New Year's Traditions

In the South on the first day of the new year it is crucial to do several things to ensure "good luck" for the rest of the year.  First, have all Christmas decorations down and second, eat a meal consisting of black eye peas, greens, a pork product and corn bread.  If you hail from "low country" you add rice to the mixture- often in the form of hoppin johns.  But my family is from Tennessee and Kentucky and rice wasn't something that was cooked that often. 



Corn bread (cooked in a cast iron of course) Boston Butt, black eyed peas and collard greens. 

Future posts will have extensive photography of what I cook, and how I cooked it- but thanks to a bad back I was lucky that I could even cook this!

Granny's Corn Bread
- Heat oven to 450 degrees F.
- Put Crisco (r) shortening in the skillet and place skillet into oven.  
- In a separate bowl, mix 2 parts cornmeal (not the yellow kind) to one part White Lily self rising flour.
- Add enough milk to completely mix the flour and meal and have a thin consistency (think gravy).
- Remove cast iron from oven and pour the flour/meal mixture into the skillet. 
- Return to oven and bake until done (usually around 25 minutes for a medium size skillet).