If I threw a big party for everyone who helped me with this book, it would be an epic celebration that combines every holiday I’ve written about.
First, I’d like to thank Jill Warren Lucas and Wayne Hill for their help in testing some of the recipes.
For assisting me with historical questions on holidays in the South, I’m grateful to Adrian Miller, Michael W. Twitty, and Jo Ann Williford. The Southern Food and Beverage Museum in New Orleans provided information and some great cocktail recipes. Oral histories compiled by the Southern Foodways Alliance were also a valuable resource.
Organizers of the Blessing of the Fleet celebration in Bayou La Batre, Alabama; the Greek Festival in Raleigh, North Carolina; and the Shalom Y’all Jewish Food Festival in Savannah, Georgia, were generous with their time and recipe information. Judy Walker was an excellent guide to St. Joseph’s Day altars in New Orleans. (She’s pretty good at catching cabbages tossed from St. Patrick’s Day parade floats, too.)
Kind permission to include their recipes came from Stephanie L. Tyson, author of Well, Shut My Mouth! The Sweet Potatoes Restaurant Cookbook, published by John F. Blair; Adrian Miller, author of Soul Food: The Surprising Story of an American Cuisine One Plate at a Time, published by the University of North Carolina Press; and Elizabeth Wiegand, author of The Outer Banks Cookbook: Recipes and Traditions from North Carolina’s Barrier Islands, published by Globe Pequot Press. (See you at the next Tar Heels basketball game, Beth.)
Because I’ve always depended on the patience of others who must listen to my nattering on about recipes, I’m grateful to Kathleen Purvis, Andrea Weigl, and my fellow members of the Association of Food Journalists.
I appreciate the friends and family who were willing to eat experimental recipes and offer informed opinions. They know that just saying “I like this” isn’t good enough!
Working with the fantastic staff of the University of North Carolina Press on my second Savor the South book has been a wonderful experience. And there couldn’t be a more capable and fun editor than Elaine Maisner. I feel honored to be part of the Savor the South series.