Southern food in the south of France

One of our first nights here, my host mom Martine invited her friend Jackie, who is hosting Elle and Kate, over for dinner. Kate mentioned, wouldn't it be fun if we did an all-American meal for them at the end of our six weeks? Well, tonight we did just that! It really was fun. Unfortunately, it was too cold to eat outside: it stormed today for the first time possibly ever, and was much chillier than usual. However, I welcomed a chance to wear my blue twill pants and justify the fact that I packed them.

Elle made sloppy joes; I made spoonbread, slaw and sliced tomatoes; and Kate made banana bread and chocolate cake. Our host moms provided the wine and champagne. I'm still full, two hours after I got home! My contributions were very popular, especially the spoonbread. It's an old family recipe that traces back at least to my great-granddaddy, but nobody seems to have heard of it outside of the South. Basically, spoonbread is cornbread but better, softer and in a casserole dish. My mom explained to me that the difference is, with spoonbread you scald the meal before you cook it (with the boiling water). Anyway, I'm posting all my recipes below in case you'd like to try them! What I cooked tonight was a little improvised, because of problems with conversion and measuring; I mostly went on what felt right, but it was a great success.

I love the potential food has to bring people together. Even though our host moms and Pierre, Elle and Kate's host brother, found the sloppy joes to be very spicy and the cake very sweet, we were all able to laugh about it and bond over it. It's so simple--everyone needs to eat--but also very powerful. And it was beautiful for me to share the kind of food that I've grown up eating (and seconds, thirds, fourths) with people on a different continent.

The finished product! I probably should have cooked it a little longer, but it was still delicious.

Spoonbread - my great-granddaddy's recipe

1 cup (160 g) corn meal
1.5 tsp (27 g, 15 mL) salt
2 tsp (10 ml) baking powder
2 cups (480 mL) boiling water
1 cup (240 mL) milk
3 eggs

Preheat oven to 400 (200 celsius). Melt 1 tablespoon bacon grease in a 1 quart casserole. (I cooked up bacon just for the grease, but if you're serious you'll save your bacon grease in an old coffee can.) Mix dry ingredients. Add boiling water, then milk, then eggs (fork-stirred). Pour batter onto hot grease. Cook 45-60 min. 

My slaw, with the sliced tomatoes hiding in the back. You can also spot the "American burger" buns and Kate's delicious chocolate banana bread!

Slaw - I just modified a recipe I found online, but it turned out great
1 cabbage (I used Chinese cabbage, since that was what I could find)
2 carrots
1 cup (224 g) mayonnaise
2 tblsp (25 g) sugar
2 tblsp (30 mL) cider vinegar
black pepper
mustard

salt (I used celery salt and no celery seed)
celery seed

Rinse and chop the vegetables; mix the sauce with spices to taste; combine and refrigerate until ready to serve.

How to peel tomatoes: It's so easy! Boil water. Submerge tomatoes, one at a time, in the boiling water for maybe 30 seconds. Let cool slightly and use a fork to peel off the skin. Chop them upside down for minimal mess. Pronounce with a Tidewater accent (tomah-tah) for maximum success.