From Gullah Geechee Home Cooking, Mrs. Meggett’s Meatloaf uses inexpensive ingredients and can last for days, even for large families. She says, “I’d make this dish for my family when I wanted to cook something simple that would serve everybody. Because of the heartiness of this dish, we’d usually enjoy meatloaf in the fall or winter.”
“Shrimp Rice is a very simple dish to make,” says Mrs. Emily Meggett, in her book titled, Gullah Geechee Home Cooking, “but it packs the flavor. When you cut your bacon, the slices should be no bigger than a fingertip, and you want your onions chopped fine.”
From The New York Times New Natural Foods Cookbook, we have Ratatouille. If it sounds fancy, you need to know that it is simply made from eggplant and zucchini.
Sweet Potato Souffle is a lovely recipe from Savannah Style.
We also have Emily Meggett’s Biscuits from Scratch, from Gullah Geechee Home Cooking. She says, “Biscuits take practice, so if the texture isn’t right on the first try, try it again. When you’re rolling the biscuit dough, don’t fool with the dough too much. It will make them come out tough. You want to mix and roll the dough just enough so it’s combined, but not overly prepped. The number of biscuits from this recipe depends on the size of the cutter (18 to 20 for a small cutter, 9 or 10 for a large cutter).”
Violet Schoening’s fresh apple cake from Northside Baptist Church’s book of recipes is wonderful. She advises using a glass baking dish and says it is good even with no frosting. It can be frozen for use later.
EMILY MEGGETT’S MEATLOAF
Recipe from Gullah Geechee Home Cooking by Emily Meggett
2 pounds ground beef
1 pound lean bulk sausage,
preferably Jimmy Dean
1/2 cup breadcrumbs
1 large onion, grated
1 bell pepper, grated
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
2 large eggs
1-1/2 teaspoons seasoning salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 tomato, roughly chopped
Ketchup, to taste
Bell pepper slices (optional), for garnish
1) Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. 2) In a large mixing bowl, combine all the ingredients, excluding the ketchup and water. Form the mixture into a loaf and place on a sheet of foil on the non-shiny side, then drizzle the top of the meatloaf with ketchup. 3) Tightly close the foil around the meatloaf. Place in a 5 by 9-inch loaf pan. Pour 3/4 cup water around the foil package so the dish will not burn. Bake for 45 to 50 minutes, until well done. Garnish with bell peppers, if using.
EMILY MEGGETT’S SHRIMP RICE
Recipe from Gullah Geechee Home Cooking by Emily Meggett
2 pounds small shrimp
6 slices bacon
1 large onion, diced
1/4 cup unsalted butter
1 tablespoon seasoning salt,
preferably Gold Medal
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
3 cups long-grain white rice, rinsed
1) Peel, devein, and wash the shrimp. Remove the tails. Set aside. 2) In a large skillet, cook the bacon for about 5 minutes, or until crisp, and chop it into small pieces. Add the onion and cook it with the bacon for 3 to 5 minutes, allowing the onion to become coated with bacon fat. 3) In a separate pan, melt the butter over medium-high heat. Add the shrimp and cook until pink, 2 to 3 minutes. 4) Remove the cooked shrimp from the butter and add it to the skillet with the bacon and onion. 5) Add 4-1/2 cups tepid water along with seasoning salt and crushed red pepper. 6) Bring the water to a boil, then add the uncooked rice. 7) Cook over low heat stirring frequently until the rice has absorbed almost all of the water, 15 to 20 minutes. Stir with a fork to ensure the rice is fluffy and done.
RATATOUILLE
Recipe from The New York Times New Natural Foods Cookbook
1 medium-sized eggplant, peeled and sliced into 1/4-inch-thick slices
Salt
1/3 cup olive or vegetable oil
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 medium-sized onion, finely chopped
3 zucchini, washed and sliced
2 tablespoons flour
2 green peppers, seeded and diced
4 tomatoes, peeled and chopped
1/3 cup sliced pitted black olives
1) Sprinkle the eggplant slices with salt and set aside. 2) Heat the oil in a skillet and saute the garlic and onion until tender but not browned. 3) Toss the zucchini with 1 tablespoon of the flour and add to the skillet. 4) Rinse the eggplant slices, quarter each slice, pat dry, and dust with the remaining flour. Add to the skillet. 5) Add the green pepper and tomatoes and cook, uncovered, until the vegetables are tender and any excess liquid has evaporated. 6) Serve warm or cold, garnished with olives. Yield: Six servings.
SWEET POTATO SOUFFLE
Recipe from Savannah Style, a
Cookbook by The Junior League of Savannah, Inc.
3 cups sweet potatoes, cooked
and mashed
1/4 cup butter, melted
1/2 cup evaporated milk
3 eggs
1 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
Mix the above ingredients well. Pour into a buttered baking dish. Top with the following:
1/4 cup self-rising flour
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1/2 cup light brown sugar,
tightly packed
1/4 cup pecans, chopped
Blend these ingredients by hand using a pastry blender until a coarse, crumb-like mixture. Bake uncovered at 350 degrees Fahrenheit until brown, approximately 15 to 20 minutes.
EMILY MEGGETT’S
BISCUITS FROM SCRATCH
Recipe from Gullah Geechee Home Cooking by Emily Meggett
1 cup Crisco shortening
1 large egg
2 to 4 tablespoons sugar,
plus more to taste
1-1/2 cups milk, whole or 2 percent
3-1/3 cups self-rising flour,
preferably White Lily, plus more as needed, plus 1 cup for the counter and shaping
1) Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. 2) In a mixing bowl, using a spoon, mix together the Crisco, egg, and sugar until smooth. Add sugar according to desired sweetness. 3) Stir in the milk until the Crisco mixture is broken up a bit, then stir in the 3-1/2 cups flour. Mix until just combined. 4) Use the remaining flour for dusting the countertop, biscuit cutter, and dough. Sprinkle 1/3 cup evenly onto the countertop where the biscuits will be rolled out. Scrape the dough onto the flour, then sprinkle 1/3 cup on top of the dough so it will not stick to your hands. Pat the dough with your palms into a slab about 3/4 inch thick. Put 1/3 cup flour in a small bowl or a pile on the side to dip the biscuit cutter into. 5) Dip a biscuit cutter or the top of a small cup into flour. Cut biscuits and place on ungreased cookie sheets, leaving just a bit of dough between each cut (Use a metal spatula to transfer the biscuits to the cookie sheets, if necessary. They will be very delicate.). 6) Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until golden brown.
VIOLET SCHOENING’S
FRESH APPLE CAKE
Recipe from Northside Baptist Church cookbook
1-1/4 cup oil
2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup pecans
3 cups raw apples
Mix in order. Pour batter into 9×13 inch baking dish. Bake 350 degrees for 55-60 minutes. Cool, slice and serve from pan. Best if pan is glass.
Frosting:
1 stick butter, soft
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons evaporated milk
1 cup dark brown sugar
powdered sugar, as needed.
Cream butter, salt, milk and brown sugar. Stir in powdered sugar until it takes form and spread over cooled cake.
This cake may be frozen. And it is good even without the frosting.
