Charm of the Carolines

On this day...

On this day in 1936, Margaret Mitchell's beloved manuscript "Gone With the Wind" was published.

Three years later, the main cast members were signed for the lead roles in the movie: Lesley Howard, Vivien Leigh, and Olivia de Haviland.

On being a Southern Writer...

 

 "You can be a little ungrammatical if you come from the right part of the country." ~Robert Frost

For more Words to live by, check out Notes from a Cottage Industry

The wonder of it all...

"A writer lives, at least, in a state of astonishment. Beneath any feeling he has of the good or evil of the world lies a deeper one of wonder at it all. To transmit that feeling, she writes."

   ~William Sansom

This day in history...

On this day in 1939, principal photography of "Gone With The Wind" began.

After all, tomorrow is another day.

Hard Candy Christmas

Dolly's in the Christmas spirit. Just look at her lovely home in Brentwood, TN, decorated for the Holidays. (photo courtesy Jimmy Carter)

Dolly Parton is one of my favorite, favorite Tennessee daughters. Born and raised in Sevierville in east Tennessee, Dolly was the fourth of 12 children. They were raised in a rustic, one-room cabin in the mountains. She learned to perform early as a child and got many opportunities which eventually landed her an appearance on the Grand Ole Opry at age 13. However her big move to Nashville waited until the day after she graduated from high school. The next day she met who would soon be her husband to this day, Carl Dean.

I love Dolly Parton as a singer, songwriter, performer, and actor. I love her for her astute business acumen. But I love her most as a philanthropist. If you are unfamiliar with the Dolly Parton Imagination Library, let me encourage you to investigate it further. Part of the Dollywood Foundation, the Dolly Parton Imagination Library mails one book per month to each enrolled child from the time of his or her birth until he or she enters kindergarten. It began in Sevier County but has now been replicated in hundreds of counties across most of the US, Canada, and the UK.

The program distributes more than 2.5 million free books to children annually. For more information or to register your child, log on to www.dollysimaginationlibrary.com.

And if you are disappointed I didn't include a recipe today, let me just add Ms Parton has her own cookbook, Dolly's Dixie Fixins. Just log on to www.dollysdixiefixins.com for free recipes or to order the book.

Jimmy Gentry, Gentleman Farmer and much more

For the past nine years I’ve been a member of Sales and Marketing Executives International –Nashville. We meet once per month for lunch and to hear a guest speaker on a variety of topics from Innovation to Internet Marketing and everything in between. We have enjoyed the presentations of many honored and distinguished guest speakers, including author Joe Calloway, former Tennessee governor Winfield Dunn, and state congressman Jim Bryson. However, in the nine years I’ve been a member I only remember one standing ovation. It was for Mr. Jimmy Gentry.

Mr. Gentry’s family has owned and worked a farm west of Franklin, TN, since the mid-19th Century. Growing up in Franklin, Mr. Gentry attended 4th Avenue Church of Christ in town and on the morning of December 7, 1941, ran over to the drug store on Main Street to get a coke between Sunday school and church services. That is where he heard the radio and received the news. The Japanese suddenly, deliberately and critically attacked the US Navy at Pearl Harbor.

Like many boys his age, Mr. Gentry managed to join the military and serve his country. One of his many duties towards the end of the war was the liberation of Dachau, a Nazi-controlled concentration camp. Upon hearing the news the US forces were coming, the Nazi’s killed every man and boy in the camp before fleeing. As one of the first liberating soldiers on the scene, train cars full of dead men and children were the greeting Mr. Gentry received upon his arrival. However, he and the others were able to free the women and girls still imprisoned there.

This remarkable man with a tender heart agonized over his timing to liberate Dachau. If only he and the others had arrived sooner. Maybe they could have saved more lives? Silent for more than 50 years and trying to put the horrifying scene out of his head, Mr. Gentry vowed to never speak of his experience until one day when by chance he picked up a book on a sale table at the bookstore and read the touching story of a woman in the camp he liberated. He began to interpret his experience from a different perspective.

Mr. Gentry is a hero and a remarkable man whom I truly admire and am very proud to say is a resident of my home town. His story will touch your soul. An American Life is the name of Mr. Gentry’s autobiography and is available for purchase by Mr. Gentry at 1970 New Highway 96 West, Franklin, TN, 37064. An American Adventure is the corresponding documentary film and is available for purchase at www.franklinsprings.com.

More information on the Gentry Farm can be found at www.gentryfarm.com.

Jammin’ for the Lord

A few years ago I lived near a dear friend who worshipped food. He, like me, loved to grow container gardens on the patio, shop for fresh produce at the local farmer’s market, cook new and creative recipes, and entertain friends at dinner parties and barbeques.

One day we got the idea to start a new ministry… Jammin’ for the Lord. On Sunday afternoons one summer we made a dozen half-pints of strawberry jam with a secret healing ingredient we called “happy water.” And no, happy water is not corn likka! Happy water is simply water that has been blessed in a positive way, and to learn more read Messages in Water by Dr. Masaru Emoto. It is fascinating!

The jam was prepared, canned, and tagged with a special note and distributed to friends, family and neighbors who may be sick or grieving. The majority, however, was distributed through our church’s version of a “Meals on Wheels” program to shut-ins and the elderly.

Strawberries are no longer in season, but in preparation for my upcoming Canning Under Pressure class at the Curious Gourmet I couldn’t help but think back to the times I truly enjoyed spending time in the kitchen with friends, laughing, chatting, cooking and canning. And I truly enjoy surprising people with homemade “happies,” especially the ones made in the kitchen.

Strawberry Jam is very, very easy to make. The acidity in the fruit makes it possible to can in only a hot water bath, and not a pressure canner. Vegetables and produce with low acidity require canning with a pressure cooker to be safe.

Strawberry Jam

5-6 cups crushed strawberries

1/4 cup lemon juice

1 1.75-ounce package fruit pectin

7 cups sugar

Wash and hull strawberries. Crush with a potato masher.

Start water boiling in a large canning pot, rack tucked inside. Boil canning lids in a small pot, then remove with tongs to a clean dish towel.

While water is coming to a boil in your canning pot, place crushed strawberries in another large pot with the lemon juice. Add pectin and bring to a full, rolling boil. Skim off any foam. Some folks add 1/2 teaspoon butter to reduce foaming, but I don’t really see a difference.

As soon as strawberry mixture reaches a boil, add sugar. Return to boil and keep at the full, rolling boil for one minute.

Remove from heat and ladle immediately into clean, sterilized jars. Some folks boil their jars where others turn up the heat in the dishwasher and wash them without any other dishes. The point is these jars are going to contain food products for up to a year and sterilization is the most important step in this whole process! Caution is wise, but if you are not comfortable with the process, then Freezer Jam is for you. (Simply add mixture to Freezer Jam containers, much like Tubberware, and toss in the freezer. Hope you have a Freezer Chest, because Freezer Jam can take up a lot of room.)

Place lids on top, screw on bands, and lower onto rack in your pot of boiling water. Cover and boil 10 minutes. Remove jars and place upright on a cutting board or rack to cool.

You can test the vacuum seal on the top of the lid by pressing in the center. Nothing should move or pop. If the seal is tight, then it’s canned. If not, it goes in the fridge immediately to be consumed first.

Sweet Tea Pie

Although sweet, "suthun" iced tea may be a staple below the Mason-Dixon line, Sweet Tea Pie may be a new recipe for you. I discovered it in Martha Hall Foose's new book Screen Doors and Sweet Tea, Recipes and Tales from a Southern Cook, which I highly recommend. I believe this recipe may be original to Ms Foose since she states on page 203, "This recipe began as my entry in the Crisco State Fair Pie Baking Contest in 1987, the summer I got out of high school. It was one of my first forays into baking. I didn't win, didn't even place.However I did get my picture in the paper and a souvenir apron." Well, I don't know why! It's award-winning at my house.

Sweet Tea Pie

Crust

3 ounces cream cheese, softened
1 sticks unsalted butter, softened
1-1/4 cups unbleached, all-purpose flour

Filling

2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
2 cups sugar
8 large egg yolks
3/4 cup strong steeped orange pekoe tea, cooled (I used Luzianne)
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons unbleached all-purpose flour
1-1/2 teaspoons cornmeal
1/2 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

To make crust: Using an electric mixer, beat cream cheese and butter until combined. Add flour, mix until dough forms a ball. Pat dough into 9-inch pie pan. Chill until ready for use, meanwhile preparing the filling.

To prepare filling: Using an electric mixer, beat butter and sugar on medium til light. Add yolks one at a time, beating on low after each addition. Slowly add the tea, zest and lemon juice. Scrape down bowl. Add flour, cornmeal, salt and mix well. Pour into crust and bake for 50 to 55 minutes until set. Cool completely on a wire rack, and then chill for 2 hours in refrigerator. Yields one 9-inch pie.

When serving, garnish with candied lemon peel, sweetened whip cream and fresh mint.

Candied Lemon Peel Garnish

To candy lemon peel, boil strips of lemon peel in 1/2 cup light corn syrup combined with 1/4 cup sugar and 1 cup water until translucent, about 8-10 minutes. Remove from syrup and rinse in warm water. Toss in granulated sugar and dry on waxed paper.

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Charm of the Carolines is participating in a little Linky Love today. Join the fun!

All the Small Stuff
New Nostalgia
Silly Little Sparrow
Tempt my Tummy
Tea Time Tuesday

A Separate Country

'Hicks's stunning narrative volleys between Hood, Anna Marie and Eli, each offering variety and texture to a story saturated in Southern gallantry and rich American history' - Publishers Weekly

On September 23, Franklin's own Robert Hicks releases his latest novel, A Separate Country. Set in steamy New Orleans, the suspenseful and insightful tale follows the Widow of the South's character, Hicks' first smash novel, Eli Griffin and his relationship with the controversial confederate General John Bell Hood and other characters real and fictional in the last years of Hood's life.

For those of you unfamiliar with General John Bell Hood, Robert E. Lee promoted him to Major General after the Battle of Antietam. But the Civil War would mark him forever. At Gettysburg, he lost the use of his left arm. At the Battle of Chickamauga, his right leg was amputated. Starting fresh after the war, he married Anna Marie Hennen and fathered 11 children with her, including three sets of twins. But fate had other plans. Crippled by his war wounds and defeat, ravaged by financial misfortune, Hood had one last foe to battle: Yellow Fever. A Separate Country is the heartrending story of a decent and good man who struggled with his inability to admit his failures-and the story of those who taught him to love, and to be loved, and transformed him.

Pre-orders of this novel are being received at www.Amazon.com.

Ghosts of Franklin

In her new book, Ghosts of Franklin... Tennessee's Most Haunted Town, Margie Gould Thessin puts pen to paper to document the ghostly spirits haunting Franklin, TN. Margie is one of the principals of the Carnton Ghost Tour and Franklin on Foot, a walking Ghost Tour of historic downtown Franklin.

From Chapter 1, The Original Steel Magnolia, Margie recounts a story about one of Franklin's most beloved watercolor artist, Shelley Snow."It was approaching midnight on a swelteringly hot night in the summer of 1980. Shelley Snow, nationally-award-winning Tennessee oil and watercolor artist, was painting late in her studio at Shuff's Music on 3rd Avenue. She was alone.

Shuff's Music had opened in 1978 in the elegant 19th century Greek Revival house in downtown. Ron Shuff, the owner and an accomplished musician, rented the rooms in the house to music teachers, composers, and musicians of all kinds, and also sold musical instruments, sheet music, and supplies.However in the early days the studio was not fully rented with musicians, and when Shelley asked Ron to rent a room for her painting studio, he agreed.

Shelley was working late one night because she had a commissioned work on a deadline. As she worked later and later, she began to get sleepy. But with the deadline looming, she stayed at it. Finally, her eyelids heavy, she decided to take a nap on the sofa in her studio.

Suddenly, in the fog of sleep, Shelley heard a loud and unexpected sound... Creeeaaak... creeeaaakkkk.

Shelley, now fully awake and listening intently, recognized the sound... the creak of an old rocking chair and somebody rocking it. But there was no rocking chair in Shuff's and no other person in the building when Shelley locked herself in earlier in the evening.

Curious and unafraid, Shelley followed the sound, passing through several rooms, and finally came upon the source. The creaking sound was coming from a room with the door closed. Shelley opened the door. In the room facing the street, gently rocking back and forth in a rocking chair by the window, was the spirit of a very old woman.

"She looked very wrinkly and tired," Shelley remembered, "and was wearing a long white gown and night cap."

The ghostly woman continued to rock, and as she looked at Shelley she spoke, "I used to live in this house."

Shelley left.

Who was the apparition claiming residence of the house on Third Avenue? Simply visit Landmark Booksellers on Main Street for your very own autographed copy. And for more information, visit www.franklinonfoot.com