If you ask my husband, Ed, he will tell you that the greatest week of golf is almost upon us – the Masters. The official sandwich of the Masters is a pimento cheese sandwich so what better time to share this recipe? Did you know that if you are fortunate enough to attend the Masters in person, this sandwich only costs $1.50?
What I am sharing with you is not the recipe for pimento cheese at the Masters (that’s a well-guarded secret), but this one is just as special. Embry H is a friend and the designer of Riegl Palate. Were it not for Embry’s hard work and encouragement, I never would have launched Riegl Palate eleven years ago. It gives me great pleasure to share her maternal grandfather’s recipe. Pimento cheese is far more popular in the south – this recipe hails from the commonwealth of Kentucky. It’s a wonderful combination of sharp, tangy and sweet flavors and a bit of a guilty pleasure.
I do not pretend to be a traditional pimento cheese connoisseur as once I had Jimmy Bridges’ version, I haven’t looked for another recipe. (I did post a Bacon Pimento Cheese recipe a few years ago but I wouldn’t call it traditional.) There are three ingredients that are key to this recipe that I only ever use to make pimento cheese – Durkee Famous Sauce, Miracle Whip and Marzetti Original Slaw Dressing. When I first started making it, I could find them all at the same grocery store – not anymore! For my local friends, I procure Miracle Whip at Wegmans and Marzetti Original Slaw Dressing at Giant, and order Durkee Famous Sauce on Amazon. (Did you know that most grocery store websites have a product search feature? I find this very useful.)
Other than the cheese, I have never tried substitutions for any of these. If I can’t find Cracker Barrel Extra Sharp Yellow Cheddar Cheese (available at Giant and Acme), I use Cabot or store brand ensuring that it is always an extra sharp yellow cheddar cheese. Do not use pre-shredded cheese as it contains an anti-caking ingredient. Please take the time to grate it yourself.
Obtaining all of the right ingredients is the hardest part of this recipe. Mixing them all together is easy. Leave some time for the flavors to blend, ideally letting it sit overnight. There’s a lot of flavor in this cheese mixture, so it’s best to serve it with a plain cracker – Embry’s go-to are Club Crackers (the larger ones). I also served it with Absolutely Grain Free Original Crackers (the smaller ones).
I am so pleased to be able to share Embry’s family’s special recipe. I was asking her a few questions while I was writing this post and we both learned something new. Did you know that there are two spellings of the sweet cherry pepper found in this recipe – pimento and pimiento? I also learned that Durkee Special Sauce was served during Abraham Lincoln’s time at the White House.
I hope you’ll consider making this for the Masters. It’s also a great addition at a Kentucky Derby gathering. I’d be remiss if I didn’t share the official drink of the Masters – the Azalea Cocktail. It’s also the most popular (by far) recipe on Riegl Palate.
Note: The above photo of the ingredients is for a triple recipe. I made it to share with family and friends over the winter holidays. Everyone loved it so much I’ll be making it agian for the holidays later this year.
| Jimmy Bridges’ Famous Pimento Cheese | Print |
- 20 ounces (1-1/4 pound) extra sharp yellow cheddar cheese (preferably Cracker Barrel) (see Notes)
- 8 ounces minced pimento with juice (see Notes)
- 3 tablespoons Durkee Famous Sauce (see Notes)
- 2 tablespoons Miracle Whip (see Notes)
- 2 tablespoons Marzetti Original Slaw Dressing (see Notes)
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper (or to taste)
- Serve with Club Crackers (see Notes) or plain gluten-free crackers
- Using a box grater or grating attachment for a food processor, grate cheddar cheese and add to a large bowl.
- Add minced pimento and stir well with a rubber spatula.
- In a small bowl, stir Durkee Famous Sauce, Miracle Whip, Marzetti Original Slaw Dressing, sugar and cayenne pepper.
- Add the sauce to the large bowl. Stir well.
- Cover the cheese mixture and store in the refrigerator to allow flavors to blend, ideally overnight (the cheese mixture is better the next day).
- Serve with club crackers. The cheese mixture keeps for up to a week (but it likely will not last that long!).
* If you can’t find minced pimento, mince the pimento prior to adding to the cheese. Don’t forget to save the juice.
* I used to be able to find Durkee Famous Sauce in my local grocery stores. Recently I’ve had to order it from Amazon.
* As tempting as it might be, do not substitute traditional mayonnaise for Miracle Whip. They just are not the same thing.
* I have only used the Marzetti Original Slaw Dressing from the refrigerated section although I see that there is now a shelf-stable version.
* Use a plain cracker such as Club Crackers for serving.
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