Sitting here working on menus for upcoming cooking classes, I am reminded of a time when I was a young girl, and my dad was getting ready for a Deep Sea Fishing event. The night before the fishing trip he would invite all the “guys” over for a special, traditional, pre-fishing trip dinner. The menu consisted of BBQ Shrimp, lots of hot French Bread for dipping into the sauce, a big green salad and Spanish Flan for dessert. Why such a simple menu, you might wonder…..because when my Mom made her BBQ Shrimp that is all anybody wanted to eat and eat they did!!  About 5 men would consume about 10 pounds of Louisiana shrimp and about 4 loaves of hot French bread, a huge green salad that  acted as the vegetable and the Spanish Flan (also known as caramel custard)  was just what one needed to help soothe the system after all that spicy shrimp.

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Just got back from a “spur of the moment” trip to Georgia visiting my dear friend Sister Linder and her gracious family! I love hanging out with this wonderful family because they are always happy to see me. As soon as I greet them with a hug and a few moments of “How are you doing?”, I am immediately asked, “What are you gonna cook for us, tamales?” Sister has three wonderful sons, Chris, Davis and Jordon; a beautiful daughter-in-law Pam; and a precious grandson, Luke. And not to forget, a super husband, Bill. I must say, they love my Mexican Hot Tamales! Making these for the boys has become a tradition…one I hope will go on for years to come.

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