Summertime Foods

First Cookbook by Frances Robson

Good evening. Ya'll come on into the 'Net Porch and a sit a spell with me. I had a great day today helping with our kids at the church this morning. Our wonderful minister of music, Mr. Chad, has Terrific Tuesdays each summer and the kids learn a musical to present to our church. I am privileged this summer to be able to help with the snack time and have the blessing of interacting with about 40 kids. They are so much fun and I am looking forward to them singing for us.

We had a great supper tonight and I wish you could have been here with us. We had a Georgia produce night with some chicken breast I had grilled on Saturday, fresh, Georgia squash, butterbeans, corn on the cob, cantaloupe, and watermelon. It was so fresh and good and we totally enjoyed it. The only thing missing was cornbread and I just forgot to make it. Now I wish I had made Cornmeal Pancakes like mama used to make.

I found mama's recipe for this in my first cookbook where mama had given me the recipe, I wrote it down then typed it on a typewriter. The original card is yellowed and stained but still quite legible. We would have this kind of cornbread a lot in the summer so we didn't have to use the oven and heat up the kitchen.

Remember this was back in the olden days when we didn't have air conditioners just a great big window fan. If you baked anything, you had to do it early in the morning before it got too hot and everybody knows cornbread is best when hot. Because we had fresh vegetables every day in the summer mama would cook it on top of the stove in a big, cast iron frying pan and we loved it. We would eat it with syrup for dessert after the main meal. Our children also liked it and so I thought I would share it with you.

Corn Meal Pancakes
(Griddle Cakes)

2/3 cup yellow corn meal
2/3 cup sifted all-purpose flour
1 tsp. salt
1 ½ tsp. baking powder
1 egg
1 ½ cups milk
1 Tbsp. vegetable oil (bacon grease if you have it)

Stir together corn meal, flour, salt and baking powder. Combine egg, milk and oil; add to dry mixture and stir until smooth. Bake pancakes on a hot, well-greased griddle using a scant ¼ cup batter for each cake. Stir batter several times while cooking to keep it well mixed. Makes 12

These are good hot or cold. Spread a little jelly on them and you have dessert.

I also found mama's egg custard recipe. We had our own chickens who gave us lots of fresh eggs and often we had more than we knew what to do with so mama would make egg custard. This is a very simple recipe and a simple pie but is good. Often mama would bake it without a crust or add coconut before baking. It was one of daddy's favorite pies and we enjoyed it also. Knowing you would enjoy it, I found it in my old, first cookbook and here it is.

Old Fashion Egg Custard

3 eggs
1 ½ cups milk
1 cup sugar
2 Tbsp. butter (not margarine)

Combine milk and butter in middle-sized pan on medium heat and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and let it cool slightly. Beat eggs and sugar together. Add the milk and butter to eggs and sugar, mix and pour into pie shell. Sift nutmeg on top of pie. Bake at 325 degrees until set and slightly brown on top.

These are 2 recipes we grew up eating and enjoying and mama said they were our grandmother and great-grandmother's recipes also. I can remember eating both of these when we would visit our grandparents. They are just good, old-fashioned recipes which are simple, easy and delicious. Enjoy.

Ya'll be careful going home and come back to see me for it has been raining and the roads are little slick. It has rained every day this week and we are beginning to think we are in the rainy season. Take care.

Nuff said,

The Georgia Peach