This was the Christmas that we would eat dinner out. But, plans changed when we found that we wouldn’t be able to find a restaurant open, and one son was coming and the other son was going.

On Christmas Eve, it ended up being this grandmother who was stirring in the kitchen instead of the mouse. I put together a dinner of different foods that I thought we’d all enjoy, yet would keep our dinner traditionally Southern. So, my husband, son and granddaughter sat down to a great dinner on Christmas Day, even though it had been unplanned until the night before.

The impromptu menu was a traditional pear and cheese salad that we must have on holidays,  baked ham, Southern Whitehouse Chicken (from my book, but also known as Country Captain) over long grain white rice, cornbread dressing with gravy, butterbeans cooked with ham, roasted asparagus with Parmesan-Romano cheese, Savannah corn fritters with red pepper jelly, rolls, pineapple cake, Christmas plum pudding (on the previous blog on this site), and mincemeat cake (Southerncookingathome.blogspot.com).

Pear & Cheese Salad

Always on the holiday table. The pear salad is nothing more than lettuce, fresh pears, peeled and sliced or cut into wedges or cubes, mayonnaise and cheddar cheese. Mix all together and place in a pretty bowl. Or, if you prefer to serve it on a plate or platter, prepare a bed of lettuce, two pear halves per person (rub with lemon juice to keep from turning brown), a dollop of mayonnaise in the center of each pear and grated cheddar on top. A rich blue cheese dressing is also good on the pears.

 

Southern Whitehouse Chicken (Country Captain)

I usually make this with chicken breasts cut in half, but I didn’t have them and used tenderloins. Tenderloins worked even better. I’ll give you the regular version and the one I used on Christmas Day. This was one of my cooking class favorites. If I’m serving this for dinner, I’ll make an Orange and Pear Salad. The recipe is in my book, but if you’d like to try it, send a message, and I’ll get you the recipe.

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon pepper

4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, cut in half crosswise

vegetable oil for frying

1 large onion, chopped

1 small green pepper, sliced thin

1 clove garlic, minced

2 (14.5 ounce) cans diced tomatoes with green pepper and onion

1/2 cup currants or raisins if currents are not available

3/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1 teaspoon sugar

1 tablespoon fresh thyme or 1 teaspoon dried thyme

2 1/2 teaspoon curry powder or to taste

1 1/2 tablespoons freshly chopped parsley

1/2 cup sliced, toasted almonds

Original recipe-Combine the first 3 ingredients. Flour the chicken. Add oil to a skillet and let the temperature reach 35o degrees. Fry the chicken in the hot oil until brown. Drain on paper towels. Place the chicken in an oven-proof baking dish.

Drain the pan drippings, saving about 2 tablespoon oil in the pan. Add the onions, peppers and garlic to the drippings and cook until tender. Add the tomatoes, and the next 6 ingredients, stir well and bring to a simmer. Add the tomato mixture to the top of the chicken in the baking dish. Place a layer of parchment over the top of dish, and place foil tightly around the dish to cover. Bake for 40-50 minutes. Remove from the baking dish to a serving dish. Sprinkle with parsley and toasted almonds. Spoon over white rice and serve with a fruit salad. Serves 4 or if you make it with tenders, serves 6.

* Christmas Day version is to prepare a heavy skillet with about 2 tablespoons olive oil, and add 10 chicken tenders. Salt and pepper the tenders, and bake  in a 350 degree oven until tenders are done. Remove and set aside and let stay in the juices until ready to use. Then cut the tenders in half. Prepare the tomato mixture as above. Add the chicken and bake for 30-40 minutes. Serve as directed above.

Black Forest Ham

I always buy the Kentucky Legend Ham when I have just a few people to serve. It’s also the best ham for leftovers. Since it weighs about 2 pounds, and is all meat, no bone, it takes about 40 minutes to cook. Cook it covered in foil, in a 350 degree oven for the first 30 minutes and the last 10 minutes cover it with a paste of yellow mustard and brown sugar and smear it all over the ham, then back in the oven until the paste has formed a glaze. It’s always good. No mess, no fuss.

Pineapple Cake (Torte) with White Caramel Coconut Pecan Icing

This is an old-fashioned cake and the recipe has been around for a long while. It’s usually made in a 13 x 9-inch pan, but I make it in layers and in cupcakes. No work required for this cake!

2 cups sugar

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup vegetable oil

2 eggs

1 (20-ounce) can crushed pineapple with juice (I use Dole)

1 teaspoon baking soda

pinch of salt

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees. In a medium bowl, combine all ingredients. Pour into a well greased 13 x 9-inch pan. Bake for 25 to 35 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out clean. Prepare the icing while the cake cooks.

If making a torte, divide the batter into three 9-inch well greased and floured cake pans. Bake for about 22 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean.  Remove from pans after cooling for 10 minutes. Place on a cake plate and divide the icing between layers. If you really want to make a hit, ice the cake, then cool the cake and spread with 7-minute icing or whipped cream.

Icing

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup butter, softened

2/3 cup evaporated milk (this is exactly the size of the small can of milk)

pinch of salt

1/2 cup toasted, chopped pecans

1/2 cup coconut

In a saucepan, combine the sugar, butter, milk, and salt. Bring to a boil and then lower the heat. Cook and stir for 10 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat. Add the pecans, and coconut. Pour the icing over the hot cake, or layers of the cake and allow it to cool before cutting.

Give your family and friends a real surprise and make this old English pudding for Christmas. Cover it with Grand Marnier Icing, and dot it with candied orange peel.

For years I’ve had two very nice pudding molds. For years, the molds have traveled with me through each move I’ve made from South to North and back. Oh yes, you must come back.  Now, after years of moving the molds around, I’ve finally made a Christmas Plum Pudding that I have to say was very easy and delicious. In fact, it was good to the very last bite.

The last bite.

The original recipe must be credited to the Southern Living Country Cooking book, published in 1974. I’ve made a few changes to suit me, and to make it more modern. So, don’t panic when you see suet. Butter is the perfect substitute. You can also change the candied fruit to incorporate your favorites, instead of the usual fruitcake candied fruit, although  I happen to love fruitcake. But, this is a recipe where you can suit yourself. I’ve added extra instructions to the recipe. Hope it helps.

Christmas Plum Pudding

1 cup seedless raisins

1 1/2 cups mixed diced candied fruits (I used one  4-ounce container of candied, chopped orange peel and the rest in chopped dates)

1/2 cup toasted pecans ( I toasted the pecans on a plate in the microwave for 1 -1/2 minutes, cooled and chopped)

1 cup all-purpose flour, read recipe for dividing between nuts and batter

2 eggs, beaten

3/4 cup molasses (I used Grandma’s Original)

3/4 cup cold buttermilk

1/2 cup finely chopped suet (substitute finely chopped butter, but keep it cold. It will melt in the pudding-never use margarine in baking)

1/4 cup cold strong coffee

1 cup fine, dry breadcrumbs (I used panko, and if you need to, crush them with the back of a measuring cup)

3/4 teaspoon soda

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

1/4 teaspoon ground allspice

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg (grate fresh if you have it)

3/4 teaspoon salt

Use a 1 1/2 quart pudding mold, or a heavy bowl that is heat proof. Butter the mold and then spray heavily with a baking spray that has flour added. I used Bakers Joy.

In a large bowl, combine fruits, pecans, and 1/2 cup flour. In the second bowl, mix together eggs, molasses, buttermilk, suet (butter chopped fine) and coffee. In a third  bowl, combine remaining flour, breadcrumbs, soda, spices, salt and add to the buttermilk, molasses mixture. Add this mixture to the fruit and nuts and mix well. Pour this mixture into the prepared mold. Use a piece of parchment that has been sprayed with non-stick spray, and place that over the pudding in the mold. Pull it down around the sides and secure with a rubber band or string, just below the rim of the mold. Cut off any excess paper. Add the top of the mold and secure it. Set the pudding mold on a rack in a deep pan* see notes below  (use a saucer if you don’t have a rack); add boiling water to about 1 inch below the cover of the mold. Cover with the pot cover. Steam for 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

When the pudding is done, remove from the pot and set aside for about 10 minutes in the mold, and then unmold onto to a piece of parchment paper over a plate. This will allow you to cool the pudding so that it can be placed on a more decorative plate. Cool. Make icing, or use it as a hard sauce. If all pudding is not used, store in the refrigerator.

Grand Marnier Icing

4 tablespoons very soft butter

1 1/2 cups confectioners sugar, sifted

Grand Marnier

In a small bowl, add the sugar to soft butter. Mix. Add enough Grand Marnier to make it the consistency to ice the pudding, or use as a hard sauce. If icing gets too thick, microwave for few seconds at a time. Sprinkle the finished pudding with pecans, or dried fruit.

 I used my spaghetti pot to hold and cook the mold. It’s very deep and has a draining pot for spaghetti. I set the mold down on the drainer and I can lift the mold in and out by the drainer handles. I also put water in the pot and started heating it before I added the drainer with the mold. After setting the mold in, I filled with water according to directions. I steamed for 1 1/2 hours at a medium heat. I added extra water once. When the time was up, I removed the mold from the drainer, and checked for doneness. Take the mold top off, and then the parchment, and use a long skewer to check to see if it has cooked through. If not done, then use a fresh piece of prepared parchment and secure it the same way as the first time. Put the mold lid back on and continue cooking until done.

 I am wishing you all a wonderful, merry, happy, sweet holiday.

Love,

Linda

 

 

 

This pie! I was thinking about buttermilk pie, because I try to make at least one for Christmas dinner, and the idea hit me to make it chocolate, then another idea hit me of  glazing the crust in chocolate and then using chocolate dipped pecans as a garnish. The only thought of chocolate that I stopped at was the whipped cream. I thought that might have been a little much.

Why do I think of buttermilk pie so often? Here’s a little story. We had a cook and her name was Sarah. She would not let me cook while she was there because I made a mess, so I waited until she went home to go in the kitchen and make pies. That was my favorite thing to bake. I used an old Auburn cookbook that was my grandmother  Irene’s. When I finished baking a pie, I would call Mama Irene by ringing her on our crank phone. Her ring was two shorts and a long. Our ring was a short, long and a short. Mama Irene would come down the lane from her home and eat pie with me. It was our secret.

The pie that I made as a child is very similar to this one, but this is a P. Allen Smith recipe that I have “doctored”, as we say in the South. I hope you enjoy this pie. I think it’s definitely pretty enough to serve for a Southern Sunday Dinner.

Chocolate Buttermilk Pie

Bring all ingredients to room temperature. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Prepare a 9 to 9 1/2-inch pie plate by spraying with non-stick cooking spray. Add your pie crust. I used one roll of a two roll pie crust that I purchased in the grocery store.

1 stick butter, melted and cooled

1 1/2 cups sugar

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 cup cocoa

1/2 teaspoon salt

3 eggs, well beaten

1 cup buttermilk

1 teaspoon vanilla

Put all dry ingredients into a mixing bowl. Use a wire whisk and mix the dry ingredients. To a small bowl, add the buttermilk, eggs, vanilla and butter. Mix well. Add to the dry ingredients. Continue mixing with a spoon until the butter has been incorporated into the mixture. Pour the mixture over a strainer into the pie shell. Place the pie in the oven and bake for 35 minutes or until the center of the pie is set. Remove from the oven and set aside. Note: Baking could take shorter of longer depending on your oven and the size of the pie shell.

Chocolate Glaze for the pie crust and pecans-First, toast the pecans. Place pecans on a plate and microwave for one to two minutes until pecans are toasted and crisp.To glaze the pie shell (after the pie has baked) and pecans, use 2 ounces of semi-sweet chocolate. Put 3/4 of the chocolate into a bowl, and chop the remaining chocolate and set aside. Slowly melt the chocolate in the bowl, and after it has melted add the chopped chocolate and let it melt. Mix well. Dip the ends of the pecans into the chocolate and set them on parchment paper to dry. When the pie has cooled, but before refrigerating, use a spoon and spread the chocolate on the inside of the shell.

Whipped Cream & Cream Cheese-Add 1/2 cup heavy cream and 1/2 cup whipped cream cheese in a deep bowl along with 1/4 cup sugar and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla. Whip until thick enough to pipe onto the pie. Cut the cooled pie into serving pieces, pipe on a dollop of cream and garnish with a chocolate dipped pecan.

This recipe belonged to my grandmother, Irene Murray Rogers. She was born in Camp Hill, Alabama but for many years lived in Marengo County, Al. She met my grandfather while he was going to school at Auburn. She was a home economics teacher. Mama Irene made this cake every Christmas and placed it on a cake pedestal. It towered over the other cakes and pies that sat at the end of the long dining room table.

When it was time for Christmas dinner to be served, the cake would be gently moved to the sideboard and then moved back to the table again when the dishes had been cleared. It was sliced and the anxiety and the waiting were over, because as children we all had a hard time waiting for a piece of this cake.

 

Mama Irene’s Lane Cake

Cake:

2 cups sugar

1/2 pound butter

1 1/3 cups whole milk

3 teaspoons baking powder

3 1/2 cups cake flour

7 egg whites, stiffly beaten

1 teaspoon vanilla flavoring

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Prepare 3 (8-inch) cake pans by lining the bottoms and side of the pans by buttering or greasing. Cream butter and sugar until fluffy. Sift all dry ingredients. Add dry ingredients alternating with the milk. Add flavoring and beaten egg whites. (I add the egg whites into the mixer on low speed. I finish the folding with a spatula, by hand). Divide batter evenly between the 3 pans. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until cakes are lightly brown and a cake tester comes out clean. Cool in the pans for 10 minutes and then turn out onto a wire rack to cool.

Filling:

1 1/2 cups sugar

7 egg yolks

1/2 pound butter

Cook in a double boiler until thick and mixture coats the back of a spoon.

Add:

1 cup raisins

1 cup toasted, chopped pecans

1 cup crushed pineapple, drained

1 cup coconut

Cook for another minute, and then remove from heat. Cool. See instructions on assembly.

Seven minute icing:

1 3/4 cups sugar

1 tablespoon corn starch

pinch of salt

1/3 cup water

3 egg whites

1 teaspoon vanilla

Set the mixture, except the vanilla, in the top of a double boiler over simmering water. Beat for 7 minutes with an electric mixer. Beat in vanilla. Follow cake assembly instructions.

Cake assembly:

Place the first cake layer on the pedestal. Place parchment or wax paper around the edge for easy clean-up. Add a good amount of filling. Cover with a layer of seven minute icing. Add another layer of filling and repeat with icing. Add the top layer and cover with filling and let some of the filling go over the side. Use skewers to keep cake in place if needed. Ice the top and sides of the cake with icing.

Fluffy Meringue Icing

You can also use your own 7 minute or seafoam icing recipe.

6 egg whites

2 cups water

3/4 cup water

In a large bowl, beat egg whites at medium-high speed with an electric mixer until stiff peaks form, set aside.

In a medium saucepan, combine sugar and water. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and boil until temperature reaches 248 degrees on a candy thermometer.

With the mixer running at medium-high speed, very slowly pour the syrup over beaten egg whites. Continue beating mixture until it reaches room temperature and is a spreadable consistency. Use icing immediately.