A Love Affair with Southern Cooking (9 page)

1 cup mayonnaise (use “light,” if you like)

2½ tablespoons cider or white wine vinegar (purists insist upon distilled white vinegar but I find that too harsh)

1 tablespoon water (more if you prefer a thinner sauce)

1 medium garlic clove, finely minced

2 teaspoons Creole or Dijon mustard

2 teaspoons prepared horseradish

1 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper, or to taste

1 teaspoon sugar

½ teaspoon salt, or to taste

• 1.
  Combine all ingredients in a small nonreactive bowl, whisking until smooth. Taste for salt and pepper and adjust as needed. Also, if you prefer a thinner sauce, whisk in an extra tablespoon or two of water.
  
• 2.
  Transfer the sauce to a 1-pint jar, screw the lid down tight, and store in the refrigerator. Stored thus, white barbecue sauce will keep for 5 to 7 days.
  
• 3.
  Serve as a dip for crisp raw vegetables, as a cocktail sauce for cold shrimp or other shellfish,
  

MARYLAND HOT CRAB DIP

MAKES ABOUT
4
CUPS

One of the joys of traveling Maryland’s Eastern Shore is the chance to feast on blue crabs right out of the Chesapeake—and not only on whole steamed crab but also on freshly picked crabmeat prepared a hundred ways. Many Eastern Shore inns offer hot crab dip as an appetizer, some of them classic, others contemporary. This one, developed by the Maryland Department of Agriculture’s Seafood Marketing Pro-gram, is fairly traditional. I picked it up while exploring crab country and have tweaked it to add my own touch. Note:
Though crackers are usually served with hot crab dip, I prefer raw, bite-size florets of broccoli or cauliflower, even crisp spears of Belgian endive.
Tip:
Given the stratospheric cost of lump crabmeat these days, I use “special”—less expensive flakes of body meat. Cheaper still is the brownish “claw meat.” Either is a good choice for this dip because the crab will only be blended with the other ingredients.

One 8-ounce package light cream cheese (Neufchâtel), at room temperature

½ cup firmly packed sour cream (use “light,” if you like)

2 tablespoons mayonnaise-relish sandwich spread

1 tablespoon finely minced scallion

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

¼ teaspoon hot red pepper sauce

¼ teaspoon crushed garlic

¼ cup coarsely grated sharp Cheddar cheese

1 tablespoon milk (about)

8 ounces cooked crabmeat, picked over for bits of shell and cartilage (see Tip at left)

• 1.
  Preheat the oven to 325° F. Spritz a 1-quart casserole with nonstick cooking spray and set aside.
  
• 2.
  Beat the cream cheese with the sour cream, sandwich spread, scallion, lemon juice, mustard, Worcestershire sauce, red pepper sauce, garlic, and 2 tablespoons of the grated Cheddar in a medium-size mixing bowl until well combined. Whisk in 1 tablespoon milk or just enough to make the mixture creamy. Fold in the crabmeat.
  
• 3.
  Scoop the crab mixture into the casserole, spreading to the edge, and scatter the remaining grated Cheddar evenly on top.
  
• 4.
  Slide onto the middle oven shelf and bake uncovered for 25 to 30 minutes or until bubbling and tipped with brown.
  
• 5.
  Serve hot as a dip for crackers or bite-size chunks of raw vegetable (see Note at left).
  

Only a Southerner knows that asking for “sweet milk” means you don’t want buttermilk.

—
ANONYMOUS

ARTICHOKE DIP

MAKES ABOUT
3
CUPS

A riffle through any southern cookbook—especially a club or community fund-raiser—will turn up scores of artichoke recipes. Not Jerusalem artichokes, although these are plenty popular, but French globe artichokes. Did this passion for them begin in New Orleans and spread outward? Or did the aristocratic youths sent abroad to study before the Civil War come home with an appetite for artichokes? While in France, Italy, and elsewhere they would have encountered them prepared a dozen different ways. We do know that Thomas Jefferson grew artichokes at Monticello, even rare red globe artichokes. Whatever the reason, artichokes are a southern staple and this dip—superb with chips, crackers, or crudités—is a cocktail perennial. Note:
To pack sour cream or mayonnaise into a measure, scoop up by tablespoonfuls, packing each into one of the nested cups designed for dry ingredients, and level off with the broad side of a thin-blade spatula.

Two 10-ounce jars marinated artichoke hearts, drained as dry as possible

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

1 small whole garlic clove

1 cup firmly packed sour cream (use “light,” if you like) (see Note above)

½ cup firmly packed mayonnaise (use “light,” if you like)

½ teaspoon salt (about)

½ teaspoon hot red pepper sauce (about)

• 1.
  Place all ingredients in an electric blender or food processor and whiz for 10 to 15 seconds or until fairly smooth. Taste for salt and hot pepper sauce and adjust as needed.
  
• 2.
  Scoop into a small nonreactive bowl, cover, and refrigerate for several hours.
  
• 3.
  Remove the dip from the refrigerator and allow to stand at room temperature for about 30 minutes before serving.
  

Martha fixed lunch for Zelma and me that day…. She made us biscuits and fried white bacon, and served her best preserves. She had baked sweet potatoes still hot in the wood range and when we left she gave us a paper sack of them to carry with us.

—
MARJORIE KINNAN RAWLINGS
,
CROSS CREEK

DEVILED VIDALIA DIP

MAKES ABOUT
2½
CUPS

I’m so fond of Georgia’s sweet Vidalia onions that I decided to make a dip of them. On the first try I caramelized two pounds of Vidalias and even with my insatiable sweet tooth, found the dip more dessert than appetizer. By substituting sharper yellow onions for half the Vidalias, I came up with a dip that reminds me of the
agrodolce
(sweet-sour) onions I’ve enjoyed in Italy. I also think that using a dozen scallions (white part only) in place of one of the yellow onions would be equally delicious. I like this dip best with melba rounds, salty crackers, and peppery radishes, although it’s good, too, with raw cauliflower or broccoli florets. Note:
When I call for something to be “firmly packed,” spoon it into a dry cup measure, packing as you go, then level off the top with the broad side of a small thin-blade spatula.

3 tablespoons butter

1 very large Vidalia onion (about 1 pound), coarsely chopped

2 medium yellow onions (about 1 pound), coarsely chopped (see headnote)

1 tablespoon cider vinegar or balsamic vinegar

1 cup firmly packed sour cream (use “light,” if you like)

¼ cup firmly packed Dijon mustard

½ teaspoon salt, or to taste

½ teaspoon black pepper, or to taste

½ teaspoon hot red pepper sauce, or to taste

• 1.
  Melt the butter in a large, heavy skillet over moderate heat. Add the Vidalia and yellow onions and cook uncovered, stirring now and then, for about 1 hour or until the color of pale caramel. Do not rush the caramelization by raising the burner heat; you risk burning the onions. Toward the end of cooking, stir the onions every few minutes.
  
• 2.
  Mix in the vinegar and cook and stir for about 1 minute or until it evaporates.
  
• 3.
  Remove the skillet from the heat and mix in all remaining ingredients. Taste for salt, black pepper, and hot pepper sauce and adjust as needed.
  
• 4.
  Serve warm or at room temperature as a cocktail dip.
  

PEPPERED PECANS

MAKES ABOUT
3
CUPS

These party-perfect pecans (or one of their countless variations) have long been popular down south. Some hostesses make double or triple batches and store the nuts in airtight containers as insurance against drop-in guests. Note:
The nuts you use should be absolutely fresh (see Sources, backmatter) because no amount of seasoning can mask the rankness of rancid nuts.
Tip:
Here’s a dish-and time-saver: Place the butter and garlic in a two-quart ovenproof glass measuring cup and microwave for about three minutes on
LOW
or until the butter melts. Let stand in
the microwave for 5 minutes. Fish out the garlic, whisk in the Worcestershire and hot pepper sauces, add the pecans, and stir until nicely coated. How hard is that?

3 tablespoons butter (see Tip at left)

2 large garlic cloves, slivered lengthwise

2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

1½ to 2½ teaspoons hot red pepper sauce (depending on how “hot” you like things)

3 cups pecan halves (see Note at left)

½ teaspoon salt

• 1.
  Preheat the oven to 350° F.
  
• 2.
  Place the butter and garlic in a small saucepan and set over low heat for 2 to 3 minutes or just until the butter melts; remove from the heat and let stand for 5 minutes. Fish out and discard the garlic, add the Worcestershire and hot pepper sauces, and whisk until blended.
  
• 3.
  Place the pecans in a large mixing bowl, drizzle with the melted butter mixture, and toss until nicely coated. Or, if you prefer, follow the directions given in the Tip.
  
• 4.
  Spread the pecans on an ungreased baking sheet and bake on the middle oven shelf, stirring often, for about 15 minutes or until nicely toasted. Watch carefully; nuts burn easily. Remove the nuts from the oven, sprinkle evenly with the salt, and toss well.
  
• 5.
  Spread the nuts on paper toweling, cool to room temperature, then store in airtight containers. Serve with cocktails.