Heard
a local radio commentator proclaim his unfamiliarity with shortnin’ bread – he was
asking what it was. H-m-m-m, hadn’t he ever heard that familiar tune?
Mammy's little
baby loves short'nin', short'nin',
Mammy's little
baby loves short'nin' bread
The first version of this traditional plantation song was written by white poet James Whitcomb Riley in 1900. His song, which he collected
from East Tennessee, was named "A Short'nin' Bread Song—Pieced Out.” Al
Jolson and the Andrews Sisters recorded
popular versions of the song. Allan Sherman also did a Jewish-oriented satire,
"Mammy's Little Baby loves Matzoh Balls, "substituting "matzo
balls" and "Pesach bread" for "shortnin' bread."
For those unfamiliar with
this food item, shortening bread is a fried batter bread, the ingredients of
which include corn meal, flour, hot water, eggs, baking powder, milk and
shortening.. It's a Southern quick bread like cornbread. The
term Shortnin' Bread (also spelled "Shortenin' Bread" or "Short'nin'
Bread) implies not much more
than a recipe containing fat and flour.
Shortening is any fat that is solid at room temperature and
used to make crumbly pastry. The term
"shortening" seldom refers to butter but is more closely related to
margarine. Originally, shortening was synonymous with lard, "shortening" has come almost
exclusively to mean hydrogenated vegetable oil. Crisco, since 2002 owned by the J.M.
Smucker Co., is still the most well-known brand of shortening in the US. In Ireland and the UK, Cookeen is a popular brand, while
in Australia, Copha is popular,
although made primarily from coconut oil.
Here’s a recipe
- time to make 30 min; 10 min prep:
1/2 cup butter, very very soft
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 cup flour
1/2 cup butter, very very soft
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 cup flour
1.
Preheat
the oven to 350 degrees.
2.
Cream
the butter with the brown sugar. Add the flour a bit at a time until mixed
well.
3.
Roll
out to 1/2-thickness and cut into "ladyfinger"-like slices. Place on
a greased pan and bake for 20 minutes or until just beginning to brown. Cool
completely. http://www.recipezaar.com/162011
And,
if you’re ever in downtown Long Beach, CA., be sure and stop by the Shortnin
Bread Bakery or check out their menu at http://www.shortninbreadbakery.com/