Pimento Cheese

There was a feature in the AJC a week or so ago on the continuing effort of some of our top chefs like Scott Peacock, Anne Quatrano, and Linton Hopkins to preserve Southern food ways. One of the foods mentioned was pimento cheese pronounced "Puminocheez" in the South. It has always been one of my favorites. My Mom used to make it with Miracle Whip and those little pimentos from the tiny little jars and of course cheese. If it was a relatively scarce time it would be from the cheese that came from the USDA free food bank that supplied among other things these huge loafs of Velveeta like cheese. In better times it would be made from what my Dad called "rat cheese" for some reason and this was just the bulk cheddar like sharp cheese that you bought from the grocery which they cut off big wax coated wheels. Pimento Cheese is still popular down south but you don't find it made fresh in the store anymore nor homemade. The stuff they sell now in the plastic containers is insipid and disgusting and mostly made from soybeans or something. You might find it interesting to note that at the Master's golf tournament in Augusta you can still get a pimento cheese sandwich for a buck at the refreshment stand. Anyhow, the following recipe makes a very nice spread that will keep for a few weeks in the fridge. There is some in my fridge right now.

As a kid we used make sandwiches out of the stuff that we called bread in those days. Good old plastic white bread and depending on where you were in the south it would be Sunbeam, Wonder or Merita. Nowadays I eat it on organic whole wheat or sour dough but it is still good. I like my sandwich with it spread about a quarter of an inch thick and sometimes I'll put a little mustard on one of the slices.

You can also try spreading it on a slice of good bread and running it under the broiler for a few minutes until it bubbles. It is also good spread into the groove of nice crunchy celery. Enjoy!

2 1/2 cups of (10 ounces o) of grated extra sharp cheddar cheese.
1/4 teaspoon of cayenne pepper or more if you like it hot (you can also use a dash or two of Tobasco)
5 0r 6 grinds of black pepper (about a 1/2 teaspoon)
3/4 cup of good mayonnaise such as Duke's or Hellmann's
3 -4 tablespoons of roasted sweet red bell pepper (see note below)
a pinch of Kosher salt if you need it but usually the cheese is salty enough

Stir all of this together in a mixing bowl until it is well blended. Store covered in the fridge for up to two weeks.

Roasting red peppers is not too difficult. Rub the peppers lightly with oil and in a baking dish roast in a 425 degree oven for about 20 minutes until they are nicely charred. Take the peppers out of the oven and put them in a bowl that can be tightly covered or I use a 1 gallon zip lock bag. let them cool for 15 minutes or so until you can handle them. Remove the stems, pith and seeds and lay the pepper flat on the cutting board skin side up. With a knife scrape away as much skin and char as you can. You won' t be able to get it all. Do not rinse them under water as it will remove too much flavor. I usually find one good sized pepper is just the perfect amount when chopped for this recipe.
The other option is to use roasted red peppers from the jar. These are pretty good and makes this recipe a 10 minute job. I usually have a jar in the fridge to use when I am too lazy to roast a fresh pepper or when I can't bring myself to pay $4.00 a pound for red peppers.