The following recipe and notes are reproduced with permission from “Danni’s Juke Joint Comfort Food,” by Danni Rose, Harvest Books. It has been edited lengthwise.
You don’t prepare these hush puppies like you would regular cornbread. This recipe doesn’t use eggs and I added a few handfuls of cheese and lots of my good Cajun seasoning blend for an intense, bold flavor.
I make large silent puppies, but you can make them smaller, if that is your style – adjust your baking time if you are making small ones.
These can be frozen in a freezer bag once cooled to room temperature. Place them in a 350° oven while still frozen for about 15 minutes, or reheat them in an air fryer.
Makes 15 to 20 silent puppies, 4 to 6 servings
Ingredients
2 boxes Jiffy corn muffin mix (I love the sweetness Jiffy mix gives these quiet puppies)
½ cup self-rising flour
2 tablespoons Danni’s Juke Joint Black Cajun Seasoning or other Cajun seasoning
An 8-ounce block of cream cheese, at room temperature
Place a rack on a large baking sheet and place it near the stove.
Combine muffin mix, flour and Cajun seasoning in a large bowl and mix well. Add the cream cheese and let it drop. Don’t move until I tell you! Add the buttermilk, those handfuls of cheese, ½ cup of green onions and the bacon, then begin your exercise. This dough is thick, almost like cookie dough, and you have to reach in and turn it with a fork, large wooden spoon or rubber spatula.
Add enough oil to reach halfway up the sides of a large, heavy pot or deep fryer and heat it to 350 over medium-high heat. (If using a deep fryer, remove the basket so the dough doesn’t stick to it.) When your oil shimmers, it’s ready. You can also drop a teaspoon of batter in there, and if it sizzles, it’s ready!
With a medium ice cream scoop (about ¼ cup), drop the dough into the hot oil in batches, 5 or 6 at a time. You don’t want to overload them – this isn’t the Million Man March! You want them to be the same size and cook evenly. And please, don’t undercook the dough! If you do, you’ll get nothing but a pile of fried mush, and then they’ll talk about you in the group chat, and you don’t want that. If you overcook the hush puppies, they will be tough and dry like a muddy work boot.
Just be sure to stir them with a long-handled slotted spoon or large fork so they cook on all sides. The goal is to cook them inside and at the same time make them crispy and golden, 4 to 5 minutes in this hot fat jacuzzi. Take them out when they float to the top and place them on the prepared rack. Sprinkle lightly with salt.
Let the oil return to 350 and repeat with the remaining dough.
To serve, place Hush Puppies on a large plate, garnish with remaining ¼ cup chopped green onions.
