Easy Entertaining

Today, y'all, it's all about fresh finger foods and easy entertaining when my friend James Farmer stops by

Sticking better and better. First, we're putting a garden fresh spin on a steak sandwich with my flank steak lettuce wraps

That lettuce wrap is so fresh and delicious. Then it's on to a cocktail party classic with my bacon stuffed mushrooms

It's real good. And James shows me how he entertains with his rosemary pork tenderloin

Miss Paula, would you butter my biscuit, please? Oh, butter your biscuit. And we wrap this party up with my flaky shrimp and cheese phyllo triangles

It's dangerous. I could eat my weight in those. Mm-hmm. So y'all come on in and let James and I show you just how easy entertaining can be

Ha, ha, ha! Hey, Miss Paula

Oh, my gosh, James. I've been in here waiting. In fact, I was fixing to do a job that I was going to give to you

Honey, my ears were burning, and I've got a little farmer for your table, hon

Y'all, this is James Farmer. See you, Carol. So good to see you

Honey, glad to be here. You still look great. Well, I brought a little bit of things from the garden

Rosemary tree. My favorite, my favorite. And you brought more books. I brought some more books

Oh, my gosh. Now, these must be for Brandon. These are for Brandon and anyone else in the Dean family that doesn't have them

Good. Well, I'm so excited. We're just going to talk about cocktail parties today

Because, you know, sometimes when you're doing a party, you'll rack your brain, James, and you think

well, you know what? What can I do that's different? What can I do that's going to be easy on me as the cook

Well, the first thing I was going to get started on was a sesame onion marinated flank steak

Yum, yum. And then I thought we could slice it up and make lettuce wraps

Love it. All right, so let's come on down here. And what I'd like for you to do is zest one lime for me

And I need the juice of one lime. Yes, ma'am. And while you're doing that, I'm going to chop these onions

And I'm probably, you know, in a marinade, there's no... There's no real measurement

No. You know, you just throw it in there and see how it comes together. Right. So tell me what you've been up to since I saw you last

Well, you know, these wild book tours that I've been on, they've taken me here and there

But you know what I love? No matter where I go, people want to know about food, and they want to know about Mimi, my grandmother

They want to know about the family and what I've got growing in my garden. So, honey, I just tell them

All right. Tell me about your Mimi. Mimi is just one of my favorite people in the whole world

As Mimi is supposed to be. Absolutely. Well, Mimi told me that we eat with our eyes first

And so no matter what we do, we've got to make it pretty

Now, I'm going to just put my onion over in here. Yes, ma'am. Then I'm going to measure out five tablespoons of soy sauce. Perfect

Three teaspoons of the rice vinegar. three tablespoons of brown sugar, about a half a teaspoon of red pepper flakes

two teaspoons of the sesame oil, and a tablespoon of garlic. All right, can we whisk that up for you

Please, please. All right. And we are going to take our steak

and we're going to put it in a little baggie. All right. And this is just a little flank steak

Now, you know I grew up on a cattle farm, so steak's close to home. Did you? I did, in Hawkinsville

We even had a buffalo. Uh-uh. His name is Marvin. He would get out, and he'd walk into our swimming pool

All right, so you want to have about half of this in here? About half of it. All right, is that good? That's good

All right, perfect. Because we're going to save the rest of that for dipping sauce. Good stuff

You know, and I like to kind of turn mine, James. Oh, yeah

So come on down here, and if you would, I need about a fourth of a cup of onion

I'm going to make us a stuffed mushroom. And while you're doing that, I'm going to just pop the caps out of these mushrooms so we can stuff them

So, now I want to hear more about you, Mimi. Well, she is just a hoot and a half

Now, how old is she? Mimi will be 80 in February. Oh, my God. All right, Miss Paula, you ready for this

My great-grandmother, my grandmother, and my mother, all three generations have the same birthday

Can you believe it? Come on. February 24th. No. Yeah. You want about a fourth cup, you said

Yes. All right, perfect. All right, now I've got us a little bacon down here

Yum. You want to put the bacon in and let them cook with onions? Yes, let's do that. Let's do that

Love it, love it. Just about five or six strips. All right, Lulu is marking it something

Honey, the bacon's not ready. When it's ready, I'll give you a little piece. Will you behave? What I think is hilarious is it wasn't until the bacon hit this pan that she can walk in here

Just lift that off because that nice and crisp All right Love it All right Now to this we going to add a couple of tablespoons of the bourbon

And if you would do that for me. One. Whoa! You measure like a... Whoa

Honey, you know... You measure like a college student. I grew up bad

This is not going to make up for lost time. All right

So we're going to let that just cook off. All right. And then I got another surprise to add to that, James

A little cream cheese. Ooh, honey, bring it on. Bring it on. All right

This is so good. Uh-oh. I'm going to take one for the home team

I see bacon. Uh-oh. Send me your dry clean bill. Yum. I like your apron, Miss Paula

Thank you, darling. Okay, James, just add our bacon. James, this actually looks a little thin to me

so why don't we add some bread? I love some breadcrumbs. About a fourth of a cup

A little bit of salt. Yes. A little bit of pepper. I think that'll be perfect

All right, I think I'm safe now to take off my apron. All right. All right, so let's start stuffing these shrooms

Yes, ma'am. All right, so James, we're going to put this in a 400-degree oven for about 25, 35 minutes

We'll keep an eye on them. All right. And then don't you think the last few minutes put the Parmesan cheese so it won't get, like, hard

I'll put these in. Y'all don't go anywhere, because I'm going to get some more info out of James

Oh, brother. Coming up, James and I whip up a marinade for his simple and savory rosemary pork tenderloin

You can count on me to massage your meat. Savannah women treat you right

And later, my shrimp and cheese filo triangles are perfect for any party, y'all

Aren't they good? They are so good. Hey, y'all

I'm in the kitchen today with my buddy James Farmer, and we're just doing small bite appetizers

James, if you would grab our mushrooms out of there, I don't want them to overcook

So sit them up here, and we're going to sprinkle a little Parmesan cheese on each of them

Yes, ma'am. And then we'll run them back in the oven for a second. While we're waiting on those, I want to show you something

Y'all, a couple of years ago, my friend Donna Foltz said, Paula, I want to teach you how to watercolor

So I said, okay, Donna, but I cannot draw a stick, man

I promise you I can't do it. You never know what is inside of you

So I am encouraging y'all all to get out there. I love it

And try to express yourself. Find out, you know, what's living inside of you

I love it. So you want to check those? I'll get those and you get the paint. So anyway, yeah, I want to show you my latest yum

Perfect. So Kari, you know, is. Your niece, right. My niece is pregnant with her first child, which is a little boy

And she said, Aunt Paula, I want to have something special in his room from you

So. That's Jemima. Yeah, that's Puddle Duck, baby. Puddle Duck. Got it

Jemima Puddle Duck. Jemima Puddle Duck. She was one of my favorites. That is absolutely gorgeous

Thank you. So who else do you have? Kitty Cat. Yes. Can't think of his name

I can't remember his name. Not Felix, is it? Well, you have done a fantastic job

Thank you. Look at you, from one palate to another. Yes. So I just wanted to share that with you because I'm so tickled

That is so special. I'm honored. I'm honored. Oh, well, listen, I'm honored for you to be here

and you are so talented. Thank you. So take a bite

Here's to you and Mimi and the rest of the family. I'm just paul. It's delicious

Mmm. You know, the breadcrumb and the parmesan, that little crunch. Yum. Well, one of my favorite

things is a port tenderloin. And I love to use rosemary and parsley. Okay

If you would just strip some rosemary leaves off the stem, and then just roughly chop it

And then about a quarter cup of chopped parsley. I don't measure. I eyeball

for a marinade. So, three tablespoons of coarse-grained mustard, about a tablespoon of dry

mustard, and I'm going to take some olive oil and some wine. And I love

to use red wine vinegar. A little bit of salt and pepper

Gotta have salt and pepper. A little salt. Here's our pepper. And then

I'm going to juice a lemon and put a little bit of zest in it as well. All right, so your theory is from, like, garden to table

Exactly. Well, farmer to table, if you don't mind. No, I don't mind. Keep me straight, honey

We have a bumper sticker at home that says... May I mix this in there? I wish you would Yes ma And it says if you eaten today hug a farmer I seen that Is that not so fun Yes But I think that garden living is the best mantra for life

Whether it's a sprig of mint in your tea, whatever it is, the garden needs to enrich

your life somehow daily. And how is it? Mm. Is it good

I'm not familiar with this, so you taste it. All right. Tastes delicious to me, but

I think I got too much zest in there. What I would do is add... But you could always add a little sugar to it

Just a little pinch. Just a little pinch. But I think the pork's naturally sweet

Oh, gosh. Taste sugar, and look where she goes. Miss Paula, bring me some sugar

Just a pinch. And you know what Mimi told me about cooking? What? It's always testing and trying

Sounds like a very, very smart woman. She is. She's a fine lady

See what this did. Yes. That's it. That's all it needed. Yes

That's all it needed. Perfect. All right. Thanks for bringing me some sugar. All right, garlic

We'll add a tablespoon and just give it a whisk, James. If you'll get out the pork tenderloins, I've got a couple pork tenderloins

Each one's about a pound. So now what are we going to do with this pork

We're going to let it marinate for a while. If you've got overnight, super. If you've just got an hour, that's fine, too

Okay, it's like our flank steak. It's like our flank steak. We're going to massage it in there a little bit

Yes. You can count on me to massage your meat. Oh, well, thank you

Savannah women treat you right. Southern woman's good woman. That's right, that's right

We're going to throw that back in the fridge, but after we grill it, we're going to slice it into medallions

Uh-huh. And we're going to put it on top of a toasted buttermilk biscuit. I'm in, honey

All right. It's time for our flake steak. All right. I think that it's time to get this

You want to stick that in the sink? Yes. All right. Now, we're probably going to have a lot of smoke here, y'all, because remember, we marinated this in brown sugar

Brown sugar. There's some oil in there, so. Yum. Yum, yum, yum

There's the smoke, I promise you. There it is. I love it

Now, remember, we're going to slice this on the bias, and we're going to make wonderful lettuce wraps out of this, so y'all don't go anywhere

It's getting better and better. Coming up, we're putting together our delicious flank steak lettuce wraps

That lettuce wrap is so fresh and delicious. And later, we finish our party menu with our pork tenderloin sandwiches

Is it good? It's wonderful. So, James, we're getting us some delicious little appetizers going here

So this is our flank steak. Beautiful. While I'm slicing that, you are going to just sear off that pork tenderloin, right

I am. I am. I'm going to put a little bit of butter for flavor and oil for temperature. I'm just going to give my hands a quick rinse

Look who just showed up. I tell you, we put meat in the pan and Lulu's here. Put meat in the pan and Lulu's in

So we're going to get this crusted up, and it takes about two or three minutes each side of the tenderloin

While this first side is getting crispy, I'm going to chop up some root vegetables

And I'm going to start putting together some of our lettuce wraps, y'all

It's pretty. I have carrots. I've got some bean sprouts. I've got some water chestnuts for a crunch

I've got some green onion. All right, now remember that marinade that we had for our flank steak

We reserved some. We reserved half. Perfect. So I used that to just drizzle over our lettuce wraps

Miss Paula, this is guarding the table right here. It absolutely is

Look at that. Have one. Have one, my dear. I will have one. Mmm. Mmm

That's why it's so fresh. I love the soy sauce. And you know, I think if you'd put it on bread

you'd have lost some of that essence. You would have. That lettuce wrap is so fresh and delicious. Mmm

Yum. Thank you. Well, I've got this seared and going, so I'm just gonna throw it in the oven. Okay

375 for about 25 minutes. Okay. While you're doing that, I'm gonna get started on our next dish, y'all

which is a shrimp dill phyllo triangle. Now, I'm gonna start with a half a pound of shrimp

And I'm just going to mince these up. And this shrimp is already cooked, James

And we're going to need a couple of tablespoons of dill. We're going to add some green onions

About a fourth of a cup. You can crack me an egg and beat it

All right. We're going to add one eight-ounce package of cream cheese

Like a half a cup of Fontina Fontina Fontina All right I had the worst time today All right I just mutilate the English language Well honey we got to talk about one thing

What? That nut that falls from the tree in the fall. Yes. What do you say

That's pecan. See, I say pecan. How's that? I don't know. We're both from Georgia

All I know is that... But, you know, I went straight to the authority one day

This person that's just dear to me that I just love, Mr. Jimmy

It's one of Granady's friends. Mr. Jimmy Carter. He's one of your..

He's one of my Granady's friends. I thank the world of him. One time I was down there visiting him, and I asked him, I said, now, Mr. Jimmy, you say pecan

Now, how did that be? We're raised 35 miles apart. He said, well, Paula, there's four correct pronunciations

That's amazing. Four. All right, what are they? Let me hear them. All right, pecan, pecan, pecan

Just depends on, you know, how your family said it. How they said it

All right. All right, what's next? We've got this all mixed up. If you would just mix that up real, real good

Yes, ma'am. So I'm going to use phyllo, y'all, that I bought from the grocery store in the freezer section

So we're just going to brush these with butter, y'all. And we're going to stack about four sheets

Now we're going to cut this into four strips. I'm going to start in the center

Yes, ma'am. And we'll just drop a tablespoon of filling right on our dough

I'm going to fold that just like that. I'm not doing as pretty as you

No, you're perfect. All right, so we're going to put these in the oven

400 for about 12 to 15 minutes. Okay. Yum, yum, yum. All right

Perfect. Tell you what, if you hand that to me, I'll... Cannot wait

Cannot wait. Me neither. We're fixing to bring this party home. Let's do it, honey. So y'all don't go anywhere

We'll be right back. Here, waiting on you. Coming up, these buttermilk biscuits are just the ticket, y'all

for our open-faced pork tenderloin sandwiches. My gosh, this biscuit with the pork tenderloin

Oh, honey. All right, James

I'm fixing to take out the second batch of our shrimpy veal phyllo triangles

Oh, yummy. And, gosh, this worked out perfect. I already had these biscuits ready

They're perfect. They're perfect for toasting. We're going to toast them. There's nothing like a split toasted biscuit

That's right. Well, Miss Paula, I've waited a long time to say this, but Miss Paula, would you butter my biscuit, please

I will butter your biscuit, honey. Thank you so much. Thank you

You want to try a bite? Yeah, well, you know I do. Just a little bite right here just for you

Yes. Uh-oh, and here comes Lulu. Uh-huh, Lulu. We started carving, and look who's here

Yes. You want a treat, Lulu? Look at her. Look. Look at her

You want a treat? Down. Okay. She didn't even wait for me to say roll over

She was there. She was there. Oh, James. Is it good? Yes

Lulu and I think it's wonderful. Look at that. Is that not the most beautiful thing you've ever seen? Yes

I'm going to get a little spoon. I'm going to put a little bit of the juice from the pan. Oh, yes

So, James, come on over, honey, and sit down. Oh, thank you

You're so welcome, my dear. I just love, love, love a Southern gentleman

Well, Southern gentlemen love Southern ladies. We have had some good things today

Yes, ma'am. And I have had so much fun with you today. Thank you, Ms. Paula

So let's dig in. Let's dig in. All right. I'm going to pick up one of these feelo-dose

Mmm. Mmm. This is so good. Aren't they good? They are so good

Mmm. Absolutely love it. It's dangerous. I could eat my weight in those. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm

I think it's just wonderful. And, oh, my gosh, this biscuit with the pork tenderloin

Oh, honey. Mm-hmm. And I love it open-faced. I do, too. There's nothing better

Mm-hmm. Some people just like that biscuit top, but the bottom's just as good when you toast it

I love it. I love every bite. And I love how the garden and the land is a part of each bite

Yes. Yes. Everything that we eat comes from that ground, doesn't it

It has to grow. It started somewhere. And thank God for the farmers. Absolutely

And for all you farmers out there, I love y'all. Thank y'all for supplying us with great things. Absolutely

And I look forward to you coming back. I can't wait. I can't wait

I think you feel the same way that I feel. I don't want anything going out there but love and best dishes from my kitchen to yours

Thank you, James. Thanks for following