Smokehouse Ham, Spoon Bread & Scuppernong Wine: The Folklore and Art of Southern Appalachian Cooking

Opossum, "take one opossum and slow cook him to get the fat out." Then she describes the people's stories how during the winter you might not have much more than a squirrel for meat.

I got a sense of the bravery and strength of character of the mountain people when they grew their own food during hard times and good times. Their meals reminded me of a simpler time when large families worked their land and survived together.

Besides all that, her story telling made me laugh.


Awesome   January 10, 2004
 7 out of 7 found this review helpful

All I can say is this book is AWESOME. You must get it. I have never seen such quality, and old time cooking, and history wrapped up in one cookbook like this. I wish there were more books like this one. If we don't write down the knowledge these people had, and how they survived, and lived...we are making a tragic mistake. I cannot wait to start making some of the food listed from their recipes! I just saw this book last night at a bookstore in town. Don't hesitate to get this book, you won't be sorry.


Folksy shouldn't be dumb   December 26, 2003
 28 out of 37 found this review helpful

The author of this folksy, breezy book is obviously in love with his subject. Unfortunately, he sometimes does not seem to know what he's writing about. On page 189 with a photo of hams hanging hock up, he quotes a mountain sage who says hams should be 'hung with the hocks down', but apparently does not notice the discrepancy. Five pages later he gives his 'modern update' to a traditional recipe: boil ham in water in a deep pan (not a pressure cooker) at 300 degrees. Funny, I can't get my boiling water above 212 degrees. Although he has a deep love of the subject, he does not appear to have a deep knowledge. There are many examples of inconsistencies. On page 313 and following, he describes a mountain personage Aggie Ross Lossiah and then on page 327 and following, he describes the same person, but calls her Angie Ross Lossiah. (These are not just typos; at each place he uses the name multiple times.) In the chapter on sorghum syrup, he says 'it is known in the mountains as "long sweetenin'." This is in contrast to "short sweetenin'" -- refined sugar.' Then in the chapter on honey, he says 'honey was considered the much-loved mountain "long sweetening" while sorghum was "short sweetening".'

The main purpose of the recipes in the book seem for entertainment. Many are cute, but most are either trivial and obvious, or else carelessly presented; for example, a recipe for blackberry dumplings calls for four ingredients: 1 qt blackberries, 1 1/4 c sugar, 2 c water, and "Berry mix". I have not figured out where to get the "Berry mix" (is that a commercial product?) or when to add it -- it was not mentioned in the directions. Also, there's that problem of boiling water at 300 degrees. Nevertheless, I found the book enjoyable and evocative of my own experiences in and with the people of the Southern Appalachians.