Southern Comfort

Oh dear, Poor Elaine must be positively wasting away on her diet of corn cobs and dirt while I neglect my duties to feed her....Sorry, E, it's been a busy few weeks. We've been eating, and even cooking some, but what with vacations, work, house stuff, and the general silliness that is the way-too-short-24-hour-day, I just haven't had the motivation to report.

But I'm back on the wagon, and it is good.

I was craving some Southern homestyle food last night for who knows what reason, so I whipped up a mighty tasty cornbread pudding with greens, cooked Southern style (i.e., to death), and topped the whole mess off with some grilled shrimp. Honestly, the shrimp was such an afterthought compared to the substantially filling pudding that next time I wouldn't even bother.

And, ooh! I was just brilliantly inspired! This would probably make a fabulous stuffing for Thanksgiving: omit the milk and eggs and moisten everything with broth before stuffing the bird. Drool.

I'm a little proud of this one, I have to say. Enjoy.

Menu:
Smoky Cornbread Pudding
Steamed Greens
Sliced Tomatoes

Smoky Cornbread Pudding

This was a star. Not only was it beautiful and scrumptious, but it necessitated coming up with my very own cornbread recipe that rivals any store-bought version. AND I used some of my bottomless supply of Whole Wheat Pastry Flour, so I give myself points for that.

I had originally made a batch of cornbread using some cornbread mix I had in the cupboard. It tasted kind of bitter and dry after baking, and when I checked the expiraiton date on the bag, it was 2 years expired...now, I'm not usually one to get all hot and bothered over a little thing like an expiration date on a dry good, but I had already had two servings of milk from a jug in the fridge that both Nate and I agreed had gone bad but kept drinking anyway, and even though I have (so far) survived that gastric challenge (it was a whole gallon! What a waste!), I didn't think I should push it with the Bad Food Gods. So I tossed the cornbread and scrounged for another option. And here it is. Love.

My Very Own Cornbread

makes 16 pieces

2 eggs
1 T canola oil
2 T honey
1 c buttermilk
1 c whole wheat pastry flour
1 c stone-ground cornmeal
1 T baking powder
1/2 tsp kosher salt

1. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs, oil, buttermilk, and honey.
2. Add the dry ingredients and stir until just combined.
3. Pour the batter into an 8x8" baking dish coated with cooking spray.
4. Bake in a 400 degree oven for 25 minutes or until a knife inserted into the center comes out clean.



Cornbread Pudding

This is a dry-ish bread pudding, which I thought was fine. But if you prefer a moister, less crumbly version, try increasing the eggs and milk and letting the bread cubes soak in the egg/milk mixture for a few minutes before mixing everything together.



serves 6

4 c cubed cornbread
7 oz turkey kielbasa
1/2 of a medium onion, sliced into fat rings
1 poblano chile pepper
2/3 c skim milk
1/3 c packaged egg whites, or the whites from 2 eggs
corn kernels from 1 cob, about 1 cup
1/4 c cilantro, minced

1. Heat the grill to medium. Place the poblano chile, sausage, and onion over medium heat and grill until char marks appear (the chile should be lightly charred and blistered). Remove from the grill.
2. Peel the skin from the chile, remove the stem and seeds, and dice.
3. Dice the sausage and onion.
4. Toss the cornbread, corn, sausage, chile, onion and cilantro in a large bowl. Transfer to an 8x8 baking dish coated in cooking spray.
4. Stir together the milk and the egg whites and drizzle over the cornbread mixture.
6. Bake, uncovered, at 375 for 20 minutes.



Steamed Greens

I usually like my greens lightly blanched and still mooing when I eat them, but sometimes I have a hankering for Southern-style stewed greens. Tougher greens like collards or chard hold up a little better, but this work for spinach, too.

serves 4
3 cloves garlic, minced
cooking spray
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper
1/2 c chicken broth
salt and pepper to taste
8 c chopped greens: collards, mustard, kale, chard, spinach, or a combination

1. Saute the garlic in the cooking spray for 30 seconds until fragrant. Add the red pepper.
2. Add the broth and bring to a boil.
3. Add the greens, a few cups at a time, cover the skillet, and let them cook down for a minute or two until you have enough room to add more. When all of the leaves have been added, cover the skillet and turn the heat to low. Simmer, stirring occasionally, for 45 minutes or until uniformly dark green and very very soft. Add salt and pepper to taste.