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Good morning, and happy Sunday! This week included a fun trip to Charleston, plenty of delicious Southern food, and lots of fresh finds from the farmer’s market. All of the highlights from the past few days, along with our easy dinners, are included in today’s roundup of Our Week in Meals.

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For those of you who are new to the blog, Our Week in Meals is where I share a little bit about what we’ve been up to over the past week — as it relates to our dinners each night. This series gives you a glimpse “behind the scenes” at some highlights from our life, shows you how I balance a busy schedule with feeding my family, and offers a few new ideas for your own weekly meal plan.

First, a quick note to let you know that my site was selected as one of the Top 30 Southern Food Blogs by Feedspot. You can check out all of the other winners here as well. I’m so appreciative! Now, let’s back up to last weekend…

Sunday morning included a walk at my friend’s farm while Keith took the boys to play golf. There was a little horse show on the farm while we were walking, so we ran into another friend and her daughter — who is always happy to see Teddy!

Keith smoked baby back ribs for supper…

Close up side shot of baked baby back ribs on a cutting board

…which I paired with mac and cheese, coleslaw, and fried corn from our neighbors.

Front shot of a bowl of fried corn topped with bacon and fresh basil

I also read a really sweet novel this week called At Home in Mitford. The first in a 14-book series by Jan Karon, this story introduces us to the small town of Mitford and its quirky residents. There’s a mystery to be solved, a budding romance, and many heartwarming relationships along the way. Definitely a light, feel-good, entertaining read!

On Monday morning we drove from our house in Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains…

….to the Lowcountry of South Carolina for our last family vacation before the boys go back to school.

We stayed at a resort across the harbor from Charleston, just a few minutes from Sullivan’s Island.

The boys swam in the pool that afternoon, and then we made our way to dinner at the Shem Creek Crab House.

We tried the crab pot (with crabs, mussels and shrimp), and I ordered the Charleston Shrimp and Grits, which included shrimp, grits, mushrooms, and smoked sausage in brown gravy. Our whole meal was great!

We got outside early for some donuts and coffee on Tuesday morning…

…plus some beach time. It was a beautiful morning!

We toured the USS Yorktown, an aircraft carrier in the harbor…

and spent an afternoon in downtown Charleston.

Lunch at Poogan’s Smokehouse: a shared 4-meat BBQ platter, along with skillet cornbread, fries, rolls, and collard greens.

And dinner at a little hole-in-the-wall Italian restaurant in Mount Pleasant that served some of the best pizza and pasta we’ve ever had!

A cranberry orange muffin and cafe au lait to start Wednesday morning…

…and then a cool, breezy beach walk on Sullivan’s Island.

This was the blackened mahi-mahi sandwich that I had for lunch at a brewery in Charleston, followed by an afternoon at the pool until the boys were completely exhausted!

Finally, dinner at Red’s Ice House, where we could get Keith’s oysters, Casey’s crab, Gibbs’ shrimp, and Spencer’s chicken fingers. Plus my she crab soup and shrimp salad

…and ice cream to finish it all off!

A lovely sunset on our last evening.

After many restaurant meals and a day of travel, it was so nice to enjoy a homemade dinner on Thursday evening. We made it home in time to unpack, start the laundry, and enjoy a simple meal that consisted of tomato soup, grilled cheese sandwiches, and apple slices. Definitely not fancy, but it hit the spot!

Front shot of a spoon in a bowl of roasted tomato basil soup with biscuits and tomatoes in the background

As much as we loved our trip, it’s always good to be home. Traveling with three kids is no joke!

I walked the dog on Friday morning, and then headed to the car dealer to pick up my new vehicle that we had ordered last May. Other than that, Keith took the boys to the pool, while I picked up groceries to re-stock our kitchen.

We had Mexican Shrimp with fresh tomato, corn and avocado salad, which we stuffed into tacos for dinner. Plus tortilla chips, guacamole and salsa on the side.

Overhead shot of a skillet full of spicy Mexican shrimp

So many goodies from the Saturday morning farmer’s market (so I obviously made my favorite summer sandwich for lunch)!

We went for a hike in the mountains near Sperryville after lunch,

and stopped at Jenkins Orchard for peaches, plums, watermelon and Gala apples on the way home. This was some of the best fruit we’ve had all season!

My friend Mollie recently made Damson plum preserves, so she shared her recipe with me and I’m planning to do the same in the coming days.

To finish off the evening, we had baked ziti with sausage for dinner…

Close overhead image of a serving spoon in a dish of homemade baked ziti with sausage

…plus garlic bread and tomato salad on the side!

Hands holding a bowl of fresh tomato salad with basil and balsamic

And that’s where I’ll leave it for today, friends. I hope that you’ve found some new recipes and inspiration for your family table in the days ahead. Thank you for being here!!

blair

Hey, I’m Blair!

Welcome to my farmhouse kitchen in the foothills of Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains. Inspired by local traditions and seasonal fare, you’ll find plenty of easy, comforting recipes that bring your family together around the table. It’s down-home, country-style cooking!

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Square overhead shot of hands serving a chicken pot pie recipe with biscuits
Overhead image of a bowl of chili mac on a dinner table with cornbread
Hands serving a platter of sheet pan sausage and potatoes

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    1. I totally agree, Leia! I’ve finally drilled this notion into my boys’ heads so that they’re on board, too! 🙂

      1. With your Damson preserves, you will need to make a Damson pie, or as the locals call it… Caramel pie. You can find recipes in the local Madison church and Club cookbooks. They will have them called both Damson and Caramel in the same cookbook!
        My first year in Madison I taught 5th grade at the Waverly Yowell School. I lived on Main Street in an upstairs apartment in a house across from the Ford dealership. In those days, the Ford place was in the building that is now ( or was) the pizza place… not to far up from the library. I ate many meals in Rixey’s back in 1973. Rixey’s is where Miranda’s is now on Main Street. It was just a few houses from my apartment. The first time in there I asked what kind of pies… all were southern pies and cakes … and all were totally homemade in those days. One was Caramel. That is what I ordered… thinking it was something like butterscotch. My surprise when it came and there were hunks of plum preserves in it. That is the first I’d ever heard of Damson pie and the first time I realized that Caramel pie in Madison and Orange means Damson!! I still can’t figure out why it ever started being called that.
        I have my husband’s great aunt’s recipe for it and it’s white sugar… not even brown sugar. Billy’s family mostly called it Damson pie but his great aunt told me that she grew up calling it Caramel pie.

        1. Yes! Mollie, Sallie and I were talking about the Damson pie last weekend. Sallie said that you make one, and I guess Betty made one last weekend as well. I need to find a recipe so I can enjoy the dessert, too. First step, though — making the preserves! 🙂

  1. I had to laugh at your comment about traveling with three boys is no joke. My son Is currently visiting from South Carolina to our home in Virginia while his wife is in Michigan. They have three sons, 8, 5, and 3. He commented that it was challenging traveling with them and a 16 year old Basset Hound. Gave me the shivers thinking about it. Lol. Enjoyed your photos.

    1. Hah! Yes, your son is in a very similar stage of life, Linda. Hope you enjoy the company (and can help wrangle the kiddos)! 🙂

      1. I ❤❤❤❤ Sullivans Island! I spy the Fort Moultrie lighthouse in your photo. If your boys haven’t already, Fort Moultrie is an interesting place to visit. The Seminole Chief, Osceola, is actually passed away & was buried there. Charleston is my next favorite place to home!

        1. Oops…remove the word “is” from after the name Osceola. I obviously need more coffee this morning!

        2. We loved it, too! We looked at the lighthouse (and surrounding area), but didn’t actually spend much time visiting there. We would love to go back, though! 🙂

  2. This is in reference to my earlier email. I looked on line for damson caramel pie recipes and found the majority do use brown sugar. Some, like Billy’s great aunt, use white sugar. But that’s most likely where the caramel comes in.

  3. Love the menus.Wanted to say the Mitford series is the best I have ever read. Have all 14 of it. Was always hard waiting to get the next copy. Of course they are all out now and no waiting. Have the whole set. Loved reading about your vacation, sounds wonderful.