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—From North Carolina Kitchens, Favorite Recipes: Old and New, 1953

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CORN MUFFINS

MAKES ABOUT 1½ DOZEN MUFFINS

With the exception of biscuits, corn breads are the universal southern favorite. And the quicker the better; these classic corn muffins are ready to serve in half an hour. Note: For extra flavor, use bacon drippings as the shortening. In days past, frugal southern cooks would keep a jar or old coffee tin of bacon drippings at the ready—to stir into corn breads; to dress cooked collards, turnip greens, and snap beans; even to wilt lettuce. To this day, wilted lettuce (also known as Smothered Lettuce, Chapter 4) remains popular in much of the South.

1½ cups unsifted stone-ground yellow cornmeal

½ cup sifted all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons sugar

1 tablespoon baking powder

¾ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon black pepper

1 large egg, lightly beaten

1 cup milk

3½ tablespoons melted bacon drippings or lard or, if you prefer, 3 tablespoons vegetable oil

1. Preheat the oven to 400° F. Spritz 18 muffin pan cups with nonstick cooking spray and set aside (I use three 6-muffin pans).

2. Combine the cornmeal, flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and pepper in a large mixing bowl and make a well in the center.

3. Whisk the egg, milk, and bacon drippings together in a small bowl or 1-quart measure until creamy, pour into the well in the dry ingredients, and stir only enough to combine. The batter should be lumpy and it’s best if a few floury specks show because they prove that you haven’t overbeaten the batter. Overbeating is the fastest way to toughen a muffin.

4. Spoon the batter into the muffin pan cups, dividing the total amount evenly.

5. Bake in the lower third of the oven for 20 to 25 minutes or until lightly browned and springy to the touch. Serve hot with plenty of butter.

When I’m old and gray, I want to have a house by the sea…and a damn good kitchen to cook in.

—AVA GARDNER, NORTH CAROLINA NATIVE

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TO MAKE CRACKLIN’S

First of all, sweet-talk your butcher into saving 1 pound of pork fat trimmings for you. Preheat the oven to 275° F. Using a very sharp knife, cut the pork fat into ¼-inch dice and spread over the bottom of a large, heavy Dutch oven (I use an enameled cast-iron pot that measures 12 inches across). Add 1½ cups boiling water, stir well, then cover the Dutch oven and set on the lowest shelf of the oven. Bake for 1 hour. Remove the lid; stir the pork fat well and again spread it over the bottom of the pot. Bake uncovered 2 to 2½ hours longer, stirring every 30 minutes, until all the fat has cooked out and only crisp brown bits remain. Scoop the brown bits to several thicknesses of paper toweling to drain, and when cool, store in an airtight plastic container until ready to use. Use as recipes direct. Makes 1 cup cracklin’s. Note: Thrifty Appalachian folk would save the drippings to use in cooking or to dress vegetables; I don’t because of their high cholesterol content.

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“Shut your eyes and open your mouth and I’ll give you a surprise,” she said. It was not often that she made crackling bread; she said she never had time…she knew I loved crackling bread.

—HARPER LEE, TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD

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TIME LINE: the people and events that shaped Southern Cuisine

1939

Duncan Hines lists Harland Sanders’s Corbin, Kentucky, restaurant in his popular guide, Adventures in Good Eating.

Gustav Brunn emigrates from Germany to Baltimore, bringing with him his spice grinder and a dream: to start a spice business. His winning blend of mustard, celery, ginger, bay leaves, and cayenne—Old Bay Seasoning—pairs superbly with Chesapeake fish and shellfish.

Willis and Paul Teeter open Teeter’s Food Mart in Mooresville, North Carolina. It is the first of several, which later merge with the Charlotte-based Harris supermarkets.

1940

Pepsi launches the singing commercial by airing its bouncy “Pepsi-Cola hits the spot” on radio.

1940s