Mastering the Art of Southern Cooking

Mushroom Soup with Grits or Rice
Serves 4 to 6

Ingredients change according to the way they are cut and cooked.

When the onion and mushrooms are finely chopped and cooked briefly, they are light; when cooked long and slow until dark, they become nearly a paste. When the mushrooms are sliced, they change the soup yet again. Marjoram, lemon balm, and mint are perennials in most of the South, with basil dying out at the first December freeze.

3 tablespoons butter
2 medium onions, chopped
1 / 2 pound fresh mushrooms, wild or cultivated, chopped
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
5 cups chicken stock or broth
1 tablespoon white quick grits, long-grain rice, or wild rice
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon chopped fresh marjoram, basil, lemon balm, or mint

Heat the butter in a large Dutch oven; add the onions and mushrooms and cook until soft. Stir in the flour. Pour in the stock, stirring, and bring to the boil. Add the grits or rice, reduce the heat, cover, and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Refrigerate or freeze if desired. Bring to the boil and sprinkle with herbs just before serving. This recipe doubles easily: make one to serve and one to freeze.

Southern Biscuits

Half Dollar Ham Biscuits

Makes 5 dozen

5 dozen baked 1 1⁄2-inch Baking Powder Biscuits (page 54), split
3⁄4 cup butter, softened
1 small onion, finely chopped
2 tablespoons poppy seeds
2 to 3 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 pound thinly shaved ham

Mix together the butter, onion, poppy seeds, and mustard in a
small bowl. Spread the bottom halves of the biscuits with the
onion mixture. Top with the shaved ham and replace the top
halves of the biscuits.

These may be served right away or stored in the refrigerator
up to 2 days, tightly wrapped in aluminum foil. To freeze, wrap the biscuits in foil, then in a freezer bag. To reheat, defrost the still-wrapped biscuits in the refrigerator overnight.  Reheat biscuits straight from the refrigerator in a 400 degree F oven, still in tightly wrapped foil, until heated through, about 15 minutes.

Recipe from Southern Biscuits by Nathalie Dupree and Cynthia Graubart. Reprinted with permission by Gibbs Smith.