Pat Mitchamore

I received this book to review (my cover is different) and I have to admit I expected it to be all recipes using Jack Daniel's as an ingredient. So before it arrived I sent the hubby out shopping... I was pleasantly surprised to find that the book was a mix of recipes; some using the whiskey, others without. My biggest surprise was that this was not a new cookbook but rather a reprint from 1988 of a 1950 book. What made me look at the dates where the recipes. They are, as the book says, pulled from Southern family traditions and some of them have not worn well. Others are still classic and will always be. I will never cook possum - although that reference was a joking one. The book is full of photos rich in the history of the Jack Daniel's distillery and the Tennessee Smokey Mountains area. They were a hoot to look through and made the book fun to browse. The various tales that were told in each chapter added local color and were interesting.

The bulk of the recipes for entrees and sides are laden with butter, cream and bacon. Now I have nothing against butter, cream and bacon but you can't eat that way too often or you won't be here long enough to enjoy all that butter, cream and bacon! A clever cook can modify them to suit today's lighter tastes. The appetizers are staples of 60ies cocktail parties and with the current fascination for "Mad Men" would make a good resource for a throwback party. One dessert is going to show up in my holiday plans and that is the Jack Daniel's Chocolate Chip Pecan Pie. Old Fashioned, yes. Classic, yes. But I'll bet it's going to be good.

There are a number of barbeque sauces in the book. This is a Southern Cookbook after all. When summer rolls around I am sure I will break out that bottle my husband bought and try a few. He doesn't drink but wine and beer so I know I will have it on hand for a bit of experimentation.… (mais)