Apple-Tarragon Chicken Salad
When I look back on my girlhood, I don't remember dances or old beaus-- I think about chicken salad. An itty bitty chicken salad sandwich could make me swoon. And each offering was different. Successful recipes were guarded, and if you managed to get a copy, you really couldn't trust it. My mother had been deceived many times, puzzling over the handwritten instructions. After many experiments, she eventually came up with a salad that met her approval.
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From my cookbook, Consuming Passions

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I come from a wild tribe of Southern storytellers and cooks. In our family, Tabasco is a cure-all and gumbo is mandatory on holidays. Feuds have ignited over the proper way to make cornbread--white vs. yellow meal. I like Celtic music, bird watching, split-cedar houses, the Smoky Mountains, Appalachian culture, food history, and buying seasonal produce at roadside stands. I have a B.S. in Nursing, but I kept going back to my first love: writing. Since 1990, I've written 10 books for 4 publishers, including a cookbook/food memoir; two urban fantasies were written under a pen name, Piper Maitland . I've been blogging since 2008. Rattlebridge Farm gave me the opportunity to play in the kitchen--and in my weedy backyard.

Though results in my kitchen can be iffy, cooking will always be my passion. In 2016, I completed a Master Gardening class, and I'm building a butterfly garden. Catch up with my cooking, gardening, and home adventures on Facebook, Twitter, Google +, Pinterest, and Instagram. Love meeting fellow cooks and gardeners!
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Grilled Dessert Pizza

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