NCW Libraries

Published in 1851 in Charleston, The Carolina Housewife by "A Lady of Charleston" was described by Time magazine as an "incomparable guide to Southern cuisine". With over 600 recipes, this treasury of Southern fare acknowledges for the first time the contributions of African American and Native American cooks by including recipes such as Hoppin' John, Potted Shrimp, Seminole Soup, and numerous rice dishes.  Sarah Rutledge emphasized that The Carolina...

A culture that continues to capture the fascination of newcomers, the essence of New Orleans runs deeper than tourist attractions. There is a part of New Orleans that doesn't exist in the French Quarter or on college campuses or in the Superdome. This New Orleans lives and breathes in kitchens large and small throughout the city. Mamma's, grandmamma's, aunts, uncles, and cousins stir up southern comfort in the form of home-style food. This is the...

In Mary Mac's Tea Room, author and owner John Ferrell brings together classic recipes from this venerable institution of Southern comfort food. When Mary Mac's opened in 1945, it was one of sixteen tea rooms around Atlanta, Georgia. Today, it stands alone in carrying on the tradition of bringing great Southern cooking to everyone from blue collar workers to celebrities. Now you can bring home many of the restaurant's famed recipes, from Cranberry...

The sun-drenched Florida Keys are a necklace of islands stretching more than 100 miles west from the tip of the state, where Caribbean, European, and American cultures meet. Linda Gassenheimer, South Florida local and nationally known food writer, has been visiting the Keys for decades and has seen them transform from a sleepy chain of islands to a sophisticated crossroads of culinary traditions. The islands' chefs have an unusually rich bounty of...

Down-home Southern cooking is as much a part of Kentucky's heritage as fine horses or bourbon whiskey. Louisville's own Marion Flexner gathers Kentucky's best cuisine in Out of Kentucky Kitchens. Known as a skilled hand in the kitchen, Flexner compiled delicious and thoroughly tested recipes of Kentucky specialties, such as the Chocolate Almond Torte, Tombstone Pudding, and the Real Hot Brown. Colorful anecdotes, spanning 100 years of famous Kentuckians,...

Peppered with stories and memories of his Augusta, Georgia, upbringing, “Supper at Richard's Place: Recipes from the New Southern Table” reflects the soulful and homey atmosphere of this Queens-based restaurant. Chef Richard Jones' love for authentic Southern food, which he calls "the original fusion cuisine," is palpable here in nearly 150 recipes ideal for anyone with a desire for down-home cooking. From grilled black-eyed-pea patties to potato...

Kentucky has a rich culinary tradition with distinctive regional recipes that reflect the unique heritage of the Commonwealth. Ten years after the publication of Kentucky's Best: Fifty Years of Great Recipes, Linda Allison-Lewis's celebrated first collection, the book has become a staple in kitchens state- and nationwide. Now, Allison-Lewis is back with Kentucky Cooks: Favorite Recipes from Kentucky Living, presenting recipes handpicked from the pages...

A New York Times bestseller! Country music sensation, lifestyle guru, and New York Times bestselling author Jessie James Decker gives fans her favorite recipes in this charming and beautifully designed full-color cookbook. In her New York Times bestselling book Just Jessie, Jessie James Decker invited fans into her life, sharing personal moments, honest recollections, and a window into life with her husband Eric Decker and their children. Along...

Dive into the history of Miss Mary Bobo's Boarding House and enjoy a celebration of traditional southern recipes with her delectable dishes that made her an American legend.  Shortly before noon, about sixty guests gather on the front porch and lawn of Miss Mary Bobo's Boarding House in Lynchburg, Tennessee for a mid-day dinner. Each table is cared for by a Lynchburg hostess, a lady from the town who sees to it that the bowls and platters...

From the mountains of West Virginia to the bayous of Louisiana, there's a lot of ground to cover both geographically and culinarily speaking, of course. This road trip discovery of the region's most impressive mobile eateries features the street food that has lines forming everywhere from Louisville to Birmingham, and Durham to New Orleans. Meet the food truckers who are heading up one of the country's most popular dining traditions and discover...