Southern Staples

My little patient is resting and recuperating. So I'm finally back to the kitchen. I love cooking in the summer when everything is fresh from the garden.

I thought I'd share one of my favorites, a Southern staple--stewed tomatoes. Our tomatoes are really starting to ripen and I had a big bunch ready at the same time. I made this favorite with them and it was out-of-this-world yummy. A big pile of stewed tomatoes served over rice, you don't get any more southern than that. Well, maybe if you served it with a side of cracklin cornbread. But even I'm not that old school southern. Mama don't eat no cracklins.

Making stewed tomatoes is oh so simple. I never use a recipe, it just depends on how many tomatoes I have. If we have a hankering for them in the winter, I simply use a large can of crushed tomatoes. If you're using fresh ones, I'd use about six to eight tomatoes, depending on their size. Peel them, cut them up (preferably over a bowl to save the juices) and dump them in the pot. To this pot you're going to add salt and pepper to taste. I like a generous portion of black pepper in my stewed tomatoes. And the only other ingredient--bacon grease.

Okay, I'm letting you in on a little secret. most good southern cooks I know keep a cup of bacon grease in the refrigerator. Don't turn your nose up, you non-southern gals. It is the essence of yumminess and the secret to good southern cooking. After I cook my bacon (which I do in the microwave) I save the grease in a little coffee cup.

One or two heaping tablespoons should be all you need for this many tomatoes. You add more when you use more tomatoes. That's all there is to it. And you end up with a little pot of heaven.




And speaking of a little bit of heaven...peaches are starting to get ripe down here. We picked the first peach ever off our own peach trees. It was small but the best one EVER.

Have a happy Rednesday. Be sure to visit over at http://suelovescherries.blogspot.com/
and get you cup full of bacon grease.