Jane Burbank's Hushpuppies

Categories: Breads

Serves: 4 Servings

Ingredients:

1 c Self-rising corn meal-
-(preferably white stone-
-ground)
1/2 c Self-rising flour
1/4 c Pancake mix (see note)
Pinch salt
1/2 ts Sugar
1/4 ts Freshly ground pepper
1 Egg
1 md Onion, diced
1/2 c Milk, or as needed
Oil or fish drippings for-
-frying

Instructions:
Hushpuppies are fried in hot drippings left after frying fish, picking up
some of the fresh fish flavor.

Combine the corn meal, flour, pancake mix, salt, sugar, and pepper in a
bowl. Beat the egg lightly in a measuring cup, and add the onion and
enough milk to fill to the 1-cup mark. Mix the liquids into the dry mixture
well. If not moist throughout, add a tablespoonfull or two more of milk,
blending well.

Put any fish drippings you may have in a heavy frying pan and add enough
oil to a depth of 1/4 inch. Heat and drop a small amount of batter into
the fat. If it sizzles, the fat is hot enough. Make a test hushpuppy: Drop
a teaspoonful of batter in; if it spreads like a pancake, the batter is too
thin, so stir a tablespoonful or two of corn meal into the uncooked batter.
If, after the test hushpuppy has cooked, it is dense and dry, stir 2 or 3
teasponns of milk into the batter. When the batter consistency is right,
drop the batter from the tip of a teaspoon into the pan; cook 6, 8, or 10
at a time, being careful not to let the hushpuppies overlap while frying.
Cook until lightly browned, 3 to 4 minutes, turn, and brown the other side,
about 3 minutes. Drain on paper towels and keep hot while frying the
remaining hushpuppies. Add more oil to the pan as needed, a little at a
time, to prevent cooking. Fat should be kept medium-hot, to brown
hushpuppies. Check often so that hushpuppies do not scorch.

NOTE: In Florida many like to use self-rising flour and corn meal as well
as pancake mix in hushpuppies and other breads. If you wish, substitute
all-purpose flour for self-rising and the pancake mix; use plain corn meal
in place of the self-rising type. Then to the dry ingredients add 1
tablespoon baking powder and 1 teaspoon salt. Add the liquid ingredients,
then proceed with the recipe as directed.

FROM: The Florida Cookbook, By Jeanne Voltz and Caroline Stuart. Typed in
by: Ronnie Wright

From Gemini's MASSIVE MealMaster collection at www.synapse.com/~gemini

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