I know it has been a while since I wrote this column, and I apologize. When I started this project, little did I know that my dad would find out his prostate cancer had progressed to the fourth stage and spread to his bones and bladder, and I had very little time left with him.
Dad went in the hospital for a few weeks just after Thanksgiving, and my brother and I took turns staying with him and taking care of him while he was home for Christmas and New Year's. The weekend after New Year's, he returned to the hospital for a week, and two weeks after that, on Jan. 24, he was gone.
Now it is nearing Valentine's Day, and I can't help but remember how he always tried to make holidays special in his own way. We always went to dinner or tried to spend time together in some way for Valentine's Day.
This year, I suggest spending time with the ones you love, and making them feel special. Let them know how much you love them before it's too late. I had the luxury of being able to spend time with my dad and let him now how much I loved him (and still do). I held his hand as he took his last breath
I know times are tough right now for many families, and going out for dinner may not be an option, so here are a couple recipes to help make someone feel extra special this Valentine's Day.
Slow Roasted Jumbo Shrimp Sauteed With Garlic Butter
2 sticks butter, softened
2 cloves garlic, minced
A dash of Tabasco Sauce
2 dashed Worchestershire sauce
Pepper
Juice of one lemon
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup flour
2 tablespoons butter
16 jumbo shrimp, deveined and butterflied
Heat oven to 275 degrees.
Add first six ingredients to bowl. Mix and form into a log, 1-1/4 inches in diameter. Roll in plastic and refrigerate.
In a small bowl, mix egg with milk to make a wash. Put flour in another bowl.
Heat two tablespoons of butter in a sauté pan over medium heat. Double bread the shrimp with eggs wash and flour. When the butter in the pan is hot, sauté shrimp until golden brown on one side. When shrimp are browned, place them on a cookie sheet, browned side up.
Sice herbed butter and place a pat on each shrimp. Place in the oven until the shrimp breading soaks up butter, about 5 to 8 minutes.
