Corn Cob Jelly
This is a Cherokee recipe which is light in texture and has a flavor similar to apple jelly.
12 ears fresh corn
4 cups water
4 cups granulated sugar
1 (3 fl. ounce) package liquid fruit pectin
Cut corn from the cobs and reserve for another use. Place cobs in water and bring to a boil. Cover and cook for 12 to 15 minutes. Remove cobs and strain liquid through cheesecloth or another filter. If necessary, add enough water to make 3 cups. Place liquid in a saucepan and stir in sugar. Bring to a boil and cook until sugar is dissolved. Stir in pectin and cook 1 minutes longer. Remove from heat, skim, and spoon into sterilized jars. Seal and store.
Makes 3 cups.
Strawberries in Honey Syrup
1/3 cup honey
2/3 cup water
1 quart fresh strawberries, washed and hulled
Place honey and water in a saucepan and boil rapidly for 5 minutes over medium-high heat. Reduce heat. Drop in the whole berries and simmer for 5 minutes.
Remove saucepan from heat and allow berries to cool in the syrup. Serve warm or cold, ladling syrup over each portion.
Serves 4 to 6.
Shuck Bread
This is traditional cornbread. The Choctaws call it Bu-Na-Ha.
8 dried or fresh corn shucks
2 cups white cornmeal
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 cups boiling water
1 cup partially cooked black-eyed peas
or frozen black-eyed peas
Butter (for serving)
Salt (for serving)
Boil shucks in water for about 10 minutes; drain, and reserve.
In a mixing bowl, combine cornmeal, baking soda and water. Stir in black-eyed peas. Form about 4 tablespoons of the mixture into a ball and place on a corn shuck. Fold end of shuck over filling. Fold in sides and then other end to make a squared package. Tie securely with a strip of shuck. Continue in this manner until all filling is used. Cook in boiling water for 45 to 50 minutes.
Remove shucks and serve with butter and salt, if desired. If not serving immediately, refrigerate bread without removing shucks. Reheat for about 10 minutes in boiling water or in a steamer before serving.
Makes 8 Shuck Breads.
Sacaton Relish
Sacaton is a village on the Gila River Reservation near Sacaton, Arizona (Pima Indians). This is usually served as an accompaniment to eggs or grilled meat.
2 tablespoons bacon drippings or vegetable oil
1 cup chopped fresh, mild, green
chiles, peeled and seeded
1 chopped fresh or canned jalapeno
1/2 cup chopped onion
3 medium tomatoes, seeded and diced
Salt (optional)
Heat drippings in a skillet. Add chiles and jalapeno and saute until translucent. Ad tomatoes and saute 5 minutes more. Season with salt, if desired. Remove relish with a slotted spoon and serve with eggs or meat.
Makes about 1 1/2 cups.
Pueblo Pumpkin Candy
This is an old Pueblo treat. Traditionally the strips of pumpkin are soaked in a bath of water and wood ashes to soften. Today many Indian cooks substitute baking soda for the ashes. If you prefer a less sweet candy, add the lemon juice and thin strips of lemon zest to the sugar syrup with cilantro. If you have a sweet tooth, roll the dried candy in coarse sugar.
1 (2- to 3-pound) pumpkin
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
2 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup water
Juice and zest of 1 small lemon
3 to 4 sprigs fresh cilantro (optional)
Peel and seed pumpkin and cut it into 2 x 4-inch strips. Stir baking soda into enough water to cover strips. Add pumpkin strips and let stand 12 hours.
Drain and rinse pumpkin in running water. Drop strips into a pot of boiling water and cook until tender but not soft. Remove pumpkin strips, crisp in ice cold water, and drain.
Combine sugar with 1/2 cup water, lemon juice and zest, and cilantro in a saucepan. Heat, stirring, until sugar is dissolved, then boil slowly without stirring for 10 minutes. Add pumpkin strips, cover the pot, and simmer for about 20 minutes until syrup is thick and strips are brittle. Spread candy out on a rack or on a wax paper-covered tray to dry for at least 10 hours.
Roll in additional sugar if desired and store in an airtight container.
Makes about 1 pound.
Osage Bread
This is a recipe taken from the El Reno Tribune, El Reno, Oklahoma. Note that Native Americans dip the bread in "sop," a mixture of corn syrup and bacon drippings.
4 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon baking powder
1 tablespoon solid shortening, melted
2 cups lukewarm milk
Fat or oil (for deep-frying)
Sift flour, salt and baking powder into bowl. Stir in shortening and milk. Knead lightly to gather dough into ball. Roll out dough on lightly floured board. Cut into 2-inch squares.
Heat fat or oil in deep fryer to 370 degrees F. Fry 2 or 3 at a time until golden on both sides. Drain on paper towels.
Batter Bread
This is a staple of the Cheyenne Indians.
1 quart milk or water
2 cups yellow or white cornmeal
3 eggs, separated
4 tablespoons melted butter
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
Bring milk to a boil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Gradually stir in cornmeal and cook, stirring, for a few minutes until thickened. Beat in egg yolks, butter and seasonings.
In a separate bowl, beat egg whites until they stand in stiff peaks. Fold whites into corn mixture and pour into a 2-quart baking dish. Bake for 20 to 30 minutes, until puffed and golden brown on top.
Serves 6.
Navajo Bread
2 cups all-purpose flour, not sifted
4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
Lard and water
Mix dry ingredients and add 1/2 cup warm water. Make soft dough consistency. Work and knead out air bubbles. Slap to make flat pancake-shaped patties about 8 inches in diameter. Using skillet half full of melted lard or shortening, drop patties into very hot fat. When golden brown, drain on paper. Good cooked in one-half bacon drippings and one-half shortening.