Pimento Cheese: My Latest Food Obsession

Pimento Cheese is an iconic food in the South. Most Southerners have idyllic childhood memories of eating Pimento Cheese Sandwiches on a hot summers day. This is one food that most people are passionate about, I've heard few negative comments about Pimento Cheese. My recent run in with the stuff at the Happy Tomato Cafe in Fernandina Beach has sparked my latest food obsession. Lucky for you, you don't have to live in the South to eat it, and it couldn't be easier to make. Ingredients:

• Cheddar cheese, shredded
• Mayonnaise (Dukes is THE only mayonnaise in my opinion!)
• Jarred roasted peppers, chopped
• Olives, chopped
• Hot Sauce (Cholula rocks my world)
• Fresh cracked black pepper

Mix it all together:

You have probably noticed that I don't give measurements. That is because you really don't need them. You can make this with any amount of cheese you have on hand, though you will probably want to use at least one 8 oz block to start with.

Put cheese in a mixing bowl and add a little bit of mayonnaise to bind. Stir, if it seems dry, just add a bit more.

Next I add the chopped pepper (pimento) and olives. For 8 oz cheese, I use about 1 whole pepper from a jar of roasted peppers. Adjust to your taste. This also goes for the amount of olives you use. I just use a few olives to enhance the flavor, but not overwhelm the taste of the cheese mixture.

Once the pimento and olives have been mixed in, add a few dashes of hot sauce and fresh cracked black pepper to taste. Mix well.

At this point, some like to process the mixture in a food processor to blend into a smooth mixture and create more of a uniform taste. I like to keep mine rugged. The good thing about Pimento Cheese is that there really is no right or wrong way of making it, add or omit what suits your taste buds. I've seen many recipes that call for chopped dill pickles or absolutely no extra add ins at all. In true Southern fashion, just have fun with it and enjoy!

What to do with Pimento Cheese?

Pimento Cheese is traditionally used as a sandwich spread. In fact, the Pimento Cheese sandwich is the official food of the Masters Golf Tournament in Augusta, Georgia. Served with a little chopped sweet onion and some watercress, this is a sandwich even non-sandwich lovers can't resist. You could also use it as a dip for chips, or even top a steak with it.

A new favorite of ours is to have it on a pulled pork sandwich. You'll have to excuse the quality of my photos (or lack there of), my priority was getting to the main event of delighting my taste buds:

The next night we had it on a burger. That was divine! Seriously divine. My one tip would be to put the cheese on the top of the bun, then add lettuce, tomato, pickle, etc. so that the cheese does not come in direct contact with the burger. I put the cheese directly on the burger and the heat from the meat melted the cheese, causing most to run off. Yum, can't wait to try that again!

Times Grill World Famous Burgers, Jacksonville

Times Grill was founded in 1994. While they claim to be world famous, I had never heard of them, but am happy that my dad suggested that we go there. With 20 burgers on the menu, it is next to impossible to chose. The most unique to me was the Cajun Sunset®. This burger is seasoned with Creole spices and is topped with a fried egg. Thankfully I don't eat eggs, so was not tempted by this heart attack on a bun. After combing the menu over and over again, narrowing it down to about 5 burgers, James and I decided to order 2 and each have half. This proved to be a great idea as we sampled two amazing burgers. My choice was the El Camino Burger™. This burger is topped with a Chorizo con Queso sauce, salsa, and jalepeños slices. It was love at first bite. I was very happy that I followed my gut instinct and chose this spicy burger.
James chose the Buffaloaded Burger. This burger is flavored with a mild buffalo BBQ sauce, blue cheese, and topped with fried onions. I can feel my arteries clogging just thinking about it. This was also an excellent choice.

My Dad and Kathy went with their usual, the Swisshroom. As the name suggests, this is topped with Swiss cheese and mushrooms. You'll notice from this photo that you can also order sweet potato fries.

I don't think they have a bad burger on their menu, however, this was a bittersweet lunch: while we were so saddened by the fact we live 4 hours from Jacksonville and Time Grill, we were slightly relieved as this tempting place would be too hard to stay away from. It will be something to look forward to on our next trip to Jacksonville.

Culinary Creations: Jamaican Jerk Pork Burgers

I love Jamaican Jerk anything, and as the weather is warming up again, it's time to dust off the BBQ and come up with a few new tropical recipes. I suppose this really isn't a recipe, per se, as more of how I seasoned ground pork and buns.

I started with 1 pound of ground pork, added a healthy dose of Jamaican Jerk seasoning, and made 2 burgers. Yes, we are pigs. To be fair, we did only have breakfast that day, and weren't serving anything else with the burgers. OK, back on track - and cooked on medium heat about 5-7 minutes each side.
While this burgers were cooking, I "made" a sauce for the buns. In a small bowl, I combined about 2 tablespoons of Dukes mayonnaise with 1 tablespoon of HP Curry Sauce. Make this to taste, you could add more or less of whichever to your liking. I also added a dash or two of the Jerk seasoning for a little heat.

Next I sliced the buns, buttered, and then toasted under my broiler.

Once everything was ready, I slathered the sauce on the buns, added a thick slice of sharp Cheddar cheese, dill pickles, lettuce and sliced herbed yellow tomatoes*.

These are by no means the most appetizing photos I've ever taken as I was in more "experimental" mode, but the results were fantastic. They were so full of flavor and will definitely become part of my regular "recipe box".

* In my opinion, the lower acidity of the yellow tomato complimented the spiciness of the jerk seasoning better than a red tomato. Red tomato would work, but as I was also having dill pickle slices, it was yet another reason to go with the more mellow option. After slicing, I sprinkled with sea salt, basil, rosemary, and thyme. If you wanted to add a little more heat to your burger (they had a slight kick but were by no means hot) you could also sprinkle with dried red pepper flakes or hot sauce.

Places I Eat: The Sandbar, Anna Maria Island

After having a picnic, the Sandbar on Anna Maria Island is my second favorite place to eat on the beach. The restaurant opened in 1913, and I've been going since I was a little girl. This was the first place I was allowed to sit at a table sans parents, making me feel like such an adult. I must have been about 9 or 10 when my friend and I were allowed our own table; truth be told it was probably as much of a break from the adults to be rid of us as it was for us to be rid of them.

You can eat inside, but the main attraction is the outside seating deck and the tables that are right on the beach. James and I went one night in early November. It was freakishly cold that night, but with the outside heaters we decided to brave the cold to enjoy the sunset. The outside area has such a great relaxed atmosphere with live music. There was a wedding at their reception pavilion that night, so we were "treated" to their music instead of our own.The Sandbar have a lovely menu of tropical drinks, perfect for a hot sunny day. My favorite is the Passion Fruit Pina Colada, but I passed as it was too cold that night for a frozen drink. James stayed true to his Sandbar staple, a Bahama Mama. The Sandbar has two different menus: a Deck Menu and an Inside Menu. As I don't eat seafood, this can prove to be a bit of a challenge. They have an amazing Shrimp salad that I'm able to get with blackened or jerk chicken that is sprinkled with Gorgonzola cheese, fresh mango, and has a passion fruit dressing. Until recently, it had been added to the Deck Menu, but as it was so cold that night, I wasn't in the mood for salad. Once it gets warmer it's back to pleading with my server to have something on the Inside Menu.

We had gotten there a little early for the sunset so decided to have a starter. I had their house salad (also with mango and passion fruit dressing) and James opted for a more sensible cup of soup. We both opted for the Buffalo Burger with Swiss, Mushrooms, and Sauteed Onions as our main course. There is something about a burger on the beach that you just can't beat. It also takes be back to my childhood when it was about the only non-seafood option. The burgers there are huge, and when paired with fries, can definitely be shared by two, which is what we'll do the next time we get a burger there.

Sitting in the cold was completely worthwhile for a view like this... Another perk of eating outside before sunset is that your server takes your guess of what time you think the sun will disappear into the gulf. Whoever gets the closest guess to the actual time wins a bottle of sparkling wine. We've yet to win, but have come pretty close. Whether your looking for somewhere to unwind after a stressful weekday or to have a relaxing dinner on the weekend, The Sandbar is definitely a lovely place to be.