Southern Dinner

I grew up in the south, Arkansas to be specific, and I have many fond memories of my grandmother's southern meals. Yesterday I had the hankering for a southern style dinner so I decided to make some of my favorite dishes from childhood. This was partly inspired by a trip to the market "Robert is Here" that me and my partner biked to this weekend, where I bought pole beans and summer squash. Pole beans are a particular variety of green bean, they are flatter and longer and they have a different flavor altogether than regular green beans - in short they are awesome. The squash was also amazing because it had actually been picked at the right size instead of being allowed to grow to mammoth-like proportions. The reason this is important is that smaller squash are more tender and have a sweeter flavor, also the seeds are smaller and softer. Anyway, since I had those two foods on hand I decided to make fried squash, pole beans with bacon, meatloaf, and drop biscuits.

The recipes are all below.

Cheddar Turkey Meatloaf (adapted from a Taste of Home recipe)
2 lb Ground Turkey
1 Onion chopped
1 cup Milk
1 1/4 cups Shredded Cheddar Cheese
2 Eggs
1 cup Raw Oats
1 teaspoons Salt
2/3 cup Ketchup
1 tablespoon Brown Sugar
2 teaspoons Dry Mustard
Mix ground turkey, onion, cheddar cheese, oats, and salt together and then add in the eggs and salt until well mixed.

raw ingredients

Form into 8 little mounds on a large cookie sheet.

raw meat mounds - yum!

Mix ketchup, brown sugar, and dry mustard together and put a spoonful onto each meatloaf mound. Bake at 350 for about 45 minutes.

Pole Beans with Bacon
Rinse a off large mess of pole beans (a pound or more) and clip off ends. Snap in half and put into a medium saucepan. Fill partway with water (but don't cover the beans because they will cook down). Put about 1 teaspoon of salt and a half a piece of bacon in the pot. Boil on medium for about 15 minutes or until beans are soft.

Drop Biscuits (from Cooks Illustrated)
2 cups Flour
2 teaspoons Baking Powder
1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda
1 teaspoon Sugar
3/4 teaspoon Salt
1 cup Cold Buttermilk
8 tablespoons Butter melted
In a measuring bowl combine dry ingredients and set aside. Melt butter in a pyrex measuring cup and set aside to cool briefly (about 5 minutes) then pour in the buttermilk and mix until the butter forms small clumps (the butter is hardening because it is getting cold again from the buttermilk). Pour buttermilk mixture into the dry ingredients and mix with a fork until well incorporated. Dough should be slightly sticky and pull away from the sides of the bowl. Drop batter by large spoonfuls onto a 15x10 cookie sheet and bake at 475 for about 10-12 minutes until just starting to brown on the top.

Fried Squash
4 or more Summer Squash sliced
1 cup Cornmeal
2 teaspoons Salt
Pepper to taste
Put cornmeal and salt into a quart sized ziplock bag and shake to mix then put in the sliced squash and shake again until the squash are coated in the cornmeal.

Squash in the bag with cornmeal

Heat a large skillet (preferably cast iron) to medium-high and put in a little oil. Put in slices of squash (only one layer thick) and fry the squash on both sides until browned (should take a couple of minutes on each side). Repeat with the rest of the squash. Serve.

Roasted Green Beans

Yummy Green Beans

All vegetables taste better roasted, as far as I can tell. Now that I have started to roast veggies I eat them so much more often! These green beans are so yummy I could just eat them for dinner and nothing else. Also, super easy.

Roasted Green Beans
About 1 lb. Fresh Green Beans (obviously you can use more if you want)
Balsamic Vinegar
Salt
Pepper
Olive oil
Rinse green beans and snap them (snap off the ends, this will get rid of any strings too). Then snap in half so they are easier to eat. Put green beans on a large cookie sheet (10x15). Shake balsamic vinegar onto the beans to taste (I think I used about a 1/4 cup). Drizzle lightly with olive oil and sprinkle on salt and pepper. Toss the green beans until coated and roast in the oven at 425 for about 20 minutes turning the green beans over once or twice. The beans should be starting to get a little browned and be just starting to soften when they are done.

Fresh Green Bean Tomato Curry

I was at the grocery store the other day and green beans, squash, and zucchini were all on sale. I took that as a sign that I should combine all of those delicious veggies into a dish and came up with this simple curry which you could serve as a side dish or as a meal if you made some rice or naan bread. I based this off of a tamatar aloo recipe I remembered making years ago that called for lemon juice because I thought that the citrus of the lemon would compliment the green beans. I was right, this turned out pleasantly spicy with a hint of citrus for an extra bite. 

This is also a vegan recipe so it is great to serve is you are trying out meatless cooking or if you have been vegan/vegetarian for a while. 

Enjoy cooking! 

Fresh Green Bean Tomato Curry

1 ½ -2 cups Fresh Green Beans

1 15 oz. can Diced Tomatoes

2 medium Zucchini diced

2-3 medium Summer Squash sliced

1 Onion cut into strips

2 tabl. Pav Bhaji Masala (spice blended for vegetables. You can substitute another curry/masala if you wish)

1 ½ teas. Turmeric

This is what the spice blend I used looked like

2-3 tabl. Lemon Juice

Salt to taste

Olive Oil

Saute the zucchini and squash together on high heat with some of the masala spice until they are just starting to brown and soften, then set aside (about 5-7 minutes). Saute onions and green beans together with the rest of the masala and the turmeric until onions start to turn transparent, then add in the tomatoes and the zucchini/squash with the lemon juice and continue cooking for another 5-10 minutes or until the vegetables are as soft as you would like them to be. Serve with bread or rice as an accompaniment. 

Sauteed Potatoes, Green Beans, and Onions

I made this delicious dish last week and my boyfriend liked it so much we made it again the next day; which if you know him is a huge deal because he absolutely hates to cook and will avoid it at all costs.

His usual idea of making a meal is to have a bowl of cereal but he said that this dish was so good he actually wanted to learn how to make it (with me guiding him along of course, I didn't want the kitchen to catch fire - that actually happened once).

The butter is what really gives this meal it's rich carmelly flavor so I wouldn't recommend substituting anything else for it.  

Sautéed Potatoes, Green Beans, and Onions

5-7 medium Red Potatoes cubed (don’t peel skins)

10 oz (approx) fresh Green Beans/Broccoli (could use frozen)

1-2 Onions chopped

4 tbs (approx) Butter (Can start with less but add more if it is not enough)

Pepper to taste

Salt to taste

Optional: 4 chicken breasts chopped

Microwave potatoes for about 5 minutes in a little bit of water to partially cook them. Put butter in a skillet on medium high heat and sauté onions and potatoes. Add in green beans or brocolli after potatoes and onions begin to caramelize and sprinkle with pepper and salt to taste throughout cooking. (I usually go pretty heavy on the pepper). Stir frequently but allow mixture to stick to the bottom of the pan somewhat so that everything caramelizes. Cook for about 20-30 minutes. 

Note: If you decide to use chicken cook chicken completely first and add when you put the brocolli or green beans in with the potatoes and onions.