Big Billy's Oyster Balls - a weekend recipe

Big Billy was a Dallas restauranteur and oil man, but he loved Cajun food and knew how to prepare it. Big Billy liked people and he liked parties. When he hosted one of his famous parties, he often prepared this appetizer. It’s one of my favorites and I think you will like it too.


Big Billy’s Oyster Balls

Ingredients

• 2 pints oysters, chopped

• 2 pints sausage, chopped

• 1 egg

• 2 cups bread crumbs, grated

• Cajun hot sauce, to taste

Preparation

Combine oysters and sausage. Season liberally with Cajun hot sauce. Add egg. Shape into small balls. Coat with bread crumbs. Fry in hot oil until golden brown. Serve hot.

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Lily's Oyster Stew - a weekend recipe

Oyster stew is a Louisiana staple, but is prepared and eaten everywhere the succulent sea creature is found. Like gumbo, there are many variations, some heartier than others. Here is one of Lily’s versions. This recipe is included in Lily's Little Cajun Cookbook, available in ebook format at Smashwords.com.


Lily’s Oyster Stew

Ingredients

1 stick butter

1 tablespoon minced garlic

1 medium onion, finely chopped

1 medium carrot, finely diced

2 tablespoons Cajun seasoning, plus more to taste

2 pints oysters (with liquor), drained and liquor reserved

1 quart seafood stock

1 10-ounce can of tomatoes, pureed

1 quart half-and-half

¼ cup white wine or brandy

Garlic croutons

Directions

In a large 2-gallon stockpot, melt butter over medium-high heat. Add garlic, onion and carrot and cook, stirring constantly, until onions are translucent. Add 2 tablespoons Cajun seasoning and stir to combine. Add oyster liquor, seafood stock and tomatoes and bring to a simmer. Cook 10 minutes. Add half-and-half and bring back to a simmer. Add oysters and cook until their edges begin to curl. Add wine or brandy and adjust seasoning to taste. Serve immediately in hot soup bowls garnished with croutons, green onions, parsley and paprika.

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More Spring Pics

Pics from earlier this year.

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Images of Spring

Images from April, 2010, Edmond, Oklahoma.

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Lily's Cajun Butter

We all like butter on our corn. My ex-mother-in-law Lily used to whip up a special concoction she called Cajun butter and often served it over carrots, cauliflower and even her mirlitons. It makes fresh vegetables taste even more wonderful and it’s easy to prepare. Whip up a batch and see if you don’t agree.


Lily’s Cajun Butter

Ingredients

• 1 Tbsp. olive oil

• 2 tsp. lemon juice

• 1/8 tsp. parsley

• 1/4 tsp. chili powder

• 1/4 tsp. ground black pepper

• 1/8 tsp. garlic powder

• 1/4 tsp. ground red pepper

• 2 Tbsp. butter

• 1 tsp. cornstarch

• 1/4 cup chicken broth

Preparation

Mix parsley, chili powder, black pepper, garlic powder and red pepper. Cook in hot butter and olive oil for 1 minute. Stir in cornstarch. Add chicken broth and lemon juice. Cook and stir over medium heat until thickened and bubbly. Cook and stir 2 minutes more. Serve warm over corn or vegetables.

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Velvet, 6-06-10, Rest in Peace

It’s been a bad year for dogs in the Wilder household. My Lab, Lucky, died last September. Velvet, my shepherd mix, died today after a short illness. Velvet was a wonderful dog—the big girl pictured with me on the home page of my website, this blog, and on the bio page of so many of my books. Losing a pet—like every pet owner knows— is like losing a member of the family. Rest in peace, D-Day, 2010.

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Lily's Cajun Butter - a weekend recipe

We all like butter on our corn. My ex-mother-in-law Lily used to whip up a special concoction she called Cajun butter and often served it over carrots, cauliflower and even her mirlitons. It makes fresh vegetables taste even more wonderful and it’s easy to prepare. Whip up a batch and see if you don’t agree.

Lily’s Cajun Butter

Ingredients

• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• 2 tsp. lemon juice
• 1/8 tsp. parsley
• 1/4 tsp. chili powder
• 1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
• 1/8 tsp. garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp. ground red pepper
• 2 Tbsp. butter
• 1 tsp. cornstarch
• 1/4 cup chicken broth

Preparation

Mix parsley, chili powder, black pepper, garlic powder and red pepper. Cook in hot butter and olive oil for 1 minute. Stir in cornstarch. Add chicken broth and lemon juice. Cook and stir over medium heat until thickened and bubbly. Cook and stir 2 minutes more. Serve warm over corn or vegetables.

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Vanity Press Goes Digital

A great article for all of you unagented writers out there.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704912004575253132121412028.html

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Hey, please check out my book Prairie Sunset. Yes, there is a message, but it is a fun read.

Polluted Oklahoma City

My second wife Anne died of lung cancer. I always assumed it was caused by smoking because she was a heavy smoker. An incident that happened while she was taking a chemo treatment gives me pause to think maybe smoking wasn’t the only cause.

Anne grew up in a house near SW 42 street in south Oklahoma City. I can’t remember the exact address but this is close enough. Anne and I talked as the chemo treatment coursed into her veins. A man across the way, also receiving a chemo treatment, spoke to us.

“I couldn’t help hearing where you grew up. I lived across the street from you.”

Strange as this probably sounds, another man, also receiving a chemo treatment said, “I lived right behind the two of you at the same time.”

Yes, I know it is quite a coincidence, but Anne and the two men all lived within a hundred yards of each other during the same time period and yes, all three had lung cancer.

What is the possible cause? 800,000 barrels of oil (probably much more counting all the spills and blowouts that occurred in the 1930’s) saturated into the earth and groundwater in southwest Oklahoma City. Oil clean-up ended long ago in Oklahoma City but perhaps the deadly toxins still exist. Only God knows for sure.

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Oklahoma Hailstorm Sky

Cloud pics in the Edmond sky just before the recent Oklahoma hail storm that did so much damage.

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