BY ANN CIPPERLY FOR THE OBSERVER
In the small community of Waverly, Summer Humphry and her husband Matthew enjoy gathering family together each week for Sunday supper and for holidays, including St. Patrick’s Day. Summer, the sixth generation in her family to live in Waverly, has a love for southern cuisine and prepares recipes passed down in her family. On St. Patrick’s Day, she serves Irish inspired dishes, honoring her Grandfather Moynihan, whose parents came to this country from Ireland.
With her Graves family being one of the original settlers in Waverly, Summer is proud of the history. Patrick Street, the main road in Waverly, is named after her great-great-great-grandfather, Benjamin Blanton Patrick. Her great-grandfather, Howard Graves, was a pharmacist in Georgia before he moved back to Waverly to be a farmer.
Summer grew up in the family’s 1850s home, the Patrick-Graves House. She was raised by her grandmother, Martha Graves. Her great-grandmother also lived with them until she passed away when Summer was 8 years old. She has many good memories of her great-mother and recalls that she and her Grandmother Graves were good cooks.
Her grandmother cooked every day and invited family to dine with them on Fridays and Sundays. She cooked big Sunday meals, and Summer has followed the tradition and has family over.
“Our family is full of cooks, and we had many meals with family gatherings,” said Summer.
They had a big garden every year, and while Summer would help snap peas, she preferred to ride her horses through the pastures.
“We had green beans and cornbread almost every night,” she said. “I never ate vegetables from a store until after my grandmother died. She canned vegetables to have during winter. She made her own mayonnaise. I never had store-bought mayonnaise growing up.”
Along with lots of fresh garden vegetables, her grandmother cooked pork chops, fried chicken and other wonderful southern dishes. Her grandmother also held shrimp boils and made homemade pizzas.
Her Grandmother Graves was an interesting lady. She grew up in Waverly, attended Huntington College and then attended the University of Chicago for a master’s degree in social work. She lived in Ohio, North Carolina and Tennessee before moving back to Waverly.
Summer attended Chambers Academy and Central Community College until her grandmother became ill. She returned home to care for her.
When her grandmother passed away, Summer was 22 years old. She asked her cousin, Carolyn Stubbs, and Mary Wood, who helped her grandmother, to assist in recreating the family dishes. Now, she prepares many of the recipes with some of those being ones her great-grandmother made, including corn casserole, green beans and cornbread.
Matthew grew up in Miami, Florida, and also spent a great deal of time with his grandparents growing up. He is an engineer at the Donaldson Company in Auburn. Matthew also enjoys cooking and makes his grandmother’s Chicken and Dumplings.
Summer has a love of offering hospitality and prepares a large supper every Sunday for family, and sometimes friends join them.
“People say it is like being at their grandma’s house, as we have a nice meal on good china,” she said.
She especially enjoys cooking for her two grown sons, Alston and Hunter Knox, who attend the Sunday suppers and dinner another night during the week. Summer prepares their favorites, and they often bring friends with them.
While some people make dishes ahead, Summer begins preparing Sunday supper after church. Meatloaf and Sunday roast with mashed potatoes are among the family’s favorites, along with Enchilada Soup on rainy days. During summer, Matthew often grills steaks or does a shrimp boil, and she will prepare the sides.
On St. Patrick’s Day, Summer honors her Grandfather Moynihan, who was proud to be Irish. Summer has adopted recipes his mother made. She prepares a Cottage Pie, which is like a shepherd’s pie, but is made with beef instead of lamb. She will also prepare cabbage, soda bread and Half Penny Pudding.
For St. Patrick’s Day, Summer will decorate the table with shamrocks and Bells of Ireland and arrange those with daffodils from her yard. She uses china with a green clover that she inherited. Sometimes they will visit her uncle in Savannah and watch the St. Patrick’s Day parade that goes by his house.
“The Irish are deep rooted in family, and in my family they are all happy and fun to be around,” she said. “They are also deep rooted in cooking like southerners. I think southerners and the Irish have much in common. It is fun and a happy time to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day. It has been my goal to have happy and joyful times.”
While she has a love of cooking, Summer doesn’t enjoy baking as much. Sometimes if she needs a dessert, she will go to the Wild Flour Bakery in Waverly.
Matthew is on the town council, while Summer serves on the zoning board.
“We want to keep it a unique and special place,” she said. “I love living in Waverly. We attend the church that my family has attended for generations. I want to preserve our family history and the memories.”
Cottage Pie for St. Patrick’s Day
1 lb. ground beef
½ tsp. garlic powder
½ tsp. onion powder
3 cups prepared mashed potatoes
1 cup brown gravy (made from pkg. brown gravy mix)
Salt, pepper to taste
10 oz. frozen mixed vegetables, thawed
8 oz. shredded sharp cheddar cheese
Preheat oven to 425 degrees and grease a 9 x 13-inch casserole dish.
Add ground beef to medium size skillet and cook. Season with salt, pepper, garlic and onion powder. Drain when cooked.
Make mashed potatoes and gravy.
Add gravy to ground beef and add to casserole dish.
Spread vegetables evenly over top ground beef in casserole dish.
Spread mashed potatoes over meat and vegetable mixture. Spread evenly with a spatula.
Top with shredded cheddar cheese. Bake uncovered for 15 minutes until bubbly and lightly browned.
Kielbasa and Cabbage
1 lb. Kielbasa, cut into ½ inch pieces
1 ½ Tbsp. olive oil, divided
1 medium onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 medium head cabbage, cored and chopped
¾ tsp. kosher salt
½ tsp. ground black pepper
1 tsp. red wine vinegar
Heat a large deep skillet over medium heat. Add ½ Tbsp. olive oil and Kielbasa. Toss, coat and cook about 4 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate.
Return pan to stove and reduce heat to medium low. Add remaining olive oil and onion. Cook onion until softened. Add garlic, cabbage, salt and pepper. Toss well. Cover and cook, stirring every 4 to 5 minutes until cabbage is wilted (approximately 15 minutes).
Stir in red wine vinegar and Kielbasa. Cover and cook for an additional 3 minutes or until done.
Half Penny Pudding
Irish favorite for St. Patrick’s Day
¾ cup butter, room temperature
1 tsp. all-spice
1 cup sugar
2 cups fine breadcrumbs (freshly made)
1 cup all-purpose flour
4 eggs
1 apple, peeled and sliced
1 cup raisins
1 cup sultanas (golden raisins)
1 cup candied peel
Cream butter with all spice and sugar.
Add breadcrumbs, flour, eggs and mix.
Add fruits and mix well.
Fill a greased 1 ½ quart mold about 2/3 full and cover with lid or foil.
Tie tightly with string. Stand on a rack in 1-inch boiling water in a pot with a tight cover.
Steam 1 ½ hours, adding more boiling water, if necessary.
Serve warm or cold with sauce.
Sauce:
5 Tbsp. butter
1 cup powdered sugar
1 tsp. lemon juice
1 egg
Beat butter until soft. Gradually add powdered sugar and beat until blended. Add lemon juice. Beat in egg and continue beating until smooth. Chill.
Enchilada Soup
2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 large purple onion diced
1 red bell pepper diced
4 cups chicken broth
2 tsp. cumin
10 oz. red enchilada sauce
14.5 oz. can fire roasted diced tomatoes
1 can black beans, drained
4 oz. can diced green chilies
2 cups cooked chicken, shredded
3 Tbsp. chopped cilantro
3 green onions, chopped
8 oz. cream cheese, cubed
1 cup shredded Mexican cheese
Salt, pepper to taste
Heat olive oil in soup pot; add onion and bell pepper and cook until soft. Add chicken broth, cumin and enchilada sauce. Stir and bring to a boil.
Reduce heat to medium and add diced tomato, black beans, green chilies, chopped green onion, chopped cilantro and shredded cooked chicken. Stir and simmer 10 to 15 minutes. Reduce to low, add cream cheese and shredded cheese stir. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Slow Cooker Collard Greens
3 smoked ham hocks
Two 14 oz. cans chicken broth
2 lbs. shredded collard greens
½ cup chopped sweet onion
2 Tbsp. sugar
2 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar
2 tsp. kosher salt
1 tsp. crushed red pepper
½ tsp. ground black pepper
Combine all ingredients in a slow cooker. Cook on low 9 hours. Remove ham hocks and remove all fat and bone. Return meat to cooker stir and serve.
Grandmother Graves’ Cornbread
2 cups self-rising cornmeal mix
2 eggs, beaten
Buttermilk (use as much as needed for the batter but don’t’ make it watery)
1/3 cup Crisco or bacon grease
Mix all ingredients together. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Put cast iron skillet into oven while it is heating. Get Crisco or bacon grease and put about 1/3 cup on spoon and place into hot skillet until melted. Pour mix in and cook for 15 to 20 minutes.
Sunday Supper Meatloaf
2 lbs. ground beef
1 cup ketchup
¾ cup Quaker oats
½ cup onion, diced
½ cup bell pepper, diced
1 large egg, beaten
1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
Salt, pepper to taste
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix all ingredients and pour in a loaf pan. Bake 1 hour.
Sunday Roast
3 lb. beef chuck roast
1 envelope dry Italian dressing mix
1 envelope dry ranch dressing mix
1 envelope brown gravy mix
1 envelope onion soup mix
2 cups beef broth
Combine beef broth and seasoning envelopes and whisk until mixed well.
Sear roast on all sides.
Add roast to Dutch oven and pour mixture over top.
Cover and cook at 350 degrees for 1 hour.
Add veggies such as potatoes and carrots, if desired
Reduce temperature to 300 degrees and cook for 3 hours or until it is done. When finished, remove the roast from the pan, and let it rest for 10 minutes before slicing. Serve the gravy on the side. Good served with mashed potatoes.
Matthew’s Grandma’s Chicken and Dumplings
Chicken and Stock:
4 chicken breasts with bones and skin on
4 cups chicken broth
4 cups water
2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. pepper
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 bay leaf
2 cans cream of chicken soup
Pepper to taste
Dumplings:
2 cups White Lily self-rising flour
¼ cup Crisco
¾ cup buttermilk
Add chicken, broth, water, salt, pepper, garlic powder and bay leaf to a wide stock pot or Dutch oven. Cover then bring to a slow simmer over medium heat. Once broth is bubbling, reduce heat to low then cook covered for 2-3 hours until chicken is tender.
Remove chicken from broth; set aside to cool. Strain broth into a large bowl or pitcher, discarding bay leaf and loose bones or skin. Once chicken has cooled, shred chicken into desired bite sized pieces discarding bones and skin.
Prepare dumplings by adding flour to a large mixing bowl. Cut in shortening with a pastry blender or two knives until crumbs are pea sized. Stir in buttermilk with a fork just until moistened. Pour dumpling mix onto a lightly floured surface and fold the dough over itself 6 to 8 times until a smooth dough is formed.
Return broth to stock pot or Dutch oven and add cream of chicken Soup. Cover and bring to a gentle boil over medium heat. Stir periodically to ensure cream of chicken soup is thoroughly combined.
Add shredded chicken to the pot. Gently drop dumplings, one at a time, into gently boiling broth. Be careful to drop dumplings away from other freshly dropped dumplings as they will stick to each other.
Once all dumplings are in the pot cover and reduce heat to low then allow to cook for 10 minutes or until dumplings are cooked through.
Lightly dust dumplings with pepper to taste and serve immediately.
Shortcut Version:
Substitute 1 whole rotisserie chicken (shredded) and 8 cups chicken broth and start at step 3.
Grandmother Graves’s Corn Pudding
6 Tbsp. melted butter
2 Tbsp. self-rising flour
2 Tbsp. sugar
1 tsp. salt
4 beaten eggs
2 cups fresh corn or 10 oz. pkg. Tennessee Brand frozen cream corn
1 cup milk
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Blend butter, flour, salt and sugar. Add beaten eggs. Stir in corn and then milk. Pour into greased casserole dish and bake for 45 minutes.
Potato Salad
6 white or Yukon gold potatoes (3 lbs.)
3 large boiled eggs, divided
½ a Vidalia onion, peeled and chopped
¼ cup chopped pimento
3 Tbsp. pickle relish
½ cup spicy brown mustard
½ cup mayonnaise
Salt, pepper to taste
1 tsp. paprika
Peel potatoes and cut into 1 ½ inch chunks. Put in pot and add water to cover. Salt the water generously. Cover pot and set over high heat. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to brisk simmer until potatoes can be pierced with a fork. Drain potatoes and place them in a large bowl.
Peel boiled eggs. Chop 2 eggs and add them to the potatoes. Add onion, pimento and relish to potatoes.
In a small bowl, mix mayonnaise and mustard. Spoon mixture over potato salad. Season with salt and pepper and mix generously. Slice the remaining boiled egg and place on top of salad. Sprinkle with paprika. Chill for 4 hours before serving.
Banana Pudding
14 oz. can sweetened condensed milk
1½ cups cold water
1 pkg. instant vanilla pudding
2 cups whipping cream, whipped
1 box vanilla wafers
3 bananas, sliced
Cool Whip
Mix sweetened condensed milk and water. Add pudding and beat until mixture is well blended. Chill for 5 minutes. Fold in whipped cream.
Put layer vanilla wafers, pudding and bananas (in that order). Repeat layers. Spread Cool Whip on top. Refrigerate several hours before serving.
Poppy Seed Chicken
2 cups cooked rice
5 cups cooked and shredded chicken breasts
1 cup sour cream
2 cans condensed cream of chicken soup
2 cups crushed Ritz crackers
½ cup butter, melted
1 Tbsp. poppy seeds
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place rice in a 9×13-inch casserole dish. Place shredded chicken on top rice. Stir together condensed soup and sour cream. Pour over the chicken.
In a separate bowl, stir together crushed crackers and melted butter. Sprinkle over chicken and sauce. Sprinkle poppy seeds on top.
Bake for 20 – 30 minutes in a preheated oven, until the casserole is browned and the sauce is bubbly.