Soul Food (in honor of Black History Month)
February 22, 2016
Sweet Potato Biscuits
(and ham) 1 sweet potato, baked (about 1/2 pound) 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour 1 tablespoon baking powder 1 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon suar 1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika 8 tablespoons cold butter (1 stick) 1/2 cup buttermilk Preheat oven to 400. Scoop the flesh out of the baked sweet potato. You'll need 1/2 cup, so about half the potato. Mix flour, baking powder, salt, sugar, and paprika. Cut the stick of butter into pieces and work into flour mixture with a pastry blender until it resembles pea-sized crumbs. Stir in the sweet potato and the buttermilk, mixing until a bit loose and sticky. Pour dough onto a floured surface, and knead for a minute. The dough will be smooth but a bit wetter than regular biscuit dough, so sprinkle with flour if necessary. Take the dough into a ball, turning it and folding it, and hitting it with the palm of your hand. Do this for 2-3 minutes. Roll out dough until it's a quarter of an inch thick, then fold the dough in half, over on itself. Use a biscuit cutter to cut out biscuits from prepared dough. Place on a greased baking sheet or in a greased cast-iron skillet, close together so biscuits rise up rather than out. Bake 15 minutes, or until tops are golden brown. Serve with ham, warmed in a skillet. |
The Charleston Bog(From Food & Wine)
INGREDIENTS
In a cocktail shaker, muddle the raspberries with the mint leaves, lime wedges and Honey Syrup. Add ice and the bourbon and cranberry juice. Shake well and strain into a pilsner glass. Garnish with the mint sprig. |
Spicy Collard Greens
2lbs collard greens, rinsed
5 slices thick bacon, diced
1 large onion, diced
3/4 c chicken broth
3T cider vinegar
1T dark brown sugar
1tsp red pepper flakes
1/4 to 1/2 tsp Tabasco sauce
salt and pepper
5 slices thick bacon, diced
1 large onion, diced
3/4 c chicken broth
3T cider vinegar
1T dark brown sugar
1tsp red pepper flakes
1/4 to 1/2 tsp Tabasco sauce
salt and pepper
- Use a knife to cut on either side of the large rib running up each collard green leaf. Remove it and discard it. You don't need to go all the way up the leaf, just remove the thickest part. For smaller leaves, just remove the stem. Stack about 4 to 5 leaves, roll them up, and cut into ½-inch strips. Repeat with remaining leaves.
- Cook bacon in a large pot over medium heat until crisp. Remove with a slotted spoon to a paper towel lined plate.
- Add onion to bacon fat and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until softened.
- Add broth, vinegar, sugar, red pepper flakes, and tabasco sauce to pot. Stir to combine.
- Add collard greens and use tongs to turn and mix them until they reduce in size some. Cover, turn heat to low and cook for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.
- Before serving, sprinkle bacon on top and season to taste with salt and pepper.
Smoked Sausage and Black Eyed Peas
12 – 16 ounces smoked sausage
1 cup chopped yellow onion
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon cayenne
4 whole cloves garlic
5 sprigs of fresh thyme
4 bay leaves
3 teaspoons finely chopped Italian parsley
8 cups chicken stock
1 pound dried black-eyed peas, rinsed and drained
1 tablespoon minced garlic
Minced green onions, to garnish (optional)
Slice the sausage and cook it in a large pot over medium heat to render some of the fat. (Mine didn’t yield much.)
Add the onions, salt, cayenne, whole garlic cloves, bay leaves, thyme, and parsley to the pan. Cook, stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes, until the onion begins to soften.
Add the chicken stock, black-eyed peas, and minced garlic.
Bring to a boil, and simmer, covered for about 1 ½ hours, until the peas are tender. Serve garnished with green onions, if desired.
1 cup chopped yellow onion
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon cayenne
4 whole cloves garlic
5 sprigs of fresh thyme
4 bay leaves
3 teaspoons finely chopped Italian parsley
8 cups chicken stock
1 pound dried black-eyed peas, rinsed and drained
1 tablespoon minced garlic
Minced green onions, to garnish (optional)
Slice the sausage and cook it in a large pot over medium heat to render some of the fat. (Mine didn’t yield much.)
Add the onions, salt, cayenne, whole garlic cloves, bay leaves, thyme, and parsley to the pan. Cook, stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes, until the onion begins to soften.
Add the chicken stock, black-eyed peas, and minced garlic.
Bring to a boil, and simmer, covered for about 1 ½ hours, until the peas are tender. Serve garnished with green onions, if desired.
My My's Brown Sugar Pound Cake
Ingredients
Cake:
Directions
Ingredients
Cake:
- 2 cups packed light brown sugar
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened (2 sticks)
- 1/4 cup shortening
- 5 eggs
- 3 cups cake flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 cup milk
- 1 cup chopped pecans
- 1 tablespoon vanilla
- 1 8 - ounce package cream cheese, softened
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened (1/2 stick)
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1/2 teaspoon maple-flavor extract
Directions
- Grease and lightly flour a 10-inch tube pan; set aside.
- For cake: In a large mixing bowl, beat the brown sugar, granulated sugar, the 1 cup butter and the shortening with an electric mixer on medium speed until mixture is light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.
- In another large bowl, whisk together the flour and baking powder. Add half the flour mixture to the butter mixture; beat on medium-low speed to combine. Repeat with milk, followed by remaining flour mixture, scraping bowl as necessary. Stir in pecans and the vanilla. Pour the batter into the prepared pan.
- Bake in a 350 degrees oven for 1 hour and 10 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Let the cake cool in the pan on a wire rack for 15 minutes, then unmold it to cool completely.
- For frosting: In a large mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese and the 1/4 cup butter with an electric mixer on medium speed. Gradually beat in the powdered sugar, followed by the vanilla and maple- flavor extract until smooth. Spread frosting over the cooled cake on a plate.