Macon Magazine

DECEMBER/JANUARY 2013 MACON MAGAZINE I 95 Chicken Pie 5 pound chicken 4 tablespoons real butter tablespoons flour 2 cups hot chicken stock 1 1/2 teaspoons salt 1/4 teaspoon white pepper Pastry for 1 crust pie 2-3 hard boiled eggs Cook chicken in water to cover with a few stalks of celery and an onion. Keep covered and simmer until the meat falls off the bone. Remove skin and bones and cut meat into good-sized pieces. Place chicken in a 2-quart baking dish. If you are adding boiled eggs, slice them and add to the chicken. For the sauce, melt the butter over medium heat, then add the flour making a roux. Slowly add the hot chicken stock, stirring with a whisk until thickened. Add salt and pepper. Pour sauce over chicken. Top with a lattice crust. Bake at 350 degrees until crust is brown and sauce is bubbling. I usually add dots of butter over the top of the crust before baking. I often use chicken breasts instead of the whole chicken. I also use Pillsbury piecrust that comes already prepared, two to a package in the dairy case. Chuck Roast This is such a simple thing to cook, but it was a favorite in our family. It is not written in recipe form, but just as Bo (our cook) told us to cook it. One center cut chuck roast. Rinse off. Shake on tenderizer, seasoned salt, pepper and garlic salt. Lightly flour. Put in hot frying pan in bacon drippings to brown. When browned, put in pan lined with aluminum foil. Add 2 tablespoons vinegar, 1 tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce, and a little A-1 steak sauce. Add 1 cup water to hot frying pan to deglaze and incorporate browned bits from the pan then pour over roast. Cover with foil. As it cooks in oven, add water if needed. Let cook until tender. Oven should be at 325 degrees. Cook about 2 hours or more. Remove foil toward the end of cooking time. Roast will be so tender it can be pulled apart with a fork. Anton's Easy V E G E TA B L E S O U P 1 pound ground beef 1 can diced tomatoes 1 can beef broth 1 bag frozen soup vegetables 1 bag frozen gumbo vegetables Dash Tabasco Herbs de Provence Tomato Juice to desired consistency Brown beef. Add remaining ingredients. Add tomato juice to desired consistency. Serve hot with corn muffins. Banana P U D D I N G 2 tablespoons cornstarch 5 tablespoons flour 1/4 teaspoon salt 1/4 cup cold milk 3 eggs separated, save whites for meringue 1/2 cup sugar 2 3/4 cup hot milk About 36 vanilla wafers medium ripe bananas 3 tablespoons butter 1 teaspoon vanilla flavoring Mix together cornstarch, flour and salt. Add 1/4 cup cold milk and mix until smooth. Add 3 egg yolks (save whites for meringue) and 1/2 cup sugar. Mix well and add 2 3/4 cup of hot milk. Cook and stir continuously until it boils and thickens. Remove from heat. Add 3 tablespoons butter and the vanilla flavoring. Line baking pan (we like a round one, about 1 1/2 quart size) with vanilla wafers and sliced bananas. Alternate layer of pudding, bananas and wafers starting and ending with pudding. Make a meringue using the egg whites. Bake in hot oven (375 degrees) until meringue is a golden brown. Serve warm. Meringue 3 egg whites 1/2 teaspoon vanilla flavoring 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar tablespoons sugar Beat egg whites with vanilla and cream of tartar until soft peaks form. Gradually add sugar, beating until stiff and glossy. Bake in hot oven until golden brown. From Thanksgiving through Christmas and into the New Year, most of us have indulged ourselves, and now the New Year finds us once again making the resolution to enjoy life at a slower pace. With the cold, dreary weather February usually brings, there is no better time to enjoy a quiet evening at home complete with a stress-free menu. Food editors around the country have labeled these foods "comfort foods." There is a newfound fascination with a return to the days of meals like your mother or grandmother used to make. To those of us who grew up watching "The Andy Griffin Show," "I Love Lucy" and "The Donna Reed Show," comfort food was what you had for supper when the whole family gathered around the table. The meal consisted of hearty, good-tasting fare with little concern for counting calories. When I am hungry for this type food the first thing that comes to my mind is Chicken Pie. My favorite recipe does not have any ingredients other than chicken, chicken stock, butter, boiled eggs and a pastry top. If you prefer, you can leave out the eggs. Some cooks add peas and carrots to the pie, but I prefer to serve the peas and carrots as vegetable accompaniments. Another favorite is Chuck Roast. The good news about this is not only can you have the roast, but if there is any left you can have another meal. There is no recipe, simply cut the meat into bite size chunks, sauté with and onion, add any drippings left from the roast, add some beef bouillon and thicken with a little flour. Put biscuits on top and bake till biscuits have browned. To make it quick and easy I use frozen biscuits. Mary B's Buttermilk are my favorite. Our friend, Atlanta attorney Anton Merten, makes the best and easiest Vegetable Soup. Served with Corn Meal Muffins it makes a delicious supper on a cold night. I try to keep the ingredients on hand at all times. Being Belgian, he adds Herbs de Provence that he brings back from Belgium. When it comes to dessert, there is no contest! What could be more "comforting" than Banana Pudding? When I make banana pudding I want the real thing, not instant pudding from a box. On top I like a fluffy meringue and prefer the pudding served warm. I have used the same recipe for years, and it has never failed me. On a cold night, treat your family to one of these "comfort" dishes. For two I like to pull up chairs in front of the fireplace and sit back, relax, and enjoy. M Comfort food ENTERTAINING | by alacia rhame Photography by danny gilleland

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