Whitney Miller's New Southern Table: My Favorite Family Recipes with a Modern Twist
320
Whitney Miller's New Southern Table: My Favorite Family Recipes with a Modern Twist
320eBook
Available on Compatible NOOK devices, the free NOOK App and in My Digital Library.
Related collections and offers
Overview
Following her great-grandmothers’ examples of creatively stretching meals during the Great Depression, Whitney Miller transforms recipes from her Southern roots by preserving flavors of traditional family dishes and offering the excitement of her own special touches.
After winning season one of the TV series Masterchef, Miller reimagines classic recipes and experiments with flavors inspired by her travels from around the world. The book features approachable dishes simple enough for any home cook to create and embodies the true hospitality of a southern family.
In Whitney Miller’s New Southern Table, Miller offers a taste of her family table with meals such as…
- PB&J Chicken Satay,
- Sweet Corn Grit Tamales,
- Creole Stuccotash Salad,
- Mozzarella-Stuffed Meatloaf and much more.
Whitney Miller’s New Southern Table shares personal fond memories of family, food, and community tables…all things those in the south all hold so dear. Using new techniques and cooking methods, Miller’s ability to cook can only be matched by her incredible desire to serve others.
This book is more than a cookbook but instead a reminder through Miller’s recipes, stories, and photographs that in every small town and country farm, the love of food and family endures.
Product Details
| ISBN-13: | 9780718011611 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | HarperCollins Christian Publishing |
| Publication date: | 08/22/2023 |
| Sold by: | Barnes & Noble |
| Format: | eBook |
| Pages: | 320 |
| File size: | 66 MB |
| Note: | This product may take a few minutes to download. |
About the Author
Whitney Miller is the winner of MasterChef Season 1. She is a graduate of the University of Southern Mississippi, where she majored in nutrition. Whitney and her mother recently opened a small café in their hometown of Poplarville, Mississippi.
Read an Excerpt
Whitney Miller's New Southern Table
My Favorite Family Recipes with a Modern Twist
By Whitney Miller
Thomas Nelson
Copyright © 2015 Whitney MillerAll rights reserved.
ISBN: 978-0-7180-1161-1
CHAPTER 1
Breakfast
Whether you're preparing toast and preserves or biscuits and gravy, you're not just making breakfast, you're making memories. I didn't really realize this until I started thinking about favorite breakfast moments and foods. Of course, I thought about that surprise birthday breakfast in bed with my favorite foods, complete with a flower. And then there was the Christmas my whole family gathered in the kitchen to cook our favorite breakfast foods — pancakes with blueberry syrup, scrambled or fried eggs, grits, biscuits or toast, and gravy, a smorgasbord of sorts.
Olive Oil Biscuits
Tomato Gravy
Baked Donuts
Griddled Blueberry Muffins
Sweet Potato–Banana Nut Muffins
Peach Crumb Muffins
Cinnamon Cran-Raisin Bread
Quick-and-Easy Cinnamon Rolls
Gluten-Free Skillet Toast
Gluten-Free White Squash Bread
Blackberry Refrigerator Preserves
Strawberry Refrigerator Preserves
Persimmon Butter
Breakfast Toast
Stacked Buttermilk Pancakes with Blueberry Syrup
Cinnamon-Pecan Granola Bars
Egg-in-a-Tortilla
Sausage and Egg Pie
Mock Mimosa
Mini Quiches
Olive Oil Biscuits
Biscuits are the hallowed bread of the South, eaten for breakfast or dinner, even for dessert, savored with a slathering of fresh fruit preserves or cane syrup. Biscuit-making is an art, passed down through generations. I can still picture my great-grandmother Strahan's long fingers smoothly working the dough. With her many years of practice, fast work was made of the large mound of dough, resulting in large pans of biscuits, piled mile high and fluffy. Turning the biscuits in the oil in the pan and then patting their tops resulted in brown crusts that were a delicious contrast to the soft, fluffy insides. While my great-grandmother made and turned her biscuits using vegetable oil, I have updated and lightened up this Southern classic by substituting olive oil. Using the same large yellow Pyrex bowl that she used, I follow those time-honored steps, celebrating the achievement of that same light and fluffy texture that my great-grandmother's biscuits were famous for. I can still remember her words as they echoed around the table: "Don't just take one, have two. There are plenty more!"
¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
2 cups self-rising flour, plus more for biscuit cutter
¾ to 1 cup whole milk
Softened butter
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Grease a 9-inch cast-iron skillet with 2 tablespoons olive oil.
Sift the flour into a medium bowl. Make a well in the center of the flour and pour ¼ cup olive oil in the well. Using your hand, gently stir the olive oil into the flour until incorporated. Add the milk a little at a time while continuing to work the flour with your fingers. When a wet dough forms, begin using a down-across-up-and-over folding technique to incorporate the milk until a moist and sticky dough forms. If the dough is too wet, add 1 to 2 tablespoons more flour. Be careful not to overwork the dough.
Transfer the dough to a floured surface. Gently press the dough into a 1-inch-thick round.
Coat a 2 ½- to 3-inch round biscuit cutter in flour and cut out the biscuits, being sure to press straight down through the dough. Form the scraps of dough together and continue cutting. Place the biscuits close together in the greased skillet.
Bake the biscuits for about 12 minutes, until they have fully risen. Do not overcook. If the tops are still pale, change the oven setting to broil and broil until golden brown. Serve warm with butter.
* Makes about 7 biscuits.
Tomato Gravy
One of my fondest memories is of my grandpa Larry teaching me how to make tomato gravy; for him, it was the ideal meal! After my sister Brittyn and I spent the evening at his house, looking at old photographs and laughing at the memories, he announced that we were making tomato gravy and biscuits for dinner. The lesson began; I carefully listened and followed his directions to create first the brown roux and then the actual tomato gravy. The gravy was so good ladled over a hot, fluffy biscuit fresh from the oven. It soaked into the feathery softness of the biscuit, lending a creamy goodness to every bite. Keeping to the tradition of tomato gravy–making, I created my own version, enhancing the flavor with garlic and retaining the rich, creamy taste while losing much of the oil.
¼ cup canola oil
1/3 cup self-rising or all-purpose flour
¼ cup diced yellow onion
1 cup water
1 (28-ounce) can whole peeled tomatoes
1 clove garlic, minced
¾ teaspoon fine sea salt
Heat the oil in a 12-inch cast-iron skillet over medium heat. Stir in the flour until smooth.
Increase the heat to medium-high and cook until the flour mixture turns dark brown, stirring constantly.
Reduce the heat to medium. Add the diced onion and water. Stir until combined. Drain the canned tomatoes, reserving ½ cup of the tomato juice. Add the reserved tomato juice, tomatoes, garlic, and salt to the skillet. Stir until combined. With the back of a spoon, press against the tomatoes to break them into pieces. Cook for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Season with salt to taste. Serve warm with Olive Oil Biscuits (see recipe on page 5).
* Makes 5 to 7 servings.
Baked Donuts
Who doesn't like donuts, especially when you have stacks of mini, bite-size donuts! When my mom was growing up and donut franchises were not so common, she cut canned biscuits into ring shapes and then fried them into tiny donuts to be glazed with a sugary coating or just tossed in a cinnamon and sugar mixture. My recipe takes a healthy twist by baking the donuts and incorporating vegetables into the batter.
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon fine sea salt
1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon, divided
½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
½ teaspoon ground allspice
1/3 cup canola oil
½ cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
¾ cup sweet potato, acorn squash, or pumpkin puree
¼ cup nonfat milk
¼ cup vanilla yogurt
3 tablespoons butter
½ cup pure cane sugar
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a nonstick mini donut pan with cooking spray.
Sift the flour, baking powder, salt, ½ teaspoon of the cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice into a bowl.
In a large bowl whisk together the oil, brown sugar, egg, vanilla, sweet potato puree, milk, and yogurt until smooth. Stir the flour mixture into the sweet potato mixture until just combined.
Spoon the batter into a gallon-size zip-top freezer bag and seal the bag. Snip off a ½-inch tip from a bottom corner of the bag.
Squeeze the bag to pipe the batter into each section of the donut pan. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until a wooden pick inserted near the center comes out clean. Transfer the donuts to a baking sheet. Repeat with the rest of the batter. Let the baked donuts cool for a few minutes.
Melt the butter in a small bowl. Combine the sugar and remaining 1 teaspoon cinnamon in a zip-top plastic bag.
Dip the slightly warm donuts in the melted butter and toss them in the cinnamon-sugar mixture to coat. Serve immediately.
* Makes 24 mini donuts.
Griddled Blueberry Muffins
While at home in Poplarville, Mississippi, known as the Blueberry Capital of the state, I love to serve my family and guests homemade blueberry muffins, made from the fruit gathered from the blueberry bushes lining our driveway. First, I make the muffins, then I slice and griddle them on an iron skillet. My mother often told me about how her grandmother McCarter would do this to her biscuits, candying them with syrup. This cooking technique takes the muffins from a breakfast or brunch food and elevates them to dessert.
5 tablespoons butter, divided
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon grated lemon zest
¼ cup pure cane sugar
½ cup low-fat buttermilk
3 tablespoons whole milk
1 large egg
3 tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup fresh blueberries
Coarse sugar sprinkles, optional
Powdered sugar, optional
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 6-cup jumbo muffin pan with paper liners.
In a medium microwave-safe bowl, melt 4 tablespoons of the butter and let cool slightly.
In a bowl stir together the flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda.
Add the lemon zest, sugar, buttermilk, milk, egg, honey, and vanilla to the slightly cooled butter and whisk until combined. Using a rubber spatula, fold in half of the flour mixture. Do not overmix.
Add the blueberries to the remaining flour mixture and toss to coat. Fold the blueberries and flour mixture into the muffin batter.
Divide the batter evenly among the paper liners. Top each with the coarse sugar sprinkles, if using.
Bake the muffins for 18 to 22 minutes, until lightly browned. Let them cool for about 15 minutes. Cut the muffins in half.
Grease a cast-iron griddle with the remaining 1 tablespoon butter and heat over medium-high heat. Working in batches, place the muffin halves on the griddle and cook until toasted and browned, 30 seconds to 1 minute. Repeat with the remaining muffins.
Serve immediately with butter and a sprinkling of powdered sugar, if using.
* Makes 6 servings.
Sweet Potato–Banana Nut Muffins
Use leftover baked sweet potato to add a naturally sweet, rich flavor to banana nut muffins. Serve with cinnamon butter to wake up your taste buds in the morning.
Muffins
4 ½ tablespoons butter
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
¾ teaspoon baking powder
¾ teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
¾ cup mashed baked sweet potato
2 small very ripe bananas
¼ cup pure cane sugar
¾ cup low-fat buttermilk
¼ cup whole milk
1 large egg
3 tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Pecan Topping
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon pure cane sugar
¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
¾ cup chopped pecans
To prepare the muffins, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 12-cup muffin pan with paper liners.
In a medium microwave-safe bowl, melt the butter and let cool slightly.
In a bowl stir together the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and cinnamon.
Add the sweet potato and bananas to the slightly cooled butter and mash until smooth. Stir in the sugar, buttermilk, milk, egg, honey, and vanilla until incorporated. Using a rubber spatula, fold in the flour mixture, one-third at a time. Do not overmix. Divide the batter evenly among the paper liners.
To prepare the pecan topping, melt the butter in a small microwave-safe bowl. Add the sugar, cinnamon, and pecans. Stir until combined. Scatter the pecan topping evenly over the muffin batter.
Bake the muffins for 18 to 20 minutes. Let cool for 5 minutes. Serve warm.
* Makes 12 muffins.
Peach Crumb Muffins
My grandfather, known affectionately as Daddy Bob, loved to tell a tale about some prized peaches. He also loved a good prank. His father-in-law, O.J., had a peach tree in his yard, and everyone knew not to pick his peaches! One Sunday after church Daddy Bob stopped by a fruit stand and hand-selected the exact number of peaches on O.J.'s tree and parceled them out to his daughters, instructing them to run in and exclaim to their papa O.J., "Look what we have!" Daddy Bob laughed as he shared, "You should have seen the horrified look on O.J.'s face!" He thought his precious little granddaughters had picked all his prized peaches. Needless to say, as soon as the tree was surveyed, the cat was out of the bag. Fresh peaches are still a family favorite, and whenever I serve my peach crumb muffins, our memories are stirred, and we all have a laugh.
Muffins
4 ½ tablespoons butter
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
¾ teaspoon baking powder
¾ teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ cup pure cane sugar
¾ cup low-fat buttermilk
¼ cup whole milk
1 large egg
3 ½ tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup diced fresh peaches (or frozen and thawed)
Crumb Topping
3 tablespoons butter, cut into cubes
6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/3 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
6 tablespoons chopped pecans
To make the muffins, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 12-cup muffin pan with paper liners.
In a medium microwave-safe bowl, melt the butter and let cool slightly.
In another bowl stir together the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and cinnamon.
Add the sugar, buttermilk, milk, egg, honey, and vanilla to the slightly cooled butter and whisk until combined.
Using a rubber spatula, fold half of the flour mixture into the milk mixture. Do not overmix.
Place the peaches in the bowl with the remaining flour mixture and toss to coat. Fold the peaches and flour mixture into the batter. Divide the batter evenly among the paper liners.
To prepare the crumb topping, mix the butter into the flour with a fork until incorporated. Add the brown sugar, cinnamon, and pecans. Stir until combined. Scatter the topping evenly over the muffin batter.
Bake the muffins for 18 to 20 minutes. Let cool for 5 minutes. Serve warm.
* Makes 12 muffins.
Cinnamon Cran-Raisin Bread
Homemade bread. What more can I say? My mom is a bread lover. She claims that bread is her dessert. In this case I would agree. As this homemade bread bakes, the fragrant smell of the cinnamon draws you in; then the intense flavor of the cinnamon, contrasting with the sweet and tart cran-raisins, wins you over. Enjoy this bread warm or toasted with butter. It is also great for making homemade croutons or Cinnamon and Sugar Crisps.
1 (.25-ounce) envelope active dry yeast
2 tablespoons pure cane sugar
½ cup plus 1/3 cup lukewarm water
½ cup plus 1/3 cup warm whole milk, not over 110 degrees F
¼ cup plus 1 tablespoon olive oil
4 cups bread flour, plus more for dusting
1/8 teaspoon grated orange zest
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
½ cup sweetened dried cranberries
½ cup raisins
1 large egg
½ cup firmly packed light brown sugar
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the yeast, sugar, water, and milk. Let stand for 5 minutes. Add ½ cup of the oil, flour, orange zest, and salt to the bowl. Using a paddle attachment, beat on medium speed until the dough is smooth. Add the cranberries and raisins. Replace the paddle with the dough hook and increase the speed to high. After 2 to 4 minutes the dough will become sticky and form a ball.
Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl and turn to coat. Cover the dough with plastic wrap and let rise until doubled in size, about 1 hour.
In a small bowl beat the egg. In another small bowl mix the brown sugar and cinnamon.
Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface and cut in half. Return half of the dough to the bowl. On the floured surface press the dough into an 8 x 10-inch rectangle. Brush the dough with some of the beaten egg and evenly cover it with half of the cinnamon-sugar mixture. Lightly press the mixture into the dough. Starting at the short end roll the dough up tightly, pinch the seams together to close, and tuck the ends under the log. Roll the dough back and forth to form a smooth cylinder. Repeat with the other half of the dough.
Transfer the dough loaves to a parchment paper–lined baking sheet, smooth side up. Cover the loaves with a tea towel and let rise for 1 hour.
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
Bake the loaves for 15 minutes. Cover with a piece of parchment paper; reduce the temperature to 400 degrees F and bake for an additional 10 minutes. Transfer the loaves to a wire rack to cool.
Thinly slice and serve warm, or store in an airtight container for up to 1 week.
* Makes 2 loaves.
Quick-and-Easy Cinnamon Rolls
How easy is this? Use my Olive Oil Biscuit dough, and add cinnamon and sugar to the rolled-out dough to make these easy cinnamon rolls. Cooking them in a muffin tin helps them retain their shape. These are quick, perfect bites to share with family and friends.
Cinnamon Rolls
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
Olive Oil Biscuit dough (page 5)
¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons firmly packed light brown sugar, divided
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon, divided
1/3 cup chopped pecans
Glaze
5 to 6 tablespoons powdered sugar
1 tablespoon whole milk
To make the cinnamon rolls, preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Grease 9 cups of a muffin pan with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil.
Place the dough on a floured surface. Using floured hands, gently press the dough out into a rectangle about ¼ inch thick. If the dough is too sticky to press out, gently fold in a little flour. Brush the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil over the dough.
In a small bowl combine ¼ cup of the brown sugar with ¼ teaspoon of the cinnamon. Sprinkle evenly over the dough. Starting at one of the long sides, roll the dough into a cylinder. Cut the cylinder into 9 equal pieces.
In a small bowl combine the remaining 2 tablespoons brown sugar and remaining ¼ teaspoon cinnamon. Stir in the chopped pecans. Divide the mixture evenly among the greased muffin cups. Lightly press the pieces of dough on top of the pecan mixture in the muffin cups.
Bake for 18 minutes or until lightly golden brown.
While the cinnamon rolls are baking, prepare the glaze. Combine the powdered sugar and milk until thick and smooth.
Let the cinnamon rolls cool for 5 minutes, drizzle the glaze over them, and then transfer to a serving platter. Serve warm.
* Makes 9 cinnamon rolls.
(Continues...)
Excerpted from Whitney Miller's New Southern Table by Whitney Miller. Copyright © 2015 Whitney Miller. Excerpted by permission of Thomas Nelson.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.
Table of Contents
Contents
Introduction, ix,My Southern Pantry, xii,
Breakfast, 1,
Socials and Snacks, 39,
Soups, Salads, and Sandwiches, 81,
Sides to Share, 119,
Family Suppers, 153,
Sunday Dinners, 183,
Company's Comin', 201,
Somethin' Sweet, 227,
Essentials and Enhancers, 277,
Acknowledgments, 295,
About the Author, 297,
Index, 299,