Chicken Fat Pie Crust Recipe

In honor of National Pi Day, which celebrates that elusive mathematical constant, I thought I'd take a moment to share one of our family's tried and true "pie" crust recipes made with chicken fat and shortening. While butter, Crisco and lard are all delightful options when making homemade pie, I have to go with chicken fat on this one, especially if you're making apple pie or mincemeat pie. There's just something about that salty, savory, sweet combo that can't be beat.

This is a very old recipe that was passed onto me by my granny Boohler (a.k.a. Beulah Bailey) back in Princeton, West Virginia, and as you'll see, it's characteristically vague (in a Southern passed down oral recipe kinda way) beginning with, "Next time you kill a chicken...."

My granny and grandpa in WV. I spy some pies on that table.

Back in the 1940's in Ceres Hollow, WV, my dad, uncle, grandpa, and my granny Boohler raised chickens on a small plot of land that skirted Woodlawn Memorial Park, a cemetery that my great-grandfather helped to build and where much of the Bailey clan rests today. Their two acre "farm" had a milking cow, a hog, a few hens and several chickens as well as an ornery rooster, which was known to hide inside the outhouse toilet where it succeeded in scaring the you-know-what out of my dad when he had to use it in the middle of the night.

It was here that my grandpa took care of all the chicken killing, and he did it the old school way by wringing the chicken's neck, before cutting off its head and gutting it after which it would be scalded, plucked and singed over a fire to remove any stubborn pin feathers. There's an old story that my granny used to love to share at the dinner table, which involved my grandpa unsuccessfully wringing a chicken's neck and then chopping off its head only to watch it take off down the road spurting a trail of blood (seems that sometimes the nerves don't always match up with the brain as with the phrase "chicken with its head cut off"). It was stories like these that made for excellent meal fodder as you can imagine along with plenty of nervous laughter, especially when you're staring at a big plate of granny's fried chicken and white gravy.

Whether you're slaughtering your own chickens or purchasing them at your local market, be sure to save the fat after you stew one or make chicken stock since this is best way to salvage all the good stuff. A super easy way to make chicken stock is to do it in the slow cooker (same goes for stewing a whole chicken). I got quite adept at this cooking method while testing recipes for The Southern Slow Cooker where I have both a slow cooker chicken stock recipe and a recipe for slow cooker chicken with cornmeal dumplings. Once you've made your stock or stew, simply chill the broth and scrape all the fat off the top for making pie crusts.

Chicken Fat Pie Crust Recipe

As told to me by my granny....

"Next time you kill and stew a chicken, save the fat drippings by chilling the whole mess. Just spoon off the fat that has congealed on top. Then substitute the fat in your basic pie crust recipe. Substitute the chicken fat for half of your shortening."

Basic Pie Crust Recipe

Pie crusts tend to be flakier when you don't overwork them and use as little flour as possible, so when flouring your board or your rolling pin go easy on the flour.

Makes two 9-inch pie crusts

2 cups flour, sifted

1/2 teaspon salt

1 cup plus 1 tablespoon shortening (use half chicken fat here if you like)

3 to 4 tablespoons ice water, plus more as needed

Mix the flour, salt and shortening with a fork until it's well blended together. Add the water and mix until a ball forms. To roll out, lightly flour your counter top and rolling pin. Roll out pastry crusts to fit two 9-inch pie plates.

All photos and text ©2013 Fatback and Foie Gras. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.

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Edamame Burgers with Feta and Tzatziki Sauce Recipe

I'm a huge fan of edamame, and many of you may not realize it, but Virginia grows a good amount of these tasty beans. In fact, Epic Gardens in Richmond, who recently started growing organic edamame, is having a tough time keeping up with the demand. Many people like myself are drawn to edamame as a food source because it's incredibly versatile when it comes to cooking (think: edamame salad, hummus, stews, stir-frys and sautes). Edamame is also super healthy (it's packed with fiber and protein and is low in fat and calories), but best of all, edamame tastes great. I can plow through a bowl of steamed edamame pods sprinkled with sea salt. Pure heaven!

When The Virginia Farm Bureau asked me to come up with a recipe involving edamame for their bi-monthly television show, "Real Virginia", I was all over it, but I wanted to try something a bit different when it comes to cooking this magical bean, one that didn't involve a salad or a spread since there are plenty of recipes like this already available. So, I got to thinking bean burgers. Edamame is a bean, bean burgers are tasty and healthy, so why wouldn't this work?

Since edamame benefits from a good dose of flavor, I also thought, why not give this recipe a Greek burger spin and top it with some salty feta and a dollop of homemade tzatziki sauce? After a few experimental recipe tries, I finally had the recipe down, and even this resident meat eating junkie was pleased with the results (just take a peek around this blog and you'll see how much I revere pork products). In fact, I didn't miss the meat at all in this flavor-jammed burger. Gah! Did I just say that?

To watch me make edamame burgers on the show "Real Virginia", check out this video. For the full recipe, just scroll on down. Enjoy!

Greek-Style Edamame Burgers with Feta and Tzatziki Sauce

Makes 4 large or 6 medium-sized burgers

1 cup frozen, shelled edamame beans
1 15.5-ounce can cannellini beans, drained, thoroughly rinsed and dried
¼ cup onion, minced
1 teaspoon minced fresh garlic
3/4 cup steel-cut quick cooking oats or regular oats
1/2 teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper
2 tablespoons fresh basil, chopped
1 tablespoon fresh oregano, chopped
2 egg whites
1-2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, for pan frying
For serving: Whole grain hamburger buns, sliced tomatoes, red onion, feta cheese, and tzatziki sauce (see recipe below).

Cook the edamame in boiling water for 1 minute. Then drain well and set aside. In a food processor, add edamame along with the rest of the ingredients through to oregano and pulse until blended but not pureed, stopping periodically to scrape down the sides. Then add in the egg whites and continue pulsing until well blended.

Wet your hands with water and form the mixture into individual patties and place them on a sheet pan. Cover the sheet pan with plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. Then, heat the olive oil in a skillet to medium-high. Cook the burgers in the skillet until they are well-browned on each side and cooked through, about 4-5 minutes per side.

Drain burgers on paper towels and sprinkle with additional salt, if desired.

To serve: Lightly grill or toast the hamburger buns. Then, layer in order: sliced red onions, burger, a slice of feta cheese, a dollop of tzatziki sauce and a sliced tomato.

For the Tzatziki:

Cook’s Note: Double this recipe and serve as a dip or as an accompaniment to pita slices.

Makes 1 cup

½ of a medium-sized cucumber, peeled, seeded and finely minced (about a ½ cup)
1 cup whole milk Greek yogurt
¼ teaspoon garlic, minced
1 tablespoon fresh mint, minced
1/4 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1/8 teaspoon cumin
½ tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper, to taste

Grate the cucumber and drain well, pressing out as much liquid as you can. Then, mix it well with the rest of the ingredients in a medium-sized bowl. Cover and chill until ready to serve. 
 
All photos and text ©2013 Fatback and Foie Gras. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.

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Love by the Glass: March is Virginia Wine and Dine Month

It's that time of the year again-- March Virginia Wine and Dine Month, where nearly 300 restaurants throughout the state highlight Virginia wine with some of their own latest and greatest culinary creations. Even Virginia food and wine travel packages are on tap this year with local hotels, resorts and inns creating special wine-focused travel packages. It may come as a surprise to some, but Virginia was recently ranked a Top 10 Wine Destination for 2012 by Wine Enthusiast Magazine. How cool is that? You've got some of the best vino right here in your backyard people, so I suggest getting out there and drinking it. We now have over 230 wineries and counting in Virginia (currently ranking us 5th in the nation), so I can promise you, there is no shortage of tasty juice.

Speaking of delightful libations, Barboursville Vineyards took home this year's Virginia Wineries Association Governor's Cup for its 2009 Octagon 12th Edition, which seals the winery's very well-deserved fourth Governor's Cup win. Not only was the competition stiff this year (and it was definitely the year of the Bordeaux-style grape blends), but the judging was stringent with judges participating in over two weeks of tastings. Sounds like a pretty good gig to me.

Jason Tesauro of Barboursville Vineyards basks in Octagon glow.

Meanwhile, a few of us journalists and Virginia wine lovers were lucky to get a mini-sampling of what folks are in for with March Virginia Wine and Dine Month with a luncheon tour of several of Richmond's finest participating dining destinations. And it went a little like this:

Bar cameo: Roosevelt owner and all around cool chica Kendra Murden.

We started with a visit to The Roosevelt, where chef Lee Gregory whipped up a divine braised Virginia lamb over gnocchi with salsify paired with one of Virginia's very few Pinot Noir's, a 2011 Pinot from Ankida Ridge Vineyards. For those of you who don't know, the Pinot Noir grape is arguably one of the hardest grapes to grow anywhere, much less in Virginia where local weather can be a full-on crap shoot, but this wine is truly stellar. I recently became a convert to the joys of the delicate, berry-laden Pinot Noir after hitting a bunch of wineries in Monterey, California, and I have to say, Ankida Ridge's version was on point.

Did you know chef Lee Gregory is up for a James Beard Award? Huzzah!

Next, we hit up Rappahannock Restaurant, where chef Dylan Fultineer showcased what owners Travis and Ryan Croxton do best, which is anything involving a Virginia-raised oyster. Fultineer topped a Rappahannock and an Olde Salt oyster with minced apples, red onion, thyme and a touch of vinegar, creating a sort of mignonette that paired beautifully with our next wine of the day, Chatham Vineyards steel fermented 2011 Chardonnay. This wine screams, "bring on summer, so I can sit outside and sip this stuff all afternoon", and it's a great wine to whet your taste for a French-style Burgundy-- minerality, light acidity and slightly melon ball-y, this is the perfect seafood wine.

Behold the brine:

Our last stop of the day was to Lemaire, where along with some local meats and cheeses, we chatted with Virginia winemaker, Michael Shaps of Virginia Wineworks while imbibing his 2009 Viognier (which I personally just loved, loved, loved) and his 2008 Cabernet Franc, one of Shaps' several old world-style wines made in very small lots. This is a Cab Franc that's slightly tannic with all of those fruit-laden spicy notes you want from an aged version of this grape. It's clear that Mr. Shaps knows his stuff when it comes to this style of winemaking as evidenced by his own Governor's Cup win back in 2004.

Our day culminated with a special appearance by First Lady Maureen McDonnell, who has done so much to promote all things Virginia, but most specifically Virginia wines through her FLITE program (First Lady's Initiative Team Effort), and with the international recognition Virginia wines are finally receiving, I'd say her program has been a success.

Virginia's First Lady offers a Champagne toast.

Virginia Wine and Dine Month kicks off today and runs through the entire month of March. With so many amazing restaurants, wine shops, hotels, resorts and inns participating, you should have no trouble finding something new to enjoy, so how about giving Virginia wine a try?

For more information on Virginia wine and Wine and Dine month, check out http://www.virginiawine.org/

©2013 Fatback and Foie Gras. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.

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Slow Cooker Venison Barbecue Recipe (Deer-B-Que)

Top BBQ Venison Sandwiches with homemade creamy cider slaw.

I didn't grow up eating much venison. My dad was an avid squirrel hunter back in the day (all hail Wild, Wonderful West Virginia!), but when it came to a meaty dinner in our house, it was almost always pork, pork and more pork. Lord knows, I heart the pork (like, A LOT), but I love my game meats, too, so when I was bequeathed a 3 pound venison roast my first thought was bring on the slow cooker deer-b-que.

I learned to cook venison from an old friend in college who was an avid hunter. Nary a winter passed without seeing him come back from the Virginia mountains with a big buck laid out in the back of his pick-up truck, and after the deer was field dressed and processed, there would be enough meat to last for months. While the tenderloin was always the most highly prized, the lesser cuts would never to go waste, ending up as sausages, burgers, air dried deer jerky or plopped inside a crockpot to make venison barbecue, stew or roast.

While there are many ways to cook tougher cuts of venison (such as in a regular oven, Dutch oven, smoker or grill), the slow cooker is simply made for tackling a super lean piece of meat like this because of its low and slow heat and the fact that the slow cooker naturally retains a good amount of moisture during the cooking process. When it comes to making deer-b-que in the slow cooker, just about anything goes flavor-wise as long as your meat remains covered in some kind of liquid during the cooking process. Unlike a fatty, marbled pork butt (which makes some stellar-tasting BBQ in the crockpot), venison roast contains virtually no fat at all, so it won't be long before you have a dried out hockey puck piece of meat on your hands if it's not braised in liquid.

There are many ways to get around this dilemma when it comes to choosing your braising liquid. I've seen whole roasts covered in beer, cola, water infused with onions, garlic and celery (a sort of homemade stock), even cooking the roast in coffee, which was suggested to me by a Facebook friend. With all of these methods the roast is cooked for 9 hours or so until it's super tender in just the braising liquid. After which, the remaining liquid is discarded, the roast is removed and shredded and then returned to the slow cooker before it meets with a good dousing of your favorite BBQ sauce. Not only does this method help to stave off any gaminess by infusing it with additional flavor, but if you're liquid contains some kind of acid (vinegar, buttermilk, citrus, Coke), this helps to break down the connective tissue in the meat and reduce gaminess while tenderizing it. FYI: Not all venison cuts will have a strong gamey flavor. Much depends on how the deer was killed, what it ate, and how it was processed after the kill.

For this recipe, I wanted to create a one-pot wonder where the venison roast slow cooks directly in the barbecue sauce, eliminating the extra step of cooking it in a separate liquid prior. In order to make sure my barbecue sauce covered the meat (and the meat wasn't swimming in it once it was done), I sliced the venison in two-inch thick pieces and placed them on top of some onions before pouring in the barbecue sauce along with a bit of stock. Nine hours later my deer-b-que was done and, not only was it infused with tons of flavor from cooking it directly in the barbecue sauce, but all it needed was to be shredded and it was ready to stuff into a warm bun and topped with creamy cider slaw. Super easy, super tasty and nary a bit of gaminess.

Slow Cooker Venison Barbecue Sandwiches (A.K.A. The Bambi Sammy)

Makes 8-10 sandwiches, depending on the size of your roast.

When slow cooking a lean meat such as venison you will need to remember two things: make sure the meat is covered in some kind of liquid as it cooks in the slow cooker (be it BBQ sauce, water, beef stock, beer or a can of cola), and be sure add some type of fat into the cooking liquid (in this case, I incorporated a couple of tablespoons of butter into the BBQ sauce) to compensate for the venison’s leanness. Top these protein packed BBQ sandwiches with homemade cider slaw and a dash of hot sauce, if desired. Serve with Oven-Baked Spicy Rutabaga “Fries”(see recipe below) for a healthier take on a typical barbecue plate. Note: I used a 6-quart slow cooker for this recipe. Note #2: you can easily double the barbecue sauce and set some aside if you like your BBQ saucy.

3-4 pound whole venison roast
One large onion, sliced
1/4 cup cider vinegar
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup dark beer
½ cup ketchup
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
3 ounces tomato paste
2 tablespoons melted unsalted butter
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon dried mustard
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
¼ teaspoon black pepper
1 cup beef or chicken stock, beer, cola or water, or enough to cover the venison

Trim deer roast of any visible fat and/or connective tissue and cut it into 2-inch thick slices (this will help the meat to stay submerged in the sauce). Spray the inside of the slow cooker with cooking spray or place a slow cooker liner inside. Spread the sliced onions onto the bottom of the slow cooker. Place the pieces of meat inside the slow cooker without overlapping them too much, if possible.

In a medium-size bowl, whisk the cider vinegar and the brown sugar until the sugar has dissolved. Whisk in beer, ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, tomato paste, butter, chili powder, salt, mustard, garlic powder, red pepper flakes and black pepper. Pour sauce over the venison pieces, reserving about a ½ cup if desired to serve on the side. Pour the 1 cup of stock (or more) over the meat, making sure it is barely covered. Cover the slow cooker and set on low 9-10 hours or until the meat can be easily shredded. Remove meat to a large bowl and shred it with two forks. Return the meat to the slow cooker and cook another hour on low. Set the slow cooker to warm and serve barbecue straight from the slow cooker insert.

Oven-Baked Spicy Rutabaga "Fries"

Serves 4-6

Cook's Note: These won't get super crispy like potatoes, but they are still really tasty!






2 medium-sized rutabaga
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon chili powder
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
½ teaspoon paprika
Salt and Pepper

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Peel and slice the rutabaga into ½-inch wide spears (as you would potatoes for making french fries). In a large bowl, mix together the olive oil, chili powder, cayenne pepper and paprika. Toss the rutabaga with the oil mixture and spread it (making sure it doesn't touch) onto a large baking sheet lined with parchment paper or sprayed generously with cooking spray. Season rutabaga with salt and pepper.

Place the sheet pan in the middle rack of the oven and cook the fries for about 15 minutes or until they begin to crisp on the bottom. Then turn over the rutabaga pieces and cook them on the other side, about another 15-20 minutes or until crispy, watching them closely so they don’t burn.

Remove fries to a serving platter and sprinkle with additional salt, if desired.

All photos and text ©2013 Fatback and Foie Gras. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.






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A Sneak Peek at "The Southern Slow Cooker" Cookbook

Sausage Stuffed Acorn Squash with Molasses Glaze from The Southern Slow Cooker

So, the final edits for The Southern Slow Cooker: Big-Flavor, Low-Fuss Recipes for Comfort Food Classics are nearly done and a release date for the book is set for August 20, 2013. I'm excited to report that you can now pre-order the book for a reduced price on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Overstock, to name a few. It seems this book thing is really happening!

Now that I have a little breathing room from writing, editing, testing, writing, editing and testing again, I thought I'd give you guys a little preview of where all of this hard work is headed. In addition to 60-plus Southern-inspired slow cooker recipes, I've added some bonus ones, from homemade biscuits and relishes to second day meals (as in what to do with all of those leftovers kinda thing) along with beer, wine and cocktail pairings (with recipes kindly donated by professional mixologists). 

All in all, I think the book is pretty darned fun, and I really hope you'll like it. In the meantime, I've compiled a few photos that I snapped with my iPhone (I am an admitted Instagram junkie) while recipe testing for the book to whet your appetite a bit. Stay tuned for more updates and announcements as they come.

Happy slow cooking everyone,

Kendra

Slow Cooker Hot Dog Chili makes for a divine slaw dog.

Slow Cooker Shrimp Creole

Slow Cooker Country Ham Bread Pudding done up red-eye gravy-style

Slow Cooker N.C. BBQ (Eastern-style!)

Slow Cooker Black Eyed Peas and Stewed Tomatoes

©2013 Fatback and Foie Gras. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.

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