Snuggedy Swamp Soul Food Recipes: The Legend of Junebug Hattie & Bubba Joe’s Catfish Waffles

Where Freedom Still Simmers”

🕊️ Back Porch Gospel

Scripture:
“Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.” — 2 Corinthians 3:17

Reflection:
Freedom sometimes looks like a back porch, smells like catfish in hot oil, and sounds like a story passed down with a wink and a grin. That’s how Bubba Joe tells it, anyway.

🌾 Where the Tale Begins

If you take Highway 641 just outside of Walterboro, South Carolina, and miss your turn by one prayer and two possums, you might find yourself deep in Snuggedy Swamp.
It’s the kind of place that’s not on most maps, but always remembered in the bones of folks whose ancestors once sought refuge in its cypress-covered arms.

🧙🏽‍♀️ The Legend of Junebug Hattie and Snugfoot Driggers

Long ago, when the law looked the other way and freedom looked like a canoe in the moonlight, folks disappeared into Snuggedy Swamp.
Some say the swamp was home to maroons, moonshiners, midwives, and mystics.
But ask anybody nearby, and they'll tell you—it belonged to Junebug Hattie.

Part Gullah, part Cherokee, and part something else entirely, Junebug Hattie had a spirit like fire and a fry pan to match. If you were hungry, hurt, or hiding, she’d feed you, heal you, and guard your back with a skillet in one hand and a prayer in the other.

And they say—if you talk kindly about her—the swamp still smells sweeter.

Bubba Joe never expected to meet her great-granddaughter, Hattie Mae “Snugfoot” Driggers, but that’s what happened when he took a wrong turn one humid July afternoon. Snugfoot could sneak up on you like a panther in pearls, and she did just that, holding a plate of cornbread waffles topped with catfish and hot honey glaze.

When Bubba Joe took one bite, he set his hat on the ground like he was in church.

“Ma’am,” he said, “I’d follow you anywhere in this world where God grows catfish.”

Snugfoot just laughed and pointed at the dish bin.

“Boy,” she said, “you best follow me back to the table and do those dishes.”

And that’s how Bubba Joe left the swamp full of story, spirit, and just enough soul food to make a man believe in miracles.

🍽️ Bubba Joe’s Recipe From the Road

Catfish & Cornbread Waffles with Hot Honey Glaze (Snugfoot Style)

Ingredients

• 4 catfish filets

• Buttermilk (for soaking)

• Cornmeal & flour (for dredging)

• Cajun seasoning

• Oil for frying

• Cornbread batter (make it waffle-thick)

• Butter

Hot Honey Glaze:

• ½ cup honey

• 1 tbsp hot sauce

• 1 tbsp peach vinegar (Bubba’s twist)

Instructions

1. Soak catfish in buttermilk 30 mins.

2. Mix cornmeal, flour, and Cajun spice.

3. Dredge filets and fry till golden-crisp.

4. Pour cornbread batter into a waffle iron—make it buttery and toasty.

5. In a pan, warm honey, hot sauce, and peach vinegar.

6. Plate a waffle, top it with catfish, drizzle with glaze.

Serve barefoot and fearless.

🌅 Final Thoughts from the Porch

Maybe it was a dream, or maybe it was divine direction. But Bubba Joe left Snuggedy Swamp with a full belly, a new recipe, and a reminder: Freedom isn’t always found on the front steps of a courthouse—it might just be simmering in a skillet at the edge of a swamp.

🌅 Our Story

That’s our story, and we’re sticking to it! What’s your story going to be?