Ever since the tender age of 2, my husband has enjoyed catching fish.  Yes, the age of two.

My husband’s father was a farmer and had a catfish pond on the property.  When my husband’s uncles would visit, they would take him down to the pond and that is where his fishing passion began.

He has been fishing for four decades now.  He has learned a trick or two, none of which I am able to share with you.  My husband was kind enough to let me share with you a couple of pictures of his recent catch – a 7 pound, 14 ounce large mouth bass.  For the record, he strongly believes in catch and release.  This beauty was returned to the river after pictures were taken.

My husband also likes to catch crappie.  However, since crappie “make for good eatin’,” he brings them home, cleans them, and I cook them. When we eat crappie, we also like to make hush puppies.  My husband developed his own hush puppie recipe and they are really delicious.  He says the secret is to include diced green bell pepper in the batter.

To make Hush Puppies, start by combining the dry ingredients – cornmeal, flour, and salt.  Add the buttermilk and stir until the dry ingredients are moist.

Dice one onion and one green bell pepper.  Fold them into the batter.

Deep fry until they are golden brown.  You will probably need to flip them over midway to ensure that they are brown all over.  Drain on paper towels and enjoy.

There are a couple of stories as to how hush puppies got their name, all with the same idea that the crispy little fritters were thrown to dogs to silence them from barking.  I am glad that my puppies don’t bark when we make these, because I really don’t want to have to share our hush puppies with them.

Hush Puppies Recipe

Ingredients

• 1 1/3 cup self-rising cornmeal
• 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 small onion, diced
• 1 green bell pepper, diced
• 1¼ cups buttermilk
• Oil, for frying

Instructions

1. Preheat skillet of oil over medium-high heat for 8-10 minutes.
2. Combine cornmeal, flour, and salt in a large bowl.
3. Add buttermilk and stir until batter is mixed well.
4. Fold in onion and bell pepper.
5. Drop by spoonfuls into the skillet of hot oil. Fry until golden brown, flipping over to ensure that both sides are thoroughly cooked.

Hush Puppies

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Ingredients

• 1/3 cup self-rising cornmeal
• 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 small onion, diced
• 1 green bell pepper, diced
• 1¼ cups buttermilk
• Oil, for frying

Instructions

1. Preheat skillet of oil over medium-high heat for 8-10 minutes.
2. Combine cornmeal, flour, and salt in a large bowl.
3. Add buttermilk and stir until batter is mixed well.
4. Fold in onion and bell pepper.
5. Drop by spoonfuls into the skillet of hot oil. Fry until golden brown, flipping over to ensure that both sides are thoroughly cooked.

What is your favorite fish to eat?

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 Other tasty Southern recipes:

• Boarding House Meatloaf
• Quick and Easy Chicken and Dumplings
• Three Cup Peach Cobbler

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