Free America I AM Pass It Down Cookbook by Jeff Henderson

Virginia
    SERVES 4 TO 6
    Junell Thompson says her mother, June, cooked this simple dish for her and her brother back in the 70s. “I love turkey wings, but turkey drumsticks and breasts go well with this recipe and are prepared the same way,” she says. “My mother sometimes made the mushroom gravy from scratch, which is the best way, but here is the simple version for today’s busy mothers, which substitutes the scratch gravy with canned mushroom gravy.”
    4 large turkey wings
3 tablespoons salt
3 tablespoons freshly ground pepper
2 tablespoons dry rosemary
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, thinly sliced
½ cup water
3 bay leaves
1 cup sliced yellow onions
1 14-ounce can mushroom gravy
    Preheat the oven to 370° F.
    Wash turkey wings off under cold water, pat dry, and set aside. Season the turkey wings with salt, pepper, and dry rosemary. Set aside.
    In a large baking dish or roasting pan lined with foil, spread the sliced butter and pour the water in the base of the dish. Arrange the turkey wings, bay leaf, and sliced onions on top.
    Cover the baking dish with aluminum foil and place in the oven. Roast, turning the wings every 20 minutes, until the wings are fork tender—about 1 hour.
    Remove the pan of turkey wings from oven. Set aside. In a small saucepan, heat can of mushroom gravy to desired temperature, pour over turkey wings, and serve.

Samuel Fraunces’ Beef Brazilian Onions
    New York, New York
    SERVES 8
    Heart & Soul
    Samuel Fraunces, a free man of West Indian heritage, was a well-known and highly regarded tavern owner in New York City during the American Revolution. During that time, George Washington was a frequent customer of his, and he served him a dish called “onions done in the Brazilian way.” It was one of several delicacies that pleased Washington, and he hired Fraunces to be his steward once Washington became president.
    Adrian Miller, an African American historian and student of black presidential chefs, has adapted this recipe to be lighter by swapping out the onions, eggs, and butter in the original recipe for sweet onion, egg whites, and olive oil. For more adventurous cooks, Miller offers the option of substituting bison meat for beef. Either way, this recipe is delicious enough to please any president.
     
    ONIONS
    4 medium-size sweet onions (e.g., Vidalia, Walla Walla, or Maui Sweets)
4 egg whites beaten with 1 tablespoon of water
¼ cup of olive oil
    BEEF MINCEMEAT MIXTURE
    ½ pound of ground beef or bison
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
¼ cup beef stock
¼ teaspoon dried sage
¼ teaspoon dried oregano
salt and pepper to taste
    Pass It Down TIP
    Where do you find bison? Look no further— Eatwild is the most comprehensive source for grass-fed meat and dairy products in the United States and Canada; lists more than 1,100 pasture based farms that produce beef, lamb, pork, bison, and other meats. Visit them at www.eatwild.com .
    Peel the onions, cut in half, and set aside.
    Bring large pot of water to a boil and add the onions. Parboil them for 5 minutes. Remove and cool.
    When cool enough to handle, remove the inner core of the onion to create a “cup.” Set the “cups” aside.
    Prepare the bison meat mixture by combining all the ingredients.
    Fill the onion cups with bison meat mixture and pack it in just enough so that the mixture doesn’t fall out.
    Glaze the top of the stuffed onions with the egg white wash.
    Heat the olive oil in a large fry pan over medium heat. Carefully place the onions, meat side down onto the hot fry pan. Fry for 5 minutes or until the meat mixture is cooked thoroughly.
    Serve as an appetizer, stuffing side up.

    Well into the 20th century, even as the adoption and enforcement of laws of equality eluded the senators they cooked for, the Senate cooks demonstrated skill and prowess with both complex and everyday dishes to tempt lawmakers’ palates.

Beef Turnip Stew with Rice
    Hempstead, Texas
    SERVES 4
    Margo Gillum grew up in deep south