A Love Affair With Southern Cooking_ Recipes and Recollections - Jean Anderson [13]
One 1-pound loaf thin-sliced, firm-textured white bread, crusts removed (see Note on Chapter 1)
1 pound fresh lump crabmeat, bits of shell and cartilage removed
2 cups finely diced celery (about 3 large ribs)
2 large hard-cooked eggs, finely chopped
1 small yellow onion, finely chopped
1 cup firmly packed mayonnaise (use “light,” if you like)
1 tablespoon finely snipped fresh dill or moderately finely chopped fresh tarragon (optional)
½ teaspoon salt, or to taste
¼ teaspoon black pepper, or to taste
Paprika (optional garnish)
1. Preheat the oven to 300° F.
2. Using a 1 7/8-to 2-inch round cutter, cut 2 rounds from each slice of bread. Press the bread rounds gently into ungreased mini muffin pan cups measuring no more than 2 inches across the top. The bread will only half-fill the muffin cups, but shape it as best you can into shallow cups. Don’t worry about ragged edges; the filling will hide them. Note: Buzz the trimmings to crumbs in a blender or food processor, place in a large plastic zipper bag, and store in the freezer to use later for meat loaves and casserole toppings.
3. Toast the bread cups on the middle oven shelf for about 20 minutes or until crisp and golden. Cool to room temperature, then remove from the muffin pans.
4. For the filling, lightly fork together the crabmeat, celery, hard-cooked eggs, onion, mayonnaise, dill (if desired), salt, and pepper. Taste for seasoning and adjust the salt and pepper as needed. Cover and refrigerate for 2 to 3 hours. Fork again just before using.
5. To fill the toast cups, scoop the crab mixture up by generous teaspoonfuls. Note: I use a small spring-loaded ice cream scoop that measures 11/8 inches across the top—a time-saver because each scoop is exactly the right amount of filling for each toast cup.
6. Blush the tops of the crab cups with paprika, if you like; arrange on a colorful platter and serve as an accompaniment to cocktails.
CATFISH CAKES
MAKES 16 BITE-SIZE CAKES
This recipe comes from my good friend and colleague Joanne Lamb Hayes, who grew up in Maryland. She says these are a snap, especially if you buzz everything up in a food processor. Shaped into bite-size “burgers,” these are perfect cocktail fare. Note: Check the ingredient list of your seafood seasoning; if it contains no salt, add about ¼ teaspoon salt to the fish mixture.
1 pound skinned catfish fillets, cut into 1-inch pieces
4 medium scallions, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces (include some green tops)
½ teaspoon seafood seasoning
¼ teaspoon salt, if needed (see Note above)
1½ tablespoons vegetable oil
Tartar sauce (optional)
1. Place the catfish, scallions, seasoning, and salt, if needed, in a food processor fitted with the metal chopping blade. Pulse 8 to 10 times or until coarsely chopped.
2. Remove the catfish mixture from the food processor and shape into 16 small cakes of equal size.
3. Heat the oil in a large, heavy skillet over moderately high heat for about 1 minute or until ripples appear in the oil on the skillet bottom. Ease in the catfish cakes and cook for about 5 minutes or until well browned on one side. Turn and brown the flip sides for 3 to 5 minutes or until cooked through.
4. Serve hot, accompanied, if you like, with your favorite tartar sauce for dipping.
When prepared by an honest craftsman, catfish becomes a noble dish…
—A.J. MCCLANE, THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF FISH COOKERY
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TIME LINE: the people and events that shaped Southern Cuisine
1539
Leaving his Havana base, Hernando de Soto begins extensive exploration of today’s Southeast. He introduces hogs to Florida, which over time make their way north to Georgia, the Carolinas, and Virginia.
1565
The Spanish settle St. Augustine and hold it for 256 years. The foods they grew, the foods they cooked still season Florida pots.
English Captain John Hawkins reports that large quantities of muscadine wine are being made