Issue Date: October, 2010
Serves: Serves 4 as a side dish
Pairings:
Courtesy of: From “Real Cajun” by Donald Link

Ingredients:

• ½ small onion, chopped
• 1 small jalapeno pepper, stemmed, seeded, and chopped
• 1 bunch scallions (green and white parts), thinly sliced
• 2 tablespoons minced parsley
• 1 cup yellow cornmeal
• ½ cup all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 2 ½ teaspoons baking powder
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
• ¾ cup whole milk
• 1 egg
• Vegetable oil, for frying

Instructions:

Combine the onion, jalapeno, scallions, and parsley in a food processor or blender and pulse to a rough puree.

Whisk together the cornmeal, flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, thyme, and cayenne in a small bowl.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the milk and egg. Add the vegetable puree and stir to combine. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir until combined. For the best results, refrigerate the batter for at least 30 minutes before frying.

Heat 3 inches of oil in a 4- to 5- quart heavy pot (preferably cast iron) over high heat until it reaches 350 degrees F.

Working in batches of six, carefully add the batter to the hot oil 1 heaping tablespoon at a time; use another spoon to scrape it off, keeping it in a ball shape. Fry, turning, until golden, 2 to 3 minutes, then transfer with a slotted spoon to paper towels to drain briefly. Transfer the hush puppies to a shallow baking pan and keep hot in a 200 degree F oven while frying remaining batter (bring the oil back to 350 degrees F in between batches).