santee, SC

2009-04-18T11:35:00.000-04:00

Early Spring of 2004, I was attending the Francis Marion Symposium in Manning, South Carolina. It was a wonderful day of retracing the Swamp Fox's battles in the area and listening to lectures on the Revolutionary. Alright I know many of you just had a collective yawn, but I liked it.

As we drove all over Calhoun, Clarendon and Orangeburg Counties, I was curious about this place we were scheduled to eat; Lone Star BBQ. I had never heard of it. This I thought was odd, I have eaten at most of the well known BBQ joints in the State. Where in the world was Lone Star?

Lunch was one of the highlights of the whole day. Just what you want with a good BBQ place. No fuss, no fancy plates or table settings. Just a stack of plates and a long line of food for your enjoyment.

I have been wanting to get back to Lone Star BBQ ever since. I tried once but got lost! It was an impulse moment. I had my one year old son in the car with me riding around the Columbia area. Everyone else in the family was at the Gamecock Gator game the year we beat them! I had nobly taken babysitting duties for the good of the family. I got lost because I did not remember that while it is called Lone Star BBQ it is not in Lone Star, South Carolina. It is in Santee, right down the road from the State Park. Alas, I had to eat at a Lizard Thicket in Eastover or someplace like that.

Finally, on our way back from a day in Charleston we were able to make it by the Lone Star BBQ. Let me first say, that this is probably not my favorite BBQ. I know some will have different views. It is good solid pork BBQ. What I really want to talk about is Tomato Pie! Now my family who knows me well and my usually disdain for tomatoes will have their interest peaked by this point. Did he say Tomato Pie? Yes and it is marvelous. A big ole plate of gooey goodness. They also had wonderful Rutabagas, a multi-cheese Macaroni Pie, and Fried Chicken that was excellent. The Ribs were alright in my opinion. My daughter loved them. I like my ribs to be more fall off the bone and melt in your mouth. These were much more toothy which is fine and some people prefer. The hash was good over rice. The biggest problem that I had was not enough room to try everything I wanted to. Too many wasted calories on chicken wings at lunch in Mt. Pleasant.

In spite of my body's "full" alarm going off a full 5 minutes before I stopped eating, I had to finish the banana pudding that was dessert. I paid a price with some discomfort, but it was marvelous. Most of the discomfort was from the aforementioned chicken wings. The food was excellent the decor was nice; three old buildings connected together. The kids loved the toys and candies in the Mercantile part of the establishment. They used some Christmas money and each bought a little something.

The Chef was trained at the Culinary Institute of America in NY. Many of you are now very concerned that I have used the word Chef in an article about a BBQ. As my BBQ connoisseur friend from Statesville, NC would say, "That just ain't right!" Yet, it works well at Lone Star BBQ. I think because it is not about chef food but rather good food.

On leaving, I was charged to dispose of a soiled diaper. Unable to find a trashcan outside, I started to make my way to the back and the dumpster. I noticed a screen window by the kitchen and caught the chef's attention. I ask if I could throw away the diaper in his dumpster. Now I know you are thinking "Why did you ask?" and "What is he going to say, No?" First, we should always show good manners, separates us from infidels and white trash. Second, of course he said yes, but the way he said it says a lot about the attitude of the Lone Star. He said, "Sure, go ahead, make yourself at home."

Lone Star BBQ is located on State Park Rd. in Santee, SC. It is really easy to find just follow the signs to Santee State Park. It will be on the Left before you get to the park.

We ate there for under $40 dollars. My family is two adults, two children, a toddler, and an infant. I think this was pretty good. We have spent over $30 at Chick-Fil-A.

The Hungry Preacher

Foods that Take Us Back: The Erskine Special!

2009-04-16T19:06:00.000-04:00

I understand that Lou and Perry's is no longer the hot spot for Erskine Students. There is now a late night burger joint in Due West! Not to mention a Mexican place, and a Subway. How things have changed in the sleepy village of Due West. The only place you could eat inside the town limits was at an old gas station turned into a eating establishment. The rumor was that the town was against any new restaurants and the only reason they issued the fellow a business licence was that they thought he was going to open a gas station. The food there was good but the place was small. It did not have the pull or appeal of Lou's.

I remember my first trip to Lou and Perry's, I was with Parker Young the Summer before our Freshman year. It was one of the few times I have been there in daylight. He told me to order an Erskine Special. Magic words these were. How often over the next 4 plus years would I utter them with great anticipation. "E Spec, fries extra crispy!" The Erskine Special was simplicity itself. There was no great culinary genius behind it, no special ingredients, no truffle oil or imported cheese. It was simply a half-pound Cheeseburger on Texas Toast with an big handful of fries. It is wonder that more of us have not had some type of bypass surgery due to the ingestion of large amounts of Erskine Specials.

Bryan Bult and I would sometimes double up and eat two Erskine Specials in a row. Now we were both rather big young men who played basketball everyday, then again it was 1 AM in the morning and it was our 4th meal of the day. We probably could have eaten a third, but since we were in college and money was always tight we never did. Besides, you had to save your money to come back in a day or so.

The decor at Lou and Perry's was not much to write about. Simply old style booths along the sides, tables down the middle. There was a private dinning room that I did not know existed until I was a Junior. The back room was a smoked filled game room with a pool table and a row of video poker machines. They added a vestibule at some point and I always wonder how much of my money paid for that addition.

Lou's will always be a special place. We went there all the time. I hate that a new generation of College students will not have the same experience but then again maybe their new place will be just as good for them.

Lou and Perry's is located on Main Street in Honea Path, SC. It is open 24 hours 7 days a week!

Good Eating!

The Hungry Preacher

The Beginning

2009-04-16T18:55:00.000-04:00

In my never ending attempt to find a hobby to take my mind off of work, I have decided to start a blog about one of my favorite subjects: Food!

It is my hope to provided some advice and suggestions about cooking, places to eat, and thoughts on food in general. Maybe someone will read it and maybe they will not but I hope to have fun in the journey.

Kyle "The Hungry Preacher" Sims