I have a little recipe box in my kitchen. I’ve carted it along through two apartments and three houses. It has been slowly building since my mid-20s.
It’s got recipes from my mom, recipes I ripped out of magazines and some I cut from the side of a noodle box.
You know when you flip the package of pasta noodles over and the box has some “mix me with this vegetable and this meat” recipe on it? Yeah those.
I have probably only made a handful of the recipes in there but I still cut, rip, and write down recipes to fill it.
This little box of mine also holds MY recipes. Something I either concocted from scratch or perfected from a previous recipe. MY recipes also include recipes from friends. THEIR recipes.
I mean I am not like breaking into houses in the middle of the night and creeping into their kitchen looking for some magic recipe vault. That method would only get me shot-ESPECIALLY in Texas. But the recipe was hers and now it’s MINE. It’s MY recipe.
The best way to get them is a bombardment of compliments and questions that seem casual enough to the person who made the dish.
“Ooh! This is so good. Did you make these from scratch?”
“The meat is cooked perfect. Did you bake it or broil it? How long does that take?”
“I love how the flavors blend together. Can you write down everything you put in it and how much?”
That last one there is how I acquired the tamale pie recipe.
If you’ve never had tamale pie you probably think it is just tamales in a pie pan. It’s not. You may also think it tastes like tamales. It doesn’t.
But tamale pie is perhaps one of the best dishes for pot lucks, parties, and consolation casseroles. You know the old “you had a tragedy, here’s a lasagna” dish you give to friends and neighbors.
The holidays are full of all three of those things, so I’ll get you ready. Here is THE tamale pie recipe. I won’t even make you interrogate me to get it.
The card just shows THE recipe. The one I convinced the person I took it from to write down. But here are a few items that make this MY tamale pie recipe.
One. You’ll notice there are two pans here. That is not because I take the recipe and split it up. It is because I take the recipe and double it. When you take this to a party you’ll never get as much of it as you want. The extra portion (or 1/2 portion) will cover you and the family the next few days when someone says “Man I wish we had some more of that tamale pie.” With MY recipe you’ll have the extra you need.
Two. THE tamale pie recipe calls for two cups cheese. You’ll want more. MY recipe calls for more cheese. I mean it will still be good with the two cups-but you WANT more. I understand not everyone can eat cheese. But if you CAN eat cheese, you want more cheese. Also I read today that there is a stockpile of cheese so American dairy farmers need us for their survival. These are just facts.
Three. After you mix the cornbread mix you gotta let it sit a bit before you pour it over the top. This also means that when I make MY tamale pie I have a chance to open the wine. This may also be in YOUR recipe too. I’ll let you decide.
Four. You gotta leave something out.
I don’t mean something from THE recipe itself. I mean… I left something out of MY recipe when I gave it to you.
Listen. A girl’s gotta do what a girl’s gotta do. If there is any chance that you and I run in the same circles and our tamale pie recipes could be compared, I need there to be a difference. An unknown difference that doesn’t take away from how great it is, but gives mine an edge. I know. I know. Cutthroat!
I remember when the person I got the recipe from found out I made HER tamale pie for a party I had. There were words. Note. Yes. It is so good that people who eat it at as party wwill talk about it. And also. I didn’t make HERS. I made MINE!
And when I passed the recipe on to some family members, I gave them THE recipe- but not mine! Cuz like I said. Cutthroat!
So I encourage you to take THE recipe and do your work to transform it from “stolen from someone else” to “perfected concoction.”
Happy holidays everyone!
~This Girl Here
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