Frozen Peas

I spent the day shelling black-eyed peas. And I do mean the day. When they are ready, you truly have to get them off the vine. Fortunately, someone else was doing the picking. That's hard and sweaty work. We've got temperatures in the upper 90s. At least I got to sit in my recliner and watch TV in the air conditioned house.

Of course, once the peas are shelled they have to be "put up." That's Southern speak for saying we wash them, blanch them and put them in plastic bags. Then they go into the big chest freezer most of us in the Deep South seem to have.

This recipe is for those who have always wanted to put up their own fresh vegetables to eat throughout the year. And, yes, the taste is worth all the work.

Frozen Peas

Wash shelled peas until thoroughly clean. Be sure to check for imperfections in the peas. (Think bug marks.) Remove those.

Put peas into large container and add water. Bring to a rolling boil. Let the peas boil three to five minutes.

Remove peas from heat and let them cool. We put ice cubes in the water to hasten this process.

In the meantime, use a marker to write the date and type of peas on plastic freezer bags.

When the peas are cooled, place peas in the bags. Make sure to add a little water with the peas. Just remember that frozen water expands so don't fill the bags too full. We generally use a combination of pint and quart size bags. That way we've got everyday servings and company servings. Obviously, how many bags you have depends on how many peas you started with.

Place the bags of peas in the freezer until ready for use.

Crystallized Pickles

The cucumbers are ready which means it's time to make pickles. Crystallized Pickles are a sweet pickle that are perfect for things like Tuna Salad. You'll find them on many southern tables throughout the year. They're also good to eat straight out of the jar.

For those who think that pickles are something you buy in the grocery store, this may be a shock. Lots of people still make pickles the old-fashioned way. Why? Because nothing in the store comes close to the flavor of a home-canned pickle.

I should warn you that canning pickles takes a long time. Try four days. And I strongly recommend that you time it out right or you might be canning pickles at midnight. Of course, if you're a late night person that might be what you'd prefer.

Either way, these pickles are worth the effort.

Crystallized Pickles

First Day:     Wash and slice 7 lbs. of cucumbers. Discard the ends of the cucumbers. How thick you slice the cucumbers depends on your personal taste. I prefer to slice them about 1/4-inch thick. Soak the cucumbers in two gallons of water with three cups of lime for 24 hours. In the Deep South, lime is found in most non-chain grocery stores. Do not confuse this lime with the citrus lime you get in the fruit and vegetable section. The powdered lime you need is found in a container in the canning section of the grocery store.

During the 24 hours, be sure to stir the pickles frequently. The lime settles to the bottom of the pan and you want to stir it so that the lime circulates over the cucumbers. In our family, the general rule is that if you walk by the pan, you stir it.

Second Day:     Wash the cucumbers thoroughly. Place in two gallons of water and soak for 24 hours.

Third Day:     Rinse cucumbers and again place in two gallons of water. Add 4 oz. powdered allum. McCormick's makes powdered allum. Remember to stir throughout the 24 hours.

Fourth Day:     Thoroughly wash cucumbers so that none of the powdered allum remains. Place cucumbers in two gallons of water with 2 oz. ground ginger for six hours.

Wash cucumbers. Separately, stir together 3 quarts vinegar, 5 lbs sugar and 1.5 oz. pickling spice. Again, McCormick's makes pickling spice. Place mixture on the stove and bring to a boil. Pour over cucumbers. Cover container with tin foil. Let stand four hours.

Uncover pan and put container on the stove. Cook one hour. Stir frequently and keep an eye on it so it doesn't boil over. Put pickles in jars. The jars should be sterilized. We use Ball (a brand name) jars. Put seals (also by Ball) on the jars and tighten the ring securely.

Set jars aside and cover them with a kitchen towel. You will hear a "pop" as the jars seal. For those of you uninitiated, the "pop" is literally a sound the seals make. When the jars are sealed, you can store them in the cabinet until you're ready for the pickles. Be sure to place opened jars in the refrigerator.

Squash Casserole

I think every Southern cook has a signature dish. It's the "go to" dish whenever she has to take food to anything, whether it's a family get-together or a feeding of the family event after a funeral. My Mother's "go to" dish is Squash Casserole. She combined different recipes to create her own. This is it.

For those poor people who either aren't familiar with yellow squash or who cook for folks who absolutely refuse to eat squash, don't worry. They'll never know unless you tell them.

Squash Casserole

2 lb. yellow squash

1 or 2 eggs (1 large egg or 2 smaller eggs)

1 teaspoon salt

pepper to taste

1/2 stick margarine

1/2 cup milk

1 cup sharp shredded cheese

1/2 small onion, chopped fine

3/4 cup real mayonnaise

bread crumbs

extra shredded cheese

Wash squash. Chop up into small pieces. Cook in boiling water until tender. Drain off water. Mash squash until it's like a coarse batter.

Mix squash with all ingredients except bread crumbs and extra cheese.

Spray casserole dish with Pam. Pour in creamy mixture.

Top with bread crumbs and extra shredded cheese.

Bake in a 350 degree oven for 35-40 minutes.

Butternut Cake

This is a go-to recipe in our family. It's a favorite of several relatives, so it tends to show up on special occasions.

A few years ago we had a bit of drama when, suddenly, stores around here stopped selling butternut flavoring. My Mother was distraught. My Aunt started a massive search. She located a store two towns over that still carried butternut flavoring. I wonder if the store manager ever understood why he had a sudden run on butternut flavoring. At least, he was smart enough to order more and continue stocking the popular product.

Some people add chopped pecans to the frosting. Suit yourself. Some people love nuts and some don't. Personally, I prefer a small amount -- maybe 1/2 cup of chopped pecans -- so you get the taste but the nuts don't overwhelm the cake.

Butternut Cake

2 cups sugar
1 cup Crisco oil
4 eggs
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup self-rising flour
1 cup milk
1 tablespoon butternut flavoring

Beat together sugar, Crisco and eggs. Add other ingredients, alternately.

Cut wax paper to fit bottoms of round cake pans. Grease both sides of wax paper and place in bottom of cake pans. Grease sides of pans. Divide batter evenly between the four pans. Bake in a 350 degree oven until done. Cake will brown and pull slightly from sides. A wooden toothpick inserted in the center will come out clean.

Carefully remove from pans and cool.

Icing

1 8-oz. package cream cheese
1 stick margarine
1 box confectioners sugar
1 tablespoon butternut flavoring

finely chopped pecans 

Blend all ingredients thoroughly. If you like pecans, stir chopped pecans into frosting. Smooth frosting between cake layers, on top of cake and on the sides of the cake.