by Carrie Hirsch

What is a food allergy?

A food allergy is an immune system response to a food that the body mistakenly believes is harmful. Once the immune system decides that a particular food is harmful, it creates specific antibodies to fight it. The next time the individual eats that food, the immune system releases massive amounts of chemicals, including histamine, to protect the body. These chemicals trigger allergic symptoms that can affect the respiratory system, gastrointestinal tract, skin, and/or cardiovascular system. Some reactions can be deadly.

By Carrie Hirsch

Asian food covers a spectrum of endless possibilities – the myriad of spices procured and the combination of ingredients used to create recipes are so diverse and complex and rooted in culinary tradition. We tend to think of Asian food as Chinese, Vietnamese or Thai, but the largest country in Asia is Russia and the smallest independent state is an archipelago of islands known as The Maldives - two extreme examples of how the cuisines within Asia are vastly different.

Different areas of the country have their favorite BBQ sauce styles. In parts of Alabama, they head for mayonaise-based sauce, South Carolina loves it’s mustard-based sauce. We have your BBQ sauce breakdown right here.

White

Found in parts of Alabama, white barbecue sauce is made from mayonnaise, vinegar, lemon juice and black pepper and is drizzled over the meat.

Ingredients:
1 Medium Onion, diced
1 stalk Celery, chopped
1 clove Garlic, minced
4 oz Crab Base
2 Table Spoons Lobster Base
1 lb Crab Claw Meat
1 teaspoon Black Pepper
2 Table Spoons Old Bay Seasoning Roux (3 TB Butter, 3TB Flour, 3 TB Water)
½ cup Sherry

At the Sea Grass Grille the Carolina Tomato Pie has become one of their signature dishes.

It is a very versatile and easy to make dish, which makes an excellent appetizer, side, or main course. Great anytime, but better in the summer when local tomatoes are at their peak. It goes great with some grilled shrimp and a nice bottle of Pinot Grigio. You can make several at once and freeze them for future use. If you do, Sea Grass recommends baking the pies first and then freezing.

Back in the day, before the bridge was built in 1956, watermelon was farmed on acres and acres of Hilton Head Island and then taken over by the boatload to Savannah, sometimes more than once a week in high season.

To celebrate the island’s history with the watermelon, we’ve come up with this easy recipe to get ready for the summer, after all, July is National Watermelon Month!

Recipe by Carrie Hirsch
Roasting vegetables takes out some of the moisture and really brings out the intensity of their flavors. This easy recipe, a medley of chopped vegetables, fresh herbs, olive oil and spices are all available here in the Lowcountry and will transport you to Provence without a plane ticket. Serves 6 as a side dish.

By Carrie Hirsch
We tend to eat lighter lunches in the heat of the summer, but that does not mean less thought should go into the planning. From a practical point, lunch is what keeps up going until dinner and, unfairly, dinner is what usually gets more attention. Delicious salads can be assembled in just a few minutes if the ingredients are kept on hand. Romaine or red leaf lettuce are fine staples on which to build your salad,  but by tossing in an assortment of other varieties of greens including peppery arugula, deep-red radicchio, mâche, dandelion or baby beet greens, the flavor intensifies, becomes more appetizing and is more dramatic in presentation. Nothing against croutons and sliced red onions, but combinations of roasted red-peppers, olives, capers, blueberries, strawberries, dried cranberries, hearts of palm, raw veggies, toasted hazelnuts, pumpkin seeds can dress up a salad in an instant. No need for those heavy, bottled dressings with an eternal shelf life. A sprinkling of fresh lemon juice, a drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil and a pinch of sea salt can transform a mundane salad into a delectable meal.