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I want to get in on this! {{{smonster}}}

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I'm trying to decide what to make for dinner. I've got some okra and black-eyed peas to use up, and, since those aren't really "my" food and I have no idea what to do with them, I've been checking cookbooks. "Good Time Cookin' in Cajun Country" and "Vegan Soul Kitchen" seemed like the places to start, but I haven't found anything that totally looks right for today. "Cajun Country" gave me some smothered okra that looks OK, and "Vegan Soul Kitchen" had fried okra and black-eyed-pea fritters, but all of those require ingredients that I don't have and I don't feel like going shopping. I think I might just end up making some sort of stew with the okra and the beans and some canned tomatoes and spices. It's really good okra from the farmers market, though, so I feel like I should do something more with it.

I'm a big fan of okra tossed with a mixture of flour, cornmeal, s&p (the cornmeal is not essential, but it adds a nice crunch) and fried. It's a great way to enjoy fresh okra.

Of course, the idea of the stew sounds really tasty, too.

Does frying okra alleviate the slime?

Bummer. My favorite seafood joint burnt to the ground this morning. [link] It was a real colorful bar with lots of outside seating, girls in ridiculously skimpy outfits, and tasty food and drinks. They had one of those claw machines that you see in restaurants for stuffed animals over the lobster tank. For a $2 chance they would cook and serve you the lobster if you grabbed one. I will miss the joint bunches.

I'm a big fan of okra tossed with a mixture of flour, cornmeal, s&p (the cornmeal is not essential, but it adds a nice crunch) and fried. It's a great way to enjoy fresh okra.

The "Vegan Soul Kitchen" recipe is basically that, plus a little bit of cayenne mixed in. I don't think I have cornmeal, though -- I think that was a casualty of the mouse infestation in my cabinets a few weeks ago, and I haven't bought a new package yet.

I just saw a recipe for dry braised okra yesterday....ah, here it is [link]

That sounds like a fun place, Laura, sorry to hear it burned down.

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While I was looking for cornmeal, I found some chickpea flour, and I might see what happens if I fry the okra with some pakora batter. Or I could be healthy and find something to do with them other than fry.

Oh, Hil, why would you do that :)

ARGH. So, my mother decided to go out of town for the anniversary of my dad's death (Tuesday). I was supposed to take her to the airport this morning at 6Am. Last night, she calls and tells me that her flight's been preemptively cancelled. So, she goes and cancels her hotel reservation. When the airline sent a message that the flight was back on today, she's mad at the airline. It was supposed to clear up by 10AM. Why did she cancel everything?