Grandma Lucy’s Pimento Cheese
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Today I’m bringing you a much beloved recipe from the South. From what I read and hear, it isn’t nearly as popular outside of our little geographic region as it is here, but folks in these parts consider it a staple in every home!
Long before the days of snack cakes and convenience foods, Pimento Cheese sandwiches dominated minds when it came to a “quick bite to eat” or a “little lunch”. They were cheap and delicious on plain old white bread, although I serve mine on wheat these days.
I remember going to Grandmama and Grandaddy’s house and finding one or both sitting at their kitchen table having a pimento cheese sandwich and a glass of milk. They’d always ask “Ya want some puh-men-ah cheese, baby?”. I never refused.
I’ve wanted to get this recipe up on here for a while and asked Grandmama how she made her pimento cheese so I could bring you the taste I remember so well. She immediately said “Oh, now if you want the best pimento cheese, you gotta use Velveeta.”
What better time to bring you this than during my time serving as a Velveeta Kitchenista? I hope you’ve been visiting Velveeta It!’s facebook page this month as myself and four other Mom bloggers present a new Velveeta recipe each day but if you haven’t you can still breeze on over there and catch up on all of the wonderful tips and recipes that have been shared so far! Just visit www.facebook.com/velveeta and be sure to drop a howdy to me there this Thursday when I’ll be hosting Tasty Traditions Thursdays!
You’ll need: 16 ounce block of Velveeta, Pimentos, and a little Mayo.
Grate your Velveeta. Now Velveeta is a little on the soft side so I found an easy way of doing this. You remember play-doh? Just get your grater out and place the block of Velveeta against it and press into the grater. It comes out the other side quick and easy as can be and ends up being a lot less work than grating a block of cheddar.
Dump in a jar of drained pimentos. I used the small jar which is about 2 ounces.
Add about 1/2 cup of Mayonnaise. You can add more to taste if you like.
Stir that up well.
Grandmama doesn’t salt and pepper hers so I didn’t either. I found it to be utterly sublime as is but feel free to salt and pepper (and even garlic!) yours if you got a hankerin’ to.
Serve on a sandwich or crackers.
These are a standard at every party, too. There is nothing like little finger pimento cheese sandwiches with the crusts trimmed off to add an air of tradition to a gathering!
Did you eat pimento cheese growing up? Do you have a different recipe or a special Pimento Cheese memory?
Tell me about it in the comments!
Ingredients
- 16 ounce block Velveeta
- 2 ounce jar Pimentos drained
- 1/2 C Mayonnaise
Instructions
- Push Velveeta through a grater until all is grated in a bowl. Add Pimentos and Mayo. Stir well. Salt and pepper if desired. Serve on loaf bread.
Today’s quote is one of those that kinda hits you in layers. Hope you enjoy it!
“Preach the Gospel at all times and when necessary use words.”
St. Francis of Assisi
I have one: I use “Rat Trap” cheddar cheese( grated fine), Hellman’s Mayo, boiled eggs, Pimentos (diced), sweet or dill relish, salt and pepper. Mix all together and it is awesome…love it with Fritos…..from a southeast Texas gal! The cheese can be found in my area at HEB, Krogers(I think) or Market Basket. This is the only cheese I cook with! It melts wonderfully and tastes really good! This is an ole family favorite! My mother handed it down to me.
Wow! That took me back…pimento cheese sandwiches at my grandma’s house were the BEST! We just use mild cheddar, pimentos and Miracle Whip to make ours – simple, easy and the best there is! Discovered by accident that pimento cheese on a Ritz Cracker with just a bit of jalapeno jelly on top is Heaven in a bite!!
Growin’ up I thought pimento cheese was one of the basic food groups. as an old (OLD) person I find that there are as many different recipes as there are persons who serve it. Its goes great with almost any bread or cracker or raw veggie like celery , it’d probably work on a shingle (except for those asphaltic things.)
Thank you so much for this recipe! I was born and bred in the South, but never learned to cook at home, and moved up to Massachusetts when I was 17 (by myself — so I still never learned to cook Southern food!). Your website is amazing. I was looking for the pimento cheese recipe tonight because I found a jar of Kraft pimento cheese in the store, and it uses cream cheese — and I thought, “Now I am SURE that my Grandma made her pimento cheese with cheddar and mayonnaise!” In fact, I’m pretty sure she made it just like you do. Now I’m going to have to make some myself!
Let me know what you think after you make it Leah. I hope that you find several recipes that remind you of home!
I like to eat on a Ritz cracker, with jalapeño peppers, or a sandwich, with bananas, don’t knock it until you try it
I make mine similar to yours, but with sharp cheddar instead of Velveeta. I also add a little diced jalapeno to give it a kick. It’s funny that growing up in Alabama I hated pimento cheese. As we moved around in the military, we spent 3 years in Augusta, GA where I reconnected with my Southern food roots, and I learned about the homemade pimento cheese that the Masters’ Golf Course serves. After that I was hooked. Now I make it for my California born husband and my Midwestern children. My friends here in Nebraska love it too.
I have also varied the recipe to use pepper jack cheese and artichokes. It is yummy.
Ohhh, pepper jack and artichokes. I bet that is really good.
I have to have grated velveeta,and grated cheddar. ,love the taste and texture.
There is a great little restaurant in Tomball, Texas- the Whistle Stop Cafe – that makes an awesome pimento cheese spread – they add chopped jalapeno! The added heat makes a perfect sandwich along side a bowl of homemade soup!
Pimento cheese is a wonderful thing! Here’s a “gourmet” version I stumbled upon a few years ago. Great for parties as a canape: use water crackers.
Equal parts grated sharp cheddar and Monterey Jack
canned pimento
pepper infused olive oil
Let the grated cheese get to room temp before mixing ingredients. The olive oil takes the place of mayo, but if you want creamier, add a tablespoon or two of mayo.
Spicy and cheesy cracker spread with that pimento flavor.