The Vintage Southern Appetizer That Takes 2 Minutes And 2 Ingredients, And Will Never Get Old

The term "stuffed celery" may sound like a drab, unimpressive dish at best, but if you've ever enjoyed the popular peanut butter and raisin-filled childhood snack "ants on a log" or old-school stuffed celery with cream cheese, you'll know this isn't true. This simple, versatile app has been popular throughout the United States since the 1920s, with newspapers and vintage recipe cards sharing both savory and sweet filling suggestions such as cream cheese and pineapple or shredded lobster and crab.

Knowing this, it makes sense that this easy hors d'oeuvre is still popular throughout the Southern states in the form of fresh, crisp ribs of celery filled with tangy, luscious pimento cheese. Not only is this version of stuffed celery delicious, it also takes literally minutes to make and requires just two simple ingredients. All you need is a tub of the Southerner-approved brand of store bought pimento cheese and a few celery stalks. Each stalk has a canoe-shaped divot running down the center that's the perfect receptacle for spooning in the pimento cheese.

This combination works because celery's cool, mild flavor and crunch pair beautifully with creamy textures and strong flavors, and pimento cheese meets both requirements. A blend of shredded sharp cheddar cheese, mayo, cream cheese, pimentos (of course), and seasonings that vary from home to home, pimento cheese is not only the perfect addition to your next BLT, but the ideal filling for stuffed celery as an easy yet fancy-feeling app for your next gathering.

The secret to making this recipe as quick and easy as it should be is thoughtful preparation. Before you actually get to spooning the pimento cheese into the celery, it's important to make sure your veg is properly washed, trimmed, and separated. Only use the ribs from the batch that have nice wide, deep impressions down the center. You should also trim each rib into pieces about 3 or 4 inches long to make them easier to fill and eat.

Skinny celery stalks with extremely tight, narrow center impressions are hard to fill and won't hold enough tangy cheese to make the effort worthwhile. Instead, save narrow stalks to make a batch of Alex Guarnaschelli's nostalgic celery soup or to chop up for elevating chicken salad. It's also important to ensure the stalks reserved for stuffing are thoroughly dried before you try spooning in the cheese. Extra moisture on the stalks could cause the cheese to slide around and refuse to stay in the celery.

If you'd like the process to go even faster, try upending your tub of pimento cheese into a piping bag or freezer bag with one corner snipped off. From there, it's a simple matter of squeezing a uniform line of pimento cheese into each celery stalk. The back of the aforementioned spoon or flat side of a butter knife is perfect for gently pressing the cheese into place so it fills the whole depression in the center of each rib.