Foraging...'tis the season

I would just like to comment that I am blessed to live near quite a few large, old pecan trees in my neighborhood. While walking Danger I can take an old paper bag and fill it up with all shapes and sizes of pecans. I don't know enough about the trees to be able to comment on why some are round like little musket balls and others are more football shaped. They are all delicious nonetheless.

Picking around the yard for pecans could be considered a type of foraging, kind of like cattle or goats would do. Its amazing what you can forage for even in your backyard. Many types of nuts may be available in the fall, muscadines could rain down on your trampoline in late summer, or delicious tiny wild strawberries may poke their way between the blades of grass in an abandoned pasture. It may take a little more work than buying the mainstream varieties in the grocery store, but being outdoors and getting a little more exercise is definitely worthwhile.

Any Southerner knows that a Thanksgiving or Christmas table isn't complete without a pecan pie or sweet potato pie/casserole topped with praline pecans. We won't even get into talking about Claxton Fruitcakes....I'll save that for my Christmas blog.

I have been busy today helping my Mom make pecan pies from some delicious south Georgia pecans. I'm also researching some of the older recipes that call for honey or sorghum or cane syrup instead of corn syrup. I'll have to try one soon and have a more "local" pie.

My Grandmother Summerour's pecan pie recipe:
1/2 cup sugar

3 eggs

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 cup dark Karo syrup (corn)

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 tablespoon butter

1 cup chopped pecans

1 deep dish crust (we like Publix brand from the refrigerated section)

Combine sugar, eggs, flour, Karo and vanilla--mix well. Cut up butter into small pieces and distribute along the bottom of the pie shell. Place the chopped pecans into the pie shell and pour sugar mixture over pecans. Let it sit for 5-10 minutes to "let the bubbles out"......then bake in a 375 degree F oven for 20 minutes, then you lower the temperature to 325 for 30 minutes. This baking method prevents the pies from drying out too much. Cool a little bit and enjoy!

Georgia and South Carolina pecan sources:

We're nuts! (Ellis Pecan Company) Vienna, GA http://www.werenuts.com/

Orangeburg Pecan Company. Orangeburg, SC http://www.uspecans.com/

Wade Plantation Pecans. Screven County, GA http://www.wadepecans.com/

If you've never made or tasted a pecan pie, give my grandmother's recipe a try. I think the first thing Doug wants to eat when he gets home is a pecan pie....and maybe some ice cream.