One of my family’s newer traditions is to spend Christmas at the family beach house in Fripp Island, South Carolina. My parents, brother and his wife, and my little family have all packed into the house and it’s been so much fun creating new memories in one of our favorite places on earth. It’s not really warm enough to swim but we still have such a wonderful time watching the waves crash on the beach, riding bikes and sitting around the chiminea at night. Our house is simple and we don’t have tv or internet, so we love to cook up yummy dishes and spend our time chatting and laughing together on the screened porch as a family. Because Fripp Island is in the Lowcountry of South Carolina we always end up eating a delicious meal of Lowcountry boil (also known as Frogmore Stew) and peach cobbler. (We even served this at our rehearsal dinner we love it so much. It’s such a wonderful meal to feed a crowd!) Since we’re spending Christmas in Hawaii this year we’ve decided to bring our Lowcountry boil tradition to the Pacific. We always use the recipe that is provided at Gay Fish Company, a little seafood market on Saint Helena Island that is credited with creating the dish (and also the location where the shrimping portion of Forrest Gump is filmed) and it’s always delicious. Here is a link to their recipe. Part of the fun of this dish is peeling the shrimp as you eat them, but today I’m using shrimp that have already been peeled because that’s all they had at Target and I didn’t have time to go anywhere else. It’s always best if you use fresh though!
I’m using my MacKenzie-ChildsCourtly Check enamel 7 quart stock pot for the dish and I love how fun the black and white checkered print is. The 7 quart size is perfect for the meal if you aren’t feeding a huge crowd. Funny story about MacKenzie-Childs, when I was a little girl my family went to NYC and West Point for my dad’s 20 year reunion. When we were in the city my mom and I went into the MacKenzie-Childs store and I have vivid memories of wandering the shop and soaking in all the whimsical patterns! Funny what sticks in your head over 20 years later.
For the peach cobbler it’s best to use fresh peaches but we’re out here in Hawaii and it’s winter so I’m using frozen peaches instead. Not quite as fresh but still delicious, especially with some vanilla ice cream. I cooked it in my MacKenzie-ChildsCourtly Check enamel baking pan which is the perfect size for cobblers, coffeecakes and small casseroles. Here is a great peach cobbler recipe (I always trust Southern Living for southern recipes. They’re the best!).
These MacKenzie-Childs cookware pieces are such a fun and whimsical addition to any cook’s kitchen, and their other home items are wonderful too. Be sure to check out my Mommy Monday girls to see how they incorporate MacKenzie-Childs pieces into their holiday season:
