Butter mints are a staple at Southern showers, teas, and receptions. Sweetly pastel, they sit proudly between the mixed nuts and petit fours on our party tables. Butter mints are no wallflower though. Their pale colors belie their assertive flavor. A few Christmases ago, Husband and I went to visit his parents. We hadn’t been … Continue reading Homemade Butter Mints
Tag: home cooking
Crabmeat Casserole
Crabmeat. It’s my absolute favorite seafood. More than oysters, more than shrimp, I love me some crabmeat. Not crab legs, mind you. Blue crab. I’d eat a cat turd if it was served with lump crabmeat on the top. One of my favorite ways to eat crabmeat is in Crabmeat Casserole. This dish is another … Continue reading Crabmeat Casserole
Aspic, Southern Style
Aspic. What in the cat hair is it? The dictionary defines it as “a savoury jelly based on meat or fish stock, used as a relish or as a mould for meat, vegetables, etc.” Blech. I have a real problem with meat jellies. Something about the idea of it just gives me the heebie-jeebies as … Continue reading Aspic, Southern Style
The Dookie Cake
Dump Cake. That's the official, albeit unflattering, name of one of my favorite recipes. It's not as bad, however, as what Brother calls it — Dookie Cake. Ain’t that a little brother for you? But let me tell you what, his teasing doesn’t stop him from gobbling up a big ole bowl of it! Despite … Continue reading The Dookie Cake
Watermelon Rind Pickles
Fannie Merritt Farmer (1857-1915) was a pioneer in food science, nutrition, and uniform measurement in cooking. She was principal of the Boston Cooking School and published her first cookbook The Fannie Merritt Farmer Boston Cooking School Cookbook in 1896. In this book, which became a Bible of domesticity, the idea of using standard measurement and … Continue reading Watermelon Rind Pickles
Relish the Relish Tray
No holiday meal on Granny’s table was complete without a relish tray. Picture a divided crystal dish full of bite-sized, savory treats that compliment the main meal. It was usually filled with things we didn’t get very often. After all, there was no fancy-shmancy olive bar at Citronelle’s Piggly Wiggly. That’s why I always thought … Continue reading Relish the Relish Tray
Skillet Cornbread – or – How Not to Get Your Southerner Card Revoked
“The North thinks it knows how to make cornbread, but this is a gross superstition. Perhaps no bread in the world is quite as good as Southern cornbread, and perhaps no bread in the world is quite as bad as the Northern imitation of it.” — Mark Twain Cornbread is one of those things that … Continue reading Skillet Cornbread – or – How Not to Get Your Southerner Card Revoked
Squash Relish — The Pinto Bean’s Spicy Mate
Everyone knows that opposites attract. That's why Squash Relish is the perfect complement to Pinto Beans. Serve it right along side the beans so you can get a little of each on your fork. Let the juices mix with the gravy just a little around the edges. I think about this marriage of flavors like … Continue reading Squash Relish — The Pinto Bean’s Spicy Mate
Pinto Beans Just Like Mama Used to Make
Being from South Alabama, I never realized that pinto beans were a thing, something to be sought out, a comfort food. We just never ate them. We ate red beans and broad axes and navy beans and lima beans, but never pinto beans. In fact, I didn’t even know they existed until I was in … Continue reading Pinto Beans Just Like Mama Used to Make
Red Beans and Rice — A Comfort to Your Soul
Beans beans, good for the heart! The more you eat, the more you … like ‘em! You know I just couldn’t resist! Seriously, red beans are good for you — full of iron, protein, and vitamin B. And they’re good for the wallet too! You can feed nearly a dozen people for under $10. And … Continue reading Red Beans and Rice — A Comfort to Your Soul