Chopped Country Slaw
Yield: 6 to 8 servings.
1 medium head cabbage
1 green bell pepper, cored, seeded, and minced
½ cup Duke’s mayonnaise
¼ cup apple cider vinegar
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1½ teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon celery seed
Finely chop cabbage or pulse in a food processor and transfer to a mixing bowl. Add green pepper to the cabbage.
Mix together mayonnaise, vinegar, sugar, salt, and celery seed. Pour mixture over cabbage and mix well. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
Corn Sticks
Yield: 14 servings.
Note: This recipe calls for cast-iron corn-stick pans, but a 10-inch cast-iron skillet will work, too. Bake at the same temperature for 20 to 25 minutes.
1¼ cups yellow cornmeal
¼ cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup buttermilk
3 tablespoons bacon grease, plus extra
Heat oven to 425°. Place corn-stick pans in preheated oven for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, combine cornmeal, flour, salt, and baking powder in a mixing bowl.
In a separate bowl, combine eggs, buttermilk, and 3 tablespoons of bacon grease. Add egg mixture to the dry ingredients and stir until just combined.
Remove corn-stick pans from oven and carefully brush each mold with bacon grease. Spoon batter into each mold, about ¾ full, and bake for 20 minutes or until edges are crispy and tops of corn sticks are golden brown.
Honey Mustard Potato Salad
Yield: 8 servings.
For the dressing:
1 cup Duke’s mayonnaise
½ cup sour cream
3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons whole-grain mustard
1 tablespoon yellow mustard
3 tablespoons honey
For the salad:
3 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and quartered
2 teaspoons salt
4 large hard-boiled eggs, peeled and quartered
¼ cup flat-leaf parsley, chopped
¼ cup chives, chopped
3 green onions, sliced
Salt and black pepper to taste
For the dressing: In a mixing bowl, whisk together mayonnaise, sour cream, vinegar, mustards, and honey until well combined. Refrigerate until ready to use.
For the salad: Place potatoes in a large, heavy pot and add enough cold water to cover by 2 inches. Add salt. Boil potatoes until just fork-tender, approximately 10 to 20 minutes. Drain and run cold water over potatoes for 30 seconds to stop them from cooking.
As soon as they’ve cooled enough to handle, cut potatoes into large chunks and place them in a large mixing bowl.
Pour dressing over potatoes. Add eggs, parsley, chives, and onions. Gently toss all ingredients together until well coated. Season with additional salt and black pepper, if desired. Serve chilled.
Refrigerator Pickles
Yield: 4 pints.
2 pounds pickling cucumbers, sliced 1⁄4-inch thick
2 sweet white onions, thinly sliced
4 cups distilled white vinegar
4 cups sugar
½ cup kosher salt
1½ teaspoons turmeric
1½ teaspoons celery seed
2 teaspoons dry mustard
Toss sliced cucumbers and onions in a bowl, then add the mixture to 4 pint jars, filling each to the top.
In a saucepan, heat vinegar, sugar, salt, turmeric, celery seed, and dry mustard until sugar is dissolved. Pour liquid over cucumbers to cover. Place lid on jars and tighten. Wipe jars with a clean, warm cloth, then refrigerate overnight.
Serve cold. Keep all opened pickles in the refrigerator. Reserve leftover liquid for salad dressing or coleslaw.
In North Carolina, spring brings the scent of fresh-cut grass and memories of helping Dad mow the lawn.
Nostalgic burger joints are like time machines, delivering something extra special that keeps us coming back.
This tiny city block in downtown Greensboro once had a gigantic reputation. Not so much for its charbroiled beef patties — though they, too, were plentiful — but for its colorful characters and their wild shenanigans.
In the 1950s, as Americans hit freshly paved roads in shiny new cars during the postwar boom, a new kind of restaurant took shape: the drive-in. From those first thin patties to the elaborate gourmet hamburgers of today, North Carolina has spent the past 80 years making burger history.
