So - Do you Call It "The Pate of the South" or "Carolina Caviar" or What It Is - Pimento Cheese

I hate to deal one of the staples of the South by crediting a Northern (or Damn Yankees) invention.  Back in the 1870s, Northern farmers started making cream cheese and far across the seas, Spain began canning pimentos and shipping them to the united States.  The combination proved so irresistible to the natives here, that in 1908 Georgia farmers started trying to grow their own pimentos!  A market that grew to 10 million cans a year.

The cheese part eluded aficionados at first.  They used "hoop cheese" which is made entirely from milk.  No wheys.  Evidently that didn't prove to be all that tasty so the cooks switched to cheddar, using an equal amount of sharp and mild.  To tie the ingredients all together, a dollop of mayonnaise was added to the shredded cheese and minced pimentos.  Viola!  A staple that has starred at funeral receptions all over the South, year in and year out.  As a dish of honor, it sits right next to the deviled eggs, another perennial favorite there.

Here is the most likely recipe -
1 8oz. package of sharp cheddar, shredded
1 8oz. package of mild cheddar, shredded
1 8oz. package cream cheese - let it soften on its own as you can't shred cream cheese.  Don't even try.
1/4 cup minced, canned pimentos
2 - 3 T mayonnaise
Salt and pepper to taste.

Not yet ready for full immersion in Southern style?  Here are some additions - add them at your own risk if you're serving it to Southerners:
Garlic powder
Cayenne
Onion powder
Minced jalapeno (Mexican style?)

I googled to see where to buy Kraft Pimento Cheese - the one bottled in  a jar that becomes a juice glass when the cheese inside it is all gone.   First to pop up was amazon!  A 5 oz. jar for $15!!!  Highway robbery came to mind …

Especially since the recipe is so very simple.