The other day, I was telling a friend about a trip I took to South Carolina to visit my brother. We were on a road trip around the state and he insisted that I try some boiled peanuts. I'm never one to pass up an opportunity to eat (YAY! Waffle House), so I picked up a bag and tried some. One was all I needed to decide that they were disgusting, but I brought back a couple of bags--just as a joke--for some attorneys that I knew who were from South Carolina. You would have thought I had brought them a bag of gold! Both were so excited and exclaimed "This is MAJOR comfort food." Now, there's a lot of other stuff I would consider "comfort food" ummm....like chocolate cake for example however, I knew what they really were saying was that boiled peanuts reminded them of their youth. It took them back to a simple time when they were probably wiling away the hours on a front porch swing, doing nothing but eating soggy wet peanuts with a friend.
It got me thinking about my own comfort food, so I pulled out my recipe box and fingered through some oldie but goodie recipes from my youth. I thought I'd share some with you for the next few Fridays. Most are recipes I've kept from my 7th grade home-ec class. They're nothing fancy, mind you, just quirky stuff I make from time to time which will conjure up a good memory and make me feel satisfied.
So...Number 1 is Tuna Puffs!
The puffs can be filled with anything, even something sweet for dessert. They're super easy to make and kids love them.
Here's the recipe:
The Puffs:
1 cup boiling water
1/2 cup butter
1 cup sifted flour
1/4 tsp. salt
4 eggs
Melt butter in boiling water. Add flour and salt. Mix all at once and cook stirring constantly until mixture forms a ball that does not separate. Remove from heat. (This is when I transfer the mixture to my Kitchenaid). Add eggs one at a time beating after each addition. Drop dough by tablespoon full on a greased cookie sheet. This makes about two cookie sheets full. Bake at 450 degrees for 10 minutes. Turn oven down to 325 degrees and bake for 10-15 minutes longer. Remove from oven. Split puffs with a knife and turn off oven. Put the puffs back in the oven to dry out for about 10 minutes. Cool on rack. Fill centers with tuna salad mixture.
Tuna Salad Mixture:
You can use any mixture to fill these, but this is what I use.
5 envelopes of Albacore Tuna
Chopped celery
Chopped green onions
1 cup mayo
Salt & Pepper
Mix all together and spoon into tuna puffs.
YUMMY!
Here's the recipe:
The Puffs:
1 cup boiling water
1/2 cup butter
1 cup sifted flour
1/4 tsp. salt
4 eggs
Melt butter in boiling water. Add flour and salt. Mix all at once and cook stirring constantly until mixture forms a ball that does not separate. Remove from heat. (This is when I transfer the mixture to my Kitchenaid). Add eggs one at a time beating after each addition. Drop dough by tablespoon full on a greased cookie sheet. This makes about two cookie sheets full. Bake at 450 degrees for 10 minutes. Turn oven down to 325 degrees and bake for 10-15 minutes longer. Remove from oven. Split puffs with a knife and turn off oven. Put the puffs back in the oven to dry out for about 10 minutes. Cool on rack. Fill centers with tuna salad mixture.
Tuna Salad Mixture:
You can use any mixture to fill these, but this is what I use.
5 envelopes of Albacore Tuna
Chopped celery
Chopped green onions
1 cup mayo
Salt & Pepper
Mix all together and spoon into tuna puffs.
YUMMY!
2 comments:
Tuna salad is comfort food to me, and I'm pretty sure the puff would just improve it. Ok, really I just want to eat a "puff"!
I'm originally from N.C. and boiled peanuts is a favorite summer treat for my family. They're best fresh out of a huge hot vat of boiling peanuts whilst you're at the pool, beach or just relaxing on your porch. Yep, it's a definite southern comfort food.
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