Hello, friends and neighbors all around the coast.
The trout are biting on live shrimp. A report came in from Harris Neck: Two fellows fishing from the dock who wish to remain anonymous landed 22 nice trout fishing with live shrimp.

The photo this week is one of my newfound friends, Mr. James Pugh. James and his friend Mike Sands went freshwater fishing this past weekend and landed 40 crappie, and all were 2 pounds or better.

I know that those bad boys are tasty fried with some hush puppies and onion rings. Then there is always the faithful cheese grits.

The dock was cut short this past weekend by the sand gnats. I can usually handle them without too much pain and suffering, but Saturday, they were just too much. Boo Hall and I lasted about 30 minutes. Needless to say, we caught nothing. The weather was beautiful, but the gnats were ugly.

This week, I have a little shrimp recipe and a holiday cocktail for you. The recipe is from foodnetwork.com, with help from Ms. De Laurentiis. As always, a few things have been change to suite my taste.

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 to 1½ pounds jumbo shrimp, peeled with tail on
Sea salt
Freshly ground black cracked pepper
1¼ cups plain yogurt
2 tablespoons Duke’s mayonnaise
2 tablespoons whole-grain mustard
A healthy portion of Tony Chachere`s Cajun seasoning, just for a little kick.
1 tablespoon Herbes de Provence (probably find that in the gourmet section at Publix)

In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium to high heat. Add the shrimp and Provence Season with sea salt, Tony’s and fresh cracked black pepper. Cook until the shrimp are pink and cooked through, about 2-3 minutes.

In a small bowl, mix the yogurt, Duke’s mayonnaise, mustard, a little maple syrup and basil. Season with salt and pepper, then place the mixture in a dipping bowl. Place the shrimp on a serving platter and the dipping bowl.

Now, let us move on to the Christmas cocktail. In the blender, pour in the best vanilla vodka you can find, three jiggers and 1½ jiggers of white chocolate liqueur — Godiva makes a good one. Add some crushed ice if available. And let it rip.

Serve in a martini glass and garnish with a little cinnamon — and a red-and-white or green-and-white peppermint stick. The Christmas Cocktail.

Well, friends, that’s it for this week. Remember what Old Tight-Line always said. Get out there and go fishing, and if you do, remember to always keep a tight line.

Living the tight-line life on the coast,
Tight-Line Jr.