A group of friends who need yet another place to talk about food.
Catching Elephant is a theme by Andy Taylor
Turning venison Italian sausage and ground venison into baked manicotti and Italian meatloaf with roasted tomato ketchup in one afternoon? Sometimes I think I love cooking because it feels like MAGIC.
Not sure if you realized we had our own theme song. Funk. Of course.
And just to make sure we don’t get it twisted I’ll throw in a related foodie fact:
Fatback is a cut of meat from a pig. It consists of the layer of adipose tissue (subcutaneous fat) under the skin of the back, with or without the skin (pork rind). Fatback often is rendered to make a high quality lard, and is one source of salt pork. Fatback is also an important element of traditional charcuterie. In several European cultures it is used to make specialty bacon. Containing no skeletal muscle, this bacon is a delicacy. Finely diced or coarsely ground fatback is an important ingredient in sausage making and in some meat dishes. In the Americas, when just the skin is included, it is commonly known to consumers in the form of fried pork rinds.
Icebox Pickles
From the time I was a little girl, one sure sign of summer’s arrival has been icebox pickles in my Mema’s refrigerator. Her older sister, Irene, passed her the recipe years ago. I have found no others to rival their thick, chunky crunch and spicy afterbite. So, in honor of summer, here is Great-aunt Irene’s (she is 97 now!) recipe for icebox pickles.
Irene Prestley’s Icebox Pickles
4 or 5 non-waxed cucumber cut into chunks
1 large white onion (for hot) or yellow onion (for sweeter); sliced
5 or 6 cloves garlic
4 or 5 Mustang Grape leaves*
4 or 5 hot peppers
Dill flower or dried dill seed**
Layer the ingredients in a large mason jar. Boil 4 cups water, 1 cup vinegar (I use white vinegar or pickling vinegar), and slightly less than 1/4 cup pickling salt.*** Pour boiling liquid over ingredients in jar. When cool, place jar in refrigerator. They are able to be eaten in a few hours, but much better after a few days. The pickles will keep for some weeks, but they are not good for months. Enjoy!
*Mustang grape vines grow wild all over central Texas. You have most certainly seen them climbing telephone poles, fences, or even in your back yard. They are fuzzy and white on the underside and have a slightly red vine. The leaves are two different shapes. Here are a few pics to help you find them:
Do NOT use grape leaves intended to make dolmas or otherwise preserved or pickled. It is not what you are looking for. If you do not live where there are wild grapes around, try experimenting with other slightly bitter aromatics to give the pickles the right amount of bite. They are not bad without them, but definitely not the same.
**Dill leaf is lovely, and if you are into the ferny texture and color feel free to add it in, however it is not going to impart the strong dill flavor that is classic. Instead use 1 dill flower (with seeds) per gallon jar of pickles, or several handfuls of dill seed. I dried several dill flowers last year, and saved the seeds for this year’s pickles since dill technically goes out of season in Texas before cucumbers come around. If you’re lucky, you may be able to find someone with fresh dill flowers!
*** The original recipe calls for 1/3 cup salt added to the boiled liquid. I think this is far too much, and have found that a little less than 1/4 is completely adequate. However, if you love salt, knock yourself out.
- Natalie
Livin the high life.
-Natalie
Southern food in the Pacific Northwest
I discovered the Bye and Bye in Portland during the first weekend of pedalpalooza
this Alberta neighborhood establishment fuses the Portland scene (young, black t-shirt, tattooed hipsters) with southern vegan fare. my texas roots had me skeptical of a bbq platter, but to my surprise the sauce was divine and paired with spicy black eyed peas and greens, my taste buds were firing pleasure signals to my brain. yum yum gimme sum!
-Charlotte
First Pickled Beets Endeavor
I had tried to “pickle” beets before, but being the covertly defiant/right brained person that I am, I’d never actually read how to do it. I’d let some beets marinate in some vinegar with some OJ and herbs and top a salad with it, but let me assure you, it did not create the same effect as this true pickling method. Read and proceed.
This is my own adaptation of Alton Brown’s recipe for pickled beets (props). I used his basic format but made my own adjustments as I went, depending on what I had in the house. Firstly, you roast ‘em.
Roasted beets:
- peeled, thin slices of beets (approximately 6 medium beets, more or less)
- however many garlic cloves you and your fam can handle, peeled and smashed
- 2 sprigs fresh thyme
- 2 teaspoons olive oil (or as I like to say, a good dousing.)
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
In a large bowl toss all of the ingredients. Place into a foil pouch and roast in the oven for 40 minutes.
While those are roasting, “french” the onions. This means to julienne them into long, thin strips.
- 1 large red or sweet yellow onion, frenched (I used some red and some Vidalia)
For the liquid component recipe, I used a combination of tarragon wine vinegar, apple cider vinegar, and red wine vinegar for the “vinegar” portion. For the sake of this being a “recipe”, I’ve made the measurements exact. In my world, you can get away with making a hodge podge of the three vinegars that equals 2 cups.
If you have a multitude of big beets, you will only need to make this concoction once. I was working with some small garden beets, so I required twice as much. Start out with this and see how full your jars get. It takes minutes to make.
In a small pot boil these ingredients:
- 2/3 cup of tarragon wine vinegar
- 2/3 cup of apple cider vinegar
- 2/3 cup of red wine vinegar
- 3 teaspoons Kosher or sea salt
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 cups water
Put it all together:
In 2 1-quart jars alternate layers of beets and onion. Add in your roasted garlic and thyme sprigs here and there. Pour boiled liquid mixture over the beets and onions in the jars. Add 1 teaspoon of pickling spice to each jar, if you like (this can be found in your spice aisle and is a mixture of bay leaves, coriander, red chili, allspice, and cloves). Tightly lid the jars and place in the refrigerator for 3 to 7 days before serving.
There is almost nothing more refreshing than a cold, cold pickled beet snack right out of the ‘fridge in the Summertime. Or have them alongside some black-eyed peas and a tomato salad for a lovely, colorful healthy supper. Wash it down with some iced tea and declare yo’ self a true Southern lady.
-Dixie
Buttermilk Oat Waffles with Maple Yogurt and Strawberries
These turned out great…not very sweet but satisfying and high in calcium and fiber. I modified an old recipe and used Chia seed gel water in place of eggs. They definitely need to be topped with something and this morning I used Greek Yogurt (mixed with a tablespoon of real maple syrup) and strawberries.
If you can’t find oat flour, simply use regular ol’ rolled oats and grind them in either a food processor or coffee grinder until fine. For this recipe you will need 1.5 cups of rolled oats to equal 1 cup of oat flour.
I think this recipe, sans vanilla and sugar would make an excellent canvas for a savory waffle as well. Perhaps mixing in some sharp cheddar, fresh parsley and topped with green onions as a side to roasted chicken. Yes please.
The recipe goes like this:
• 1 cup (145 grams) whole wheat flour
• 1 cup (100 grams) oat flour
• 4 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 2 tablespoons chia seeds (or you can use 2 eggs)
• 1 3/4 cups low-fat buttermilk
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/8 cup applesauce
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
In a small bowl combine chia seeds with 6 tablespoons of water and allow to sit for 5-10 minutes until it becomes a thick gel.
In a separate bowl, combine the first five dry ingredients and set aside.
Mix the chia gel, milk, oil, applesauce, vanilla; make a well in the dry ingredients and stir int the chia mixture until just combined (don’t over-mix). Pour batter into a preheated, well-greased waffle iron; bake until golden brown.
Makes about 4 Belgian-size waffles.
The nutritional stats are for 1/2 of a Belgian waffle.
-Erin
