Many Eastern Kentucky counties fall into the Southern Appalachian region, a mountainous area known for its distinctive culinary culture. With the May release of their cookbook, Celebrating Southern Appalachian Food: Recipes & Stories from Mountain Kitchens, Jim Casada and Tipper Pressley share recipes for traditional dishes along with tips, stories and explanations of some of the dishes’ origins. A handy glossary of Southern Appalachian food terms is as entertaining as it is enlightening. In this issue, we present just a “scrimption” of the “larrupin’ good vittles” found in the cookbook.
Serves 6-8
6 cups blackberries
1 cup sugar
½ cup water
¼ cup cornstarch
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons butter
1 baked pie shell
1. Cook 2 cups of blackberries with sugar, water, cornstarch, lemon juice and butter. Bring to a simmer and cook for 1 minute, until mixture has thickened.
2. Place 2 cups of blackberries on the bottom of the pie shell. Pour cooked mixture over them and add the remaining 2 cups of blackberries to the top.
3. Chill for 4 hours before serving. Makes a pretty summertime pie.
— Tipper Pressley
Celebrating Southern Appalachian Food: Recipes & Stories from Mountain Kitchens by Jim Casada and Tipper Pressley is available in bookstores across the country and online at arcadiapublishing.com.
Photo courtesy of Tipper Pressley and Jim Casada.