Hoppin John (recipe and retrospection)

2015. I want my hovercar. Where is it?

Seriously, though.

I started publishing in march, with Katherine’s choice. Four more 50-60,000 word books later (The French Orphan, Katherine, What about Cecelia? and Cynthia the Invincible), and two and a half “short reads” (Captured by the Bluecoats, Dragons of Azog and (pre-release) The Chicken Barons), I’ve begun to learn the craft of writing.  Counting “The Berkshire Lady” (in it’s final stages of editing) That’s nearly 330,000 words of fiction. Not bad for a beginner.

I can tell my work is getting better.

Hoppin’ John is a traditional Southern recipe for New Years. Here’s my version:

1/3 cup +- uncooked dry Black Eye Peas.
2 sliced bacon, cut in strips.
1 cup water.   (ratio is what’s important, this scales).

Boil until the peas are cooked (about 45 mintues). Most, but not all of the water will be absorbed.

Saute a small onion, browning lightly.  Drain the peas/bacon and add the onion and its cooking oil to the peas.

Add 1/2 teaspoon hot sauce. and about 1 teaspoon mustard. (These are to taste).

Mix the peas, onions, hot sauce and mustard.

Heat some oil (I like olive oil but traditional would be Lard) and cook the peas  until it’s well done. Something like re-fried beans.

It’s supposed to be poor food, but it’s darn good.

Author: Amelia

A mild-mannered professor of computer science in real-life, I remove my glasses in the evening to become, well, a mild-mannered author in my alternate reality. I mostly write sweet romantic fiction, although with an occasional science-fiction or paranormal angle thrown in. I have interests in history, mathematics (D'oh), and cryptography. I'm also something of an Anglophile, and know that country pretty well. In addition to writing, research, and more writing, I volunteer with the scouts. I'm something of a nature-nut, enjoying long walks in the country with almost ultra-light gear, boating, and identifying wildlife.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *