What do you do when a Southern girl tells you that her favorite birthday cake isn’t the cherished Southern Coconut Cake but instead she would prefer Boston Cream Pie instead?

Well, I am all about having your favorite for your birthday so I promised to come through with a fabulous Boston Cream Pie. I am from the North, so I ought to be able to come up with a great recipe.

I must confess that I do love BCP, and have fond memories of my mom making them. They are actually a cake and since I am all about cake-especially white cake, I knew this would be fun coming up with something special.

My mom has a great recipe which I lost and I didn’t have time for a rewrite, I chose to go for broke. I tried a recipe from an unknown source at the last minute and held my breath.

Mid way through the cake I had my doubts, the same was true with the cream filling and chocolate ganache.  Any doubts that I had were quickly erased once I had a bite of this yummy dessert. The cake was absolutely fabulous and is on my all time favorite list. The ganache was creamy and oh so good.

I will add that I like lots of filling so will increase the recipe by 1/2 more next time. Save your cake scraps for your am coffee or freeze them for making another last minute trifle or banana pudding dessert.

For the recipe please click this link to visit Design Sponge and have fun, I know I did.

Sally Lunn Bread has been on my “To Bake” list for quite some time. Actually it was so simple to make that I regret putting it off for so long. The dough is soft as it is laden with butter and eggs and promises to be a treat. I almost always can tell how my yeast-leavened breads will ultimately be; by the way the dough feels.

I expect this bread to be a treat which can be eaten either hot out of the oven or at room temperature. My plans are to try the hot out of the oven version. It is a sunny yet chilly day today in Charleston. The windows are cracked open just a tad, for fresh air to enter. As I type away upstairs in my office, I can smell the bread baking below me in the kitchen.

Some strawberry jam and European butter are set aside to be slathered on top of the hot bread as soon as it emerges from the oven. While I wait in anticipation I wanted to share a brief history of Sally Lunn. No two accounts are the same and no one is in agreement as to the origin of Sally Lunn. Sally and her bread remain a mystery and will most likely never be solved. This is the version that I choose to believe.

Solange Luyon was a young Huguenot (French Protestant) refugee from France who began working at a bakery in Bath after arriving in England sometime during 1685 or shortly after. She began baking the cakes and selling them on the streets to everyone’s enjoyment. The breads or cakes as they were originally called were eventually named after her in the English version “Sally Lunn”. These brioche style buns eventually made their way to the states when settlers arrived in Virginia. They became a beloved bread in the South making their way into almost every cookbook that you can find.

There is a place in Bath were you can dine on these buns and enjoy a visit at her home. It is said that the original secret recipe is kept under lock and key at the home, and is only revealed to the owner of the property as it is passed down with the deed.

Got to run as it is time for this cook to run, as I hear the faint sound of the buzzer ringing downstairs. This can only mean one thing-my Sally Lunn bread is ready to be taken out of the oven and eaten hot. God, I love a quite Sunday at home with the smell of fresh bread baking. There is much joy in the simple pleasures of life………my heart is filled with gratitude.

Sally Lunn Bread

James Villas, The Glory of Southern Cooking

1 envelope active dry yeast

1 tablespoon sugar

1/4 cup lukewarm water

1 cup lukewarm whole milk

2 large eggs, beaten

3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (Southern- White Lily)

1 stick butter, melted

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup sugar-optional for a sweeter bread

In a large bowl, combine the yeast, sugar and water, stir, and let proof till bubbly, about 5 minutes. Add the milk and eggs and beat with a wooden spoon till well blended. Gradually add half the flour and continue beating till well mixed. Add the melted butter and salt and beat till well blended, then beat in the remaining flour and extra sugar if you want the sweet version till a softish dough forms. It will be somewhat sticky, don’t fret about this.

Cover with plastic wrap and let the dough rise in a warm place till doubled in bulk, about an hour or so. Punch the dough down, cover again and let stand for about 15 minutes. You might need to sprinkle a pinch of flour before punching down so that the dough doesn’t stick to your hand.

Grease a 10inch tube pan generously with butter and then scrape the dough evenly in the tube pan. Cover and let rise again about 45-60 minutes till double in bulk.

Place in a preheated oven of 350degrees and bake till the loaf is lightly browned, which will take about 1 hour. Serve immediately hot out of the oven or cool on a wire rac, and serve at room temperature.

This is a grand cake and although it may appear daunting and overwhelming to bake and assemble, it isn’t. I have the pleasure of catering a birthday cocktail party next week for 100 people and this is one of three cakes that will be served alongside my Chocolate Layer Cake and Coconut Cream Cake.

The party is a blend of Southern/Italian cuisine. I am finalizing the plans and adapting a few recipes for the event. The menu is impressive and I am counting on my team to help me carry it out. Some of the choices are tried and true while a few new recipes will be included.

I’ll have lots of goodies for you to sample, and it only seemed natural to start with dessert first. This cake is light, mildly sweet and moist for an angel food style. The taste of orange paired with praline candy and whip cream is wonderful. The Italian cream filling is lucious and mildly sweet as well making the layers that much better to eat.

I decided that the cake is best without the crunch in between the layers after trying one layer with and one without so I will be reserving the brittle for the top alone. Please feel free to change this if you want and add it to the layers. You may also use whip cream between the layers instead of the Italian Cream that I chose to save time, just double the whipped cream ingredients.

When you finish assembling the cake it appears that cutting it will be an issue. I assure you that it is not. This cake cuts beautifully, which is just what you want when serving lots of guests. It is especially important to read through the entire recipe and take this one step at a time and you’ll be rewarded for your hard work.

Southern Praline Crunch Layer Cake

Praline

1 ½ cups sugar

½ cup light corn syrup

¼ cup minus 2 tbsp water

2 tbsp grand Marnier or orange liquor

1 ¼ cups toasted pecan halves

1 ½ tsp sifted baking soda

Cake

1 ¼ cup

1 ½ cup superfine sugar

6 egg yolks, room temperature

½ cup freshly squeezed orange juice

1 tbsp grated orange peel

1 tbsp orange liqueur

Pinch of salt

8 egg whites, room temperature

1/8 tsp cream of tartar

Italian Cream Filling

6 egg yolks

6 tbsp flour

6 tbsp sugar

3 cups milk scalded

2” piece of orange rind

Topping

2 cups whipping cream

3 tbsp superfine sugar

2 tbsp orange liquor

For Praline-

Grease a large baking sheet. Cook sugar, corn syrup and liqueur in a heavy saucepan over low heat until sugar dissolves. Increase heat to med-high and boil until candy thermometer is just shy of 300 degrees which is the hard ball stage.

Add the toasted pecans which you have coarsely chopped and remove from the heat. Add the baking soda and carefully stir till combined. Pour mixture onto your prepared sheet, being careful not to burn yourself. Spread mixture with the back of the wooden spoon. Place baking sheet on a rack to cool and then break apart into pieces. Using a rolling pin or mallet, crush the praline till the size of coarse crumbs. The easiest way to do this is to bag praline in a freezer baggie, wrapped with parchment paper.

For Cake-

Preheat oven to 350 degree. Sift flour and ½ cup sugar into a large bowl. Make a well in the center. Mix together ¼ cup sugar, egg yolks, juice, peel, liqueur and salt. Using a mixer beat until you have slowly dissolving ribbon forms when beater is lifted. About 3 minutes. Don’t overbeat.
Using a clean and dry bowl and beaters, place egg whites and cream of tartar in bowl and beat till soft peaks form. Slowly add your remaining ¾ cup sugar and beat until peaks are stiff. Gently mix 1/3 of egg whites into cake mixture. Then fold the remaining 2/3 egg whites into batter. Turn into an ungreased 10”tube pan, with removable bottom. Using a knife or your spatula cut through batter to remove any air bubbles. Bake until a tester comes out clean, about 45-50 minutes. Invert pan and let cake completely on a rack while in pan. When cool remove from pan being careful.

For filling-

Scald your milk and orange peel, set aside till it cools some. Meanwhile in another pan, beat your egg yolks, flour and sugar. Gradually add your scalded milk and stirring constantly heat until mixture come to a slight boil while on low heat. 5-7 minutes to bring filling to this stage. If there are any lumps pass through a sieve. Cool stirring occasionally so that a skin doesn’t form.

For topping-

Beat heavy cream in a chilled bowl and wire beater, till soft peaks form. Gradually add your sugar and continue beating till stiff peaks form. Gently fold in orange liqueur.

Assemble your cake-

Cake may be made up to 3 days ahead.

Praline may be made up to a week in advance.

Italian cream may be made up to 3 days ahead.

Carefully cut your cooled cake into 3 even layers. Put bottom layer on a 10” cake round cardboard. Spread ½ of Italian cream on cake. Top with another layer of cake and spread remaining Italian cream on cake. Top cake with final layer and chill for about 5-10 minutes in freezer to set. Spread whip cream on sides and top of cake spreading evenly. Cover sides and top of cake with crushed praline candy pieces. You can gather up praline that fell from the sides and sprinkle on cake.

Serve immediately, using a cake knife and pie server. Cake will feed about 20 people. If you make cake ahead of time, keep in refrigerator and remove about 30-60 ahead of serving.

Right after Christmas I took a road trip to New England to visit family for the New Year.  We were welcomed by tons of snow and blustery cold days and of course lots of great food.  Coming down with a cold upon arriving has left me tired and worn, but I always manage to perk up at meal time. My mom made a huge platter of warm empanadas the other day to welcome the huge household gang upon returning from a trek in the snow. A trek I missed in lieu of a nap. But none the less , it is possible to work up a good appetite from taking a rest.

The empanadas were easy and the perfect solution for using leftover pork, though you could use cooked beef instead. We decided that next time we are going to try the recipe using half butter and half lard to make a flakier dough.  Please feel free to experiment using what you have on hand and what you like. With lots of young kids  in the house we opted for a non -spicy version of these yummy treats that I imagine would freeze very well.

They were even good out of the icebox cold the next day for a quick snack.

MOM’S EMPANADAS

Dough-

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 cup masa

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

1 1/2 sticks butter cut into 1/2 inch pieces

1 cup ice water

Combine dry ingredients and sift together, set aside. Cut in butter till mixture resembles corn meal. Add 1 cup ice water gradually and gather mixture into a ball after combined. Refrigerate for 30 minutes or overnight.

Filling

6-8 pimento stuffed olives finely chopped

1 jalapeno seeds removed finely chopped

6 scallions-green tops only finely chopped

1 clove garlic finely chopped

1/2 medium onion finely chopped

1 cup shredded pork

1/2 cup currants or raisins

1 tablespoon tomato paste

1/2 cup white wine

3 tbsp olive oil

salt and fresh pepper to taste

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1 beaten egg

Saute onions, scallions and garlic in 3 tbsp olive oil till soft. Add jalapeno, olives, currants, pork and tomato paste. Then slowly poor in in wine. Cook for a minute or two till any liquid is absorbed. Set aside to cool slightly.

Roll 1/2 of dough on a lightly floured board. Cut 3 inch rounds from dough gathering up scraps for second rolling.  Roll circles out a touch more, then top with a tablespoon  of mixture in center. Fold over one side and then seal using the tines of a fork. Put onto a parchment lined baking sheet.  Brush tops lightly with beaten  egg wash.

When your sheet is full, bake in a 375degree preheated oven for 15 to 20 minutes till lightly browned.  Enjoy warm or reheated the next day. This recipe makes enough to feed 12 hungry people as an afternoon snack.

When holidays approach the requests are voiced just in case. In case what I often wonder. In case I forget to make the favorite dishes and baked food, which I have never forgotten to make every Christmas season.
I failed to share this recipe last season and vowed to include this Christmas Yeast Bread early on-so that you have time to make it again

This divine bread is easy to make, and when it gets a touch stale if it stays around that long, is the perfect toasting bread.  Even though I make my own Christmas Bread every year, and lots of them, my father always sends down a loaf that he baked along with a Stolen.

Bread baking was delegated to my father when he retired, and I cherish the annual package sent to me. We always chat back and forth about how many loaves we each made and how they turned out. 

This year, I purchased 15 lbs of organic currants from a small farm in California. Take the time to visit Running Quail Ranch where you can order raisins and zante currants. If you can’t use them all then go in with a friend or two, you will be glad that you treated yourself. Of course both my dad and I expect this years Christmas Yeast Bread to be a banner year with our organic currants. They are plump, juicy and full of flavor. Once you have tried a real currant versus the boxed version you will never take a shortcut again. 

We enjoy the sweet yeast bread all December long when baking begins, and save the best and largest loaf for Christmas morning. Sliced and served with European butter and homemade preserves along with hot coffee and freshly squeezed orange juice, makes a perfect breakfast while sitting around the tree.

CHRISTMAS YEAST BREAD

1 cup unsalted butter

½ cup sugar

3 eggs room temperature

1 ¼ cups luke-warm milk

1 teaspoon salt

4 to 5 ½ cups flour

Grated rind of ½ lemon

1 pkg dry yeast

½ cup raisin

Cream butter and sugar then add eggs, one at a time. Add salt, lemon rind, raisins and the yeast which has been dissolved in warm milk, (I like to proof my yeast, so sprinkle it with a teaspoon of sugar). Add the flour gradually and stir mixture. Knead until smooth and elastic about 5 to 10 minutes. Put in a bowl and cover with plastic wrap and a warm rung out damp dish towel. Set aside in a warm draft free place and allow to the dough to double in size. Toss on board, form into any desired shape. Let rise again and brush with one beaten egg. Sprinkle with sugar and sliced almonds.
Bake for ½ to ¾ hour depending on size in a 325degree oven.

You can test the bread by tapping on the underside, when you hear a hollow sound it is done.
Cool on a wire rack. Store the bread at room temperature for a few days in foil, then in the refrigerator for a longer period of time. This bread freezes well.
Makes 2 large or 3 to 4 medium small loaves.

This is the second time that I have shared a meal with you and left you high and dry to find the recipe yourself. My apologies before we get started for this gross negligence. Frankly, I am doing you a favor. If you have any desire to make these savory tarts, then you should buy the cookbook Tartine. If you not want to make the commitment then by all means head to your local library and get a copy of the book.

Should you check out the book, and find yourself cringing as the day to return it draws near as I did, then by all means give yourself a treat. I have made many things from this book, and as daunting as the recipes may appear, they are really quit easy and foregiving.

Just thinking about these tarts causes a drool reflex. The smells enticed everyone into the kitchen, as they close by with forks in hand-ready for the savory tarts to taken from the oven.

I on the other hand found a true passion in making these. Every aspect of working the big sticks of chilled butter into the flour directly on my large maple block brought joy. The dough is similar to the Flaky tart dough (pg. 194) but made differently. I used a combination of half pastry and half all-purpose as recommended. I also used organic flour which I am totally sold on, as everything out of the oven seems that much the better for it.

The book comes complete with photos on how to make this dough, most helpful your first go around. I was so smitten with this dough that I even contemplated following the business plan of a girl that makes free form tarts, and sells them in San Francisco via a bike and a basket. If only I was as young as the bikebasketpie girl, I might give it a go.

Each pie had a different filling, but by all means be creative and add what you’d like.

Tomatoes, gruyere, Vidalia onions, fresh thyme

Vidalia onions caramelized, fresh homemade ricotta, fresh thyme

Smoked ham, gruyere and fresh thyme

Though this recipe is not a traditional Southern food, it certainly has its place in the Southern kitchen. As much as biscuits are adored, having a change of pace is needed. So many Southern dishes scream for a good loaf of crusty country bread.

I adore this bread and have been making it for over 25 years. It is easy, tastes fabulous and freezes wonderfully. It has a thick crunchy crust with a light flavorfull taste inside. The bread has substance to it, and will quickly become your favorite. Can’t eat all 4 loaves in a day or two-then just wrap in foil once cool till you are ready to have another loaf. All you have to do is take a loaf out of freezer when ready to eat. Heat the bread in a 375 degree oven on foil that has been opened for 10-15 minutes or for extra crunchy bread take the bread off the foil and heat for the last 5 minutes directly on the rack. You do not need to defrost the bread.

This is not fussy bread, so don’t be nervous or timid when making it. Don’t get fancy and fret over the directions. They are longer just so that you get the hang of it. After making this a few times, you won’t even need a recipe. My dad makes this once a week and throws it all into his KitchenAid without thinking about what he is doing.

The addition of corn meal is new, as I only tried this once last week. That being said, I am hooked using cornmeal in this recipe. Organic is wonderful though expensive. Opting to give organic yeast a try along with organic bread flour was ever bit worth the money.

If you give this recipe a try, do yourself a favor and make sure that you have on hand-some fresh mozzarella, thinly sliced Vidalia onion, fresh rosemary and a good olive oil. I pulled off a chunk of dough from one the large loaves and made a mini pizza to have for lunch. I quickly rolled the dough, topped with cheese, sliced onions and rosemary. Followed this with olive oil drizzled on top and popped it into the 425 preheated oven. Ten minutes or so later, an incredible lunch was ready.

Crusty Country French Bread

2 envelops dry yeast (organic if can)

2/3 cup warm water (105 -115 degrees)

7 ½ to 8 cups bread flour (organic flour if you can)

½ cup stone ground cornmeal (if you don’t want to use it, add ½ cup more flour)

4 tsp. sugar

4 tsp. kosher or sea salt

2 ½ cups warm water (120-130 degrees)

1 egg white (for wash)

Light grease a large bowl with olive oil-set aside

Stir yeast into water, sprinkle ½ teaspoon of sugar on top of mixture, let stand 5-7 minutes. Combine with 7 cups of flour, salt and remaining sugar. Add water to mixture and stir till combined. Add remaining flour as needed and knead till smooth, about 8 minutes.

Put in bowl and turn to coat with oil. Cover with saran and a warm tea towel and set aside to rise in a draft free place doubled. Punch down and let rise again, giving the dough a quick kneading.

Punch down and break the dough off using your hands into 4 pieces. Shape into baguettes, tucking the sides and end down if needed. That way you will have a smooth top.  Put the dough into oiled pans. Take a pair of kitchen scissors and give the dough a few good cuts on the diagonal across the top. Beat your egg white and brush the tops of the baguettes.

Cover with the saran and a warm wet tea towel and let set till it rises in the pan.

Bake in a preheated oven (425 degrees) and bake for 30 minutes. Reduce heat to 375 degrees and bake another 5-10 minutes or until the bread sounds hollow after giving it a good tap on the bottom of a loaf.

Remove from pans and cool on a wired rack.

Alternate version- you can make this dough in a food processer (with dough blade) or a large kitchen aid (with dough hook) as well. It is a lot of flour so making a mess is easy. Though by all means if you do not want to fool with kneading go ahead and use your kitchen machine.

These last few weeks I have made it a point to go through some piles of recipes, which I have been holding on to for a decade or more. This recipe is one of those. The AJC had a huge article on poundcakes that I cut out for a rainy day.

The only problem with waiting so long is that your expectations run high, very high. Mind you I wasn’t disappointed at all, it was quite good. It’s just that by now I have become use to a pound cake with 4 sticks of butter rather than the three that this one called for. I am also use to a poundcake that is not fussy to make as this one seemed.

The Cocoa Poundcake is much lighter in flavor, more cake-like than the Million Dollar Pouncake that I have made before. It is perfect for cocoa lovers, as the flavor is not as intense as a chocolate poundcake would be. This cake is good with a cup of coffee mid-morning or afternoon and it keeps well.

Here are some tips to make your poundcake baking a huge success. I say huge, because it is a great way to start baking cakes as it is hard to mess up. Good for your culinary confidence, and you are sure to enjoy the results.

As a note, I used Scharfen Berger Cocoa for this, but by all means use your favorite brand.

Tips for making great pouncakes-

• Take the time to sift your flour onto wax paper or a bowl. Then measure again by spooning the flour back into the measuring cup using a spoon and then level off the excess with a knife. This is to prevent a cracked dry top, which I got anyway with this recipe.
• Gradually add your sugar and take the time to beat the butter/sugar mixture till it is light, creamy and turns whitish.
• Generously butter your pan, especially a tube pan, or the pouncake can be tricky to get off of the tube.
• Always add your eggs one at a time, beating each one thoroughly before you add the next egg.
• Run your knife through the batter after it has been scraped into the prepared pan to remove air bubbles. Or, take your batter filled pan and lift it one inch above the counter and let it have a good drop.
• Place a sheet of aluminum foil on the rack below to catch any dripping from tube pan.
• Never eat a poundcake straight from the refrigerator; it is best at room temperature.

What’s up next this weekend-  A delightful Pumpkin Pirleau made with fresh pumpkin and Carolina Gold Rice and the best Crusty Country French Bread -a recipe that I have been using for over 25 years.

Rae Simpson’s Cocoa Poundcake 

½ cup half and half cream

½ cup whole milk

½ teaspoon salt

3 cups cake flour

½ good quality cocoa

½ teaspoon double acting or homemade baking powder

1 ½ cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter, softened

1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract or homemade bourbon vanilla

3 cups granulated sugar

5 large eggs, at room temperature 

Set the oven rack in the middle position of the oven. Preheat your oven to 325 degrees. Prepare a 9 or 10 inch tube pan (with removable bottom) by generously buttering.

Mix the salt, milk and cream in a microwavable dish, warm on high for 15 to 30 seconds-just until it is lukewarm.

Sift your flour onto a sheet of wax paper. Then spoon the flour into your measure, level off the excess with a knife across the top and put into a bowl. (You probably will have leftover flour after leveling off, save it for another use). Sift the cocoa and baking powder on top of the flour and mix the dry ingredients well.

Whip the butter on high speed until creamy, add the vanilla and whip again until well blended. Gradually add the sugar and then whip a third time till the mixture is airy and turns whitish. Reduce your speed to low and add the eggs one at a time, scraping the sides of the bowl if needed and mix each egg thoroughly between additions.

Now stop your mixing and remove your bowl from the stand. Sift one quarter of the flour-cocoa mixture into the butter-sugar mixture. Put your bowl back on your mixer and thoroughly incorporate the flour mixture. (If you are not using a mixer, just skip this step.) Drizzle in one third of the milk/cream mixture and blend together. Do this all on low speed and repeat the process 3 more times ending with the flour, scraping the sides of the bowl if needed between flour/cream additions.

Scrape the batter into your prepared pan evenly. Run a knife through it to remove any air bubbles, and then smooth the top.

Bake the cake on the middle rack for 1 hour and 20 minutes, turning it from front to back after the first hour, for even browning.

When fully baked, the cake should be firm when lightly pressed. Use a cake tester or toothpick to also test the center, it should come out clean.

Let the cake cool on a rack for about 20 minutes, then carefully remove the cake from the pan, but leave it on the tube till cool enough to remove completely without the cake breaking.

Store the cake on a covered cake stand, or refrigerate and bring to room temperature before eating. If well covered, this cake will keep for about 3 weeks stored either way.

As soon as fall weather looks like it is approaching, my cooking mentality changes. Warm comfort food is called for and nothing symbolizes comfort food as much as a Southern Chicken Pot Pie.

To qualify as a Southern Chicken Pot Pie, two things are needed. The first is an Old Hen. Good luck on that one! I came up empty the first go around, but since have found a great source. The second thing needed, is pie dough layered between the chicken and vegetables. 

Without my Old Hen to pull this off, a little improvising was called for. I used chicken breasts for my meat and organic stock. It was one of those days, where you run out of time and you don’t know how that happened. A quick trip to Whole Foods on the way home for some organic chicken broth.

Mind you anything short of the real thing, like homemade stock is so not my style. But in a pinch a good organic version will do.

I detest peas so opted to omit them, but please add them if you like.  I also used lard instead of shortening as I only keep butter or the former in the pantry.

This might seem like a lot of work, but it really isn’t. As always, organization in the kitchen makes all the difference.

My kitchen is frequented by some might tough food critics; a skinny one at that who isn’t about to eat a partial, or full portion unless it is worthy of the calories.

Silence filled the room as everyone ate, and all I heard at the end of the meal was- “I think that you should go into the Southern Chicken Pot Pie business.” 

In other words, “keep making this mom.”

And, so I will.

 OLD HEN CHICKEN POT PIE

Adapted; James Villas “The Glory of Southern Cooking”

To make using an Old Hen:

One 4-pound fowl (stewing hen), cut into serving pieces

1 medium onion, quartered

2 ribs celery (leaves included), each broken into three pieces

Salt and freshly ground pepper

2 medium carrots, scraped, cut into thin rounds, blanched 5 minutes in boiling water, and drained

1 cup fresh or thawed frozen green peas

Place chicken pieces in a large pot; add the onion, celery, salt and pepper. Cover with water, bring to a boil and let simmer on low till tender-2 ½ to 3 hours.

When the chicken is done, transfer to a cutting board and when cool enough remove the meat from the bone and cut into bite size pieces.

Strain the broth into a bowl and set aside.

To make using Chicken Breasts:

6 split chicken breasts

1 bag frozen pearl onions

1 small bag baby carrots, sliced in 2-3 pieces

4 sticks celery cut into ½ inch slices

Add peas if you like them, I don’t-so left them out

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1-2 quarts chicken stock, homemade or organic (whole foods)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees

Place chicken on a baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil and freshly ground pepper and salt. Bake for about 25-30 minutes or until temperature reaches 140 degrees at thickest point.

Remove to a cutting boar, let cool some. Remove meat and cut into bite sized pieces.

Blanche frozen onions, baby carrots and celery for 5 minutes in boiling water, and drain, then set aside. Gently mix the chicken with the vegetables.

To Make Southern Pot Pie Dough:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

2 cups all-purpose flour

¼ teaspoon salt

1 cup vegetable shortening or lard

¼ cup ice water

2 tablespoons butter, melted

Combine the flour and salt in a large mixing bowl, and cut in the shortening or lard with a pastry cutter till the mixture is mealy. Stirring with a spoon, gradually add the water till a ball of dough forms.

On a lightly floured work surface, roll out half of the dough about 1/8 inch thick and line the bottom and sides of a greased 2 quart baking dish with it, tucking the crust into the corners. Roll out the remaining dough and 1/8 inch think and cut half of it into 1 inch thick strips, reserving the remainder for the top of the pie. 

As you can see from the pictures, I opted to use my French Porcelain Bowls for a hearty individual serving. Therefore I omitted the bottom crust, which gave me a few more individual servings-which I then froze for a few quick meals when needed. 

Fill half of your oven dishes with the chicken and vegetable mixture, top with half of the dough strips then layer the top half with more chicken and vegetables. Season with salt and pepper to taste, pour enough reserved chicken stock or broth to almost cover the top layer.
If using a 2 qt casserole fit the remainder of the dough on top, if using smaller casseroles cut your circles and lay the dough over the top of the pie. Press down the edges, and trim off any excess.

Place casserole/casseroles on a baking sheet to catch any bubbly spillovers. 

Brush the top with melted butter, pike a few holes or slits on top with a knife to vent the pies. 

Bake till the top is a golden brown about, 30-40 minutes for a large pie, and 25-30 minutes for the smaller ones.

I would be hard pressed to pick my favorite pound cake from all that I have tried this past year. This one is fabulous and this one is just as good but a touch sweeter. But really, how can you go wrong with any combination that includes butter, sugar, flour and sour cream along with homemade vanilla. You simply can’t. One way or the other- either warm from the oven or lightly toasted for breakfast-pound cake is the best.

Wanting to make use of a basket of fresh peaches I gave this recipe a try. I picked up Charleston Desserts and Savannah Desserts books by Janice Shay and have been leafing through them for weeks. For my money Savannah wins in the dessert department. Less fussy, more homey and decadent- Savannah desserts was the book that I kept coming back to.

Contrary to the opinion in the book, this recipe is not too sweet with the glaze. In fact the glaze gave it the added sweetness that it needed, especially with a good kick of lemon juice as the liquid ingredient.

Pick fresh ripe peaches and don’t even think of trying it with canned peaches- it would be a waste. It keeps well in the refrigerator, but with all pound cakes. Let your slice come to room temperature, or it will seem as if you are eating a pound of butter.

Substitute peaches for another fruit, and let me know how it turned out.

Adapted from-Savannah Desserts Cookbook; Janice Shay

Martha Giddens Nesbit’s Peach Pound Cake

1 cup unsalted butter, softened

3 cups white sugar

6 large eggs

1 cup sour cream

3 cups sifted all-purpose flour

½ teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon bourbon vanilla

1 teaspoon almond extract

3 cups finely peeled, chopped fresh peaches

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.

Prepare a 10 inch tube pan.

Combine the butter and white sugar and mix with a paddle attachment until well combined. Scrape the sides and cream again. Add your eggs one at a time, beating well after each egg. Scrape down your sides again and beat till your batter is smooth. Add your sour cream and beat well again.

Combine your sifted flour and baking soda and fold into the batter. Add vanilla and almond extract and beat mixture till it is smooth. Stir in your chopped fresh peaches, folding till distributed throughout batter. Pour into your prepared pan. Smooth the top to ensure even baking. Lift your pan a few inches from the counter, and let it drop. This removes any air bubbles.
Bake your cake for 1 ½ hours or until a cake tester inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. The top should spring back when lightly touched and the sides should be pulling away from the pan.

If the cake isn’t done in 1 ½ hours, turn your temperature to 325 degrees and bake for 10 minutes more, testing again.

Let the cake cool on a wire rack for about 20 minutes. Loosen the edges with a sharp knife and invert the cake onto the rack.

Lemon Glaze- Whisk together your confectioner’s sugar and fresh lemon juice until smooth. Glaze your cake while it is till warm. It might seem like a lot of glaze but go ahead and use it all. The glaze hardens when completely dried.

Garnish-Slice a medium firm peach into thin slivers and place them on top of the cake while the glaze is still moist, so the peaches will set.

Serve at room temperature for best results.