I'm Just Here for the Dessert

Thanksgiving on your mind? You're in the right place.

Apple Cake from The Silver Palate Cookbook circa 1982 with photo from theviewfromgreatisland

Never underestimate the power and joy of a sinfully decadent dessert! 

This collection of cakes and desserts is as storied as they are delicious.

My new paid feature will include Tales of a Southern cook and their stories.

If I had to choose a favorite cookbook from my kitchen shelf, it would never be a shiny new one but my classic tattered, faded, stain-covered spiral-bound notebook handed down through the years in my family of good home cooks. I would also look through my collection of regional church or community cookbooks. For generations, Southern women have published their most treasured recipes in these collections. 

The recipes presented are not just classics from generations of Southern kitchens but part of my family’s rich history with some older than the heirloom china upon which they are served.

The simple act of tying on an apron connects us to the generations of Southern women who have shown love to their families with delicious home-cooked meals.  Long before we had cell phones and computers, we had family suppers, sat on front porches, had conversations, and often dessert.

My mother had recipes written on the back of church bulletins, grocery store receipts, and bank deposit slips, but mostly little 3 x 5 cards written in her flowery script.  Now tattered and yellow with age, small clippings were taped to the back of these cards. Looking at them, I can still smell the aroma of freshly baked biscuits, pies, and cakes filling the kitchen.  Memories of this time have lingered for decades -  long after the last bites were taken. 

Art by Anna Rose Bain

I’ve rounded up some of my favorites that never go out of style - classics from generations of Southern kitchens - just for you, my treasured readers.

“A party without a cake is just a meeting.” Julia Child