Lan4Dawg

The other day I was preparing a pork roast to go in the oven and mentioned to the Fuss that macaroni & cheese would be a great side dish w/ the pork. She volunteered to make it but would have to do so when she returned from running errands. One thing led to another & she was running late so I went ahead and prepared the stuff & was just putting the dish in the oven when she returned. "I thought I was going to make the macaroni & cheese!" she exclaimed upon entering the kitchen. "Well" I responded, "you were running late & I was still in the kitchen so I went ahead & made it. What is the big deal?" "I do not like your macaroni & cheese. You put bread crumbs in yours and no self-respecting Southerner would ever put bread crumbs in their macaroni & cheese" she huffed. Now folks I did not realize this was a regional issue. I checked many of my "traditionally Southern" cook books &, surprisingly, I could only find a couple of receipts for this popular dish. Neither of them used bread crumbs but neither was any thing close to the receipt we use either. Our preparations are similar--we both make a white sauce (however, I add shredded carrots, onion, celery, & a hint of garlic & nutmeg to my white sauce and hers is a standard "bechemal"), blend w/ grated sharp cheddar and macaroni and then bake. The major difference between our dishes--aside fr/ the mirepoix I add to my white sauce--is that I add toasted & lightly buttered bread crumbs & parmesan (roughly 1:1) to the mix. I think the bread crumbs add a little texture to the dish but she feels the addition is ruinous and a slap in the face to those brave boys who wore butter nut & gray and stood tall at Chancellorsville, Sharpsburg, Gettysburg, Shiloh, &c. Not wanting to sully & besmirch my heritage (note: both of us were born & bread in Georgia) I thought I would ask for opinions on the matter. Is adding bread crumbs to macaroni & cheese a crime against Rhett, Scarlett, & Ashley and I should just take advantage of some culinary re-location act and move to the mid-west? or is it a matter of personal preference w/ no regional ties what-so-ever? or am I the only person in the world who actually puts bread crumbs in their mac & cheese and I should be pulverized in the Cuisinart for committing such an atrocity? in loving memory of Mr. Squirt (1998-2004)--the best cat ever.

I was in the local liquor store & discovered to my horror that: a. Dry Sack sherry no longer comes in a sack. Instead there is a standard glass bottle w/ a neck tag proclaiming, "new packaging for an old friend" or some such drivel. Is there not some thing lost when the name of the stuff and the packaging do not agree? It is like the Three Musketeers Bar whose name now makes no sense what-so-ever (it used to be three separate candy bars--light, milk, & dark chocolate-- in one package hence the name). b. Bols Gin is no longer packaged in the crock. Once again they now use a regular glass bottle. At least it retains the same shape as the old crock but it removes some of the interest in & fun of having that unusual bottle of Bols gin around. It was a great conversation piece at the bar b/c it was so unusual. I immediately went to make certain the Usquebach was still in the old fashioned crock but the store was out so I could not tell. I suppose that is what happens when the world is run by corporations and greed & profits are more important than tradition. Do we want to wager on how long it will be before Crown Royal drops the purple cloth bag and Galliano moves to a short, squat, run-of-the-mill bottle? in loving memory of Mr. Squirt (1998-2004)--the best cat ever.

Several years ago I was working in a large restaurant with a wine cellar where we held dinner parties. Many of the bottles were in open shelves along the walls but the really expensive stuff was in locked cages. For some reason people were always fascinated w/ the wine in the cages and although you could clearly read the labels of the wine people still felt the need to try and reach through the bars and touch the bottles. The bars were so close that the most any one could do is get a finger or two through but that still did not stop people fr/ trying. I was waiting on a party in the room when some moron managed to get his hands in to one of the cages and maneuver a bottle around "to get a closer look". He had already been asked by the sommelier not to touch the bottles "as it would disturb the sediment" but it did not deter him. How he did it I will never know but he managed to tilt the bottle out of its cradle and before any one realized what was happening there was a crash and a late 70's Bordeaux bottle was in pieces on the bottom of the cage and the room smelled really wonderful. The host of the party was mortified and immediately came running up to me and apologized and offered to pay for the bottle. I do not think she realized that it was on our wine list for about $350.00. I got the manager when I delivered the check in case there was a problem but she paid it & even tipped me on the broken bottle. To this day I wonder if the idiot who broke the bottle wound up paying for it or if he still had a job the next day. in loving memory of Mr. Squirt (1998-2004)--the best cat ever.

just a couple of words of warning.... parking near the Dome is going to be an absolute bear so I would recommend taking MARTA. The train stops right at the Dome (& Philips Arena/CNN Center) so it will be very convenient. Trying to get some thing to eat at CNN Center will also be a night mare. There are a bunch of fast food & quick eat type places there but most of them will be packed & completely over-whelmed by the crush of people. You should be able to walk (although it is a few blocks) to Thelma's Kitchen (on Marietta St) for real, live, honest to goodness, "soul food" or before you head to the game(s) stop at Son's Place almost directly across the street fr/ the Inman Park MARTA station for some of the best fried chicken in the city. Please note that both of these places close relatively early (4.00pm or so) so make the necessary arrangements. If you do decide to drive I would suggest parking under the viaducts (entrances to the east of GWCC & at the Russell Federal Building) and may be taking stuff to tail gate. This being Atl the weather could be drop dead gorgeous in March or an absolute night mare. btw, how did some one fr/ Buffalo become interested in SEC hoops? HDHD in loving memory of Mr. Squirt (1998-2004)--the best cat ever.

I absolutely loved that post. Thanks. ← you are welcome. I enjoyed the memories. in loving memory of Mr. Squirt (1998-2004)--the best cat ever.

we always had caramel cake at our holiday functions (thanksgiving, xmas, &c). My great-grandmother made it and then the task was taken over by my great-aunt and now the Fuss makes it when ever the family gets together. The mention of caramel cakes brings back some very fond memories. My great-gr'mother and great-aunt always made a loaf cake. When the Fuss first made it she decided a layer cake would be great and could not get the layers to stay stacked so she had tooth picks, nut picks, dowels, chop sticks & just about any thing else she could find stuck in to keep the layers from sliding. When she asked Aunt Dell about the cake Aunt Dell's response was simple: "why do you think I make a loaf cake honey?" There was some times a problem getting the frosting to set if the humidity was just not right and Aunt Dell would always put a note at the end of the receipt that if it did not set to "add more sugar and just beat the devil out of it!" It became a challenge to figure out how to steal the ends of the cake--with all of that wonderful, gooey, luscious caramel frosting--w/o being caught and all of the children & grand children would fight to get those end pieces. One holiday I was delayed and some one beat me to the ends so I just took a knife and--much to every one's chagrin--sliced off the side of the cake. I believe it was the next year that we got out of hand and at the end of the dinner there was a brick of perfectly wonderful almond pound cake w/ absolutely no caramel frosting any where to be found. Later I pulled an "end around" on the rest of the family and just told Aunt Dell I would come by her house & take her to family functions. The first thing I did when I got to her house was slice the ends off the cake and hide them in the car for later. When ever any one complained I would just tell them it was payment for taxi-ing Aunt Dell around. The great thing about Fuss making the cake is that she makes extra frosting and we just take the cake along w/ a big bowl of extra frosting on the side. Of course that does not include the cake & frosting that never make it to the dinner. ":^) So far I have not seen mention of the ubiquitous fruit cake! Fruit cake always gets such a bad rap but if made well it is wonderful. My great grand mother made a fruit cake but she used her own dried fruit--not that nasty stuff that comes pre-packaged w/ the little bits of multi-colored what ever--and pecans fr/ the back yard. After she made it--usually some time around the first of December--she would take the thing and soak it in home made brandy until we all gathered at her house on Christmas Eve. The brandy was made by my great grandfather who had passed back in the late 1950's & this was many years later so you can imagine that both the brandy and the cake packed quite a wallop. (The Rev used to accuse my mother of wringing the cake out on her plate, drinking the liquid and throwing the remaining cake away.) There were also assorted home made cookies & candies, ambrosia, & such in addition to the cakes and pies. in loving memory of Mr. Squirt (1998-2004)--the best cat ever.

the name entymology is really pretty simple: a "slug" is slang for a fake coin hence a "slug" burger is slang for a fake burger. There is also the theory that "slug" was slang for a nickel which is what the burgers cost but I find that a stretch since regular burgers went for a nickel. If memory serves there is an explanation of "slug burgers" on the Corinth, Mississippi city web site but I can not find the link. They are essentially a little ground beef w/ a lot of extender and that addition can be any thing fr/ oats, ground corn, soy, or any thing else. Folks would add condiments to make them palatable. We had them a few years back on a visit to Corinth and John Edge was correct; they really did not taste like much except for the grease in which they were cooked and the condiments. in loving memory of Mr. Squirt (1998-2004)--the best cat ever.

"I was once in line at the Stop & Shop (here in Westport) behind Martha Stewart. Amongst the other grocs (that I, of course, carefully inventoried), she had a box of INSTANT grits. Now unless she was using these babies to spackle her ceiling, I'm guessing that she speaks to the masses who also like cheesy potatoes! And bloomin' onions! (The shame!)" I seldomly watch (or watched) Martha Stewart simply b/c of her "I know much more than you attitude" & the fact that if I had a staff of 30 available to drill holes in walnuts all day for holiday decorations my house would look like a show palace as well. However, one day the "teaser" for her show was a "Southern Ham--stuffed w/ greens and grits". My interest piqued I made it a point to watch the show. The premise was good but, sure enough, she used instant grits (& turnips not collards) at which point I went "blecch" and changed the channel. I really should have known better than to think a Connecticut Yankee would have an inkling about grits but "hope springs eternal" & one would think as picky as she is that she would actually make--as the lady at the mill where I buy my grits puts it--"sho 'nuff grits". in loving memory of Mr. Squirt (1998-2004)--the best cat ever

because, according to an article fr/ years ago in the old Atlanta Gazette, "To a Southerner the pecan is not a nut. It is a gift from God." I wish I could find the article but the headline pretty much says it all. in loving memory of Mr. Squirt (1998-2004)--the best cat ever.

I agree w/ Mabelline. Refine the receipt and send it to the food editor as, "how the duck in last week's paper SHOULD be prepared". It might lead to a column of your own correcting abhorrent receipts fr/ the previous food section. in loving memory of Mr. Squirt (1998-2004)--the best cat ever

great thread & unfortunately it is too true that people are abandoning "home cooking" for the restaurants and eating "restaurant food" at home. I almost blanched a few years ago when I attended a church social and noticed that the church had purchased fried chicken fr/ a restaurant and the members were instructed to bring vegetables & desserts to accompany it. To make matters worse too many of those vegetables/desserts were in a container marked w/ a chain logo. And this was at a church where I had fond memories of the great cooks and the great food that always made it to these functions. Too often convenience becomes a factor. How often do we see women (not being sexist just realistic) of the previous generation who were so tired of making biscuits that the canned or, now, frozen product became the standard? I remember my grand mother bringing frozen rolls to the table and saying how glad she was that they were available b/c she hated making them by scratch. She would never buy a jar of jam or jelly as that was always "home made" & fr/ local orchards when available and except for the occasional frozen vegetable in the dead of winter just about every thing was as fresh as possible but she despised making bread so we had frozen rolls at Sunday dinner. That trend continued as none of her children or grandchildren make bread. After a while we convince our selves--or are convinced by the advertisers--that the store bought product is "just as good as" or "even better than" home made until the store bought is the "norm" and home made is the exception. After a while no one wants real Southern food any more. Instead they want the glop that is served by the chains or bought fr/ stores b/c that is what they remember as "home cooking" and would not know true "home cooking" if it snuck on to their plates. in loving memory of Mr. Squirt (1998-2004)--the best cat ever

Let me second (or third) the suggestions for old Junior League or church cook books--esp. those fr/ old, established communities and churches. Some of my very favorite receipts come fr/ these cook books. Granted you have to work w/ the ubiquitous cream of mushroom soup on way too many occasions & sort through several different versions of the same casserole all too often but especially for desserts some of these cook books are absolutely priceless. I also like the food editors fr/ the "old line" type newspapers--Camille Glenn is a great example and I thoroughly enjoy her book. Some one that no one has yet mentioned is Mrs. S. R. Dull, the long time food editor of the Atlanta Journal (or Constitution--I can not remember which as she was there before they were combined). I do not believe any of her books are still in print but I got a copy fr/ my great aunt and enjoy picking through some of the old line receipts included. I do not remember seeing Leah Chase' name mentioned as a source for Creole food and Justin Wilson--although it is hard to take him seriously--is a great read for good, "down home" type Louisiana cooking as well as some delightful stories. You can not say enough about John Edge, John Egerton, Scott Peacock, Damon Fowler and the job they (amongst many others) are doing in spreading the joys of Southern cooking to a new generation. Let me also mention Joseph Dabney and his excellent book, SmokeHouse Ham, SpoonBread, & Scuppernong Wine as a great source for Appalachian food & life style along w/ the old Foxfire series. in loving memory of Mr. Squirt (1998-2004) --the best cat ever

just an fyi.... Collins also makes orange bitters. That is the only brand I can find here in the Atlanta area and the only place I can find those are at Tower Package on Piedmont. (& just for those who remember a long ago post I still have not found that bottle of orange bitters that disappeared.)

A long time ago there was another vegetable shortening, marketed mostly in the midwest, that was as good, if not better than Crisco, it came in a pale blue and yellow diagonally striped can(bucket with a wire bail) and had a name that started with Sno- and I can't recall the rest of the name. We used it in my mom's bakery and got it in 50 pound tins. I had one of the buckets for years in my shed when I lived down below but it was lost in one of my moves. I have tried just about everything over the years, including a "vegetable ghee" that one of the guys who owns the middle eastern market here in town talked me into trying. Not bad, but not up to Crisco standards. There was a time when I used to buy beef kidney suet, render it down and use that fat for frying French fries because I had good friends who were Jewish and I didn't think vegetable oil produced as good a fried potato as an animal fat and wouldn't settle for a less than perfect fry! Everyone thought I was just a tad obsessive about it but those were really great fries. I am no longer quite that dedicated to the perfect fry but may occasionally make the effort. The problem is that with the "factory" beef production it is getting much harder to get kidney suet. I do get what there is when I have my steer butchered but there isn't that much on one animal. ← Sno-Drift I believe was the name of the shortening. I remember the name and the advertising and we had it here in the South but I recall every one using Crisco. Maybe it was because Loretta told us, "It'll do you proud ev'ry time!"

I remember vegetable casseroles (as well as meat casseroles) as being absolutely ubiquitous at church and community functions during my child hood. For years I thought the only way to eat broccoli was in a casserole. For some reason every thing had to be bound w/ cream of mushroom, celery, or chicken soup and then topped w/ some type of crunchy substance--be it corn flakes, or fried onions, or crumbled crackers, or corn bread. Casseroles were made w/ squash--yellow or zucchini, eggplant, broccoli, mixed vegetables, corn, carrots, potatoes, beans, peas, or even a combination of meats and vegetables for a "one pot meal". (remember the old joke about the three women--one Jewish, one Catholic, and one Protestant who wound up in heaven and were told to return to earth and bring back some thing that portrayed their faith? The Jewish woman returned w/ a dreidel & explained how children learned their lessons fr/ the "toy". The Catholic woman returned w/ a rosary and explained how it comforted her in times of crisis. It took several hours for the Protestant woman to return toting her casserole.) I think part of the appeal of a casserole was that it could be prepared ahead, frozen if necessary, reheated numerous times, would stay warm for long periods after being heated, could be prepared in a single dish & transported well, all of the ingredients were either on hand or easily obtainable, it was relatively simple to make and very filling. Casseroles were essential for sharing--which is a big part of Southern food--either at church functions or w/ a family during a crisis. I have to admit that I still love the things & every once in a while just have to throw things in one of those pyrex dishes (I have graduated fr/ cream of _____ soup to making my own flavored thickener), top it w/ crumbled crunchy some thing and a little cheese and watch it bubble away in the oven. MOF, I am wondering what is in the fridge now to make for dinner.

Well, there was this guy called Noah and he told me to gather every type of alcohol I could find two by two......... We had a pipe burst in the foundation which flooded the living room, dining room, and kitchen of our house and we are still trying to get things back to normal. Fortunately the salt chest was not harmed (luckily I was at home when it happened and managed to save most of our furniture) but I yanked every thing off of it in order to move it and since then my bar has been living in various boxes around the house and the salt chest is relegated to a corner of the living room waiting for the new flooring. Thx for asking.

before the flood every thing was in an antique salt chest (really cool wooden box about three feet high and four feet wide w/ a hinged lid, drawer, and cabinet that I inherited fr/ a great uncle. It is called a "salt chest" b/c that was its purpose--for storing bulk salt.) I used the cabinet to store assorted glass ware and the drawer for bar utensils, &c. That sat next to an assortment of very old wine crates that held various wines and the tops held more alcohol. Since the flood (& one of these days Fuss will get the floor finished) every thing is sitting in an assortment of boxes all over the place. The large bottles are stashed in the kitchen cabinet.

I would agree to an extent as we would rather have the drink done properly than have to send it back and go through the entire situation again and kudos to the bartender for asking instead of making it incorrectly. My problem is that if the waiter had come to the table immediately and simply said, "we have requests for dry martinis and the bartender wanted to make certain you wanted dry vermouth instead of just a smaller amount of sweet vermouth" I would have said, "yes, thank you, dry vermouth". Instead it became an absolute night mare and almost half an hour wait to get one cocktail. My argument is not necessarily that they asked but that it took so long to make a simple cocktail that should be in any bartender's repertoire. My guess is that there was an argument at the bar over how to make it and no one wanted to admit that they were not correct hence the delay. Now to bring up another situation.....why, when ordering a martini and specifying a twist do bartenders automatically dump olives in the drink? When you point out that you wanted a twist instead of an olive they fish out the olive and add the twist right in front of you and then get upset when you refuse the drink. Do they not realize that putting an olive in the martini completely changed the drink? Do they not understand that now the martini is "briny"? I like olives--as a matter of fact I truly enjoy olives--I just do not like them in my martinis as I think they over whelm the taste of the gin and vermouth.

The Fuss drinks dry J&B Manhattans. Simple right? J&B, dry vermouth, splash of bitters (we usually make it a point to ask for bitters, just in case), & a lemon twist. We place our order--two Bombay (not Sapphire) martinis, ten to one w/ twists and a dry J&B Manhattan (w/ a splash of bitters)...... We wait and wait and wait; I would not be worried but it is not a big restaurant; there are not a lot of people there; it is relatively late; we can see the bar and see that our martinis are made; what is the problem?..... here comes the waiter w/ the martinis and a question. "How do you want your manhattan again ?" "Dry J&B Manhattan w/a splash of bitters and a twist" "okay, I will be right back".....we wait......here comes the waiter, no drink "do you mean you want less sweet vermouth?" "no, dry vermouth not sweet" "okay, I will be right back"....we wait.....here comes the waiter, no drink, "you mean dry vermouth?" we look over and half the restaurant staff is standing at the bar staring at us as if they have never heard of such an animal......"yes, take 1 & 1/2 ounces J&B, add about a 1/4 ounce DRY vermouth, a splash of bitters and a twist"......"oh, we have never had a request for a dry manhattan before so wanted to make sure. The bartender thought by dry you meant less sweet vermouth so I had to check"......well, at least they asked..... Finally here comes the cocktail. It was mixed perfectly--how could it not be after I gave the receipt to him? I am just glad Fuss does not drink "perfect" J&B Manhattans as I could see them trying to understand that drink. This was not a dive but an upscale white table cloth restaurant that had a decent clientele and was recommended to us by the hotel. The rest of the meal was uneventful and the food and service were good but not spectacular. Also I could not blame the waiter as he was just the go between caught in the middle but how could a bartender not know how to make a dry Manhattan?

you forgot the pork brains and the "rat trap" cheese! Every thing else makes me want to go and cook break fast for dinner.

Flour? Flour in red eye gravy? I think I hear my grandma rolling over in her grave. I've never heard of such practice personally, but they they did make an effort to protect me from that sort of outlandish fring activity. luckily you were sheltered fr/ such heathens. They claimed it was to "thicken" it. My response was, "you are mixing it w/ grits for criminies sake! How much more of a thickener do you need?"

I am amazed that no one has mentioned one of the other "essential" ingredients for red-eye gravy and that is Tabasco (or another brand of hot sauce). You need the hot sauce as well as the coffee to jolt you awake. We always made it w/ ham drippings, some of the ham marrow, left over strong coffee, and a good shot of hot sauce then reduced it while the grits "set" (as any a good Southerner knows you have to allow the grits to "set" for several minutes after cooking in order to get them to the proper consistency). I have known some folks to add flour to their red-eye gravy but they are known communists who say bad things about their own mothers and kick small furry animals at every given opportunity.

I do believe that one of my mother's favorite things in the world is a moon pie and a cup of hot cocoa. She gets boxes of moon pies for her birth day and in her stocking at Christmas and has been addicted to the things seemingly for ever. The Rev used to court her w/ moon pies when they were dating some 50 years ago. I think she married him b/c he lived in NW Georgia and that was close to the source for the marsh mallow creations. I do remember when they were twice the size they are now. It is pretty incredible that the state of Tennessee is responsible for Moon Pies, Little Debbie Cakes, Goo-Goo Clusters (here is some trivia for you--do you know why they are named "Goo-Goo"?), Krystal, and Jack Daniel's.

the beauty of a "low country boil", like so many other wonderful, traditional, old style dishes, is that there no one receipt is correct. Truth be told there is no receipt. The most important thing is to make certain that the ingredients go in at the proper time or you will wind up w/ a tasteless and over-cooked mush. Use general common sense there. The potatoes are going to take longer to cook than the corn which will take longer to cook than the shellfish, &c.

"Go to the Buford Highway Farmer's market. It's just outside the NE of the perimeter, on Buford Highway. " I love that place! A chef friend of mine calls it "a Toys 'R' Us" for chefs. The prices are very good and they have every thing. The only problem I have w/ the place is that some times the language barrier can be a problem but there is usually some one there to help translate. If they combined that w/ Harry's bread, cheese, & wine selections it would be ideal.