By Fall deepens. The morning walks with Derek have become my favorite part of the day — two people, one neighborhood, the leaves turning the slow Southern way (not New England dramatic, just a gentle browning, an exhale). We walk past Mama's old house every morning. The new family has a dog. The dog barks at us. I wave at the dog and the house and the ghost of Mama's kitchen and the waving is the greeting and the goodbye and the continuation all in one gesture.
Book tour: tenth stop, Nashville. Darnell drove down from Clarksville — an hour — and sat in the front row and nodded through the entire reading. The man crossed state lines to nod at his sister. That's love, Jackson-style. Silent, present, nodding. After the reading, Darnell bought five copies. Five. "For people at church," he said. Darnell Jackson, retired Army, distributing cookbooks at his church in Clarksville, Tennessee. Mama would have said, "That boy finally did something useful."
Zoe's SCAD application is submitted. Twelve pieces. The artist statement. The essay. Everything she is, compressed into a file and sent to Savannah. She pressed "submit" at the kitchen table and looked at me and said, "That's it." I said, "That's the beginning." She said, "Same thing." (THE VIRUS. "Same thing." The Mitchell-Jackson family virus of recognizing that endings are beginnings and beginnings are endings and both are the same thing. The virus has spread. The virus is the family. The family is the virus.)
Made Mama's sweet potato casserole — early, because the sweet potatoes were good at the market and because some recipes don't need a holiday to justify them. Curtis ate it and said, "Thanksgiving food in September." I said, "Love food in September." He ate a second serving. Love food. Any month. Any season. The food doesn't care about the calendar. The food cares about the need.
Curtis’s response to the sweet potato casserole — “Thanksgiving food in September” — got me thinking about all the recipes we’ve agreed to hold hostage to certain dates on the calendar, as if the food itself signed some contract about when it’s allowed to nourish us. This red flannel hash is the same way: it’s got the deep, earthy colors of autumn and the kind of stick-to-your-ribs warmth that gets filed under “cold weather food,” but I made it on a Tuesday in September with the windows open and the dog from the new family barking in the distance, and it was exactly right. The food cares about the need — and the need was real.
Yankee Red Flannel Hash
Prep Time: 15 min | Cook Time: 20 min | Total Time: 35 min | Servings: 4
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 cups cooked beets, peeled and diced (about 2 medium beets)
- 2 cups cooked potatoes, diced (about 2 medium russet or Yukon Gold)
- 1 1/2 cups cooked corned beef, chopped (or leftover roast beef)
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 2 tablespoons fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped (for garnish)
- 4 eggs, optional (for serving)
Instructions
- Sauté the aromatics. In a large cast-iron skillet over medium heat, melt the butter with the olive oil. Add the diced onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened and translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute more.
- Add the potatoes. Add the diced cooked potatoes to the skillet, spreading them in an even layer. Press down gently with a spatula and let cook undisturbed for 3–4 minutes, until the bottoms begin to brown and crisp.
- Fold in the beets and beef. Add the diced beets and corned beef to the pan. Stir everything together gently to combine, then press the mixture flat again. Season with smoked paprika, salt, and pepper. Let cook another 4–5 minutes, pressing occasionally, until the hash develops a deep, crusty bottom.
- Deglaze and finish. Drizzle the apple cider vinegar over the hash and stir once to incorporate, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Taste and adjust seasoning. The hash should be deeply colored — crimson and golden — from the beets.
- Fry the eggs (optional). If serving with eggs, push the hash to the edges of the skillet and crack the eggs into the center. Cover and cook 3–4 minutes for set whites with runny yolks, or to your preference.
- Serve. Divide among four plates or serve straight from the skillet. Garnish with fresh parsley. Best eaten while still crackling from the pan.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 340 | Protein: 18g | Fat: 16g | Carbs: 32g | Fiber: 4g | Sodium: 620mg