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Using the milk of their Holstein cows and following the techniques of their French Trappist brothers at Port du Salut, the monks at Gethsemani Farms near Bardstown, Kentucky, begin making and selling artisanal cheeses.

1941

Baltimore author Marian Tracy writes Casserole Cookery, an instant bestseller that depends heavily upon convenience foods.

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Heirloom Recipe

RICE MUFFINS

One cup boiled rice (left over will answer), 1 cup sweet milk, 2 eggs well beaten, 5 tablespoons melted butter, ½ teaspoonful salt, 1 tablespoon sugar, 3 teaspoonfuls baking powder and 1½ cupfuls flour mixed into soft batter which will drop from a spoon. Stir after all ingredients are in, lightly but thoroughly and drop into hot buttered muffin rings.

—Good Recipes by Athens’ Housewives, 1916–1917

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IRON SKILLET CORN BREAD

MAKES AN 8-INCH ROUND LOAF

Whenever my New York friends fly south for a visit, I serve this corn bread for breakfast—straight from the oven. My good friend Sara Moulton liked it so well that she asked for the recipe, then featured it on her Food Network show Cooking Live. What makes this particular corn bread so special is the contrast of textures: It’s crusty-brown on the outside and soft, in fact almost creamy, inside. The recipe comes from my stepmother’s aunt Annie Pool, a Virginia farm woman and exceptionally gifted cook who was never fazed when several dozen members of the extended family showed up for the annual Thanksgiving feast. Note: The way to enjoy this corn bread is to split each wedge horizontally while it’s hissing-hot, tuck in a couple of pats of butter, then eat the instant they melt.

2 cups unsifted stone-ground cornmeal (preferably white)

1 tablespoon sugar

½ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon baking soda

1/3 cup firmly packed lard or vegetable shortening (I always use lard because it gives the corn bread better flavor)

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

2 cups buttermilk

1. Preheat the oven to 425° F.

2. Combine the cornmeal, sugar, salt, and baking soda in a large mixing bowl and make a well in the middle of the dry ingredients.

3. Place the lard in a well-seasoned 8-inch iron skillet with an ovenproof handle and set on the middle oven shelf for 2 to 3 minutes or until the lard melts completely.

4. Meanwhile, add the eggs and buttermilk to the well in the dry ingredients and stir only enough to mix. Pour in the hot melted lard and stir briskly to incorporate.

5. Pour the batter into the hot skillet and bake on the middle oven shelf for about 25 minutes or until nicely browned and a cake tester inserted midway between the center and the edge comes out clean.

6. Rush the skillet from oven to table, cut the corn bread into wedges, and serve with plenty of fresh unsalted butter.

CRACKLIN’ BREAD

MAKES AN 8 × 8 × 2-INCH LOAF

Cracklin’s are the crisp meaty bits left after pork fat has been rendered into lard—a delicious byproduct of the annual autumn hog killings. Fortunately you needn’t butcher your own hogs to obtain cracklin’s today. They can be ordered (see Sources, backmatter) or you can make your own from pork fat trimmings. This simple recipe comes from the Smoky Mountains.

2 cups unsifted stone-ground cornmeal (do not use granular supermarket meal)

¾ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon baking soda

1 cup cracklin’s (see headnote)

1¾ cups sour milk or buttermilk

1. Preheat the oven to 400° F. Coat an 8 × 8 × 2-inch square pan with nonstick cooking spray and set aside.

2. Combine the cornmeal, salt, and baking soda in a large mixing bowl; add the cracklin’s, toss well to mix, then make a well in the middle of the dry ingredients.

3. Pour the milk into the well in the dry ingredients and stir only enough to form a stiff dough. Scoop into the pan, spreading to the corners.

4. Bake the cracklin’ bread on the middle oven shelf for 30 to 35 minutes or until lightly browned and springy to the touch.

5. Cut into squares and serve hot. No butter needed.

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TIME LINE: the people and events that shaped Southern Cuisine

1943

Sema Wilkes