Here's to Food, Wine, & Friends

For your next gathering, try this group's scrumptious menu, and take the guesswork out of what to pour.

Food and wine just seem to go hand in hand. Both create a convivial atmosphere for folks to relax, talk, and enjoy fellowship around the supper table. In 1993, Birmingham wine wholesaler Jerome Crawford and local businessman Elias Hendricks, Jr., started a supper club in the city's African American community. "Elias and I decided to create a series of wine dinners celebrating Birmingham's African American chefs," Jerome recalls. "The dinners were so popular that folks wanted to formalize the group. Thus, the Palm Wine Society was born."

The friends invited us to join their fall get-together, held at the home of clayton and Sharon Sherrod. clayton, who is one of the city's most respected chefs, developed a menu with familiar seasonal flavors that you can easily re-create in your own kitchen.

Squash Casserole

MAKES 8 SERVINGS

PREP: 15 MIN., COOK: 30 MIN., BAKE: 30 MIN.

3 lb. yellow squash, cut into ¼-inch-thick slices

1 small onion, chopped

1 ½Tbsp. salt

16 saltine crackers, divided

1 ½ cups (6 oz.) shredded sharp Cheddar cheese, divided

½ cup mayonnaise

1 large egg, lightly beaten

2 Tbsp. butter, melted

¼ tsp. pepper

1/8 tsp. salt

1. Cook first 3 ingredients in boiling water to cover in a Dutch oven 25 minutes or until squash is very tender. Drain well, and mash mixture with a fork.

2. Crush 10 crackers, and stir into squash mixture; stir in ½ cup cheese and next 5 ingredients. Spoon mixture into a lightly greased 11- x-7-inch baking dish.

3. Crush remaining 6 crackers, and sprinkle over casserole; sprinkle remaining 1 cup cheese evenly over casserole.

4. Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 30 minutes or until cheese melts and casserole is bubbly.

Note: To make ahead, prepare recipe as directed; do not top with crackers or cheese. Cover and chill overnight. Remove from refrigerator; let stand 30 minutes. Uncover and top with crackers and cheese; bake as directed.

Lump Blue Crab Salad Wraps

MAKES 8 SERVINGS

PREP: 20 MIN., CHILL: 8 HRS.

2/3 cup cider vinegar

½ cup vegetable oil

½ cup ice water

½ tsp. salt

1/8 tsp. pepper

1 lb. fresh lump crabmeat, picked and drained

1 medium onion, diced

3 bay leaves

1 Tbsp. drained capers

½ tsp. celery seeds Bibb lettuce leaves

1. Whisk together first 5 ingredients. Add crabmeat and next 4 ingredients to dressing, tossing gently to coat. Cover and chill 8 hours. Drain crabmeat mixture, reserving ¼ cup dressing. Spoon mixture into lettuce leaves, and serve with reserved dressing.

Brick-Grilled Cornish Hens

MAKES 8 SERVINGS

PREP: 15 MIN., CHILL: 1 HR., GRILL: 40 MIN., STAND: 8 MIN.

8 (1 9½-to 1 ¾-lb.) Cornish hens

3 Tbsp. kosher salt

3 Tbsp. freshly ground black pepper

3 Tbsp. minced garlic

3 Tbsp. chopped fresh rosemary

1 Tbsp. dried crushed red pepper

¼ cup lemon juice ¼ cup olive oil

8 aluminum foil-wrapped bricks*

Garnishes: lemon wedges, flatleaf parsley sprigs

1. Cut Cornish hens lengthwise through the backbone using kitchen shears, and flatten.

2. Combine salt and next 4 ingredients; rub evenly over hens. Place hens in 2-qt. zip-top freezer bags or 2 large baking dishes. Whisk together lemon juice and olive oil; drizzle lemon juice mixture over hens. Seal or cover, and chill 1 hour or up to 24 hours. Remove hens from marinade, discarding marinade.

3. Place hens on cooking grate of grill, and top each with an aluminum foil-wrapped brick Grill, covered with grill lid, over medium heat (300° to 350°) 18 to 20 minutes on each side, replacing bricks on hens after flipping. Turn grill off, and let stand, covered with grill lid, 5 to 8 minutes or until done. (If using a charcoal grill, transfer hens to a 350° oven, and bake 5 to 8 minutes or until done.) Garnish, if desired. *Cast-iron skillets maybe substituted for foil-wrapped bricks. Place a sheet of foil between each skillet and hen.

Bourbon-Chocolate Cake With Praline Frosting

MAKES 12 SERVINGS

PREP: 30 MIN., COOK: 5 MIN., BAKE: 28 MIN., CHILL: 30 MIN.

1 cup butter

¼ cup unsweetened cocoa

1 cup water

½ cup buttermilk

2 large eggs

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. vanilla extract

2 cups sugar

2 cups all-purpose flour

½ tsp. salt

Chocolate Ganache

Praline Frosting

Bourbon Glaze

1. Grease bottoms of 3 (8-inch) round cake pans; line with wax paper. Grease and flour wax paper and sides of pans; set pans aside.

2. Cook first 3 ingredients in a saucepan over low heat, stirring constantly, 3 to 5 minutes or until butter melts and mixture is smooth; remove from heat, and let cool.

3. Beat buttermilk and next 3 ingredients at medium speed with an electric mixer until smooth. Add butter mixture to buttermilk mixture, beating until blended. Combine sugar, flour, and salt; gradually add to buttermilk mixture, beating until blended. (Batter will be thin.) Pour batter evenly into prepared pans.

4. Bake at 350° for 25 to 28 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted into centers comes out clean. Cool in pans on wire racks 10 minutes. Remove from pans, and cool completely on wire racks. (Cake layers will appear thin.)