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Cherokee Recipes
I thought I would share a few delicious Cherokee recipes with everyone. Enjoy!
1. Fry Bread
2 Cups FLOUR
1/2 tsp. Salt
1/2 cup water
1/2 tsp. Baking Powder
1/2 cup Instant Dry Milk
2 Cups Shortening
Mix Flour, baking powder, salt, powdered milk, and water. Heat shortening until flakes of flour start to bubble when dropped into oil. While shortening is heating, Pull off a palm sized mound of dough and roll it into a smooth ball then flatten into a disk shape. Size is a matter of preference. Put dough into pan, cook until brown, turn over and cook other side until brown. You can take a brown paper bag and place a few sheets of paper towels on the bottom and drop finished fry bread into bag to let grease drain.
2. Bean Bread
1 cup of cornmeal
½ cup flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tbsp sugar
2 cups milk
¼ cup melted shortening
1 beaten egg
2 tbsp honey
4 cups drained brown beans
Mix all of these ingredients, except beans, thoroughly, and then fold in the beans. Pour into greased, heated pan. Bake at 450 until brown (usually 30 minutes or so)
3. Grape Dumplings
1 cup flour
1 ½ tsp baking powder
2 tsp sugar
¼ tsp salt
1 tbsp shortening
½ cup grape juice
Mix flour, baking powder, sugar, salt and shortening. Add juice and mix into stiff dough. Roll dough very thin on floured board and cut into strips ½" wide (or roll dough in hands and break off pea-sized bits). Drop into boiling grape juice and cook for 10 - 12 minutes.
Some Cherokee cooks continue to make their grape dumplings by gathering and cooking wild grapes, or 'possum grapes' instead of grape juice.
The John Howard Payne Papers, a document from 1835 where the elders were interviewed for their knowledge of the old ways, tells us that around 1800, a grape dessert was made from boiling the grapes and mashing them and then adding corn meal to make a thick consistency. This seems to be the origin of what has been enjoyed for the last one hundred years or so as "Grape Dumplings."
4. Cormeal Cookies
Cream together:
3/4 cup margarine
3/4 cup sugar
Add the following ingredients until smooth:
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla
Add and mix well:
1 1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup cornmeal
1 tsp. baking powered
1/4 tsp. salt
Optional:
1/2 cup raisins
Drop dough from tablespoon on a greased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees about 15 minutes until lightly browned. Makes
about 1 1/2 dozen.
5. Blue Corn Dumplings
1 c harinilla (blue corn meal ground to flour)
2 t baking powder
1 t bacon drippings, lard, or other shortening
1/3 to 1/2 c milk
1 t salt
Mix dry ingredients thoroughly, cut in fat and add enough milk to make drop batter. Drop by spoonfuls on top of the stew of your choice. Cover cooking pot and steam dumplings 15 minutes before lifting cover. Stew should be kept bubbling.
Here is a stew you can add them to:
6. Juniper Lamb Stew
2 lbs. lean lamb, cubed small 6 ears fresh corn
6 spring onions with tops, 3 sweet green peppers, chopped
chopped 1 tb flour
2 tb lard or cooking oil 2 t dried wild celery (1/3 chopped
1 1/2 t salt celery tops can be substituted)
5 dried juniper berries, crushed 2 t chile powder
4 c water
Mix seasonings and flour to coat meat and brown in hot lard or oil in heavy kettle. Cut corn from cobs and add with other ingredients and water to meat. Cover and simmer for one hour or until meat is tender.[/FONT]
1. Fry Bread
2 Cups FLOUR
1/2 tsp. Salt
1/2 cup water
1/2 tsp. Baking Powder
1/2 cup Instant Dry Milk
2 Cups Shortening
Mix Flour, baking powder, salt, powdered milk, and water. Heat shortening until flakes of flour start to bubble when dropped into oil. While shortening is heating, Pull off a palm sized mound of dough and roll it into a smooth ball then flatten into a disk shape. Size is a matter of preference. Put dough into pan, cook until brown, turn over and cook other side until brown. You can take a brown paper bag and place a few sheets of paper towels on the bottom and drop finished fry bread into bag to let grease drain.
2. Bean Bread
1 cup of cornmeal
½ cup flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tbsp sugar
2 cups milk
¼ cup melted shortening
1 beaten egg
2 tbsp honey
4 cups drained brown beans
Mix all of these ingredients, except beans, thoroughly, and then fold in the beans. Pour into greased, heated pan. Bake at 450 until brown (usually 30 minutes or so)
3. Grape Dumplings
1 cup flour
1 ½ tsp baking powder
2 tsp sugar
¼ tsp salt
1 tbsp shortening
½ cup grape juice
Mix flour, baking powder, sugar, salt and shortening. Add juice and mix into stiff dough. Roll dough very thin on floured board and cut into strips ½" wide (or roll dough in hands and break off pea-sized bits). Drop into boiling grape juice and cook for 10 - 12 minutes.
Some Cherokee cooks continue to make their grape dumplings by gathering and cooking wild grapes, or 'possum grapes' instead of grape juice.
The John Howard Payne Papers, a document from 1835 where the elders were interviewed for their knowledge of the old ways, tells us that around 1800, a grape dessert was made from boiling the grapes and mashing them and then adding corn meal to make a thick consistency. This seems to be the origin of what has been enjoyed for the last one hundred years or so as "Grape Dumplings."
4. Cormeal Cookies
Cream together:
3/4 cup margarine
3/4 cup sugar
Add the following ingredients until smooth:
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla
Add and mix well:
1 1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup cornmeal
1 tsp. baking powered
1/4 tsp. salt
Optional:
1/2 cup raisins
Drop dough from tablespoon on a greased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees about 15 minutes until lightly browned. Makes
about 1 1/2 dozen.
5. Blue Corn Dumplings
1 c harinilla (blue corn meal ground to flour)
2 t baking powder
1 t bacon drippings, lard, or other shortening
1/3 to 1/2 c milk
1 t salt
Mix dry ingredients thoroughly, cut in fat and add enough milk to make drop batter. Drop by spoonfuls on top of the stew of your choice. Cover cooking pot and steam dumplings 15 minutes before lifting cover. Stew should be kept bubbling.
Here is a stew you can add them to:
6. Juniper Lamb Stew
2 lbs. lean lamb, cubed small 6 ears fresh corn
6 spring onions with tops, 3 sweet green peppers, chopped
chopped 1 tb flour
2 tb lard or cooking oil 2 t dried wild celery (1/3 chopped
1 1/2 t salt celery tops can be substituted)
5 dried juniper berries, crushed 2 t chile powder
4 c water
Mix seasonings and flour to coat meat and brown in hot lard or oil in heavy kettle. Cut corn from cobs and add with other ingredients and water to meat. Cover and simmer for one hour or until meat is tender.[/FONT]
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