American Apple Pie

“As American as Apple Pie”- if you were born in this century, you’ve surely heard this. It’s means through and through American. Did you know that the apples we eat today were not born in the USA? Crabapples were the only native apples we had in this land. Apple seeds came over from Europe in…

Menu Changes: Creative, Southern, Artisinal, Crafty

I found a cookbook in my garage the other day, hidden under the old boots and spiderwebbed garden tools.  It was a birthday gift from 1999. I am not sure what kind of cooking I was doing in that decade, but one thing appears spot on, I had high aspirations-given the title of the cookbook….

A Mutual Affection for Reading and Cooking

The librarian asked me to write a review for a novel a few months back. It was an author that I liked and she knew how much I might enjoy reading the book. It took me a couple of days to read the book but over 2 months to do the review. Why? I truly…

Sweet Potato Cupcakes with Cream Cheese and Lime Zest Frosting

Holy Sweet Potato! These little cakes pack a punch nutritionally AND the flavor combo is sweet and tart all in two itty bitty bites. The hardest part for me was the frosting. I did not have enough control with the pastry bag (a plastic one). I ended up using a butter knife to complete. I…

Cupcakes and Farm Food

You ask what the two have in common- nothing except me. I am working this spring and summer on a cupcake series based on the cookbook “Hello Cupcake!” Not to be outdone by cuteness, I will be cooking a savory component using local in-season farmer’s market ingredients from “The New Southern Garden Cookbook.” And because I need another…

Fish and Sweet Fried Plantains

Jamaicans love their fish, escoveitched. It’s a vinegary, carrot, onion bath over a fried piece of fish. Yes, I was skeptical too, but this was amazing. Fish are abundant everywhere in Jamaica, so this is just one of the many ways to make fried fish pop. The vinegar mixture consisted of vinegar, peppercorns, onion, carrots,…