Crookneck Squash Casserole

Description: This is one of our favorites every summer. The ingredients vary slightly, depending on what we have on hand. What follows is Brian's favorite version, based on Ronnie Lundy's recipe out of her essential Southern cookbook, Butter Beans to Blackberries: Recipes from the Southern garden. (Zucchini is not an acceptable alternative—too much water.)
 
Ingredients:
4C sliced fresh yellow summer squash
1-2C shredded country ham (If you have to ask if you can use a sugar ham or, God forbid, canned ham, you are forbidden to attempt this recipe. Bacon, however, is an acceptable alternative. If using bacon, sprinkle on top of the dish instead of mixing it into the casserole.)
4T sugar
1/4C minced onion
1 clove minced garlic
Plenty of fresh ground pepper
 
Directions:
Turn oven on 350.
Steam squash for about 10 minutes.
Sauté onions in bacon grease or lard until soft.
Add garlic for a minute or two.
Pour grease, onions, garlic, sugar and ham into squash.
Thoroughly mix and add pepper.
 
There should be a modest amount of liquid, more like a stew than a soup.
 
Pour into buttered casserole and bake for 30-40 minutes. Top should be brown. You may have to pour off excess water. And you might want to toss some shredded mozzarella on top for the last few minutes.
 
Like all good casseroles, nothing else is needed. But cornbread helps.

Speckled Sussex rooster

Coq au Vin

Preparation time: 8-24 months (The bird needs time to develop some muscle and texture)

Description: When you tell someone that you recommend using a rooster for cooking, eyes roll. A tough old bird is just that, they say. We couldn't disagree more. Whether you are preparing gumbo, chicken and dumplings, or coq au vin, a seasoned rooster has more texture and taste than your standard 9-week-old plumped-up mutation from the store. So give a rooster a try. We think you'll come away more than satisfied.

Ingredients:
1 rooster, cut into 4-8 pieces (Save the backbone and wing tips for making stock)
2 onions, chopped roughly
A handful of shallots, peeled and chopped
3-4 carrots, chopped
3-4 cloves of garlic, chopped
1-2 handfuls of dried mushrooms
Fresh herbs (thyme, parsley, bay leaf)
Peppercorns
A bottle of red wine (a decent French wine with a little acidity, not one of those fruit bombs)
1/4C lard or olive oil
2-4T flour
Fatback
Egg noodles

Directions:
Put rooster, veggies, herbs, and wine into large bowl and refrigerate for 24 hours.

Take rooster out of wine and pat dry. Season with salt and pepper. Heat lard/oil in heavy pan and brown meat in batches. Remove and stir in flour, scraping up all the burnt bits. Add marinade (with veggies and herbs) and continue to scrape while bringing to a boil. Add chicken and simmer, partially covered, for at least two hours.

Remove rooster from pot. Turn up heat to medium, and reduce sauce by half. Pull meat off bones and return to pot. (Save bones and skin, and add to back and wing tips for future stock.)

Brown strips of fatback or pork belly, add dried mushrooms, and stir for 5-10 minutes in a sauce pan. Add to pot. Simmer, covered, for about 30 minutes. Taste and season.

Serve over egg noodles. Homemade bread to sop up the sauce is highly recommended.