Cooking with Music for Martin Luther King, Jr.

Revival meeting recipes and music to celebrate the day!

Civil rights leaders, including Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr., sing "We Shall Overcome" at the conclusion of the Selma-to-Montgomery civil rights march in 1965.

Cook in praise of Reverend King and pump up the volume on your Revival cooking playlist—an eclectic, all-over-the-map three hours of protest, blues, jazz, spiritual, rock, rap, gospel, rhythm and blues songs and spoken word. I won’t venture to say that Reverend King would approve or even like them all but they are gathered together in the spirit of his call for justice, love, and hope. Have any of your own to add to our playlist? I’ll add them to the list!

Revival menu suggestions from Miss Edna Lewis

Baked Virginia Ham

As the name implies, Virginia hams are raised and cured in Virginia. Hard to find anywhere beyond the state’s borders, nonresidents may purchase them online. The preparation harkens back to colonial times, when it was considered particularly useful to have around because it kept for days and was plentiful enough for every meal and to offer unexpected company. The ham does not in any way resemble the watery slices sold in delis. The taste is silky, earthy, and a little salty. They come cured (the best kind) or fresh and require a good six hours of simmering. After it’s out of its hot bath and cool enough to handle, follow Miss Edna’s directions for baking:

Slice away the skin and fat, leaving on enough fat (about 1/2 inch) to keep the lean meat from showing. Sprinkle the fat with fresh-grated white bread crumbs. Place the ham in a baking pan and set it in a preheated 370 degree oven. Cook until a rich, golden brown. Remove from the pan and let cool well before slicing. A baked ham can be cooked a day or two ahead. A cured ham will keep well for over a week without refrigeration and for months well refrigerated. A sharp, wide-bladed knife is best for obtaining a nice, wide, thin slice.

Corn Pudding

Miss Lewis recalls this as one of the great delicacies of the summer, looked forward to as soon as the first of the summer corn ripened. It is a delicate rich custard, a subtle accompaniment to evening’s meat, and a pleasing breakfast the next day.

2 cups corn, cut from the cob (if it’s not the season for fresh corn, use good quality frozen)

1/3 cup sugar

1 teaspoon salt

2 eggs, beaten

2 cups rich milk

3 tablespoons melted butter

1/2 teaspoon fresh-grated nutmeg

1 1/2-quart casserole dish

Cut the corn from the cob into a mixing bowl by slicing from the top of the ear downward. Don’t go too close to the cob—cut only half of the kernel. Scrape the rest off. This gives a better texture to the pudding. Sprinkle in the sugar and salt, stir well, mix the beaten eggs and milk together, and pour the mixture into the corn. Add the melted butter, mix thoroughly and spoon the mixture into a well-buttered 1 1/2-quart casserole dish. Sprinkle with nutmeg. Set the casserole into a pan of hot water and set this into a preheated 350 degree oven for 35 or 40 minutes or until set. Test by inserting a clean knife into the center of the pudding. If it comes out clean it is done.

Summer Apple Pie

Miss Edna’s apple pie is unique not only because it consists of freshly made applesauce but it’s formed from three separate pies that are stacked one on top of the other so that when you cut a wedge for yourself, it resembles a three layered cake—a very satisfying mouthful that stands up to being carried about while eating. Winter apples are not as fulsome as summer’s, but a combination of firm Winesap, Pink Lady, or Cortland apples will do. I recommend reading the recipe through before launching into it.

Pastry

3 cups sifted unbleached flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup lard, chilled

1/2 cup ice water

Applesauce

1 cup sugar

1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

Freshly made applesauce using 3 pounds of peeled and sliced apples

3 8-inch pie plates

Mix together the flour and salt in a bowl. Strew pieces of the lard over it and quickly begin to incorporate the fat into the flour. When well blended, mix into the flour a little bit of water at a time just until the dough comes together. Turn out onto the counter and divide it into pieces to fit the bottom of each of the three pie plates and a little less for the top crust. This is a soft dough and it is best to roll it out and place it in the pie plates, then chill until needed. The top pie crust can be rolled out, placed on wax paper, and set to chill, as well. It is important to remove the top crust from the refrigerator ahead of time in order for it to warm up. If not, it will become brittle and break in half when unfolded. The bottom crust should remain chilled until it is filled.

Add sugar and nutmeg to applesauce. Mix well and spoon 1 1/2 cups into each pastry-lined pie plate. Moisten the rim of the pie shell and place on the top crust; seal the two by pressing the rims together. Make 5 or 6 vents in the top of the crust—the more vents there are in a two-crust pie the crispier the crust will be. Bake about 45 minutes in an oven preheated to 415 degrees. When done, remove from oven and set on a rack to cool.

When the pies are completely cooled, carefully remove each pie from its plate. An icing spatula is a good tool to loosen the pie from its plate. Once it’s loose enough to lift from the plate, switch to a broader spatula and slowly lift the whole pie to a serving plate. Do the same with the other two pies, stacking each one on top of the other. The bottom and middle pie will sink down a little as it cools.