Derby Day Menu

I'm about a week behind, but the recipes we served for our Derby Party this year are timeless.

Menu:
Shrimp Salad
Chicken Salad
Spicy Carrots
Tomato Biscuits
Ham Biscuits with Blackberry Butter
Key Lime Squares
Derby Pie and Chewies (a friend's contribution)
Sweet Tea Mint Juleps (May issue of SL)

The Shrimp Salad recipe was from one of the more recent issues of Southern Living and so was the Blackberry butter.  I made homemade biscuits, but you could use biscuits from the freezer section of your grocery store. 

Blackberry Butter
1 stick of butter, softened
2 heaping tablespoons of blackberry jam/jelly

Mix and serve.  This stuff is incredibly impressive and too easy to make.

Shrimp Salad (the dish of salad was empty at the end of the party- a keeper)

Two bags of small frozen shrimp (the SL recipe uses fresh shrimp, but frozen is more economical and sometimes easier to access)

1 jar sliced pickled okra
1 (4oz) jar pimento
1/3 cup mayo (I always use Hellmans)
3 TBSP- minced red onion (soak in milk for a thirty minutes to get rid of strong flavor)
1/2 tsp. lime zest
3 TBSP lime juice
1/4 tsp pepper
Dash of salt

Place frozen shrimp in a colander and run cold water over it to defrost.  Combine all ingredients and serve immediately.

Tomato Biscuits
2-3 TBSP Mayo (Hellmans)
1 tbsp grated vidalia onion
pinch of garlic powder
Small biscuits
Cherry Tomatoes
Fresh Basil

Combine mayo, onion and garlic- let this sit overnight in the refrigerator.  You could use frozen angel biscuits or make your own- bake according to instructions.  Slice cherry tomatoes into mini tomato slices.  Chop the basil.  Slice open biscuit and spread some mayo mixture on the inside of both pieces.  Top with a tomato slice and a pinch of basil.  Yummy!  I make my summer tomato sandwiches the same way.