If you mention fried green tomatoes outside of the South, usually people will think you mean the movie but it is actually one of those truly southern foods that people just do not make often enough. It used to be that many families fried these bad boys up back in the day, growing their own tomatoes they were easy for those families to come by. Now, green tomatoes are pricey and served in the most fancy of restaurants. They are not available all year here where I live so when I see some, I snag them up quickly.

I must admit...this holiday shopping is going to be hard. Not because I do not know what the guys in my life like, but because it is getting harder and harder to choose gifts that not only that they will like or love but will show just how much they mean to me.

As for my two boys, ages 12 and soon to be 15, they are easy. Every gift for them will be something that makes them happy, have fun, educates them and inspires them.

I do have a few men in my life who are single and mean the world to me. They are  foodies like me and one loves to think that he is a gourmet chef. Although that is what he may think he is, he still needs a bit of assistance every now and then. That, on top of the fact that he works a hard nine to five, dinner as a single is more than shouting your order through the local drive through.

Imagine my excitement when I saw this.

Peep The Mantry.

So you mean to tell me, I can help out my single, handsome (totally single), foodie man friend with a gift of foodness?  Boxes include snacks and tons of stuffs your man friend may not buy for himself. Prices are amazing and yep, who doesn't love getting a gift of yums?



Encourage your man friend, brother, uncle, dad, friend, cousin to step up his culinary skills and tastebuds with treats that will definitely influence him and make him happy. Did I mention they also have recipes? Double win.  Did I also mention that Mantry partners with City Harvest to donate 1% of sales? Triple win.

Nothing says fall quite like hearty soups, stews, chili and of course, chicken and dumplings.

With the orange and golden leaves blanketing the ground, we are slowly welcoming cooler weather here in the South. I can't say that it has been cold, but we have been enjoying a slightly less sticky and warm day with a slightly cooler night.

When the weather starts changing, I live for soups and hearty meals that will warm the kids and fill them up.

Despite it not being as cool as I wanted it to be, last night we enjoyed a great dinner of Chicken and dumplings. Usually I always pair it with cornbread but we switched it up to a nice thick french loaf for dipping into the creamy soup.

You can find the recipe for how I make my chicken and dumplings here. The only thing I did differently was add half a stick of butter into the soup once it was done cooking for a little fatty goodness.  Super easy, super tasty and does not take long at all. The hardest part....cleaning up the flour you got everywhere.

Here in the South during the holidays there are certain desserts that you just know will be at almost every family dinner. One of them is the must have, pecan pie.

Pecan trees are a'plenty here and while some make their way through heavily leaved yards and gather them, most of us resort to the grocery store for a bag or two of super expensive pecans already de-shelled.