
Keeping up with the Southern style
dinner menu, serve guests a classic down home dessert at your
Kentucky Derby party. A buttermilk pie has a creamy, buttery filling with a slight tang from fresh lemon juice. It's a humble, but incredibly delicious dessert.

The January issue of Gourmet magazine has been sitting on my counter for weeks. More accurately, the recipe for buttermilk cookies has been on my counter for weeks. They just looked so simple and charming, I knew I'd have to make them some day.

It's good to have a few blank canvas dessert recipes in your repertoire. By blank canvas, I mean desserts that are easy to make, may be prepared in advance, and can be creatively added to. For example, these buttermilk puddings are delicious alone, but are effortlessly jazzed up with a caramel sauce, fresh fruit, syrups, candies, or just about anything that floats your fancy!

Last week I tried to make cinnamon rolls and the recipe called for 1 1/2 cups of buttermilk, unfortunately I only had 1 cup in my house. Since I was in my pajamas and the weather wasn't exactly hospitable, I decided that there was no way I was going out to the store. However, I was already halfway through the recipe (I really thought I had everything before I started) and needed a solution quick!