Author: Debbi Covington

Mardi Gras is often called Fat Tuesday! It’s the last night of eating rich and fatty foods before the ritual fasting of the Lenten season, which begins the next day on Ash Wednesday. This week’s recipes are perfect for a Mardi Gras themed dinner party. You’ll just need to add a green salad, a really special wine and a mask or two. A Mardi Gras mask is an essential item.

Roll out the red carpet! The 11th annual Beaufort International Film Festival will soon be in full swing with filmmakers, directors, screen writers, movie stars and lots of film-loving fans. Food has always been a key ingredient on the big screen. The recipes this week celebrate filmmaker Julie Dash’s critically acclaimed movie, Daughters of the Dust, and feature Gullah-Geechee inspired dishes from our own South Carolina sea islands.

I had the most fun with my column in the last issue! Thank you, Beaufort folks, for emailing, calling and stopping me in the grocery store to reminisce about fatback, streak o’lean and souse meat. More often than not, in these Eastern North Carolina foodie conversations, the one thing I heard over and over again was, “You know what I really miss? Chicken and Dumplings. I never learned how to make them like my grandmother used to.”

When I talk about going home or people from home, I usually mean Wilson, North Carolina. After twenty-five years of living in South Carolina, I’m learning that home folks to me are actually people from up and down the eastern stretch of North Carolina’s highway I-95. People who have a bit of vinegar and pepper in their blood.

I take lots of food photos. Those of you who follow me on Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest, you know that I also post lots of food photos. I cook so many different things that sometimes it’s hard to remember what I’ve tried and liked. It’s fun to scroll back through the photos on my computer and think, “Hey! I forgot about that one. It was delicious. Gotta make it again.”

What a fun time of year to be in the kitchen! I love preparing all of the savory goodies and sweet treats that I grew up with at Christmastime. This is the time of year for sausage balls, cheese straws, baby fruitcakes and yule logs. I’ve been feeling inspired to try some new sweets recipes. With a holiday party at our house on Saturday night, this week was the perfect time to experiment.

Who doesn’t love a green bean casserole made with canned cream of mushroom soup and canned fried onion rings? We all grew up with some version of cream-drowned green beans at Thanksgiving. We love the old recipes because they remind us of family, happy times and traditions.

Steamy summer nights have all of a sudden turned into busy autumn evenings. Where does the time go every day? The sun comes up late and goes down early. I find that I’m spending more time chasing my tail than actually accomplishing my tasks.

Tailgating: Part Two Happy Football Season! This week I’m sharing five more delicious and easy recipes that are great for tailgating. I’ve gotta send a thank you shout out to my dear friend and fabulous photographer, Susan DeLoach, for shooting all of the yummy photos. Enjoy!

Tailgating: Part One ‘Tis the season! It’s once again time to break out the coolers and team banners and head back to college to watch football teams pass, toss and kick a pigskin ball up and down a field of green grass. Some folks that I know actually plan their lives around football season and travel up and down the east coast to attend every game.