El Grando, Barbecue Pork Chops and Banana Cobbler
Words always seem to fail me when I try to describe the fun that Mary and I always have when we are at Cottontail’s Village in Birmingham.
After being with the vendors for three days, they instantly become family. As we were talking to a group of beautiful young ladies about some of my favorite dishes in the cookbook, I casually asked where they were from. They said they lived in Hokes Bluff.
Mary and I nearly fell out of our chairs. I said, being funny, “You mean you have never heard of Southern Cooking with Andy Bed-well?” They were just precious!
We met several families from Rainbow City who knew a lot of my relatives. A family from Cullman, which consisted of the mother and her three daughters, talked to us about cooking and some of my recipes. They all purchased cookbooks and then asked if they could have their picture made with me. This does make you feel a little important that someone actually wants to have their picture made with you (LOL).
On Sunday, the final day, a lady and her granddaughter came by and asked me how to make a certain dish. Mary and I both had to contain ourselves until she walked away. She was just precious, and she had touched our hearts to the point that it took us awhile to regain our composer.
I am so proud of Mary that she has learned to “talk food” with all of these wonderful cooks and especially her sister (LOL).
El Grando
1 1/2 pounds
ground chuck
1 package chili mix
1 can tomatoes
2 small packages
yellow rice
chopped onions
chopped olives
chopped tomatoes
shredded lettuce
chopped pecans
Sauce:
1 can Cheddar
cheese soup
1/3 cup milk
Brown meat; add chili mix and tomatoes and simmer. Cook rice according to directions. Make layer of cooked rice and layer of meat sauce. Serve the onions, olives, tomatoes, shredded lettuce and chopped pecans in small bowls. Top meat and rice mixture with onion, olive mixture and sauce. Serve with Fritos or Mexican cornbread.
For sauce, combine cheddar cheese soup and milk. Mix well.
Andy’s Note: This recipe was popular back in the 1970’s and is still very popular. Your high school children and grandchildren will love this. Good and easy!
Barbecue Pork Chops
6 center cut pork
chops, trim the fat
1 tablespoon Crisco oil
1 (14 1/2 oz.) can
crushed tomatoes
1/2 cup ketchup
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons
Worcestershire sauce
2 tablespoon mustard
1/2 teaspoon salt
Brown pork chops in oil. Drain and place in a 13x 9-inch baking dish. Combine remaining ingredients and spoon over chops. Bake for one hour.
Andy’s Note: My dinner menu tonight: Barbeque pork chops, buttered cream potatoes, black-eyed peas and garlic toast.
Banana Cobbler
1/2 cup Crisco shortening
1 1/2 cups self-rising flour
1/3 cup milk
2 cups sliced bananas
1 stick margarine
2 cups water
2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
Mix Crisco, flour and milk together for the pastry. Roll out on a floured surface in a large rectangle shape. Mix the water and sugar and heat until the sugar has dissolved. Spoon the bananas on the pastry at one end and start rolling in a cylinder shape. Use a 9×13-inch baking dish (I use a Pyrex dish). Slice the roll in about nine or 10 slices and place in the dish. Bananas will be falling out everywhere but that is okay. Pour the heated water/sugar mixture over the bananas and pastry. Slice the stick of margarine all over the top. I sprinkle the top with cinnamon and nutmeg before sliding in the oven. Bake at 350 degrees for 50-60 minutes. You will think that it has too much liquid but it doesn’t.
Andy’s Note: I know this recipe has been in the co-lumn several times, but I have had so many requests that I am sharing it again. This cobbler deserves real whipped cream on top. When I am whipping my cream, I add sugar and a little vanilla.
To all of you wonderful Southern cooks – have a great week!
Happy Cooking,
Andy Bedwell
“Southern Cooking with Andy Bedwell” can be purchased at Alabama Gift Company in downtown Gadsden and The Messenger on Rainbow Drive.