The shape of Alagold Pumpkins varies from that of a cylinder to that of a bell. They have a small seed cavity, and very meaty, dark sweet golden flesh. Their flavour is reminiscent of Butternut Squash, but they have softer flesh and are larger overall. Alagold Pumpkins are popular in the southern US states. Cooking…
American South Food
Allum Apples
Allum are medium-sized apples with dark red skin. They have crisp but tender juicy white flesh with a fair bit of tartness to the taste. The trees blossoms are quite fragrant. Cooking Tips Allum Apples can be used in pies. Storage Hints Allum Apples store well. History Notes Allum Apples are believed to have originated…
Beaten Biscuits
Somewhat scone-like in appearance, beaten biscuits got their leavening from air alone, which was driven into them through manual kneading for 2 to 3 hours. They were popular in the American south, where the labour was usually provided by household slaves.
Ben Davis Apples
Ben Davis are round, medium to large-sized apples with shiny, bright yellow, thick, tough waxy skin with dark, bright-red flushes. The white flesh inside is dry, coarsely-textured and mealy. It is very popular in the American south, though detractors say the apple is dry and tasteless. Some call it “cotton with red skin wrapped around…
Benne Wafers
Benne wafers are thin, crisp cookies popular in the southern United States, where they have been made since at least the 1700s. Their featured ingredient is sesame seeds. To make the cookies, you toast the sesame seeds first to develop their flavour, them mix them with melted butter, sugar, an egg, vanilla flavouring, flour, baking…
Biscuit Brake
A biscuit brake is a machine to beat air into an unleavened dough in order to make raised biscuits. Before biscuit brakes, the work used to be done laboriously by hand.
Black Pudding
Black pudding is a steamed pudding dessert made in the southern US. It is made from molasses, sour cream or buttermilk, flour, spices, baking soda, a fat such as butter or suet, raisins, and other fruit such as figs or apples. It is packed in a greased cloth or mould, and steamed for 2 to…
Carolina Red June Apples
Carolina Red June are small to medium-sized apples. They have glossy, pale-yellow skin flushed with red on the side that gets the sun. Inside the white flesh is occasionally streaked red near the skin. The flesh is crisp, tender, finely-grained and juicy, with good taste. Carolina Red June Apples are popular in the American South,…
Corn Pone
A Corn Pone is a small cornmeal bread with a crunchy, chewy texture. They are popular in the southern US. The batter is quite thick. It has no egg in it, and often no milk. It is formed into small ovals, and then baked or fried in butter, margarine, lard or bacon grease A Corn…
Cream Gravy
Cream Gravy is a very thick, light coloured gravy flecked with crisp bits from the pan, made particularly in the American south. To make Cream Gravy, you leave a couple of tablespoons of the oil, lard or drippings in the frying pan along with the brown bits from the frying. You stir in some flour,…
Dixie Red Delight Apples
Dixie Red Delight are medium to large-sized apples with yellow skin covered by red. Inside, it has crisp, juicy flesh. The flavour is a balance of sweet and tart. The tree blooms late in spring. The apples ripen in the American South in late December. Cooking Tips For fresh-eating. Storage Hints Stores well. History Notes…
Elvis Presley’s Birthday
The 8th of January is the birthday of the American singer, Elvis Presley. He shot to fame at a young age, and later in life, he became equally famous for his love of Southern US food — and lots of it.
Hoppin’ John
Hoppin’ John is a very simple dish made in the American south with rice and beans — either black-eyed peas or cowpeas. It is typically served at New Year for luck.
Horse Apples
Horse Apples are large-sized apples with thick, bright-yellow skin, sometimes with red blushes. They have coarse yellow but tender flesh inside. The tree is a regular bearer every year, with apples ready to harvest starting in late summer (in the American south, from July onwards.) The tree is good for home gardeners, because the fruit…
Kilt Lettuce
Kilt lettuce is not a type of lettuce, rather it is a dish of lettuce (or other greens) served warm. Think warm salads, such as spinach and radicchio with crumbled hot pancetta. Kilt lettuce, however, is a warm salad you won’t see it in too many restaurants. It is an Appalachian and southern US version…
King Luscious Apples
King Luscious Apples have greenish-yellow skin, flushed with deep red and darker red stripes. Inside, they have off-white, crisp, juicy, finely-textured flesh with good flavour. The tree is compact and, blooms late. The apple is popular in western parts of North Carolina, USA, where it ripens in October. Cooking Tips For fresh-eating when full ripe,…
Pecans
Pecans © Denzil Green What’s better? Georgia Pecans? Texas Pecans? Louisiana? North Carolina? Most people love them all. You can buy them shelled or unshelled; you can even buy New Mexico Pecans dusted in red chile powder (presumably not meant for your pies.) Most (80%) Pecan Nuts are sold shelled; once shelled they are dried…
Pork Maw
Pork Maw is the lining of a pig’s stomach. This does not include any intestines. It is greyish, finely-grained meat, with a very mild flavour. It is usually sold cleaned and trimmed of fat and stringy fibres. Pork Maw is an ingredient in the American south dish of “Chitlins and Maw”, a stew made from…
Pulled Pork
Pulled pork is a way of preparing pork. It is made from a bone-in pork shoulder cut such as pork butt. You cook the joint of pork very slowly with a dry rub on it in a barbeque pit or a smoker. (Some people marinate the meat overnight first.) Not everyone does a dry rub;…
Red Eye Gravy
Red Eye Gravy is a made in the southern US states. It is often made from salt-cured ham drippings in the frying pan after frying it up for breakfast. Drippings from bacon or sausages can be used as well. You drain off excess fat from the pan but leave some, then stir in about ⅓…
Shockley Apples
Shockley are small to medium-sized, slightly conical apples. They have tough, smooth, pale yellow skin mostly covered with bright red, and faint yellow dots. They have a deep, russetted cavity at the stem end. Inside, they have off-white juicy, crisp flesh with a sweet, rich flavour. The fruit ripens October to November, depending on location….
Smoky Mt. Limbertwig Apples
Smoky Mt. Limbertwig are medium to large-sized apples. They have yellow skin flushed with dark red, and inside, aromatic, yellowish, crisp, juicy flesh with good flavour. The fruit ripens September to October, depending on location. The tree has drooping branches typical of Limbertwig apple trees. It was grown at higher altitudes in the American South….
Sops of Wine Apples
Sops of Wine are medium to large-sized apples with yellowish-green skin flushed with red stripes. Inside, they have finely-textured, tender, yellowish flesh, often with pink stains. The flesh is aromatic but not overly juicy. There is a hint of liquorice in the taste. The fruit ripens late June / July in the American South (later…
Southern Food
Southern cooking, in American parlance, is generally seen as any food in the US prepared south of the District of Columbia. It’s far from a homogenous body of cooking. There are many regional, sub-regional and class differences. The main cities for Haute Southern Food in the 1800s were Baltimore, Charleston, and New Orleans. In many…