Posted on 02/26/2014 8:09:39 AM PST by don-o
SAVANNAH, Ga. (AP) - Paula Deen's comeback trail is leading her to the Smoky Mountains of east Tennessee.
The Savannah, Ga.-based celebrity cook announced Wednesday she's opening a new restaurant, Paula Deen's Kitchen, in Pigeon Forge, Tenn. A hub for tourists visiting the Dollywood theme park and the nearby Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Pigeon Forge draws about 10 million vacationers a year.
(Excerpt) Read more at wjhl.com ...
“Smart move.”
Agreed. We’ve never been big Paula Deen fans, but of course we supported her 100% during the recent despicable attacks.
She should draw a good crowd there.
Her recipes still seem to be quite popular on the Foodtv site. Her meatloaf came up #1 (or very close) the other day when I was searching.
Of course I found it too complicated. I’m like the guy who told Mozart his music had too many notes, I look at a recipe and say: too many ingredients.
Great - more fat asses walking around Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg.
I just wonder how many people go to Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg and say they went to the mountains, without ever venturing into the park itself. There are plenty of tourists who could use some time on the trails turning their cellulite booties into buns of steel. They should be careful, however. The bears might want to hug something besides the trees when they see the large tourists.
I am glad that I can enjoy the good things in this world without having to vet every person's offerings through a political prism. This includes athletes, actors, musicians as well as restaurant owners. If they give me what I enjoy, I use it. If not, I don't.
That’s a funny sign. It kind of sounds like something you’d see in a comedy.
My mother did the driving. She’s been there before so she is familiar with those roads. I wouldn’t have been able to anyway because her car has a stick shift and I can’t drive one of those.
honestly--same here... :)
I thought they went out of business? Every time I take the family there after Church, they're closed.
Ditto that, five years ago....I was also very relieved to get out of the Smokies and onto solid flat ground.
Deen: “Jimmuh Carter was the best president we evah hay-ad!”
Love me some white-knuckle mountain roads...some of the best anywhere can be found in East Tennessee, western North Carolina, and southwest Virginia. Switchback heaven. :-)
Try my meatloaf recipe, it’s great (or so I think anyhow) and it isn’t too complex.
3 lbs of 80% ground beef, about 3/4 of 1 small zucchini (about 6-7”) grated, 1/2 of a medium onion grated, 2 Tbsp of granulated garlic, salt and pepper to taste ( I use about 1 TBSP of each), 1 egg, about 1/2 - 3/4 cup of crackers pulverized. About 8 pieces of thinly sliced bacon.
I put the ground beef in a large bowl, throw the spices in, grate the zucchini and onion on to that, throw the egg and crackers in, then mix until everything is just combined (mixing meatloaf too much makes it tough).
I form it into a huge patty about 2 and 1/2” thick in a cast iron skillet (a 12” skillet works perfectly); leave about 1” of room around the edges and make a small indentation (about 1/4” deep and a few inches across) in the middle of the patty. Place the thinly sliced bacon on top of it and put it in a 350 degree oven. Bake it for about 1 hour. About halfway through the cooking process drain most of the fat to make life simpler later.
Top it off with your favorite sauce about 15 minutes before it is done baking. I make a chili sauce/ BBQ sauce concoction that works really well with this.
If you’re feeling really adventurous, you can melt some shredded cheese on it too.
My family loves this meatloaf.
I forgot to mention, most times I use 1/2 Tbsp or so of sea salt, and about 1/2 Tbsp of seasoned salt instead of just straight salt as I mentioned initially. I do this to add a little flavor and get some iodine in there (most sea salt isn’t iodized).
“Her recipes still seem to be quite popular on the Foodtv site. Her meatloaf came up #1 (or very close) the other day when I was searching.”
If there are too many ingredients for her meatloaf, and other recipes, maybe her next venture should be prepackaged kits for her best favored ones.
She would do better in Gatlinburg as an upscale. Pigeon Forge is a money maker but I would never stay there. No mountains and one river. Phhttt!
I copied your recipe and will give it a try.
I usually make one from a recipe from the Good Housekeeping cookbook from years ago. I use a cast iron frying pan too; I really like your idea of draining the fat part way through.
Another thing a cast iron pan is great for is soda bread, I think that’s the key to it.
That’s a good idea.
I’d eat there if I ever visited.
if they cook it in a forge, it’ll be blackened
she was cluster F’ed, so I hope it does well.
I believe you are correct WRT the soda bread. Cast iron skillets are great for even heat displacement, that is probably the key to good soda bread.
When I can’t bring myself to pay the same amount or more for thinly sliced bacon and end up using thick sliced, I par cook the bacon in the cast iron skillet and leave a little of the bacon fat in the pan prior to placing the meatloaf in there.
Last time I cubed the bacon and par cooked it, then incorporated it into the meatloaf instead of putting it on the top. It is a real pain to cut through the thick sliced cooked bacon and the tender meatloaf underneath without destroying it.
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