Edisto Island, South Carolina - Edisto Island and Beach » Edisto Island and Beach Guide

Healthy Broccoli Salad

January 25th, 2012

Kids have always resisted eating their veggies. Some don’t like the taste, some don’t like the colors, and some just do refuse them because they can. But adults don’t always eat all their veggies either.

It’s much easier to grab something and toss it in the microwave or tear open a bag of chips than to prepare a salad that doesn’t come out of a bag. Plus, while many vegetables are delicious, some need a little help to get up to delicious. Broccoli is one of those vegetables.

Of all the vegetables out there, broccoli is one that everyone should be eating. Bite per bite, broccoli’s nutritional content beats that of any other veggie out there. It’s chock-full of vitamin C, vitamin A, folic acid, calcium, and fiber. In fact, its calcium content is so high that it is a recommended that anyone who does not consume dairy products regularly add broccoli to his or her diet to get a good dose of the bone-building mineral.

Like most vegetables, broccoli is very low in calories, so it definitely makes for a healthy snack.

Another benefit is that broccoli is in season this time of year making it one of the few vegetables that actually grows during the winter months. Up until just a few years ago, broccoli didn’t even grow in South Carolina. But researchers at the United States Department of Agriculture Vegetable Laboratory located right off of Edisto on Highway 17 have been studying broccoli and promoting its growth in the states and all along the East Coast.

Prior to its growth in SC and along the East Coast, almost 95% of all broccoli consumed in the US was grown on the West Coast, meaning it traveled thousands and thousands of miles before ever reaching grocery stores and tables tops.

So now that it is becoming more readily available in the south, this means consumers can stop at farmer’s markets and roadside stands on the way to the beach and even on the island to get some locally grown broccoli and taste the difference.

If fresh local broccoli isn’t enough to convince you to try some, then consider doctoring up in the form of broccoli salad.

Like many recipes found in the south, this one includes bacon, but feel free to leave it out.

Here’s what you’ll need for broccoli salad:

5 stalks of broccoli flowerets

½ lb of bacon

1 medium red onion, sliced

1 cup of golden raisins

1 cup of mayo

½ cup of sugar

½ cup of dry roasted peanuts

2 tablespoons of white vinegar

Fry the bacon and crumble it up. Set it aside. Then you can either sauté the red onion in the bacon grease or just add it in raw. Combine the mayo, sugar, and white vinegar together. Pour the mixture over the broccoli flowerets, peanuts, and raisins. Stir in the onion and bacon. Chill for two hours or overnight.

Granted the mayo and sugar make it a tad on the unhealthy side, it’s still a great way to incorporate raw broccoli into the diet.

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An Off Season Native: The Blue Heron

January 15th, 2012

One of the best parts of Edisto in the off season is that the animals that call this place home make themselves more apparent.

In the warmer months, it’s common to look out over the marsh and see snow white egrets and blue herons fishing. What’s common now is to see these birds walking around the marshes… and in the streets.

Just the other day while walking my dog I saw what I thought was a small child walking alongside of the road just a block away from the beach. But it wasn’t a child, it was a blue heron. He walked on Cupid Street before cutting through the yard under a beach house and then stood on the bank of the creek that runs behind Pompano Street. It disappeared then into the thick underbrush that lines the creek.

Blue herons are wading birds that are about four feet tall from the tips of their tails to the tops of their heads. They have blue markings on their heads which can extend down their beaks, but they often appear grey and blend into the shadows of the marsh making them difficult to see.

Like many people on Edisto, blue herons are fans of fish, shrimp, and crab, which they find all over the island. They also feast on insects, rodents, and other small creatures that live in or around the marshes. If you’re able to watch a blue heron while it hunts its prey, you’ll see that they often times pierce prey with their beaks and then swallow their meals whole.

Some of the best places to see these birds living their lives are in any of the marshland on the island, especially on the water’s edge. They also like to hang out at the marina and walk around the dock – some even take it upon themselves to hop onto the boats and take in a sunset before taking off over Big Bay Creek.

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Morgan Island

January 9th, 2012

There’s a place just off the coast of Edisto Island in the ACE Basin that most people have never seen, let alone heard of.

This place is Morgan Island or, if you’re a local, “Monkey Island.”

Back in the late 1970s, the Caribbean Primate Research Center’s rhesus monkey breeding colony was shipped to Morgan Island. Studies were done to see if a free range monkey colony could be collected and shipped to a new location with minimal effect on the monkeys and it was successful. The monkeys thrived on the remote island and continue to do so. To date, there are approximately 4,000 monkeys on the island and each year they breed and produce 750 additional monkeys.

So why are the monkeys on an island off the coast of South Carolina? The simple answer to that is this: research.

Every year 500 monkeys are taken from the island and sent to laboratories were they are used for testing. Throughout the 30+ years the monkeys have been on the island they’ve been used for vaccine research for things like polio, AIDS, and bio-terrorism.

Animal testing doesn’t sit well with many people, but animal researchers are quick to point out that a handful of animals make it possible to save millions of humans by creating new medications and vaccines that save lives.

Regardless of how you feel about animal testing, none of the testing is done on the island itself, so anyone with fears of mutant monkeys swimming through the ACE Basin and winding up on Edisto’s shore needn’t worry.

Most people will never get a chance to see one of these monkeys since not only is Morgan Island incredibly difficult to find, it is protected by the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources. No one is allowed on the island other than the monkeys’ caretakers. Should anyone wind up on the shores of Monkey Island for whatever reason, it is strongly recommended that those people turn around and get back on their boat as the monkeys will attack strangers.

Over the years, some people have made their way to the island only to be greeted by shrieking angry monkeys that did not at all hesitate to pelt the trespassers with steaming piles of monkey dung.

There are signs everywhere on the island warning trespassers that the island is the site of a government project and that they will be prosecuted for venturing onto the island. But if you do stumble upon the island someday while out on the boat, keep an eye out for monkeys swinging in the branches of the cypress trees or taking in a sunset from the canopy of the trees – and stay on your boat.

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The Perfect Southern Holiday Meal

December 26th, 2011

People like to say they come to the south for the weather and the beaches and sure, those things are nice, but what people really come to the south for is good ol’ southern cooking. This style of cooking comes along with the mindset that butter is a food group, which is perhaps why it is so good.

Christmas has come and gone, but cold weather makes for the perfect time to start breaking out the old recipes and fattening up for winter.

No matter what time of year it is, good recipes have a way of bringing family and friends together. The recipes in this blog are what my family likes to have over the holidays (and any other time we can convince mom to make them). They’re all super southern and tasty and no matter where you are as soon as you get a forkful into your mouth you’ll be transported right back here to Edisto Beach.

We’ll begin with Christmas (or anytime) ham.

One of the best things that my family always had on Christmas is a giant ham. Call me biased, but it’s the best ham ever made – just ask my dog who sneaked into the kitchen one year and devoured the entire thing in about two seconds while we were all at the front door greeting the grandparents who just pulled up.

That was years and years ago. Now that same dog, who had quite the belly ache after her feast, still goes nuts for the aroma mom’s ham gives off. She doesn’t seem to remember that she had to eat Pepto Bismol for the next couple of days after that 10-pound ham sat like a rock in her stomach. All she remembers is that it was good going down. (This Christmas she sat in the kitchen the entire time it cooked and got a few pieces on her dog food once it was finally ready).

This ham recipe calls for the following:

Large ham

Honey (fresh or store-bought)

¾ cup of brown sugar

½ teaspoon of ground cloves

Cooking bag

Pan large enough for the ham to sit in while it cooks

*If the ham was frozen, thaw before preparing and cooking

To begin with, place the ham in a cooking bag. Then drizzle honey all over the ham. Don’t be afraid to use a lot. There’s no such thing as too much honey. Then coat the honey-covered ham with the brown sugar and cloves. Tie the cooking bag so that the mixture doesn’t leak out, place in a pan, and bake at 350 degrees for 2.5 hours.

We always have our ham with a side of vegetables and Sweet Potato Crunch. Considering serving your ham with this vegetable recipe:

Fresh okra, chopped (about a pound)

2 sweet onions, chopped

Stewed tomatoes with green chilies, 1 or 2 cans, whatever your preference is

Pound of bacon

You’ll note that this recipe has bacon in it, but having two forms of pork in one meal never hurt anyone.

Fry the bacon in a pan until crisp. Remove the bacon and then cook the okra and onions in the grease until the onions are transparent and the okra is soft. Add in the tomatoes and stir over medium heat for about 5 minutes. Crumble the bacon and add it back into the mixture. Serve over rice.

The last part of this meal is almost like dessert.

To make Sweet Potato Crunch you’ll need the following:

2 cans mashed sweet potatoes

3 eggs

1 cup of sugar

½ cup of melted margarine

½ cup ofmilk

2 teaspoons of vanilla

Mix all of those ingredients together in a 2 ½ qt. casserole dish. Top with one cup of brown sugar, ½ cup of flour, one cup of chopped pecans, and ½ cup of melted margarine (mix all of the topping ingredients together before covering the potato mixture).

Bake at 350 for an hour.

There you have it. A wintry Edisto meal that’s good no matter how far away from the beach that you are.

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Edisto Chicken Chowder

December 14th, 2011

It’s finally happened. It’s finally cold on Edisto.

Granted, it’s much warmer here than most places because when I say cold, I mean it’s in the 50s and 60s with lows in the 30s and 40s. The beach and the island are still bathed in sunlight almost daily and the marshes are coated with a sparkling frost in the mornings. Guess it’s really just colder on Edisto and not cold.

However, for an area that generally experiences warm southern weather, these colder temperatures give way to a time for locals and visitors to enjoy cooking some of the traditional comfort food perfect for chilly days and nights.

Creamy Chicken Chowder is heart, delicious, and will warm you up while looking out over the ocean on a chilly evening.

Ingredients:

4 slices of bacon (chopped)

1 cup sliced celery

½ cup chopped sweet onion

1 whole chicken breast, cubed

1 can of chicken broth

2 cups of unpeeled sliced potatoes

1/8 teaspoon of pepper

2 cups of half and half

¼ cup of flour

RedHot to taste

Fry the bacon and then set aside, but keep the grease. Add the celery, onion, and chicken and cook until the chicken is no longer pink. Add in the broth, potatoes, and pepper. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking.

In a small bowl, combine the remaining ½ cup of half and half and flour and blend together by hand. Stir into the chowder until it bubbles and thickens. Stir in the RedHot to taste (you can never have too much RedHot).

Top with shredded cheddar cheese and serve.

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Whaley’s Second Annual Toy Drive

December 8th, 2011

Christmas morning is one of the most exciting times in a kid’s life, but not when there’s nothing under the tree. Thankfully, the Edisto community of locals and visitors all come together to make sure that there aren’t any children who think that Santa passed them by. This is why Whaley’s is hosting their second annual toy drive.

If you need help getting presents for your children this year, or know anyone who does, contact Nicole at (843) 670-7115 or at Whaley’s at 869-2161. Provide your name or the names of the child’s parents along with their address and phone number. Also provide the child’s name, age, sex, and suggest some toys that the child might be asking for. It’s not always possible to give the kids what they ask for, but it does make Christmas that much better when a child tears through the wrapping and sees the gift of his or her dreams.

If you want to pick up a toy or two for a child in the community, visit Whaley’s and pull a name from the tree. Or, donate toys for children under 12 at Whaley’s where there is a collection box. For anyone not too familiar with the Edisto area, Whaley’s is located at 2801 Myrtle Street.

Even though many families are facing economic hardship at the moment all over the country, the Edisto community is extremely grateful for any contributions that can be made to help all the children in the area.

This is also a good time to remember that children aren’t the only ones with needs in the area. Entire families need help and would greatly appreciate your donations to the food pantry to help them make Christmas dinner.

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Visit Santa at King’s Market

December 6th, 2011

Spend the morning with Santa this Saturday when he makes a stop at King’s Farm Market here on the island.

The jolly leader of the elves will come by around 10am and leave at about 1:30pm, but that leaves plenty of time for kids of all ages to come out and get their picture with him and still make it out to the annual Christmas Parade at 2pm.

There will be free apple cider and hot chocolate for anyone who comes out to the market located at 2559 Highway 174.

Also, King’s Market has tons of fresh Christmas trees, wreaths, and garland, so be sure to stock up and get your house ready for the holiday.

This is also a good time to take advantage of the fresh local produce grown on Edisto and sold at King’s. Currently, apples, collard greens, turnip greens, eggplant, tomatoes, winter squash, onions, okra, green beans, pole beans, and butter beans are all in stock. Farm fresh eggs are also available.

The market also offers canned goods made with local ingredients and has a variety of desserts and casseroles.

King’s Market is open from 9am to 7pm Monday-Saturday and from 9am to 6pm on Sunday. The market closes after Christmas, but will reopen in March.

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Celebrating Thanksgiving on Edisto Island

November 26th, 2011

The Thanksgivings of my past were spent in the Midwestern cold of Ohio with friends and family. My parents, well, my mom, would make all of the food with all the other adult women in the household while my dad watched the game or nursed a six pack around the fire with the guys. All of us kids would dress up in paper bag costumes and pretend to be Indians and pilgrims and run through the yard playing in leaf piles while we waited for dinner to be ready.

Nowadays, I spend my holidays down at the beach with the same family and friends; mom still makes the food, dad still has the six pack, and all of us kids are grown, but we don’t wear paper bag costumes anymore.

This year, the house was packed with family, friends, and dogs. We had the traditional food along with some collard greens and fresh shrimp just to add a southern flare to it all. After eating, we went down to the beach for a long walk out to Jeremy’s Inlet.

Being barefoot on the beach on a crystal clear day at the end of November is something I think most people would be thankful for. After a lifetime here, I still get that overwhelming feeling of awe looking at the ocean as it sparkles in the sun light and crashes against the shore.

It’s amazing how the Edisto feeling never gets old – even though we do.

After we went back to the house and had leftovers and everyone went to bed, I walked back down to the beach with my dog. The sky was so full of stars it looked like they touched the water.

Today, the beach was still full of people who made Edisto a part of their holiday tradition and I think it’s safe to say that all of us are thankful for all that Edisto has to offer.

If you spent Thanksgiving here with your family, what are you most thankful for?

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Christmastime at the Serpentarium

November 9th, 2011

Forget elves and reindeers, nothing says Christmas better than snakes and gators.

Beginning Nov. 11 to Dec. 17, the Serpentarium, an establishment long known for its giant alligators, venomous snakes, and all things creepy crawly will be open for everyone to come out and enjoy a winter light fest.

From 6 to 9 pm Friday and Saturday nights there will be marshmallow roasts, hot chocolate, and plenty of Christmas decorations for people of all ages to enjoy.

In addition to the Christmas-themed merriment, the gift shop, atrium, and outdoor exhibits will be open for the public to take a look at whatever creatures decide to stick around during Edisto’s colder months.

This winter light fest is the perfect activity for anyone looking to get away during the holiday season and visit the beach. With average daily highs in the 60s and lows in the 40s throughout November and December, Edisto Island provides visitors from the country’s colder climates a chance to get away from the snow and ice and stroll along the beach.

Check out the vacation rentals available on EdistoIsland.com here and spend your holidays at the beach.

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Edisto Ghost Tales

October 27th, 2011

The lowcountry is an area known for its unparalleled beauty. It’s a place that’s often heralded in fiction for the romantic backdrop offered by the sprawling mossy oaks, hidden plantations, and sultry air. But it’s also a place that’s experienced the unspeakable violence of war, suffered the ravaging effects of storms blown in off the Atlantic, and been plagued with deadly outbreaks of disease.

So it’s no wonder that this juxtaposition of beauty and horror has made the South Carolina lowcountry one of the most haunted places in the world. And Edisto Island is no exception.

While there are several ghost stories told time and again on Edisto, the following two stories involve the tragedies of love gone awry.

The first story is that of a young woman from the lost town of Edingsville Beach.

The Ghost-Bride of Edingsville Beach

Back in the 1800s, Edingsville Beach was an area for the wealthy plantation owners to get together in their beach front homes and relax during the warm summer months. These months were filled with decadent parties, weddings, and social events.

But for one young woman, her summer on Edingsville Beach was a time of great heartache. This woman had just recently been married when her husband had to go off to sea. Sensing his new bride’s apprehension over his impending journey, the man promised he would always come home to her.

Little did the man know, he was setting sail into one of the worst hurricanes to ever slam against the South Carolina coast. The man’s ship was splintered into pieces by the force of the storm and scattered throughout the water. There were no survivors.

Back on land, the young bride turned widow was miserable. She knew there was no way her husband could have lived through the storm and she walked the beach for hours on end.

But then there came the day not so long after the storm had blown through that the woman was walking the beach and looked out over the water to see her husband calling to her from a piece of driftwood. She ran into the surf and swam out to him, unable to believe that he had not only survived the storm but had managed to get back to her on nothing but a scrap of wood.

As the woman took her husband in her arms he told her that he promised he would always come home to her – and then disappeared.

Grief stricken yet again that her husband had truly passed away, the woman wept in despair and let the ocean carry her away so she could forever be with her love.

It is said now that when storms are reported to be off the coast of South Carolina, and especially Edisto, the woman can be seen either walking the beach mournfully or cradling the ghostly remains of her husband just off the coast.

Love Lost on Steamboat Landing

Plantations have long been a part of Edisto’s landscape. Today, they are beautiful reminders of the past, but not all of that storied past was something people want to remember.

There was a large plantation out on Steamboat Landing Road back in the 1800s. Nothing about the plantation was out of the ordinary; the family who lived there made their fortune off of cotton crops and used slave labor just as all the other plantation owners did. The only thing different about this plantation was that it was about to become haunted by the ghost of a woman slain on her wedding day.

This woman was happy to be getting married to her true love. She had been engaged once before, and broke it off for reasons unknown, but her former fiancée was not happy about it. He pleaded with her to get back with him, but she ignored his advances. The woman thought that he would get over her decision to marry another, but he didn’t. Instead, he grew angrier and more jealous that she did not love him.

On the day she was to marry, her former fiancée came to plead with her just one more time to get back with him. When she refused, he decided that if he couldn’t have her, then nobody could.

The man took out his gun and fatally shot the woman he claimed to love. Realizing what he did, he ran off and climbed a tree to witness what would happen once people discovered the dead bride-to-be.

Before the woman died, she had attempted to cry out for help and went to her bedroom window where she left a bloody handprint. Unfortunately, nobody could rescue her.

The man, from his vantage point in the tree, saw that bloody handprint and fully understood what he had done and turned the gun on himself.

With all the grief and drama surrounding the young woman’s murder, nobody noticed the bloody handprint on the window. Once they did, they washed it off… but it didn’t stay gone.

The handprint reappeared every time it was washed off. Long after everyone who knew the murdered young woman was dead and buried, that handprint still remained.

It wasn’t until the old house burned to the ground some years later that the handprint was finally gone. However, some still say that the area is haunted by the angry woman who was denied a life of happiness by a jealous former lover.

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