Southern writers love to eat almost as much as we love to write! And if anyone knows good food, it's Southerners!
We've swapped lots of great recipes this year, and we'd like to share our favorites with you.
Bon appetit, y'all!
We've swapped lots of great recipes this year, and we'd like to share our favorites with you.
Bon appetit, y'all!
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The master chefs behind these recipes are Southern Writers staffers:
(All recipes are at the bottom of this page) PRESTO DINNER WITH SHRIMP AND PESTO - Susan Reichert BUFFALO CHICKEN DIP - Gary Fearon RANCH CHEESE BALL - Gary Fearon BALSAMIC HONEY-GLAZED PORK TENDERLOIN - Shannon Milholland GREEN BEANS WITH FETA AND PECANS - Shannon Milholland SPINACH AND STRAWBERRY SALAD - Shannon Milholland WORLD FAMOUS HOT CORN - Doyne Phillips BROCCOLI CORNBREAD - Vicki Moss PINK LEMONADE PIE - Jessie Ferguson FAST AND SIMPLE NO-GUILT CHOCOLATE CAKE - Jessie Ferguson BUTTERMILK PIE - Londa Hayden Scroll down to read the recipes. You can also download the collection in PDF or Word (.doc) format for easy printing.
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We are also proud to bring you recipes by these awesome authors:
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SOUTHERN WRITERS MAGAZINE
HOLIDAY RECIPES
Susan’s Presto dinner with Shrimp and Pesto
1 bag of frozen shrimp - precooked.
Throw in pan with two tablespoons of olive oil
Add just a dab of salt...dab ( not much )
Add a little pepper...again not too much.
Cook until most of the water is cooked out.
In the meantime, throw on some vermicelli pasta, cook and drain.
Mix a jar of pesto sauce into the pasta, throw some Parmesan cheese on and then add the shrimp.
Enjoy!
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Gary’s Buffalo Chicken Dip
Mix 1 or 2 bricks of cream cheese with ranch dressing to taste (not too soupy); that's the bottom layer.
Mix small chunks of cooked chicken with buffalo sauce (I use Kroger brand) for layer 2.
Generously spread sharp cheddar cheese as your top layer.
Microwave til hot and serve with tortilla chips. Couldn't be easier!
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Gary’s Ranch Cheese Ball
Mix 1 or 2 bricks of cream cheese with a generous amount of Hidden Valley Ranch powder to taste.
Shape into a ball if you’re bringing it to a party. If you’re going to eat it yourself, the shape doesn’t matter!
Cover entire contents with a layer of Seasoned Pepper (McCormick and Kroger make it; a mixture of black, red and green peppers).
Serve with Wheat Thins or the equivalent.
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Shannon’s Balsamic-Honey Glazed Pork Tenderloin
4 cloves minced garlic
1/2 c balsamic vinegar
3 Tbl honey
1 Tbl Country Dijon mustard
1 Tbl fresh rosemary
Salt and Pepper to taste
app. 2 lb pork tenderloin, sliced into 1" medallions
Mix all ingredients except pork tenderloin. Sear pork medallions in skillet coated with olive oil until browned on each side.
Place in pan and cover with balsamic glaze. Roast in 400 degree oven approximately 20 minutes.
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Shannon’s Green Beans with Feta and Pecans
1/3 c white wine vinegar
1/2 tsp freshly minced garlic
1 tsp dried dill weed
1/4 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
2/3 c olive oil
2 pounds green beans
1/2 c chopped red onion
1 c Feta, crumbled
1 c pecans, chopped and toasted
Combine vinegar, garlic, dill weed, salt and pepper in a bowl and mix well. Slowly drizzle in olive oil whisking constantly.
Cook green beans until tender-crisp. Place in bowl topped with Feta, onions and pecans. Drizzle vinegar over just before serving.
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Shannon’s Spinach and Strawberry Salad
10 oz spinach
1 qt. strawberries, sliced
Dressing:
1/2 c sugar
1/2 c olive oil
1/4 c red wine vinegar
1 Tbl poppy seed
2 Tbl sesame seed
1/2 tsp minced onion
1/4 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1/4 tsp paprika
Mix all dressing ingredients together. Pour over greens just prior to serving.
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Doyne’s World Famous Hot Corn
2 lb bag frozen corn
1 small can creamed corn
1 brick of cream cheese
Jalapenos to taste
Cavender’s Greek Seasoning to taste
2 tablespoons of sour cream (if desired; Doyne prefers it without)
Heat and eat!
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Vicki’s Broccoli Cornbread
Melt 2 sticks of butter in a large glass dish (Pyrex 13” length)
Mix:
2 pkg. Jiffy Cornbread Mix
1 chopped onion
1 frozen chopped broccoli (thawed, not drained)
1-10 oz. cottage cheese
4 eggs
Pour mixture over melted butter.
Sprinkle with ½ C. shredded cheese
Bake at 375 for 30 min. serves 12-15
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Jessie’s Pink Lemonade Pie
2 graham cracker crusts
1 can of Eagle Brand milk
1 -12 oz. can of pink lemonade
Mix all together with 1-16 oz container of Cool Whip.
Put in freezer until firm.
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Jessie’s Fast & Simple No-Guilt Chocolate Cake
1 chocolate cake mix
1 can of Slim Fast
Mix thoroughly.
Bake at 350 degrees until done.
Serve with Cool Whip.
You can add a little guilt with one cup of chocolate chips before baking, if you must. :J This recipe makes about 18 or 20 cupcakes.
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Londa’s Buttermilk Pie
2 cups Sugar
1 stick melted Butter
1 cup Buttermilk
3 whole eggs
1/8 tsp. Salt
1/8 tsp. Nutmeg
1 tsp. Vanilla
3 TBSP Flour
1 pie crust (pre-made works fine)
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line pie plate with crust and crimp edges. Combine sugar and butter, whip eggs and add them, then add salt, nutmeg, vanilla and mix well. Mix in buttermilk and add flour 1 tablespoon at a time. Pour into pie pan. Place on cookie sheet and place into oven for 1 hour. Might need to cook10 minutes longer if middle is still too wiggly. Cover with foil if top starts to get too brown. Remove from oven and let set up for 1 hour. Top with whipping cream when ready to serve. Keep leftovers refrigerated.
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Alice J. Wisler shares this tasty recipe, from her equally delectable novel A WEDDING INVITATION.
Aunt Dovie, a character from Winston-Salem, NC, makes this oatmeal bread every week.
Dovie’s Oatmeal Bread
1 cup of old fashioned oats (not instant)
1½ cups of boiling water
¾ cup of molasses
3 tablespoons of vegetable oil
2 teaspoons of salt
2 cups of warm water
1 tablespoon of active dry yeast
4 cups of bread flour
4 cups of whole-wheat flour
Combine the oats and boiling in a large mixing bowl and let sit for at least thirty minutes. Add the molasses, oil and salt to the oatmeal mixture, combining well. In a separate bowl, dissolve the yeast in the warm water. Add to the oatmeal mixture. Stir in the flour, one cup at a time. Once the dough starts to pull from the sides of the bowl, turn onto a floured surface and knead in the rest of the flour until smooth. Continue to knead for about eight minutes. Place the dough in a greased bowl, turning it so that all sides are coated. Cover with a damp cloth. Let rise until doubled in size, about an hour. Punch down and divide dough in half. Shape into two loaves and place dough in two greased loaf pans. Cover and let rise for 45 minutes to an hour. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Place loaf pans in oven for five minutes, then reduce heat to 350 degrees F. and bake for an additional 40 minutes. Loaves should brown and will be ready to take out of oven when they sound hollow when lightly tapped.
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Sandra Balzo, whose newest book TRIPLE SHOT is now available,knows how to whip up a great latte as well as a riveting mystery.
Here are two irresistible treats her characters love, as will you.
Sandra Balzo’s
Killer Coffee Cake
--Featured in Running on Empty--
1 1/4 C sugar
1 8-oz pkg Philadelphia Brand cream cheese
1/2 C margarine
2 eggs
1 C mashed ripe bananas
1 tsp vanilla
2 1/4 C flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp soda
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1 C chopped pecans
2 Tbsp sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
Combine sugar, softened cream cheese and margarine, mixing until well blended. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Blend in bananas and vanilla. Add combined flour, baking powder and soda; mix well. Combine nuts, sugar and cinnamon; fold half of mixture into batter. Pour into greased and floured 12 x 9-inch baking pan; top with remaining nut mixture. Bake at 350 degrees, 35 to 40 minutes.
--Courtesy of Mama Philomena’s Restaurant (Running on Empty, a Main Street Mystery)
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Sandra Balzo’s
Eggnog Latte to Die For
--Uncommon Grounds featured holiday drink--
1 shot quality espresso
10 oz steamed eggnog ("lite" eggnog works best for frothing)
Cinnamon and/or nutmeg for dusting
Combine espresso and steamed eggnog in a latte mug. Dust with cinnamon and nutmeg and enjoy with good book J
--Courtesy of Uncommon Grounds (Maggy Thorsen Coffeehouse Mysteries)
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Marybeth Whalen's Peppermint Oreo Truffles
Crush one bag of double stuff Oreos
Soften one stick of cream cheese
Mix the crushed Oreos and cream cheese together. This is easiest if you use your hands (make sure they're clean).
Form one inch balls from the mixture and place on waxed paper on a cookie sheet.
Refrigerate for at least 15 minutes.
Melt a package of white chocolate bark.
Dip truffles in white chocolate and sprinkle with crushed peppermint.
Allow to harden and package to give away -- or share them with your family!
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Lisa Wingate’s Open-Your-Own-Fudge-Shop Chocolate Mint Fudge
Ingredients
3 cups sugar
3/4 cup butter or margarine
1 5 oz can (about 2/3 cup) evaporated milk (PET milk, not sweetened condensed milk.)
1 package WHITE chocolate chips
1 jar (7 oz.) Marshmallow Creme
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tbsp peppermint extract (or more, if you want stronger mint flavor)
Green food coloring to desired color
Chocolate chips or chocolate almond bark for topping
Easy Instructions
Spray 9 x 12 pan with Pam to prevent sticking. In a sauce pan (the heavy aluminum kind works best) bring sugar, butter and evaporated milk to full rolling boil on medium heat, stirring constantly to prevent burning. Continue stirring and cook 4 min. or until candy thermometer reaches 234°F. Remove from heat.
Add WHITE chocolate chips, marshmallow creme, peppermint flavoring, green food coloring; stir until melted in. Mix well.
Pour into baking pan; spread to cover bottom of pan. Spread layer of melted chocolate chips, or melted chocolate almond bark on top. Cool to room temperature before cutting into squares.
**Note: You can substitute the flavoring and coloring to make several different varieties of this fudge:
--Use cherry flavoring, red food coloring, chopped maraschino cherries, and chopped walnuts for Cherry Cordial Fudge
--Use orange flavoring and orange food coloring for Dreamsicle Fudge
--Skip the flavoring and coloring for vanilla fudge
--Add crumbled Oreos for Cookies and Cream Fudge
--Create swirl fudge by making two batches at once. Make one batch flavored and one batch with no flavors or colors and replace white chips with chocolate chips, then swirl together for beautiful swirl fudge. Make sure to have two baking pans ready for this double batch!
I hope you enjoy this little treat from our holiday table, and that it's a wonderful Christmas in your neck of the woods! -- Lisa
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The Magic of Quiche
Philip Levin The author of mysteries as well as picture books Consuto and the Rain God and Ndovu the Elephant, Philip Levin is also a photographer who shares his secrets for making money with your pictures in the January issue of Southern Writers Magazine. True to form, Philip has graciously included a photo to whet our appetite. |
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Quiche … it’s MAGIC.
It’s simple to make, it’s delicious, and it uses up all those left over
vegetables, meats, and cheeses you have hanging around. The sheer fun and versatility of this dish is
incredible. One time I made six
different flavored quiches for a party and one of the party games was to vote
on the favorite (the one filled with a can of mixed vegetables won).
You need one deep dish frozen pie crust, four eggs, one cup of milk, about an eighth cup of cheese and some fillings for each quiche. Any kind of milk will do; I personally buy Almond Milk because it lasts in my bachelor pad refrigerator for months before expiring. The cheese choice is also open; shredded Swiss and Mozzarella are my favorites, but I’ve used chunks of American, sprays from cans, and even remnants of cheese balls. The best part is choosing fillings. I’ve used mushrooms, olives, tomatoes, eggplant, ham, bacon, hamburger, sausage, green peppers, onion, bananas, carrots, green beans, corn, pineapple, jalapenos, asparagus, Brussels sprouts, and sardines (not a favorite of the crowd). PHILIP’S QUICHE RECIPE: Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Prepare filling as needed (ie. chop vegetables, sauté mushrooms and onions) Liquid: beat 4 eggs and 1 cup milk (include a tablespoon of flour for thickening if available). Add salt and pepper In bottom of crust place a layer of cheese and then the fillings. Pour in liquid. Top with sprinkled paprika for color Cook 50 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool 10 – 15 minutes. |
© 2011 Southern Writers Magazine and the respective authors, who really know how to cook.
