Fall vacations on Myrtle Beach every year make me think of one of our favorite places and their incredible hush puppies!  Since we decided to have a fish fry on a 70-degree day in February I wanted to make hush puppies for the gang to snack on.  Finding the right combination of soft, crunchy, sweet and savory can be a challenge, but I love how these turned out.  Give them a try and use them as a base recipe for other variations as well.

CRISPY HUSH PUPPIES

Ingredients

• 3 Cups Weisenberger Mills Self-Rising Cornmeal
• 1 1/2 Cups Flour
• 1 Tsp. Baking Soda
• 1 Tsp. Baking Powder
• 1 1/2 Tsp. Salt
• 1/2 Tsp. Black Pepper
• 5 Tbs. Sugar
• 2 Eggs, Beaten
• 2 1/4 Cups Whole Milk
• 1 Medium Onion, Finely Chopped

Instructions

• In a large bowl, mix all dry ingredients and mix well.
• Add onion and stir to coat with dry mixture.
• Add milk and eggs and stir just enough to mix.  DO NOT BEAT.
• Mixture will be stiff, but should not be dry.  You can add more milk if you need it to come together better.
• Cover mixture and place in refrigerator for at least 1 hour.
• Using a 1/2 or 1-inch cookie scoop or a small spoon, drop hush puppy batter into 340 degree frying oil (I use a mixture of peanut and soybean).  Do not overcrowd the oil.
• Fry for 5-10 minutes until outside is a deep golden brown and inside is cooked through.  You will need to turn them through the cooking process and may need to cut one open to be sure it is cooked through.

These are best served immediately, but are great for another day.  Eat them plain or with butter or honey butter (1 stick salted butter mixed with 1/4 cup clover honey).  Again, this is a great base recipe that can be elevated by adding whole fresh corn or diced jalapeño.  What else do you love to flavor hush puppies with?  As for the cornmeal, I always use Weisenberger Mills from Kentucky.  You might not be able to find it in the store, but you can definitely order it online.  I swear you’ll taste the difference!  Try these for your next get together – dig in!