FRIED GREEN TOMATO SALAD & CHEF JOE RANDALL'S COOKING SCHOOL, SAVANNAH, GEORGIA

About 15 years ago, a little group of friends, including Kevin and I, started a tradition of spending a weekend together, out of town, cooking, eating, drinking wine, visiting garden centers, golfing, biking and any other activities that we found to do in that town.  We love the tradition and have had so much fun together and made many fun memories over the years.  This year, to celebrate our 15th (or so) anniversary we decided to venture further away from this area, to a place none of us had been to previously.  All of us are well traveled; so finding a place was a challenge.   One person suggested Savannah, Georgia and almost immediately we decided that was the place to go.

We all came up with ideas for activities but one idea was of interest to everyone:  A Southern Cooking Class, Lecture and Demonstration by Chef Joe Randall.  Check him out here. 

The menu consisted of:
* Savannah Crab Cakes with Herb Mustard Aioli, 
* Warm Fried Green Tomatoes on Bibb Lettuce with Buttermilk Dressing, 
* Roasted Rack of Sage-Rubbed Pork with Madeira Jus Lie, 
* Savannah Red Rice, 
* Southern Fried Corn, and for dessert 
* Brown Butter Peach Cinnamon Pecan Tart with Bourbon Custard Sauce.
Needless to say, when we were done, we were stuffed!  Everything was absolutely delicious! 

My personal favorite, and a good thing to make at this time of year, is the Salad of Warm Fried Green Tomatoes on Bibb Lettuce.  

In case you aren't sure, green tomatoes are simply unripe red tomatoes.  Why wait until they are red to eat them?  Extend the tomato season!  Here's the recipe which consists of three main parts - Buttermilk Dressing,  Fried Green Tomatoes,  and the other salad ingredients:

BUTTERMILK DRESSING.  Makes 12 servings.
*  1-1/2 cups mayonnaise
*  3/4 cup buttermilk
*  1-1/2 cloves garlic, minced
*  2-1/4 tablespoons Vidalia onion, or any sweet onion, minced
*  1-1/2 tablespoons cider vinegar
*  2-1/4 teaspoons fresh parsley, chopped
*  3/8 teaspoon salt
*  3/8 teaspoon ground white pepper
In a bowl, combine the mayonnaise, buttermilk, garlic, onion, vinegar, and parsley.  Season with salt and pepper.  Refrigerate until ready to serve; will keep 2 to 3 days.

FRIED GREEN TOMATOES.  Makes 8 servings.
*  1/4 cup buttermilk
*  1/4 cup milk
*  1 egg, beaten
*  1/2 cup cornmeal
*  1/4 cup all-purpose flour
*  1 teaspoon salt
*  1/2 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
*  1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
*  3 large green tomatoes, sliced 1/4-1/3" thick
*  1 cup peanut oil for frying
In a bowl combine buttermilk, milk and egg.  Mix well.  In a separate bowl stir together cornmeal, flour, salt, black and cayenne peppers.  Dip tomato slices in milk and egg mixture, then dredge in cornmeal and flour mixture.  Coat well.  Heat oil in a skillet over medium high heat and cook tomato slices 2-3 minutes on each side or until golden brown.  Drain on paper towels.  Serve hot.

WARM FRIED GREEN TOMATOES ON BIBB LETTUCE WITH BUTTERMILK DRESSING.  Makes 8 servings.
*  2 heads Bibb lettuce, torn
*  16 prepared Fried Green Tomato slices (Recipe above.)
*  2 tablespoons sliced green onions
*  2 cups Buttermilk Dressing (Recipe above.)
Chill 8 salad plates in the refrigerator.  Arrange the Bibb lettuce in the center of the chilled salad plates and arrange two sliced fried green tomatoes on lettuce.  Pour a little buttermilk dressing all over the salad.  Garnish each serving with sliced green onions.

Trust me, this salad was DELICIOUS!!

If you make the trip to Savannah, talk to Chef Randall about a class.  It was great fun, and a wonderful meal.