Author: Debbi Covington

Our Best Supporting Snacks   Roll out the red carpet! The 7th annual Beaufort International Film Festival is here — and that means you’ll be catching up on all of the nominated flicks leading up to the Awards Ceremony on Saturday night. Add a little gourmet delight to your movie experience with some tasty recipe ideas!

  It’s gotten almost comical. Friends who come to our house for dinner or a party know not to dare eat anything until I’ve taken a photograph! I even carry a small camera in the pocket of my chef’s jacket at catering events to snap quick pictures of the food we’re serving before it’s scarfed up by hungry party guests.

I ‘ve recently become a partner with DIY Weddings Magazine and am now writing a wedding catering advice column 4 times a year. This issue of Lowcountry Weekly features my first column originally published in December 2012 along with food photography by the incomparable Susan DeLoach!

Blow the horns, throw the confetti and pop the cork on 2013 in sparkling style! A time for reflection as well as for reveling, the turning of the year provides an opportunity to look back with satisfaction and ahead with hope. 

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas! How can you tell? Christmas trees are popping up everywhere! This year, why don’t you invite the gang over for a Tree Trimming Party?! It’s a great way to kick off the holiday season!

Cooking takes on special joy during the Christmas season! Cocktail parties, intimate dinners, casual gatherings and cookie exchanges all call for the finest holiday foods.  Christmas is also a time for remembering special neighbors, co-workers and friends with tasty homemade treats from your kitchen. 

“Bless us O Lord and make us more true and thankful for these and all our many blessings. We ask these prayers in Christ’s name. Amen.” This is the prayer that my husband Vince has said over our evening meal for the past twenty-one years of our marriage. This Thanksgiving season, while we break bread with our family and friends, let’s take the time to be truly thankful for all of our many blessings.

A few issues ago, I mentioned that I had been testing some new cauliflower dishes. I’m tickled pink with the number of people who have stopped me in the grocery store or at catering events to ask me when I was going to share some of those recipes. This is the week!

Nothing compares with the aroma of freshly baked bread! All of this week’s recipes are for easy-to-prepare breads and muffins that are best when served warm. Some of my favorite serving suggestions include:  Cheesy Spinach Muffins with tomato soup, Praline Muffins and Cranberry Butter with a green salad, Herbed Parmesan Biscuits with spaghetti or pasta, Sour Cream Muffins with chicken salad, Peach Poppy Seed Muffins with spinach quiche, Black-Eyed Pea Cornbread with pork chops, and Miniature Buttermilk Biscuits with baked salmon. Happy baking!

Eggplant is in season and it’s quite abundant at all of the farmers’ markets. This time of year they’re plump and firm and perfect! The eggplant (aka aubergine) is a member of the nightshade family. They’re very filling, supply few calories and contain virtually no fat. Their meaty texture makes eggplant a wonderful vegetarian main-dish choice.