Dixie Grace Cooks
New Year's Day Black-Eyed Peas
A side or main dish that's delicious any day!
Equipment
- crockpot
Ingredients
- 1 lb. dry black-eyed peas
- 6 oz. country ham
- 3 cloves fresh garlic
- 1 sprig fresh rosemary
- black pepper, to taste
- 4-5 cups water
Instructions
- Rinse black-eyed peas with water, place into a crockpot and cover with water. Soak overnight.
- The following morning, pour off the old water and replace with 4-5 cups fresh water. Turn crockpot to high.
- Chop country ham into bitesize pieces. Add to crockpot.
- Dice garlic and add to crockpot.
- Add ground black pepper to taste to crockpot. There's no need to add salt, because the country ham is salty.
- Wash the rosemary sprig and add it to crockpot.
- Cover crockpot with lid and turn to high. Cook peas for 5-6 hours. Check for doneness. If peas are tender, turn the crockpot to warm until you're ready to serve your meal. Remove rosemary sprig before serving.
- This dish makes a delicious side for fried chicken or pork loin, or it can be make as a meal on its own served with Thunder & Lightning (Green Tomato Relish) and a pan of hot cornbread.
Thunder & Lightning (Green Tomato Relish)
A mild green tomato relish to accent cooked beans and other savory dishes.
Equipment
- Hot water canner, rack, jars and lids
Ingredients
- 12 large green tomatoes
- 1 green bell pepper
- 1 red bell pepper
- 1 yellow or orange bell pepper purple might be fun too!
- 6 large white or yellow onions
- 1.5 Tbsp celery seed
- 1.5 Tbsp mustard seed
- 1/2 Tbsp salt
- 2.5 cups white sugar
- 1 cup cider vinegar
Instructions
- Sterilize enough jars and lids to hold relish. Set aside.
- Line a large colander with cheesecloth, place in sink or in a large bowl. Set aside.
- In a food processor, in batches, coarsely grind tomatoes, red bell peppers, green bell peppers, and then onions.
- Pour veggies into cheesecloth-lined colander and allow to drain for an hour.
- In a large, non-aluminum stockpot, combine tomato mixture with celery seed, mustard seed, salt, sugar, and vinegar. Bring to a boil and simmer over low heat five minutes, stirring frequently.
- Pack relish into sterilized jars, making sure there are no spaces or air pockets. Fill jars all the way to top. Add lids and tightly screw on rings.
- Place a rack in the bottom of a large stockpot and fill halfway with boiling water. Carefully lower jars into pot using a holder. Leave a 2 inch space between jars. Pour in more boiling water if necessary, until tops of jars are covered by 2 inches of water. Bring water to a full boil, then cover and process for 30 minutes.
- Remove jars from pot and place on cloth-covered or wood surface, several inches apart, until cool. Check to be sure each jar sealed.
Chocolate Gravy
Never heard of chocolate gravy? You're in for a treat! Serve over hot biscuits!
Servings 6
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 cups sugar
- 1/2 cup cocoa powder
- 3/4 stick butter
- 3 cups milk
- 2 tsp vanilla
Instructions
- Combine dry ingredients in a bowl and set aside.
- Melt butter in a saucepan or skillet. Add about two tablespoons of dry ingredients to skillet. Add a small amount of milk. Stir until smooth. Continue alternating dry ingredients and milk, stirring to incorporate, until you've added everything.
- Once you've incorporated all of the dry ingredients milk into a smooth liquid, cook to boiling, stirring continually. Once your liquid has thickened to a gravy consistency, take off the heat and stir in vanilla.
- Serve immediately over hot biscuits.
- Enjoy!
Notes
Serve hot biscuits and chocolate gravy at breakfast, brunch or as a dessert!
Una's (Almost) No Fail Biscuits
This recipe from Dixie's Aunt Una may be the easiest biscuit you'll ever run across. But, take it from Dixie, they're good!
Servings 10
Ingredients
- 1 cup self-rising flour
- 1/2 cup vegetable shortening You may need a bit more of the shortening. Use up to 2/3 cup total to get the desired dough consistency.
- 1 cup milk
Instructions
- Mix all together. NOTE: You don’t need to cut the shortening into the flour first.
- Generously sprinkle dough board with additional flour. Knead dough until slightly stiff. Roll out to about 1” thick and cut into circles.
- Bake at 400 degrees on a greased baking sheet. Serve warm. Enjoy!
Notes
Una always used Crisco when making these biscuits. But you can use one of the new organic veggie shortenings, such as Spectrum.
SERVING TIP: Top your hot biscuits with Chocolate Gravy (as shown). Check out Dixie's recipe for Chocolate Gravy here
Nutrition
Serving: 2biscuits
Dixie’s Famous Fruit Tea
A refreshing and unique take on fruit tea—with real fruit juice for extra nutrition. This tea is perfect to keep on hand for unexpected guests on a warm summer day.
Servings 8
Ingredients
- 1 qt brewed black tea, sweetened to taste
- 2/3 cup Lakewood Organic Papaya Blend
- 2/3 cup No-pulp orange juice
- Fresh limes
Instructions
- Brew black tea and sweeten to taste. Discard tea bags. Serve over ice with a squeeze of lime wedge in each glass.
- Add Papaya Blend and orange juice. Stir.
- Garnish with lime slices. Keep refrigerated. Enjoy!
Notes
Papaya juice is Dixie's secret ingredient in this tea, but don't forget to add the lime. It adds the zing!
Nutrition
Serving: 8oz