Bless Your Heart, Saving the World One Covered Dish at a Time

I can’t think of a more fitting title for a cookbook featuring Southern cooking than “Bless your Heart!” It is nearly impossible to spend any amount of time down South without hearing this phrase often!

This is another cookbook you will read like a book because of its many stories, in addition to the recipes. Here is one heartwarming example. “Eddie Ray Barnell, ninety-two, dropped dead in the middle of the night on a Saturday. Heart attack in the backyard. He was in his bare feet, and to this day his wife says she has no idea why he went outside. Some of us have our suspicions but we don’t like to talk out of turn. . . . I was the first one out to the Barnell place with my mixed medley casserole. Serves ten. Twelve if you don’t spoon out big portions, and I knew it would be a small crowd at the house because the Barnells, bless their hearts, never had any children.”

To quote from the introduction, “Southerners are good at many things. We’re good at telling tales, preserving tradition, and greeting strangers on the sidewalk. We mind our manners, honor our heritage, and remember not to wear white after Labor Day. But what Southerners are really good at is food.”

With chapter titles such as “Church Potluck, Feeding the Faithful”, “Body and Soul, When Words Aren’t Enough” and “Lending a Hand, Because It’s What We Do”, you just know that this is an honest to goodness down home style book.

Here are samples of the delicious recipes you’ll find here along with comments from the author.




Deviled Eggs

Maybe the only time the devil is welcome at church.

6 large eggs
3 tablespoons mayonnaise
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon vinegar
4 drops Tabasco
Paprika for garnish

Place the eggs in a saucepan large enough to accommodate all of the eggs in a single layer, covering with water by one inch. Simmer over medium heat for 14 minutes. Remove from heat and place the eggs in cold water to prevent further cooking. Crack the shells, peel and split lengthwise. Remove the yolks, place in a small bowl, and mash with a fork. Add the mayonnaise, mustard, salt, black pepper, vinegar, and hot sauce and mix well. Spoon the filling into the whites. Garnish with paprika.


Temptation Carrot-Pineapple Cake with Cream Cheese Icing

Blessed are those children who can pass this cake by before it has been sliced – without being tempted to run a finger through the frosting to get a taste.

Cake:

2 cups self-rising flour
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 ½ cups vegetable oil
2 cups sugar
4 large eggs, slightly beaten
2 cups carrots, finely grated
1 8 ounce can crushed pineapple
¼ cup chopped pecans


Cream cheese icing:

1 8 ounce package cream cheese, softened
½ cup butter
1 pound powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ cup chopped pecans

To make the cake: Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Grease and flour two 9 inch round cake pans. In a medium bowl, mix the flour and cinnamon. In a large bowl, combine the oil, sugar, and eggs and mix well. Add the flour mixture and continue beating to blend ingredients. Fold in the carrots, pineapple, and pecans. Pour the cake batter into the prepared pans. Bake for approximately 50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of each pan comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes. Remove from the pans and cool completely before icing.

To make the cream cheese icing: In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the cream cheese and butter. Add the powdered sugar and vanilla, beating until creamy. Fold in the pecans. Spread the icing over the top of each layer, stacking one on top of the other. Ice the sides.

Can’t you just imagine the praise you will get for serving this one???

This is one cookbook everyone will love, no matter what part of the USA you call home.