A Love Affair with Southern Cooking (5 page)

Variation

Main-Dish Meat Pies:
Prepare the pastry and filling according to the recipe. After rolling the pastry as directed in Step 3, cut into 4½-inch rounds using a pan lid as a template.
Note:
Some cooks use an empty coffee can as a cutter and if you have one that’s about 4
½
inches in diameter, by all means use it. Reroll the scraps and cut additional rounds. Divide the meat filling evenly among the pastry rounds, spooning it onto the lower half of each. Fold, seal, and bake the pies as directed. Makes 8 servings.

HEAVENLY CHICKEN LIVER MOUSSE

MAKES
10
TO
12
SERVINGS

Chicken livers have long been popular down south—perhaps because chicken farming is big business. Most old-timey southern cooks simply dredge chicken livers lightly in flour (or, better yet, in self-rising flour, which gives them a supremely crisp coating), and fry them. But Scott Howell, chef-proprietor of Nana’s, a classy restaurant in Durham, North Carolina, has turned them into an ethereal mousse. This is my adaptation of the restaurant recipe, which appeared a few years ago in my
Food & Wine
profile of Howell.

There are a couple of caveats: First, all ingredients must be at room temperature, otherwise the mousse may separate. Second, the softened butter must be added one tablespoon at a time with the food processor running. After four tablespoons have been added, I stop the machine for a few seconds. Any unincorporated bits of butter will rise to the top and I pulse these in before adding any more butter. Finally, I bake the mousse in an ovenproof glass loaf pan or ring mold or an enameled metal terrine, all of which transmit heat slowly and ensure even cooking. With a metal container, the mousse tends to overcook on the outside and undercook in the center.

1½ cups heavy cream, at room temperature

4 tablespoons bacon drippings or butter (drippings add nice smoky flavor)

6 medium scallions, trimmed and cut into 1-inch chunks (use white part only)

One ½-inch cube fresh ginger, peeled

½ teaspoon brined green peppercorns, drained well

¼ teaspoon ground allspice

¼ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

1 pound chicken livers, halved at the natural separation, trimmed of fat and connective tissue, and brought to room temperature (see headnote)

1½ teaspoons salt

8 egg yolks, at room temperature

3 tablespoons sweet Madeira wine (Malmsey or Bual)

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, cut into pats (use the wrapper markings) and brought to room temperature

• 1.
  Preheat the oven to 275° F. Lightly butter a 6-cup ovenproof glass ring mold, an 8½ × 4½ × 2¾-inch ovenproof glass loaf pan, or a 6-cup enameled cast-iron or glazed earthenware terrine; set aside.
  
• 2.
  Pour ½ cup of the cream into a very small, heavy saucepan or butter warmer and set over lowest heat. Also, melt the bacon drippings in a small, heavy skillet over low heat.
  
• 3.
  Meanwhile, coarsely chop the scallions, ginger, and peppercorns with the allspice and nutmeg by churning 3 to 5 seconds in a food processor. Add to the skillet and sauté, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes or until limp. Cool to room temperature.
  
• 4.
  Return the scallion mixture to the processor (no need to wash the blade or bowl); add the chicken livers, salt, egg yolks, and wine; and purée by churning 30 seconds. Scrape the work bowl.
  
• 5.
  With the motor running, drop 4 tablespoons of the butter down the feed tube one by one, making sure each one is incorporated before adding the next. Stop the machine, wait a few seconds, then open the work bowl. If any flecks of butter have risen to the top, pulse these in completely. Add the remaining butter exactly the same way, pausing after each 4 tablespoons to pulse in any flecks that float to the top.
  Note:
  Have patience. If you rush things, the mixture will separate and the only way to bring it back together is to pulse in 1 to 2 tablespoons of the warm cream. Keep it handy.
  
• 6.
  Force the liver mixture through a fine sieve set over a large mixing bowl.
  Tip:
  I find the bowl of a ladle the best implement to use—just move it around and around the sieve.
  Add the cream, including the warmed cream, and stir until no streaks of white remain.
  
• 7.
  Pour into the prepared container, set in a large roasting pan, and slide onto the middle oven shelf. Carefully pour enough boiling water into the pan to come halfway up the sides of the container in which you’re baking the liver mousse.
  
• 8.
  Bake uncovered until pale golden on top and a cake tester comes out clean when inserted midway between the center and the rim—about 1 hour and 10 minutes.
  
• 9.
  Lift the mousse from the hot-water bath, set upright on a wire rack, and cool to room temperature. This is important. If you cover and refrigerate the mousse while it’s warm, drops of water will condense and discolor the surface.
  
• 10.
  Cover the mousse with plastic food wrap, overwrap in aluminum foil, and refrigerate for at least 12 hours.
  
• 11.
  To unmold, dip a thin-blade spatula in hot water and loosen the mousse around the edge (the center tube, too, if you used a ring mold). You’ll have to keep dipping the spatula in hot water as you move it around the edge of the mold. Now stand the pan or mold in about an inch of hot water for 10 seconds. Lift out of the water, place a platter on top, then invert, shaking lightly. If the mousse refuses to budge, dip again in hot water. Once unmolded, you can smooth any rough areas with the spatula.
  
• 12.
  Put out a basket of homemade melbas and serve the chicken liver mousse with cocktails. Or slice and serve at the start of an elegant meal, garnishing each plate with a few gherkins and a little mesclun that has been tossed in a tart vinaigrette.
  

I have lived temperately, eating little animal food, and that…as a condiment for vegetables, which constitute my principal diet.

—
THOMAS JEFFERSON

CANDIED BACON

MAKES ABOUT
2
DOZEN PIECES

Few southern appetizers are easier or more crowd-pleasing than these crisp, caramelized slices of bacon. Before you dismiss sugar and pork as an unhealthful and unlikely combination, give this appetizer a try. Its flavor reminds me of the sugar-crusted hams of Easter. Note:
I use nitrite-free bacon for this recipe and do not pack the brown sugar into the measuring cup.
Much of the bacon fat drains off during the long, slow baking as indeed does most of the sugar. And wasn’t it only a year or so ago that foodies were touting lard (and bacon) as “the new health foods”?

¾ cup light brown sugar, not packed

2 teaspoons dry mustard

½ teaspoon black pepper

1 pound thickly sliced, hickory-smoked bacon, each slice halved crosswise

• 1.
  Preheat the oven to 325° F. Lay a large baking rack (preferably one with a cross-hatch grid) on top of an ungreased 15½ × 10½ × 1-inch jelly roll pan. Spritz the rack well with nonstick cooking spray and set aside.
  
• 2.
  Combine the brown sugar, mustard, and pepper in a pie pan, whisking out all lumps. Dredge each piece of bacon on both sides in the sugar mixture until thickly coated.
  
• 3.
  Arrange the bacon on the rack, preferably not touching, and sprinkle generously with the remaining sugar mixture.
  
• 4.
  Slide the pan onto the middle oven rack and bake uncovered for 50 to 60 minutes or until the bacon is richly browned and crisp. No need to turn the bacon as it bakes.
  
• 5.
  Cool the candied bacon to room temperature and serve with cocktails.
  

SAUSAGE-STUFFED MUSHROOM CAPS

MAKES
2
DOZEN

Some years ago I spent ten days driving up and down the James River in Virginia visiting the historic plantation houses located there. Although I marveled at their architecture and museum-caliber antiques, my main mission was to research the recipes—past and present—served in those homes. My good friend Maria Harrison Reuge, descended from an old Virginia family, supplied the entrée I needed, so I came home with a notebook full of plantation recipes. One of my favorites is this appetizer from Meri Major, of Belle Air Plantation, who treated me to lunch one day and proved why she was considered one of the best cooks in Tidewater Virginia. “I just grew up watching every kind of thing being cooked,” Meri told me. “Just about every part of the pig, wild turkey, every type of game, every type of seafood. I always had a natural affinity for cooking and was forever under foot in the kitchen.” For this snappy hors d’oeuvre, which she calls “just so simple,” Meri would use a peppery Virginia sausage. But any spicy bulk sausage will do. If only mild sausage is available, Meri suggests adding “a couple of dashes of cayenne pepper to the beaten eggs.” Tip:
To keep the stuffed mushrooms hot while they’re being served, bake them in a 9-or 10-inch quiche dish attractive enough to come to the party. That’s what Meri does. “And put out plenty of pretty forked toothpicks,” she adds.

24 medium-size mushrooms, wiped clean with a damp cloth

½ pound spicy bulk sausage meat

1 small garlic clove, finely minced

1 tablespoon finely minced scallion or finely snipped fresh chives

1 small egg, well beaten

²
/
₃
cup soft white bread crumbs or
¹
/
₃
cup fine dry bread crumbs

½ teaspoon soy sauce

• 1.
  Preheat the oven to 350° F.
  
• 2.
  Stem the mushrooms. Set the caps aside and coarsely chop the stems.
  
• 3.
  Cook the sausage, mushroom stems, garlic, and scallion in a medium-size skillet for 5 to 8 minutes over moderately low heat, breaking up any large sausage lumps, until the meat is lightly browned. Remove from the heat, cool for 15 minutes, then mix in the egg, bread crumbs, and soy sauce.
  
• 4.
  Mound the sausage mixture in the mushroom caps, then arrange in an ungreased 9-or 10-inch quiche dish or ovenproof 9 × 9 × 2-inch baking dish.
  
• 5.
  Bake on the middle oven shelf for 10 to 12 minutes or until bubbling and browned. Serve hot with cocktails.
  

INDIVIDUAL CORN CUSTARDS WITH CARROT VINAIGRETTE

MAKES
6
SERVINGS

High above Waynesville, North Carolina, with its back to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and a full frontal view of Cold Mountain, stands the Swag, an elegantly rustic inn owned by Dr. Daniel P. Matthews and his wife, Deener. The massive wooden beams in the two-story living-dining room came from an old country church, altogether appropriate given the fact that for seventeen years Dan Matthews was the rector of Trinity Parish near Ground Zero in Lower Manhattan. Breakfasts at the Swag are bountiful and so, too, the dinners. During my stay there several years ago, these delicate corn custards were served at the start of a superb lamb dinner.

Corn Custards

1 cup heavy cream

2 large eggs

½ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon black pepper

¹
/
₈
teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

²
/
₃
cup fresh sweet corn kernels (you’ll need about 1 large ear)

Carrot Vinaigrette

½ cup coarsely chopped carrot (you’ll need about 1 medium carrot)

3 tablespoons white wine vinegar

½ cup plus 2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 tablespoon finely chopped Italian parsley

Garnish

1 medium radicchio, trimmed and thinly sliced

• 1.
  Preheat the oven to 350° F. Spritz six
  ¹
  /
  ₃
  -cup ramekins or custard cups with nonstick cooking spray and set aside.
  
• 2.
  For the corn custards: Whisk the cream, eggs, salt, pepper, and nutmeg until thoroughly blended. Divide the corn among the six ramekins, then ladle in the custard mixture, again dividing evenly. Dampen a dish towel, fold, and smooth over the bottom of a large shallow baking pan. Stand the ramekins, not touching, on the towel.
  
• 3.
  Slide the pan of custards onto the middle oven shelf and pour enough boiling water into the baking pan to come a third of the way up the ramekins. Bake the custards uncovered for 20 to 30 minutes or just until set. Lift the custards to a wire rack and cool for 10 minutes.
  
• 4.
  While the custards bake, prepare the carrot vinaigrette: Cook the carrot in a small saucepan in just enough water to cover for about 10 minutes or until very tender. Drain well and pat dry on paper toweling. Purée the carrot with the vinegar in a mini food processor or an electric blender, then with the motor running, drizzle in the oil. Continue churning until the mixture emulsifies. Fold in the parsley.
  
• 5.
  When ready to serve, gently loosen each custard around the edge with a knife and invert on a salad plate. Wreathe with the sliced radicchio and top each portion with 1½ to 2 tablespoons of the vinaigrette.
  

FAVORITE DEVILED EGGS

MAKES
4
TO
6
SERVINGS

Some say that deviled eggs were invented down south. I wouldn’t go that far, but I do know they’re far too popular to be confined to picnics. I’ve seen sophisticated southern hostesses pass platters of deviled eggs with cocktails and watched guests scarf them down. Of course, every Southerner has a pet recipe for deviled eggs and this one is mine; it couldn’t be easier. Note:
Here’s how I hard-cook eggs: Place the eggs in a large heavy saucepan and add enough cold water to cover them by two inches. Bring to a boil over moderately high heat, set off the heat, cover, and let the eggs stand for 15 minutes. Drain the eggs at once, then quick-chill in ice water.