Help! When my daughter was a child I made the best sweet potatoe pie in the world. Now my daughter is 23 and she makes the best pies in the world, somehow she took my receipe and improved on it. As thanksgiving is drawing near and we are making plans for dinner. How about sharing some receipes. Soulfood is spiritual food. What are some of your favorite receipes.

-- Anonymous, November 17, 2000

Answers

I will be preparing the Thanksgiving dinner this year unless we travel to SC. I sure would like to prepare some candied yams, collard greens, southern-style potatoe salad, etc., etc. Now the key is how do we all keep the fat off after the meal :-)

-- Anonymous, November 19, 2000

Brother Dickens, the answer is simple. Instead of taking a nap after Thanksgiving dinner, take a walk! :-)

My good friend , whose family has roots in New Orleans (no pun intended) offers Corn and Crab:

1 can creamed corn 1 can regular corn 1 package crab meat salt and pepper to taste

Place all ingredients in saucepan and simmer. I'm told that you should use imitation crab meat if you desire a "crabbier" flavor. I've not tried to prepare this receipt, but I have tasted it. It is quite good! When I do prepare it, I'll tinker with the seasonings and let you know what works!

-- Anonymous, November 19, 2000

Thanks Bill! After my daughter read what you were having for thanksgiving now she wants collard greens! I had not planned to cook. O.k send me some smoked ham hocks for the greens.

-- Anonymous, November 19, 2000

I have never heard of this corn and crab dish. Is this a traditional New orleans dish? Alas living in the mountains makes sea food very expensive as it has to be flown in daily from Seattle. But this dish sounds interesting. Thank your friend for me.

-- Anonymous, November 19, 2000

This is actually my mother's recipe, but I have been having "success" with it of late: Sweet Potato Casserole

5 pounds of sweet potatoes or yams

8 oz. Brown Sugar

8 oz. white sugar

1 bag of marshmallows

3 large eggs

4 oz. butter

1 oz. lemon juice

1 oz. vanilla extract

nutmeg, ginger, cinnamon to taste

1 oz. rum extract (or...)

Parboil the potatoes until soft. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Peel potatoes and add butter, lemon juice, vanilla extract, sugars, and seasonings. Separate the egg whites from the yolks and add the yolks to the potatoes. Puree the potato mixture. Beat the egg whites until stiff. Add rum extract to the potato mixture.

Fold the egg whites into the potato mixture. Place in a casserole dish, and cover with marshmallows. Place casserole in the oven for 40 minutes, or until the marshmallows are a nice, golden brown.

Remove (quietly) and serve piping hot and fluffy. Enjoy!

-- Anonymous, November 20, 2000

Jerryl thanks for the receipe!! I am going to save the receipes that people post and share them in our church bulletin. By the way you know Bill Dickens is going to take your receipe and claim is was his on Thanksgiving day:-) I love this board because everyone is so generous. At the next GenCo we have to have an AME Today reunion.

-- Anonymous, November 20, 2000

Well, well, Denise surely you didn't think I would have as a Thanksgiving menu the elements of John the Baptist's diet?? Mmmmmmmm Good!! In the Name of Jesus I claim that sweet potatoe casserole recipe proferred by Jerryl!! I believe it is Divinely ordered that the Dickens' house eat well and often :-)

-- Anonymous, November 21, 2000

WOW! All of this talk of food is making me hungry. I was talking with my wife last evening remembering my mother's thanksgiving cooking. Since we were poor thanksgiving and christmas were the two times a year we really ate great. The menu would run down as follows:

1 Turkey 1 Ham(I did not like turkey at that time, it was a phase:o) Collard Greens Cabbage Cornbread stuffing(from scratch) Rice 3 Sweet Potatoe pies(I could eat 2 by myself over the long weekend) 1 Caramel cake(From Scratch) 1 Chocolate cake(From Scratch)

All of this would have begun preperation on the tuesday before thanksgiving. She would cook until thursday morning and she, my older brother, and I enjoy each others company. When we were finished we would go to a relatives house and sample desserts: Banana Pudding, Pinapple upside down cakes, sweet potatoe pudding, apple pie, etc. What a time we had! It makes me appreciate being black all the more. Let me stop because now I am thinking about the memories of my mother and I'm at work and starting to cry. Everyone enjoy your holiday and God bless all of you. Rev. Rogers thanks for adopting me. In the words of a sermon I heard this sunday by Rev. Trevon Gross, "Thanksgiving is a lifestyle!"

-- Anonymous, November 22, 2000

My dear son Jerome, you make me smile with your memories. And I tell you I love the memories of the soul food. My mother made the best pinapple upside down cake in the world. And my grandmother made home made rolls from scratch. I really do believe soul food is spiritual food for it is about transformation. When our people were slaves we had little to eat or were given the worst part of the pig, intestines, feet etc. But we turned those intestines into chitterlings (I know we pronounce it chitlings ;-)and barbequed the rest. What was intended for bad we turned it into something good! Soul food is a testimony to the endurance of Black people, I will not be cooking because my 23 year old daughter is the cook in our family now! And her sweet potatoe pie is better than mine. All those years helping me in the kitchen has paid off. Jerome never me ashame to cry or rejoice over happy memories for they are gifts from God. Your other mom Denise

-- Anonymous, November 22, 2000