Perre Coleman Magness

No thank you ma'am.

I asked for this book because I wanted to know what snacks beyond boiled peanuts and crayfish bites are "southern" snacks. Ms Magness, who grew up in Memphis, has made a particular study of Junior League and church recipe books from around the region. To collect these books she has travelled and eaten her way across Tennessee, Kentucky, and the Delta. She presents her reminiscences of growing up with southern snacks, her travel experiences, and her versions of the classic recipes in this small cookbook.

I don't think her effort is a success. Some of the recipes are recipes from 1950s packaged foods and are not southern in any way. The "Field Pea Hummus" is essentially the instructions off a package of dried white beans that I have in my recipe folder. The selection of recipes and order of presentation is not particularly creative. The prose can be awkward and ungrammatical.

A small handful of interesting recipes does not make up for many pages of ordinary stuff that is similar to ideas found anywhere online.

I am looking at an ARC and so I can't be sure how the final version will turn out, but the photos in front of me are not very appealing, with poor contrast and no vibrancy. Some of the dips look gray, which is not good. There are lots of photos at the beginning (dips and spreads and too many corn chips) but by the time you get to the seafood and meats chapters the photos are few and far between. There is no accompanying photo of "tamales" which are a version of Swedish meatballs that have nothing to do with real tamales (just as the "mangoes" where I come from have no relation to real mangoes).

I don't think this book will satisfy any cravings for snacks or for southern food.

I received a review copy of "Southern Snacks: 77 Recipes for Small Bites with Big Flavors" by Perre Coleman Magness (University of North Carolina Press) through NetGalley.com.… (más)