1 dozen medium to large pickled jalapeños
Approximately ¾ cup peanut butter
Makes 2 dozen stuffed chiles
Slice the jalapeños in half lengthwise. Spoon peanut butter into each half, mounding it generously. The jalapeños can be served immediately or refrigerated, covered, for several hours. Remove them from the refrigerator 30 minutes before serving.
Variation: Cream cheese also works well as a filling; so does a combination of cream cheese and peanut butter.
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One of the best commercial peanut butters was named after Erastus "Deaf" Smith, a hero of the Texas Revolution. Smith spied for the insurgents, helping Houston defeat Santa Anna. His name seems to carry particular cachet in the food world; it also designates a stone-ground flour.
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In Texas, football themes can inspire whole cookbooks. In 1981, the Ex-Students' Association of the University of Texas came out with Cook 'em Horns. Not to be outdone, Texas A&M a few years later published its own collection of recipes, called Aggies, Moms, and Apple Pie.
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Armadillo Eggs
Well, not really, but you can probably fool your aunt from Duluth.
2 cups large, unpitted green or black olives, drained
½ cup olive brine
½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
½ cup beer
¼ cup white vinegar
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 cayennes or chiles de árbol
1 bay leaf
¾ teaspoon chili powder, preferably homemade ([>]) or Gebhardt's
½ teaspoon cumin seeds, toasted and ground
Makes 2 cups marinated olives
Place the olives in a bowl. Shake the remaining ingredients together in a lidded jar, and pour the marinade over the olives. Let the mixture marinate for at least 2 days (longer, if you can), stirring occasionally. Unlike most gridiron stars, the olives get better with age.
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The Aggies had a big hand in introducing "fine dining" in Texas. For a half century, from 1878 to 1928, Bernard Sbissa ran the central A&M kitchen with New Orleans finesse. He loved to prepare elaborate banquets for the students on special occasions. At one dinner, Sbissa's appetizers included green sea turtle Mikado, oyster cocktails, and broiled rockfish maître, and the entrées ranged from fresh lobster Newburg to imported smoked tongue.
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Jícama Texicana
From Mexico originally but now easy to find in the States, jícama is a root vegetable that tastes something like a cross between a water chestnut, an apple, and a turnip. In the market, a near-sighted quarterback could mistake a large whole jícama for a football. A little chili powder and lime is all the seasoning it needs.
1 jícama, about 1 pound
Juice and zest of 1 lime
Chili powder, preferably homemade ([>]) or Gebhardt's, to taste
Salt to taste
Makes 1 pound of "matchsticks"
Peel the jícama, and slice it into fat matchsticks. Transfer it to a bowl, cover it with water, and refrigerate it for 30 minutes. Drain it.
Arrange the jicama on a platter, and sprinkle it with the lime juice and zest, the chili powder, and, if you wish, some salt. If you like, serve the jicama with additional chili powder on the side.
Maverick Ham Rolls
Variations on these ham rolls have been the most fashionable party snack in San Antonio for over one hundred years, since they were first introduced by Albert and Jane Maury Maverick. A San Antonio native, Albert met Jane in her home state at the University of Virginia. The recipe had been in Jane's family for many years, and the couple brought it with them to Texas on their honeymoon trip in 1877.
12 bolillos (Mexican rolls) or other small, sturdy yeast rolls
1 pound smoked ham, chopped or sliced
¼ cup chopped dill pickle
2
to
4 tablespoons dill pickle brine
¼ cup chopped celery
2 tablespoons chopped onion
2 tablespoons prepared yellow mustard
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
Makes 2 dozen rolls
Preheat the oven to 350° F.
Slice the bolillos in half lengthwise, and carefully hollow out the centers. Set aside the bread "shells," and toast the centers briefly until lightly browned.
Place the toasted centers in a food processor, and process until crumbs form. Add the ham, the pickle, 2 tablespoons of the pickle brine, the celery, the onion, and the mustard. Process until the mixture forms a rough spread, but stop short of puréeing it. Taste, and add as much of the remaining pickle juice as you like. Set the mixture aside.
Brush the bolillo "shells" with about ⅔ of the butter. Fill them with the ham mixture, and transfer them to a baking sheet. Brush the tops with the remaining butter. Bake the rolls for 15 minutes, or until the bread is lightly browned and the rolls are heated through.
Serve the rolls hot.
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The Mavericks are one of the most illustrious families of Texas. The founder of the clan, Samuel Augustus Maverick, signed the Texas Declaration of Independence and also gave us the term "maverick" to signify unbranded cattle, which he owned, and independent-minded people, which his family bred. A century later, Maury Maverick, serving as mayor of San Antonio, inspired the city to start development of its now-famous Riverwalk.
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Rangerette Sweet Potato Chips
You don't have to fix your own chips for the dips that follow, but these homemade chips will kick off the show as well as their namesake, the Kilgore Rangerettes, do.
3 medium (about 2 to 2¼ pounds) sweet potatoes
Ice cubes
Peanut oil, for deep frying
Salt
Chili powder, preferably homemade ([>]) or Gebhardt's, or Cajun or Creole seasoning
Serves 4 to 6
Wash the sweet potatoes, and, if you wish, peel them. (We prefer the peels on, and besides, leaving them on is less work.) Slice the sweet potatoes to chip thinness with a food processor or, more laboriously, by hand.
Toss the chips into a bowl of cold water, and soak them for 30 minutes to eliminate some of the starch.
Pour off the water, add more cold water to cover, and toss in a half-dozen ice cubes. Refrigerate the chips to firm them, about 30 minutes. Drain them well on a dish towel, drying off each chip. Then roll up the chips in another dry towel—you want no remaining moisture.
Heat at least 3 inches of oil to 375° F in a large, heavy saucepan. If the oil smokes before reaching the correct temperature, it cannot be used for deep frying. Use only fresh, unused oil. Add the potatoes in batches, and fry them just a minute or two, until they are slightly colored and crisp. Drain them.
Sprinkle the chips with salt and chili powder or Cajun or Creole seasoning, and serve them warm.
Variation: Regular potato chips can be made from scratch by the same method. If you want corn chips instead, see [>] for a homemade version.
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The high-kicking Kilgore Rangerettes were the original football drill team, the inspiration for a Texas tradition. Gussie Nell Davis created the concept in 1940, envisioning a wholesome chorus line of cowgirls to entertain at football games. From the beginning, the Rangerettes had to be able to kick their boots above their stylish Stetsons on the field, while keeping their knees together at all other times.
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Double-Whammy Green Chile Dip
The double whammy in this dip, as punchy as an Earl Campbell run, comes from the combination of fresh and dried green chile. The smoky dried variety packs intense flavor, though it's not always easy to find, If you can't locate it, substitute another ½ cup of fresh green chile. In this case you'll have a single-whammy dip, but it'll still be as snappy as a Bum Phillips quip.
1 ounce dried New Mexican green chile
8 ounces sour cream
1 tablespoo
n chopped roasted green chile, preferably New Mexican or poblano, fresh or frozen
2 garlic cloves, roasted ([>]) and minced
½ teaspoon minced onion
Makes 1¼ to 1½ cups dip
Place the dried green chile in a blender or spice mill, and grind briefly until the chile is powdered. In a small bowl, combine the powdered chile with the sour cream. Mix in the remaining ingredients. Refrigerate the dip for at least 1 hour to develop its flavors. It keeps well for 3 or 4 days.
Serve this dip with Rangerette Sweet Potato Chips ([>]), Mystery Man Tostada Chips ([>]), or store-bought chips.
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Potato chips owe their origin to a chef's frustration with railroad magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt. Dining at the Moon Lake resort in Saratoga, New York, in 1853, Vanderbilt sent back his fried potatoes twice, claiming they were too thick. To spite him, the chef prepared a new dish of potatoes sliced paper-thin, fried, and salted, knowing Vanderbilt would have a dickens of a time eating them with a fork. To everyone's surprise, he loved them, and the Saratoga Crunch Chip was born.
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Babe's Dip
This cilantro-jalapeño dip, as potent as the preceding one, we named for Mildred "Babe" Didrikson Zaharias, probably the greatest athlete Texas ever produced. Babe never let the fans down, and neither will this recipe.
2 cups sour cream
½ cup minced cilantro
2
to
3 pickled jalapeños, minced
3 garlic cloves, roasted ([>]) and minced
2 teaspoons grated onion
¼ teaspoon salt, or more, to taste
Makes about 2½ cups dip
Mix all the ingredients together in a medium bowl. Cover the bowl, and chill the dip at least 1 hour. The dip keeps for several days but loses a little of its cilantro flair. It's good with either potato or corn chips.
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A Port Arthur native, Babe Zaharias set two world records and won three medals in the 1932 Olympics before turning pro as a golfer. A member of the LPGA Hall of Fame, she once won an incredible seventeen consecutive golf tournaments.
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Technique Tip
Lighten up your dips with one of several tricks: Instead of regular sour cream, use a light version, or substitute low-fat yogurt for half the sour cream. Most people don't notice much difference in taste in a dip between normal mayonnaise, high in fat, and the slimmer alternatives. The same goes for Neufchâtel cheese, sometimes marketed as "light cream cheese," in place of regular cream cheese.
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Ninfa's Green Sauce
If the couch potatoes in your crowd like guacamole, they'll leap goalposts to get to this spicy avocado dip. Ninfa Laurenzo created it as a signature dish for her Houston chain of Ninfa's restaurants.
4 fresh or canned tomatillos (about 6 to 8 ounces), drained (if canned) and chopped
3 medium green tomatoes, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1
to
2 fresh jalapeños, chopped
3 medium Hass avocados, halved, seeded, and peeled
1½ cups sour cream
1 tablespoon minced cilantro
¼ teaspoon salt, or more, to taste
Makes about 4 cups dip
In a medium saucepan, simmer the tomatillos and tomatoes with the garlic and jalapeños for 15 minutes, or until their liquid has evaporated.
While the tomatillo mixture simmers, place the avocados in a blender. Spoon the thickened tomatillo mixture into the blender. Add the sour cream, cilantro, and salt, and blend for up to 5 minutes to create a smooth purée. Taste, and add more salt if needed.
Serve the sauce immediately with tostada chips, or refrigerate it for later use. Ninfa's makes this sauce fresh every day, but we've kept it overnight, and it has remained tasty and hasn't turned gray the way guacamole does.
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Technique Tip
If you can't find tomatillos, you can omit them. Ninfa suggests adding a squeeze or two of lemon juice to replace their tang.
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In 1990 the Houston Chronicle selected Ninfa's Green Sauce as one of the 1980s' best developments in the city.
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Prairie Fire Dip
This is one of Helen Corbitt's most famous dishes. The use of jalapeños, uncommon at the time, made the dip seem as hot as a prairie fire, hence the name. Chili is a more recent addition to the conflagration and can be omitted if you prefer to stay truer to the classic form.
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons oil, preferably canola or corn
⅓ medium onion, chopped fine
1 garlic clove, minced
2 cups cooked pinto beans, with ¼ cup cooking liquid reserved
1¾ cups grated Monterey jack or mild cheddar cheese
2 pickled jalapeños, chopped fine
2
to
3 teaspoons jalapeño pickling liquid
1 cup chili con carne, optional
¼ cup sliced green olives, optional
Makes 3½ to 4 cups dip with chili and 2½ to 3 cups without
Heat the butter and oil together in the top half of a double boiler placed directly on the stove. Add the onion and garlic, and cook over medium heat until they are softened.
Fill the bottom half of the double boiler with water, and insert the top half onto the bottom. Spoon 1½ cups of the beans into the pan, and mash them with a potato masher or bean masher (used for refried beans). Alternatively, put the beans through a ricer or sieve before adding them to the pan. Don't purée the beans in a food processor or blender, which would make them pasty.
When the beans are well mashed, add the remaining ½ cup of beans, 1½ cups of the cheese, the jalapeños and their liquid, and the chili if you are including it. Heat everything together, stirring frequently, until the cheese is melted, adding bean liquid as needed if the dip seems diy.
Pour the hot dip into a chafing dish or heatproof bowl on a warming tray. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese and, if you like, the olives. Serve Prairie Fire hot with chips or crackers.
Variation: Some people omit chili and use a mild fresh goat cheese in place of all or part of the Monterey jack or cheddar.
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Why hasn't some Texas high school named its football team the Prairie Fires? In pioneer days, a prairie fire was as menacing a prospect as a Comanche raid, and even today the name might conjure more dread than actual monikers such as Ricebirds, Ducks, and Purple Rock Crushers.
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Layered Bean Dip
All bean dips owe a debt to Helen Corbitt's Prairie Fire, but some today have gotten more complex and flavorful than the model. We like this one, based on a dip served at Guero's Taco Bar in Austin. If you're in a hurry, you can even make a decent version with canned beans.
1½ cups Refried Beans ([>])
1 cup Picadillo ([>]), optional
½ cup sour cream
1 cup Guacamole ([>])
1 cup Pico de Gallo ([>])
½ cup grated mild cheddar cheese
Pickled jalapeño slices, optional
Makes about 5 cups
Heat the Refried Beans and, if you like, the Picadillo in separate saucepans until they are bubbly. Spoon the beans into the bottom of a medium serving dish, and top them with the Picadillo. Layer each of the other ingredients in the order listed.
Serve this dip warm with tostada chips.
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Picadillo, guacamole, and pico de gallo all make good dips by themselves. See Tex-Mex Treasures ([>]) for recipes.
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Dallas's Fair Park is home to two venerable institutions, the Cotton Bowl and the "corny dog." A vendor at the state fair invented the batter-dipped-hot-dog-on-a-stick years ago, and it's still sold at most of the park's 175 restaurants and food booths.
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Quick Chow
chow Dip
You can make this one faster than Roger Staubach could release a pass.
½ cup Hot Cha Chowchow ([>]) or your favorite commercial variety
½ cup prepared brown mustard
Makes 1 cup dip
In a small bowl, mix together the chowchow and the mustard.
Serve the dip with crackers, with sausage slices, or in ham sandwiches.
Texas Home Cooking Page 44
