{Something Southern Sunday}: Cheese Grits

Oh grits, where do I start with you? There are so many questions I've been wanting to ask. Are you breakfast, lunch, or dinner? Are you savory? Sweet? Are you hominy or corn? Are you a relative of polenta, a brother or more like distant cousin? And what's your deal with shrimp?

Something Southern Sunday: Biscuit Blues

I was prepared to present you with the biscuits at the top left hand side, there. I wasn't really proud of them.  They were the most tender biscuits I had tested so far, but they didn't have the flavor I've been searching for.

Something Southern Sunday: Collard Greens

 



Last weekend warm weather teased Atlanta with the promise of Southern spring. Then temperatures dropped into the thirties and it rained most of the week. The grass at the park is still dead and wet, but the sunset is slowing further into the evening. I can think of nothing more appropriate to eat in the awkward end of winter than a pot of low and slow simmered collards. 

For most of my adolescence my mom dated a man from Athens Georgia. He created a feast every Sunday and he almost alway cooked collards. I did not eat them. I was scared of their scent, smokey, grassy, even muddy. The color was odd to me, "Shouldn't green foods be green?" I thought. I tried several times, but found their texture off putting. 




The first pot of greens I ever enjoyed happened much later in my life. I was living here, in Atlanta, at that point. It was recipe testing for a book. Ironically, they were everything I described above - smokey, earthy, hearty - but their texture had more contrast. 

I enjoy collard greens in more ways now than just a side dish for fried chicken or as part of Hoppin John on New Years. They make a lovely bed for a fried egg. They are great in soups, lasagnas, burritos... the list goes on and on. Recently I've taken to cooking a large pot and freezing the leftovers in quart sized ziptop bags. They thaw quickly and make quick weeknight meals taste like a Sunday supper. 

I know kale has been getting a lot of positive press these days, but I'd urge you try a pot of collards for the same nutritional but more soul soothing affects. 



Collard Greens 

makes about 6 servings 

2 pounds collard greens, stemmed

4 rashers bacon, chopped

1/2 a large onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped

1 teaspoon kosher salt

 Wash the greens thoroughly: If you use packed shredded greens - submerse in a sink of cold water, agitate rapidly with your hands and then let settle for about a minute (any dirt should settle to the bottom of the sink). Dry throughly in salad spinner or clean kitchen towels. If using whole leaves, rinse under cool running water, dry throughly and then chop by first stacking then rolling the leaves and slicing into thin ribbons.

Heat the bacon in a large cast iron dutch oven over medium heat until some fat has rendered - about 3 minutes. Add the onion and sweat until tender, another 2 minutes. Add the garlic, greens and water. Bring to a simmer, cover, and cook 35 to 45 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes, until the greens are tender.

Something Southern Sunday: Pimento Cheese

I sat for too long  staring at the photo above trying to best define what pimento cheese is. Plainly, it is pimento peppers that have been combined with mayonnaise, cream cheese and cheddar cheese. Additions are negotiable but include black pepper, cayenne, red pepper flakes, Worcestershire sauce; and, in certain parts of the South (Texas and Alabama, I believe), pickles.  Sometimes the peppers are jarred and other times fresh roasted. It is often spread on white loaves and served as sandwiches, or with crackers as a snack, and in celery as an appetizer. It is amazing in scrambled eggs. 

Tonight I proclaim it to be something above and beyond any of its flavors and functions and, call it a sidekick. With pimento cheese in my fridge, I always have something to serve company (with crackers and sweet tea), we always have something to slap on bread and eat on Saturday in between cleaning the yard and walking Miles, or as Brian prefers we always have a dip for Frito scoops. With pimento cheese, you will never be alone in the kitchen. 



Pimento Cheese

2 medium red bell peppers

8 ouncescream cheese, room temperature

1/2 cup mayonnaise (preferably Duke’s)

1/4teaspooncayenne pepper

black pepper, (I like a lot) to taste

kosher salt to taste

1 pound grated sharp cheddar cheese

Heat your broiler to high. Slice the ends from the red peppers; discard the seeds. Open the peppers by slicing from top to bottom and remove the white rib. Broiler the peppers (ends, too) on sheet pan until blackened, 5 minutes. Remove to a paper bag and cool for 5 minutes. Remove the blackened skin from the pepper by rubbing with a clean kitchen towel. Finely chop and set aside.

Combine the cream cheese, mayo, red pepper flakes, black pepper and salt. Add the cheddar cheese and chopped pepper and combine.  Store in an glass mason jar in the fridge for up to a week.

Something Southern Sunday: Sweet Tea

I was not born or raised in the South. I spent some time growing up on the West Coast and some of early twenties in the Northeast. It wasn't until I went home over the holidays that I realized, with some remorse and some relief, that I am becoming Southern.

There were things I did not appreciate about the South when I first arrived: it is hot (why? why is it so hot?) and I wasn't always sure when I should say "Yes ma'am" and "No sir" (never? sometimes? always.) Though I will probably never be a true southern bell, I have fallen in love with a Southern man, his family, and have learned that being Southern is mostly about being graceful, thoughtful, and welcoming. Nothing epitomizes this for me more than Sweet Tea.

We did not have sweet tea growing up. Though I do remember my mom occasionally made sun tea, it was unsweetened. My sister asked me recently for a recipe "You want a recipe for tea?!," I thought. After sending it I realized - a lot of people make tea the wrong way - too many bags, too few bags, too long of a steep, too hot water. I'm certainly uncertain as to whether Mamaw Betty would approve, but I learned from Carmi Adams, who's about as Southern as I like.

Sweet Tea

Think of this more as a guideline than a recipe.

You will need a kettle or some other device for boiling water, a pitcher, black tea bags [I like Luzianne brand], sugar, water, and a timer (in this case I used my phone, it was handy):



For a gallon of tea:

Bring a quart of water to a boil. Pour the boiling water into the pitcher and cool for 5 minutes. Add the tea bag(s) [I used Luzianne Family sized bags which require one for a gallon, check your tea bag's box for guidelines]. Steep for 5 minutes. Remove the tea bag and add 1 cup of sugar.  Stir to dissolve and add three quarts of cold water. Give it a good stir and chill or serve immediately over ice.



I find a pitcher of tea starts to taste off after a week or so in the fridge, so make it and enjoy it often.

One of my favorite moments of our Seattle visit was during a breakfast at the Original Pancake House. Brian leaned across the table to ask me in a whisper, "Do you think they have sweet tea." "No Darling," I said, audibly, "Sweet tea is a Southern thing." We both laughed.