Louise Ustler contributed her recipe for Hot German Rice to Sharing Our Finest Cookbook, a publication from the Apopka Citizen Police Alumni Association. She says, “I use Minute Rice. These ingredients can be adjusted according to taste. I use more pepper and onion and a small jar of pimento. All can be adjusted, more or less according to your individual taste.”
Southwestern Corn Bake comes from Pot-Pourri of Zellwood. This particular recipe was the 1st Prize Winner of NOCIA’s 1981 Zellwood Sweet Corn Festival. The recipe calls for fresh-cut corn, of course!
From the book, Field to Feast, we have a wonderful fresh salad using baby greens, strawberries and lime vinaigrette. The recipe comes from Gary Wishnatzki, third generation owner of Wish Farms, who is the grandson of Russian immigrant Harris Wishnatzki, a fruit and vegetable pushcart peddler in 1920s New York City. The summarization of this recipe says: “The citrusy tang of lime vinaigrette is a great match for the sweet strawberries. If you don’t like blue cheese, you can swap it for soft goat cheese, or leave it out altogether.”
Mrs. Meggett says, “I learned how to make this dish at the Dodge House. But I made it my own by creating my own brown sugar crust, the real star of this dessert. Pineapple upside-down cakes can be found throughout the American South, but my cake is one of the lightest and perfectly sweet versions in South Carolina. If time is short, you can use a yellow cake mix instead of the cake batter.
We also have Mrs. Meggett’s, Whipped Cream instructions below. It is a wonderful all-around complement to many of your desserts.”
Charleston Receipts shares Coffee Punch from Mrs. Louis Y. Dawson, Jr. It looks like a chilled dessert for coffee lovers. And… it is for 50-60 servings. Perfect for your large gathering!
LOUISE USTLER’S HOT GERMAN RICE
Recipe from the Apopka Citizen Police Alumni Association
1 cup uncooked rice
8 slices bacon
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup vinegar
2 tablespoons water
2 tablespoons green pepper
1 tablespoon onion
2 tablespoons pimento
1/2 teaspoon celery seed
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 boiled egg, sliced
Cook rice according to package directions. Fry bacon. Set aside. In bacon drippings, cook green pepper, onion, and pimento until soft. Combine rice, sugar, vinegar, water, celery seed, and salt. Cook until all liquid is gone, stirring constantly. Crumble bacon and toss with rice, saving some bacon for garnish. Garnish with sliced egg and crumbled bacon.
SOUTHWESTERN CORN BAKE
Recipe from POT-POURRI OF ZELLWOOD,
Published by The Zellwood Community Center
1 dozen ears corn, cut cream style (cut and scraped)
2 eggs beaten
3/4 cups yellow corn meal
1 teaspoon garlic salt
6 tablespoons salad oil
1 4-ounce can green chili peppers, finely cut
2 cups grated cheddar cheese
Mix together all ingredients except chili peppers and cheese. Divide mixture in half. Place one half in a greased 8 x 8 x 2-inch baking dish. Mix together chili peppers and cheese; lay on top of corn mixture in the dish. Cover with the remaining corn mixture. Bake at 350 degrees for about 35 minutes.
GARY WISHNATZKI’S BABY GREENS WITH STRAWBERRIES AND LIME VINAIGRETTE
Recipe from Field to Feast, by Pam Brandon, Katie Farmand, and Heather McPherson
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1-1/2 tablespoons white-wine vinegar
1-1/2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 tablespoon honey
1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
8 cups lightly packed baby greens
1 pint strawberries, stemmed and sliced
1/3 cup coarsely chopped red onion
6 tablespoons toasted and chopped pecans
6 tablespoons crumbled blue cheese
6 tablespoons crumbled cooked bacon
1) Whisk together oil, vinegar, lime juice, honey, salt, and pepper. Set aside. 2) Toss together baby greens, strawberries, and onion. Add vinaigrette and toss to coat. Top each serving with 1 tablespoons pecans, 1 tablespoon blue cheese, and 1 tablespoon bacon.
EMILY MEGGETT’S PINEAPPLE UPSIDE-DOWN CAKE
Recipe from Gullah Geechee Home Cooking by Emily Meggett
For the crust:
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted
1 20-ounce can pineapple slices
1/2 10-ounce jar maraschino cherries, drained
For the cake batter:
2 large eggs
3/4 cup (1-1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
2 cups granulated sugar
2-1/2 cups cake flour, preferably Swans Down
2-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk, whole or 2-percent
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1) Preheat the oven to 350 deg Fahrenheit. 2) Make the crust: In a medium mixing bowl, combine the brown sugar and butter. Using a spoon, press the mixture into the bottom of a 10-inch round cake pan, ensuring that the bottom is fully covered. 3) Open the pineapple can. Drain the pineapple juice from pineapples, saving the pineapple juice. Place the pineapple rings on the brown sugar mixture in an arrangement of your liking. Place a cherry in the center of each pineapple ring.
4) Make the cake batter: In a large mixing bowl, using an electric mixer, beat all the ingredients and 1/3-cup of the reserved pineapple juice together. Once combined, pour the mixture over the pineapple. 5) Bake the cake for 45 minutes, or until done – an inserted toothpick should be clean when removed. 6) Remove the cake from the oven and allow it to cool completely. Once cooled, turn the cake upside down onto a cake plate. You will get to see your pineapple and cherries on the top. Slice and serve with whipped cream, if you’d like. See recipe below for Sweetened Whipped Cream.
EMILY MEGGETT’S SWEETENED WHIPPED CREAM
Recipe from Gullah Geechee Home Cooking by Emily Meggett
1 pint whipping cream
2 tablespoons sugar
In a medium-sized mixing bowl, with an electric mixer on high speed, beat the cream until peaks begin to form. While mixing, add the sugar. Continue to mix until stiff peaks form, 3 to 4 minutes total. Add a spoonful of this topping to each piece of pie before serving.
MRS. LOUIS Y. DAWSON, JR.’S COFFEE PUNCH
Recipe from Charleston Receipts, America’s Oldest Junior League Cookbook in Print,
A Cookbook by The Junior League of Charleston, Inc.
1 gallon strong coffee
1 quart cream
2 quarts vanilla ice cream
5 teaspoons vanilla
5 tablespoons sugar
Chill coffee. Whip cream; add sugar and vanilla. Place ice cream and whipped cream in punch bowl and pour coffee over it. Mix well before serving. (If using block ice cream, slice it into thin slices before placing in the punch bowl.) 50-60 servings.
