Fat Tuesday Oak Island style

We had plans for Fat Tuesday this year, but when they fell through, friends invited us over for dinner. We decided to do a Gourmet (sort of) Pancake Bar for dinner.

I got right to work researching pancake toppings. I found a couple of really helpful sites, like http://foodiesunite.com/2011/02/102-pancake-toppings-for-national-pancake-day/. Pancakes are pretty plain on their own, so there are so many toppings options. What to choose, what to choose...

I settled on a range of toppings. We'd have plain maple syrup, strawberry syrup, fruit and whipped cream for

the pancake novices. Then some cinnamon honey butter and blueberry honey butter for the slightly more sophisticated palates. And why not ginger-infused maple syrup served with peaches or some rum-soaked bananas? But there had to be one over-the-top selection: shallot thyme butter, smoked salmon, Greek yogurt (instead of sour cream) and chives. Let me just say that this shallot thyme butter has not made its last appearance in our kitchen. In fact tonight we topped our steaks with it (see recipe below). I think it would also be great on green beans, asparagus or most any kind of vegetable. 

Misty was a great sport. She is not very adventurous when it comes to food, but she did try the smoked salmon. She spit it out immediately, but she did try it. I'm glad I didn't suggest caviar.

Of everything we had, it seems the strawberries with whipped cream and the blueberry honey butter were the people's choice. My personal favorites were the ginger syrup and the shallot thyme butter with smoked salmon.

Jeff loved the rum-soaked bananas so much that he finished off the extra at the end of the night. (We used Captain Morgan's Black Spiced Rum. I will never drink another kind of spiced rum again. Ever. It is that good.) That's the ginger syrup in the Guinness glass in this picture - I had to transport everything and I wanted it to still be pour-able.

To round out the meal, there was bacon and sausage and grits. I actually ate, and for the first time in my life, even liked the grits. I am calling the night a great success and I hope we do it all over again next year. Laissez les bons temps rouler!

Shallot Thyme Butter
8 tablespoons butter at room temperature (1 stick)
2 medium to large shallots
2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme
salt and pepper (I used Kosher salt)

Melt 1-2 tablespoons butter in heavy small skillet over medium heat. Add shallots and sauté until brown, about 4 minutes. Cool. Combine remaining 6-7 tablespoons butter and thyme in small bowl. Add shallot mixture and blend well. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve at room temperature.