There’s an old saying that the secret’s always in the sauce—and honestly, summer proves it every time.Summer Dressings & Sauces. These easy homemade dressings and sauces bring that “extra” energy every plate deserves. Billie
Lemon Vinaigrette Dressing This easy-to-make, incredibly flavorful, and light lemon vinaigrette dressing comes together in no time and is a perfect dressing for salads. TRY THIS RECIPE
Vinegar Based Carolina BBQ Sauce This simple-to-make tasty vinegar-based Carolina-Style BBQ Sauce has the perfect combination of tangy, sweet, and spicy for your BBQ. TRY THIS RECIPE
Burger Sauce This quick and easy Burger Sauce is my secret to next-level burgers. It’s creamy, tangy, and packed with flavor.?TRY THIS RECIPE
Homemade Blue Cheese Dressing This delicious homemade blue cheese dressing is easy to make and is the perfect accompaniment for salad or dippers like wings and veggies. TRY THIS RECIPE
Cilantro Lime Sauce This cilantro lime sauce comes together in under 5 minutes and is loaded with delicious flavors for the perfect sour cream topping. TRY THIS RECIPE?
Authentic Homemade Alfredo Sauce This rich, creamy, authentic alfredo sauce is tossed with fresh fettuccine pasta for the perfect easy-to-make meal. TRY THIS RECIPE
Homemade Italian Dressing Learn how to make this delicious classic homemade Italian dressing that is bursting with cheese and herb flavors!?TRY THIS RECIPE?
South Carolina Mustard BBQ Sauce This South Carolina Mustard BBQ Sauce is the perfect balance of tangy mustard, bold spices, a sweet blend, ketchup, and a touch of vinegar, creating a sauce deeply rooted in Carolina barbecue tradition. TRY THIS RECIPE
Easy Chocolate Sauce An easy chocolate sauce that comes together in minutes and is amazing when served up with any dessert. TRY THIS RECIPE
Classic Cobb Salad Dressing If you’re a big salad fan and are looking for a delicious vinaigrette dressing, then this cobb salad dressing is the perfect option. TRY THIS RECIPE
This Chicken Tenders recipe brings restaurant-style strips home with a buttermilk brine and deep-frying for maximum crispiness. By Chef Billy Parisi, https://www.billyparisi.com/fried-chicken-tenders
Ingredients
For the Marinade:
- 2 pounds chicken tenders
- 1 ½ cups buttermilk
- ¼ cup pickle juice, or white distilled vinegar
- 1 tablespoon hot sauce
- 1 ½ tablespoons garlic granules
- 1 ½ tablespoons onion granules
- 2 teaspoons paprika
- 2 teaspoons coarse salt
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
For the Breading:
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup cornstarch
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 2 teaspoons garlic granules
- 2 teaspoons onion granules
- 2 teaspoons paprika
- 3 teaspoons coarse salt
- 1 teaspoon ground pepper
- 4 large eggs
- ½ cup buttermilk
- oil for frying
Instructions
For the Marinade:
- Add all the ingredients to a large bowl and thoroughly mix to combine. Cover and place the tenders in the fridge to marinate for 2 to 24 hours. The longer, the more flavorful and tender they will become.
For the Breading:
- In a cake tin or wide shallow bowl, whisk together the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, garlic granules, onion granules, paprika, 2 teaspoons of salt, and ½ teaspoon of pepper. Set it to the side.
- In a separate cake tin or a wide, shallow bowl, whisk together the eggs, buttermilk, and the remaining 1 teaspoon of salt and ½ teaspoon of pepper until well combined. Set it to the side.
- At this stage, add enough oil to a 4- or 5-quart pot to fill it halfway. Heat it over medium to low heat until it reaches 375°F. Keep it at that temperature. Once the cold tenders are added to the oil, the temperature will immediately drop to 350°, which is perfect.
- Take the tenders out of the fridge and remove them a few at a time. Drain off any excess, then dip them right into the seasoned flour. Press down on the tender from all sides to ensure it’s evenly coated. Lift it, shake off any excess, then over to the egg wash. Coat it on all sides, completely covering the flour in the whisked eggs. Now, drain off any excess liquid, as before, and return to dredging the flour, pressing down to completely cover it.
- Place them on a rack over a sheet tray and let them sit for up to 15 minutes, then repeat the process to bread the remaining tenders.
- Next, place the tenders 4 to 6 at a time into the hot oil. Cook them for 3 ½ to 4 minutes while flipping them every 2 minutes. They should be golden brown and cooked throughout. Set them aside on a rack to drain off any excess oil while you cook the remaining tenders in batches. They will hold fine while you do this.
- Serve with optional dipping sauces of ranch, blue cheese, or honey mustard.
Notes
Try not to let your oil temperature drop too much while you’re frying the tenders. The cold tenders will naturally lower the temperature from 375°F to 350°F, which is also the ideal temperature for fried chicken. Use a candy thermometer or instant-read thermometer to help you track, manage, and adjust the temperature as you go.
Marinating time: I recommend marinating the chicken tenders for at least 2 hours, although soaking them overnight will yield the most tender and flavorful results.
Don’t overcrowd the pot: This will surely drop the oil temperature and lead to greasy, soggy tenders. Always fry the chicken in batches for the best results.
Rest the chicken before and after cooking: Resting the double-dredged chicken for 15 minutes before frying will help the flour coating adhere to the meat. After frying, rest the chicken on a wire rack (not on paper towels) to allow the natural juices time to reabsorb into the meat. This will make every bite nice and juicy.
Make-Ahead: Deep-fried chicken tenders are best served right away. However, you can keep them warm by placing the wire rack with the chicken in a 200ºF oven for up to 30 minutes before serving.
How to Store: Once cooled, transfer the leftover tenders to an airtight container and refrigerate them for up to 4 days. Keep them crispy by placing a paper towel underneath the chicken in the container; it will absorb any excess moisture.
How to Reheat: Reheat the chicken tenders in a 375°F oven or air fryer until warmed through and crispy again.
5/3/2025 – Last week we bought an 8 lb. well trimmed pork butt from Rouse’s. Yesterday afternoon, trimmed the small amount of fat still on it, salted to dry brine, rubbed it with Meat Church’s Voodoo Pig Rub and let it sit under plastic wrap overnight. Did not ‘butterfly” it like competition style leaving it as a large clod with the bone in. This turned out very good.
About 8:00 AM, preheated the Recteq and sat the butt out on the counter to warm a bit while the smoker preheated.
- 8:30 AM – Put in into the preheated RecTec at 250°.
- 2:30 PM – After 6 hours of smoke, the bone was beginning to show and the color was great: from dark reddish-brown to black. Then pulled: did not add more rub as Mary worried about being too spicy, wrapped in heavy alum foil with ACV. put into 275° preheated convection oven with IT probe set at 205°.
- 4:30 PM – IT was 186 so raised Oven to 300°.
- About 5:30 the oven turned off.
- Pulled the wrapped clod and let it rest for 30 minutes.
The VooDoo rub was not applied heavily and the flavor was too mild for us. If it had been on much heavier there would have been more intensity but still it would not have the Texas flavor we like. Will go back to 6POGS moderately before smoking and then again lightly before putting into the oven.
4/17/2025 – Inspired by the recipe developed by Ann Maloney in Rouces’ spring 2025 magazine and from their web site here. This was excellent and could be used with shrimp, sausage, etc. We used at least 25% more spices.
This creamy, spicy pasta dish was inspired by the beloved Crawfish Monica sold each spring at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival. If the crawfish tails are peeled and ready, you can knock this out in 30 minutes, making it an easy weeknight supper. It’s also great for parties. If you use the white pepper and Creole/Cajun seasoning, the dish will have a light spicy tingle. Omit the pepper if you want it milder. If you use frozen crawfish tails, thaw and drain them, but do not rinse. If you use tails from a boil, consider omitting or reducing the salt.
We had a 9 oz. package of frozen crayfish tails so the recipe below includes our adjustments for quantity and our adjustments as we suspected the original level of spices was too low for us–and it would have been.
Ingredients
- ¾ cup half-and-half
- ¾ cup heavy whipping cream
- ¾ pound rotini pasta
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, or 3 tablespoons olive oil*
- 3 scallions, chopped, plus more for serving*
2 tablespoons chopped Italian parsley (optional), plus more for serving- 3 cloves garlic, minced*
- ½ teaspoon white pepper*
- 1 tablespoon Creole/Cajun seasoning (original recipe for 1 pound of tails was ½ teaspoon Creole/Cajun seasoning)
- ¼ teaspoon dried thyme*
- ¼ teaspoon fine salt*
- ¾ pound crawfish tails with fat, thawed and drained if frozen (don’t rinse) Orioginal recipe was for 1 pound)
- ¼ cup dry white wine, such as sauvignon blanc, divided*
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch*
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce*
- ¾ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese*
.* Quantities shown here are for the original 1 lb. of tails…but the quantities look very low for a pound of meat so Mary added them per the original recipe: hence given 25% less meat and liquids the spices were 33% greater than the original recipe.
Directions
Measure the spices into a small bowl before starting.
To a medium sauce pan over medium heat, add the half-and-half and heavy cream and cook until slightly reduced, about 10 minutes. Allow to simmer with tiny bubbles forming around the edges, but do not boil.
In a large pot over high heat, bring lightly salted water to a boil. Cook the pasta according to the package directions for al dente, about 7 minutes.
In a large, deep-sided skillet over medium to medium-high heat, melt the butter. Add the scallions and cook until softened, about 2 minutes. Add the parsley, if using, and the garlic, and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the white pepper (if using), Creole/Cajun seasoning, thyme and salt; stir and cook for another minute. Add crawfish tails and half of the wine, and stir to combine. Cook for about 2 minutes to heat the tails.
To the remaining wine add 1 tablespoon of cornstarch; whisk to create a slurry. Add the cornstarch slurry and the Worchester sauce to the dairy mixture and whisk until slightly thicker, about 3 minutes. Add the dairy mixture to the skillet and stir to combine with crawfish and vegetables.
In a large serving bowl, add the hot pasta, pour the sauce over it and toss until the pasta is well-coated. Sprinkle with Parmesan and toss to combine. Sprinkle with more scallions when serving.
Next time add some or all:
- Shrimp
- Sausage
- English peas
- Red Pepper Flakes or just add more white pepper.
If we have one pound of meat then the original recipe and her seasoning (that should be increased at least 33%) is below.
Ingredients
- 1 cup half-and-half
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- 1 pound rotini pasta
- 4 tablespoons (½ stick) unsalted butter, or 4 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 scallions, chopped, plus more for serving
- 2 tablespoons chopped Italian parsley (optional), plus more for serving
- 2 large cloves garlic, minced
- ½ teaspoon white pepper, optional
- ½ teaspoon Creole/Cajun seasoning
- ¼ teaspoon dried thyme
- ¼ teaspoon fine salt
- 1 pound crawfish tails with fat, thawed and drained if frozen (don’t rinse)
- ¼ cup dry white wine, such as sauvignon blanc, divided
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- ¾ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
This recipe was inspired by Chef John’s Roman-style chicken recipe and has a lot of potential. He is John Mitzewich and has a good video at his page. Our version below has much larger volume of spices than his but we did not compensate for the salt added by the dry brining and hence it was a bit salty. The recipe below leaves out Chef Johns salt and added a taste-test step.
Ingredients
- 6 large bone-in skin-on chicken thighs (about 2 ½ to 3 pounds). Dry brined 6 hours before cooking. [FYI – Dry brining is when you add salt to the raw meat the same amount as if you were salting it on the table just before you eat. The salt needs 2-4 hours to penetrate chicken thigh IMHO. The salt will cause the meat to hold more moisture during the cook and be more moist when served.]
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon dried rosemary
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 yellow onion, sliced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon capers
- 1 anchovy filet or anchovy paste in a tube; that is what Mary used.
- 1 cup white wine
- 2 cups Marizano canned tomatoes crushed (Used one large can)
- 1/2 cup water
- 1 teaspoon chicken bouillon paste
- 3 red or orange bell peppers, seeded and cut into 3/8-inch strips. Used our frozen bell peppers from the garden last year.
- 3 slices prosciutto, cut into strips – For the first cook on 3/24/2025 we did not have this. This would have added a nice flavor but it would have also added salt. Be careful.
Directions
- Use a sharp knife to make 2 cuts through the skin in the center of the thigh, down to the bone, about one inch apart from each other. Be careful to not cut the skin fully across the piece so it does not hang together. Rulling the thigh so the skin is on top and down past the bone will avoid cutting it into pieces of having flaps.
- Once cut, transfer thighs into a mixing bowl. Drizzle with 2 teaspoons olive oil, and season with salt, black pepper, cayenne, and dried herbs. Mary used her hands to toss until very thoroughly coated making sure the seasoning got into the slices. Put the bowl into the refrigerator for about 4 hours. [Our future cooks will hopefully let it marinate at least overnight.]
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- Heat remaining olive oil in a large oven-safe skillet on medium-high heat. Add chicken, skin side down, and cook until a deep golden brown crust has formed, 5 to 6 minutes. Turn chicken over and cook for 3 minutes more. Turn off heat, remove chicken to a plate, and set aside.
- Turn heat back on to medium, and add onions. Cook, stirring, for a few minutes or until the onions just begin to soften. Make a space in the center of the pan, and add garlic, capers, and anchovy. Cook for about 1 minute, while stirring and smashing with the edge of a wooden spoon or spatula.
- Pour in wine, and raise the heat to high. Cook, stirring occasionally, for a few minutes until the wine reduces by about half. Add tomatoes, water, and chicken bouillon paste; stir to combine. Return mixture to a boil, and cook, stirring occasionally, until liquid reduces slightly, 3 to 4 minutes.
- Add sliced peppers, and mix in evenly. Scatter about 3/4 of prosciutto slices evenly over the top. Place chicken thighs back on top, spaced evenly, skin side up. Place remaining prosciutto slices between chicken pieces.
- Check for salt and add if needed.
- Bake in the preheated oven until the chicken is cooked through and the top is nicely browned, 40 to 45 minutes.
- Top with parsley and serve immediately on olive oil mashed potatoes, rice, or pasta.
3/18/2025 – Smoked a 10×10 package of relatively thin sliced country-style ribs on the RecTeq and they turned out great: moist and more tender than in the past. The smoke was at 225° for two hours and after the ribs had been seasoned and warmed up a bit on the counter for about 30 minutes. The seasoning was salt and a light dusting of 6POGS.
They were stacked on a sheet of aluminum foil and BBQ sauce drizzled over them then spread around with a basting brush. The foil was pulled together and the ribs rested on the counter for a half hour until we ate.
Next time salt them sooner to dry brine over night or at least 3-4 hours: especially if the “ribs” are the usual 1 inch thick and 2-3 inches wide. If they are larger then consider slicing them in half.
This cook differed from the past as the meat was more lightly seasoned with 6POGS (for Mary) and was only 2 hours rather than 3-4 hours. We had planned to wrap and put them into the oven to finish but when we tested them and found them perfect then all they needed to do was rest and the sauce settle in.
3/2/2025 – This dish was great and fairly easy to prepare. It was inspired by the recipe here.
Ingredients:
For the Shrimp:
1 pound large shrimp. Used frozen easy-peel and deveined from Publix
2 tablespoons olive oil – or more if serving on pasta
2 teaspoon granulated garlic
1 teaspoon granulated onion
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes at least
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Salt and pepper to taste
For the Lemon-Herb Aioli:
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup sour cream
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon dry dill
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
Instructions:
In a small bowl, combine mayonnaise, sour cream, minced garlic, lemon juice, dill, salt, and pepper. Mix well until smooth and creamy. Let blend for an hour in the refrigerator.
In a bowl, combine shrimp with olive oil, garlic powder, onion powder, red pepper flakes, Parmesan cheese, salt, and pepper. Toss to coat. Let season for 30 minutes to an hour.
Grill the shrimp in the square, cast-iron grill pan over medium-high heat for 2-3 minutes per side, or until cooked through and slightly charred.
Next time try:
- For extra crispy shrimp, air frying them for 10-12 minutes at 400°F (200°C).
- Roasting the shrimp on a sheet pan in the convection oven.

2/22/2025 – This was a great, easy meal inspired by Suzy here.
Ingredients
For chicken
- 6 bone-in, trimmed, skin-on chicken thighs
- Kosher salt and black pepper
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon coriander
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
For Mushroom Sauce
- 2 tablespoon butter
- 12 ounce fresh large mushrooms, sliced
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 4 green onions, chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- ~8 large Green olives
- ~1/4 cup sliced Calamatra Olives
- 1/2 large lemon to squeeze over the chicken at the end
- kosher salt and black pepper
- Parsley for garnish
Instructions
- Pat chicken thighs dry and season with salt and pepper. Combine oregano, paprika, and coriander in a small bowl. Season the chicken with the spice mixture on both sides.
- In a large skillet heat 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil until shimmering but not smoking. Add the chicken thighs and cook until done, turning occassionally. When cooked thru set aside.
- Used some chicken broth to degalze the pan.
- In the same skillet, now add more extra virgin olive oil (if needed) and butter. Sautee the mushrooms for 5 minutes. Add remaining broth, green onions, garlic, green olives, kalamatra olives, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil.
- Add the chicken back to the pan, spoon some of the sauce on top. squeeze lemon juice over chicken. Served over rice.
1/30/2025 – This easy dish was inspired by the recipe at The Mediterranean Dish’s web site here. Mary made a lot of adjustments.
Ingredients
- 6 chicken thighs, bone in, skin on
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 6 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
- ~1 cup dry white wine
- Lemon juice from our freezer. She called for juice of 2 limes.
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 1/2 bunch cilantro, stems removed, chopped; more for garnish
Spice mix: Used our No. 4 Mediterranean Spice Mix with Nutmeg grated over the seasoned thighs.
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°.
- Mix the spices and season dry thighs on both sides.
- Brown the chicken well in olive oil in a cast iron skillet (with a lid). Remove from skillet and set aside briefly.
- Lower the heat and deglaze the skillet with the white wine. Let cook to reduce and then add the broth. Bring the liquid to a simmer then add the lemon juice and garlic.
- Return the chicken to the skillet and toss in the cilantro. Bring to a high-simmer for about 5 minutes or so.
- Cover the skillet with the lid and transfer to the heated oven until the chicken has an IT of about 165°.
- Remove from the oven, garnish with more cilantro and let rest.
1/4/2025 – We met Kelley and Rocky at Prejeans in Lafayette LA to drop off the girls after their week with us and had lunch. Mary ordered their Chef’s Fried Rice entree from the Brunch menu and it was great. We ordered one to go and brought it and half of hers home. It was served with two thin fried catfish fillets on top of a fantastic pile of rice and the other things we picked out and listed below in hopes of re-creating it.
Ingredients we found in the dish:
- Shrimp, medium peeled
- Carrots, 1/4 inch chopped
- French style Green beans cut into 1.5 inch pieces
- Onion, Large pieces about 1/2 inch wide x 1.5 inch long
- White Mushrooms, small, sliced 1/16″ think
- Green peas
- Red Bell Peppers, chopped small
- Red pepper flakes
- Did it have a cornstarch glaze?
- The menu said it was made with Ronin Sauce
Flavors we could taste:
- Soy sauce
- Ginger – distinctive
- Garlic – distinctive
What are the ingredients in Ronin sauce? ginger, water, salt, citric acid, malic acid, acetic acid.