It seems like ages ago that I did a story on them titled; Pecan Cheddar Biscuits the backbone of a Southern Party where by I discovered the powers of these cheesy gems with a kick of cayenne to finish off the taste. A good many of the recipes call for reserving the pecan and pressing it in the top, but I must confess the look was too dated for my taste. So, I opted to chop the nuts and add them to the dough before rolling into logs.

These are a hit with everyone, and I make thousands a month for some of the top Wedding Designers. A dozen or so to a bag they then get topped with a label and then tucked into gift bags for the wedding guests. I have made so many Pecan Cheddar Biscuits that I have lost count. Still with the factory production, I never tire of them and always manage to keep some on hand in case someone should drop and I need a quick tidbit to serve.

Pecan-Cheese Biscuits

Adapted James Villas; The Glory of Southern Cooking

1/2 pound (2 sticks) butter, at room temperature

7 ounces extra-sharp white cheddar cheese, finely grated then brought to room temperature

2 ounces imported Parmigiano or Parmigiano-Reggiano finely grated

1/4 tsp sea salt

Two big dashes of cayenne pepper

2 cups all-purpose flour

6 ounces chopped toasted pecans

• Preheat the oven to 350F
• Prepare a baking sheet with parchment paper (dab a spot of butter on tray so paper sticks to sheet)
• In a large mixing bowl, combine the butter, cheeses, chopped pecans, salt, and cayenne pepper mixing with a wooden spoon till well blended.
• Add the flour gradually and mix with your hands till firm and smooth, adding a little more flour if the mixture is too sticky.
• Cut 5 sheets of parchment or wax paper
• Divide dough into 5 pieces.
• Roll each section into a log about 1inch thick on paper, when smooth and round roll up in paper and seal ends. Repeat with all pieces and keep in refrigerator at least 5 hours till firm. Dough may be frozen at this point for up to a month. Wrap again in foil so that dough is double sealed before freezing.
• Slice into 1/4 inch rounds and put on prepared sheet about 1/2 inch apart and bake until done about 16-20 minutes.
• Begin checking at 16 minutes then every 2 minutes thereafter, till lightly toasted.
• Cool on a wire rack
• Store biscuits in tightly sealed tins for up to 2 weeks.

First off, I am making Strawberry Preserves- Southern style opposed to Northern style. I believe, other than the obvious geographical difference, there is a difference in the manner in which they are made. I am not being a smart-alec when I say this, but the Southern method is a slow method, which is good. No wonder God has me cooking Southern for a year; rather than being a short -order cook in a New York Deli, slinging corned beef and pastrami as fast as I can slice it. I am most hopeful that this slowing down is a large part of God not wanting me to miss my calling, which could be arriving any day now.

I did not spend my life’s fortune buying the biggest,plumpest, most beautiful and best tasting strawberries at the grocery store. ( When actually considering my financial condition, would not be to0 hard to do.) But, thank God this is Charleston, South Carolina (versus Charleston ,West Virginia) which I imagine is lovely, but still under snow. This Charleston is blessed with a long growing crop season, of which strawberries are included. I have had the pleasure of picking my first of many batches of fresh strawberries; just a $1.50 per pound at Ambrosia Farms, if I picked them myself.

This lady was not going to miss out on picking them; it was fun and peaceful-except for when the family with 3 noisy kids came running and screaming- disrupting my nirvana. I activated my super -tuner outer skills and ignored their idiotic bantering. Nothing was stopping me from a peaceful day on the farm.

How could I resist coming home with more Strawberries than I needed? It brought back memories and offered a future memory of being connected to the South, the new South for me. At the risk of repeating myself, which is something I try hard not to do, my Southern Buttermilk Caramel Pound Cake also included a story about my trip to the strawberry farm. If you should feel so inclined and would like to learn more, consider yourself pointed in the right direction. If you are a guy reading this and find yourself lost, do stop and ask for directions.

Let’s get safety out of the way before we proceed. I am not a certified preserver. There, it is said. I am off the hook -should someone not have the common sense to read up on how to safely handle hot boiling sugar syrup or how to protect everyone who gets to eat these preserves from food poisoning. The internet has a lot of good sources with step by step pictures showing you what to do. Take the time to check them out before proceeding.

Although I think I am still somewhat sane, it might sound like I have gone mad because it is just impossible for me to cook for less than 5 people. This includes just about everything I make. Naturally, I ended up multiplying everything in this recipe by five. Let’s just say I was jamming for a long time, and not to any good tunes, except:” Why am I making so much jam? which pretty much occupied my head the whole time I was cooking. But, by the time I had made the preserves, I had a pretty good beat to “Why am I making so much jam? Perhaps I have an ear for music after-all!

I took some liberties with this recipe, lowering the amount of sugar and perhaps could have even lowered it some more. My preserves never did thicken the way I would have wanted them to. What I learned was that the recipe I used is a somewhat old -fashioned way of making preserves; without the use of pectin. For the next go around I might add a little pectin. This is not a good preserve unless you have a little edge on your toast- it will run off and make a complete, sticky mess. Keep the crust on; don’t wimp out and remove it.

Garden Strawberry Preserves

Edna Lewis, The Taste of Country Cooking

3 cups of crushed berries

2 cups sugar

Wash the berries in a bowl of cold water to make sure they are free of grit and dust. Remove the berries by hand and place them on a clean, dry towel to drain. Then, remove the caps and crush them, with a clean (not dirty) odorless, wooden pestle or a strong coffee mug (preferably empty.) Pour into a non-aluminum saucepan and set over a low flame to heat. Meanwhile, heat the sugar- either in a double boiler or in a dish in the oven -till very hot (about 10 minutes, 350F oven). Be careful, it is Hot! Hot! Hot! Now, pour the hot sugar over the berries, turning the burner up while stirring the sugar around. The cooking should be as brisk as possible to prevent scorching; it should take about 9 minutes in all. As soon as the preserves begin to boil, a scum will rise on the surface. Skim it off right away with a wooden or silver spoon. It is much better to skim while it’s rapidly boiling, because that seems to cause the scum to remain in a mass and it’s easierto dip it out- without getting too much of the syrup. After 9 minutes of rapid cooking, pour the preserves into hot jars, filling about 1/8 inch from the top. Set the jars onto a surface to dry and cool. When cool, carefully melt paraffin wax and pour into the filled jars. When paraffin is cool, put on the lids and seal.

Again, my preserves were a little runny, which could be because instead of pouring hot wax over the top, I mistakenly poured hot water over the top. If you are going to be totally bummed out with runny preserves add a little pectin, following the directions on the package.

I am set with preserves for the year. I love making preserves even though it is a lot of work. However, this is definitely not something I would ever want to do for a living. No matter how good God thinks I am at this, please God do not assign me the strawberry preserve career, if it is available. I am aware that God knows what is best, but I might have a little more first- hand knowledge about what would or wouldn’t make me happy. A jam career is not it. Now, if God wants to offer this career to the Gingersnap Lady and give me back my cookies, well I certainly am open to that!

The experience of making jam was a blessing on many levels. It just plain, flat out feels so darn good being in the kitchen cooking. Our home smells good, and I feel full of life and food. I am loving the life part. The few extra pounds? Not so happy about that. Enough said. Enjoy the preserves on hot buttered toast or a scone.

]]> http://ayankeeinasouthernkitchen.com/2008/03/25/strawberry-preserves-southern-style/feed/ 14 http://ayankeeinasouthernkitchen.com/2008/03/15/pimento-cheese-toasts-prelude-to-a-yankee-in-a-southern-kitchen/ http://ayankeeinasouthernkitchen.com/2008/03/15/pimento-cheese-toasts-prelude-to-a-yankee-in-a-southern-kitchen/#comments Sat, 15 Mar 2008 11:28:18 +0000 Kim Morgan http://goodfoodjustgotbetter.wordpress.com/?p=134 A week has passed since I first wrote the un-posted draft A Yankee in a Southern Kitchen. What I didn’t expect was the urgency of God’s early morning wake-up calls which the forthcoming post will talk about. Last weekend at work we had a few Trunk Shows that would require a caterer. Food, my chance to feel good once again. I grabbed it and prepared a small affair for the shoppers during a Trunk Show.
Homemade Pimento Cheese Spread a Southern staple. Almond Orange & Orange Chocolate Biscotti, Spiced Rosemary Cashews and Lemon Curd to go with a fruit tray was met with oohs and aahs’s. It was simple yet elegant. Our guest designers from New York and our clients appreciated the Southern hospitality.

My boss couldn’t eat enough of the food I had made. I heard over and over do you cater? Why aren’t you a caterer? This is incredible. I can’t stop eating this it is so good. Boy, did I need to hear these affirmations and I suspect God knew this. I believe this is why God has been getting me up early. My new energy prepared me for the cooking and what was to come. He knew I was going to need a boat, a big boat and quick.

Returning to work after the weekend was met with surprise as my out of town boss was still in town and waiting for me. Just in case this wasn’t enough of a surprise, I was ushered into an office, not private I might add. My boss sat down and said, you are being terminated immediately or did he say exterminated immediately? Regardless of what he said, he had already packed my belongings (which is customary in the jewelry business) and said I wish you the best, you would make a great caterer. It took less than one minute to herd me out the door. A flood of emotions came over me. I was speechless, which is probably a good thing, and I walked out with the words you would make a great caterer in my head – words that were louder than you are terminated immediately.

For the record, I do not need this man who has been……………… from the get go to tell me I would make a great caterer. Still his words were a message from God to focus and not despair. I had been working on finding a way to quit my job and do what I love, but on my terms as I expected this to take 6 months to a year.

Maybe that’s the point? Maybe the terms that were handed me are in line with God’s plan? This is something I won’t know if I don’t step out in faith. Frankly, do I have another choice? Add to this a few other major personal challanges and I’m feeling like I’ve reached my limit of what I can deal with.

I know it sounds bad, and certainly I desire better for myself, but perhaps this is the place where God can take me and mold me with the desirable outcome of being shaped for God’s plan and my new calling. As a friend said, welcome to God’s Boot Camp. Like it or not, I am in Boot Camp. At least I will have the comfort of being loved by family and God who both have promised to be with me through it all. So here I am; a Yankee in a Southern Kitchen and Boot Camp all in the same year, life is looking good.

Enough of talk and on to food, Southern Food I might add. Any Southern kitchen worth visiting , always has a crock of Pimento Cheese or as they say in the South Pimeno Cheese to snack on. In celebration of new beginnings I thought I would make three batches of my Pimento Cheese. The first is for me, in celebration as I begin establishing a Southern Kitchen. The second batch I am sending to my former boss as a gift for doing me a favor; Pimento Cheese is his favorite. The last batch is going to heaven along with a resume and a note that says, looking for work are you hiring a good Southern cook at Boot Camp?
Pimento Cheese Toasts

Adapted from Scott Peacock’s recipe; Gourmet, January 2008

12 oz each of a good White Cheddar & Orange Cheddar (sharp and/or extra sharp)

1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon cayenne

1/2 cup finely diced bottled roasted red peppers

3/4 cup mayonnaise

1 baguette

Preheat Broiler

Slice baguette into 1/3 inch rounds, toast on both sides being careful not to burn, set aside on foiled baking sheet.

Grate 1/2 of each of the cheeses on the coarse side of the grater. Grate remaining cheese on the fine side of grater. Mix together in a large bowl.

Pat dry the pimentos, removing any seeds. Finely dice them and add to cheese mixture. Stir in mayonnaise and cayenne pepper to taste. Then add salt & pepper to taste.

Chill for an hour or so, this keeps the mixture from running off the toast when broiled.

Spread mixture on toast rounds and place under broiler for about 2 minutes till hot and bubbly. Serve immediately.

Note: You can alter the amount of mayonnaise to suit your taste, I prefer a drier spread rather than a moist spread. Once you have made this you will acquire a taste for it and naturally want to alter according to your taste. Grating the cheese on two sizes makes this a good recipe for broiling or using cold on crackers or as a sandwich. You may halve the recipe.

Pimento Cheese Sandwich- If you haven’t tried this you must. Take two slices of white bread (this is the only time I ever-ever-ever use white bread) spread a good amount of the cheese on the sandwich and enjoy.

Ask any Southerner about Pimento Cheese and they will have a story to tell about their mother’s Pimenocheese. There is something magical and nostalgic about this simple food that has a place in every Southern home.

As a reminder of new beginnings, a fresh batch is being made weekly and kept in my refrigerator. If you are in the area visiting stop by and I’ll make you some Pimento Cheese Toasts; I guarantee they will make you feel welcome and at home in the South.