Kentucky Derby menu
Chicken Fried Steak sliders on Pimento Cheese Biscuits
My husband is from El Paso, Texas and grew up watching the races while tagging along with his dad to Sunland Park. Watching the Derby is a tradition, and a good excuse for me to make some Southern-inspired eats. Sometimes we have friends over for a viewing party, or sometimes we plan a low-key afternoon with just the two of us, as we did this past Derby Day. Mint Juleps in frosted silver-plated cups are always poured, and this year the menu included deviled eggs with espelette pepper, pimento cheese biscuits with bacon jam and bourbon ham spread, and country-fried steak bites with cream gravy. Below is my favorite pimento cheese biscuit recipe, along with the easy bourbon ham spread. Both make use of a food processor for quicker prep.
Pimento Cheese Biscuits (adapted from Mastering the Art of Southern Cooking by Nathalie Dupree)
Ingredients:
2 1/4 cups self-rising flour
1/2 cup of lard, shortening and or butter cut into half-inch pieces
1 cup of milk or buttermilk
1 cup of shredded cheddar cheese
1 drained 4-oz jar of pimentos or 4 oz of chopped roasted red peppers
Directions:
Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.
Pulse flour 2 or 3 times in a food processor with the cheese.
Scatter the chilled shortening or butter over the flour mixture and pulse 3-4 times until the mixture is crumbled and the pieces of butter or fat are the size of a corn kernel.
Add roasted red peppers and slowly pulse in 3/4 cup milk or buttermilk to make a moist and shaggy dough that clumps together. You want the peppers to still stay chunky so don’t over-process. You may need to add more flour if it's too wet or more liquid if it's too dry.
Turn dough out onto a surface lightly sprinkled with flour. With floured hands, fold the dough in half, pat out into a round, and fold in half again. Sprinkle with flour, pat dough a second time into a 3⁄4-inch-thick round, and cut into disks with a biscuit cutter.
Bake the biscuits for 8-10 minutes until golden brown. Remove from oven, let cool about 5 minutes, and brush with softened butter.
BLTs are great on the biscuits too
Bourbon Ham Spread
Ingredients:
1-1/2 cups of cooked ham
8 tablespoons of softened butter
1-2 tablespoons of good bourbon
Directions:
Process all the ingredients in a food processor until smooth This is a great use of leftover baked ham since it can be frozen; just remember to bring to room temperature before serving so it’s spreadable.