SPC Damian Henry has requested a little taste of home for his Troops - food I believe.  Any suggestions?  This little corner of the nor east isn't exaactly overflowing with southern cusine.   Hot sauce maybe?

Also asking for Saints' gear - also not abundant in my neck of the woods.  But anyone have any suggestions on food items?

Instant Grits...pork rinds....boiled peanuts....moon pies.....

Remember no pork.  Never heard of instant grits...what a riot!  Moon pies...yummmmm

Kathy

Instant grits - we have them in WI.   Check Wal-Mart.  What are "boiled peanuts?"  Are they the same as salted peanuts in a can (w/o the skins) or what my grandmother called "blanched?"

ooops! forgot about the pork thing when I mentioned the rinds. 

Sandyy...the blanced peanuts in a can sound like the same thing. The peanuts are skinless and soft in texture. I don't like them at all, but I have a son who does. He lives in OK. and when he comes home always takes some back with him. Last Christmas one of my daughter-in-laws bought him this huge can...it was pretty funny. Sometimes here I can find them in foil pouches which is easier to mail.

Instant grits here are in the cereal aisle. They come in a box like instant oatmeal.  I send plastic spoons along with bowls for the microwave. The heavy duty type paper bowls work ok. Have to watch the variety flavor box as it may contain bacon.

 

Praline's!  You might have to wait for cooler weather though.  How about some Zatarains Red Beans and Rice, etc?  Boiled peanuts pre-made are very nasty in my opinion.  I wonder if you can send him some green peanuts and salt so he could make them fresh.  If you can find Zapp's potato chips they make a yummy "Cajun Crawtator".  He'll be there thru Mardi Gras next year so it might be possible to send him a King cake.

Wow - Thanks for all the ideas everyone.  Think I may send him a card first while I work on this food thing:). 

 I've seen the Moon Pies around here so no problem there.  My husband says he's also seen the instant grits in the cereal aisle.  Thanks for the idea on the spoons and bowls GA Junkie:).  Great idea.  I've also seen Zatarains Rice products around here in the grocery stores.  I'll check on Zapp's - seems to me I've seen the brand but not sure on that one.   

OK here comes the DUH question.  What are green peanuts?  And where do you get them?  Only ones I've seen around here are roasted, salted, unsalted, in the shell, out of the shell, etc. :).

Thks, Ann

The instant cheese grits are really good, especially if there isn't any butter on hand.  I can't always find them in Va, but pickup a supply when I go to GA for Christmas.  You just add hot water.  They do have a butter flavor that might also be good to send.  They're pretty good, but I like the cheese better.

Can't wait to hear what green penuts are.  I spent 30 years in GA and never heard of them.  ;-)

 Anna

Ann,  They are more or less "raw" peanuts that you find with the chilled produce.  And that reminds me that they have to be kept chilled.  So, I guess no sending!  I know this because my best friend moved up North to Illnois and I have to bring her green peanuts everytime I go up so she can make fresh boiled peanuts.

Boiled peanuts have the skins on because they have the shells on. You have to shell them to eat them. This is not to say that people haven't tried boiling them w/o the shells. But I think a lot of the flavor comes from boiling them in the shells. They are good hot or cold. I've had perfectly good ones from a can. They're soft, but not mushy.

 

Mellie - Peanuts in the shells with skins on - seems to me we ate these things by the ton as kids:):)  Those were the only thing available when we were kids - I remember shelling them and peeling the red skins off to get to the peanuts!  Who knew!!  I was eating boiled peanuts my whole childhood and didn't realize it??  No wonder i picked this Soldier:):):  Thank you every one for all the tips:):)

Can't wait to go shopping again:)

Ann,

More likely than not, what you were eating was fresh *roasted* peanuts, and not boiled.  Growing up, every fall, we would get fresh peanuts and put them in the oven to roast for a few minutes and then shell and eat.  The hard part was waiting until they were cooled enough to eat since the shells cooled a lot faster than the nuts, and you could get a nasty burn if you were too impatient.

I agree with Gran. Boiled peanuts in a can are packed in brine. If you buy them fresh at a fair or festival, they'll be scooped out of a vat of hot brine and served hot. If you don't eat them all up, you need to refridgerate them. Now where am I going to find some fresh boiled peanuts? Yum, yum.

Mellie

I used to work in an old fashioned General Store where we sold "Grits Bits" crackers. Sort of like a cheese straw but made with grits. Here is a link to check them out.  It was fun to send them and they were always a big hit.

http://www.gritsbits.com/

ga_junkie - "Grits Bits" - Oh MY . Thank You Ma'am!!!