Cookbookaholic

Trip to Lynchburg

It’s been so long since we’ve been on a road trip! As you know, we usually drove down to the in-law’s condo in Hilton Head, but that’s been sold. So, days off have become staycations, which is fine. Nothing wrong with that.

Luckily, this past fall, we got an invite to go visit hubby’s college roommate, Gregg, and his wife, Donna, up in Lynchburg, Virginia. You’ll remember them from passing along the most amazing Buffalo Chicken Dip recipe. It has become a Super Bowl celebrations standard. It’s that fantastic!

Anyways, our visit was timed to see the leaves changing color. And it was gorgeous! On the drive up, I think every road was lined with trees heavy with yellow, orange and red leaves. So beautiful!

Plus, we spent a day doing a tour of local breweries and a fun little winery that also specialized in meads. I’m not a big drinker so I was the driver and I really enjoyed the surroundings and the atmosphere. We covered a lot of ground and it was great catching up with old and dear friends.

But here’s where the cookbooks come in. I was looking over Donna’s cookbook bookcase, as one does. And a couple caught my eye.

But I’ve only been able to find one….so here it is:

Biloxi Seafood Cookbook (Maritime & Seafood Industry Museum, Biloxi, Mississippi).

A quick Internet search showed that it was still available for purchase from the Museum. And, what luck! It was on sale! My birthday was approaching and I gave a heavy hint to my husband that this would make a great gift. Nice to see that it showed up! LOL!

Now for the other cookbook, I haven’t been able to find it online. If I ever do snag it, I’ll let you know.

Of course, once I got home, there was a search on eBay for Lynchburg area cookbooks!

I’ve already secured several copies of the Good Cookin’ from the Heart of Virginia cookbook from the Junior League of Lynchburg, Inc. That’s an especially fantastic cookbook due to the wonderful illustrations from artist Queena Dillard Stovall. That cookbook is probably one of the most recognizable Junior League cookbooks out there.

My searches landed on two very interesting cookbooks:

Country Cooking from Forest, Virginia (Jefferson Woman’s Club and Friends.

 

and

Generations of Good Cooking: A Harvest of Recipes from Rivermont Presbyterian Church (Lynchburg, VA). And look what’s on the cover! It’s another piece of art from Queena Dillard Stovall.

What a nice connection to have the art from the same artist with the Junior League cookbook!

Quick Trip to Myrtle Beach

After a long, long time, my brother and I are finally selling the house in which we grew up. It’s been over six years since our mom passed and it’s time to let it go.

I’m not sure how or why, but the closing is in Myrtle Beach…not even the city or county in which the house is located. So, I’ll take a few days off from work….which are desperately needed anyways and I’ll spend a day to focus on the closing and then a day for relaxation. I can’t spend a long weekend there because we’ve got a bookcase being delivered from Ikea and it’s showing up on Saturday.

Honestly, I’m not even looking for cookbooks during this trip but we end up at a few thrift stores. The back of my car is still filled with the collection I won in an online auction. I don’t need to go crazy and pick up another load until I get the new ones situated! LOL

Let me tell you about our first meal in Myrtle Beach! We went to brunch at a restaurant called Lulu’s Café. I ordered the Banana Bread French Toast…two slices of French toasted banana bread topped with banana slices, pecans and my generous pour of syrup. It was so amazing and delicious, I didn’t even wait to take a photo. Sorry. And there were no leftovers.

After the closing, hubby had found a nearby church thrift store and I appreciated the activity of just getting out and walking around. It was a set of two small rooms but staffed with five people…but they were very busy with their own conversations.

As I walked in, I saw a hand sanitizer dispenser and I took some into my hand. As a began to rub my hands together, I realized that it wasn’t hand sanitizer but hand soap. And now, I had a thick layer of sudsy-soap on both of my hands.

Casually, I walked back to the area that displayed towels and found a basic dark beige hand towel and wiped my hands. I guess this is coming back home with me?! LOL!

Hubby found a shirt and I came across a collection of three bread baskets. I’ve actually been looking for one and really liked the large basket on the bottom. But the three were taped together for a grand total of only $1.50. I’m super excited to find these! As we are checking out, I ask about cookbooks but when I look over their small selection, I don’t see anything that thrills me.

Next, we head to a Goodwill. Again, I’m not looking for a haul so I’m not disappointed when the selection isn’t great…but then, I spot this:

Southern Living Rotisserie Chicken Cookbook. I love the rotisserie chicken that I get from Food Lion. I use it when I make a Moravian Chicken Pie….so much easier and quicker to just slice and chop up. I hope this can inspire some additional dinners instead of a meat and two sides.

We call it a night and the next day we start off at another brunch spot. Croissants Bistro & Bakery is our choice and I order their Bananas Foster French Toast with a side of crispy bacon. Another stellar decision!

Before we head out of town Hubby had found another thrift store to visit. It got a lot of great reviews so we’re on the way.

When we get there, we see a line of people waiting outside. Is this thrift store that popular? We walk inside and know immediately why people are waiting outside…the air conditioning is broken. And it’s significantly cooler outside! I do a quick assessment on each aisle, nothing. Of course, the small bookshelf there are only a few cookbooks and I see this:

Buen Provecho, Junior League of Mexico City (1980). A quick look at the title page shows that this is a special 50^th Anniversary for that organization. What a great find! My Junior League collection is now officially international.

Drive to Lexington

I’ve done a lot of my recent cookbook purchases through eBay and Facebook Marketplace. No surprise there, Covid has shifted a lot of yard sales and estate sales to online activity.

For this cookbook, I saw a group of cookbooks listed for sale. I didn’t really want all of them, just this one.

I reached out to the seller and asked if she’d let me buy the one cookbook. I mentioned that I had attended the church when I first moved to Charlotte and knew many of the ladies who have recipes included in the book.

The lady was quick to respond and told me that she’d give it to me…I just had to come get it up in Lexington. No problem there, I’ll take a side trip over to the Bob Timberlake gallery and pick up some BBQ for my hubby. I’ll make it a huge trip!

The trip itself turned out to be easy. It was my exact same commute to work. The driving directions took me all the way up to Salisbury and then just a little bit further. This wasn’t the Lexington I was used to…it was the south side and I was barely out of Salisbury.

I met with the seller and the cookbooks she had for sale had belonged to her mother. She’d passed a few months previously and the daughter was slowly selling items to help empty out the house. She liked that I had attended the church and was just so nice to give it to me free of charge.

I was so thrilled and humbled that this cookbook was a gift from a total stranger.

Moravian Women’s Cook Book (Little Church on the Lane)

Unfortunately for the hubby, since I was closer to Salisbury than to the BBQ joint, I just got on the road and went back home. Oh well….BBQ for another day!

Quick Trip to Savannah

So, we’ve been looking for a more reliable car for our youngest. Do you know how hard it is to find a good used car nowadays? Anyways, we ended up down in Port Wentworth just outside of Savannah and found a car he liked.

After doing all the paperwork, hubby and youngest wanted to drive back to the in-law’s condo in Hilton Head—but not on I-95. It looked less stressful and shorter to take the back roads from Savannah.

While they made their way their way over to the bridge out of the city, I made my way over to my favorite used book store.

Covid protocols were still in place. So, when the store is full, you have to wait outside.

After I parked the car and started my way towards the store, I realized my phone was still in the car. I quickly turned around to retrieve it…only to see the two girls who were behind me were now in front of me….and heading inside the book store.

So, I’m left waiting on the street. A couple of people try to walk past me, but then I have to act like the defacto guard. “Oh, I’m next in line….we have to wait for someone to leave before going inside.”

Ugh

After a few minutes, the two girls exit the store. They were so chatty about how “cute” the store was. Cute? I’m trying to buy some awesome cookbooks here and I had to wait while they shuffled through the “cute” bookstore at their leisure? Ugh!!!!!!!!!!!!

Anyways, I got inside and went straight to my corner. Went through every shelf and found some really great selections!

Jamie Deen’s Good Food, The New Southern Cook (John Martin Taylor), My Mother’s Southern Kitchen (James Villas) and Beans, Greens and Sweet Georgia Peaches (Damon Lee Fowler).

Sarabeth’s Bakery (Sarabeth Levine) and Seductions of Rice (Jeffrey Arnold & Naomi Duguid).

Duff Bakes (Duff Goldman and Sara Gonzales), Baking with Mary Berry and Monica’s Kitchen (Monica Sheridan).

The small one, Monica’s Kitchen, is from an Irish chef who had her own cooking show! The date of this one is 1963. I wonder if she’s the Betty Feezor of Ireland?

And now for the really cool part! Four of these were signed!

Worth the wait? Oh yeah!!

Sweet Meadow Café

Since it has already passed my two year anniversary at the new job and I’m getting close to the third anniversary, I guess I can go ahead and drop the “new” part.

The team that I work with really like to eat out for lunch…a lot. When I first started, I did try to bring my lunch but there’s only so many frozen lunches you can heat up in the microwave before you start to lose your mind. At about the one year mark, I decided to venture out a little more often with the team for lunch.

There are, of course, our favorite spots. Some are local and some are your typical restaurant chains. But there is one special local restaurant that I wanted to call out: Sweet Meadow Cafe.

Ever had a restaurant that always served you something amazing? And you never ordered anything bad? That’s Sweet Meadow.

It’s run by a husband and wife chef-duo who create the most amazing dishes that make you think you’re eating in an undiscovered gem—a special restaurant that’s just waiting to become the “next big place.” (I love the two giant landscape paintings on the wall!)

The seating is limited, but once you’re inside the building located in the downtown historic of Salisbury, you’re in for a great meal. My favorite is the Wild Alaskan Salmon Salad. It’s served on a plate piled deep with plenty of fresh mixed greens tossed in a balsamic vinaigrette dressing. The salmon is nicely grilled and just tastes fresh. It’s my go-to dish because I’m never disappointed. If you’re a little on the spicy side, they offer to blacken it for you.

 Since I rarely venture outside of my salmon salad, I have noticed that others have their favorites as well. The Tuna Tacos are popular and made with fresh sashimi grade tuna steaks (seared rare) and served with a mango salsa. Their crab cakes are also a hot item and just may be my next order.

Sweet Meadow Café

Historic Downtown Salisbury

118 W. Innes Street

Salisbury, NC  28144

704-637-8715

Double Icing Doughnuts

On my way home after a recent to visit my mom, I decided to stop by a Krispy Kreme and grab a dozen doughnuts. I’ll be honest and tell you that I prefer visiting the Krispy Kremes in my hometown of Florence, SC. Their Original Glazed doughnuts have a thicker layer of icing and just taste better.

I’ve had Krispy Kreme all over North and South Carolina and I can honestly say the ones made in Florence just taste better. There have been at least two unfortunate experiences at other Krispy Kremes where I’ve been given glazed doughnuts where their thin layer of icing didn’t “stick” and just slid off, leaving a bland and bare ring of fried dough.

Anyway, during this last trip to Krispy Kreme, I made a comment about the great doughnuts and how the icing is better there because it’s thicker. The gal helping me said, “would you like me to run them through the icing twice?”

Ummmmmmmmm….uhhhhh, yeah.

Sure enough, she plucks six freshly-iced doughnuts off the conveyor track and runs them through the icing fountain again. Take a look at the doughnuts in their double icing glory.

How awesome is this Krispy Kreme? 

Back for the BBQ!

Finding One Hot Mama’s on New Year’s Day was a stroke of good luck. It’s actually a BBQ joint but was undoubtedly one of the best Hoppin’ John feasts I’ve ever had. The ham was thick, tender, juicy and had a great (but not overwhelming) smokey flavor. The greens were good….really good. I was so impressed I even blogged about it!

During our trip back down to Hilton Head Island for the Memorial Day weekend, I wanted to make sure I got back to One Hot Mama’s….this time, One Hot Mama’s needed to deliver where it counts—the BBQ.

Sunday night was our night out and I went in full speed ahead. I got the BBQ plate with green beans, sweet potato fries and cornbread. It looked amazing!

The BBQ was really good. Plus, they had three different sauces. One mustard, one vinegar and one ketchup-based. I tried all three and couldn’t make up my mind. I absolutely loved, loved, loved the green beans! They were buttery and a little oniony with slivered almonds in them. Oh man, I’d belly up to a full plate of those green beans any time!

Hubby had this huge fish sandwich…literally huge!

He really enjoyed it and cleaned the plate completely…always a good sign. And yes, his two sides were slaw and slaw. 

One Hot Mama’s makes it very easy to have a great meal in a no-fuss atmosphere. This will definitely become one of our go-to places on the island.

One Hot Mama’s American Grill

7 Greenwood Dr. #A

Hilton Head Island, SC  29928

843-682-6262

http://onehotmamas.com/

 

Road Trip Worthy: Carolina Cider Co.

Yes, after all those times I forgot my copy of the Southern Living magazine with the Carolina Cider Co. information, SL publishes Off the Eaten Path with an entire two page feature on the store. I deliberately kept my copy of the book in the car to have on hand for our next trip. We finally had a chance to head down to Hilton Head Island for Memorial Day weekend. With the book (and address) within grasp, I talked the guys into a little side road adventure and we were off!

We took an exit off I-95 and, within half an hour, ended up at the tiny little roadside stop far away from the holiday traffic. Yeah! I’d finally made it here!

Just seeing the trademark, hand-painted sign made me so happy!

There were several other cars already in the parking lot so I snapped some outside pictures and hurried to follow the guys already inside.

Oh the wonders! There’s a table filled with their famous ciders: peach, bing cherry, scuppernong and strawberry. Several choices ran from a chilled small bottle to a giant half-gallon jug. The walls were stacked with sacks of ready-to-cook flavored grits from local Lowcountry companies to barbecue sauces. I didn’t notice my Uncle Marvin’s sauce there—perhaps they need a phone call?

A back table featured jams, preserves and local honey. I was busy looking over the store and snapping pictures, but the guys all seemed to gravitate to the sample table. In fact, they stayed there for most of our time inside the store! Hubby and Dunc both loved the cherry butter.

But the billboards up and down I-95 talk about the cider. They beckon to you while whizzing by at 70 mph. Stop and try the cider. Peach Cider. Cherry Cider.  Plus, it’s called the Carolina Cider Co.; so, we should probably try them, right? They had all of them ready to sample in a chilled dispenser. I really preferred the Bing Cherry flavor.

The next display over showcased the famous pies featured in Southern Living magazine. Today’s pies were peach, apple and pecan. Oh, you know I had to try out the pecan pie!

Behind the pies and up against the wall were two pots of boiled peanuts—regular and cajun. Seriously?! I love boiled peanuts. Had to have some!

They even had a bookshelf near the register with cookbooks! Junior League of Charleston, of course. There’s a Gullah cookbook I would like to get, but I was spending my cash on food this time around. Maybe next time? Definitely!

So, I ended up spending a good bit of my recent “Above & Beyond” Award winnings on pecan pie, two cartons of boiled peanuts, two small refrigerated ciders for the boys and a larger strawberry cider.

This quaint little roadside spot was a one-stop shop for all things Southern: pecan pie, BBQ sauce, boiled peanuts, grits and cider! Now that I know the way, Carolina Cider Co. may become a part of every trip down to Hilton Head!

Carolina Cider Co.

81 Charleston Highway

Yemassee, SC 29945

843-846-1899

www.carolinaciderco.com

Road Trip Worthy: Kernel Kustard

My favorite new discovery in Winston-Salem must be Kernel Kustard on W. Fourth St. I spotted it as we drove up to our hotel during Easter. The “K” in the logo reminded me of the old school Krispy Kreme logo. The name itself conjures up thoughts of popcorn and ice cream. Yum…..I need to figure out a time to check this place out! I think some quality time is in order here…

After our anniversary dinner, hubby and I stopped in to grab a dessert. I’m so glad we did!

Walking through the front door, you’re greeted with the wonderful smell of popcorn. The popper and display cases are right there! There is plenty of caramel, cheddar and regular popcorn. I definitely see an order of caramel popcorn in my near future.

As we walk around into the store, I see their menu contains so much more than popcorn and kustard. (Lunch would be a lot of fun in this place!) Looking over their “Frozen Kustard” menu, I wondered if it would be too much to get a cup as well as some popcorn. Oh, what the heck—I’ve got the rest of the weekend to finish off the popcorn, right?

This kustard is supposed to be creamier than regular ice cream. You could have your choice of flavor (chocolate, vanilla or flavor of the day) as a jumble (mixed with one topping), a signature sundae, shake, malt, float or a frozen kustard sandwich. I had the toughest time picking between a Signature Jumble or a Signature Sundae. Some of the jumbles offered were “Chocolate Covered Pretzel” with chocolate kustard, crunchy pretzels and chocolate chips; “Holy Canoli” offered vanilla kustard, canoli shells, chocolate chips and pistaschio nuts; and “Cereal Killer” with vanilla kustard, Cap’n Crunch, Cocoa Pebbles and Fruity Pebbles. O.M.G.!!!!!

The Signature Sundaes were just as tempting. The three that popped out for me included: “The Kernel Kustard” with vanilla kustard, warm caramel popcorn, warm caramel topped with whipped cream and cherry; “Turtle” has vanilla kustard, warm caramel, hot fudge and roasted pecans, whipped cream and cherry ; and the “Hot Fudge Funnel Cake” tops the vanilla kustard with funnel cake sticks, hot fudge, whipped cream and cherry. Holy Moley! How do you choose? They all sound so amazing!

Our cashier, Nicole, was very patient…and understanding. She told us that she attends college down in Charlotte but comes back to Winston-Salem and works at Kernel Kustard on the weekends. Now that's dedication!

I ended up choosing “The Kernel Kustard.” With the caramel popcorn, it reminded me of that incredible Blue Bell ice cream flavor, Caramel Kettle Crunch, from last summer. Plus, it bore the store’s name—so I figured it was their signature dish—literally.

So we got a sundae AND a small bag of caramel popcorn to go. I couldn’t wait to dig into the cup of kustard back at the hotel.

Oh man, oh man, oh man—that was good! There’s something about the caramel popcorn and the kustard combination that is so mind-blowing! LOVE IT!!!!

Oh, and the caramel popcorn? It’s the stuff of childhood dreams! The caramel coating is soft, warm and buttery. It is so addictive. I would bypass the sticky, burnt sugar stuff at the mall and drive all the way up to Winston-Salem for this caramel popcorn!

Want to see a picture? You can’t…because we ate it all before I remembered to take a picture. But note that my “small” order was plenty for four people to snack on for about three days.

Next time around, we’ll get to town earlier and check out their hot dogs, sandwiches, burgers and fries. There’s a whole other side of the “Kernel” I want to experience!