Notes about Recipes in this book

• Southern pecan pie laced with whiskey

  • rebeccairo on December 25, 2021

    Crust kind of scant for a 9” pie pan, and wound up too soft to roll out easily

  • stef on March 14, 2021

    A very light creamy filling. Not to sweet. I used rum. Definitely should be served at room temperature. Was baked at 45 minutes. This replaces my other pecan pie recipes. I did an all butter crust

  • DFarnham on August 16, 2021

    Followed recipe as written. This pie was insanely good! Not too sweet, I used Woodford's Reserve bourbon. Will go into my rotation for dinner parties.

• Extra-light buttermilk cornbread

  • TrishaCP on September 15, 2021

    I agree that this came out a bit dry, but it was still enjoyed by all.

  • chawkins on January 04, 2022

    This is now my favorite cornbread. Simple ingredients, easy to put together and extra light as promised. Thanks to the comments here, I checked for doneness 15 minutes into baking and it was already done so I can understand the comment of dryness if baked for the specified time.

  • stef on May 03, 2021

    I took the cornbread about 5 minutes early. It is light but I found it dry.

  • anya_sf on October 14, 2021

    Very good flavor, fairly light, crumbly texture made with medium grind whole grain cornmeal. I checked it after 17 minutes and it was already done, which probably made it a bit dry, as others have noted. Next time check after 15 minutes.

  • PanNan on January 12, 2021

    I've made this recipe several times and it's a winner each time. It's become the family go-to cornbread recipe now.

  • lholtzman on September 24, 2020

    A bit dry. Maybe cook for less time than directed.

  • DFarnham on November 23, 2021

    Delicious and simple to make. I didn't experience any problems with dryness. Our new go-to recipe.

  • snoozermoose on October 29, 2022

    Great classic cornbread recipe. Very easy to throw together. It was a tiny bit dry, but it didn't bother me that much. My husband only likes savory cornbread and was thrilled with this.

• Spanish cornbread

  • TrishaCP on April 11, 2021

    Wow, this cornbread is really great. Very very moist with a nice kick from the chiles. Into my “favorites” file it goes!

  • southerncooker on August 17, 2020

    We don't like sugar in cornbread so I left it out. We all loved it.

  • hirsheys on May 17, 2021

    This is a pretty standard cornbread recipe, but with canned corn, canned chilies, and cheddar cheese stirred in. It tasted just how you’d expect from the recipe, except I found it a bit too sweet - the corn plus sugar weren’t balanced enough by the cheese. I definitely liked it fine (and I agree that it was moist - I’m not sure that’s a selling point for me), but won’t make it again. I have better cornbread recipes (not too mention others to try!)

  • Lsblackburn1 on March 22, 2021

    This reminded me of cornbread I ate in Tucson, AZ as a kid - loved it! Super moist and delicious with honey.

• Okra pilau

  • southerncooker on August 21, 2020

    I omitted bacon and sauteed veggies in Avocado oil. Daughter and I loved, hubby didn't like.

  • hirsheys on August 30, 2021

    I made this as written and loved it. I was anxious for a minute there, because the rice seemed too al dente at first. After letting it sit just a bit longer, it was perfect. (My timing was maybe off a tad - I got distracted and forgot to set the timer.) Definitely would make this again!

  • Lepa on August 24, 2020

    This is an interesting dish and we enjoyed it. It was especially good after we added lots of black pepper! This will be a repeat in our house.

• Fried corn with green peppers (Maque choux)

  • southerncooker on August 17, 2020

    I didnt have bell peppers but had some Shishito Peppers and we had been eating them and were really mild. I have heard that every once in a while you'll get a spicy one. Hubby said too hot for him. Daughter said pretty spicy but eating with cornbread made it ok. Son and I didn't think that spicy.

  • bernalgirl on September 01, 2020

    Excellent as written, lends itself to variation, added tiny diced zucchini

  • hirsheys on October 11, 2020

    Absolutely delicious. Made it as written. (Sugar not necessary.) Can use frozen corn. Watch spice level. No need for heavy cream, half and half is plenty creamy.

  • dinnermints on September 02, 2020

    I thought this was fine, but it didn't knock my socks off.

  • stef on September 02, 2021

    Was a nice side to the curry meat pie(recipe in this book). Family really liked it. A repeat.

  • Foodycat on July 28, 2020

    I used only 2 ears of corn but kept the rest the same for a side dish for 2 people. It was so delicious! My husband, who doesn't particularly like corn, thought it was wonderful and will happily eat it for the rest of the summer.

  • Lepa on August 11, 2020

    I was a bit skeptical about this recipe but kept reading rave reviews and they were correct; this is delicious! Everyone in my family liked this and we fought over the last few spoonfuls.

  • anya_sf on August 17, 2021

    Very good, although quite rich. Next time I'd only use 1/2 cup cream and/or use half-and-half. I omitted the red pepper flakes (son doesn't like them) and used more black pepper.

  • Kduncan on September 28, 2020

    Really good side dish recipe. Looking forward to cooking again before the end of corn season.

  • ashallen on April 25, 2021

    Rich and delicious. I used frozen corn and orange bell pepper, but I'm looking forward to making this again this summer with local fresh corn and peppers. I substituted milk for 1/4 cup of the heavy cream and it was still deliciously decadent (for a vegetable dish!). My husband is not a huge fan of onion-y flavors and found the onion + scallion to be stronger than he prefers, so I'll make a simpler version of creamed corn for him in the future and keep this one all to myself.

  • DFarnham on August 09, 2021

    Delicious! We don't like green bell pepper so subbed in red. Outstanding!

• String beans à la Creole

  • southerncooker on August 21, 2020

    Used vegetable oil. Very good.

  • stockholm28 on April 18, 2021

    This turned out to be a very good recipe for some tough green beans. It is very easy to make.

  • LittleKi on August 01, 2021

    Great way to use up a prolific amount of green beans.

• Sautéed greens

  • southerncooker on August 17, 2020

    I've cooked many greens but never this method. Not sure if it was the greens I bought or the cooking method. The greens were tough but had a nice flavor. I used a pre chopped mix of mustard, kale and turnip.

  • hirsheys on May 17, 2021

    I made this dish with kale that I tore into small chunks and then chopped fine after as the recipe described. Otherwise, I followed the recipe pretty closely and I enjoyed the outcome, though my family found it relatively boring. I thought it was a nice side dish for the shrimp and grits I’d made. I would make it again, though I’d perhaps add a few extra splashes of liquid to make the greens silkier in texture.

  • Lepa on August 01, 2020

    This is spicy and flavorful. I made it with two bunches of chard and one bunch of mustard.

  • anya_sf on February 20, 2023

    Made with rainbow chard and collard greens (no stems, but would consider using chard stems next time). Only added a dash of red pepper flakes. Really enjoyed the light sweet-sour flavor from the cider vinegar and maple syrup.

• Salmon croquettes

  • southerncooker on August 21, 2020

    delicious. Daughter and I put kewpie mayonnaise on ours and hubby ate plain. I used whole wheat panko for bread crumbs.

  • bernalgirl on September 01, 2020

    Outstanding as written, a family favorite. Served with homemade tartar sauce

  • hirsheys on August 30, 2021

    Tried these tonight for the first time, though I made them smaller (sort of appetizer size) and made a half recipe. These came out very tasty, though honestly, anything would taste good with the book's remoulade sauce on top. Definitely something I will keep in my back pocket for an easy, cheap meal.

  • chawkins on June 13, 2022

    This was okay, had trouble with the cakes holding together. Had eleven cakes even when I used half a cup of mixture for each cake. Much prefer Sheila Lukins’s deviled salmon cakes which needed an hour of refrigeration after shaping but they held together much better.

  • Zosia on July 30, 2020

    These were very tasty and easy to put together though next time I will pre-cook the onion. I have an aversion to uncooked onion so I grated it into the mixture hoping it would soften and meld with the other ingredients but I think the cook time wasn't long enough for that to happen. 700g skin-on fillet of pink salmon, baked from frozen, yielded the amount needed for this recipe. Good with both tartar sauce and lemon wedges.

  • stef on November 26, 2020

    As everyone says these are delicious and quick to make. I really liked the crunch from the celery and onions.i used Cajun seasoning instead of cayenne pepper. Used 2 cans of salmon weighed 13 oz.

  • Lepa on June 23, 2020

    I thought these were very good. They were easy to make (with pantry ingredients!) and held together very well (always an issue with croquettes). We really enjoyed them with the remoulade sauce.

  • anya_sf on February 20, 2023

    I used 3 cans Costco salmon (18 oz total), so used the full amount of crumbs (panko), but the mixture was pretty dry and didn't hold together well. After chilling the cakes a few hours, they did fry up okay. I got 12 croquettes. Since they were practically deep fried, the exteriors were nice and crunchy, but the interiors were slightly dry and not as flavorful as I'd hoped. Still, they were good with remoulade. I agree with the reviewers who suggested adding crumbs as needed, rather than the full amount.

  • PanNan on January 12, 2021

    This is an outstanding salmon patty/croquette recipe. The cayenne pepper gives it just the right amount of kick. I sometimes substitute red bell pepper for the celery for some color. I also add the crumbs gradually, adding as needed, because it sometimes get a little dry with the full amount resulting in the patties crumbling and not holding together. I lightly coat the patties in the flour and also fry them in melted butter for a delicious crispy and brown coating.

  • etcjm on July 01, 2020

    Very good. Large can of salmon turned into quite a number of croquettes. Used gluten free bread crumbs (quickly toasted bread!). I can't eat potato so when I see something like this without potato I jump on it. Served with cauliflower cheese. The remoulade was good but there was too much. Don't know what I'll do with the amount of sauce that's left. Interested to see what they're like cold. Could be good for buffet lunch (or what my daughter calls a picky!)

  • ashallen on April 22, 2021

    I'd never made fish cakes before - these both came out great and were easy to pull together. Croquette mixture was easy to mold and cook immediately after mixing. I fried these until the exterior was well-browned and had some crunch. Leftovers held over to the next day very well for fried fish - they still had some of that crunch. Served with a roasted garlic caesar-style dressing which was a great combination. Next time I'll try a milder onion than yellow onion - my husband found the onion flavor to be a bit strong for him. Making these also deepened my respect for my standalone induction burner which did an excellent job of maintaining the specified frying temperature. May 2021 update: Made these a few more times. My husband likes these with scallions instead of onion. Very good with 2-3 tbsp finely chopped parsley in addition to or substituted for the celery.

  • DFarnham on November 26, 2021

    Great recipe--simple to prepare for a holiday appetizer. Remoulade is a must.

  • Samallyn6 on August 22, 2020

    These are incredibly yummy, I used canned salmon and you would never know this dish basically came out of my pantry! I will make this again and again. The Remoulade is great, too. Make sure to get the Zatarain's Creole Mustard for it.

• Codfish balls

  • southerncooker on January 03, 2021

    These were good but I had problems getting them to stay together while dipping and coating with bread crumbs. I flattened them and made cakes instead of balls.

• Old-fashioned pancakes with berry syrup

  • southerncooker on August 20, 2020

    My go to pancakes are from Joy of Cooking. These are delicious as well. I didn't make one of the syrups but do hope to try sometime. Hubby ate maple syrup and I ate some homemade peach topping I had on hand.

  • hirsheys on September 18, 2021

    Like stef, I found this to be pretty standard and not good enough to replace other versions. Perfectly fine, though. Homemade syrup hardened, but was interesting.

  • stef on November 22, 2020

    Pancakes were o.k. but a pretty ordinary recipe

• Corn and potato chowder with crab

  • bernalgirl on September 01, 2020

    Can replace crab with salmon, love the technique for thickening the chowder with blended corn

  • lkgrover on July 25, 2020

    This has a rich blend of flavors, but no single overpowering taste. I used bacon fat (did not add the bacon), and substituted chicken stock for vegetable stock.

  • Lepa on June 14, 2020

    This turned out good but wasn't as creamy or flavorful as I had hoped. The crab was SO EXPENSIVE and I'm not sure this was the best way to use it. A couple of notes: I used store bought vegetable stock so I am sure that impacted the final flavor. I suspect chicken stock may have been more savory and a better fit- or the homemade stock from the book. I also used bacon but there was no discernible bacon flavor at the end. The recipe didn't say if the bacon should be used as a garnish so we just ate it while waiting for the chowder to cook.

  • Lsblackburn1 on August 03, 2021

    Lovely summer soup. I used store bought veggie stock and butter, not bacon. I also used a whole pound of crabmeat because that was the size of the tub from Costco (throw 50 bucks worth of crab in your soup and it’s gonna be tasty!)

• Braised celery

  • bernalgirl on September 17, 2020

    The celery becomes a wonderfully comforting and savory accompaniment to any roasted protein, my daughter described it as "like chicken soup on a plate". While this recipe is great as-is, I would also consider finishing the dish with preserved lemon, or with a squeeze of lemon and capers to give it a bit of acidity.

  • CynthiasCooking on December 11, 2021

    I've never seen celery as a featured ingredient in a cooked dish before. This was delicious (we used a good green celery with lots of crunch and some flavor)

• Louisiana barbecued shrimp

  • bernalgirl on January 11, 2021

    So easy and absolutely delicious. Her directions for the sauce are perfect.

  • chawkins on February 05, 2021

    Very easy and tasty recipe. A tad too spicy for us. I did replace half of the cayenne with crushed red pepper because of allergy issues. I prefer a recipe I got from a Louisianan on a cooking forum.

  • stockholm28 on March 03, 2021

    This recipe was delicious; it is like a creole-spiced shrimp scampi. It comes together very quickly so it is quite feasible for a weeknight meal. I made some minor adaptions. First, I discovered that the bag of frozen shrimp I got at WF was only 12 ounces rather than 1 lb, so I made 3/4 a recipe. I peeled the shrimp in order to make a quick shrimp broth before I realized the recipe called for cooking the shrimp with the shells on. This was fine, and I think I preferred having the shrimp peeled as it was much easier to eat. I served it over Carolina Gold rice. The sauce is delicious, so you will want bread or rice or something else to sop it up. She says the recipe serves 2 to 4. I got 2 good-sized servings with 3/4 lb of shrimp. I think that the full recipe would be more in the 2 to 3 person range for shrimp lovers. This was a winner and I look forward to repeating this.

  • stef on February 26, 2021

    These were delicious. The sauce really thickens just be patient. I also threw in some scallops that were hanging around in my freezer. We LOVED the sauce.

  • Baxter850 on September 26, 2020

    Delicious!

  • Vibou on September 27, 2020

    These shrimps have been on repeat around here ever since I discovered them. The sauce is so incredibly delicious, they are finger licking good. Served with fresh sourdough bread to soak up all the juices. Highly recommend them.

• Pork chops with rich caper-lemon sauce

  • bernalgirl on September 01, 2020

    Absolutely delicious as written, increase sauce if you like things saucy

  • chawkins on December 29, 2020

    Great pork chop recipe, very juicy and not too lemony.

  • Barb_N on June 22, 2020

    This satisfied a craving for pork chops. The sauce is indeed rich, this is not a lemon forward piccata sauce. Served with roasted vegetables and a green salad with a tart vinaigrette for contrast. Delicious, would make again.

  • Foodycat on August 23, 2020

    We grilled the pork chops so didn't have any fond incorporated into the sauce - the flavour was still excellent though. My husband wants me to make the sauce again for fish.

  • Lepa on June 29, 2020

    I made this sauce to serve with roasted fish. The combination was delicious but it never got thick enough. I suspect it needs much longer to simmer/reduce?

  • Kduncan on May 07, 2020

    Very easy pork chop recipe. I love lemon and capers, so this was a pleaser to me.

  • snoozermoose on September 05, 2022

    Our chops were the right thickness but were overcooked even though we pulled them early, which was a shame as the flavors were delicious. The sauce was amazing! Like the best picatta sauce I've ever had. We'll make this again but be extra careful when cooking the pork.

• Caribbean roast pork

  • bernalgirl on September 24, 2020

    The rub and glaze perfectly complement the flavor of this meat, and those crispy outside bits are irresistible. Perfect for family dinner or entertaining. For a special but easy weeknight meal, I make it with a boneless pork loin roast, cooked 20” per pound.

  • chawkins on May 08, 2021

    This was delicious even though I only marinated for about 30 minutes. The only problem I had was the paste she told you to spread on the roast for the last hour and a half of cooking was not a paste for me. It was liquidy with a lot of undissolved sugar in it, but it did result in a crispy delicious crust for the roast.

  • Barb_N on June 28, 2020

    I knew this was going to be amazing when I assembled the dry rub. Marinated it for 24 hours and took it low and slow- 250 degrees after the first hour. Just coming out of the oven the rum predominated, but that dissipated quickly. This was mind blowing. Served with sautéed corn derived from the Maque Choux recipe, and a simple coleslaw of Napa cabbage, mayo & cider vinegar.

  • Smokeydoke on June 15, 2020

    This was delicious. I cooked it at 250F till an internal temp of 190F and it was just shy of pulled pork. I served it with coconut rice and green peas, the perfect pairing. Photo included.

  • Lsblackburn1 on June 30, 2020

    I should have read these notes first because I kept mine at 350 the whole time and it ended up a bit on the dry side (not all, but I’m super critical of myself!) . The rub was awesome and mostly I’m pretty happy with how it came out.

  • DFarnham on August 09, 2021

    As amazing as you think it's going to be! Served with Maque Choux and plain rice for a perfect dinner.

• Jamaican jerk ribs with pineapple-mango salsa

  • bernalgirl on August 29, 2022

    My family declared these the best ribs ever! We prefer a dry rub so I did make some changes, increasing the salt to 4 T and adding dark brown sugar in equal proportions. After sitting in the rub for 3.5 hours, I baked them using the SeriousEats method, which has never failed me. The seasonings in the rub are so savory, and that mango pineapple salsa is absolutely delicious. My kids asked that I only use this recipe from now on.

  • Zosia on June 18, 2020

    I used pork tenderloin which we cooked on the grill and it was delicious! Each component had some heat and without knowing how hot the end product would be, I played it safe, using 1 seeded scotch bonnet in the sauce and a seeded jalapeno in the salsa. I also omitted the garlic and oil from the salsa. The dish was incredibly flavourful and not too hot for us in the end especially with the cooling salsa (which I can eat by the bowlful, it's so good). I'll try chicken next time.

  • Kduncan on April 26, 2020

    We enjoyed this recipe, though the pineapple mango salsa was by far the best part. The cooking time and temp on the ribs made our baby backs a bit burn on the outside, in the future I'd turn the temp down after removing the foil. The sauce for the ribs was very different, as we are mostly mustard sauce people for ribs, but also very good.

  • dc151 on October 31, 2020

    Fabulous dish. Just the right amount of heat- I used a seeded scotch bonnet, and a half a jalapeño for the sauce (the other half was used in the mango salsa). I used pork spare ribs, the timing/temp seemed right to me, still a bit of bite.

  • snoozermoose on July 02, 2022

    We rubbed the ribs as directed but threw them in our smoker instead of baking them. I made the jerk sauce, and we served them to guests with the sauce on the side. I didn't have time to make the salsa. They were a huge hit! They had a little kick to them and a complex tangy sweetness from the sauce. We'll definitely make these again.

• Lowcountry shrimp and grits

  • nadiam1000 on May 09, 2022

    Very good flavor and the cheese grits are delicious. I used stone ground grits and cooked for 30 minutes - I would prefer a bit thicker after adding the cheese and cream so maybe mine needed a longer cook. I would have liked a bit more sauce so I would add extra chicken stock or reduce it less. All in all quite easy to put together and I will make again.

  • twoyolks on January 26, 2021

    Pretty quick and a lot of great flavor.

  • hirsheys on March 11, 2021

    I used Trader Joe's stone ground grits and was pleasantly surprised by how much they tasted like the ones I get from my favorite Southern restaurant here in Chicago. The shrimp are yummy, though I wished for more gravy - maybe my pan was too large for the half recipe I made, but the broth didn't stretch very far and I wished for more sauce on the dish. Next time, I'd double the pan sauce, at least. That said, I'd happily make this again - it was easy and tasty, as I've found many of the recipes in this book to be.

  • chawkins on April 08, 2021

    Best grits I have ever made or eaten, albeit I seldom do either. I made half a recipe using U11 shrimp, so the cooking time took a little longer and the sauce was further reduced even though I added some water. Even without over-reducing, the amount of sauce was minimal. We enjoyed the dish nonetheless.

  • stockholm28 on March 11, 2021

    Basically, shrimp are tossed in flour and sauteed in bacon fat along with green onions, red pepperflakes, and garlic followed by the addition of chicken stock to make a ”gravy”, and finished with lemon juice and parsley. The shrimp is served over creamy, cheesy grits and topped with bacon. This was a pretty quick dish. The grits take 30 minutes and I did all the prep while the grits were cooking. The shrimp I had were already peeled (not my preference, but all WF had in the freezer section this week) , so that made for very quick prep. These were good, although I prefer the Louisiana Barbecued Shrimp recipe.

  • meginyeg on March 18, 2021

    Loved this. My grits were a bit runny but that was my fault due to inexperience cooking them. We will definitely make these again.

  • katiesue28 on April 10, 2022

    Absolutely delicious! I saw that others noted they wanted more gravy, so I doubled the gravy and it was the perfect amount. I also added in some quartered cherry tomatoes to use up what I had and they added some nice color and acidity to the dish.

  • Dannausc on January 17, 2021

    It was quite good. I liked it a lot.

  • rollyridge on December 31, 2020

    Terrific. Very different, in my experience, in its omission of tomatoes but, as the author suggests, try it this way once. It's a revelation.

• Oven-baked ribs with cola barbecue sauce

  • hirsheys on March 04, 2021

    To make these ribs, you have to make a dry rub, a baste-marinade, and a barbecue sauce, AND then bake the ribs (which includes a broiling step, a baking step, then a bbq basting step). In the end, these made very tasty ribs, but they were just ribs - not as earth shattering as I wanted them to be given the megillah! The barbecue sauce is quite tasty - I definitely think I'd make it again. For the baste/marinade you basically make a broth (with very specific ingredients that may or may not be in your fridge), then cover the nuanced flavor of that broth up with apple juice, cider vinegar, worcestershire sauce, and liquid smoke. I guess I'm just not total sure you couldn't use bouillion instead and get pretty much the same end result.

  • Jviney on August 30, 2020

    These were good - perfectly cooked by the recipe’s timeline. Everyone enjoyed them and I guess I might have expected a few more culinary fireworks after prepping the spice rub, and the baste marinade, and also the cola barbecue sauce...but I can’t find fault with the recipe, it was solid.

• Rice and peas with coconut

  • hirsheys on October 11, 2020

    Quite tasty, but the recipe makes a vat and the rice came out slightly mushy. Next time I would just make the bean part, cook the rice in a rice cooker and serve separately. (Also, that way the leftovers won't overcook when reheated.)

  • Lsblackburn1 on July 17, 2021

    These came out mushy for me too (more than slightly, I’m afraid). Awesome flavors, so if I made them again, I’d try to figure out how to keep those flavors, but cook the rice and beans separately.

• Baked macaroni and cheese

  • hirsheys on March 08, 2021

    This mac and cheese is a good version of the sort of solid, custardy version of mac and cheese that I associate with the South. It’s not my preference - I like mine runny, apparently - but this was a good change and a relatively easy recipe to whip up.

  • KristenS on July 28, 2020

    I agree that this tastes surprisingly light considering the ingredients. It was actually a lot easier to make than my usual recipe with a roux and cheese sauce. I worried it wouldn't be creamy after simply layering the cheese and pouring over the evap. milk, but it really was. I used smoked paprika on top (because I like it) and that was a nice touch. Will make this again.

  • Lsblackburn1 on June 30, 2020

    Is it weird to say this is a “lighter” Mac and cheese? It’s really different than other Mac and cheeses I’ve made, but totally tastes like a Mac and cheese should. Easier since you don’t have to make a roux and all that, too.

  • DFarnham on August 16, 2021

    Good recipe. Not gooey. We have one that we like better which is made in a cast iron skillet, so probably not a repeat here.

• Broccoli and cauliflower salad with curried dressing

  • hirsheys on March 11, 2021

    Thanks to Lepa's review I decided to halve the sugar, and would have been happy with it half as sweet again. (Basically, I think it should be a 1:1 ratio of sugar to vinegar, rather than the 4:1 ratio that is called for.) Because the headnote mentioned that the curry influence is partly from the islands, I used a Trinidadian curry powder that I have, but I wish it had more in it - the taste is subtler than I'd like. I will happily finish this, but I also won't be replacing the SK version as my favorite any time soon. (Though I may throw a dash of curry powder into that one's dressing next time just to see how it works!)

  • Lepa on June 16, 2020

    This is good but a bit too sweet. I ended up eating almost the whole bowl myself (so yeah, I liked it a lot). The Smitten Kitchen broccoli slaw is a family favorite and this is a nice twist on the idea but everyone in my family prefers the less-sweet Smitten version better. If I make this recipe in the future I will probably cut the sugar in half.

• Country-style potato salad

  • hirsheys on March 06, 2021

    This came out yummy - the yellow mustard and relish seem to have enough acid that I didn’t miss the vinegar and this tastes very much like the potato salads I grew up with in MD. It won’t replace my uncle’s, but I’m glad I tried it, and I definitely would make it again.

  • chawkins on September 06, 2021

    Very good potato salad. I usually put in yellow onion, but this one used green onions and it was just as good and gave it some color variation. The Dijon and the sweet relish provided enough acidity.

  • Foodycat on August 13, 2020

    My potatoes were cut into bigger chunks and were tender in 25 minutes. I used wholegrain mustard. Whenever I make potato salad I sprinkle the potatoes with a little vinegar while they are still hot, so I did that and added the green onions, then followed the rest of the recipe as written. It's a very nice, tangy potato salad, not overwhelmingly rich. I will make it again.

  • Lepa on June 23, 2020

    This is good. It's very similar to the potato salad I grew up eating.

• Sweet potato salad with orange-maple dressing

  • hirsheys on February 28, 2021

    I didn’t use the grilling version and found this recipe just delightful. The cubes got more cooked than in the book picture, but they weren’t mush and I found the flavors nicely balanced. (Next time, I would perhaps boil for ~12 mins instead of 15, but I am perfectly happy with this as is.) The only change I made was to use only one type of raisin - couldn’t be bothered to buy both types. This is one time the parsley seems necessary, too.

  • CynthiasCooking on December 11, 2021

    Beautiful photo of it posted on Milk Street.Community Facebook page. And it was really good the second day, as well.

  • Kduncan on May 07, 2020

    Pretty simple recipe, only problem I found was that the cook time on the potatoes caused mine to be overcooked. We really enjoyed the flavors on this, and the fact that it makes a huge amount so we've been blessed with the leftovers it's given us.

  • pattyatbryce on June 12, 2020

    Parboil is MUCH too long to grill after with that size of veg. Need bigger pieces or boil less before grilling. Like Kduncan, I had mush and couldn't grill. Didn't really love the vinegar-forward flavor so much.

• Baked (barbecued) beans

  • hirsheys on July 15, 2020

    Delicious. I use canned cannelinis (what I had) so I needed to cook them a bit longer. Honestly, I think baked beans could/should be cooked forever to get super creamy/soft - an hour just isn't enough. Next time I will definitely find Navy beans to see if I can get the texture right, since cannelinis are firmer. Regardless, these came out delicious and tasting just how I think baked beans should taste (they are very sweet, so be forewarned!). An absolute keeper of a recipe. I made the whole recipe in one pot (a small dutch oven) and would do it that way again to not have to wash extra dishes.

  • meginyeg on February 22, 2022

    These were tasty. I didn't put the bacon strips on top. And cooked it awhile longer. I found it a tiny bit too sweet but everyone else loved them.

  • DFarnham on August 16, 2021

    Great recipe! Super easy. I did feel like the bacon on top was odd. When we took off foil at 45 minutes, it was raw so had to hit under the broiler which made beans scorch a bit. Next time, I might just pull it off instead. Definite keeper.

• Rémoulade sauce

  • hirsheys on August 30, 2021

    Absolutely delicious. I used coarse dijon mustard, since I didn't have creole. Otherwise made as written.

  • chawkins on June 13, 2022

    Delicious, went well with the salmon croquettes. However, half a recipe of this was enough for a whole recipe of the croquettes. I did not have creole mustard, so just use Dijon and added a bit of Cajun seasoning and a bit of horseradish.

  • Lepa on June 23, 2020

    This is delicious sauce. We ate it with the salmon croquettes. The ingredients are very similar to the potato salad so I wouldn't recommend eating them together because it's a bit much as a combination. I didn't have creole mustard so I used a stone ground/dijon blend and it was perfect.

  • anya_sf on February 20, 2023

    Lacking Creole mustard, I used half English (yellow), half whole grain Dijon, but found the sauce too mustardy. After adding extra mayonnaise and lemon juice, I was happy with the flavor. Half recipe was plenty for the salmon croquettes.

• Pralines

  • hirsheys on March 27, 2021

    As usual for this book, the recipe is easy to follow, despite being candy (which can be tricky). My timing was pretty much on point (5 mins for 240) and I was able to dollop them out. The full recipe is supposed to make 24 candies - I made a half recipe, but still ended up with about 18. I find these strangely addictive - a pleasant crumbly/chewy texture combined with a yummy taste. I find them a bit more molasses forward than I’d like, since I love the pure taste of pecans and butter, though, so next time I’d probably use dark or even light corn syrup instead of the molasses. Still, I will keep this recipe for the future.

  • Foodycat on August 21, 2020

    The closest I have been to a praline is an episode of A Different World, so I really wasn't sure what to expect - I think I imagined a crisp butter toffee with nuts in it. The description in the headnote is "chewy" - but that doesn't really capture what I ended up with either. Mine's much closer to fudge - after beating it was too thick to dollop out spoonfuls so I just poured it into a paper-lined tin and cut it into 48 small squares when it cooled. Mine reached soft-ball stage at 3 minutes (the recipe says about 5) so that's something to watch out for. Very good flavour.

• Crab cakes

  • chawkins on October 17, 2022

    Serviceable crab cakes, not the best I’ve made. I followed the recipe exactly except for the shaping and cooking method. Instead of making 16 crab balls and “pan-fried” in an inch of oil, I made 6 crab cakes and cooked them in the air fryer at 360F for 10 min without flipping. Served with cocktail sauce from Stir instead of tartar sauce.

  • Baxter850 on January 11, 2021

    Great flavor. These are fried. The crab gets a little chewier than with a pan sauté. Would go with a sauce other than tartar sauce.

• Jambalaya

  • chawkins on March 03, 2023

    Very good. Perfect rice to liquid ratio, rice was cooked to perfection, not mushy, no clumps, no uncooked grains. I made half a recipe and made a few substations based on what I have on hand. Used bacon for the salt pork, skipped the ham but increased the sausage and the shrimp a little, and instead of garnishing with parsley, I used the scallion greens that were leftover. After 20 minutes, there were still a few crunchy bits of rice, I added the shrimp (31/40 size) and cooked for another 3 minutes, but the shrimp were not quite cooked yet, so I gave them another 2 minutes, but 1/2 to another minute would have been better. Only complain was that it could use a tad more vegetables, a little bit of celery would have been nice.

  • stef on March 21, 2021

    This was so tasty. Used basmati rice and it came out so nice and tender. Rice absorbed all the liquid in 12 minutes and was cooked. Shrimp turned pink in about 3 minutes and had that lovely crunch. Used 1/2 teaspoon cayenne which was spiced just right for us. Definitely a repeat.

  • Foodycat on August 05, 2020

    I fiddled the quantities to make less but still ended up with 4 hefty portions. I used a piece of gammon instead of the salt pork and ham, but had to add a splash of olive oil for frying the vegetables because it wasn't very fatty. I added a stick of celery because I like it. My cat was lying on the cookbook so I had to guess at the amount of paprika and salt - ended up using a bit more paprika and a bit less salt. It was very nice! The parching technique for the rice is new to me but it did give lovely separate grains.

  • babyfork on April 18, 2020

    I halved the recipe. Since there's a bit of a pandemic I used what I had on hand. I used pancetta instead of the salt pork (it tells you to remove the salt pork after browning it and drain on a paper towel, but never tells you if you are supposed to add it back in a some point, so I left it out since it was pretty salty). I used canned Muir Glen fire-roasted diced tomatoes instead of fresh and a 4 oz can of mild Hatch green chiles instead of the green bell pepper. I had everything else. Baked for 20 minutes and added the shrimp and baked for ten more. The rice was the tiniest bit crunchy, so I think a little more liquid and time would have been good. But it was very tasty.

  • anya_sf on February 20, 2023

    I made approximately 1/2 recipe, adjusting some ingredient quantities for what I had on hand (a whole green pepper, 2 slices bacon instead of salt pork, 6 oz andouille, 1 thin slice deli ham, canned tomatoes). The rice cooking method gave it an enjoyable, fluffy texture, even though the rice was fully cooked after 20 min, so I had to add a bit more water with the shrimp. Next time I'd check the rice after 15 min. 3 hungry people finished it all.

  • mjes on September 14, 2021

    I halved the recipe and still had very large servings. This has andouille, ham, chicken, and shrimp making it quite meat forward. This is an excellent recipe but when repeating, I will problem cut down on the quantities of the meats while keeping the balance between them.

  • Dannausc on January 09, 2022

    I didn’t have salt pork so I just used ham. I used cilantro in place of the parsley, as that’s all I had. I thought it was quite good.

  • patioweather on December 23, 2020

    I am not a huge fan of jambalaya but I loved this one. Based on comments here and on FB, I added a touch more tomato for liquid and baked 25 mins instead of 20. It was too soft so I will stick to the recipe next time. Instead of messing with the salt pork, I used bacon fat I already had in the fridge.

  • intrepidcook on December 26, 2021

    This was going to be a special meal for Christmas Day, but it was sadly disappointing. A lot of work for nearly tasteless rice mush.

• Wilted mixed greens with bacon

  • CynthiasCooking on December 11, 2021

    Be sure you use a bacon brand that you like the flavor of. Different brands are really different - I didn't care for the salad but I have reacted similarly to dishes made with bacon from this producer (and bacon is supposed to make everything better, right???) So be sure you are using a bacon you like.

  • anya_sf on August 18, 2021

    Half the greens just fit in my largest salad bowl. The dressing reduced quickly (maybe too much?) and the greens didn't wilt as much as I expected. Flavor was pleasantly sharp from the vinegar (not sweet at all like some versions of this salad), perhaps a bit sharper than I prefer (not sure if there was as much bacon fat as vinegar). Half the recipe served about 6 as a side salad; it could be good as a main with more egg and cheese.

• Okra salad

  • CynthiasCooking on January 03, 2022

    The little chunks of okra were a fun addition to this salad.

• Peanut soup

  • CynthiasCooking on January 01, 2022

    We made this as part of a dinner cooked entirely from this book. I wasn't sure I was going to like this but I liked it enough to make it again the following week. We tried a variety of hot sauces in it - it made a difference. None of them were bad but some worked better than others with the flavors to make the dish more special tasting. My favorite of the ones we tried was green Tobasco. I didn't think red Tobasco went very well. We also tried a local hot sauce that was bettter than the red Tobasco but the Green Tobasco was still my favorite among those three. So try different suaces with it!

• Ginger punch

  • CynthiasCooking on January 01, 2022

    This was delicious and enjoyed by all as part of a menu cooked entirely from this book.

• Lemon tea cake

  • CynthiasCooking on December 11, 2021

    This was oustanding. Baked up beautifully and very full zingy lemon flavor with an excellent texture.

  • KristenS on July 27, 2020

    Considering all the eggs and butter, this cake is amazingly light. Quite delicious. The lemon lovers in the house loved it, the chocolate lovers thought the glaze was maybe a bit too tart. I would definitely make this again in loaf pans and use it in a trifle.

• Gingerbread with lemon sauce

  • EmilyR on October 11, 2022

    Recipe here : https://www.jamesbeard.org/recipes/gingerbread-with-lemon-sauce

• Gingerbread waffles and cream

  • dinnermints on March 21, 2020

    The dough turned out very thick for these waffles, and as such I was barely able to eke out six waffles. The gingerbread flavor was far too subtle for me, and the only reason I'm giving this three instead of two stars is that I have no sense of smell, and my visiting parents said it did have a slight gingerbread flavor. Anyhow, won't be making these again - if I'm going to make gingerbread waffles, I want a strong gingerbread flavor.

  • LittleTex on January 09, 2022

    Delicious batter but way too thick. I increased the buttermilk. That might have thrown the ratio of other things off a bit but it worked.

  • Lepa on June 20, 2020

    We liked these waffles. They have a nice, mild gingerbread flavor and excellent texture. I was worried that they would be too sweet but they weren't. We ate them with a tiny amount of syrup and some fresh, barely sweetened whipped cream.

  • anya_sf on August 21, 2021

    Very tasty, good but not overpowering gingerbread flavor. Sweet enough on their own, but also nice with maple syrup. Although cream isn't called for, I can see how whipped cream would be a nice topping. As indicated, the waffles were extremely soft straight from the iron, but crisped upon cooling (and softened again upon reheating) - the opposite of most waffles. I got 8 round waffles.

  • Nkrieda78 on December 06, 2020

    I used our molasses on hand which is described as mild, and all Penzy’s spices. We loved them! Definitely tasted and smelled of gingerbread in the most pleasant way possible. So perfect for a December Sunday morning!

  • snoozermoose on July 29, 2022

    This was not a success. As others have mentioned, the batter was very thick. The finished waffles had a nice flavor but were tough and heavy.

• Braised summer squash with onions

  • sbessell on April 04, 2021

    Tasty but turned to mush at the end. Might not cover if I make again.

• Island banana bread

  • Zosia on July 03, 2020

    This was a delicious, tender cake with complex flavour. Though it was enjoyed as is, I would reduce the sugar next time as it was sweeter than I like. It took an extra 10 minutes to bake in my oven.

  • Lepa on June 23, 2020

    I like spiced banana bread so this was a treat but I'm not sure it's good enough to justify all the extra steps this recipe requires. I will probably make it again but it's not going to replace our house banana bread recipe.

  • FrenchCreekBaker on March 06, 2021

    Now my go-to banana bread. The spices, dates and molasses add nuanced layers of taste complexity. I toasted my pecans and increased quantity to 1 cup.

  • Frenchfoodie on June 06, 2020

    The dates add a nice moisture and the whole loaf is deeply tasy and light in texture in spite of my not following the 4 bowl (!) directions, using just two. I’d up the spices in the future; given the dark sugar and molasses this can take more than a usual recipe.

  • anya_sf on July 06, 2021

    Good, very moist banana bread. 3 bananas yielded the right amount. Fairly sweet - could reduce sugar a bit. I don't always like dates in quick bread, but thought they were fine here. My loaf took 70 min to bake. This wasn't any more work than our favorite recipe (Flour) and I'd make it again.

  • dc151 on May 31, 2021

    This was fabulous! My three bananas were a bit more than called for, but used them all. I used date molasses, as that was what I had. It did take almost an extra ten minutes to cook through, and probably could've used another couple. But the flavors were amazing, and the kids thought the dates were chocolate

  • ChefJG on September 14, 2020

    Tasty but labor intensive and while flavor was really good on day 1, after that it tasted like “normal” banana bread so not worth the extra effort

• Citrus-honey tea punch

  • Zosia on June 18, 2020

    I love mint tea and lemonade but this marriage of the two wasn't as good as I expected. It was refreshing and not too sweet, especially with sparkling water instead of soda pop, but not something I'll repeat. The orange juice wasn't noticeable.

• Sorrel (hibiscus) tea

  • Zosia on July 25, 2021

    This was very refreshing and flavourful and gorgeous in colour. I, too, used a simpIe syrup to sweeten it (100g sugar for a whole batch) and included the juice from the zested oranges.

  • Foodycat on August 09, 2020

    I made a half quantity, and let infuse for a day. For the half quantity I made a rich simple syrup from 100g demerara sugar and 50ml water, which was enough to take the edge off but still leave it tangy and bright. It was very nice - my first sip when it was cool but not chilled was quite gingery, but after a few hours in the fridge the subtle cinnamon and clove flavour came through more. Very refreshing on a hot day - I think the rest of it is going to become a sorrel margarita!

• Honey-soy glazed chicken wings

  • Zosia on June 04, 2020

    Delicious! I made this with chicken thighs and drumsticks; the less meaty drumsticks with the higher ratio of glaze to meat were better.

  • stef on December 06, 2020

    We really enjoyed this dish. I used drumsticks and rice vinegar in the marinate. 1/2 teaspoon of chilli because I didn't have the peppers. Drumsticks were cooked in 40 minutes. A repeat

  • meginyeg on June 08, 2020

    These were super tasty and super easy to do. I used serrano pepper instead of habernaro only because that is what I had on hand. I will definitely make these again with habernaro.

  • Lzeleny on January 16, 2022

    This is our favorite go to wing recipe. We follow it very closely and its excellent every time

• Meatballs in barbecue sauce

  • Zosia on July 31, 2020

    The base meatballs, which I made as per the recipe except for cooking the onions first, were quite tasty on their own. I served them with the book's cola BBQ sauce and family loved them.

  • DFarnham on November 26, 2021

    Made exactly as written with molasses BBQ sauce. Easy and tasty for a holiday buffet.

• Creole fried chicken

  • Zosia on August 29, 2020

    Family really enjoyed this. The flavour was simple but the textures of the crisp coating and the tender meat were great. This was my first time making fried chicken; I kept a close eye on the oil temperature (375F) but the coating started to burn after 5 minutes on the first side. I ended up frying the chicken for only 8 minutes (rather than 12), then baking it in the oven for 10 minutes at 425F as it wasn't quite cooked through. I used the recommended substitute of dried breadcrumbs for cracker crumbs - perhaps that's the reason the coating cooked too quickly.

• Barbecued pork shoulder

  • Zosia on June 07, 2020

    I also oven braised this but with stock. I served it sliced the first day and in pulled pork sandwiches the next with the molasses bbq sauce. It was delicious!

  • MarciK on March 29, 2020

    Instead of grilling this, I cooked it in the oven at 325 degrees covered with a little water in the bottom. At the end, I took off the lid and turned the temperature up to 450 to let it get a better crust.

• Molasses barbecue sauce

  • Zosia on June 07, 2020

    I don't have much experience making BBQ sauce but we thought this was delicious. It was tangy and not too sweet. I used it with slow roast pork, both sliced and pulled in sandwiches.

  • DFarnham on November 26, 2021

    Tangy--not too sweet and a cinch to make. Used with meatball recipe from same book.

• Sweet potato-mango cake

  • Zosia on June 06, 2020

    This had very good flavour, which improved next day, and a tender crumb. It was quite sweet even with a 50g (1/4 cup) reduction in sugar.

• Cola barbecue sauce

  • Zosia on July 31, 2020

    Tangy, smoky and delicious (and not too sweet). It went very well with the meatball recipe in the book.

• Savannah pickled shrimp

  • Barb_N on June 27, 2020

    I made this for our first socially-distanced dinner planned with 2 other guests, outside. Rained out at the last minute, leaving more for us! I only used 1/3 of the chile pepper because I don't do heat well, and my pickling spice had red pepper flakes. I could just notice a bit of heat and could have used more of the pepper. I also cringed at the amount of olive oil in the marinade- 3/4 c for 2 lb shrimp. I cut back to 1/2 c and increased the vinegar by 1/2 c. I liked this balance. This was sufficiently pickled after about 8 h in the fridge. I will definitely make this again. ETA- the spice became more pronounced after a day or so in the fridge; I’m happy I held back on the chile pepper.

• Smothered pork chops [Ruth L. Gaskins]

  • Barb_N on June 22, 2020

    Photo uploaded in error. Pork chops with rich caper-lemon sauce

  • stef on December 13, 2020

    The sauce went great with our salmon. Made half recipe

• Shrimp Creole

  • stef on May 03, 2021

    This was nicely spiced. Looks like a lot of work but really isn't. Dh really liked so will be repeated.

  • Baxter850 on January 27, 2021

    Really liked this version. Not as saucy as most shrimp creoles. Will incorporate the method of boiling the shrimp before adding them to the sauce. I thought the salt and spice were spot on, although if you’re sensitive to spice, you may need to reduce the cayenne.

  • lholtzman on October 16, 2020

    1 cup of canned diced tomatoes in their liquid also works. I did not add the 1/2 tsp salt at the end because it was already pretty salty.

• Spanish rice

  • stef on September 13, 2021

    This was a quick dish to make. I used bacon. Didn't have long grain rice so used basmati instead. We liked it but were expecting it to be spicer

• Curried meat pies

  • stef on March 06, 2021

    Made this as a 9" pie. Dough was sour cream pie dough from Simple Recipes but added curry powder and cayenne. This was spiced very nicely and the meat kept together very well when cut. We really liked it and will make again.

  • DFarnham on August 09, 2021

    Delicious and very easy to make, especially if you can double-team it. We felt like there needed to be an aioli or some other subtle dipping sauce. We used a full habenero (small) and South Indian Madras curry powder. This recipe makes quite a few, and will definitely repeat for a dinner party.

• Easy curried meat pies

  • stef on March 09, 2021

    Made this as a 9" pie. The seasoning is just right. I didn't want to use shortening in my pastry dough so made sour cream pastry dough but put in the curry and cayenne pepper in the dough. It baked up a lovely golden colour. A definite repeat.

• Sweet potato biscuits with ham

  • Foodycat on August 04, 2020

    I'm wondering if the sweet potatoes we get in the UK are much wetter than American sweet potatoes - I didn't add any extra milk and had an almost unworkably wet dough. I had to add loads of extra flour, so to avoid overworking it I just cut it into rectangular biscuits. Made a pleasantly-flavoured, quite spongy biscuit which was nice with the ham, but I wouldn't make them again.

  • Lsblackburn1 on January 16, 2021

    I found these to be tasty, but a bit dense. Also I think they needed more salt. First time making sweet potato biscuits, so now I want to try other recipes to compare.

  • lholtzman on September 24, 2020

    I froze these unbaked after forming. It works well.

• Mint juleps

  • Foodycat on August 30, 2020

    I really need to accept that I like mint and I like bourbon but I do not enjoy a mint julep. I keep trying. This one was too sweet for me.

• Deviled crab

  • Foodycat on August 30, 2020

    I planned this, with toasted baguette and a salad, as a summery dinner but then the weather didn't cooperate - I made it into baked rigatoni instead, mixing the crab mixture through the cooked pasta, then topping with the buttered breadcrumbs. It was very nice - super rich - but we felt that a bit of diced celery or green chilli through it would be an improvement.

• Pureed parsnips

  • Foodycat on August 23, 2020

    Usually with this type of thing I add nutmeg - I didn't and I missed it. Really good with the pork chops with lemon & caper sauce though.

• Braised lamb shanks with peanut sauce (Mafé)

  • Foodycat on August 30, 2020

    My lamb shank was huge so I just did one between the two of us. I gave it 2 hours because it was so big but honestly it could have taken longer to get really fall-apart tender. Good flavour - the rof gremolata is a must.

  • Kduncan on May 07, 2020

    Way more time intensive than I thought it would be. Overall it's a really good dish, just takes about 4.5 hours from start to finish.

  • CheesyKranskyLove on October 04, 2022

    Extremely tasty and would make again. My stew colour was a lot more orangey compared to the photo in the book.

• Catfish étouffée

  • Lepa on June 15, 2020

    This is so delicious! I made this with cod because that's what we had. I didn't use the full amount of cayenne or pepper because I was concerned it would be too hot for the kids. I also didn't let the roux brown enough and will be more patient next time.

  • patioweather on June 09, 2020

    Superb, but next time I would add more water to the roux and less butter. As it was, I added an extra cup and a half of water but the full amount of butter.

• Buttermilk biscuits

  • Lepa on September 24, 2020

    I didn't have shortening so I made these with butter and they were very good. Next time I might make bigger biscuits, as these were pretty small.

  • DFarnham on August 16, 2021

    Not sure what happened to mine. They were really small. I even measured that the dough was 1/2" thick because I ended up with way more. I even measured my cutter. So, I might give it another shot. The flavor was good.

• Orange biscuits

  • Lepa on June 28, 2020

    This is such a unique and delicious recipe. The biscuit kneading and rolling technique worked well and solved the problem I usually have, which is too many crumbly bits that won't come together. The resulting biscuits were tender and delicious. I loved serving these for breakfast and expect this to become a regular treat in our house. I didn't end up with twelve biscuits. Instead, I got nine. Maybe I didn't roll the dough out thinly enough (but the end result is perfect so I'm not worried about it). There was too much room when I put them in a 9 inch round pan so I transferred them to an 8 x 8 pan and they fit perfectly.

  • ashallen on February 02, 2022

    My biscuits looked very much like lholtzman's photo, but I'm not sure they turned out as they were supposed to since the dough needed an extra 6 tbsp cream to come together. Even then it was quite dry and crumbly vs. "slightly sticky" and "pulling away from side of the bowl" as described in recipe. Perhaps it was my unbleached AP flour and the very dry winter air we have now. Biscuits were tender, moist, and nicely flaky but a bit heavier than I prefer, perhaps due to that extra cream. I used the 9-inch square pan called for in recipe but found the instruction about "leaving no space between" biscuits confusing since there's no way the unbaked biscuits could completely fill a pan that size. I'm guessing author just meant to space them out evenly. They needed 5-10 extra minutes to fully bake (probably the cream again!). I used bitter orange marmalade which was OK - it'd be nice to try these with a sweeter jam. Leftovers held well to next day - definitely best reheated vs. cold.

• Layered garden salad with garlic and herb dressing

  • Lepa on June 15, 2020

    I usually make very plain salads (like my mom, who is European, did) with lettuce and a sharp vinaigrette so this salad, with all the flavors and textures and creamy dressing, was a treat. The salad dressing needed a bit more salt and I might add more egg next time but it was otherwise perfect.

• Black-eyed peas and rice

  • Lepa on August 01, 2020

    I didn't have time so I reduced the stock by 1/3 and cooked the peas in the pressure cooker. I also used bacon but didn't have a ham hock. When the peas were tender I added rice and followed the directions. Total comfort food! This is very good - but my family prefers the Tanis recipe in the New York Times.

• Sweet potato bread

  • Lepa on June 08, 2020

    This is a nice bread for breakfast. It's like pumpkin bread, not too sweet, with a nice texture. I steamed the sweet potatoes (whole).

  • Lsblackburn1 on November 13, 2022

    Very tasty and easy to make. Nice alternative to pumpkin bread

• Blueberry muffins

  • anya_sf on February 19, 2022

    I tried this recipe as I have a large bag of whole wheat flour to use up. The muffins were pretty good - definitely tasted healthy - hearty from the whole wheat and not too sweet. If I made them again, I'd probably use white whole wheat or whole wheat pastry flour for a lighter texture. I got 7 muffins rather than 8, which took a few minutes longer to bake.

• Hot water cornbread

  • Kduncan on April 26, 2020

    Very easy cornbread. It's not the light and fluffy type, and is denser, which is the type I like the most. Really needs butter on top when eating too (which is a positive in my point of view).

• West African groundnut stew

  • Kduncan on November 30, 2020

    Totally forgot to add the tomatoes, but other than that this came out fine, but a bit boring (probably because I forgot to add the tomatoes). I plan on making this a second time with the tomatoes.

  • Dannausc on January 17, 2021

    Good and hearty, though not as good as I had hoped. Needed more peanut butter. Somewhat bland. I added some chili oil to spice it up.

• Louisiana red beans and rice

  • Dannausc on January 17, 2021

    It was pretty good. My wife said it was better than Popeye’s!

• Collard greens with cornmeal dumplings

  • patioweather on June 04, 2020

    I made the dumplings smaller and cooked them longer and they were still quite dense. I would make them considerably smaller if I did it again, and increase the ratio of white flour to cornmeal.

• Sweet potato pie with praline topping

  • Lsblackburn1 on November 25, 2022

    Loved the flavors and texture of this. Perfect holiday pie!

• Avocado dip with spiced chips

  • Jviney on June 21, 2021

    This was fine. I don’t think I’d repeat it, it wasn’t one of the better dip recipes I have made...I think I was hoping for better depth of flavour. Perfectly serviceable but not memorable.

• Buttermilk fried chicken

  • etcjm on June 22, 2020

    Keeper. I have been told to put all other fried chicken recipes in the bin. Everyone enjoyed this. Used kefir, as buttermilk is not so easy to get in the UK and I make my own kefir. Didn't have celery salt so used caraway. Marinated for 7 hours. Fried in batches and finished in the oven, as I always worry it isn't cooked. Yummy!

• Snow cream [Freda DeKnight]

  • Ethylester on January 25, 2023

    You need sugar too

• Quick cinnamon rolls

  • ashallen on September 21, 2021

    I love cinnamon rolls in all forms. These were really fun! I made the "from scratch" (vs. biscuit mix) version. The dough did an admirable job approximating the texture of a yeast dough - nice thin crust, tender insides, and a nice bit of flakiness. The dough is relatively lean so these are not super-rich buns. Often I skip glazes, but I thought the frosting in this recipe was important for adding sweetness and extra moisture. I froze half the buns and baked them unthawed a few days later. They came out as well as the original buns, needing only a few extra minutes in the oven, so this is a good recipe for a make-ahead breakfast treat.

  • Soulkitchenjen on December 25, 2022

    This was a disappointment. They were tough and crunchy and lacked flavor. There wasn’t enough icing for 12 rolls, so definitely double. Also, recipe states 12 inch rectangle without giving the other length. Just a pet peeve, but annoying. Finding this cookbook to be beautiful, but not functional.

• Corn pudding

  • ashallen on May 11, 2021

    This was not the corn pudding I dream of, but it was good. I made a half batch and left out the onion since I wanted a less-savory version for breakfast. I wasn't sure how vigorous the mid-bake stir called for in the recipe should be and chose to be pretty gentle. I ended up with a pudding that had distinct layers - lightly fluffy top, very very soft custard middle, and a pretty firm flour-cornmeal bottom. The varying textures were interesting but I think I'll try a more vigorous stir next time. I removed it from the oven when the middle was 185F and edges were 200F. Top seemed quite set but the custard was really loose and benefited from a chance to cool a bit before serving. I used frozen corn, but I'm looking forward to using fresh corn as specified in the recipe since it always seems to be more tender.

• Sweet potato muffins

  • lholtzman on October 09, 2020

    Baking time was about 25 minutes. Start checking at 20 minutes though.

• Bread pudding with whiskey sauce

  • lholtzman on October 29, 2020

    Challah can be used as the bread. My sugar never dissolved. Do your best, but I just ended up adding the egg and continuously whisking for 5 minutes.

• Caramel cake

  • Chaosmanager on October 25, 2020

    Cake is very dry. Don't use a cast iron skillet because it retains so much heat that after you get caramel to right color it continues cooking and gets burnt.

• Coffee-scented short ribs braised in red wine

  • Ohrenschall on May 03, 2021

    Very good but takes time

  • intrepidcook on July 04, 2021

    Used just ¹/2 cup blackstrap molasses. Added 1 tsp salt. Did not strain the braising juice. Set aside to use for another purpose later (soup? beans? etc). Served the ribs with Baker's Wife Potatoes from Jacques Pépin "Poulets & Legumes".

  • Etrnalhope on February 21, 2021

    Even as someone who likes molasses, the molasses was a bit much for me. So, I didn't love the dish with grits, as suggested in the cookbook. However, the leftover short ribs made EXCELLENT tacos--flour tortillas, beans simmered with the leftover short-rib meat and a little sauce, simple cabbage slaw (with Penzeys Pico Fruta spice mix), peach-tomato salsa, and grated cheese. SO. GOOD.

• Beef with onions and wine

  • Melissa_427 on April 21, 2021

    Prepared a couple days before serving over buttermilk mashed potatoes and loved every bite of it.

• Sweet potato casserole

  • DFarnham on November 26, 2021

    I have to say I was nervous about this recipe because it calls for so much sugar! I prepared as written for Thanksgiving buffet for 14, but used more sweet potatoes than recipe called for (5 pounds). The result was great and everyone enjoyed it.

• Cornbread dressing

  • DFarnham on November 26, 2021

    Made this for a crowd on Thanksgiving. Not your typical stuffing and reviews were mixed. The texture is much finer, rather than breadier, and we felt the vegetable components were negligible compared to the amount of crumbled cornbread and bread crumbs so we increased the veg. I'm not sure if I will make this again as our family likes the cubed-bread variety.

• Baked ham glazed with Champagne

  • DFarnham on November 26, 2021

    Made as part of Thanksgiving buffet. Glaze made for a moist ham. Definite repeat.

• Seafood gumbo

  • Bloomie on September 20, 2020

    Made this today and it was out of this world!! I used half the salt and half the cayenne pepper, added mussels along with the oysters, crab and shrimp. Simply delicious!!

• Chicken and dumplings

  • Riya08 on October 13, 2020

    I used already cooked chicken (whole, from making stock in the IP), and added the chicken in at the end. I did use rendered chicken fat for the dumplings, and bacon drippings for sauteeing the vegetables. The dumplings were quite sticky, but they turned out really good even if I had to add a little extra flour when kneading and rolling them out. It makes a lot!

  • Soulkitchenjen on November 13, 2022

    Made with chicken thighs. I removed the chicken and shredded and deboned. I added back to the pot with some peas. Absolutely delicious. I used the regular dumpling recipe.

• Chocolate chip cookies

  • spatterson88 on February 02, 2021

    The cookies ended up being a little dry. The recipe didn't call for the butter to be room temperature, but I wonder if that would make a difference.

• Green beans amandine

  • Soulkitchenjen on December 25, 2022

    Absolutely delicious and easy.

• Food52

  The scholar and cookbook author painstakingly recovered and reviewed nearly 400 black cookbooks from the past two hundred years...She places recipes found from her research alongside her own

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• Simply Recipes

  An interview with the author.

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• Kitchn

  ...highly researched cookbook detailing the true history of African American cooking...

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• Food52

  The 125 recipes in Jubilee have been collected from primarily the black professional culinary class, and adapted by Tipton-Martin for modern cooks.

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