From Gulf to Table

Well a few posts ago, I said I was "Soakin' it Up" and there's no doubt I am still savoring every minute at home before we have to leave for Arizona. However, our stay has been extended a couple of weeks due to another surgery Aaron is having and because of that, he has really been "livin' it up" these past few days {considering that his right arm will be immobile for the next few weeks}.  We went on a long bike ride, he's played golf, been turkey hunting, bass fishing, and deep sea fishing. Needless to say, it's been a full week and he's been well, livin' it up!

Mr. Andy {who is our friend who always takes us on these adventure-filled excursions} was once again the hostess-with-the-mostess and our whole afternoon of fishing was action packed.

Of course Snapper season is out... we caught the mother-load and couldn't even keep them!

And some of us {including myself} had to have a little help reeling them in...

They put up a big fight but it's so much fun being the winner!!

Trigger fish was the only kind we could keep and I caught the only keeper. She reminded me of Dory on Finding Nemo.

And as usual, these two tore it up, kicked butt, and took names.

And while I did catch my fair share of fish, relaxing on the boat is one of my favorite things about fishing... and eating cheetos on the beanbags.




... and watching the dolphins.

Despite a cloudy, foggy start to the afternoon, it cleared up beautifully and we fished until dark.

A few weekends ago, Mr. Andy took my Dad and a few other guys on an overnight tuna fishing trip. They tore up the Yellowfin Tuna AND the Wahoo and Amberjack. My Dad said this was the most fun fishing trip he's ever been on.

The main reason I bring this other fishing trip up is for one- they did unbelievable catching all these, and two- I think I'm going to turn into a fish pretty soon! I think I've almost eaten my weight in tuna and wahoo and I have been loving every bite. However, we've had to get creative about fixing it since we eat it so often.

I have come up with my favorite way to fix and eat this delicious fish and the thing is, it doesn't taste like fish at all! I make a simple marinade of lemon juice, extra virgin olive oil, sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, and then mother throws it on the grill for a good searing while I concoct the hollandaise sauce.  Julia Child's Hollandaise is my absolute favorite and it is so scrumptious it would taste good alone with a spoon... {don't ask me how I know}. Here is the much more simplified version:

2 sticks of butter

3 egg yolks

1 Tbsp cold water

1Tbsp lemon juice

Big pinch of salt

1 Tb cold butter

Melt the 2 sticks of butter over low heat and set aside. Beat egg yolks in a saucepan for a minute and then beat in water, lemon juice and salt. Add in 1Tbsp of butter over low heat and whisk until the mixture slowly thickens.  {Make sure you keep the heat down... you don't want scrambled eggs!} After the mixture has thickened, remove from the heat and slowly whisk in the melted butter until you have gorgeous whipped hollandaise sauce!

It's not only delicious with fish, I serve it with lots of dishes- roasted asparagus, steamed whole artichokes, grilled steak, poached eggs... basically you can put it on anything and whatever you are eating will be delicious. Trust me!

I hope that you will keep this gorgeous hunk of an arm in your prayers because it's going under the knife in the morning at approximately 7 am. We have hope that this surgery will relieve his pain for good {even though it's uncommon in pitchers}, but most importantly we have FAITH that God's hand is all over his shoulder and that's the most comforting fact of all. Whatever the outcome, we're gonna be just fine! {and at least his arm will still be looking fine! Sorry I had to say that.}

Thanks for reading readers!