Southern Staples: Lady Cream Peas and Buttermilk Cornbread

So traditionally speaking, down South, New Year’s is a time for black eyed peas and cabbage. You know, for good luck. Got helg! 

It's a Southern tradition, a staple in so many ways, but more than anything, it is a comfort food for me and always, always reminds me of my grandparents.

And I can’t help it, but I always crave these Southern staples in January because that’s what I grew up with as a child. 

But I do recall another special pea that my grandmother favored when they were available and in season: the Lady Cream Pea. 

This legume has now become a coveted heirloom that’s like the black eyed pea’s sweet baby sister but with a more delicate flavor and texture. Lady cream peas are more of a regional vegetable and I hadn't come across them outside of Louisiana or really thought about them much in quite a long time.

When I discovered these on Amazon during lockdown, it was like a jolt of nostalgia and I remembered my grandmother being a big fan of them. I had to have them! And I paid a pretty penny for them at the time, which probably still wasn't expensive but for the fact that it was a bit special for a little 'ol pea. But boy, was it a treat! It really sparked a culinary adventure when they finally arrived and I haven't been able to do without them since.

Here is how we make them at my house whenever true Southern Comfort is in order.

Ingredients:

• 4 smoked ham hocks
• Water to max
• 2 tbsp better than bouillon beef
• Sprig of thyme
• 3 bay leaves
• Instant pot pressure cook using stew/chili. 30 min normal pressure
• 1 lb bag of lady cream peas

Or... if you are obsessed with these like I am, buy in bulk from Camellia. :)

1. Add cleaned and washed peas to the Instant Pot, filling the remaining inner pot with water no higher than the Max marking on the inner pot.
2. Add your ham hocks, thyme and bay leaves to the pot then secure the lid for cooking.
3. Select the Stew/Chili setting, ensuring the pressure valve is locked and secured
4. After cooking, the Instant Pot will automatically switch to Keep Warm and at that point, you can manually release the pressure, carefully, to ensure they don't overcook.
5. Add the Better than Bouillon and stir in until incorporated.

Cornbread

Crap, I forgot the flour! I have to lead with this because it’s a happy accident that I very much enjoyed. It made it gluten-free, if not necessarily non-gmo. I say that because I don’t actually know if my white cornmeal is non-gmo, but it’s possible. I’d have to check the brand. But the point is that when accidents happen, don't automatically assume the recipe is a 'fail'. Often it is not and in this case, even though I missed an ingredient, it didn't change the outcome. The cornbread turned out fine. It truly was delicious.

• 1/4 cup butter (1/2 stick)
• 1 cup milk
• 1 large egg
• 1 1/4 cups yellow, white or blue cornmeal
• 1 cup Gold Medal™ all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

I used a cast iron skillet because why wouldn't you? If you have one, go ahead and use it. Preheat your oven at 400 degrees F and let your skillet heat up with the oven. Just when you are ready to put the cornbread in the oven, add a tbsp or two of butter just before pouring in your batter. Bake for 20 min or until set in the middle.

The Comfort of Cauliflower Soup

So freaking delicious and so easy.

-1 head of cauliflower, chopped
-2 Vidalia onions, sliced
-Milk to cover
-Heavy cream, optional
-4 cloves of garlic
-Garlic Oil, for serving

Simmer until tender. We simmered this almost all night then I added heavy cream just to cover again and added two fresh cloves of garlic. Simmered and let it cool.

Put all ingredients in a blender, add two more cloves of garlic and puree until smooth and silky. Season with salt and pepper and drizzle with a little garlic oil

So delicious. So easyl

Wonton Soup-The New Comfort Food

Many years ago, I had wonton soup from Kinhdho in Uptown during a time of much duress and heartbreak in my life. To this day, nothing quite says, "Everything's gonna be alright" like wonton soup. This delicate soup has all the comforts of a full meal deal and so little complexity that it makes you wonder why this soup isn't a quick and dirty favorite in most American households. My mission is simple.

Their secret is the broth and much to my delight, Ketsana taught me a secret about broth making which makes recreating this Asian standard a breeze and her version is even better than theirs. Now, I no longer yearn for a trip into Uptown or out to Ketsana's to have what my soul craves. The best opportunities for this dish come from having a simple chicken broth on hand. As I've said before, canned or powder will always do in a pinch, but test yourself with how easy it is to make your own and I doubt you'll ever go back. In fact, you'll forever be looking for excuses to make this dish out of leftovers such as roasted chicken. Recovering the pan juices from dishes like this, freezing them if needbe for later use, will become a guilty pleasure. Little do you know just what gourmet indulgences await you with a little forward thinking or as is the case for me, an intense need to stretch the bounty and make the most delicious use out of everything in my crazy kitchen stadium.

For the purists, I begin with the whole shebang. From broth to tablecloth. In the future, I will begin a section about the best use for leftovers and some suggestions for how we make the most of our meals. I'll also be providing the Quick and Dirty Diaries of ways we've substituted, American-ized or shrink-wrapped our more time consuming favorites. Let's begin.

Chicken Broth:
Whole chicken, split breasts or thighs
Enough water to cover
2-3 bay leaves
1 stalk of celery
1 carrot, split in half
1 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper

1. Bring to a boil. Nothing could be easier. Put all ingredients into a stock pot large enough to fit your chicken and enough cold water to entirely cover the chicken. It's important to start with all ingredients cold, including the water, but I don't know the exact reason why. I do believe it has something to do with the clarity of the broth, though. It's how I was taught and I've no reason to stray. Put the pot on the stove and bring to a boil over high heat. The minute it starts to come to a rolling boil, turn off the heat and cover.
2. Cool and strain. Let cool entirely and any fat that has rendered will be easy to skim off the top. What's left is a beautiful, clear broth and tender chicken that hasn't had its soul sucked out of it. Strain out all of the ingredients and by all means, save the chicken for another dish or better yet, add it to your soup if you wish. Follow the steps below to complete the soup and freeze any unused broth for later use.

Soup:
Broth from above
salt, to taste
frozen stuffed wontons (see The Birth of a Wonton)
fresh snow peas, julienned or whole
carrots, julienned

Garnish:
green onions, julienned
fresh bean sprouts
caramelized onions, (see Thai Meatballs for recipe)

1. Reheat broth. Because the veggies are julienned, they will "cook" on contact with the heated broth. If your broth is frozen, no problem, just reheat on a medium-high heat until it has begun to boil. Reduce the heat so it doesn't boil over if you need to.
2. Add wontons. Drop in frozen wontons one by one being careful not to overload the pot which will cause the boil to drop, taking longer for the wontons to cook. They will float to the surface when cooked and the wontons will turn a bit transparent. When they float, they are indeed done. When in doubt, test one yourself.
3. Garnish and serve. To serve, ladle broth and wontons into a bowl over veggies and garnish or serve family style.

Note: Serving size is a subjective topic I wish to avoid because I, for one, could eat an entire pot of this all by myself. Having said that, a good rule of thumb is about 1 c. of broth/4 wontons for a starter soup portion or double that for an entree size. Around my house, we continue adding wontons and veggies until the very last drop has been licked clean.

There are two different ways to serve this soup; family style, which allows you to serve the broth and wontons at the table in a serving dish with the veggies and garnishes served separately thereby allowing each guest to customize their own soup and choose their own ingredients. An alternate way is to serve it already bowled-up. Put the carrots and snow peas into the bowl, ladle the soup broth and wontons over top and garnish with the green onions, caramelized onions and sprouts. I highly recommend experimenting with veggies you love or happen to have handy. No sprouts? Don't use them. Have celery but no carrots? Fine by me. If you are a celery lover, knock yourself out. Don't have any wontons handy? Well, guess what, there's a name for that, too, and it's called "Put the Chicken Back In" a.k.a "Chicken Soup" or "Wonton Soup for the Broke-Asses". Yep, been there, done that, too.