Fresh From The Sea

So, I have a secret I kept from all of you (and rather well I might add). We spent the last 2 weeks on the beach in Florida! That's right. Every time I blogged I was doing so from the comfort of my lounge chair by the pool or on the beach. Okay, maybe I was in the condo while blogging, but I was watching the waves roll in as I did. We vacationed at our annual spot, New Smyrna Beach and it was AMAZING as usual. After everything we've been through these past few months, it was absolutely wonderful to kick back, relax and reconnect as a family. Please don't be insulted I kept this from all of you, it's nothing personal. For safety reasons, we never advertise we aren't home:) But I assure you all the things I said I cooked while I away, I truly did. That's the great thing about staying in a family condo, I can cook, we can eat favorite dishes and we can save money! This dish happened very last minute. See, my boys love to fish in Fl (or anywhere) and until this trip, they have never caught anything from the surf. But this year? They hauled them in ! 17 fish were their take and they could have probably caught more if it weren't for the storm rolling in. Alex was SO excited. He was jumping up and down and squealing w/ each that got put in the cooler. These were small "stripers" as they are called down there- a miniature striped bass. So they looked to me to decide what we were going to do w/ them. Not very often are we lucky enough to catch fish in the morning and have them that evening for supper--can't get much fresher than that! Well, they were just calling out to me to be beer battered, fried and served w/ my signature tartar sauce! Now I'm not the hugest fish fan (that tends to happen when your dad fishes ALL the time when you're young and you have to eat it A LOT) but I have to admit, these were SO good. They reminded me a lot of Long John Silver's fish, which I love and all 3 of us were stuffed we ate so many! We're home now, and already whining b/c there is no beach in our backyard and the sun isn't quite the same. Already counting the days until next year....

Beer Batter  Adapted from Epicurious

1/3 c. flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/3 c. flat beer (I actually poured mine from the bottle w/o letting it go flat)
vegetable oil for frying ( I used Safflower)
*I double this for the amount of fish we had*

Pat fish dry w/ paper towels. Whisk flour, salt and pepper in a large bowl to combine. Whisk in beer. Stir well until no clumps. Heat 1/2 inch oil in pan to 350. Fry fish about 4 minutes on each side until golden. Keep fish separated. Fry in batches and let oil come back up to temp in between. Drain on paper towels and keep warm until serving.

Shared on Around My Family Table July 7, 2011

Catch of the Day. We'll Call This Before.

And The After

Tartar Sauce


1 c. mayo
3 TBS sweet relish
2 TBS fresh lemon juice
salt and pepper to taste

Combine all and chill until serving.

Table Beer