ALONG THE MISSISSIPPI: OLD IRISH STEW MEETS HUNGARIAN GOULASH

My Aunt Chris and Uncle Herbert were married when I was five years old. Therefore, I have no memory of my Uncle Herbert without my Aunt Chris. They have seven children of their own, and they make me feel like an honorary child. Uncle Herbert calls me "junior," in reference to the fact that I am so much like my mother, his eldest sister.

Aunt Chris has been making good stuff to eat since I was five. Like her Poppy-Kosh Chicken, she's a peppery and colorful part of our family.

America in the 19th century was a melting pot of people and food. Aunt Chris' chicken recipe, which evolved through several generations, grew out of "Irish stew meeting Hungarian goulash." Rural Southern Irish accents turned "paprikash" into "poppy-kosh!"

This dish is tasty with hot cornbread!

Aunt Chris' "Poppy-Kosh" Chicken

2 tablespoons oil

1 medium onion, chopped

1 chicken, 2 1/2 to 3 pounds, cut up

1 large green pepper, chopped

1 tablespoon paprika

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon black pepper

1 46-ounce can tomato juice

2 cups potatoes, in 1-inch cubes

1 cup elbow macaroni

1. Heat oil in a dutch oven. Cook onions until lightly browned.

2. Push onions aside; add chicken pieces and brown lightly on all sides. Add the green pepper, paprika, salt, pepper and tomato juice. Simmer chicken one hour or until done.

3. Cook potatoes and macaroni in water in another pot for 10-15 minutes or until tender. Drain.

4. Add to chicken, stirring gently.

Yield: 4-6 servings.

Here's a cornbread recipe to accompany chicken recipe.

My mother makes the world's best cornbread in her trusty old iron skillet greased with bacon drippings. The outside of her cornbread is brown and crisp, and the inside is so tender that it all but falls apart as you butter it.

Mother's Praiseworthy Cornbread

1 cup self-rising cornmeal mix

1 cup self-rising flour

1 egg

1/4 cup vegetable oil or bacon drippings

1 1/4 cups milk

1/4 cup vegetable oil or bacon drippings for skillet

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

1. Stir together cornmeal and flour.

2. Add egg, oil and milk, mixing well.

3. Heat 1/4 cup vegetable oil or bacon drippings in 10-inch iron skillet over medium high heat until hot but not smoking.

4. Pour batter into skillet. (If you do not have an iron skillet, use a 9x9-inch baking pan.)

5. Bake about 20 minutes or until golden brown.

Yield: 8 servings.

Visit Angie at her Web site, www.cookingwithangie.com. Angie Holtzhouser is author of Drop Dumplin's and Pan-Fried Memories ... Along the Mississippi. Her cookbook is available at local bookstores. In addition, it can be purchased through the mail at: Drop Dumplin's, P.O. Box 10, Lilbourn, Mo. 63862. The price is $19.95, including tax and shipping.