Posted on 09/30/2019 4:08:25 PM PDT by Jamestown1630
I’ve had a request from Freeper MomwithHope to post this month on ‘Hearty Fall Fare’ - and even though it’s still hot here in DC, with Wednesday threatening record-breaking temperatures, the leaves are falling and the trees are beginning to morph into their Autumn glory. We can smell Fall.
One of my first posts to FR, before I officially began this cooking thread, was about Virginia Peanut Soup. I can still remember how surprised I was on tasting it - while there was little in the soup other than peanuts, it was so rich and the flavor so unexpected. I originally posted a link to a recipe that was non-dairy:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/recipes/virginia-peanut-soup/14444/
But here is a recipe, enriched with cream, from the King’s Arms Tavern in Williamsburg:
https://www.history.org/Almanack/life/food/fdpnutsp.cfm
****************************************************
I’ve been interested in things to do with nuts, and recently remembered a recipe for spiced nuts from ‘Russel Wright's Menu Cookbook’, written by the industrial designer’s daughter, Ann Wright, from her memories of growing up; these would go nicely with drinks in front of your first hearth fire of the season:
Margaret Spader’s Chinese Spiced Walnuts
6 C. Water
2 C. Walnut Halves
½ C. Sugar
1 tsp. Hot Pepper Flakes
2 C. Salad Oil (any vegetable oil without a really pronounced flavor.)
Kosher Salt to Taste
Bring water to a boil in a 2-qt heavy saucepan. Add walnuts, reheat to boiling, and cook 1 to 2 minutes. Drain in a colander, rinse under hot running water, and shake to drain well.
Turn the walnuts into a bowl, add the sugar and pepper flakes, and toss to coat the nuts.
In a heavy bottomed saucepan or electric skillet, heat the oil to 350 degrees. (Oil should be about 1 inch deep.)
Add half the walnuts, stirring occasionally, and fry until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon, drain on a cloth towel (not paper as the hot nuts have a tendency to stick) or place the nuts in a colander over a deep bowl, so that the oil drains off. Sprinkle lightly with salt and toss gently to keep nuts from sticking together.
Fry the remaining walnuts. Keep tightly covered, these should keep for 1 to 2 months in the refrigerator. Makes 4-1/2 cups.
If you’re into Low-Carb/Keto/Paleo, here is a savory spiced nut without sugar:
https://www.thespruceeats.com/spiced-mixed-nuts-3058563
************************************************
Also from The Spruce Family, here are some clever but easy patterns for carving jack-o-lanterns:
https://www.thespruce.com/free-jack-o-lantern-patterns-4061776
(The painting at the beginning of this post is Camille Pissarro's 'Harvest', 1882.)
-JT
We had a small coffee can of bacon grease in the kitchen growing up. I still save it but freeze in ice cube trays and then bag it, freeze it.
Don’t get me started on grits :)
I have to agree with you on that point. My one experience with boiled peanuts truly ‘weirded’ me out :-)
I prefer salted and ROASTED!
My Granny always kept it in a teacup :’)
We’ve bought something else, and it works really well - it has a sieve on top:
https://www.amazon.com/RSVP-International-FAT-W-Stoneware-Grease/dp/B0017TZSU0
I agree, absolutely!
Lord that made my mouth water! I have always wanted to try that. I so love garlic & cook with it a lot. About every 3 or 4 weeks I spend an hour smashing heads of garlic. Cook slowly in olive oil until soft & put it all in a jar after it cools. Then all I have to do is scoop out what I want.
It is so weird to work with people who don’t cook from scratch. It kind of blows my mind.
Aint giving away my prize winning recipe :)
You know: I can’t stand people who won’t give away their recipes.
There’s a guy in my workplace who makes the most fabulous, never-before-tasted Seafood Salad.
He will not give away the recipe, no matter how I beg.
To me, that seems very stingy -
Just think of all the joy and pleasure you could be spreading around...
Wife makes a great Mexican chicken pisole soup with whole hominy. Always ask her to double the amount. Did have grits during a short stay in the south. Reminded me of cream of wheat hot breakfast cereal.
Never had hominy until my dad was transferred to a small VA facility in SE Colorado. They served hominy in the school cafeteria. Never seen it served anywhere, but we can find it in the Mex food section of stores.
It’s actually white corn that has been soaked in lye, which softens the hulls and makes the corn puff up like popcorn, only soft. Old timers used wood ash to produce a lye-like alkaline substance.
Tonight, I cooked great northern beans, with ham hocks, American Indian fry bread, and deep fried salt pork. (The only thing missing was the dried corn soup and fried potatoes, which would make it a complete Indian meal). It was wonderful, but my other favorite way to prepare beans, is to cook them into soup, with diced onion, celery, tomatoes, a little garlic and a bay leaf. Served with crusty French bread.
Ooh, that looks good!
That sounds good, I make something similar. We are fortunate to have a family run meat market out here in the stix. Slaughter in the back, sell in the front. They have just about everything and smoke their own meats. We always have their bacon and smokes ham hocks on hand.
If you use a Paula Deen type recipe with heavy cream, butter and sharp shredded cheddar, you’re in for a world of delight.
Yes that sounds good but my arteries would not like it.
Concur.
Definitely a heart attack on a plate.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.