HOECAKE ~ WEST VIRGINIA STYLE

Hoecake ~ West Virginia Style image

My ancestors were "farming folks" and this recipe is simply another way of making biscuits, especially biscuits that were going to be used as sandwiches. In my neck of West Virginia, hoecake is made with simple biscuit dough. Any biscuit recipe will do, including the one on the Bisquick box, if that's what you like. No one is...

Provided by Fran Miller

Time 15m

Number Of Ingredients 7

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Ingredients

ANY BISCUIT RECIPE WILL DO... OR TRY THIS ONE:
2 c all-purpose flour
1 tsp salt
1 Tbsp baking powder
1/3 c crisco
2/3 c milk or buttermilk
some extra flour for sprinkling

Steps:

1. Stir all the dry ingredients together, then add the crisco. Mix it together with a pastry cutter or a big fork, like the meat fork* from my tableware set)that is never used except when I'm cooking. *It's the giant fork on the left in the picture.
2. When you have something resembling small gravel, slowly add the milk, stirring unti it makes a soft dough.
3. Spray a cookie sheet with cooking spray, if it's not non-stick. Pour the biscuit dough onto the sheet.
4. Sprinkle the dough with a little flour so it won't stick to your hands, then pat the dough fairly evenly to about 1/2" or so.** **This will raise, but if you like a thicker biscuit or if you've doubled the recipe, take a sharp knife and divide the dough lengthwise, then separate the halves. Mom also made a few shallow cuts across the dough to allow it to cook evenly.
5. Bake at 425 degrees F for about 8 minutes, then check for doneness. The hoecake should be golden brown & done on the bottom. Depending on how thick you made it, it might be done or it might need another few minutes. Just watch it carefully so you don't overcook it, which would dry the hoecake out. (If you do, just add LOTS of butter and no one will notice. Don't ask me how I know this.)
6. Remove the hoecake from the oven when it's ready and put it on a cooling rack, just long enough to cool it so you don't burn your fingers as you break off the pieces. Silly JAP photo settings would only show about 3/4 of the hoecake. Imagine it about 25% bigger...
7. Now the fun part... A traditional hoecake sandwich would be stuffed with whatever was left over from supper the night before or breakfast that day. Fried ham & tomato sandwiches are a personal favorite. Or, as seen here, a hoecake to go along with the final tomato from the garden, with butter & a few drops of honey. =^..^=