Syndetics cover image
Image from Syndetics

Praisesong for the kitchen ghosts : stories and recipes from five generations of Black country cooks / Crystal Wilkinson ; photographs by Kelly Marshall.

By: Contributor(s): Material type: TextTextPublisher: New York : Clarkson Potter/Publishers, [2024]Edition: First editionDescription: x, 243 pages : illustrations (chiefly color) ; 24 cmContent type:
  • text
Media type:
  • unmediated
Carrier type:
  • volume
ISBN:
  • 9780593236512
  • 0593236513
Other title:
  • Praise song for the kitchen ghosts
Subject(s): Genre/Form:
Contents:
Tasting Indian Creek. Granny Christine's jam cake ; A mess o' meatless greens -- How I Learned to Cook. Hot milk cake ; Chicken and dumplings -- Out in the Wild. Wild greens : Woods to table ; Sautéed fiddleheads -- The Incredible, Indelible Egg. Cheese pie ; Dressed eggs -- The Basket Meeting. Pine Lick mutton leg and gravy ; Basket Meeting green beans and new potatoes ; Caramel cake -- Searching for the Ancestral Garden. Hearty sandwich bread ; Creamy tomato soup -- Birthdays Must Be Celebrated. Pimento cheese with a kick ; Classic Benedictine (Cucumber spread) ; Chicken salad with curry ; Angel food cake -- Blackberries, Blackberries. Wild berry lemonade ; Blackberry jam ; Biscuits with blackberry soup ; Grandmother's blackberry cobbler ; Quick blackberry cobbler -- What These Women Know About Bread. Patsy Riffe's hoecakes ; Praisesong biscuits ; Indian Creek skillet cornbread -- The King of Sorghum. Gingerbread and sauce ; The Dark Crystal latte ; Sweet sorghum cookies -- Soul Food of the Mountains. Garlicky white soup beans ; Hearty vegetable soup with hamburger ; Indian Creek chili ; Chicken and noodles -- Hog Wild About Pork. Ron's pulled pork -- Merry Christmas, Christine. Easy old-fashioned popcorn balls ; No-egg scrambled eggs ; Fried plantains ; Broccoli, sage sausage, and cheese quiche -- Giving Thanks: Past, Present, Future. Turkey hash ; Corn pudding.
Summary: "A lyrical culinary journey that explores the hidden stories of Black Appalachians through powerful essays and forty comforting recipes from the Poet Laureate of Kentucky. Years ago, when O. Henry Prize-winning writer Crystal Wilkinson was baking a jam cake, she felt her late grandmother's presence. She soon realized that she was not the only cook in her kitchen. There were an abundance of ancestors stirring, measuring, and braising with her. These are her kitchen ghosts, five generations of Black women who arrived in her region of Appalachia and made a life, a legacy, and a cuisine. Part food memoir, part cookbook, 'Praisesong for the Kitchen Ghosts' weaves fiction with historical records, memories, and interviews to present a unique culinary portrait of Black Appalachians. Forty recipes rooted deep in the past yet full of contemporary flavor are brought to vivid life through stunning photography and beautiful illustrations. You'll find delicious favorites such as Corn Pudding, Chicken and Dumplings, Jam Cake, and Praisesong Biscuits woven into the narrative of Crystal's family, portraying the experience and history of Black Appalachians through their voice, spirit, and foodways. As the keeper of her family's stories and treasured dishes, Crystal shares her inheritance in 'Praisesong for the Kitchen Ghosts'. She found these stories woven into her apron pockets, floating inside the steam of hot mustard greens, and tucked into the sweet scent of clove and cinnamon in her kitchen. Crystal conjures up her ancestors every time she cooks, honoring the mothers who came before her, the land that housed generations of her family, and the untold heritage of Black Appalachia"-- Provided by publisher.
Holdings
Item type Home library Collection Shelving location Call number Materials specified Status Date due Barcode Item holds
Adult Book Adult Book Dr. James Carlson Library NonFiction New 641.5975 W686 Available 33111011118920
Adult Book Adult Book Main Library NonFiction New 641.5975 W686 Available 33111011324247
Adult Book Adult Book Northport Library NonFiction New 641.5975 W686 Available 33111011153349
Total holds: 0

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

NATIONAL BESTSELLER . A lyrical culinary journey that explores the hidden legacy of Black Appalachians, throughpowerful storytelling alongside nearly forty comforting recipes, from the former poetlaureate of Kentucky.

"With Praisesong for the Kitchen Ghosts , Crystal Wilkinson cements herself as one ofthemost dynamic book makers in our generation and a literary giant. Utter genius tastes like this."-Kiese Laymon, author of the Carnegie Medal-winning Heavy

People are always surprised that Black people reside in the hills of Appalachia. Those not surprised that we were there, are surprised that we stayed.

Years ago, when O. Henry Prize-winning writer Crystal Wilkinson was baking a jam cake, shefelt her late grandmother's presence. She soon realized that she was not the only cook in herkitchen; there were her ancestors, too, stirring, measuring, and braising alongside her. These areher kitchen ghosts, five generations of Black women who settled in Appalachia and made a life,a legacy, and a cuisine.

An expert cook, Wilkinson shares nearly forty family recipes rooted deep in the past, full offlavor-delicious favorites including Corn Pudding, Chicken and Dumplings, GrannyChristine's Jam Cake, and Praisesong Biscuits , brought to vivid life through stunningphotography. Together, Praisesong for the Kitchen Ghosts honors the mothers who came before,the land that provided for generations of her family, and the untold heritage of Black Appalachia.

As the keeper of her family's stories and treasured dishes,Wilkinson shares her inheritance in Praisesong for the Kitchen Ghosts. She found their stories in her apron pockets, floating inside the steam of hot mustard greens and tucked into the sweet scent of clove and cinnamon in her kitchen. Part memoir, part cookbook, Praisesong for the Kitchen Ghosts weaves those stories together with recipes, family photos, and a lyrical imagination to present a culinary portrait of a family that has lived and worked the earth of the mountains for over a century.

Includes index.

"A lyrical culinary journey that explores the hidden stories of Black Appalachians through powerful essays and forty comforting recipes from the Poet Laureate of Kentucky. Years ago, when O. Henry Prize-winning writer Crystal Wilkinson was baking a jam cake, she felt her late grandmother's presence. She soon realized that she was not the only cook in her kitchen. There were an abundance of ancestors stirring, measuring, and braising with her. These are her kitchen ghosts, five generations of Black women who arrived in her region of Appalachia and made a life, a legacy, and a cuisine. Part food memoir, part cookbook, 'Praisesong for the Kitchen Ghosts' weaves fiction with historical records, memories, and interviews to present a unique culinary portrait of Black Appalachians. Forty recipes rooted deep in the past yet full of contemporary flavor are brought to vivid life through stunning photography and beautiful illustrations. You'll find delicious favorites such as Corn Pudding, Chicken and Dumplings, Jam Cake, and Praisesong Biscuits woven into the narrative of Crystal's family, portraying the experience and history of Black Appalachians through their voice, spirit, and foodways. As the keeper of her family's stories and treasured dishes, Crystal shares her inheritance in 'Praisesong for the Kitchen Ghosts'. She found these stories woven into her apron pockets, floating inside the steam of hot mustard greens, and tucked into the sweet scent of clove and cinnamon in her kitchen. Crystal conjures up her ancestors every time she cooks, honoring the mothers who came before her, the land that housed generations of her family, and the untold heritage of Black Appalachia"-- Provided by publisher.

Tasting Indian Creek. Granny Christine's jam cake ; A mess o' meatless greens -- How I Learned to Cook. Hot milk cake ; Chicken and dumplings -- Out in the Wild. Wild greens : Woods to table ; Sautéed fiddleheads -- The Incredible, Indelible Egg. Cheese pie ; Dressed eggs -- The Basket Meeting. Pine Lick mutton leg and gravy ; Basket Meeting green beans and new potatoes ; Caramel cake -- Searching for the Ancestral Garden. Hearty sandwich bread ; Creamy tomato soup -- Birthdays Must Be Celebrated. Pimento cheese with a kick ; Classic Benedictine (Cucumber spread) ; Chicken salad with curry ; Angel food cake -- Blackberries, Blackberries. Wild berry lemonade ; Blackberry jam ; Biscuits with blackberry soup ; Grandmother's blackberry cobbler ; Quick blackberry cobbler -- What These Women Know About Bread. Patsy Riffe's hoecakes ; Praisesong biscuits ; Indian Creek skillet cornbread -- The King of Sorghum. Gingerbread and sauce ; The Dark Crystal latte ; Sweet sorghum cookies -- Soul Food of the Mountains. Garlicky white soup beans ; Hearty vegetable soup with hamburger ; Indian Creek chili ; Chicken and noodles -- Hog Wild About Pork. Ron's pulled pork -- Merry Christmas, Christine. Easy old-fashioned popcorn balls ; No-egg scrambled eggs ; Fried plantains ; Broccoli, sage sausage, and cheese quiche -- Giving Thanks: Past, Present, Future. Turkey hash ; Corn pudding.

Powered by Koha