Southern Family Traditions

My Mom would spend all day going back and forth from the kitchen and our old console TV in the living room. For those of you who don’t know what a console TV is, just picture a big TV in a box

by, Melissa Jewett, Publisher

I grew up in a traditional southern family and New Year’s Day was a special day.

My Mom would spend all day going back and forth from the kitchen and our old console TV in the living room. For those of you who don’t know what a console TV is, just picture a big TV in a box, about 3 foot wide and two feet deep, and three foot tall that sat on the floor.

Anyone who knew my Mom knew she was an outstanding cook AND she loved football. Every year on New Year’s Day the one TV we had was completely off limits as she watched the Rose Parade – Tournament of Roses and the Rose Bowl.

(There will be no Rose Bowl or Rose Parade on New Year’s Day this year. Find out why here http://www.sbnation.com/college-football/2016/12/29/14110426/new-years-day-2017-college-football-rose-bowl)

My southern family pretty much fried everything in either bacon grease or vegetable oil and New Year’s Day was no different.

I never liked what on the menu for the first day of the year, but the older I get, the more I miss those special days I had with my Mom.

If she was still alive, I wouldn’t complain about the menu or that I had to watch the Rose Bowl, I would just enjoy the time I had with her.

I wanted to share my family’s traditional southern New Year’s Day supper. It was and is currently eaten for good luck and prosperity for the coming year and every item on the menu had a meaning.

Hear is the ole’ southern tale “Peas for pennies, greens for dollars, and cornbread for gold.”

Supper Menu:

• Black-Eyed Peas – COINS and Ham Hocks – PROSPERITY
• Cornbread – GOLD
• Fried Potatoes – HEALTH
• Wilted Salad – PAPER MONEY
• Fried Cabbage – WEALTH

Dessert Menu:

• Pineapple Upside-Down Cake (fried in an old fashion skillet) LUCK
• Vanilla ice-cream al a mode (scoop of ice-cream). NOT SURE WHY THIS WAS ADDED!

Black-Eyed Peas & Ham Hocks

Ingredients

• 3 cups water
• 1 pound dry black-eyed peas
• 2 smoked ham hocks
• salt to taste
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Directions

1. Rinse dried peas thoroughly, sorting any tiny pebbles or other debris.
2. In a large stockpot, bring 3 cups of water to a boil with black-eyed peas, ham hocks, and salt, pepper to taste. Reduce to a simmer and cook, uncovered, 1 1/2 hours, or until peas and ham hocks are tender. If ham hocks require further cooking, simmer in water in a separate pot until meat is easily pulled from the bone.
3. Cool ham hocks and remove all meat from the bone. Stir ham into the peas, adjust seasoning with salt and pepper as needed, and serve.

Note: A portion of the peas may be mashed once cooked, then stirred together with the whole peas and shredded ham from hock for a creamier consistency.

Fried Cabbage

Ingredients

• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon salt, or to taste
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper, or to taste
• 1 head cabbage, sliced
• 1 white onion, Sliced
• 1 pinch white sugar

Directions

1. Pour vegetable oil into a large cast iron skillet over medium-high heat
2. After oil is hot enough to fry
3. Carefully add cabbage, onion, and sugar
4. cook and stir continuously for 5 minutes, until tender

Fried Potatoes (with onions)

Ingredients

• 6 large russet potatoes 
• 1large onion, sliced thin
• ¹?₄teaspoon salt
• ¹?₄teaspoon black pepper
• vegetable oil

Directions

1. Peel and slice potatoes about 1/8 inch, like French fries.
2. Slice onion thinly.
3. Fill a large cast iron skillet with vegetable oil on medium-high heat, do not add potatoes until your oil is hot enough to fry.
4. Add potatoes and onions, cover and fry for 10 minutes. Using a spatula, turn the potatoes and onions over so they do not break apart.
5. Sprinkle salt and pepper and continue to fry with cover removed for another 5 minutes or until potatoes begin to turn to a crispy brown; turning occasionally.
6. Serve hot with your meal.

Old Fashion Cornbread

Ingredients

• 6 tablespoons butter, melted, plus butter for baking pan
• 1 cup cornmeal
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 1/2 cups milk

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Lightly grease an 8-inch baking pan.
2. In a large bowl, mix together the cornmeal, flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
3. In a separate bowl, mix together the eggs, buttermilk, and butter. Pour the buttermilk mixture into the cornmeal mixture and fold together until there are no dry spots (the batter will still be lumpy). Pour the batter into the prepared baking dish.
4. Bake until the top is golden brown and tester inserted into the middle of the corn bread comes out clean, about 20 to 25 minutes. Remove the cornbread from the oven and let it cool for 10 minutes before serving.

Wilted Salad

Ingredients

• 1 head leaf lettuce
• 4 -5 green onions
• salt
• pepper
• Dressing

Dressing Ingredients

• 1/2 cup bacon grease
• 1/2 cup vinegar
• 1/4 cup water
• 1 tablespoon sugar

Directions

• Wash the lettuce several times; drain.
• Clean and cut the onions into the lettuce.
• Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste.
• Dressing: Heat dressing ingredients to boiling; pour over lettuce while boiling hot.
• Stir and mix well.
• Serve immediately.

Old Fashioned Pineapple Upside-Down Cake

Ingredients

• 4 eggs
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1 (20 ounce) can sliced pineapple
• 10 maraschino cherries, halved
• 1 cup sifted cake flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1 tablespoon butter, melted

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
2. In a 10-inch cast iron skillet, melt 1/2 cup butter over very low heat. Remove from heat, and sprinkle brown sugar evenly over pan. Arrange pineapple slices to cover bottom of skillet. Distribute cherries around pineapple; set aside.
3. Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt.
4. Separate the eggs into two bowls. In a large bowl, beat egg whites just until soft peaks form. Add granulated sugar gradually, beating well after each addition. Beat until medium-stiff peaks form. In a small bowl, beat egg yolks at high speed until very thick and yellow. With a wire whisk or rubber scraper, using an over-and-under motion, gently fold egg yolks and flour mixture into whites until blended. Fold in 1 tablespoon melted butter or margarine and almond extract. Spread batter evenly over pineapple in skillet.
5. Bake until surface springs back when gently pressed with fingertip and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 30 to 35 minutes. Loosen the edges of the cake with table knife. Cool the cake for 5 minutes before inverting onto serving plate.

Enjoy your time with your family and not just on holiday’s, all year long. Don’t hate those family traditions you may find silly or too troublesome. Cherish what you have as you are enjoying this meal with your family, cause after you finish eating this meal, you can expect to have a heart attack….But looking on the bright side of things, you are going to have the very best year EVER!