It looks like this is the week for cookbook reviews!! This is another one with a giveaway, so make sure you check out the details at the bottom of the post!!
I have to admit that before reviewing this cookbook, I didn’t know who Johnnie Gabriel was. But come to find out – this lady really knows her food! Not only is she a restaurateur in Georgia and a cookbook author, but she’s also Paula Deen’s cousin. I have really been falling in love with Southern cooking from all of these Southern cookbooks! This cookbook has a lot of recipes bookmarked in it – especially from the dessert section!
Number of Photos: lots
Not a photo for every recipe, but probably one for every 3-4 recipes. And while there are a few “lifestyle” photos throughout the book, the majority of them are of the finished recipes.
Difficulty Level of Recipes: easy
These are the kinds of recipes that have probably been passed down by grandmothers – and I think that grandmothers knew how to keep things simple!
Availability of Ingredients: easy
I was happy to find that there are quite a few recipes in this book that can be made from staples that I keep on hand!
Here’s what I made:
Technically, these were supposed to be made in foil cupcake liners, but I didn’t have any on hand, so I just made them in a muffin tin. These little frozen salads were actually quite good! I think they are a great change up to a traditional fruit salad, and I’m sure the kids would love this as a side dish! (And it’s a bonus that they are good for you – just yogurt, sour cream and fruit!)
Maple Garlic-Glazed Green Beans
This was a simple side dish that was packed with flavor. I loved the sweet from the maple syrup – it was a great way to switch up green beans.
I was taking dinner to my sister and her family after she had her baby, and I couldn’t decide what to make. After seeing this recipe, I thought it would be a great dish to take. Not only is it a comforting dish, but I was hoping it would be something her kids would love! Luckily, I made 2 of them so that we got to enjoy one at home. If you are a quiche fan, you would love this savory pie.
Ok, so this recipe was actually for a cake, but this was the dessert I was taking to my sister along with the Ham and Cheese Pie. I knew she wouldn’t really want a full layer cake, (plus it’s always embarrassing to take a cake minus one piece – the life of a food blogger!) So I decided to turn it into cupcakes. I know that not all cake recipes translate well into cupcakes, and this isn’t one that I’d suggest making cupcakes out of. They did sink a bit in the middle, but even with the sinking, these cupcakes were easily the winner of our favorite recipe from this book. I can only imagine how amazing this would be as a cake! They were super moist and had a delightful texture. In the book, they suggest serving the cake with your favorite buttercream or cream cheese icing – I opted for cream cheese. Delicious! (And I’ll definitely be trying the cake version of this one day!)
Vanilla Caramel Cake
from Second Helpings
2 1/4 cups firmly packed brown sugar
1 cup butter, at room temperature
1 tablespoon vanilla bean paste (I substituted vanilla extract)
3 eggs
1 teaspoon baking soda
3 cups cake flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/4 cup sour cream
Preheat the oven to 350F. Grease and flour 3 9-inch round cake pans.
In a medium bowl, using an electric mixer, cream the brown sugar, butter and vanilla bean paste. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition.
Sift the baking soda, cake flour and baking powder. Add to the creamed mixture and mix just until incorporated. Add the buttermilk, mixing on low speed. Scrape down, but don’t overmix.
Fold in the sour cream and divide among the prepared pans. Bake fro 25 to 30 minutes. The center of the cake will spring back when tapped. Frost with your favorite buttercream or cream cheese frosting.
Disclosure: I received a free copy for this review. The publisher is also providing the copies that are being given away. No monetary compensation was offered or accepted. The opinions above are my own. Others experience may vary.
Leslie says
I follow you on twitter!
Leslie says
I love Chicken and Dumplins’ made entirely from scratch! Yumm!! Thanks
grace says
peas and dumplins. or, if you ask me again in a couple of minutes, nanner pudding. a few hours ago, it was biscuits with apple butter. 🙂
Rebekah says
That cake sounds delicious!
I think my favourite southern dish is my great grandma’s banana pudding. Yum!
Kelly S. says
I love chicken and dumplings. This book looks great!
Kelly S. says
I follow via rss feed
Jenn@eatcakefordinner says
I have her first cookbook and I love it. I would love to have her 2nd one to complete my collection! My favorite southern dish would have to be homemade macaroni and cheese!
Holly (2 Kids and Tired) says
I like the Facebook page.
je2kids(at)gmail(dot)com
Holly (2 Kids and Tired) says
I follow via google reader.
je2kids(at)gmail(dot)com
Holly (2 Kids and Tired) says
Sausage biscuits and gravy. Always.
This cookbook looks great. I’d love to win!
je2kids(at)gmail(dot)com
camie says
I love Monte Cristo sandwiches!
jenny says
BBQ shrimp (emeril’s recipe is the best)- or cornbread with honey butter- it’s a toss-up!
Kirstin says
I subscribed to your blog
Kirstin says
I shared on FB
Kirstin says
I liked you on FB
Kirstin says
Hmmmm my fave southern dish I guess would be fried chicken (is that southern)..I also love grits…
Jeanbugs says
Nothing in the world beats fried chicken and REAL mac ‘n cheese!!! (okay, maybe chocolate…or red velvet cake!)
Nicole says
Oh, and I follow Taste and Tell on my RSS feed 🙂
Nicole says
…..and now I follow Taste and Tell on twitter!
Nicole says
…and now I follow Taste and Tell on facebook! 🙂
Nicole says
I love fried chicken…and mac and cheese….and buttermilk biscuits….and sweet tea. Well, really I love it all 🙂 Hope I win!
Krista says
I’ve never been to the South- so I’m not exactly sure what classifies as Southern food aside from grits. Does fried chicken count!?
LISA says
I follow you on RSS feed as well.
LISA says
Too hard to narrow it down to one item. But BBQ chicken,ribs & corn bread are up there on the top.
Holly H. says
Biscuits and gravy! But fried chicken runs a close second.
Heather Spooner says
My favorite southern meal is low country boil.
Kim in NashVegas says
Pinto beans, turnip greens and cornbread! YUM
Janell says
I always think of fried chicken when I think of Southern food. But that ham and cheese pie was deeeelicious! (As were the cupcakes and fruit salad :)!!)
Kelly Perry says
gotta be a tie between an eastern NC pork bbq sandwich with cole slaw and my grandmother’s chicken and dumplings!
Meredyth H says
My favorite southern dish is shrimp and grits – mmmmmm, yummy!
Desi says
Please disregard my last comment – the wrong email address was entered for it –
I love cornbread and hushpuppies! Pretty much anything Southern!
Desi says
I love cornbread or hushpuppies! Pretty much anything Southern!
Maria says
Ooh! Caramel is the best.
GIVE ME BOOK PLZ.
Taylor says
Also I follow T&T on facebook 🙂
Taylor says
My favorite southern dish is fried chicken! I don’t have it very often but oh man it’s GOOD!
Danielle says
I follow you with Google reader.
Danielle says
So far so good because all of the recipes you posted sound great! One of my favorite Southern foods is buttermilk biscuits! Yum.
megan campbell says
MY favorite southern dish is garlic cheese grits!
meggs♥
urbakinmecrazyy@aol.com
Liz says
I just tweeted about the giveaway here http://twitter.com/#!/AfterDinnerDgns/status/76634050558820353
lanzaelizabeth77 at gmail dot com
http://www.fresh-plate.blogspot.com
Liz says
I follow you on twitter (afterdinnerdsgns)
lanzaelizabeth77 at gmail dot com
http://www.fresh-plate.blogspot.com
Liz says
I am a facebook follower
lanzaelizabeth77 at gmail dot com
http://www.fresh-plate.blogspot.com
Liz says
My favorite southern food is brunswick stew, followed closely by collard greens and cornbread….but only my nana’s recipe!
~Liz
http://www.fresh-plate.blogspot.com
lanzaelizabeth77 at gmail dot com
jerusalem says
i also follow you on Facebook now!
jerusalem says
My favorite southern food is cheesy grits cassarole. It is so yummy. I also love okra.
Skinny Fat Kid says
I’m a New Yorker and just got back from Charleston, SC. One thing that we had at nearly every meal was fried green tomatoes! One of those things that taste good no matter how you make them and its fun to try all the different ways! Some had pimento cheese, some had tasso ham, crab, remoulade, loved them all!
Joanne says
This looks like such an awesome cookbook! I love everything you made from it!
My favorite southern dish has to be red velvet cake. Hands down.
teresa says
great review! i love me some southern mac and cheese!
Julie says
I follow you on Facebook & Twitter. And I’m going with fried chicken!
brandy says
Chicken and Dumplins or Delta Tamales
Courtney P. says
I grew up in Northern MN, about as far away from southern food as you can get. However, my sister-in-law, who I adore, was raised in South Carolina, and brought some of her southern recipes our way. Her sweet potatoes can bring a tear to your eye. They are out of this world good. She’s offered me the recipe, but I really don’t want it. I think if I were to see the amount of butter and cream involved I’d have a hard time loving them with the intensity that I do. Some things are better left unknown.
Wendy says
Fried chicken! This looks like a great cookbook!
Wendy says
I follow your RSS feed.
Wendy says
Red Beans and Rice!
Emily says
I follow via RSS feed.
Emily says
I love chicken and dumplings.
MICHELLE says
My favorite southern recipes would be candied sweet potatoes!
Chris M. says
Ribs all the way. Thanks for the giveaway.
Tasha says
My favorites would be biscuits with sausage gravy and cheesy grits. Not that I indulge very often, but it just makes them more delicious when I do!
Theresa S. says
I believe I follow the blog on RSS feed, b/c it shows up in my Google Reader. 🙂
Theresa S. says
I follow on facebook!
Theresa S. says
Sweet potato pie! YUM! 🙂
Heather of Kitchen Concoctions says
I follow on twitter!
Heather of Kitchen Concoctions says
I am a Facebook fan!
Heather of Kitchen Concoctions says
My family is from Louisiana so I grew up eating garlic cheese grits, cornbread, and chicken and dumplings!
Megan says
Mmm…so many to choose from. I think I just love a good cornbread. Simplicity for me! 🙂
Nicki says
I LOVE biscuits and gravy… or just any good biscuit, really.
Sarah C says
I follow you on Twitter!
Sarah C says
I follow you on Facebook!
Sarah C says
Definitely chicken and dumplings. That was the meal I requested at every birthday for about 5 years!
Linda H says
Chicken and noodles… My mom made the best!
Katrina says
This looks great! I like chicken and dumplings 🙂
Double Dipped Life says
I follow you on FB! (Krista L.)
Double Dipped Life says
I love ribs and fried chicken! Yum! Thanks for the great giveaway!
Debbie Broussard says
Boiled Crawfish!
Debbie
Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Tammy says
I absolutely love southern cooking. My favorite dish of all times is barbecued spare ribs. When you have then, you absolutely have to have boiled potatoes, turnips (the greens and the roots, cooked in the broth from the ribs and chopped up together) and deviled eggs. This is what my mom used to cook for my birthday every year!! It is delish!!!
Val from PA says
I live in the Philly suburbs now but my heart, and my taste buds!, are still firmly planted down in Alabama where I’m from originally… Nothing stirs the soul but some good ol’ Southern cooking for me… Some of my all times favorites that my MawMaw still makes today are fried okra, okra and tomatoes, poppy seed chicken casserole, pimiento cheese sandwiches, and best of all, peach cobbler… Hers is just out of this world!!! This cookbook looks great – it’s really nice to see what other families in the South cook – I love Paula Deen so I’m sure I would love any cousin of hers!! Such nice people, those Deens!
Lindsay K says
My grandmother’s Chicken and Dumplings. Yum!
Debbie Broussard says
Boiled crawfish!
Debbie Broussard
Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Melissa Tooher says
My favorite southern dish would have to be some classic fried chicken, collard greens and a big glass of sweet tea!