Ham Biscuits, Hostess Gowns, and Other Southern Specialties: An Entertaining Life (with Recipes)

Julia Reed spends a lot of time thinking about ham biscuits.  And cornbread and casseroles and the surprisingly modern ease of donning a hostess gown for one?s own party. In Ham Biscuits, Hostess Gowns and Other Southern Specialties Julia Reed collects her thoughts on good cooking and the lessons of gracious entertaining that pass from one woman to another, and takes the reader on a lively and very personal tour of the culinary?and social?South. In essays on everything from pork chops to the perfect picnic Julia Reed revels in the simple good qualities that make the Southern table the best possible place to pull up a chair. She expounds on: the Southerner?s relentless penchant for using gelatin; why most things taste better with homemade mayonnaise; the necessity of a holiday milk punch (and, possibly, a Santa hat); how best to ?cook for compliments? (at least one squash casserole and Lee Bailey?s barbequed veal are key). She provides recipes for some of the region?s best-loved dishes (cheese straws, red velvet cake, breakfast shrimp), along with her own variations on the classics, including Fried Oysters Rockefeller Salad and Creole Crab Soup. She also elaborates on worthwhile information every hostess would do well to learn: the icebreaking qualities of a Ramos gin fizz and a hot crabmeat canapé, for example; the ?wow factor? intrinsic in a platter of devilled eggs or a giant silver punchbowl filled with scoops of homemade ice cream. There is guidance on everything from the best possible way to ?eat? your luck on New Year?s Day to composing a menu in honor of someone you love. Grace and hilarity under gastronomic pressure suffuse these essays, along with remembrances of her gastronomic heroes including Richard Olney, Mary Cantwell, and M.F.K. Fisher. Ham Biscuits, Hostess Gowns and Other Southern Specialties is another great book about the South from Julia Reed, a writer who makes her experiences in?and out of?the kitchen a joy to read.

I loved this book and was sad when I finished it! (1 of 1 Found this Helpful)   August 18, 2008
This is a really gorgeous book. Julia has written a beautiful food memoir filled with delightful anecdotes about her family and the things they liked to cook and eat. Anyone who loves food and cooking will adore it. You'll probably want to be her friend too because she is surrounded by funny and generous cooks! I'm in Australia and a lot of the Southern food is very removed from what I'd cook or eat (all that gelatine!!) but it's fab all the same.

A Taste of the South   August 12, 2008
Julia Reed's breezy writing style and obvious love for her subject matter take this collection of essays and recipes from just interesting to fascinating. I love this book and am systematically working my way through the recipes as well. I am not from the south,but her first collection of essays gave me a much better understanding of this region, and this one increased my interest. This is a great essay collection from a great writer.

Tasty Tidbits (8 of 8 Found this Helpful)   July 17, 2008
Greenville, Mississippi, native and former Manhattanite Julia Reed (now of New Orleans) compiled a collection of essays on Southern food and hospitality that are as amusing as they are informative. Recipes of classic Southern dishes supplement the book. Unfortunately there is no index. And sadly there are no illustrations or photographs. But the author manages to successfully describe colorful scenes with mouth-watering results. This book would be appreciated by fine Southern cooks and a great gift for those who aspire to be.

LOVE this book!!! (10 of 10 Found this Helpful)   July 14, 2008
Ham Biscuits, Hostess Gowns, and Other Southern Specialties: An Entertaining Life (with Recipes)

What a charming, lovely, and fun book! I received it yesterday, and devoured 100 pages the first night! The author has a wonderfully descripitive, humorous voice. The book is made up of short essays that include eveything from personal backround, to culinary history, to cocktail party how-to's, to lively charatcter descriptions. Each essay is then followed by a few delightful, often historical, recipes. I wish I could meet some of the eccentric characters from the author's childhood...hostess gowns, toast points, and fancy cigarette holders! This true-blue Bostonian highly recommends this charming book! Love it!!!