Cherry limeade, made with lemon-lime soda, cherry syrup, a splash of maraschino cherry juice, and fresh squeezed lime juice, is a refreshing and delicious summer drink.

Cherry Limeade

After that nice little cool spell we had, it sure has warmed up here in a hurry on the Coast. And with all that rain, it's left behind a lot of humidity. Already. Perfect weather for one or three of these. The homemade sno-cone syrup I shared recently is what I use to make these, and while I am not even going to try and say that this is a copycat of the beloved Sonic cherry limeade, personally, I like mine better. You can, of course, use any commercial syrup and I've left a few suggestions in the recipe.

Crushed ice is the key!

Lady cream peas, seasoned with smoked meat, onion, garlic and fresh herbs, served with a side of buttermilk sour cream cornbread and pictured here, with broiled chicken.

Southern-Style Lady Cream Peas

Even though white beans and red beans and rice are common weekly features here in the Deep South, I love beans of all kinds, and all I need is a good rainy day like we had yesterday to have an excuse to make some, no matter the temperature outside. Most often served as a side dish to other foods, southern peas are another love of mine, and I absolutely adore Lady Cream Peas for their buttery flavor and super creamy texture.

Known as field peas, cowpeas, and simply southern peas - though calling them peas is a bit of a misnomer, since they are all actually beans - they are identifiable by their small size and by the seed-eye you'll find on them, that tiny little familiar spot most of us immediately recognize from black-eyed peas the most.

A quick, easy and delicious no-cook pizza sauce made with a tomato paste base and a nice blend of seasonings and herbs.

Easy Homemade No Cook Pizza Sauce

We had homemade pizza Friday and of course I used my favorite thin and crispy crust recipe.

I have nothing against home delivery of pizza, and even deli or frozen pizza - not one iota. We enjoy them all ourselves at one time or another, but this dough comes together so quick and easy that you can literally be eating pizza faster than you can run to the store or call and get one delivered to your door y'all.

It's a just-right dough too and hands-down the best thin crust to suit my needs. I hope you'll try it sometime!

American Shepherd's Pie, known elsewhere around the world as Cottage Pie, is a mixture of ground beef and vegetables, topped with mashed potatoes and cheese and a great way to use up leftovers.

American Shepherd's Pie

What a gorgeous few days it has been down here in South Mississippi, and while it's a tiny bit cooler for a couple of days, I'm gonna sneak this Shepherd's Pie in real quick while I can. I actually made it a couple weeks back when I shared it with a few folks who were asking for my recipe, but then it got kinda hot early, so I held off on sharing it here on the site.

Shepherd's Pie is really not much more than a savory baked meat mince and vegetable casserole topped with potatoes, often using leftovers. It's a little like a beef pot pie made with ground beef instead of roast meat.

Fresh Hot Corn on the Cob in (about) 4 minutes, No Husking, No Silks

This super easy method of steaming corn uses un-husked corn, cooked in your microwave, and results in a clean cob with no silk left behind, and corn that is tender-crisp and ready to eat!

Microwave Steamed Corn

Let me repeat that.

Fresh, steamed, hot corn on the cob, ready to eat, with no, that's ZERO husking at all, about 4 minutes per ear (depending on your microwave), and you do not have to deal with those pesky silks that are impossible to get off!

You will have a clean cob with no work, and no silks. Okay... you might find like one single stray silk that stuck to the cob, but that will be about it. Seriously.

I know!

Baby back ribs, rubbed with a mixture of spices and herbs, brushed with your favorite barbecue sauce, and cooked to perfection - in your crockpot! Pictured here with creamed corn and a simple summer salad of cucumber, onion and tomato.

Slow Cooker Baby Back Ribs

I love pork ribs no matter how you make them. Smoked from my favorite BBQ joint, baked in the oven and fall off the bone, full out grilled from start to finish or started in the oven and finished on the grill.

Hang around long enough and I'll probably do a boiled version (which, by the way, I have done before many, many years ago), which I know, kinda makes some of y'all crazy when that word boiled is associated with a rib of any kind.

And wait, if that's not shocking enough, are y'all sitting down?

 

   Homemade snowball syrup is as easy as a simple syrup made from boiled sugar and water and a package of your favorite flavor of unsweetened, powdered Kool-Aid mix.

Homemade Sno-Cone Syrup

It's April as I'm writing this so yes, I know it's not exactly summer quite yet, but we're kinda stuck with that in-between wacky weather season right now. For instance, yesterday it was so hot and humid here it might as well have been mid-summer. At the same time, I heard the weatherman say nighttime temperatures are forecast to drop into the mid-40s later this week, somewhere around here in South Mississippi.

So, I'm vacillating between wanting beans and soup and comfort food casseroles and, well... things like summer drinks and ice cream. You might already know about this easy "recipe," or maybe you don't, but I'm actually posting it today because I needed to make up a syrup for another recipe that's coming soon, so sno-cones are on the menu today!

Lemonade Icebox Pie made with sweetened condensed milk, whipped topping, fresh lemon juice and zest, gets an extra tangy boost from the addition of a lemonade powdered drink mix.

Lemonade Icebox Pie

The old fashioned version of lemon icebox pie used raw egg yolks in the filling.

I've included that version in the cook's notes at the bottom of the recipe for those of us who are still adventurous enough to make it. It is believed that the combination of the acids with the eggs in the pie filling "cook" the eggs sufficiently, but scientifically I have no idea if there is any truth to that.

I can tell you that many of us southerners love the egg version and have lived on to tell about it, but if you're concerned about the consumption of raw eggs, you can still have that creamy taste with a few shortcuts in the form of this refrigerator pie, which is also mighty tasty.

A delicious potato casserole, using both leftover vegetables and ham, baked in a creamy cheese sauce.

Ham and Potatoes au Gratin Casserole

If you have leftover ham and vegetables to use, this is a great potato casserole dish to repurpose those into a whole new and delicious meal. All you need to add is a nice side salad, some rolls and iced tea, and you've got a great meal out of those leftovers.

Marinated Vegetable Salad

A classic vegetable salad of corn, green beans, and peas, marinated in a sweet and sour vinegar and sugar dressing.

Marinated Vegetable Salad

From Fire 'n Ice Salad, to pickles and coleslaw, to cucumber salads and creamed cucumbers, green beans to cocktails and everything in between, I'm sure a sucker for anything sweet and sour.

I just love the combination of flavors. This marinated vegetable salad, often known as "shoepeg" salad, is no exception, and it's another one of those 70s throwbacks for me - might even be older than that to be honest, but that's my first memories of it.