Hushpuppies

These are so yummy!

• 1 c. self-rising yellow cornmeal mix (I use Tenda Bake or Martha White)
• 1/2 c. sifted self-rising flour
• 1 egg, beaten
• 3/4-1 c. milk (start with less)
• 2 Tbs. bacon grease*
• 1/2 c. finely chopped onion
• 1/4 c. sugar
• 1½ quarts or more of cooking oil

*You may not have bacon grease on hand, and a lot of recipes don't use it.  After cooking bacon, when the grease cools I sometimes pour it into a jar for making gravy any time we want.  This way, the next time I cook bacon, I don't have to wait until the bacon is done to start the gravy.

►Mix together flour and cornmeal.  Beat egg and add in the rest of the ingredients.

►Heat about 2 inches of oil on medium-high, and drop in by spoonfuls.  The batter is a little thick, so I use another spoon to scrape it off into the oil.  Turn until medium golden-brown on all sides.  It takes me about 6-8 minutes for the size hushpuppies I make.

►Lift hushpuppies from oil with a slotted spoon, and place on paper towels.
The mix ends up being about 2 cups, and makes about 2 dozen golfball-sized hushpuppies.  I prefer them smaller, but my family likes them large, and I don't have to tend to as many that way, either.  =)

--Maybe you already know this, but you can save your cooking oil in a large jar.  Just pour cooled oil through a strainer and funnel back into the jar.
This may seem odd, but I used to have a Fry Daddy (plugs in, has a lid for storage).  I could deep fry things and save the oil for later use.  I think it got lost when we moved 7 years ago.