Category: life
All Kinds of Goodness at Ashley Mac’s
Lots of people want to make a living doing what they love. Ashley McMakin made that dream a reality with her Ashley Mac’s cafés, catering and gourmet-to-go business. It all started with her hobby of cooking for those she loves. McMakin grew up in a large, food-loving family, and she learned to cook alongside her [...]
Charleston Charm
I took a quick trip to Charleston, South Carolina a few weeks ago—so quick, in fact, that I was very limited in what I could do. So it was two days of food and drinks and then some solitude in my very favorite place. I usually spend some time shopping on King Street. I also [...]
Celebrating an Unsung Hero of Birmingham’s Food Scene
I had the absolute honor of helping out with Alabama NewsCenter's awesome coverage of food-related stories to celebrate Black History Month and the contributions of African-American cooks and chefs to our state's rich food scene (current and past). One of my favorite pieces was about Juliette Flenoury, a name we all should know. My editor [...]
Summer Edit Part 3: Beauty and the Beach
I have a couple of friends with whom I routinely share beauty tips and news about clever, effective products. It's funny, really. These women are highly successful professionals, truly amazing at what they do and I know them mainly in a business sort of way. But when one of us finds something good to slather, dab [...]
Summer Edit Part 2: More Food and Drink and Life
St. George Island never disappoints. Even on a cloudy day, and those have been few, it's my favorite place to be. Life is here simple: hours and hours of reading books on the beach under a huge umbrella. We listen to Oyster Radio (100.5 WOYS) and don't turn on the television. I've had oyster dates with [...]
Odette is Destination Dining in Florence
For nearly five years, Odette owner Celeste Pillow and executive chef Josh Quick and their team have helped downtown Florence, Alabama flourish--one delicious dish at a time. The casual, upscale restaurant is one of a growing number of locally owned, small businesses drawing people back to this exciting town’s downtown. Read more about Odette here [...]
44 Hours (approximately) in Asheville, NC
I love sharing Birmingham with friends. I love just as much when friends share their own special places with me--opening my eyes to something I don't see every day. My husband, Rick, and I recently spent about 44 hours in Asheville, North Carolina, with our friends April and Sid and Bob and Tondee. April was [...]
Come to the Table
When women help other women succeed, good things happen. Tasty things do, too. This year, $10,000 in scholarships and awards from a group of women leaders in our food community will help four college students pursue their food-science studies, three high schools better serve their culinary-arts students, Jones Valley Teaching Farm connect with more kids, [...]
Edible Art: Geode and Agate Cookies
Sugar cookies + artists = some delicious awesomeness. On a recent rainy afternoon, my daughters and I made geode and agate cookies, and we had an absolute blast. We used a simple sugar cookie recipe from PureWow (I'll include it below), Alton Brown's royal icing (recipe below), some clear rock candy (which I bought at [...]
The Summer Edit: Books, Food, Drinks and Fun
Summer's here. And I couldn't be happier. Well, maybe I could. I most definitely could if I were at St. George Island. With a good book in one hand, a fun drink in the other and my family nearby. To celebrate the season, I'm going to put together my own summer edit with books, drinks, [...]