Christmas week is coming up. We have lots of great ideas to help you make your table special for the celebration of the birth of our Lord, Jesus Christ.
And, while oyster stew is usually served up on New Year’s morning, in our family at least, we have that for you, too. This recipe is from Savannah Style, and it is called Oyster Stew Herb River. You can even get an early start on it and move it up to Christmas Day! Remember to get fresh oyster crackers for this wonderful treat.
Our editor’s mother-in-law gifted us with the recipe book titled “Charleston Receipts,” and we love all the recipes therein. We have chosen one of the recipes, Mrs. Jenkins’ James Island Shrimp Pie, to share with you. You will love it.
Holiday Rice from Paths of Sunshine is a festive, delicious dish for these special days coming soon. We thank the Florida Federation of Garden Clubs for their terrific recipes.
Davenport Brunch, a sausage, egg, and cheese combination, is baked in the oven at a moderately low temperature for 40 minutes or less. Thank you, Savannahians, for your Savannah Style book of recipes.
We made a big skillet of Amanda Thomas-Henke’s cornbread at Thanksgiving to make a huge bowl of cornbread dressing. Well, cornbread along with a loaf of stale country French bread. OMG! What a wonderful taste it has. The cornbread recipe fits in a great big black iron skillet. You could use a couple of cake pans if you don’t have the big skillet. Cake pans won’t render the aroma wafting through the kitchen of the fried surface – or the taste – obtained with a big black skillet, though. We thank this reader for sharing her wonderful recipes with us.
The New York Times New Natural Foods Cookbook has Cranberry Crunch, made with fresh cranberries that are cooked for a short time prior to baking in the recipe.
OYSTER STEW HERB RIVER
Recipe from Savannah Style,
a Cookbook by The Junior League of Savannah, Inc.
2 or 3 stalks celery, diced
1 small onion, minced
1/2 cup butter
1 pint oysters
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
Fresh parsley, chopped
1/8 teaspoon mace
1 pint Half-and-Half
Saute celery and onions in butter until soft. Add oysters including liquid. Add salt, pepper, parsley and a little mace. Simmer until oysters curl. Add Half-and-Half. Heat until bubbles form around the edges, but do not boil. Remove from heat and serve.
MRS. JOHN T. JENKINS’
(HESS LEBBY)
JAMES ISLAND SHRIMP PIE
Recipe from Charleston Receipts, America’s Oldest Junior League Cookbook in Print,
a Cookbook by The Junior League of Charleston, Inc.
1 cup of raw rice
2 cups water
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup butter
2 eggs
Pinch of mace
5 tablespoons tomato catsup
2-1/2 tablespoons Worcestershire
Salt and pepper to taste
2 pounds shrimp
1 cup milk (approximately)
Cook rice in salted water until very soft and stir butter into it. Combine all ingredients with cooked shrimp, adding enough milk to make mixture the consistency of thick custard. Put in buttered casserole and bake in moderate oven until brown on top (about 30 minutes). Serves 8.
HOLIDAY RICE
Recipe from Florida Federation
of Garden Clubs Inc.,
Paths of Sunshine
4 ounces wild rice
1 cup brown or white rice
1 pound bulk sausage
2 tablespoons butter
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup chopped celery
1 cup chopped green pepper
1 cup sliced water chestnuts
2 tablespoons salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 (10-1/2 ounce) can cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup toasted almonds
Butter
Cook rice as directed on package and drain. Saute sausage and drain off grease, leaving 2 tablespoons in skillet to mix with 2 tablespoons of butter. Saute onion, celery, green pepper for 8 to 10 minutes, then add water chestnuts, salt, pepper, and soup. Toss all together with rice and place in buttered casserole. Dot with almonds and butter. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes or until bubbly hot. Can be refrigerated two days ahead, or it freezes well.
DAVENPORT BRUNCH
(Sausage, Eggs, Cheese)
Recipe from Savannah Style,
a Cookbook by The Junior League of Savannah, Inc.
3/4 pound sharp cheese
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup sour cream
1 pound hot sausage, cooked and drained
10 eggs
In a 10 x 6 x 2-inch dish, slice half the cheese to cover the bottom. Mix seasonings with sour cream. Pour half of sour cream mixture over cheese. Add crumbled sausage, spreading evenly over sour cream mixture. Break whole eggs on top of sausage. Sliced, hard-cooked eggs may be used, if desired. Spread remaining sour cream mixture and top with remaining grated cheese. Bake at 325 degrees for 30 to 40 minutes. To check for doneness of eggs, test in corner of dish. If eggs are firm, casserole is done.
AMANDA THOMAS-HENKE’S CORNBREAD, SOUTHERN STYLE
Recipe from Reader of The Apopka Chief and The Planter newspapers
1 cup yellow cornmeal
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
Dash of garlic powder
Dash of cayenne pepper
1-1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1-1/2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup milk
1 large egg
1/2 teaspoon baking soda added
1/4 cup butter, melted, or the old way: use hot bacon grease instead! Daddy slowly pours while Mama quickly stirs it into the batter.
2 tablespoons butter for greasing the skillet (plus a tablespoon cooking oil to increase the butter’s smoke point)
Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
Mix the dry ingredients together in a bowl: cornmeal, flour, salt, garlic powder, cayenne, baking soda, and cream of tartar. Set aside.
Combine and mix buttermilk and milk with an egg. Stir in 1/2 teaspoon baking soda. Immediately pour this wet mixture into the dry cornmeal and flour mixture. Stir until well combined.
Melt the 1/4 cup of shortening and add to the batter slowly, mixing together until just combined.
Place skillet in hot oven for a few minutes (watch it) until hot. This next needs to be done quickly, and be very careful with the hot skillet. With oven mitts, pull the skillet out of the oven and add two tablespoons shortening (can be butter) making sure it covers the surface of the hot pan. Quickly pour the cornbread batter into the heated skillet. It will sizzle and make a lovely crispy brown surface on the bottom and sides of your cornbread that tastes and smells so good. Using oven mitts, carefully place the heavy skillet back into the oven and bake for 20 to 25 minutes until brown. Butter and serve immediately.
When you get good at making this recipe, you will be able to orchestrate the heating of the skillet with the mixing of the cornbread batter. The quicker you get the mixed batter into the hot skillet and into the oven, the better. You do not want the leavening to go flat before you get it into the oven.
CRANBERRY CRUNCH
THE NEW YORK TIMES NEW
NATURAL FOODS COOKBOOK
Copyright 1982 by Jean Hewitt
1 pound fresh cranberries
Honey to taste
1 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup butter
Homemade vanilla ice cream or plain yogurt
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Put the berries in a saucepan and cook until they pop and then a minute or two longer. Do not let them get mushy. Sweeten very lightly with honey. Cool slightly. Put the oats, flour, and sugar in a bowl. Cut in the butter with two knives or a pastry blender until the mixture is crumbly. Put half the oat mixture in the bottom of a buttered 8-inch square baking pan. Cover with the cranberry mixture. Top with the remaining oat mixture. Bake for 45 minutes or until done. Serve warm with ice cream or yogurt. Yield: Six to eight servings.
Christmas week is coming up. We have lots of great ideas to help you make your table special for the celebration of the birth of our Lord, Jesus Christ.
And, while oyster stew is usually served up on New Year’s morning, in our family at least, we have that for you, too. This recipe is from Savannah Style, and it is called Oyster Stew Herb River. You can even get an early start on it and move it up to Christmas Day! Remember to get fresh oyster crackers for this wonderful treat.
Our editor’s mother-in-law gifted us with the recipe book titled “Charleston Receipts,” and we love all the recipes therein. We have chosen one of the recipes, Mrs. Jenkins’ James Island Shrimp Pie, to share with you. You will love it.
Holiday Rice from Paths of Sunshine is a festive, delicious dish for these special days coming soon. We thank the Florida Federation of Garden Clubs for their terrific recipes.
Davenport Brunch, a sausage, egg, and cheese combination, is baked in the oven at a moderately low temperature for 40 minutes or less. Thank you, Savannahians, for your Savannah Style book of recipes.
We made a big skillet of Amanda Thomas-Henke’s cornbread at Thanksgiving to make a huge bowl of cornbread dressing. Well, cornbread along with a loaf of stale country French bread. OMG! What a wonderful taste it has. The cornbread recipe fits in a great big black iron skillet. You could use a couple of cake pans if you don’t have the big skillet. Cake pans won’t render the aroma wafting through the kitchen of the fried surface – or the taste – obtained with a big black skillet, though. We thank this reader for sharing her wonderful recipes with us.
The New York Times New Natural Foods Cookbook has Cranberry Crunch, made with fresh cranberries that are cooked for a short time prior to baking in the recipe.
OYSTER STEW HERB RIVER
Recipe from Savannah Style,
a Cookbook by The Junior League of Savannah, Inc.
2 or 3 stalks celery, diced
1 small onion, minced
1/2 cup butter
1 pint oysters
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
Fresh parsley, chopped
1/8 teaspoon mace
1 pint Half-and-Half
Saute celery and onions in butter until soft. Add oysters including liquid. Add salt, pepper, parsley and a little mace. Simmer until oysters curl. Add Half-and-Half. Heat until bubbles form around the edges, but do not boil. Remove from heat and serve.
MRS. JOHN T. JENKINS’
(HESS LEBBY)
JAMES ISLAND SHRIMP PIE
Recipe from Charleston Receipts, America’s Oldest Junior League Cookbook in Print,
a Cookbook by The Junior League of Charleston, Inc.
1 cup of raw rice
2 cups water
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup butter
2 eggs
Pinch of mace
5 tablespoons tomato catsup
2-1/2 tablespoons Worcestershire
Salt and pepper to taste
2 pounds shrimp
1 cup milk (approximately)
Cook rice in salted water until very soft and stir butter into it. Combine all ingredients with cooked shrimp, adding enough milk to make mixture the consistency of thick custard. Put in buttered casserole and bake in moderate oven until brown on top (about 30 minutes). Serves 8.
HOLIDAY RICE
Recipe from Florida Federation
of Garden Clubs Inc.,
Paths of Sunshine
4 ounces wild rice
1 cup brown or white rice
1 pound bulk sausage
2 tablespoons butter
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup chopped celery
1 cup chopped green pepper
1 cup sliced water chestnuts
2 tablespoons salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 (10-1/2 ounce) can cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup toasted almonds
Butter
Cook rice as directed on package and drain. Saute sausage and drain off grease, leaving 2 tablespoons in skillet to mix with 2 tablespoons of butter. Saute onion, celery, green pepper for 8 to 10 minutes, then add water chestnuts, salt, pepper, and soup. Toss all together with rice and place in buttered casserole. Dot with almonds and butter. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes or until bubbly hot. Can be refrigerated two days ahead, or it freezes well.
DAVENPORT BRUNCH
(Sausage, Eggs, Cheese)
Recipe from Savannah Style,
a Cookbook by The Junior League of Savannah, Inc.
3/4 pound sharp cheese
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup sour cream
1 pound hot sausage, cooked and drained
10 eggs
In a 10 x 6 x 2-inch dish, slice half the cheese to cover the bottom. Mix seasonings with sour cream. Pour half of sour cream mixture over cheese. Add crumbled sausage, spreading evenly over sour cream mixture. Break whole eggs on top of sausage. Sliced, hard-cooked eggs may be used, if desired. Spread remaining sour cream mixture and top with remaining grated cheese. Bake at 325 degrees for 30 to 40 minutes. To check for doneness of eggs, test in corner of dish. If eggs are firm, casserole is done.
AMANDA THOMAS-HENKE’S CORNBREAD, SOUTHERN STYLE
Recipe from Reader of The Apopka Chief and The Planter newspapers
1 cup yellow cornmeal
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
Dash of garlic powder
Dash of cayenne pepper
1-1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1-1/2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup milk
1 large egg
1/2 teaspoon baking soda added
1/4 cup butter, melted, or the old way: use hot bacon grease instead! Daddy slowly pours while Mama quickly stirs it into the batter.
2 tablespoons butter for greasing the skillet (plus a tablespoon cooking oil to increase the butter’s smoke point)
Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
Mix the dry ingredients together in a bowl: cornmeal, flour, salt, garlic powder, cayenne, baking soda, and cream of tartar. Set aside.
Combine and mix buttermilk and milk with an egg. Stir in 1/2 teaspoon baking soda. Immediately pour this wet mixture into the dry cornmeal and flour mixture. Stir until well combined.
Melt the 1/4 cup of shortening and add to the batter slowly, mixing together until just combined.
Place skillet in hot oven for a few minutes (watch it) until hot. This next needs to be done quickly, and be very careful with the hot skillet. With oven mitts, pull the skillet out of the oven and add two tablespoons shortening (can be butter) making sure it covers the surface of the hot pan. Quickly pour the cornbread batter into the heated skillet. It will sizzle and make a lovely crispy brown surface on the bottom and sides of your cornbread that tastes and smells so good. Using oven mitts, carefully place the heavy skillet back into the oven and bake for 20 to 25 minutes until brown. Butter and serve immediately.
When you get good at making this recipe, you will be able to orchestrate the heating of the skillet with the mixing of the cornbread batter. The quicker you get the mixed batter into the hot skillet and into the oven, the better. You do not want the leavening to go flat before you get it into the oven.
CRANBERRY CRUNCH
THE NEW YORK TIMES NEW
NATURAL FOODS COOKBOOK
Copyright 1982 by Jean Hewitt
1 pound fresh cranberries
Honey to taste
1 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup butter
Homemade vanilla ice cream or plain yogurt
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Put the berries in a saucepan and cook until they pop and then a minute or two longer. Do not let them get mushy. Sweeten very lightly with honey. Cool slightly. Put the oats, flour, and sugar in a bowl. Cut in the butter with two knives or a pastry blender until the mixture is crumbly. Put half the oat mixture in the bottom of a buttered 8-inch square baking pan. Cover with the cranberry mixture. Top with the remaining oat mixture. Bake for 45 minutes or until done. Serve warm with ice cream or yogurt. Yield: Six to eight servings.
