Pimento Cheese

[amarante]

Is this really pimento cheese or is it a nouvelle update on it? I've never eaten it but I always thought it was some kind of food eaten in sandwiches.


Magnolias pimiento cheese

Total time: 15 minutes

Servings: This makes about 4½ cups pimiento cheese.

Note: Adapted from Magnolias in Charleston, S.C.

5 large red pimiento peppers, peeled, seeded and chopped, or 2½ cups jarred chopped red pimiento peppers, drained

1 cup finely chopped pimiento-stuffed green olives

5 cups shredded sharp Vermont cheddar cheese

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1/4 cup mayonnaise

1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Dash cayenne pepper, more if desired

Flatbread, for serving

In a food processor, pulse the peppers a few times. Move the peppers to a large bowl and add the olives, cheddar and Parmesan cheeses, mayonnaise, parsley, black and cayenne peppers. Mix until fully incorporated. Season with additional cayenne pepper if desired. Serve with flatbread.

Each tablespoon: 41 calories; 2 grams protein; 0 carbohydrates; 0 fiber; 3 grams fat; 2 grams saturated fat; 9 mg cholesterol; 0 sugar; 91 mg sodium

[vbak]

Sounds nouvelle to me. I have made it before, and the recipe included only the basics. I doubt any good southerner would use Yankee Vermont cheddar! or parsley. What I remember is cheddar, mayo, pimento, finely minced onion[?], and maybe cayenne pepper.

[charley]

Sounds like a pretty basic pimento cheese to me. I've never added Parmesan or green olives. I like it with jalapeno and pecans.

Love Cabot's Extra Sharp white cheddar. Don't care for the yellow stuff.

[funniegrrl]

A twist on traditional. Not too far off base, but definitely not what grandma would make. My mother's (and most every version I've seen) was just a drained jar of chopped pimentos mixed with grated regular ol' cheddar and enough mayonnaise to make it hang together.

[LakeMartinGal]

I have very recently found an appreciation for pimento cheese spread, and I believe some of the cooks around here use some cream cheese, and maybe jalapenos. Or horseradish -- not sure, though.

[Terri_A]

I have no clue what they put in it, perhaps crack, but the pimento cheese from Whole Foods looks similar to that and is crazy good. Traditional or not, it's the only pimento cheese I've ever really liked enough to seek it out.

[Carol SC]

Love the stuff! I never make it because it is addictive and DH and I don't need it, but being a recipe from Magnolia's it is probably up there. I also prefer Cabot's White Cheddar and as they sell it in the local supermarkets, I don't think there is a blockade against northern cheeses! Actually, Aldi has a really good piemento cheese spread which I buy occasionally.

[heavy hedonist]

Sounds like a pretty basic pimento cheese to me. I've never added Parmesan or green olives. I like it with jalapeno and pecans.

Love Cabot's Extra Sharp white cheddar. Don't care for the yellow stuff.

mm, sounds good, that tweak. i'll have to try it myself.

i always add a hefty spoonful of dijon mustard to mine. i like the tang it adds.

[heavy hedonist]

here's an old thread with several basic, but different, recipes:

http://community.cookinglight.com/sh...ad.php?t=38527

[gritsgirl]

Sounds like a pretty basic pimento cheese to me. I've never added Parmesan or green olives. I like it with jalapeno and pecans.

Love Cabot's Extra Sharp white cheddar. Don't care for the yellow stuff.

I agree with Charley. I don't use mayo. Instead Mexican crema, and Cabot's white is the best. I do add jalapeno or green olives. Mine is a spicy pimento cheese. It isn't sweet. Never parmesan. Ahhh, one man's pleasure is another man's.............

[Robyn1007]

My granny made awesome pimiento cheese spread. I recently posted this elsewhere so it was already typed up. This is her recipe which I was lucky enough to pull out of her recipe card box which sits in my living room. She was meticulous about her recipes and so I plan to make this tomorrow and am certain it will bring me back to the last time I tasted it prepared by her. I'm pretty sure in her later years she would have used the Miracle Whip.

Pimiento Cheese Spread (2 cups)

10-12 oz mild cheddar cheese (or Colby for milder flavor)
*1 cube unsalted butter
1 4oz jar pimientos, chopped (including the juice)
3 good dashes white pepper, or to taste
Salt to taste
*1/4 c. water

Cut cheese and butter into 1" pieces; put into food processor with water and 1/3 of the pimientos. Blend until very smooth. Add white pepper, salt, and remaining pimientos. Process only until blended, leaving pimientos in chunks.

*Or use 1/2 c. fat free or regular Miracle Whip and only 1-2 T. water. Add 1/4 tsp red pepper sauce.

[amarante]

Well thanks all. It seems that except for the Parmesan cheese this recipe really is pretty much in line with variations of the dish?

Is it a Southern dish?

[Kyra]

I'm a Yankee, and I'm partial to my own version of pimento cheese. I'll dig up the recipe tomorrow if you're interested, but I use a mix of white and yellow sharp cheddar (nothing wrong with Cabot's), cream cheese, some mayo. I don't love pimentos so I use roasted piquillo peppers instead, and smoked sweet Spanish paprika as well as some cayenne. It's good as a spread/dip with any kind of bread or crackers, but I love it with celery, and it also makes a great grilled cheese sandwich. Yum.

[Robyn1007]

Well thanks all. It seems that except for the Parmesan cheese this recipe really is pretty much in line with variations of the dish?

Is it a Southern dish?

My Granny only ever lived in Denver. While she was meticulous in her recipes but she didn't have a source noted on many of her recipes.

[amarante]

I had never heard of this so I did some googling this morning and found what I thought was a fascinating history - love how it went from being a food of the chi chi to that of the masses. I've read a few cultural histories of food and it does seem that the 1920's were rife with these kinds of recipes for "dainty" ladies' functions for a variety of reasons including the decline in cooks and servants among all but the extremely wealthy.

It does appear that the food is Southern in origin or at least achieved favored status in that region although obviously there are outliers in every region who would be familiar with unusual food items.

http://www.indyweek.com/indyweek/a-b...nt?oid=2567371

[Robyn1007]

Made Granny's today. It was amazing. I might have to make her ham spread next. I'm seeing some delicious ski lunches this winter!

[Salt]

Made Granny's today. It was amazing. I might have to make her ham spread next. I'm seeing some delicious ski lunches this winter!

When you say ham spread are you talking about something similar to ham salad? If so I would love to know her recipe.

[Robyn1007]

Yes, I'm sorry, that's what it is called. For the record, my Granny kept copies of her most popular recipes at the ready for anyone who asked for them. She loved to share her recipes and would love knowing that I was sharing them here. Geez, looking at these quantities I would definitely halve at least.

Ham Salad
7-8 c. cooked ham, finely ground (about 3lbs)
1 1/2 c. celery, chopped
1 1/2 c. green onion, finely sliced
3/4 - 1 1/2 c. sweet pickles, chopped
2 C. Miracle Whip, mixed with:
2-4 T. Dijon mustard

Process ham until finely ground, put into large bowl after measuring. (Use leftover ham in omelets and vegetables.) Slice-then-chop celery; add to ham. Chop pickles in processor; do onions by hand. Add to ham. Add about half the Miracle Whip mixture, then continue to add only until the ham is nicely moistened.

My note: Her way of writing this recipe (including how to use the leftover ham) cracks me up. And it was so her!

[funniegrrl]

Yes, pimento cheese is quintessentially Southern, although as noted it is known in other areas. It's one of those basic foods we grew up with which fell out of favor, but is now enjoying a renaissance with the reemergence of traditional Southern food among younger cooks and chefs.

[carolyn.1]

Funny, reading this thread, I had to share a story. When I was 10 years old, my family moved us from Portsmouth, VA to Hanahan, SC. In VA our school lunches were awesome. Big tray of hot well balanced food and Big glass of ice cold milk. My first day of school in SC; a cold pimento cheese sandwich and a bowl of slightly warm tomato soup and a box of milk. I couldn't believe I was served this for lunch! Never heard of pcheese before. It must have made an impression on me , since now I'm 58 and remember it very clearly! And yes, now I LOVE the stuff and make it quite frequently! Southern style and I do use green olives. Thought you'd find this humerous!

[vbak]

Here's an article from SL with recipes.

http://thedailysouth.southernliving....miento-cheese/

[Soupandstew]

I think there's some sort of unwritten law in the South that celery sticks must be stuffed with either pimento cheese or cream cheese and chopped pecans. And all proper funeral receptions require pimento cheese sandwiches on white bread, crusts trimmed, of course, and cut into tidy triangles. They are then placed strategically between the spinach and artichoke dip with Triscuit crackers and the mixed nuts.

[vbak]

Love it, Sn'S. In my neck of the woods,NW In, it's stuffed cabbages, sausage, and saurkraut for funeral dinners.

[LakeMartinGal]

I think there's some sort of unwritten law in the South that celery sticks must be stuffed with either pimento cheese or cream cheese and chopped pecans. And all proper funeral receptions require pimento cheese sandwiches on white bread, crusts trimmed, of course, and cut into tidy triangles. They are then placed strategically between the spinach and artichoke dip with Triscuit crackers and the mixed nuts.

LOL -- if you've ever read Being Dead is No Excuse, you'd know you've hit the nail exactly on the head!!!