In Gourmet Fashion

For many of us, the month of March will mark a sorrowful four-month anniversary. We will pass through grocery lines gazing wistfully, remembering times of old and that former flutter in our hearts upon seeing a new glossy cover of Gourmet magazine. Plump, purple berries, juicy, sweet and all a drizzle over a cloud of white ice cream against a crisp, pale blue background. Crispy- skinned plump turkeys, greasy steak-frites glistening with sea salt.

Loyal fans, behold! Land Ho!

Conde Nast has made back issues available for purchase as well as framed covers dating back to the 1930's available in different sizes with matted options. They also offer tri-fold cookie note cards complete with recipes and photographs gathered from Gourmet photo shoots. Just visit www.condenaststore.com. And, hopefully over the next few months, your trips through the grocery lines will feel increasingly less empty as your walls evolve into wonderfully cluttered collages of scrumptious Gourmet memories!

Sweet Potato Roots Pt. 2

These recipes come from the southern most roots of all, and even more specially, from a collaboration between my colonial and Native American ancestors.

Spoon bread, a pudding-like corn bread tastes of my childhood, whipped up so often by my grandmother and served beside pork chops, lima beans, and a tangy tomato aspic. My husband describes the bread as a cross breed between corn muffins and corn casserole. But, for those most closely connected to the recipe know that it most resembles its original inspiration, Suppawn, an Indian porridge.

Spoon Bread (Courtesy of Hotel Roanoke, Roanoke, Virginia)
makes ~10 servings

1 1/2 c. corn meal
1 tsp. sugar
1 1/3 tsp. salt
1 1/2 c. boiling water
1/4 c. butter
5 eggs
2 c. milk
1 T baking powder

Preheat oven to 350. Mix corn meal, salt and sugar in large bowl. Scald with boiling water. Add melted butter. Beat eggs; add milk in med. bowl. Combine egg mixture to corn meal mix. Add baking powder. Pour into oiled 9x13 baking pan and bake 30-40 min.


Sally Lunn bread, another childhood comfort from my grandmother's kitchen, is golden, crumbly and crispy on top with a fluffy, soft, textured interior. It slices easily and is heavenly when smeared with a pat of butter alongside Brunswick stew, seafood chowder or anything else! The recipe traveled across the Atlantic, nestled in pockets of America's earliest British settlers. And, thank goodness it did!

Sally Lunn Bread (Courtesy of the Junior League of Hampton Roads, Virginia)

1 pkg. dry yeast
1/4 c. warm water
2 T soft butter
1/2 c. sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. salt
3 1/2 c. flour
1 c. warm milk

Soften yeast in warm water. In a mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar. Beat in eggs and salt, stir in 1 1/2 c. of flour and beat vigorously. Stir in milk and softened yeast; mix well. Add remaining flour and beat vigorously. Cover, let rise in warm place until doubled (1 hr.). Stir down batter and spoon evenly into Turk's head mold. Cover and let rise again until doubled (30-45 min.). Bake in preheated 325 oven for 10 mins., increase temperature to 375 and continue baking for 20 mins. more. Remove from pan. Serve and enjoy!

Sweet Potato Roots

When one leaves the Southeast, one's fixin' to know it at first bite. Pork ain't the same, barbecue ain't the same, hell, even sauce ain't the same. And, don't get your panties in a wad when people regard you with blank stares upon request for a sweet tea.

So, whenever I come across a fusion restaurant far from home and discover they're incorporating a bit o' southern flair into they vittles (actin' like collards are some kind of exotic green), my heart cain't help but swell with pride.

A recent trip to Dallas restaurant, Sevy's, sent my tastebuds straight into the thick of a magnolia scented dining room.
The culprit: barbecue-glazed salmon over buttermilk-chive whipped potatoes with tabasco butter and crispy leeks.

And, if that wasn't enough, famed seafood restaurant, Reef, in Houston, Texas (where my husband and I dined a week later), whipped up hearty servings of crispy-skinned seared snapper over sweet and sour chard and tomato brown butter, and roasted grouper over corn pudding with salsa cruda and grilled peach. Now, slap me silly if we ain't in the South! Also on their menu, a fried mac and cheese that stands alone at a size comparable to a very large, well-endowed grapefruit. (We were informed that this southern treat remains the most time-consuming item to prepare on the menu.)

Now, if I do say so myself, I think I'll be off my soapbox for the night, clamp me on some pearls and cook me up a tomato pie! Bon Appetit, y'all!

Grandma's Tomato Pie

1 box Bisquick
4-5 large tomatoes
1/2 c. mayo
3/4 c. shredded cheddar cheese
salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. (400 depending upon your oven)
First: prepare the crust
Follow instructions on pkg. for crust and press into deep-dish pie plate.
Second: thinly slice 4-5 large tomatoes and layer in dish.
Third: Mix 1/2 c. mayonnaise and 3/4 c. shredded cheddar cheese, spread in an even layer across the top of the tomatoes.
Salt and pepper the top, pop in the oven and bake 25-35 min. or until the Bisquick crust is a golden brown and the cheese is melted and bubbly.

*optional: add 1 tsp. italian seasoning, 1/2 T chopped chives, or fresh basil leaves to tomatoes.