Brunswick Stew

 Early autumn brings an abundance of vegetables to the East Tennessee table. This variation on the Southern favorite, Brunswick Stew, makes use of that abundance. If you cannot find fresh green lima beans, frozen is fine. 

You can add any proteins you like, along with an appropriate broth, and make this dish anything from vegan to wild-game-centric. The original recipe almost certainly involved squirrel and rabbit, and modern versions feature both chicken and pork. You can add green beans or other legumes to increase the protein for a vegan version.

John's Brunswick Stew

4 servings

• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 3 large scallions, chopped, white and light green parts reserved separately from greens
• 1 rib celery, chopped
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 cups sliced okra, divided
• ½ cup tomato sauce
• 4 cups broth
• 1 carrot, chopped
• The kernels from one ear of sweet corn
• 1 baking potato, cubed
• 1 cup green lima beans, fresh or frozen, thawed
• 2 tablespoons chopped parsley
• 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

 

Heat the oil in a large saucepan or soup pot over medium low heat. Add the white and light green parts of the scallions, cover, reduce heat and sweat until tender. Add the celery. Cook 2 minutes. Add the bay, leaf, a big pinch of salt, a few grinds of pepper and 1 cup of the sliced okra. Cook 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the tomato sauce and cook until most of the moisture has evaporated. Add the broth, carrot, corn and the remaining okra. Reduce heat to a simmer. Add the potato and lima beans. Cook, covered, 10 to 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the potatoes are fully cooked. Stir in the scallion greens, the chopped parsley and the Worcestershire sauce. Check and adjust the seasoning.

Serve hot with cornbread.

If you wish to add green beans or other legumes, add them along with the lima beans. Use drained canned beans, or freshly cooked. 

If you wish to add meat, cut it into bite-size chunks and brown in oil at the beginning. Remove with a slotted spoon and reserve, pour off most of the fat, and proceed with the recipe. Add the browned meat(s) back to the stew with the potato and lima beans. Increase the cooking time, if necessary, to insure the meat is tender.

The Peaches of August

When one of my friends outside the South asks me how we can endure the heat and humidity of August, I reply that the reward is August peaches. You can get them earlier, but those varieties are not nearly as good, in my view, as the ones that arrive in August. 

When I was a kid, we lived on a gravel road in the country, and every year around my birthday, a man came through the neighborhood in a pickup truck laden with baskets of fresh, luscious peaches. There were two varieties. Georgia Belles were yellow-fleshed, red-skinned fruits that my grandmother preferred for canning. Grandpa usually bought a bushel of them. The others were Alberta, a white-fleshed freestone that could be as big as a softball. The flavor was perfectly peachy, sweet and aromatic with notes of cinnamon and vanilla. We would eat the Alberta peaches out of hand, sitting on the front porch, juice dripping from our chins, wasps buzzing down to feed from the little puddles of juice at our feet. Peaches that escaped being eaten this way were soon made into cobbler by Grandma. Here is a scaled-down version of a recipe that tastes like the one I remember.

Peach Cobbler

Makes one 8-inch square pan

1/4 cup butter

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup granulated sugar, divided

1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder

pinch of salt

1/2 cup whole milk

2 cups slices of peeled, fresh peaches (3-4 fruits)

1-1/2 teaspoons lemon juice

Ground cinnamon

Place the butter in an 8-inch square baking pan and set on a rack in the middle of the oven. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Watch carefully and remove the baking pan when the butter has melted. Leave the oven on.

Combine the flour, baking powder, salt and 1/2 cup of the sugar in a mixing bowl. Add the milk and stir to combine. Pour the batter into the melted butter in the baking pan. DO NOT STIR

Place the remaining sugar, the peaches and the lemon juice in a saucepan set over medium-low heat and bring just to a boil. Spoon the hot fruit mixture over the batter in the baking pan. DO NOT STIR. Sprinkle the surface of the cobbler with ground cinnamon to your liking.

Place the pan in the oven and bake for 30 to 40 minutes, or until the top crust has formed and is golden brown in color. Remove from the oven and cool. The crust will not completely cover the top of the cobbler. (See photo.)

Serve the cobbler at room temperature, or refrigerate and serve cold. A dollop of vanilla ice cream goes very well with this dish.

You can double the recipe and use a 9- by 13-inch baking pan. Increase the baking time by 5 minutes.

The end result of this recipe depends entirely upon the quality of the peaches. Buy local ones, if possible. The exact variety does not matter. The ones I mentioned are "old-fashioned" now, and newer varieties like Garnet Beauty and White Rose have replaced them. Peaches at the produce market should be firm and fragrant. Leave them on the counter for 2 to 3 days, and they should ripen to perfection.

 

An Easy Spring Pasta Dish

Fresh peas are perhaps the best thing about early June. I created this pasta dish to showcase our pea harvest, along with the first tender zucchini and carrots from our garden. My preferred variety of shelling peas is Green Arrow. This cultivar produces abundant pods, born 2 to a stem, each with up to 12 peas inside. The flavor is exceptional.

Spaghetti with Chicken, Vegetables, and Ricotta Sauce
2 servings

1 skinless, boneless chicken breast filet
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon butter
1 teaspoon olive oil
1/2 cup chopped fresh carrots
1 small zucchini, sliced
1/2 cup freshly shelled green peas
1/2 cup chicken stock
1/2 cup whole milk ricotta cheese
1/4 pound thin spaghetti

Cut the chicken into chunks, season with salt and pepper and refrigerate until ready to complete the dish.

Heat the butter and olive oil in a large skillet or wok. Add the chicken and carrots and stir fry until the chicken is no longer pink, about 2 minutes. Add the zucchini and peas, reduce the heat and cook, stirring now and then, for 3 minutes. Add the chicken stock, cover the pan and allow to steam for 3 minutes. Remove the lid and allow the liquids in the pan to reduce to a couple of tablespoons. Add the ricotta and stir until it melts and forms a sauce. Add a dribble of chicken stock if you want it thinner. Reduce the heat to the lowest setting.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add the spaghetti. Return to a boil, adjust the heat and boil gently for 9 minutes. Drain the pasta in a colander and add to the skillet with the other ingredients. Stir to coat the pasta with sauce and serve immediately.

Crusty bread, a green salad, and a glass of wine are all that you need for a complete meal.

Home Cooking Returns

The coronavirus pandemic has been an unmitigated disaster for the restaurant business. So much so that pundits predict dining out will never be the same, even after the virus is no longer a significant threat.

As a result, more people are cooking at home, and the approximately 50 percent of our food dollars that once went to restaurant fare is now being redirected to grocery purchases and other expenses. We are cooking at home as people used to do in the 1950s, before there was a restaurant on every corner.

Home cooking for the entire family calls for casseroles and crock pot recipes, as well as the revival of old standards like spaghetti and meatballs. Here are two recipes that came to me via church cookbooks and family recipe swaps.


Pork Cabbage Rolls


4 Servings

4  outer leaves of cabbage

1 scallion, minced

2 teaspoons olive oil

6 ounces ground pork

1 egg, beaten

1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley

1 tablespoon minced fresh dill

2 ounces rice, cooked and cooled

Salt and pepper

2 teaspoons olive oil


Blanch the cabbage leaves individually in boiling water. Shock in cold water, drain and set aside. Reserve the liquid in the pot.

Saute the scallions in oil. Set aside to cool to room temperature.


Combine the scallions with the remaining ingredients, adding as much salt and pepper as you deem appropriate.

Preheat the oven to 400°F

Fill the cabbage leaves, beginning at the stem end. Fold the end up over the filling. Fold the edges toward the center to enclose the filling, then roll up.  Place in an ovenproof dish, seam side down, and drizzle with the other two teaspoons of oil. Bake for 10 minutes. Carefully add 2 cups of the reserved liquid and bake an additional 15 minutes. Serve with mashed potatoes.


Vegetarian Chili for Park Overall


I wrote this recipe for my hometown friend, Park Overall. As I mentioned to her, you can substitute or add other vegetables, depending upon what you may have on hand.


1. Put a large pot over medium-low heat and add a tablespoon of any type of vegetable oil.

2. Chop up a medium onion, add it to the pot, cover and cook slowly while you continue with the recipe.

3. Add 1 teaspoon each of sweet paprika, garlic granules, onion granules, salt, and ground cumin.  Add ½ teaspoon each of ground coriander seed and black pepper. Add 1 – 2 tablespoons of any commercial chili powder. (If you can find pure ground Ancho chili powder, use that in preference to any other.)

4. Stir and cook the spices with the onions for a minute or two, then add one 28-ounce can of diced tomatoes and two 15-ounce cans of beans (pinto, kidney, black, or any combination you like).

5. If it seems too thick at this point, add a little water or vegetable broth or tomato juice to thin it out to your satisfaction.

6. Bring to a slow boil, lower the heat, and simmer, covered, for a half hour to blend the flavors. Keep warm until ready to serve, or cool to room temperature and refrigerate up to 3 days or freeze for 3 months.

7. Top with chopped green onions, sour cream, cheese, or anything you like on chili. Add hot sauce if you want more heat.


Eat well, stay safe, and wash your hands!

Use What You Have Gumbo

With everyone cooking from the pantry, I thought I'd share this recipe for a vegan take on gumbo. It is based on traditional recipes that are eaten during Lent. Because it can be made from odds and ends and lots of substitutions are possible, I present it not as a "recipe" so much as a "template" for your own ideas. No two cooks make this the same way, so feel free to experiment all you wish.

As written, the recipe is vegan. You can add meat, such as bacon, andouille sausage or ham, if you prefer. If you do that, saute the meat first in the oil, remove it with a slotted spoon, and add it back at the end of the cooking time. You can also use any type of stock available. Otherwise, proceed with the recipe as written.

You can also add protein to the soup in the form of tofu, beans, or nuts. Cook beans separately before adding them to the soup at the end. Cut tofu in cubes and add with the broth. Toast nuts and use them to garnish the dish at the end.

I like to make this when I have a variety of spring greens in the garden. You can harvest a little of this and a little of that, and it will all taste great when you are done. Don’t forget to pick a few dandelion greens out of your backyard!  While the traditional recipes call for nine different types of greens, there is no reason to adhere to that rule. Use what you have on hand. This year, for example, I made the mistake of planting my radishes in too much shade. They only produced leaves, but that does not mean the crop failed. I just add them to this recipe.

Try not to use all thin-leafed greens such as arugula and lettuce. If that is all you have, reduce the cook time to 10-15 minutes total. Tougher greens like turnips or cabbage require the longer cooking time to tenderize. That being said, taste and stop cooking whenever your choice of greens reaches your preferred tenderness. You could eat the soup without it being cooked at all, as it is really a fancy way to eat a big salad.

The recipe incorporates the "holy trinity" of Cajun and Creole cooking, onions, celery and peppers. If necessary, increase the amount of onions and omit the other two. I keep sweet peppers in the freezer, but you can also use any type of pickled pepper. Just rinse, chop and use like fresh. If your choice of pickled peppers is hot, you may want to cut down on the amount of hot sauce—or maybe not.

Gumbo Z’herbes

4 servings



1 tablespoons vegetable oil

½ cup chopped onions

¼ cup chopped celery

¼ cup chopped peppers


9 cups, in all, of nine different greens, such as mustards, cabbage, Swiss chard, spinach, lettuce, scallions, beet tops, carrot tops, radish tops, parsley, collards, turnip greens, corn salad, arugula, or dandelions or other foraged greens, washed and chopped or torn into bite -size pieces


1 cups vegetable broth

1 bay leaf

1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves

½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

½ teaspoon hot sauce

Salt and freshly ground black pepper



Heat the oil in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add the onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until they are translucent. Add the celery and peppers and cook 2-3 minutes or until they are softened slightly. Add the greens to the pot and cook, stirring, until they have begun to wilt. Add the broth, the bay leaf, and the thyme, and bring the soup to a gentle boil. Reduce the heat and cook, covered, for 30 minutes. Add the Worcestershire, and hot sauces to the pot, stirring to combine. Taste carefully and adjust the seasoning, if needed, with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Serve the gumbo with steamed rice, passing additional hot sauce.

Gardening When It Matters

With closures of all sorts of events and venues across the country, a lot of people are going to have time on their hands this spring. What better way to spend it than by growing some fresh vegetables?

Even a relatively tiny space can produce a good yield, if you plan well. There is still time to grow some spring crops, mostly fast-maturing greens like arugula and heat-tolerant lettuces such as various romaine cultivars and the ever-popular Black Seeded Simpson. This pale green heirloom has been a favorite in East Tennessee for generations. If you want to try growing it like my grandfather did, thinly scatter the seeds over a suitable plot of good soil, or in a container filled with commercial growing mix. In about 6 weeks the pale green, loose-leaf plants will be big enough to harvest by cutting them near the soil line with scissors. If you grow this lettuce in the ground or in a raised bed, try scattering some green onion seeds at the same time you sow the lettuce. The combination of the two at harvest time is the classic mix for Killed Lettuce Salad. (Recipe below.)

You can also add healthy greens to your diet by growing sprouts and microgreens indoors. Alfalfa sprouts seem made for the emergency pantry, as the seeds take up little space. A tablespoon of seeds makes about a quart of sprouts. Microgreens are a bit more trouble to grow, but nevertheless are suited to windowsill production. You can find directions for growing specific types of sprouts and microgreens online. Most vegetables and herbs that are eaten as leafy greens also make good microgreens and sprouts.

I always recommend purchasing seeds intended for growing sprouts or microgreens, rather than doing this with leftover garden seeds. Even though many seeds have a long lifespan if properly stored, the germination rate may be reduced. Some popular vegetables have poor germination to begin with. Seeds produced for sprouts and microgreens have been selected for high and uniform germination rates, and are tested for potential contamination. Locally, Three Rivers Market on Central Street has a rack of sprouting seeds. In addition, several garden centers have seed racks from Botanical Interests, and the larger racks from this supplier include seeds for sprouts and microgreens.

Seeds can also be ordered online.

Killed Lettuce Salad
The traditional recipe calls for bacon, and if you can get your hands on some Benton's bacon, you will come close to duplicating the dish my grandmother made with home-cured and smoked bacon. If you want to avoid meat, use olive oil and oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes to kick up the umami. The dressing should be a little on the vinegary side.

You can vary the amounts to suit any size crowd. For two people, you need about a gallon of loosely packed Black Seeded Simpson lettuce leaves and 3 green onions. You could really take this recipe to the next level with ramps instead of all or part of the onions.

Wash lettuce leaves and green onions thoroughly and cut the onions into bite size pieces. Drain or spin-dry the greens and place them and the onions in a large metal or Pyrex bowl. This step can be completed hours ahead. Refrigerate the vegetables, covered.

Just before serving, make the dressing. The amounts given are for two people, but are easily multiplied.

3 slices smoked bacon, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon water
pinch of brown sugar
Salt and freshly ground black pepper.

In a heavy skillet, cook the bacon pieces slowly over medium-low heat to release as much of their fat as possible. While the bacon cooks, combine the other ingredients in a small bowl and stir well. Remove the crisp bacon pieces with a slotted spoon and reserve them. Pour the dressing ingredients into the hot skillet. Stir rapidly to scrape up the browned bits on the bottom of the skillet. Pour the liquid boiling hot over the reserved greens, and toss to coat them thoroughly as they wilt. Divide the mixture between two plates, sprinkle the bacon pieces on top, and serve warm.

White Bean Soup With Country Ham

This recipe is the result of my attempt to duplicate the famous United States Senate bean soup, which has been served in the Senate dining room every day since 1903. The original was flavored with Smithfield ham hocks. I have substituted a small amount of country ham, in order to reduce the number of servings to 2. The recipe is easily multiplied, if you are feeding a crowd. Good bread, or cornbread, and a green salad would make a complete meal. You can buy country ham scraps in vacuum packs wherever country ham is available. Canned beans are a great convenience food. You can also start with dried beans, about a half cup, soaked overnight and cooked until tender.

White Bean Soup with Country Ham

2 Servings

2-3 ounces country ham scraps
2 teaspoon vegetable oil, divided
1 cup water
1/2 cup chopped onions
1/2 cup chopped celery
1/2 cup chopped carrots
1 small clove garlic, minced
1 bay leaf
A big pinch of saffron
1/2 cup diced peeled potatoes
1 can (15.4 ounces) Great Northern beans
Chopped fresh parsley to garnish

Carefully remove all the visible fat from the ham pieces and reserve it. Chop the ham into 1/2-inch pieces and reserve separately. Place 1 teaspoon of the oil in a small skillet and set it over medium heat. When the oil ripples, add the reserved ham fat and cook, turning now and then, until all the fat is rendered and the pieces are brown and crisp. Remove the ham cracklings with a slotted spoon and discard. Add the chopped ham and cook, turning once or twice, until the color has darkened and there are bits of brown on the bottom of the skillet. Reduce the heat, pour in the water, and stir to deglaze the skillet. Set the skillet aside and allow the contents to cool.

In a medium saucepan or Dutch oven heat the remaining oil  over medium low heat. Add the onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until they soften. Add the celery and carrots and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is translucent. Add the garlic and bay leaf and cook an additional minute or two. Pour the reserved contents of the skillet into the pan and adjust the heat to bring it to a gentle simmer. Add the saffron and potatoes, stir to combine, and cook, stirring once or twice, until the potatoes are tender, about 15 minutes.

Add the beans with their liquid, stir and heat through. Serve garnished with the parsley.

Comfort Food From the Past

The holidays are over and winter seems determined to keep the gardens dormant, despite a recent spate of record-setting warmth. Now is the season for comfort food. I have re-envisioned a recipe from the 1970s, when vegetarian diets were all the rage among counter-culture types. I have also scaled it down to four servings.

The original recipe calls for a crust made with butter and cream cheese. It was never the easiest pastry to handle, and it was seldom possible to make the pie turn out picture-perfect. That problem is circumvented by using any good commercial piecrust.

Note: it has been my experience that this recipe gets rave reviews from even those who claim not to enjoy cooked cabbage.

Russian Vegetable Galette

4 servings

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided

1/2 cup sliced onion

3 cups shredded cabbage (approximately)

Dried basil, marjoram, and tarragon

4 ounces fresh mushrooms, sliced

Salt and pepper

1 rolled piecrust
2 ounces cream cheese, softened
2 hard boiled eggs
1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill

Melt 1 tablespoon of the butter in a small skillet. Add the onion and a pinch of salt and cook, stirring now and then, until the onion begins to soften. Add the cabbage. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the cabbage is wilted and bright green and the onion is translucent. Transfer the vegetables to a bowl to cool.

Melt the remaining tablespoon of butter in the same skillet. Add the mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally, until the liquid has evaporated and all the mushrooms are darkened and tender. Remove from the heat and allow to cool.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Unroll the piecrust on the parchment. Spread the cream cheese in a circle in the center of the crust, leaving a 2-inch border all around. Slice the eggs into rounds and arrange them on top of the cream cheese. Sprinkle the chopped dill over the eggs.

Place the cooled cabbage and onion mixture over the eggs. Sprinkle with a pinch of each of the dried herbs. Arrange the mushrooms on top, again sprinkling with a pinch of herbs. Season the galette with another pinch of salt and a few grinds of black pepper.

Fold the edges of the crust in toward the center, crimping and pleating as necessary. The finished galette will be about 8 inches in diameter. A 4-inch circle of filling will be exposed in the center.

Place the baking sheet in the oven and bake for 15 minutes. Reduce the heat to 350 degrees and continue baking until the pie is fragrant and the crust is nicely browned on top. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 10-15 minutes before slicing.

Leftovers should be cooled to room temperature and then stored in a covered container in the refrigerator. The galette reheats perfectly in a warm oven or in the microwave.