Ask The Chef

Question:

Dear chef, I keep seeing restaurants describe their food as “American.” What does that really mean? There has to be more to it than burgers and fries, right?— Perplexed in Palmetto Bluff

Answer:

Dear Perplexed, you’re on to something. American food is far more than a burger and fries with a lonely pickle on the side. That may be the postcard version, but as Beth Cosgrove, executive chef at the Palmetto Bluff Club, will tell you, the story runs much deeper. After 17 years of cooking abroad, she practically became America’s unofficial food ambassador, reminding anyone who would listen that our cuisine can’t be boiled down to fast food and condiments.“Like any country, America has diverse regional specialties, shaped by agriculture, terrain, climate and, most significantly, history,” she says. Think wartime rations, the rise of convenience foods in the 1950s and the flavor mash-ups from immigrant kitchens. Our plates tell the story of a country always improvising.Cosgrove recently turned that history lesson into a full-on dinner party: the Betty Crocker Tribute Dinner at Palmetto Bluff. And no, it wasn’t a kitschy Jell-O potluck. It was a clever, nostalgic and surprisingly delicious trip back to the mid-century kitchen. “Some of the food photography is so bad, it’s hilarious,” she admits, “but something about those pages (in Betty Crocker’s Picture Cook Book) drew me in. I wanted to jog memo-ries, to revisit retro, but with flavor and flair.”Guests dug into deviled ham spread on baked saltines with homemade pickles, a wink to the past with a flavor punch fit for today. Proof that even the most maligned cookbook recipes can shine when given care and creativity. So the next time someone tells you American food is nothing more than burgers and fries, feel free to laugh. Our food is messy, inventive, nostalgic and always evolving, which, come to think of it, sounds a lot like us.

PALMETTO BLUFF CLUB Betty Crocker’s Deviled Ham

This playful recipe from Palmetto Bluff Club’s Betty Crocker Tribute Dinner brings a retro classic into the present day. Deviled ham, once a staple of mid-century cookbooks, gets a serious glow-up when paired with crisp house-made pickles and butter-brushed saltines. The result is equal parts nostalgic and modern.

INGREDIENTS (pickles)

4 1/2 pounds pickling cucumbers (the long, thin ones)
1 1/2 pounds onions1/3 cup Morton’s pickling salt
2 1/4 cups apple cider vinegar
2 1/4 cups water
1 1/4 cups honey
1 tablespoon mustard seeds
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
1 teaspoon celery seeds
1 teaspoon black peppercorns
1 teaspoon coriander seeds
1 dried hot chili

DIRECTIONS [1] Cut the ends off the cucumbers, and using a mandolin or sharp knife, slice the cucumbers and onions into 1/4-inch rings. Cover the vegetables with salt, and mix together, pressing lightly to massage the salt into them. Let it sit at room temperature for 2 hours. [2] Rinse the vegetables under cold running water to wash the salt off. Drain them well. [3] In a large pot, combine the vinegar, water, honey, pickling spices and garlic and bring to a boil, allowing the honey to dissolve. [4] Put the rinsed vegetables into the jars or containers you will store them in. Immediately pour the hot pickling liquid over the vegetables, and cover. Leave at room temperature until cool. Refrigerate.

INGREDIENTS (deviled ham salad)

1 pound (about 2.5 cups) high-quality country ham, cubed (like Benton’s or Virginia Smokehouse)
1/4 cup mayonnaise (I prefer Hellman’s)
1/4 cup crème fraiche
1/4 cup celery, finely minced
1 tablespoon Valentina hot sauce
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard1 teaspoon garlic powder1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Salt, to taste
2 tablespoons thinly sliced chives

DIRECTIONS [1] Make the ham salad by placing the ham into the bowl of a food processor. Pulse the food processor until the ham is chopped into small pieces but not puréed. You want some texture to it, but it should be spreadable. [2] Add the ham to a bowl. Add in the mayonnaise, crème fraiche, celery, and mix together. [3] Add in the hot sauce, Dijon mustard and spices. Continue to mix thoroughly. [4] Season to your liking with salt. Finally, fold in the chives. Keep cold until ready to use.

INGREDIENTS (saltines)

1 packet saltine crackers, 1 cup melted butter, 1 tablespoon paprika

DIRECTIONS [1] Add the paprika powder to the melted butter. [2]Brush the butter liberally onto the saltines, and bake in a 350-degree oven until golden brown. Allow to cool.

ASSEMBLY Spread about a tablespoon of ham salad onto each buttered saltine. Top with a homemade pickle and garnish with more chives or some micro herbs.