AHOY, MATEY!

The Pirates' House is a historic restaurant and tavern established in 1753 in downtown Savannah. It is the oldest standing building in the state of Georgia. The restaurant is one of Savannah's most popular tourist attractions.  The Pirates' House becomes a Mystery Dinner Theatre and plays host to the Savannah Community Theatre on Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights at 7:30.  It has underground tunnels that you can see in the restaurant. And they say it’s haunted!  

Anyway …Steve and I love all things Pirate!  The ride at Disney World, the trilogy of movies and when we ran the Holiday Auto Theatre in Hamilton, Ohio and Pirates of the Carribean was playing, Steve got so into it that he bought a Pirate costume to wear on those nights.  Gosh, it was fun!  Well since today is Captain Brossart’s birthday, I thought I’d do my blog up right just for him today.

There are two Pirates House Cookbooks!  I have the older one and plan to order the new one very soon.

I can’t claim to reproduce their fine cuisine at The Pirates House, but I can share a knock-off of a few of their specialties.  So welcome to the Captain’s Galley and enjoy your meal!

SHRIMP PARMESAN

1/3 cup olive oil

1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 tablespoon brown sugar

2 teaspoons soy sauce

1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes, or more, to taste

1 pound medium shrimp, peeled and deveined

8 ounces penne

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1 green onion, thinly sliced

In a medium bowl, whisk together olive oil, Parmesan, garlic, brown sugar, soy sauce and red pepper flakes. In a gallon size Ziploc bag or large bowl, combine shrimp and olive oil mixture; marinate for at least 30 minutes to overnight, turning the bag occasionally.

In large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta according to package instructions; drain well.

Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Add shrimp and sauce mixture and cook, stirring occasionally, until pink, about 2 minutes. Stir in pasta and gently toss to combine; season with salt and pepper, to taste. ]

Serve immediately, garnished with Parmesan and green onions, if desired.

HONEY PECAN GLAZED FRIED CHICKEN

FRIED CHICKEN

3 lb of chicken pieces (thats about 8 peices of thighs and legs)

4 c buttermilk

2 eggs lightly beaten

2 c self rising flour

1-1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/4 tsp black pepper

oil for frying

GLAZE

3/4 c honey

2 stick (1 cup) butter

1/2 c pecans, coarsly chopped

Wash the chicken and pat dry. Place the buttermilk and eggs in a 9x13 baking dish and mix. Place the chicken into the buttermilk dish. With a spoon cover the tops of chicken with the buttermilk mixture. Set out for at least an hour flipping the chicken once after 30 min. You can also leave this in the fridge covered over night too for extra flavor and tenderness.

Combine all the dry ingredients together in a baking dish. Dredge the chicken in the flour mixture and fry in the fryer for 12-14 minutes or deep skillet for 6-7 minutes on each side at 350 without crowding.

Meanwhile while chicken is frying, melt the butter in a small sauce pan over med-heat . Pour in the honey and mix together with the butter. Place the pecans in the mix and bring to a boil on med heat and then quickly reduce to a simmer on low for 8-10 minutes mixing occasionally. Keep an eye on this because you don't want it to caramelize. Take off stove and set aside till all chicken is done frying.

 When chicken is done frying drain it on a paper towel lined plate. Transfer drained chicken onto a serving platter and drizzle the honey pecan glaze all over the chicken.

CRAB MELT SANDWICH

1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened

1 cup cooked crabmeat

1 clove garlic, chopped

Salt and pepper to taste

 hot pepper sauce to taste

4 thick slices Italian bread, cut in half

1 1/2 cups shredded Swiss cheese

1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley for garnish

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.  Beat the cream cheese in a medium bowl until fluffy. Mix in crab, garlic, salt, pepper and hot sauce. Spread onto bread slices and top with Swiss cheese. Place on a baking sheet.

Bake for 10 to 15 minutes in the preheated oven, until the cheese has melted and browned slightly. Sprinkle with parsley, and serve.  (Makes 4)

(Sorry, I just couldn’t resist posting another picture of my FAVORITE Pirate, 

                                                Johnny Depp/aka Capt. Jack Sparrow!)