okra. Issue 21 preview

Page 13

FINDING HOME

Brian Noyes sets down roots with the Red Truck Bakery in VA

ON OUR PLATE

Rediscover the love of a great chicken dish

CELEBRATING HOME

Georgia designer James Farmer celebrates family traditions

GOOD ALL OVER

The Good Road TV takes a look at efforts to manage the James River

D isplay until May 10, 2023 2023 T SPRING ISSUE T
Finding Home

In Mississippi, a good road trip is always on the menu.

In Mississippi, you’ll find amazing restaurants tucked away in unexpected places – often small towns and rural communities. Discover some favorites at VisitMississippi.org/Flavors.

#WanderMS

Taylor Grocery | Taylor, Mississippi

40: FINDING HOME

Brian Noyes, of Red Truck Bakery, puts down roots in rural Virginia

48: CELEBRATING HOME

For Georgia designer, James Farmer, each season brings a time to entertain

STORIES

56: HOME GROWN

This Georgia couple embraced homesteading as a way to create a better life for their family

64: A PLACE TO CALL HOME

When this Southern town beckoned, these folks answered and never looked back

CHAPTERS

EDITORIAL

PG 6: EDITOR’S LETTER

Discovering the importance of the place we call home.

PG 9: OUR CONTRIBUTORS

The people who make our stories come to life.

PG 96: FINDINGS

Sarah Durst recounts a humorous tale of boys, money and a nursing home.

SOUTHERN COMFORTS

PG 12: CONTENT TO WORK HARD

Metal artist Stephanie Dwyer works hard to perfect her craft.

PG 16: BY SOUTHERN HANDS

You’ll want these finds made by locals.

PG 18: COOK & CELEBRATE

Author Jonathon Scott Barrett recounts tales of Southern entertaining and shares the recipes.

PG 22: RODNEY STITH

Classical soul shakes Richmond, Virginia’s historic Hippodrome.

SOUTHERN SNAPSHOTS

PG 74: GOOD ALL OVER

The Good Road TV follows people whose mission is to keep the James River in Richmond, Virginia clean.

PG 82: LAY OF THE LAND

Our readers submit photos of their special Southern places and people.

TO DINE SOUTHERN

PG 28: GATHERINGS

A celebration of Southern Grand Dame Edna Lewis in her hometown of Virginia.

PG 32: NOTEWORTHY

Try these unique takes on some local favorites.

PG 34: ON OUR PLATE

Don’t overlook the chicken. We offer 4 recipes to add a little pizazz from some of our favorite restaurants.

A ROAD LESS TRAVELED

PG 90: FINDING PEACE IN NATURE

A journey through the parks of the South as we celebrate our trees.

PG 98: WHERE WE WENT

Lyla’s Little House in Moorseville, Alabama

FRONT COVER

The front porch of this gracious Southern home located in Washington, Georgia beckons us to sit and rest a while.

Photographed by Lena Seaborn

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EDITOR’S LETTER

What is home?

For each of us itsmeaning is something different. And for most of us, it has likely changed as our circumstances in life have, also.

Those life changes could be related to relocating for a new job or maybe it’s moving back to a place where your fondest memories were formed.

Returning to a place we love grounds us. It makes everything both tradition and treasure, all at the same time. The same can be true of a place where we chose to live. Setting down roots to become a part of that community allows our needs and desires to grow within a social and cultural system of our choosing. It helps us to grow a home and create our history. For those of us who move away, thinking we’ll find something “better” out in the world we discover, upon returning to what we call home, find that rediscovering what home means is worth more than gold.

Some of us are content with the place we call home – there is no need to go in search of anything else. Growing our home, both socially and aesthetically, is important to us. We entertain our closest friends, plant gardens, raise our families; it is the place we love and can’t imagine ever leaving it.

Home is where we have our roots. Family is important and the idea of living in homes and on the same land that our ancestors did is important to many of us as a way to connect to the past yet build the future. We may find ourselves doing what generations before us have done by keeping a family business going. Honoring a family tradition in this way has kept many of our Southern families working together and making a living.

Realizing where you have been in life can make home even more meaningful. Sometimes, when we get back to where we’re from we realize that we’re misplaced – so to speak – in life. Living in a big city isn’t for everyone; neither is living on the coast, if your heart is in the mountains. The sooner we find that out for ourselves, the better. That lesson seems simplistic to realists, but it’s not. Having the courage to find that for you and your family? That takes both guts and time.

Finding home is finding magic. It is the place where you can feel most grounded, yet able to dream of what you can be.

Scott Speakes //
“HOME ISN’T WHERE YOU’RE FROM, IT’S WHERE YOU FIND LIGHT WHEN ALL GROWS DARK.”
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Pierce Brown, Golden Son

THANKS FOR YOUR KIND WORDS. You make us feel loved. ” ”

This is one of the most beautifully illustrated and written magazines I’ve ever seen. I truly enjoy it. Suzy G.

What a beautiful magazine! Congratulations. Thank you for the beauty you give the world. Farm and Handmade

As a Southerner, farmer, hiker, and gardener, I really love this magazine. It touches the heart of the South. Linda S.

I subscribe to several magazines, but yours is the only one that I read from cover to cover. I absolutely love it! Dorette K.

Okra is my favorite magazine…not just because of its Southern focus, but because it truly has soul – a rare quality in most publications, in my opinion. Please keep up the good work and never lose the “soul”. Joan B.

I really enjoy this magazine! It’s feel-good Southern stuff. Beverly R.

I sometimes have to hunt your magazine down in my area of Williamsburg, VA. Occasionally I will find a copy tucked away at my local Barnes & Noble. When I find it, I’m so happy. Then I savor it on my veranda while sipping pink lemonade. Tiffeni G.

I just wanted once again to tell you all what a marvelous job you do with this magazine. I received my latest copy and started looking at it last night and it was like being on a fabulous trip thank you so much. Deborah W.

To this day I remember all of the unsolicited kindness from the folks we encountered in the Southern states we traveled through and the great food and wisdom and honesty. My attitude on the South was forever changed on that trip, and although my original roots were of Virginian origin, I am a born and bred New Englander; I also fell in love with those roots and realized the simplicity of a slow paced lifestyle. I love following okra because you capture the very best and diversity of Southern culture. You have a great magazine. Kim P.

I want you to know how much I adore Okra Magazine! I love the work that y’all are doing, and it’s a joy to open each and every issue. As a photographer, aspiring writer, and avid travel enthusiast with a passion for all things southern culture, I appreciate the work being done and hope to see many years of success. Jennifer B.

We love your magazine! I flip to the pictures first, it just warms my heart to see the Southern landscape, and so many views that it offers. Growing up in the mountains of Tennessee, with farmer/cattle grandparents in middle Tennessee, then moving to a 3rd generation cotton farm here in Georgia, has allowed me to really think about my roots, and appreciate all of the landscapes I have been able to see! Aimee G..

My sister adores your magazine. She says it is like sitting on a porch talking after Sunday dinner. High praise indeed. Carol M.

H SUBSCRIBE TODAY H Subscribe and receive 1 year (that’s 4 issues) for $26.99. okramagazine.com/subscribe KIND WORDS
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STAFF

Scott Speakes

Publisher

Genie Gaither Jones

Editor-in-Chief

Rebecca Cashwell

Design Director

J. M. McSpadden Liesel J. Schmidt

Contributing Editors

Richard L. Jones

Copy Editor

Advertising Sales Specialists

Brittany Sanders brmcdonald45@gmail.com

Scott Speakes scott@okramagazine.com

CONNECT WITH US

facebook.com/okramagazine @okramag

contact@okramagazine.com

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CONTRIBUTORS

TYLER DARDEN is a food and lifestyle photographer and cinematographer based in Richmond, Virginia. After spending the first part of his career as a magazine art director, he followed the siren call to pursue photography full time in 2010. In his free time, he experiments with large format and ultra large format film photography, documentary and filmmaking. His photos have been published in Virginia Living Magazine, Wall Street Journal, LIDL Grocery Stores, Garden & Gun, Self, Men’s Health, and Colonial Williamsburg. tylerdarden.com

JIMMY PROFFITT lives in East Tennessee with his husband, 4 dogs, and 5 cats. Working in marketing by day, his personal time is devoted to his website, The Appalachian Tale, developing new recipes, is working on his own cookbook, and has written a kids book he hopes to publish very soon. You can find him on social media as @theappalachiantale and online at theappalachiantale.com

HENRY GONZALEZ is an advertising photographer who has lived and worked out of Atlanta, Georgia, and the Southeast for over 20 years. Photography started as a hobby and became a career. After graduating from photography school, he moved to Atlanta and has been in demand ever since. He specializes in all types of photography: food, fashion, interiors and editorial. He’s always up for a challenge. henrygonzalezphotography.com

SUSAN MARQUEZ is a lifelong learner who finds joy in the unexpected discoveries often found on the path less traveled. She began writing professionally in 2001 and 2,800 articles later, she is still telling the stories of the South. With one foot in suburban Mississippi and the other in New Orleans, she can pack a suitcase in record time. “Writing gives me an excuse to ask questions, and to learn more than what can be seen on the surface.”

MARIANNE LEEK is a retired high school educator who continues to teach part-time at Tri-County Community College. She lives with her husband in western North Carolina, where she spends much of her free time enjoying the outdoors. More of her work can be found in The Bitter Southerner.

J. M. MCSPADDEN is a freelance writer and music enthusiast whose work has appeared online at theflamestillburns.com, and at mbird.com, a journal that examines faith in the real world. His love for roots music led to a gig at nodepression.com, where he reported on live music from The Birchmere, the famed music hall in Washington, DC. He is fascinated with the way words and music impact our lives and can be used as a vehicle for healing. Host of The Village Night Owl podcast, an interview show featuring musical artists, he lives in Virginia with his wife Suzanne where he is at work on his first novel.

SARAH DURST is a writer, artist, and professor. She was a teacher and instructional coach for 16 years before finishing her Ph.D in Education and Writing Studies. At what could only be a God-calling, Sarah and her family moved from the midwest to the mountains of eastern Alabama. Sarah is a regular contributor to Okra. You can find her at sarahdurst@ gmail.com and on Instagram @potters. daughter

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CONTENT TO WORK HARD

METAL ARTIST, STEPHANIE DWYER, WORKS HARD TO FIND CONTENTMENT

She may be pretty and petite, but don’t underestimate metal artist Stephanie Dwyer. She knows her way around a welding shop, and she is as badass as she looks when donning her welding helmet and steel-toed boots. Without trying, she is setting fashion trends in Paris. That’s Paris, Tennessee, y’all, and Stephanie has become part of the fabric of the small town located just two hours and some change from Nashville. Her everyday attire consists of Carhartts and a t-shirt, and she makes it look chic.

Stephanie’s path to welding fame began in Bellingham, Washington, where she spent the majority of her formative years.

“I grew up darting around from California to Washington and Texas but spent the majority of my time in Bellingham.” After high school, Stephanie worked random jobs and did landscaping on the side. “The climate in Bellingham is mild, comparable to England, so landscapes can get layers and intricate. I wanted to incorporate sculptural and structural metal to my landscaping projects, but I didn’t know how to weld. My friend suggested a night course for intro welding, and I got hooked.” She attended a two-year vocational college for welding and metallurgy, not realizing that it would one day become her career.

“I’m a shoot-from-the-hip kind of person,” she laughs. “Going into business for myself was not by design. It just evolved from knowing I had to get myself legal in regard to income.” After getting out of school, Stephanie chose fabrication jobs which enabled her to continue doing landscaping. She moved to Mississippi in August 2006 and went to a fabrication shop outside of Jackson. “I felt instantly uncomfortable asking for a job. The men looked at me like I was some kind of joke or something. They didn’t know what to make of me.” After a couple of rejections, Stephanie decided to just make some small things

to sell on her own. “I literally sold items off the back of my truck.” That led to a booth at a weekly farmer’s market in Jackson where she was surrounded by other local artists. “At that point, I had to start my own business, although I never considered myself an artist. The need to work more led to getting on the road to sell to retailers, such as home and garden shops. I drove to potential businesses between Memphis and Lafayette, Louisiana. My first big sale was to a nursery in Natchez. They could see how focused I was, so they supported me for quite a few years before I moved to Tennessee.

Stephanie’s move to Mississippi was one year after Hurricane Katrina, and on the heels of a toxic relationship that involved unbearable mental abuse. That situation was the most painful of her life, but she says it was necessary to get where she is now. “I guess it was a unique form of divine intervention.” After living in Mississippi for nine years, Stephanie had progressed enough with her metal art that she felt the need to move closer to a viable city that could offer more consistency with commissions. “I chose Nashville but couldn’t find the right place.” Stephanie has a soft heart for animals and rescues them wherever she goes. “A friend suggested renting in Paris, just to get relocated and to buy time finding the right property. That was nine years ago, and I’m still in the same place, with even more rescue animals.” She has a shop surrounded by privacy and wildlife. “I also have some incredible friends here that I call family.”

In her metal shop in Paris, Stephanie heats and bends metal with ease. She hammers and forges and bends the raw metal into sensuous curves, adding tiny swirls and leaves to give it an organic look. Much of Stephanie’s work is commission pieces that she personally delivers and installs. “Getting on

HOME
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Stephanie Dwyer

the road to do deliveries and installations balances out the need for travel and socializing. I have experienced some really amazing cities with so much history and personal style. Architecture is my weakness. Clients have been super kind to me, so I always look forward to sharing meals with people who started out ordering something for me to build and ended up becoming long term friends.”

One of her signature pieces is the bottle tree. Each one is unique. “I am amazed at how many people actually find me. My website was erased by the host by mistake three or four years ago and getting a new one just hasn’t been in the cards for me. Mostly I get commissions and sales through posting on social media or word of mouth. I also discovered that if you Google bottle trees mine really stand out and then people literally hunt me down. That’s a very flattering compliment to hear after a lifetime of self-doubt and low self-esteem. I have no business model other than staying focused on creations and making sure I pay my taxes. Bottle trees, by creating them, saved my life and got me to where I am now. I call the past seventeen years my Bottle Tree Adventures.”

Not all of Stephanie’s work is found in private homes. She has made custom pieces for everything from The Shack Up Inn in Clarksdale, Mississippi to the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture. “I would say that is the most prominent public piece I have made so far.” She has also crafted the alley of trees called “Dancing Sisters” for the Shangri La Botanical Garden in Orange, Texas. As far as public spaces go, the 12’ to 17’ trees, which Stephanie regards as sculptures, can be found scattered mostly in the South where their cultural history is more diverse. “As cheesy as it sounds, it’s the countless bottle trees that are scattered all around the nation in front and back yards of private homes that I am happiest about. That’s my greatest artistic honor, especially because of the connections I have made with people who I would not have met otherwise. It’s been a pretty amazing adventure.”

Stephanie is anything but a one-trick pony. While she loves making bottle trees, she also makes custom gates, trellises, and birdbaths adorned with gingko leaves. “I love them because they are functional and an offering to nature.” Stephanie says her lifestyle, one of working hard, then loading up to get on the road like a truck driver, suits her. “Knowing that there are historical cities to explore within a 10-hour radius of where I live is also an incentive to work harder toward a little time off feeding my passion for architecture and regional food. I look around this property and there’s so much peace knowing that I’m able to take care of what’s in front of me. That level of content is hard to come by.”

etsy.com/shop/BottleTreeAlley instagram.com/stephaniedwyer1

SOUTHERN COMFORTS 14 okramagazine.com SPRING 2023

“BOTTLE TREES, BY CREATING THEM, SAVED MY LIFE AND GOT ME TO WHERE I AM NOW.

I CALL THE PAST SEVENTEEN YEARS MY BOTTLE TREE ADVENTURES.”

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BLACK EYED PEARLS

As someone who studied fine art and ceramics in college, there’s an artistry in cooking that former pastry chef Kathyrn King connected to. She grew up in Southern kitchens, watching her mother and grandmother, filling her senses with the sights, sounds and smells and feeling all of it under her fingertips. It drew her in and captivated her—and then, it became her career.

But fate drew her back to her love of visual arts through jewelry making and metalsmithing. Over the past decade, she has been creating her own one-ofa-kind pieces using sterling silver and semi-precious stones. As the craftswoman behind two lines, Black Crow Metal Work and Black Eyed Pearls, she explores two sides of the same artistic coin—but it is through Black Eyed Pearls that she celebrates the heritage of the South.

“Black Eyed Pearls was started in July of 2022 with the ’seed’ of an idea to make a line using beloved Southern produce—a unique and whimsical take on vegetables,” says King. “Black eyed peas and okra have a long tradition in the South. Throughout my pastry career, I have been a supporter of locally grown produce and continue to rely on local growers for my

jewelry’s ingredients, as well.”

To achieve the realism captured in her necklaces, King first dries the vegetables. Next they are cast in sterling silver using the “lost wax” method of pouring molten metal into a wax mold. Finally, each component is strung or soldered onto sterling chains before the clasps are added. Having risen to the heights that she did as the critically acclaimed pastry chef at Atlanta’s iconic Aria restaurant, for King, the art of creating beauty with her hands is a particular point of pride. And now, she makes those beautiful things in a way that last and can be handed down. “Handmade objects are imbued with the heart and soul of the maker,” she says. “Mass-production seems faceless—there typically isn’t a real connection to a person, to their heart and mind, or between the maker and the wearer.” King plans to add earrings, bracelets, charms, and other products “as the ideas come to me or as clients suggest their own ideas. I love the natural world and have some other thoughts on jewelry made from natural materials, too,” she notes. Her pieces can be found online at blackeyedpearls.com

STYLE
SOUTHERN COMFORTS 16 okramagazine.com SPRING 2023
Kathryn King

GRAIN TURNER GIFTS

Grain – noun: roughness in texture of wood, stone, etc. Made from various hardwood species and custom resin pours, each of the products in the Grain Turner Wood & Resin Art line of writing instruments and accessories boast a one-of-a-kind finish, with layers of depth and movement created either through the natural grain of the wood or through the dyes and pigments used in the resin pours. Launched in 2023, the company is the brainchild—and handiwork—of Cary Bone, who fell in love with high quality writing implements during college. “I took a drafting class, and there was just something about the way the drafting pencil and pen felt gliding parallel to the edge of the ruler that gave me a greater appreciation for writing instruments,” he says.

And so, he began making his own—so many, in fact that it “got out of hand,” as Bone admits. After attending several local artisan markets and realizing how much interest there was in his products he decided to turn his craft into an actual business.

Born and raised in Alabama, Bone is based in New Market and draws particular inspiration from the South. “Being an avid outdoorsman, nature inspires each product,” he says. “I tend to gravitate toward coastal

and beach-inspired resin pours and earth tones as featured in products made from whiskey barrel staves. Many of my products are also made from hardwoods native to the region, including pecan, maple, walnut, and black cherry. Additionally, some of my more popular hybrid resin pours are made from stabilized sweet gum pods and custom resin pours.”

Adding to the uniqueness of his products, Bone uses authentic whiskey barrel staves once used to age whiskey for some, making them the perfect gift for whiskey or bourbon aficionados. Grain Turner products also include rollerball pens, fountain pens, seam rippers, and bottle stoppers, all created using hardwood or resin.

“Each handcrafted instrument is truly one-of-a-kind. Emphasis is placed on form, fit, finish, and function., he says. “Hours are spent working to achieve these, every time. Additionally, the material and techniques used gives each handcrafted instrument history. While there are many beautiful, mass-produced instruments on the market, they lack the personal touches required to give the instrument a soul.”

Grain Turner products can be purchased online at grainturner.com and various local markets.

Written by Liesel Schmidt

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Cary Bone

what we’re

READING

THE RECIPE OF SOUTHERN HOLIDAYS: DISHING UP COOK & CELEBRATE WITH JOHNATHON SCOTT BARRETT

A native Georgian who celebrates his heritage, Johnathon Scott Barrett is the embodiment of the Southern hospitality he was raised on, the consummate host whose skill at entertaining would do his mother and grandmother proud. In Cook & Celebrate, as in his previously published titles Rise & Shine and Cook & Tell, Barrett presents a collection of recipes—but within the mixture of ingredients, he offers the perfect accompaniment of a story or a memory that gives the recipe dimension and depth and brings it to life on the page. A charming narrative of some of the South’s most treasured—and well-shared—holiday recipes, Cook & Celebrate will educate, beguile, and make you wish you could meet the cast of characters in Barrett’s life to share a meal and celebrate a holiday.

Q : When did the idea for the book come about, and what was your vision for it?

A : The idea came while on the speaking tour for my second work, Cook & Tell. At each stop, attendees shared that much of their favorite food memories were from holidays and special occasions, which prompted me to compose this story and recipe collection. Through Cook & Celebrate, I hope readers will be prompted to recall those delicious times that have made their own lives so very special.

Q : How did you choose which recipes to include?

A : I chose them in two ways. First, I outlined the chapters I wanted to include in the book, and then partially filled those sec-

tions with cherished dishes from my personal culinary repertoire.

Q : Was it difficult to collect all of them?

A : I reached out through social media and asked Facebook and Instagram friends to send me suggestions from their own treasured holiday and party delicacies, and to share why those items held prized spots on their tables.

Q : What was your favorite aspect of writing the book?

A : The book tour after publication. I dearly love visiting different cities and towns across the South. In each stop, from Fairhope to Atlanta to Savannah, I’ve had the chance to make new friends—and give big hugs to the old ones.

Q : What was the most challenging thing about writing it?

A : The most difficult part was deciding what worthy recipes and stories could not be included in Cook & Celebrate. As with most books, this one was limited to a certain number of pages by the publisher, meaning many items had to be set aside. In the preface, I write: “Apologies in advance if a dish that you firmly believe should have been here in print was not among the mix.”

Q : Do you have a particular favorite recipe/memory in the book?

A : My friend Nella’s memorable Christmas season story about rushing home from school, full of excitement, on “the day”, to make divinity candy with her late Mother.

Q : If you could leave people with ONE recipe to remember you by, what would it be?

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A : My family’s cornbread dressing, which, in turn, would also recall remembrances of my mother and maternal grandmother, Ninnie.

Q : How did you come to the realization that food is such an important part of Southern culture?

A : I was born into a family and small town where good food was a way of relating and interacting with others. Food was the common denominator in life for all reasons. A gift of a cake, or basket of fried chicken, could express joy, grief, friendship, love…It just depended on the occasion in which it was given.

Q : How long did it take to write the book?

A : It took almost two years. I also work full time as a major gift officer for the University of Georgia, so my writing takes place at night and over weekends.

Q : You seem to be the consummate host...Where do you think you got that?

A : It is wired within my DNA as a seventh-generation Georgian, and then reinforced with lessons from my parents and my nannie, Carrie. My Emergenetics personality profile shows almost equally half Sociability and the other Structure—which means I know how to throw a wonderfully fun party that starts on time and stays within a budget!

Q : If you could host a dinner party for any ten people, who would you invite, and why?

A : Many Southerners, being solid in their faith, would include

Jesus Christ. And while I’m a devout Episcopalian, I figure—being 59 years old—that I’m going to get to meet the Good Lord in the not-too-distant future, so I’ll save that seat for someone else. And for this answer here, we’re going to have to put a leaf in the dining table and pull up two extra chairs, because I’d need room for twelve to invite all my relatives, those wonderful folks who raised me, that have now gone on to their greater rewards in Heaven. I’d fix a big buffet serving all their favorites, such as fried catfish and hot buttered biscuits with cane syrup for my mama and daddy, and a lemon meringue pie for Aunt Beatrice.

Q : Why do you think Southerners hold onto the traditions that we have—the gatherings, the celebrations, the holidays?

A : I am no cultural historian, so I can only give an educated guess in that the South continues to live up to its stereotypic reputation as being hospitable. What started out two hundred years ago within what was then an agrarian and sparsely populated region has transcended class and race. Hospitality is still, in contemporary times, an integral part of our identity. And some of the best ways to showcase that love of people, company, comradery, and food is through those traditions of gatherings, celebrations, and holidays.

Q : Do you have a favorite holiday? Which one and why?

A : By far, my favorite is Christmas, which I start celebrating the (continued on next page)

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day after Thanksgiving and continue right up through Epiphany. I love the pure joy, love, and spirit of the season, from the beautiful carols we sing to the sparkle of colored lights on a cedar tree— and the fact that it is a reason for family and friends to gather in the warmest of settings.

Q : What do you hope people take away from your book?

A : I hope Cook & Celebrate serves as an inspiration for people to reflect on their own culinary memories and take time to appreciate the blessings of family, food, and friends that they have been

gifted with over the years.

Q : You’ve written two other books. Do you have plans for any others?

A : Cook & Celebrate is my third story/cookbook over the last seven years. I’ve also just finished a fiction novel—a Southern romantic “dramedy”—set in Savannah, Highlands, Sea Island, and Atlanta, and am in the midst of finding a publishing home for it. Wish me luck!

johnathonbarrett.com

NINNIE’S CORNBREAD DRESSING

Recipe from Cook & Celebrate by Jonathon Scott Barrett

The following recipe was from my maternal grandmother, Eunice Musselwhite Nipper, who was called Ninnie by her grandchildren. I’ve not changed a single ingredient or step since it was passed down to me. I inherited many of Grandmother Nipper’s cast iron pots and pans, and several of her utensils, some that are more than a hundred years old. Using them when I cook makes the dishes even more special, if only to me. The photo is Ninnie and my grandfather, Charles Cleveland Nipper, on their wedding day in 1916. This recipe serves 8-10

INGREDIENTS

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 9-inch pan of cornbread (about 6 cups crumbled) made

a day ahead and set on the back of the stove to ‘dry out’

3 biscuits (about 2 cups crumbled)

1 quart or so homemade chicken, turkey, or pork stock, at room temperature

2 cups onion, diced

2 cups celery, diced

3 large, hard-boiled eggs, diced

2 eggs, slightly beaten

½ teaspoon black pepper

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350º F.

2. Butter a 9x13 baking pan or large iron skillet with deep sides; it should be deep enough to hold 2½ quarts of dressing. Set aside.

3. Place the crumbled cornbread and biscuits into a large mixing bowl.

4. Pour in half of the stock and mix together with a spatula, mashing until there are no lumps. Add additional stock until you get the consistency of a slightly soupy batter.

5. Add the remaining ingredients and stir well to mix.

6. Pour batter into the buttered dish; bake until the top turns a golden brown, about 50 to 60 minutes. Serve immediately.

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