Hoecakes or Cornbread Patties, Either Way A Bite of Heaven

  If you know what this is...you win a prize. You are more than likely a tried and true Southerner or you have been here so long you can almost lay claim to the title. This, my friends who are not from the Deep South, is a hoe cake. Don't get the wrong idea, this is not another version of the word for a loose woman, this is a h-o-e cake, as in a hoe, an implement used to dig a row in a field. Also known as a cornbread pattie. Yet another synonym for these little cakes is the word delicious. I am smacking my lips just thinking of eating one hot out of my grandmother's iron skillet.

   Growing up in the summers at the Big House on Cinco Bayou, we would line up at the back door of the kitchen as soon as the word spread that my grandmother Lou Lou was frying up a batch of these beauties. I have watched her make them what seems like a hundred times, but mine have never ever tasted the same. For one thing, I am not eight years old and standing on the back stoop in my bathing suit, dripping wet, and waiting not so patiently for the taste of that fried cornbread smeared with a little butter. It's just so lip-smacking good. Crispy on the outside and moist and chewy like only soft cornbread can be on the inside.
   The Baby Sister is working on the recipe. I drove over one night the time before last when I was home to taste hers. They were good. But I wasn't eight years and dripping wet at the back door standing in a line of cousins waiting for my turn...you get my drift.
   I have a recipe I am happy to share with you novices who have never heard of a hoe cake or cornbread pattie, much less eaten one. However, no matter how hard you try, you will not likely be able to replicate a true hot fried cornbread experience. That, my friend, is reserved for but a few.
   But you can try.

Keep in mind that this is not an exact science.

1. You will need a cast iron skillet. If you don't have one, you better not try this recipe. There is something about the seasoning in the skillet, the depth of the skillet, and the uniformity of the heat that the cast iron produces that are essential for success.

2. You will need bacon grease. Yes m'am. Crisco alone will not do. Nor will any canola or vegetable oil, or heaven forbid, extra virgin olive oil. You might be able to mix some bacon grease with the aforementioned substitutes, but you must have some bona fide form of lard and Crisco alone does not suffice.

3. You will need cornmeal. Real cornmeal ground in a local grist mill is best, but most of you have no idea what I am talking about. Go ahead and buy your Aunt Jemima if you must, but if you can get your hands on some local yellow or white corn meal, do it. It will be ten times better, trust me.

3. White Lily self-rising flour. You will only need a couple of tablespoons, but it is an important ingredient. White Lily is only acceptable brand left other than Martha White for a tried and true Southerner. Neither of these girls will let you down.

4. Real butter. No fake and bake here. Unsalted or salted. Whatever, just make sure it is butter. That's B-U-T-T-er.

Now for some accompaniments.

Buttermilk. Pretty soon you won't be able to buy this in the grocery stores. I am already seeing a dearth of it up here in the upper South. My dear grandmother would roll over in the grave. She loved this stuff and so does my Momma. Momma used to drink a big glass every night just before bed. Truth be told, I don't care much for the stuff, but if you are gonna have a true Southerner experience, you need to have some buttermilk and cornbread. Real aficionados will dip their hot cornbread in their buttermilk or crumble it up in their glass.

Peas. You need a mess of field peas. Not crowders. Little tiny green and white field peas. Hoecakes or cornbread patties go best with peas and a little pot likker, washed down with a tall glass of cold buttermilk.

Now for the recipe:
Bacon Grease
Cornmeal about 2 cups
2 Tablespoons of self-rising flour
Hot water
Salt
(Some people put an egg in theirs, but I see no need. However, you can add an egg if you want.)

Melt your bacon grease in your cast iron skillet. You want a thin layer of bacon grease, just enough to come up about halfway on your cornbread patties, but not completely submerge them. The hoecakes are fried, but not deep fried.

Mix your 2 cups of cornmeal together with the two Tablespoons of self-rising flour. Add salt. Take your fork and stir it up thoroughly. Next heat up two cups of water in the microwave until just about boiling and pour it into your mixture in increments. You will want your hoecake mixture to be about the consistency of a thick paste. Next up are your hands. Yep, you are gonna have to get messy with this recipe. Using your hands, form little patties and immediately start sliding them into the hot grease. Work quickly. If your dough gets too stiff, add a little water. Do not let the patties touch. Your grease should not be so hot that it is smoking, but it should be hot enough to immediately begin frying the cakes. You will only turn the hoecakes ONCE. Wait to turn them until the sides begin to turn brown. Look at the picture above again to help you gauge this. Remove, drain on paper towels, butter them with softened butter and start handing them out to whomever is in the kitchen. Best if eaten immediately.

If your first batch is a little greasy, either remove some of the grease or turn your heat up.

Obviously making cornbread patties is a trial and error experience. That's the way most Southerners like it. It's not an exact science. But then again, most of what we do down here is not an exact science. You cook with your heart and your taste buds. And you eat in community. Hoecakes are the ultimate in community food because they are not much good when they are cold. So make sure there's a crowd in the kitchen or outside on the stoop when you start cooking these beauties.

           Here are some of the cousins at about the age when we were lining up at the back door, jockeying for whom would get the first cornbread pattie. In case you are at a loss to identify yours truly, I am the one on the far left. My other grandmother made my bathing suit, and I really loved that pom pom trim.
          And this is a picture of the Big House. It was the Big House because there is a tiny little house that sits behind it that you cannot see (not to be confused with the pump house on the far right). Calling it the Big House might be a misnomer to some, but it certainly looms larger than life itself in the canon of my memory.

The beloved Big House, Yacht Club Drive, Cinco Bayou

    If you get adventurous and decide to give the fried cornbread patties a try, let me know how they turn out.

Survival Summer Skills for Overwhelmed Mothers Part Two

     Back by popular demand, here are my " Tips on Surviving Summer":  I am laughing when I write this, but I remember that my husband and I actually invited friends over for a casual summer supper and served...hot dogs! Yep, hot dogs. Except back then we called them "tube steaks" as that was about the only kind of steak we could ever afford to serve, much less eat. I also fixed that culinary delight known as baked beans as a side, accompanied by that other Southern stand-by, Lay's Potato Chips. I do recall that I put out chili, slaw, cheese, onions, pickle relish, and the obligatory condiments as "toppings" for the humble hot dogs. Dessert was really fancy...ice cream sandwiches and freezer pops. I think they still make freezer pops. 

  Freezer are a food group all by themselves. Colored water, dyed with something carcinogenic like Red Dye #2, sugar, and some unnamed preservative that is probably no longer approved by the FDA. I used to buy them by the box, and in the summer I kept a pair of elementary school scissors in the drawer next to the freezer so the kids could cut them open themselves.  
   The reason I tell you this is so that you will know that it is okay to entertain on a grand scale with four small children. I mean, hot dogs...don't you know that I slaved away in the kitchen for hours over that one...NOT! So, open your hearts and your homes and make it easy and fun for your friends to come over. It's actually funny to me that hot dogs are making a comeback. Of course now we only buy Nathan's All Beef...but really, you cannot get around the fact that it is still a hot dog no matter what kind of spin you put on it.
  Here's another round of suggestions for you Moms.
1) Do what you can to beat the heat by buying not one, but two baby pools.

 Seriously, some of the best afternoons were spent with the babies in one pool and the moms lounging in the other. And yes, we wore our "rattiest" suits. The ones you don't want to be seen in in public. And it helps if you have a friend who has a great recipe for strawberry daiquiries. We put the cooler in the pool with the adults and kept the daiquiries on ice. We only allowed ourselves one and a half at the most because someone had to keep a watchful eye on the kids, just in case they fell over face first in the six inches of water in their pool. Oh, and it helps if you have water balloons, water guns, or some other crazy game for the older ones. Make sure you applaud loudly, whatever they do. Mine were largely content as long as they had their friends over and were the beneficiary of the mostly positive affirmation from the mothers.
2) Don't forget the sprinkler. You can fill both pools and then set up some sort of homemade slip and slide (use an old tarp) or sprinkler game for the older kids. We also used to run our bikes and big wheels through the sprinkler for a "car wash." I kept buckets loaded with dish soap and sponges for this bi-weekly event.
2) Religiously attend the weekly story hour at your local library. My kids loved, loved, loved the puppet shows. The older ones tried to act like they were too old or too cool, but they never argued when I said that we were going. They also were allowed to get their own library cards (talk about feeling important) and could check out as many books as they could carry. And they had to rob their own piggy banks to pay their own fines if the books were late so I was the one who usually proved to be the worst offender in this regard.
3) We also made summer pilgrimages to visit Daddy in his office every three weeks or so and went out to lunch with him. The Husband worked downtown and we usually ate at the neighboring Burger King but everything was more exotic and fun because it was in the "city."
4) Vacation Bible School. I had one friend whose children attended three different Vacation Bible Schools each summer: Methodist, Baptist and Presbyterian. That way she knew that the material and crafts would all be different, and her children would not be bored. I always volunteered to work in our home church VBS, but I soon learned that coordinating the refreshments for the various classes was a whole lot easier for me than teaching. And since I was employed full-time in a school, I didn't feel too bad about sidestepping the duties in the classroom. I can unashamedly tell you that VBS was a lifesaver for me for many years! And do NOT feel pressured to teach or serve if this is not for you. God will let you give back in other ways!
5) Back yard camp-out and nightime flashlight walks. We first introduced camping to our children by pitching the tent in the backyard. We also made it a ritual to take nightime walks around the neighborhood with flashlights whenever we had friends spend the night (even if we slept inside). There is something magical that happens when you turn on a flashlight at night, for the ordinary can become the spectacular. I bought my flashlights and batteries at the Dollar Store so that everyone could have their own to tote around.

6) Hire a "Mother's Helper." This is a younger girl who will come over and play with your children while you are at home; she will generally occupy your children while you are scurrying around trying to get things done. The Mother's Helper is a girl who is too young to babysit on her own for four children, but is an individual who will do well with some adult supervision. The beauty of this arrangement is that these girls do not charge as much as an older babysitter does. The blessing for us was that our "Mother's Helper" started with us when she was in the seventh grade; she stayed with us as a babysitter and then became a housesitter when she was in college. She even ended up accompanying us on family vacations to Florida which proved to be the gift of gifts for me. In Florida we gave her two afternoons and two evenings off,  but the rest of the time she was there to entertain the children (who loved her) and to make life easier for everyone. Looking back, I would say that hiring a Mother's Helper was one of the best things I ever did, hands down!
7) Make time for yourself. Even if you can only carve 2-3 hours out per week, it is a necessity. I think I would have lost my mind otherwise. I usually did not have a "Mother's Day Out" program in the summer, so time away became a rare, but necessary commodity. Fortunately, my husband understood my need for the company of other adults, and he was usually willing to accommodate me in this regard, by allowing me to hire a babysitter; but if this does not work for you, then trade off with a friend. You take hers and then she will take yours! Then it's a win-win!
8) Find a prayer partner. I had a friend that I could call at anytime and tell her to pray. She did not need the details; she was willing to hit her knees on my behalf, and I would do the same for her. This proved to be an important investment in my spiritual growth. I cannot tell you the times that I just needed to know that she was praying for me. It brought me comfort and encouragement on the most difficult of days, and trust me, there were many.
9) Cut yourself some slack EVERY SINGLE DAY. Do not make the mistake of setting impossible goals. A clean house, happy children and a productive mother are not synonymous. Remember in post number one that Supermom has been put to death. Look at yourself in the mirror every day and say, "I think I can, I know I can...I can get through THIS day!" I cannot tell you how many times I said to myself, "His Grace is sufficient for ME!"
9) Know that God is faithful. I look back and can see His hand everywhere, but at the time I wondered if I would ever have a life that did not comprise of saying "No No, NO," endlessly or attempting to discipline or teach children when they absolutely did not want to be taught. I seriously contemplated running away numerous times, but something always held me back. Perhaps it was a future that seemed so far off, but one that has finally arrived. And it will come for you, I promise! Hallelujah! Praise the Lord! I convinced that there will be a special banquet room for mothers in heaven! I will see you there!

Some Sunday Fun with Little Two

   Little Two and her parents came to play one Sunday. I had just bought the Fisher Price fire engine at a garage sale across the street from our house. It was a big hit.

Little Two liked pushing it as much as she liked riding in it. In fact, she nearly worked herself into a frenzy. When we finally took a little break she was red-faced and perspiring like crazy, but laughing out loud with glee!

 Little Two's Daddy had almost as much fun as she did. Of course, he wasn't content to let her push the fire engine around the driveway. He just had to up the ante. I nearly had a heart attack. It reminded me of my own mother. In the future I will try to refrain from acting concerned when they fly down the driveway at breakneck speeds. I thought I was over all of that with grown children. Apparently some things never change.

Best Toddler Buys for Summer Splash

Love these swim shoes and the swim socks by One Step Ahead. They are a steal at $9.95 and come in a wide range of sizes for infants, toddlers, boys and girls!

After dealing with many a stubbed toe at the swimming pool, you can bet I would have hopped on the bandwagon for these swim socks as well.  Also from One Step Ahead, they will only set you back $7.95!

How about this Baby Banz Sun Hat with an SPF of 50. This little hat blocks 97.5% of both UVA and UVB sunrays. It also has an adjustable velcro band in the back that allows you to adjust it as your child grows and is reversible to a solid color!

Now is the time to pick up some deals and steals on swimwear. Most clothing stores are taking big markdowns. This Funtasia Too toddler suit is one of my favorites!

These baby boy and toddler swim trunks from IPlay come with SPF protection of 50+ along with a built in swim diaper

   And while you are having fun in the sun with your little one, don't forget to apply sunscreen before you leave the house, again when you get to the pool, and every 30 minutes thereafter!

All items with the exception of the Funtasia Too swimsuit are available at Amazon.com