Mama Dip’s Sweet Potato Biscuits

Spring Council

Ingredients:

• 2 cups cooked, mashed sweet potatoes

• 1 stick butter, melted

• 1 1/4 cups milk

• 4 cups self-rising flour

• pinch baking soda

• 3 tablespoons sugar

Directions:

Mix together the sweet potatoes, butter, and milk until well blended. Stir in the flour, baking soda, and sugar. Shape the dough into a ball and knead about 8 to 10 times on a well-floured board. Roll the dough out 1 inch thick and cut with a 2-inch biscuit cutter. Bake in a greased baking pan in a 400 degree oven for 15 to 20 minutes or until brown.

Makes about 15

From MAMA DIP’S KITCHEN. © 1999 by Mildred Council. Used by permission of the University of North Carolina Press.

Mama Dip’s Chicken and Dumplings

Spring Council

Around corn-shucking time, an old rooster or hen would be put in a coop to fatten for this old-time favorite.

Ingredients:

• 1 stewing chicken (about 5 pounds)

• 1 can (101/2 ounces) chicken broth

• 1/2 stick butter, cut into pieces

• 2 cups all-purpose flour

• 1/2 cup warm stock

• 1 bay leaf

Directions:

Rinse the chicken under cold running water. Put it into a large pot with the bay leaf and cover with water. Let cook over medium heat until tender, about 40 minutes. Remove the chicken and set it aside. When it cools, remove the meat from the bones and chop. Skim the fat off the chicken stock, strain the stock, and return it to the pot, adding water to make 10 cups. Add the broth and the butter to the stock and heat until the butter melts. Stir to mix.

Take 1/2 cup of the stock from the pot and add 2 ice cubes to it so that it cools. Put the floor in a bowl and pour in the cooled stock. Mix well with a fork or your fingertips to form a dough. Add a little more flour if the dough is too wet.

Roll out the dough, on a floured board, thinner than pie crust (not more than 1/8 inch thick. Cut into strips, and then into 1-inch pieces. Let the stock come to a boil, and then drop in pieces of dough. The dumplings will stir themselves in the boiling liquid. When you’re finished putting the dumplings in the liquid, shake the pot.

Stir the chopped chicken into the pot, reducing the heat to low. Let cook slowly for 10 minutes.

Serves 8 to 10

From MAMA DIP’S KITCHEN. © 1999 by Mildred Council. Used by permission of the University of North Carolina Press.

Mama Dip's Summer Squash Casserole

Old-School Chess Pie with Molasses Whipped Cream

Nancie McDermott

Ingredients:

For the Pie:

• Pastry for a 9-inch single-crust pie

• 1 1/2 cups sugar

• 1 tablespoon cornmeal

• 1/4 teaspoon salt

• 3 eggs, beaten well

• 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar or white vinegar

• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

• 1/2 cup butter (1 stick), melted

For the Molasses Whipped Cream:

• 1 ½ cups heavy cream

• 2 tablespoons molasses or sorghum syrup

• 1 tablespoon granulated sugar

Directions:

Heat the oven to 325 degrees F. Line a 9-inch pie pan with crust, then crimp the edges decoratively.

In a small bowl, combine the sugar, cornmeal, and salt. Use a fork to stir them together well.

In a medium bowl, combine the eggs, vinegar, and vanilla and stir to mix everything well. Add the sugar mixture and the butter. Stir well, stopping to scrape the sides of the bowl. Mix and stir to combine everything into a smooth, thick filling. Pour it into the piecrust.

Place the pie in the middle of the 325 degree F oven. Bake until the edges puff up and the center is fairly firm, wiggling only a little when you gently nudge the pan, 45 to 55 minutes.

Place the pie on a cooling rack or a folded kitchen towel and let cool to room temperature.

Makes one 9-inch pie

For the Sorghum Whipped Cream:

In a chilled bowl with chilled beaters, beat the cream until thickened and beginning to hold its shape well.

Add the sorghum syrup and sugar and continue beating, stopping to scrape down the sides, until the cream is thick, billowy, plump and holding its shape very well. Chill until serving time.

From SOUTHERN PIES: A GRACIOUS PLENTY OF PIE RECIPES, FROM LEMON CHESS TO CHOCOLATE PECAN. © 2010 by Nancie McDermott (Chronicle Books).