Today we will be baking in my Grandmother's kitchen. My Nanny, Thelma Berneda Ash, is 73 years old and still cookin' up love in the kitchen. She is a great country chef from back-woods Arkansas raised on home-cooked biscuits and gravy. She never measures anything and makes squirrel and dumplings good enough to make you slap yo' mama!
Nanny is most famous for her Chocolate Rolls! Chocolate rolls my very favorite dessert. What ARE chocolate rolls? Glad you asked. As far as we can... our family invented them. Nanny and her sisters make chocolate rolls because Great Grandma Gladys Harris used to make them. I was also informed that sometimes she would make fried chocolate pies with the same recipe. I say recipe... but in reality there IS no recipe. It's a little of this and a little of that. I'll do my best to explain how we made these delectable delights.
Step 1 - Home-Made Pie Dough
I have heard that the perfect pie dough is based on a 3-2-1 recipe which consists of 3 measures of flour, 2 measures of lard, and 1 measure of ice water. I am uncertain as to weather Nanny uses this rule since she just 'eye-balls' the measurements in a mixing bowl.
First, we knocked several large spoonfuls of shortning (if you don't know what this is... then I am sad for you) into a large mixing bowl. We like to use Crisco. Well, Nanny likes to used Crisco. I like to use Butter Flavored Crisco. And sometimes I like to use Oleo. And if you are from the South you know what Oleo is. Great-Grandma used lard. After listening to an Episode of the The Splendid Table all about making the perfect pie crust I believe that the very best pie dough contains lard. The common use of animal lard was was greatly effected around the turn of the 20th century because of misconceptions of slaughter houses. Since that time most bakers and chefs changed over to using a vegetable based shortning. Since lard is no longer a readily available commodity in this country we use Crisco.
The second ingredient is all purpose flour. I say all purpose flour (also called plain flour) because I need to clarify this for my Southern-most readers. You see, Mississippi cooks use self rising flour in nearly everything. This is just a part of southern cooking. Pie crust is probably the only reason that southern cooks would even purchase all purpose, plain flour. A pinch or two of salt must also be added to the plain flour. Self-rising flour is already a little salty but plain flour is un-stalted. . . so add some salt. Nanny adds a mountain of all purpose flour to the bowl and begins mixing with a pastry cutter. She continues to add flour and mix until the consistency is just right. Nanny says that the pie dough should have just enough shortning so that the dough will hold a ball together even before the water is added. However, it will not hold together when rolled out, so next we must add the water.
The third and final ingredient in ice water. The water being very cold helps to keep the shortning stiffer, the dough easier to work with, and the pie crust flaky when baked. The adding of this ingredien is very similar to each of the others - add until it looks right and feels like it is the correct consistency.
Step 2 - Home-Made Chocolate Sauce
Chocolate sauce is also made from 3 ingredients: sugar, cocoa powder, and evaporated milk. Again, it is hard to explain the measurements of the ingredients so I will describe the process to the best of my abilities.
First, a medium sized bowl is filled nearly to the top with granulated cane sugar. Nanny mentioned that she always uses the same bowl. I believe this is because she knows just how must to add for the size of the bowl since she always uses the same one.
Secondly, she spoons several large scoops of cocoa powder (we use Hershey's cocoa powder because is has a stronger chocolate flavor). She begins mixing the sugar and cocoa with a fork and continues to add more cocoa until it "looks" like there is enough.
Thirdly, Nanny opens a can of evaporated milk (carnation milk, pet milk, whatever people call it where you are from) and pours this into the frist two ingredients until is it thin enough to pour but not so thin that it will all run off of the pie dough.
Step 3 - Making Chocolate Rolls
Just making the first two main ingredients correctly is not enough. Lastly, you MUST roll out and fold the chocolate rolls correctly or you will ruin this dessert! My sister Liz and I learned this the hard way because we both spent years folding our chocolate rolls the wrong way, which causes the chocolate to run out of the rolls while baking and burn in the bottom of the pan. Lesson of the Day: pay attention when your grandmother shows you how to roll and fold chocolate rolls.
First, we roll one fistful of dough and roll it out into a circle. Next, we pour some (but not too much) chocolate sauce onto the dough.
The only other ingredient needed is margarine. Make sure you have plenty of margarine.
I suppose that butter would work just as well, but Nanny has always used margarine, so I sort of think that there must be something special about margarine... and it is cheeper.
Now, for the most important part! The folding of the chocolate roll! The chocolate roll must be folded over in 4ths. Two folds on the right take care of half of the roll. Then the left is folded from edge to center and then over the top of the right side. The ends are then pinched closed and the rolls are places in a pan. For years my sister and I folded them over in 3rds. This just doesn't work. The chocolate will all leak out into the pan and the rolls will burn and ruin. They must be folded in 4ths.
The oven is set to 480 - yes, you read that correctly. FOUR-HUNDRED AND EIGHTY DEGREES and baked until a golden brown. This takes 15 to 12 minutes.
Sometime, some of the chocolate rolls leak a little bit. Today, ALL of them leaked a little! I don't know why. It must be because I was helping and I always seem to ruin chocolate rolls. But, Nanny says that at least one chocolate roll has to leak or she didn't do them right. Very little chocolate burnt on the bottom of the pan. If the rolls are made well and the chocolate sauce is not too thin.
Ah, Chocolate Rolls! I enjoyed my favorite desert on some country china (a paper plate) with a coffee mug of milk! Life is good. Thank-you, Nanny! You are my favorite baker!
Nanny is most famous for her Chocolate Rolls! Chocolate rolls my very favorite dessert. What ARE chocolate rolls? Glad you asked. As far as we can... our family invented them. Nanny and her sisters make chocolate rolls because Great Grandma Gladys Harris used to make them. I was also informed that sometimes she would make fried chocolate pies with the same recipe. I say recipe... but in reality there IS no recipe. It's a little of this and a little of that. I'll do my best to explain how we made these delectable delights.
Step 1 - Home-Made Pie Dough
I have heard that the perfect pie dough is based on a 3-2-1 recipe which consists of 3 measures of flour, 2 measures of lard, and 1 measure of ice water. I am uncertain as to weather Nanny uses this rule since she just 'eye-balls' the measurements in a mixing bowl.
First, we knocked several large spoonfuls of shortning (if you don't know what this is... then I am sad for you) into a large mixing bowl. We like to use Crisco. Well, Nanny likes to used Crisco. I like to use Butter Flavored Crisco. And sometimes I like to use Oleo. And if you are from the South you know what Oleo is. Great-Grandma used lard. After listening to an Episode of the The Splendid Table all about making the perfect pie crust I believe that the very best pie dough contains lard. The common use of animal lard was was greatly effected around the turn of the 20th century because of misconceptions of slaughter houses. Since that time most bakers and chefs changed over to using a vegetable based shortning. Since lard is no longer a readily available commodity in this country we use Crisco.
The second ingredient is all purpose flour. I say all purpose flour (also called plain flour) because I need to clarify this for my Southern-most readers. You see, Mississippi cooks use self rising flour in nearly everything. This is just a part of southern cooking. Pie crust is probably the only reason that southern cooks would even purchase all purpose, plain flour. A pinch or two of salt must also be added to the plain flour. Self-rising flour is already a little salty but plain flour is un-stalted. . . so add some salt. Nanny adds a mountain of all purpose flour to the bowl and begins mixing with a pastry cutter. She continues to add flour and mix until the consistency is just right. Nanny says that the pie dough should have just enough shortning so that the dough will hold a ball together even before the water is added. However, it will not hold together when rolled out, so next we must add the water.
The third and final ingredient in ice water. The water being very cold helps to keep the shortning stiffer, the dough easier to work with, and the pie crust flaky when baked. The adding of this ingredien is very similar to each of the others - add until it looks right and feels like it is the correct consistency.
Step 2 - Home-Made Chocolate Sauce
Chocolate sauce is also made from 3 ingredients: sugar, cocoa powder, and evaporated milk. Again, it is hard to explain the measurements of the ingredients so I will describe the process to the best of my abilities.
First, a medium sized bowl is filled nearly to the top with granulated cane sugar. Nanny mentioned that she always uses the same bowl. I believe this is because she knows just how must to add for the size of the bowl since she always uses the same one.
Secondly, she spoons several large scoops of cocoa powder (we use Hershey's cocoa powder because is has a stronger chocolate flavor). She begins mixing the sugar and cocoa with a fork and continues to add more cocoa until it "looks" like there is enough.
Thirdly, Nanny opens a can of evaporated milk (carnation milk, pet milk, whatever people call it where you are from) and pours this into the frist two ingredients until is it thin enough to pour but not so thin that it will all run off of the pie dough.
Step 3 - Making Chocolate Rolls
Just making the first two main ingredients correctly is not enough. Lastly, you MUST roll out and fold the chocolate rolls correctly or you will ruin this dessert! My sister Liz and I learned this the hard way because we both spent years folding our chocolate rolls the wrong way, which causes the chocolate to run out of the rolls while baking and burn in the bottom of the pan. Lesson of the Day: pay attention when your grandmother shows you how to roll and fold chocolate rolls.
First, we roll one fistful of dough and roll it out into a circle. Next, we pour some (but not too much) chocolate sauce onto the dough.
The only other ingredient needed is margarine. Make sure you have plenty of margarine.I suppose that butter would work just as well, but Nanny has always used margarine, so I sort of think that there must be something special about margarine... and it is cheeper.
The oven is set to 480 - yes, you read that correctly. FOUR-HUNDRED AND EIGHTY DEGREES and baked until a golden brown. This takes 15 to 12 minutes.Sometime, some of the chocolate rolls leak a little bit. Today, ALL of them leaked a little! I don't know why. It must be because I was helping and I always seem to ruin chocolate rolls. But, Nanny says that at least one chocolate roll has to leak or she didn't do them right. Very little chocolate burnt on the bottom of the pan. If the rolls are made well and the chocolate sauce is not too thin.
Ah, Chocolate Rolls! I enjoyed my favorite desert on some country china (a paper plate) with a coffee mug of milk! Life is good. Thank-you, Nanny! You are my favorite baker!
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