Mom's Southern Cooking - Iron Skillet Fried Chicken

Easter Sunday in our house has always been a low key event. When I was younger, we would dress up for church, come home to change, and then relax. Or at least that's the way I remember it. Years later, we stopped attending church, kept to a very relaxed wardrobe, and spent the day enjoying family. This past Sunday was no different.

Our Sunday meal, which is always dinner, doesn't vary either. We serve up a traditional Southern cuisine and we don't spare a single calorie! And, since I am all about learning to cook the foods my mother's have cooked, I took on the task of whipping up mashed potatoes and iron skillet fried chicken. (When my mom makes friend chicken today, we go the healthier route by "frying" it in the oven. So let's take a walk on the calorie laden wild side and fry up some chicken!

Here is what you'll need: Chicken (we used chicken thighs, legs, and breast), Flour, Paprika, Garlic Powder, Cayenne Pepper, Salt, Black Pepper, a paper bag, and Crisco.

Add several heaping spoonfuls of flour, several shakes of Paprika, a shake of Cayenne Pepper and Garlic Powder, two pinches of salt, and several pinches of black pepper. No real measurements here! This is how my great-grandmother cooked!

 

That's three tablespoons of Crisco. You add more per batch.

 

Add your chicken to the flour mixture and shake to cover. Place your fattier pieces, like thighs and legs, in the bag first.

That's me shaking the chicken!

  

Place your Crisco in the pan and let it get really hot!

 

  

Add your chicken in batches. Again, fry the fattier pieces first.

Turn over as the sides become golden brown. Turn several times, and once all sides are fried, place the lid over the skillet and continue to cook. When I asked my mom how long to cook the chicken, she said "I don't know. I just cook the chicken." If you want to know it's done, make sure the juices run clear and your thermometer reads 165.

This is a traditional Southern spread! Fried chicken, deviled eggs, mashed potatoes, green beans, jello salad, rolls (seen below) and gravy. All recipes are handed down from both sides of the family. My great grandmother's fried chicken and mashed potatoes (although I'm sure everyone makes them the same), my cousin Judy's jello salad which is amazing, my mom's own delived eggs, and my mom's cooked green beans with bacon.

 

And our sweet table was set in all the colors of Easter; pink, blue, and yellow! This was also complete with my great grandmother's (on my dad's side) darling blue glasses.

I hope you all had a wonderful Easter!!

Mom's Southern Cooking - Cooked Apples

One of my all time favorites sides is cooked apples! I love apple anything, but this sweet and tart recipe is simply wonderful! It combines all my favorite things; apples, butter, brown sugar, sugar, and cinnamon! Doesn't that sound unbelievable? 

I remember the first time I made these for my husband. He devoured them! They have become one of his most requested sides, but always feels bad for asking because he thinks they're time consuming. They really aren't. It just takes a little time to cook them down. 

Here's what you need: apples (I use Granny Smith so that I can sweeten them to my liking), butter, brown and granulated sugar, and cinnamon.

Wash and dry your apples. Then core and slice. If you don't have a handy apple corer like this, cut them the way you normally would.

Place all your apple slices in a large sauce pot and add several tablespoons of water. Apples are already water based so you only need a little to help the cook. Cover with a lid, but allow a little steam to escape. Cook on medium.

I mentioned earlier that you needed to cook the apples down. What I really meant was that you needed to cook the apples to death! Make them mushy as seen below! Stir to make sure there aren't huge chunks of uncooked apple. Then, add about a tablespoon of butter. Stir to combine.

 This is where the good stuff comes in! Not that butter isn't a good thing. Add several teaspoons of granulated sugar, several handfuls of brown sugar, and several dashes of cinnamon. Stir to combine. Taste to see if it's sweet enough. If not, add a little more of each sugar.

And that's it! You have cooked apples! Here is the finished dinner. We had a crockpot pot roast with new potatoes and carrots. So yummy and a perfect meal for the freezing temps and foot of snow we have on the ground!

Let me know if you make this dish! I love hearing your reviews.

Next up, my Grannie's Apple Dumplings. Talk about amazing!

Happy Eats!

Ugly Biscuit - In My Mom's Words

 When the morning biscuits were cut and resting on a pan blackened with age, my grandmother shaped the dough scraps into a small, flat cake.  And in a pre-dawn ritual that never varied, she whacked the cake three times with the butt of her rolling pin, creating a trio of crescent moons that rose into soft dimples when the bread baked.  The three whacks were my summer alarm clock, soon followed by the call of “breakfast” from my grandfather standing at the foot of the steps leading up to my bedroom.

One summer morning, long before sunrise, I thought I heard the three whacks of the rolling pin.  I decided to surprise my grandfather by getting up before he beckoned.  But when I made my way down the steps, I found the house still and without the faint odor of wood smoke from the kitchen stove.  This would be an even better surprise, I thought, rising before either of my grandparents, and so I sat down on the bottom step to wait.

 When I awoke the second time, my grandmother was gently shaking my arm.  I told her about hearing the three whacks of the rolling pin.  She laughed softly and said I hadn’t been dreaming.  What I had heard, she explained, were apples falling onto the tin roof.

Me at age three, my mom, and my great-grandmother

Mom's Southern Cooking - Biscuits and Gravy

A traditional Southern breakfast in my house was a big plate of biscuits and gravy. We didn't have it often, but when we did, I knew it was a big deal! I have always thought that biscuits were a labor intensive process, but it turns out it's rather easy. Not as easy as opening a can of Pillsbury biscuits, but easier than I had originally thought.

My mom made her first round of biscuits at the age of 10 while my great-grandmother Bessie Tedder looked on. According to mom and her mother, no matter how long it's been since you've made a biscuit, if you've made a biscuit, you can always make a biscuit. There's a sweet story I'm going to share later this week about my mom wanting to make biscuits at a much younger age. It's in her own words and it's a story she shared the year my great-grandmother passed away. My mamaw was an incredible woman!

So, let's get to making biscuits and gravy! This post is a little lengthy so hang in there! Here's what you'll need for the biscuits: Buttermilk, shortening, and self-rising flour. (The champagne and orange juice are optional, however we always cook with them!)

Measure out two cups of self-rising flour and four tablespoons of shortening. 

 

Now, take two butter knives and cut the flour and shortening together in a criss-cross method. Do this until all the shortening has been combined into the flour.

Now, using a fork, create a small well in the center of the flour.

And pour your 3/4 cup buttermilk into that well.

Use your fork to stirring the dry ingredients with the buttermilk. Stir until the mixture forms a dough in the bowl. (It will be sticky.)

Now, just go in with your hands and start forming a ball of dough. 

Once you have a nice ball of dough, it's time to start rolling it out. You want to roll it to about a 1/2 inch thick. 

This biscuit cutter was made by my great-grandfather, Earnest Tedder. It was originally a PET milk can. The story of how he made them is coming later as well.

When it comes to cutting your biscuits, simply place the cutter over the dough, push it down, and simply lift out. Do not twist! My great-grandmother said you don't want to "worry the dough" and that's what happens when you twist!

 

Place on a lightly greased cookie sheet. You will get roughly 10 biscuits.

 With the little bit of extra dough, we make what we call the "Ugly Biscuit" and it's truly the best biscuit of the lot! Just roll out the dough slightly and form an oblong shape. Take the end of your biscuit cutter and make three half moon shapes. 

And here they are!! 

Now comes the gravy. Here's what you need: Grease (like bacon or sausage), flour, and whole milk.

After you've fried up bacon or sausage, set aside the grease from the pan. You can use the same pan or use a clean one. We used a clean one. 

 Add four tablespoons of grease to a pan and let it get really hot.

Once hot, add four tablespoons of flour. (To test the heat of the oil, add a little flour to the grease. If it starts to bubble, it's ready.)

Whisk together the flour and grease.

Start adding the two cups of milk, slowly, to the pan. Add a little, whisk, add a little more, whisk. Once you have a nice gravy formed, add the remainder of the milk.

Whisk, whisk, and whisk until there are no lumps! Add a little salt and pepper to taste. Add a lot of pepper if you're like us!

 

And here it is! 

And here is our traditional Southern breakfast! A post to come on cooked apples! 

 Remember that secret ingredient from the Macaroni and Cheese post? As a child, my dad would add a little sugar to the top of my biscuits and gravy and I thought everyone did that! Apparently, it all started with his grandfather. He was a bee keeper and he put honey on his. So, sugar was passed down to me and that's how I eat mine today. Again, don't knock it 'til you try it!

And that's it! One of my favorite breakfasts! And honestly, so easy to make. Doesn't it look yummy?

Happy Eats!

Mom's Southern Cooking - Butter Noodles

My mom was forever making chicken. Chicken, chicken, and more chicken. And I often replied, when I asked what was for dinner, "Chicken again?" But, it's super versatile and inexpensive! And even though we ate a lot of chicken, my mom was great at varying up the sides. One of my favorites was butter noodles. Another really easy recipe for a quick, yummy side.

I made a new recipe from the Sandra Lee magazine, an apple and fennel pork butt in the slow cooker, and wanted to keep the sides relatively uncomplicated. I thought the pork, apple, and fennel were fancy enough. I decided on steamed green beans and butter noodles. (Don't get excited. The steamed green beans came in a frozen steam-in-the-bag from Green Giant!) The noddles, I made on my own.

Here's what you need: Egg Noodles, Butter, Seasoned Salt, Black Pepper, and Parsley Flakes (not shown. I couldn't find them in my mess of a spice cabinet).

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Once boiling, add a nice amount of salt to your water. (This is the only chance your pasta/noodles will get a healthy dose of flavor). Cook to past al dente. You want a soft noodle for this recipe!

Once done, drain your noodles and add to your serving bowl.

Simply add a small amount of butter, seasoned salt, and black pepper to taste. Add a small amount of parsley flakes for color! Voila! Your side is ready!

Now, here's the God's honest truth. I didn't take a picture of the final meal because after I took the pork out of the crock-pot, it looked so gross to me! So gross, that I didn't even eat it! I dined on green beans and noodles. My hubby dug in, cleaning his plate, but he did report that it wasn't his favorite meal. If I were going to serve a roast, next time just make it like I always do. He loved the sides though!

Let me know what you think of the butter noodles. One of my favs!

Happy Eats!