Southern fare rises to new culinary heights

(Contemporary southern cooking has moved well beyond the classic image of fried chicken or barbecue, such as these fried tomatoes with aioli/Larry Crowe photos, The Associated Press)

When you think of Southern food, what comes to mind? If you’re thinking fried chicken, biscuits and grits, well, yes, those dishes are part of it, but Southern cuisine has come a long way.

Take, for instance, the winner of this year’s James Beard Foundation cookbook awards. All three of the finalists for top American book are southern, with “Real Cajun,” by Donald Link taking the top cookbook honors. It beat out “My New Orleans,” by John Besh and “The Lee Bros. Simple Fresh Southern,” by Matt Lee and Ted Lee.
And Food & Wine magazine will devote its September issue to the region and its food.

Mountain Molasses Stack Cake is a Southern recipe that is featured on today’s Busy Cook in the Poughkeepsie Journal.

“The South has always been cyclically hip,” says John T. Edge, director of Southern Foodways Alliance. “But now it’s become a permanent condition. America is coming to appreciate the range of culture and tradition in the South.”

Here are two more recipes provided by The Associated Press from John Besh’s cookbook, “My New Orleans” (Andrews McMeel, 2009) that would make a great appetizer and a refreshing dessert this summer, especially when local fruits are in season.
I love the idea of batter-dipping little cluster tomatoes into a tempura-like batter and quickly frying them. Hopefully I will have a crop of tomatoes this summer to give this recipe a try.

Fried Tomatoes with Aioli

Start to finish: 30 minutes
Servings: 6 to 8

For the aioli:

1. 6 cloves garlic
2. 1 tablespoon lemon juice
3. 1 tablespoon ice water
4. 2 egg yolks
5. Salt
6. 2 cups extra virgin olive oil

For the tomatoes:

1. 1 quart olive or vegetable oil
2. 1 cup all-purpose flour
3. Pinch salt
4. 1 1/2 cups club soda
5. 24 to 36 small cluster (on the vine) tomatoes

• To make the aioli, in a food processor combine the garlic, lemon juice, water and egg yolks. Process until thick and evenly pureed. With the processor running, add a pinch of salt, then slowly drizzle in the olive oil.
• If the aioli looks oily, add a touch more ice water. The color should be pale yellow and the texture should be matte, not glossy. Set aside.
• In a deep heavy-bottomed pot over medium-high, heat the oil to 350 F.
• Meanwhile, in a large bowl whisk together the flour and salt. Add the club soda, whisking gently to keep the batter fluffy. The batter will be thin.
• Use scissors to cut the tomato vines to divide them into small clusters. Rinse the tomatoes and pat them dry.
• Working in batches, dip each cluster into the batter, coating them all over, then carefully slip them into the hot oil.
• Fry the tomatoes until the batter is lacy, crisp and golden brown, about 1 minute.
• Using metal tongs or a slotted spoon, carefully transfer the tomatoes to paper towels to drain. Serve with aioli.

Watermelon-Strawberry Sorbet

Start to finish: 10 minutes (plus freezing time)
Servings: 6

Besh says the secret to knowing whether you’ve added enough sugar to your sorbet is to float an egg in the puree before you freeze it. If you float a clean egg (in the shell) in the mixture, you can tell whether you need to add more sugar (if the egg sinks) or more juice or water (if the egg floats high on the mixture). Ideally, the egg will float just at the surface, showing about a nickel-size spot of shell.

1. 1 pint strawberries, hulled
2. 1 cup diced, seeded watermelon
3. 1 teaspoon lemon juice
4. 1/2 cup sugar

• In a blender, puree the strawberries, watermelon, lemon juice and sugar until smooth.
• Check that the puree has the correct amount of sugar. Add more sugar or juice if necessary (determine using method described above).
• Transfer the puree to the canister of an ice cream maker and process according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
• Keep the sorbet in the freezer until ready to use.