October 2022 Cullman by Alabama Living

Judging from the number of recipes we received for sweet potato dishes, this nutritional vegetable might be our readers’ favorite!

Those cotton fields

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Gulf Coast Zoo

Co-op Editor Lindsey Dossey

& EDITORIAL OFFICES:

ALABAMA RURAL ELECTRIC ASSOCIATION AREA President Karl Rayborn Editor Lenore Vickrey Managing Editor Allison Law Creative Director Mark Stephenson Art Director Danny Weston Advertising Director Jacob Johnson Graphic Designer/Production Coordinator Brooke Echols

ALABAMA LIVING is delivered to some 420,000 Alabama families and businesses, which are members of 22 not-for-profit, consumer-owned, locally directed and taxpaying electric cooperatives. Subscriptions are $12 a year for individuals not subscribing through participating Alabama electric cooperatives. Alabama Living (USPS 029-920) is published monthly by the Alabama Rural Electric Association of Cooperatives. Periodicals postage paid at Montgomery, Alabama, and at additional mailing office.

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Manager Tim Culpepper

Sweet potatoes

Alabama’s cotton fields are the perfect setting for some seasonal photos!

3422 VOL. 75 NO. 10 OCTOBER 2022 DEPARTMENTS 11 Spotlight 29 Around Alabama 32 Outdoors 33 Fish & Game Forecast 34 Cook of the Month 42 Hardy Jackson’s Alabama ONLINE: alabamaliving.coop 18 OCTOBER 2022 3 WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU! ONLINE: www.alabamaliving.coop EMAIL: letters@alabamaliving.coop MAIL: Alabama Living 340 Technacenter Drive Montgomery, AL 36117

POSTMASTER send forms 3579 to: Alabama Living, P.O. Box 244014 Montgomery, Alabama 36124-4014.

Worth the Drive

FEATURES

Betty Veal, standing, looks through family recipes with her daughter, Jessica Hendricks, and granddaughter, McKinley Hendricks. Jessica’s husband, Justin, is a lineman with Tallapoosa River EC. Read more about preserving family recipes, Page 12.

With about 25 acres and more coming, more than 199 species, 31 sub-species, and eight endangered species, Alabama’s Gulf Coast Zoo, known as the “Little Zoo that Could,” is now more like the Little Zoo that Grew.

Inside Southwood Kitchen in Daphne, there’s plenty of palatepleasing action in an intimate atmosphere.

PHOTO: Julie Bennett

District 7

Fiscal responsibility — Cullman EC is a member-owned electric cooperative, so we have a responsibility to make smart financial decisions that are in the best interest of the

District 2

expansion plan. By the end of this year, we will have connected 24 pieces of our highspeed broadband internet puzzle.

J. David Hembree

Operational benefits — We will always consider strategic connections that can improve the quality of our electric service as well as Sprout Fiber Internet’s reliability. Our ultimate goal is to build the entire puzzle and make Sprout Fiber Internet available to all members of Cullman Elec tric Cooperative. It will take time. It will require patience and strategic thinking. As factors change over time, our plan will have to change as well. But the goal will remain the same until all of the pieces are in place. n

Brian Lacy is the manager of communica tion and external affairs for Cullman Elec tric Cooperative.

| Cullman EC |

Puzzles

District 4 Lisa Weeks

Robert Tidwell

So, how will we put together the rest of our Sprout puzzle? What pieces come next in 2023, and what order will pieces get placed after that? There are five strategic factors we consider when building Sprout Fiber Internet: Consumer demand — Revenue generated from Sprout subscribers is needed to fund future expansion, so we have to consider the number of potential subscribers in each area.

Reaching the underserved — Approxi mately 25 percent of our service area has no access to quality internet service, so we have to consider areas with the highest need.

4 OCTOBER 2022 www.alabamaliving.coop

District 1 Sheila Sizemore

CooperativeCullmanElectricBoardofTrustees

I know my first-born is locked in on a task when I see the tip of his tongue poking through his pursed lips. The faster his mind races, the further his tongue sticks out. He is completely unaware of this, but I see it every time he’s intensely focused on a task, whether it’s playing sports, doing his math homework or learning to tie his shoes. And every time it makes me smile.

Phillip Garrison

District 8 Lynda Carter

District 6

By Brian Lacy

My wife and I are bombarded daily by our two boys with “did you know” facts about dinosaurs, falcons, sharks and a variety of other wildlife both living and extinct. Hearing the excitement in their voices as they talk about what they’ve learned is fun.

District 5 Daryl Calvert

Cullman Electric Cooperative is an equal opportunity provider and employer. If you wish to file a Civil Rights program complaint of discrimination, complete the USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form, found online at https://www. usda.gov/oascr/how-to-file-a-program-discrimination-complaint, or at any USDA office, or call (866) 632-9992 to request the form. You may also write a letter containing all of the information requested in the form. Send your completed com plaint form or letter to us by mail at U.S. Department of Agriculture, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, D.C. 20250-9410, by fax (202) 690-7442 or email at program.intake@usda.gov.

Cullman Electric Cooperative is piecing together a giant puzzle called Sprout Fiber Internet. We have strategically divided the co-op’s service territory into 75 fiber distri bution areas that look very much like puzzle pieces. We started by connecting pieces that included the co-op’s offices and all of our substations. From there, we’ve connected pieces all across our service area — top, bottom, left and right — that fit into our 2022

District 3 (Chairman)

It’s reassurance as a parent that you are suc cessfully raising an intelligent little human. And it’s payback for the times when those tiny tyrants have tested your patience and made you question if you were, in fact, doing a good job.

At-Large

— Grants help fund areas that will be expensive to build and have low consumer demand. If we receive a grant for a specific area, that piece will get placed into the puzzle sooner rather than later.

Chad Alexander

James Fields, Jr.

membership.Grantmoney

I first noticed his subconscious habit when he was a toddler playing with puzzles. Putting together a puzzle is a great way for kids to learn problem-solving skills. It takes patience. It requires a good strategy and critical thinking. Success is sporadic and comes through trial and error. A few pieces fit across the top, followed by a few along the bottom. Often the first attempt to make a piece fit doesn’t work. Sometimes pieces from a middle section come together but don’t connect to the bigger picture quite yet.

CoBank is a national cooperative bank serving vital industries across rural America. The bank provides loans, leases, export financing and other financial ser vices to agribusinesses and rural power, water and communications providers in all 50Thestates.money set aside for the donation comes from revenue Cullman Electric earns through its billing services and not from electricity sales.

Website & Social Media

Pay your bill by automatic draft from your checking account or credit card

Payments may be made 24 hours a day by check, credit card or debit card on our website at www.cullmanec.com

Addison - branch office 31132 US Hwy 278 West Addison, AL 35540

Payments may be made 24 hours a day at Cullman EC’s offices on Eva Road and in Addison. The kiosk located at Hopper’s Family Market in Fairview is available during regular business hours

Office locations

By Mail

$20,000 to local non-profit groups

Cullman Electric has participated in the Sharing Success program since it started in 2012, and has helped local nonprofit agencies receive $135,000. n

Contact Information

Kiosks

Payment Options

Draft

Phone 256-737-3200 (main business number) 800-242-1806 (toll free) 256-737-3201 (report an outage)

Representatives from the Alabama Foster and Adoptive Parents Association, White City Community Center and Friends of the Public Libraries of Cullman County attended the Cullman EC board meeting in July. Top left, Buddy Hooper, Alabama Foster and Adoptive Parents Association; top right, Roger Starnes, White City Community Center; and bottom left, Tanya Allcorn, Friends of the Public Libraries of Cullman County.

Friends of the Public Libraries of Cullman County received $12,000 to sup port funding for the local chapter of the Dolly Parton Imagination Library, which provides free books monthly to children ages 5 and under. This past year, the pro gram provided 2,500 local children with

Followwww.cullmanec.comCullmanElectric Cooperative on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram @cullmanec

Night Deposit Available at both office locations

Cullman Electric Cooperative PO Box Cullman,2303AL35056-2303

Three local non-profit groups received checks this summer totaling $20,000 from Cullman Electric Coop erative and the CoBank Sharing Success grant

Eachprogram.year,the co-op’s elected leaders budget funds to donate to local non-profit organizations, and apply for a matching grant from the CoBank Sharing Success program. Checks were delivered in June and representatives from each group attended the co-op’s board meeting in July to say thank you.

Cullman EC and CoBank donate

more than 20,000 books. The White City Community Center ($4,000) and the Ala bama Foster and Adoptive Parents Asso ciation($4,000) also received funds.

We're all about you! Co-op members are at the center of everything we do. October is National Co op Month Alabama Living OCTOBER 2022 5

Online

| Cullman EC |

Cullman - headquarters 1749 Eva Road NE Cullman, AL 35055

Q: How big of a financial investment is Sprout?

A: We are paying a lot as we go from the generated cash Sprout is bringing in. We had some seed money from Cullman Electric that TVA allowed us to transfer and use. We’ve also applied for some grants, but we are not sure when or if we will get those. The electric side actually owns the fiber facilities. The way it’s financed, we borrowed money and are paying it back as we go. Sprout is paying for its own expenses like the employees, supplies, contractors and those kinds of things. But, we are cash flow positive.

The first phase of the build connected all of Cullman EC’s offices and substations, along with members living along that route. The coop erative then adopted a year-by-year approach to expansion. The decision to expand was based on operational benefits, grant availability and fiscalSproutresponsibility.isdoingexceptionally well, and if the current upward trend continues, the service will reach 5,000 subscribers by the end of 2022.

Q: How are things looking on the financial side of Sprout?

While reliable high-speed internet service was something the cooperative and its mem bers unquestionably needed, it was also a huge financial undertaking. With that in mind, the cooperative decided to take a very strategic approach to building the network so members are not left with a financial burden.

A: We’re growing. We ended July with 3,593 subscribers and we’re projecting 5,000 by the end of the year. Finances are catching up with that growth. It’s a very positive thing. When the company matures, it will have some great financial advantages and I hope I’m around to see it.

Q & A

Sprout is on pace to have 5,000 subscribers by the end of the year.

Revenue from Sprout today is being used to help pay for construction to make Sprout’s high-speed internet available to more Cullman EC members.

Sprout highlights

Cullman EC CFO Jerry Weathersby answered some frequently asked questions about Sprout’s financial position.

In 2020, Cullman Electric Cooperative launched Sprout Fiber Internet with the goal of providing an essential service to the coopera tive and its members.

| Cullman EC | 6 OCTOBER 2022 www.alabamaliving.coop

Cullman EC’s Addison office uses Sprout Fiber Internet, saving the co-op thousands of dollars every month.

A: Today, our branch office in Addison is connected with Sprout. Having it connected over our own fiber system saves thousands of dollars every month because we don’t have to pay someone else for internet service.Where the electric side is concerned, we already have our substations, except one that will be rebuilt, connected to Sprout. All the substations are tied together, which allows us to open and close breakers remotely. We can see if we

In the future, we will have the capability to isolate outages, since we can remotely open and close breakers. So instead of 2,000 people being out of power, it may only be 300 — which is a huge impact. Having a Sprout connection and being able to control currentthanusremotelybreakerswillallowtodomuchmorewecanwithoursystem. n

| Cullman EC | Alabama Living OCTOBER 2022 7

have problems in the substations by using the SCADA system, which helps the co-op pinpoint exactly where an outage is when it happens.

No. Since Sprout is a subsidiary business, it is responsible for its own expenses and its expenses do not impact electrical rates.

Q: How will Sprout be an asset that adds value to the co-op and its members?

Sprout is financially stableand able to provide an essentialservice to Cullman ElectricCooperative members.

Q: Will members’ electric rates go up to pay for A:Sprout?

Q: The price of everything seems to be going up. How is that affecting the cooperative?

A: The cooperative is just like every business and household we serve; yes, we’re seeing price increases on materials, labor and vehicles. Supply issues have been the biggest challenge, but luckily the team has been able to make accommodations in order to meet the needs of our members; however, it has impacted how long it takes us to complete jobs.

Sprout is doing exceptionally well and hopes to have 5,000 subscribers by the end of 2022.

“Cullman Electric is a not-forprofit, member-owned cooperative. As such, it is entitled to a refund

CEO Tim Culpepper. “With autho rization from the board of trustees, co-op employees put in the time and effort to file the proper documenta tion necessary to claim these refunds from the state.

Cullman Electric Cooperative issued tax refunds totaling $336,942 to members in August. The money represents a refund in certain taxes charged by the State of Alabama.

| Cullman EC |

The amount each member received depends on the percentage of over all revenues represented by each member’s account. For those who use a small amount of electricity, the credit may be a few cents. Large commercial accounts with high elec tricity demands will see credits of several thousand dollars.

“This money belongs to our mem bers, but the refunds are not auto matic,” explained Cullman Electric

“As an electric co-op, we are focused on serving the people and businesses in our community. The primary way we serve is by provid ing safe, reliable and affordable elec tricity. But we are always looking for other ways to make life better for our members. This is just one example of what we call ‘the cooperative differ ence,’ that comes from being more than just a power company.” n

of all taxes paid to the State of Ala bama on its operating margins,” Weathersby explained. “We typically receive and distribute the refund checks in August each year.”

CONVENIENT FOR YOU! Cullman EC offers several convenient ways to pay your bill. CHOOSE WHAT IS RIGHT FOR YOU! Learn more at CullmanEC.com Bank OnlinePhoneDraft LevelizedbillingPaperlessKiosks billing 8 OCTOBER 2022 www.alabamaliving.coop

Co-op returns $336,942 to members in August

The refund is a direct benefit of cooperative membership, according to Jerry Weathersby Cullman EC’s chief financial officer.

Members whose refunds are $100 or more received a check in the mail, while refunds of less than $100 appeared as a line item credit on the August bill.

Cullman EC issues tax refunds

our

These are cotton fields and plants at various stages of growth. At full growth, white as snow. SUBMIT TED by

Alabama

SUBMITTED

Cotton fields close to home. by Brandi Carter, Ariton.

Rice, Roanoke. Pops grandsonRoth)(JamesandJack at Southern Snow Farm. SUBMITTED by Cathy

Owen Sanders in the cotton field. SUBMITTED by Barbara Sanders,

Two grandsons, Brooks Hixon and Hixon Jordan, who in one of cotton fields. SUBMITTED by Laura Hixon, Banks. Dale Roth, by Norma Hulgan,

| Alabama Snapshots | Online: alabamaliving.coop | Mail: Attn: Snapshots, P.O. Box 244014, Montgomery, AL 36124

of our

Valley Head. RULES: Alabama Living will pay $10 for photos that best match our theme of the month. Photos may also be published on our website at alabamaliving.coop and on our Facebook and Instagram pages. Alabama Living is not responsible for lost or damaged photos. Send a self-addressed stamped envelope to have photos returned.

are 27 days apart in age,

Alabama Living OCTOBER 2022 9 December theme: “My Favorite Christmas Decoration” | Deadline: October 31

Elba. Walter and Christine Brooks enjoyed walking out into the field to remember years gone by when they planted and picked cotton to support our family. Photo taken a couple years before Alzheimer’s disease took my mother’s life. SUBMITTED

Banks. Submit to WIN $10!

cotton

Do you like finding interesting or unusual landmarks? Con tribute a photo you took for an upcoming issue! Remember, all readers whose photos are chosen also win $25!

The Kelly Fitzpatrick Memorial Gallery will partner with the Smoot Harris family and the city to present the festival, which will offer a series of educational classes, children’s activities, live music, art exhibitions, vendors, sporting dog demonstrations and presentations from such award-winning artisans as chef Chris Hastings, artist Sue Key, Dirk Walker, Jim Denney, woodcarver John David Foote and Wildrose Kennels.

Sarah Turner, communica tions specialist at Clarke-Wash ington EMC, was named the Darryl Gates Cooperative Com municator of the Year during the recent Alabama Rural Elec tric Association’s Communica tions Conference.

The award is named for the late Darryl Gates who was editor of Alabama Living magazine for 30 years before his death in 2012.

Jubilee Festival of Arts wins Tourism event award

Clarke-Washington EMC’s Sarah Turner is Cooperative Communicator of the Year

Wetumpka festival highlights wildlife, local arts

Turner has been the communications specialist at Clarke-Wash ington EMC since graduating from the University of West Ala bama in 2018. She has a bachelor’s degree in integrated marketing communication and is responsible for the co-op’s communica tions and public relations programs including print and social media. She also won awards for Best Wild Card for an entry titled “The Light,” and Best Video for a video she created celebrating linemen. The winning entries are posted on the co-op’s website at cwemc.com.

Identify and place this Alabama land mark and you could win $25! Winner is chosen at random from all correct entries. Multiple entries from the same person will be disqualified. Send your answer with your name, address and the name of your rural electric cooperative, if ap plicable. The winner and answer will be announced in the November issue.

In presenting the award, judge Donna Abernathy, a national ly recognized award-winning writer and editor from Tennes see, praised Turner for “her skill and knowledge as a graphic designer, digital communicator, videographer, writer/editor and event promoter – all in a day’s work for a cooperative communica tor.” She said she earned “this reviewer’s respect for a job well done in many categories, demonstrating a breadth of skill.”

September’s answer: This structure, in Gilbertown in Choctaw County, was built in 1922 by Seventh Day Adventists, who later built a new church and sold this one to First United Pentecostals in 1969. The building was sold to Debra Cooper in 1997 and remains privately owned. (Photo and information courtesy of RuralSWAlabama.org; other info courtesy of Ronald Bradley Cooper.) The randomly drawn correct guess winner is Charlotte Stewart of Black Warrior EMC.

Sarah Turner

The series celebration will take place intermittently through Nov. 17, with the premier daylong event from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Nov. 5 on the banks of the Coosa River. The “Art Gone Wild” ex hibition will be displayed at The Kelly at 124 Company St. for the duration of the series. Visit thekelly.org for more information.

The 34th annual festival will be held Oct. 15-16 in Lott Park in Daphne. For more, visit thejubileefestival.com

Downtown Wetumpka has already been in the spotlight thanks to HGTV’s “Home Town Takeover” show. Now, the city will wel come locals as well as visitors for the first Wetumpka Wildlife Arts Festival, with several activities scheduled for this fall.

The Jubilee Festival of Arts, which features art, music and local cuisine along the oak-lined streets of Olde Town Daphne, was awarded the 2022 State of Alabama Tourism Event of the Year Award at the Alabama Governor’s Conference on Tourism in Au burn.The festival features more than 140 local and regional artists. The festival also features the Jubilee Market for local food makers as well as entertainment, delicious food and Kids Art.

10 OCTOBER 2022 www.alabamaliving.coop Spotlight | October

Whereville, AL

Submit by email: whereville@alabamaliving.coop, or by mail: Whereville, P.O. Box 244014, Montgomery, AL 36124.

“We are so proud of Sarah and her accomplishments as our communications specialist,” says Clarke-Washington EMC Gen eral Manager Steve Sheffield. “She has amazing design talent and just a warm, fun personality that makes her so successful in the communications field.” CWEMC is a member-owned electric co operative serving members in Clarke, Washington, Wilcox and Monroe counties.

Robert and Debora Jackson took the May issue to Robert’s 50th Yale reunion in New Haven, CT the last week of May. The cover features Alabama’s state cake, the Lane cake, which is from their town of Clayton. They are members of the Pea River EC. Debora has painted the lane cake into an outdoor mural for the town.

Baldwin EMC members Lisa Downing of Summerdale and her husband traveled to Ocho Rios, Jamaica last year and took along their favorite magazine. She enjoyed reading while soaking up the sun!

month.

your photo.We’ll draw

Andrea H. Presnell of Central Alabama EC took Alabama Living on a trip to Cayo Costa State Park in Florida with her friend Skye Ellison.

The Parks Family from Bon Secour traveled out west and made a stop at Four Corners Monument, where Utah, Colorado, New Mexico and Arizona all meet. Lucas, Camilla, and mom Lisa are pictured. Dad Nicholas took the picture. They are members of Baldwin EMC.

winner

group of friends traveled to Amelia Island in February and Alabama Living was their magazine of choice on the bus. Thanks to Keith Roling of Troy, a member of South Alabama EC, for submitting their photo.

By email: dingbat@alabamaliving.com

Sponsored by

Loved August cover

Wesley Murphy took Alabama Living to the Alabama State Beta Convention in Birmingham. He attended along with other students from Rehobeth Elementary. They earned top awards and were ready to compete at the National Beta Convention in Nashville. Wesley is a member of Wiregrass EC.

Alabama Living OCTOBER 2022 11 October | Spotlight E-mail us at: letters@alabamaliving.coop or write us at: Letters to the editor P.O. Box Montgomery,244014AL 36124 Letters to the editor

So grab a buddy and start looking for this drawing of a bat, just in time for Halloween fun. Congratulations to our randomly drawn winner, Joyce Oliver of Bridgeport, who will receive a prize package from Alabama One Credit Union. Remember, the ding bat won’t be in an ad and it won’t be on Pages 1-8. Good luck!

Roy and C.J. Patton took their magazine to Egypt where they visited the Pyramids of Giza. The Pattons are members of Baldwin

Best cover ever! I absolutely LOVE that photo! The colors, the composition, the expression of pure happiness....AWESOME!! I truly enjoyed the article on Romay Davis. What an inspira tion to both young and old. Thank you for that article.

Sonja Eddy, Auburn

AEMC. large

By mail: Find the Montgomery,POAlabamaDingbatLivingBox244014AL 36124

and

We’ve enjoyed seeing photos from our readers on their travels with Alabama Living! Please send us a photo of you with a copy of the magazine on your travels to: mytravels@alabamaliving. coop. Be sure to include your name, hometown and electric co operative, the location of a for the $25 prize each

We did it again. We hid last month’s dingbat so well that only 31 of our readers guessed the correct location! We admit it was a very hard one to see, but the goalposts were hiding on Page 38 on the side of the window air conditioner. Modie and Debo rah Smith of Joe Wheeler EMC said they searched through their magazine “too many times” and had almost given up before they went though it one more time and found it. Myrtle Waters of Rep ton, a member of Southern Pine EC, said she finally found it with the help of a magnifying glass, and at nearly 82 years old, she was proud of herself! We’re proud of you, too! Nathan Cunning ham of Millport asked us to keep making the searches challeng ing. “Hidden dingbats are hard to find and time-consuming. This project is best done with a buddy. Get that person to help you find the dingbat next month.” Good advice, Nathan!

Take us along! Find the hidden dingbat!

in Rawls, who lives in Montgomery and in Gantt in Covington County where she and her husband, Phil, are members of Coving ton Electric Cooperative. A Rawls family cookbook, Conecuh River Rats Can Cook, was printed in 2002, spearheaded by Joanne Rawls Mock, their cousin. The Rawls broth ers all lived in Gantt, and now their adult children have property near each other on Point A Lake.

The cookbook project prompted Robin and other family members to capture the rec ipes that hadn’t been written down, she says. “Our parents cooked from knowledge,” she explains, “so it was important to keep them in the family. In the process, you remember the recipes that are meaningful, that link you to holidays as well as everyday events.”

familyPreserve recipes in a heirloompersonalizedcookbook

PHOTO BY ROBIN RAWLS

Alabama Living editor Lenore Vickrey created a binder of family recipes for her daughterin-law, Anna Bedsole Vickrey, using an online company.

“It’s important to capture this kind of information,” says Rob

Fast forward 12 years, and the options available for anyone to produce an heirloom family cookbook have exploded. While the company I used has since discontinued its online services, there are plenty more to choose from. You can make a cookbook as simple as typing up recipes yourself and taking those hard copies to a local printer, or uploading recipes to an online template, and including scans of old food-stained recipe cards (the mark of a favorite recipe!) and family photos to use throughout. A newer option is the e-book, easily accessible on a cell phone.

hen my son got married in 2010, I gave my future daughter-in law a cookbook of several family recipes. I got a number of contributions, including pound cake and pineapple casserole from her grandmother, lasagna roll-ups and hol iday candy from her future aunts and cous ins, and peach cobbler from my mother’s recipe box, and then produced the book us ing an online source. The result was a hard back binder with fancy stock photos and the recipes neatly arranged on cardstock.

12 OCTOBER 2022

Joanne used the BHG website to gather recipes, as family members entered their contributions online and sent photos to her. She then used the “cut and paste” method with the photos and had 15 to 20 cookbooks printed at an office supply store, in time for a family reunion in Gulf Shores that year. BHG later featured the cookbook in Potluck Magazine in 2003.

By Lenore Vickrey

The Rawls cousins gather at Point A Lake in Covington County to prepare a family recipe from their family cookbook. From left, Richard Rawls, Jess Rawls, Joanne Rawls Mock and Phil Rawls.

Honoring a mother’s legacy

Maria Ashmore remembers her mother be ing well known for her delicious meals, “even cooking for my dad’s office and Thanksgiving and often cooking at church,” she says. Looking back through the cookbook brings back many memories of her childhood, shelling peas and butterbeans under the oak tree at the family farm house. “I can just visualize my mother in the kitchen making these delicious recipes.”

Alabama Living OCTOBER 2022 13

Clockwise, from top, old family photos can enhance pages of an heirloom cookbook; an early photo of Alice Melva Owens Brassell (“Mimi”); cover of the cookbook; a vintage photo of “Mimi’s girls” from the book, daughter-in-law Denise Brassell and sisters Nancy Barnes, Maria Ashmore and Beth Joiner; and pages from inside the book featuring both the handwritten and the typed version of Mimi’s Peach Pie recipe.

In 2015, Denise Brassell collaborated with her sisters-in-law, Beth Joiner, Nancy Barnes and Maria Ashmore, to publish a keep sake tribute cookbook, In the Kitchen with Mimi, to her motherin-law, Alice Melva Owens Brassell, affectionately called “Mimi” by her family. Mrs. Brassell grew up on a farm in rural Henry County close to Baker Hill, served by Pea River Electric Coop erative.“Itonly seemed fitting to honor Mimi’s legacy by compiling what we considered to be her most favorite recipes, in some cases our most favorite dishes she prepared, and anecdotes in some fash ion,” says Denise. She hand-typed each recipe for the cookbook, then sent them to Friends and Family Cookbook Publishers (the company has since stopped cre ating new cookbooks, according to its website), and later sent in family photos and original recipe cards to add a personal touch.

“We went through several edits, changing pic ture locations and captions over the course of many months before completion,” she says. “The result is a priceless family treasure.” Only 100 books were printed, as “it was mainly intended as a keepsake for family members and friends and as a memorial to Mimi. The cookbook epitomizes who she was while serving on this earth and who she will always be remembered as in our hearts.”

Her favorite is likely “Mama’s Sunday Biscuits,” from her moth er-in-law Marybelle P. Trimble, now 100 years old. “Every Sunday morning she made those biscuits,” Jackie remembers, recalling watching her assemble the flour, shortening, sugar and milk and cutting the dough. The book has some humorous additions from young family members: Joseph Trimble II contributed his “Super Dooper Milkshake” and his younger brother, Joshua Calvin Trible, offered his “Dagwood Sandwich” of bread, bologna, lettuce, ketch up, mayo, tomatoes and mustard.

A healing process

“But when it comes down to it, people still like the printed book,” Christina says. YouTube tutorials offer help and design services are offered. The process is “very easy,” she adds.

Jackie Trimble holds a copy of a cookbook, published in 2007 for a family reunion, which she has used for the past 15 years. PHOTO BY LENORE VICKREY

“The idea of the cookbook was conceived as a way to offer con nection to each other that we might share the gift of food and per petuate our legacy in a new and different way,” she wrote in the book’s introduction. Jackie treasures her copy, whose pages are lov ingly splattered with bits of ingredients used over the past 15 years.

www.alabamaliving.coop

Besides family reunions, the holidays are another favorite time for creating and giving family cookbooks, according to Christina Gibson, director of growth for Create My Cookbook (createmy cookbook.com), an Atlanta-based company which has preserved 5.5 million recipes for families since its founding in 2007.

“The person making the cookbook is often a daughter,” she says, with ages ranging from 35 to 65. But recently an 89-year-old put to gether a cookbook, proving that even older adults are very capable of using the online software even if they were nervous at the outset.

Marcia Weber of Wetumpka is working on a family cookbook with her 98-year-old mother, Lucia Driggers, who published a book on the settlers of Wicksburg in the Wiregrass area after Marcia’s father, longtime managing editor and publisher of The Dothan Eagle, passed away. That project was an opportunity for her to “get her grieving worked out,” Marcia says, but then she needed another project. Thus the idea for a family cookbook was born.

Family reunions are often the impetus for creating heirloom family cookbooks like the Conecuh River Rats book. The Pryor Family Cookbook, created in 2007 for a family reunion in Chica go, is a simple spiral-bound compilation of recipes from young and old. Alyse Studivant Williams, now a clinical psychologist in Chicago and a niece of Jackie and Joseph Trimble of Montgomery, assembled the book as part of the reunion fun.

“We’re in the compilation process,” she says. “I am so grateful my Mom can still explain certain recipes and the important in gredients which are local to my hometown Wiregrass area. I have driven 100 miles for the right cornmeal (from Pollard’s Mill in Ge neva County), and have tried three stores before finding chicken bags to make the chicken broth for dressing.”

“The whole point was to preserve family memories for the fam ily,” she says. “We may actually publish it!”

Family reunions and food go together

Pulling together these “old-timey country cooking” recipes from her mother’s memory has been rewarding for both of them, she says. “We’ve gotten about 40 recipes so far,” including “Mom’s Holiday Dressing,” green rice (made with green onion, celery and green pepper), chicken pot pie, her dad’s chili and her grand mother’s pecan pie.

Marcia Weber and her mother, Lucia Driggers, are working on compiling recipes for a family cookbook.

PHOTO COURTESY CREATE COOKBOOKMY

While the process can evoke some sadness for our family’s cooks who are no longer alive, the gathering and reading through the loved one’s recipes actually can be healing, Christina says. “Grandma has recently passed and (the cookbook) is a way to cel ebrate the grandmother and all the memories she created for her family in the kitchen. It’s a way to relive those moments, to pre serve the family memory, the culture and the heritage for future generations.”Notsurprisingly, the most common title for a family cookbook is simply, “Mom.” Most cookbooks average between 30 and 60 pages, and can be published with a hard cover, in a binder (so pages can be added) or as an e-book accessible on a cellphone.

The Create My Cookbook company can incorporate original recipe cards in heirloom cookbooks, along with typed versions.

Jeffrey M. Jones, Langston, Ala.:

My paternal grandmother, Cecil Kelso, only had one cookbook – a 1950 Duluth’s Favorite Recipes. When I got the cook book, I was surprised to find that several of “her” recipes, which she had passed on to us, were from this cookbook. I have spent hours looking at the book; few of the reci pes use cans of soup, but many use canned vegetables in a city where there’s often snow for nine months of a year. Kolachy, Kringle, Patica, Fattigmond – recipes from a bygone era of immigrant grandmothers showing the ethnic diversity of this Minnesota city at the head of the lakes. I am honored to be the granddaughter that got “the” cookbook.

I actually have two favorite cookbooks, and both were published by Auburn Uni versity in the 1960s. My grandmother pur chased them and they were passed down to me. One is a cookbook, the other is a canning book and I have used both. I used the cookbook when I was a child. I learned how to make “standard” butter cookies

My favorite thing about the cookbooks is that my grandmother hand wrote extra recipes in any open space on the pages. I cherish seeing her handwriting and her comments on the recipes. I am now in the process of teaching my granddaughter to cook using different cookbooks and we are making new memories!

Thesauce.book’s 96 pages are not connect ed in any way anymore, but I still use it. I think I’ll make some vichyssoise tonight –all from (a) 10-cent (book).

16 OCTOBER 2022 www.alabamaliving.coop

Whenever anyone talks cookbooks, and we have all the usual special family ones, there is one that stands out. It’s not just a cook book (and a very good one) – it is a time capsule of life on the Gulf coast of Alabama. For those of us who were so fortunate to experience this lifestyle this cookbook takes us back to a time not re ally gone with the wind but still alive in our hearts and minds. Food, Fun, and Fa ble from Meme’s on Bon Secour River is a must-read. After that I would say find the old timers from the area, (because) every one knows Meme’s.

Readers share their favorite cookbooks

(we called them sugar cookies) from this book as well as a standard butter cake.

When I was a mailman in Texas, I passed a yard sale and saw a 10-cent French pa perback cookbook. Everything you can imagine is in there! Quiche, Hollandaise sauce, pate and my favorite, beef in red wine

Bill Dunbar, Dixie EC and Baldwin EMC:

For some, a cookbook received as a gift is enough to make it a keepsake. Others are treasured heirlooms, passed from one generation to the next.

We asked readers to share their favorites with us. See if you recognize any of them! — Allison Law

Even homespun, simple cookbooks – like those sold as fundraisers by Junior Leagues and women’s church groups – hold a special place for many home cooks. What the recipes may lack in sophistication is more than made up for in the sense of community and tradition that graces the pages.

Meme brought me out my first broiled flounder supper. I was just barely start ing grade school. She explained how this young ‘man’ with the curly hair and raw sunburned nose could eat this fish one side at a time and never worry about eat ing a bone. I cannot eat broiled flounder out to this day. It just doesn’t measure up to Charley’s and Meme’s!

the things I picked out for myself was this Betty Crocker Cookbook. I taught myself how to cook from this book. I will always keep it. I still use it but have memorized the ones I use most.

These days we have shelves of cookbooks and wonder if we should even keep them since you can find almost any recipe you need on line. Just as there is something comfort ing about holding a real book, so it is with a cookbook. You can mark the pages, add notes and dream of the recipes you will try.

Diane Meyer, Cullman EC:

Michele and Gary St. Laurent, Wetumpka, Ala.: Our eachwhatnotandhusband1980,togetherChristmasfirstinmyIdidknowtogetother. So,weheadedtothemallonChristmasEve.Oneof

Linda Kelso, Joe Wheeler EMC:

Alabama Living OCTOBER 2022 17

bers contributed 250 pages of beloved recipes of yesterday and today, along with recollections and treasured family pho tographs. And, since it is a Butler Coun ty cookbook, we have a special Crawfish Pie to go along with Jambalaya and File’ Gumbo in honor of our native son, Hank Williams Sr. It is truly a book to read and enjoy!

Examples of finished heirloom cookbooks can include hardback, spiral-bound or binder versions.

Not only is her cookbook a collec tion of recipes, Mama’s cookbook holds our family history, connecting the years through the foods we enjoy. My favor ite cookbook belongs to my Mama, Ann Dudley Parkman.

When I need a re minder of how much of a particular ingredient goes in a recipe, I call Mama. Each time, she tells me to “hold on while she checks.” On her end of the line, she stands at the kitchen counter and flips the pages of her cookbook un til she finds the reci pe and then responds. She probably knows most ingredients and measure ments by heart but likes to confirm. I know both of my sisters make similar calls to Mama while cooking.

Barbara Perdue Middleton, Pioneer EC: My favor ite cookbook is A Taste of Butler Coun ty, SocietytyButleripesFamilyTreasuredAlabama:RecofTheCounHistorical

. This special keep sake was pub lished as part of our Society’s 40th anniversary celebra tion in Butler2004.County Historical Society mem

PHOTO COURTESY

Nicole Law, Central Alabama EC: This trea sured cook book be longed to ofcludesple.Powellmother,toell,MoonMandymother,great-grandmyPowandlatermygrandLuSamItinmanytheirown hand-written recipes between the worn pages, and when I prepare one of these recipes, it is a little like walking in their shoes. Of course, Mandy did not have the luxury of electricity in her kitchen when she first used this cookbook! I love that their traditions continue to bring my fam ily special treats and enjoyment.

Ashley TallapoosaSmith,River EC:

CREATE MY COOKBOOK

She backs up to the side of her en closure. Through the fence, the jungle feline offers her tail, allowing health care providers to draw blood from it in a syringe. Yet another story of many at Gulf Shores’ Alabama Gulf Coast Zoo.

The zoo, which began in 1989, moved inland six miles in 2018 for a bigger, better facility, with more animals, extra features, and better protection against storms. The grand opening was March 11, 2020.

atrina is due for an annual medical checkup requiring a blood sample. As she receives the shot, her demeanor is calm, which is good – because Katrina is a black leopard.

“We may be the only place in the world to evacuate an entire zoo, three times,” says executive direc tor, Joel M. Hamilton. During hurricanes and the aftermath, ani mals took refuge in area backyards, fields, and employees’ homes.

“It was a fantastic day, lots of ex citement!” recalls Hamilton about the zoo’s new beginning that lasted just seven days before it was shut down by COVID-19.Downbut not out, the Alabama Gulf Coast Zoo reopened again on May 23, 2020. With about 25 acres and more coming, over 199 species, 31 sub-spe cies, and 8 endangered species, the Little Zoo that Could is the Little Zoo that Grew.

Gulf Coast Zoo comes roaring back

By Emmett Burnett

18 OCTOBER 2022 www.alabamaliving.coop

“The Little Zoo that Could,” so named by Animal Planet, which pro duced a 2006 TV series chronicling the facility’s recovery from three bru tal hurricanes, is a story in itself. Like some of its occupants, the zoo was once an endangered species.

Alabama Gulf Coast Zoo’s beautiful grounds.

Ashlyn Kenwright works with Katrina, a black leopard.

“Hurricane Ivan (Sept. 16, 2004) was the game changer,” the zoo’s director adds. “It was time to move.”

“It’s still one big loop, but bigger,” says the site’s public relations

It closed March 18, 2020.

BURNETTThe

PHOTO BY EMMETT BURNETT

PHOTO BY EMMETT

“The exhibits have a closeness feel. It is an intimate experience,” Hamilton adds, while petting a giraffe’s head. “Our staff uses the same public pathways visitors use. We want workers accessible to guests and their questions.”

Meanwhile, Katrina the black leopard’s check-up was fine. She’s good to go, just like the Little Zoo that Could, and did.

PHOTO COURTESY GULF COAST ZOO

social media manager Marcale Sisk, as we stroll the boardwalk on a park tour. “Over there is Boodah,” she says, pointing at a massive American black bear, bigger and stronger than you are. “He is 18 years old. When we got him he was no bigger than a football.”

Working at a zoo looks fun, and it is, but at a price. “Running a zoo is a business and an expensive one,” the director says, about custody of creatures on a $5.3 million budget. “We spend $5,000 a week just on animal care and welfare.”

“There’s never a dull moment here,” Sisk says with a smile from her administrative office. Reflecting on working at a zoo, she adds, “A great thing about this job is when having a bad day, I can walk out here and talk to a lemur or sloth and life is good again.”

Zoo employee Paula White has lived in Gulf Shores since child hood. She remembers the zoo’s early days. “It is rewarding to see the zoo come full circle, to see it develop, to be enjoyed by future generations,” she says. “It is nice to see the legacy continue.”

Parrots.With a day done, some animals bed for the night. Others are just getting started. For employees it is another day of what many animal lovers consider a dream job.

Like most employees here, Marcale refers to the animals by name. In addition to Boodah and previously mentioned Katrina, we greet a wolf trio, Jake, Luna and Jet; one of the giraffe couple, Benjamin; a Eurasian lynx dubbed Casanova; and a pig named –wait for it – Kevin Bacon.

Cleaning animal environments is daily, sometimes hourly, de pending on the species. Obviously one does not walk into a lion’s den and announce, “housekeeping!” Cleaning the homes of aggressive animals, such as giant cats with giant fangs, is done by luring the animal into a side room adjacent to their enclosures. For many, these side rooms also serve as their hurricane shelters.

How do zoos obtain animals? On line, sort of. Hamilton says, “We are in a network of zoos and constantly see what is out there. If we want a particu lar species, we inquire, and sometimes trade an animal we have for one anoth er zoo has.” Most animals in zoos today are raised in captivity, not caught from theGulfwild.Shores’ zoo occasionally accepts donations from people who thought they could raise exotic animals as pets. They can’t. The number one donated animal at the Alabama Gulf Coast Zoo?

20 OCTOBER 2022 www.alabamaliving.coop

Around 7 a.m., other staffers make their first rounds. With expe rience, zookeepers learn personalities. Just as no two humans are exactly alike, so are no two animals. “They recognize their people,” Hamilton says. “Baboons call for their keepers as soon as the hu mans are in sight. Many of our animals distinguish the difference between an employee’s uniform and the guests’ clothes.”

He says that Gulf Shores is becoming an all-in-one destination. People come for great beaches but while here, they look for other things to do. “We are one of those places.”

Caring for all kinds of animals

Behind the scenes

Which brings us back to Katrina the black leopard, a gift from Jack Hanna, TV host of “Jack Hanna’s Animals Adventures.” Why would a wild animal willingly submit to a shot?

Brittany Garlipp with Bruce Quillis, an African crested porcupine and one of the popular animals on the Zoo’s social media.

under ultraviolet light in a room with a constant 78 to 80 degrees.” Deviation beyond those temperatures may result in the animal’s death.Toensure those needs are met and to discuss other issues, the morning staff meets daily. Animal concerns, maintenance, con struction, events scheduled, and other topics are reviewed. “Our people are trained to know their animals,” Hamilton continues. “Any abnormalities are reported at meetings, and to our veterinar ians who immediately take action.”

The Alabama Gulf Coast Zoo is located on 20499 Oak Road East, Gulf Shores. More information is available at alabamagulfcoastzoo.com.

In 2021, 234,000 guests walked through the zoo’s gates. “Considering the uncertainty of COVID during that time, that was a good year,” Hamilton says. “We are looking for better num bers in 2022.”

The zoo’s development director, Pau la White, agrees. “A lot of people do not realize we are a non-profit. I am thankful for the generosity of people. We could not build this without them and their generous contributions. We depend on visitors coming through the gates, donations, and the kindness of guests.”Like many of the zoo’s inhabitants, much of the staff is nocturnal. Security personnel patrol the grounds, checking on animals, and making sure all is well, 24/7.

“We train our large cats to work with us,” Hamilton says. “Ini tially they are nervous about being stuck by a needle. But like hu mans, they get used to it.

“We learn to offer our shoulder for a shot. Cats learn to offer their tails. It makes diagnostics easier on humans and felines and is safer than knocking a big cat down with anesthesia.”

Two kitchens prepare animal meals. For the big cats, the menu is meat, lots of it. A tiger can eat 6 to 8 pounds of chicken and red meat a day. Other inhabitants do not consume as much but require specialized care. It varies by species.

“Some visitors think our reptiles do not take a lot of upkeep be cause reptiles can go days without eating a bite,” Hamilton says. “But environment maintenance is critical. Most reptiles here bask

The support staff and behind the scenes work is enormous. De partments here, typical of any other business, include accounting, marketing, social media, food services, a retail gift shop, and relatively new top-notch restaurant. “We are also in the hospitality business,” Hamilton says, “and have a great town for it.”

JENNIFER KORNEGAY Southwood Kitchen’s exterior has the welcoming look of a home, with its large carved-wooden sign, in the small town of Daphne.PHOTOBY JENNIFER KORNEGAY

Matthews is picky about the quality of what comes into his kitchen and goes out on diners’ plates, but he’s also always striving to find new and tasty ways to approach foods. “Really, whatever I can get my hands on, I try to make something nice out of it,” he says. “It’s all about pleasing our customers. When people are done eating here, I just hope they leave feeling like they can’t wait to come back.”

In August 2017, he opened Southwood Kitchen. The spot has a neighborhood bistro vibe, thanks to friendly, chatty servers, a re laxed ambiance and the regulars occupying bars stools and tables. “We’ve got people who come in and eat here three and sometimes even four times a week,” Matthews says.

They’re drawn to a menu whose selections lean toward fine din ing but are devoid of any pretense and defy any rigid classification. While a close look reveals Matthews’ classical French background in technique and some ingredients – duck-fat whipped potatoes, braised items with jus reductions – there’s plenty of Alabama too, like a lunch starter featuring a generous dollop of creamy, sharp pimento cheese waiting to be scooped up not by regular ole crack ers, but crunchy, just-fried pork rinds still crackling from the hot oil.

Matthews moved to the area in 1983 and left to attend the prestigious Le Cordon Bleu culinary school in Paris, then went to college in upstate New York before a stint cooking out West. Then, he came back to south Alabama. While he was the chef at lauded Magnolia Springs’ eatery Jesse’s, an opportunity to open his own restaurant popped up and was too good to not to pursue. “I’d spent enough time working for others and felt like it was time to do it for myself,” he says.

Southwood Kitchen 1203 U.S. Highway 98, Suite 3D Daphne, Hours:southwoodkitchen.com251-626-6676ALLunch,11a.m.-3 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday dinner, 5 p.m.- 9 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday Daphnel

aphne, Alabama, sometimes takes a backseat to its flashier neighbor, Mobile, but while this quaint community is qui eter, less big-city excitement doesn’t equal boring, especial ly when it comes to eating. If you know where to look, you’ll find Daphne’s dining scene is diverse and delicious.

The midday meal continues with sandwiches like hot-sauced chicken with house-made pickles and hefty burgers anchored by patties of 100-percent certified Angus beef ground in-house daily.



ture. Elk tenderloin is embellished with green-garlic chimichurri, black garlic lacquer and shitake-spinach risotto. A Korean barbe cue-style dish with ginger-scallion noodle stir fry and soy caramel is a favorite. But standards like shrimp and grits and beef filet, which Matthews calls “fail-safes,” are almost always available.

And proximity to the Gulf means offers of practically still-swim ming fish dishes at night. “At dinner, there are three to four fresh fish specials. I get fish from the Fairhope Fish House, and usually, what I get was caught that morning,” he says. He also keeps a few Alabama-farmed oysters available. “I love the boutique, farmed oysters, like those from Murder Point and Point aux Pin.”

The black and blue beef tender salad with bite-sized bits of grilled steak, pickled okra, tomatoes, bacon and crumbled gorgonzola.PHOTOBY

“I like a lot of different foods, so I took a little from everywhere I’ve worked and traveled and all my training to create the menu,” he says. This interest in a wide variety of cuisines keeps the menu changing, as does his commitment to cooking with the seasons and using locally sourced ingredients. “A lot of my veggies come from the same farm where I get lettuces. Often the eggs we use come from my own farm,” Matthews says.

22 OCTOBER 2022 www.alabamaliving.coop | Worth the drive |

“I love a good burger myself, but our salads have big fans too,” Matthews says. The fresh and filling salad options share a common leaf. “All my lettuces are grown locally and hydroponically,” he says, “and our diners love the difference you can taste from that.” A standout is the black and blue beef tender salad with bite-sized bits of grilled steak, pickled okra, tomatoes, bacon and crumbled gorgonzola topping a blend of romaine, iceberg and spinach.

By Jennifer Kornegay

Case in point: Southwood Kitchen. Don’t let its strip-mall loca tion fool you. The exterior is styled with the welcoming look of a house. A large carved-wooden sign announces its name. And in side, there’s plenty of palate-pleasing action in an intimate atmo sphere, thanks to owner and executive chef Jeremiah Matthews’ ability to blend his formal culinary training, interest in interna tional foods and an appreciation for the flavors of his home.

At night, dinner brings a variety of options, some with inter national influences that invite your tastebuds to take an adven

PHOTO COURTESY OF SOUTHWOOD KITCHEN

An appetizer of sharp pimento cheese on crunchy, just-fried pork rinds is just one of the many dishes that are Alabama-inspired with an unusual twist.

PHOTO BY JENNIFER KORNEGAY

Variety of cuisine influences set Southwood Kitchen apart

Clockwise from bottom left: Executive chef Jeremiah Matthews trained in Paris and New York before coming back to Alabama and opening his own restaurant.

Alabama Living OCTOBER 2022 23

Still, there is little to fear and much to appreciate about spiders, says Drew Hat away, an associate professor of biological and environmental sciences at Samford University in Birmingham. Hataway, who wasn’t born a spider fan, fell under their charms as an undergraduate student when he helped former Samford biology professors W. Mike Howell and the late Ronald Jenkins take photographs for their 2004 book, “Spiders of the Eastern United States: A Photographic Guide.”

According to Hataway, spiders are di verse, fascinating and abundant in Ala bama. With some 95 species indigenous to the state, “You’re never more than eight feet away from a spider (pun intended),” Hataway says, but they are here to help. They manufacture stronger-than-steel silk, which in some species creates those amazing and gorgeous webs and also has medicinal applications and was even used to make a spooky-cool brand of Nike shoes, and spiders are also incredible en gineers. Just look at a few webs for proof.

and bats,” Hataway says, which makes them integral to our food web. “In the ma jor food systems of Alabama, they sit right in the middle of everything.”

Katie Jackson is a freelance

Spidermagic:Findingthespectacularinthespooky

• Plant shrubs, trees, wildflower seed, spring bulbs.

These decorators are of course the spi ders — mostly the orb weaver varieties — that we’ve been running into (literally) in our yards and gardens ever since sum mer and which tend to become even more noticeable in the fall as they mate and lay eggs or prepare to overwinter as pregnant females.Theprevalence

• Harvest herbs and late-season vegetables and fruits.

In addition, as spiders eat insects (and sometimes larger prey like worms, snails, frogs and lizards), they help control pest populations, which also benefits human kind. Some, such as granddaddy long legs (also known as “harvestmen,” which aren’t true spiders but are in the arachnid fam ily) are used as biological control agents to control aphids and other crop borers in farm fields and gardens.

y house is already festooned for Halloween thanks to a large, industrious and talented crew of eight-legged decorators, and judging from social media posts, it appears similar crews have been at work everywhere.

To learn more about spiders, Hataway suggests using the iNaturalist app, where you can also become a “citizen scientist” by reporting spider sightings. Or check out the al.com article “Spiders of Ala bama: 58 Spiders You Should Know.”

• Divide perennials.

• Sow seed for a cover crops.

• Keep bird feeders and baths clean and full for fall migration.

OCTOBER TIPS

• Look for fall plant sales.

Superstition aside, there is no doubt that the fear of spiders is real; in fact, arachnophobia is one of the most com mon animal phobias in the world. There’s some speculation that this is a genetic or pre-programmed human trait, though studies have also shown that it’s their bul bous abdomens, hairy coverings and es pecially their long legs and erratic move ments that elicit the greatest “eek” factor.

All true spiders do produce and use venom, but few pose a significant threat so there’s no need to get rid of them. As with snakes, Hataway’s advice is “Don’t touch them if you don’t have to.” Instead, ap preciate them from afar for all their many attributes and, as Hataway says, especially for “what’s most important — spiders are part of the greater creation.”

But it’s their role in our ecosystems that make them especially special.

“Spiders are predators that (primarily) eat insects but they are also prey for birds

of webs may be one reason spiders are closely associated with Halloween, but their seasonal ill repute is no doubt compounded by age-old su perstitions portraying them as the wicked consorts of witches and bearers of bad omens. However, some superstitions cast spiders as harbingers of good luck and wealth, and one medieval-era supersti tion even asserts that seeing a spider on Halloween means the spirit of a deceased loved one is looking out for you.

24 OCTOBER 2022 www.alabamaliving.coop | Gardens |

Hataway went on to assist Howell and Jenkins in a study using the Santa Rosa wolf spider, a small white spider that lives on beach dunes, as an indicator species to measure pre- and post-hurricane dune health along the Gulf Coast. After spend ing time with spiders, Hataway became fascinated — dare we say enchanted — by these amazing arthropods and has con tinued to study wolf spiders as harbingers of other environmental changes such as wildfires and beach development.

writer and editor based in Opelika, Alabama. Contact her katielamarjackson@gmail.com.at

Alabama Living OCTOBER 2022 25

Alabama Baby: A Baby’s Book of Firsts from the Yellowhammer State, written and illustrated by Allison Dugas Behan, Pelican Publishing, $24.95 (family and relationships) Keep track of a baby’s es sential Alabama firsts in this unique baby book. Capture his or her first experiences with food, including fried chicken and an Alabama-must-have – banana pudding! Colorful pages provide guided journ aling of the baby’s first football game, visit to the U.S. Space and Rocket Center and more. Includes baby shower sign-in pages.

Lost Towns of Central Alabama, by Peggy Jackson Walls, Arcadia Publishing and the History Press, $21.99 (Alabama history) Settlers came to central Alabama in the early 1800s with big dreams. Miners panned the streams and combed the hill sides hoping to strike it rich. Demand for cotton led to the establishment of multiple mills and mill villages built for the work ers. But when such booms went bust, they left ghost towns in their wake. The author walks the empty streets of these once lively towns to revive the stories of the people who built them and lived in them.

Dear Denise: Letters to the Sister I Never Knew, by Lisa McNair, The Uni versity of Alabama Press, $19.95 (family memoir) This book takes the form of 40 letters from the author to her sister, one of the four little girls who died in the 1963 bombing of the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham. McNair apprises her sister of all that has come to pass since her death, both on the intimate level of their family and on the large scale of the struggle for racial equality. The letters are accompanied by 29 black-and-white pho tographs, most from the McNair family collection and many taken by their father.

Alabama Bookshelf

Of Mules and Mud: The Story of Ala bama Folk Potter, Jerry Brown, by Jerry Brown, edited by Joey Brackner, The Uni versity of Alabama Press, $22.95 (Alabama history/folklore) Folklorist Joey Brackner met famed folk artist and traditional stoneware pottery maker Jerry Brown, who was from Hamilton, Alabama, in 1983, and the two became friends who collaborated on a variety of documentary and educational projects. A year before Brown’s death, Brackner sat down with him to record his life story; the result is this book. An annual festival in northwest Alabama honors Brown’s memory.

In this periodic feature, we highlight books either about Alabama people or events, or written by Alabama authors. Summaries are not reviews or endorsements. We also occasionally highlight book-related events. Email submissions to bookshelf@alabamaliving.coop. Due to the volume of submissions, we are unable to mention all the books we receive.

Rock Killough’s Front Porch Stories, by Rock Killough, God Manifest Pub lishing, $21.99 (short stories) Born and raised outside of Greenville, Alabama, Killough is an accomplished songwriter who’s written songs recorded by The Oak Ridge Boys and Randy Travis, among many others. After retiring to the porch of his country cabin near Guntersville, Killough began to reflect on life and music, and wrote down his musings; he would later publish them on social media, which earned him a following. One of his followers suggested he publish his stories, and the result is this book.

The Southernization of America: A Story of Democracy in the Balance, by Frye Gaillard and Cynthia Tucker, NewSouth Books, $25.95 (history) The award-winning authors present a series of essays considering the role of the South in shaping America’s political and cultur al landscape. They examine the morphing of the Southern strategy of Nixon and Reagan into the Republican Party of today. They also find hope in the South, that a legacy rooted in the civil rights years might ultimately lead the nation on the path to redemption.

Alabama Living OCTOBER 2022 27 For More Information Visit The Kelly.Org or Call W E T U M P K A Wildlife Arts Festival Sporting Dog Demonstrations featuring Wildrose Kennels Cooking Demonstrations with Premier Chef Chris Hastings Alabama Wildlife Federation - Live Animal Presentations Carving Demonstration with Wildlife Artist John David ArtisansLiveFooteMusicand Crafters Children’s Activities Food Vendors Plein Air Artists A Series of Educational Classes, Art Exhibits, Vendors and Expert Demonstrations, such NOVEMBER 5TH 10AM - 4PM Historic Downtown Wetumpka NOVEMBER 5TH • 10AM - 4PM Historic Downtown Wetumpka A Series of Educational Classes, Art Exhibits, Vendors and Expert Demonstrations, such as: • Sporting Dog Demonstrations featuring Wildrose Kennels • Cooking Demonstrations with Premier Chef Chris Hastings • Alabama Wildlife Federation - Live Animal Presentations • Carving Demonstration with Wildlife Artist John David Foote • Live Music • Artisans and Crafters • Children’s Activities • Food Vendors • Plein Air Artists

You must report a change within 10 days after the month it happens. You should report a change even if you’re late. Failure to report timely may cause you to:

• Lose SSI for not reporting information that we use to deter mine whether you are still eligible for SSI.

• Having more than $2,000 if you are single or $3,000 if you are married in resources that you can cash in, sell, or use to pay for food and shelter; and

Here are some common changes you must report if you have applied for or receive SSI:



Why it’s important to report life changes when you receive Supplemental Security Income (SSI)

Be sure to sign up for monthly SSI wage reporting emails or text reminders, so you never forget.

28 OCTOBER 2022 www.alabamaliving.coop Across 1 Like a haunted house 4 One who casts spells 7 Detective Chief Inspector, for short 8 Entomb 10 Loud utterances of horror, perhaps 11 Put down, in slang 12 Former 13 Halloween automaton 15 Backyard pond fish 16 Dark area 17 Maple, for one 19 Jack o’ Lantern, when carved 22 Scary 25 Angry 26 Withered old witch 27 Gets close to 29 Kid 30 Not good/not bad, 2 words 31 Scatter Insects often found all over the place at Halloween 2 Responsibility 3 Barbie’s boy doll 4 Well-known witch description 5 Halloween greeting, 3 words 6 Unfriendly 7 Spanish for devil 9 Do away with 14 Bon Jovi’s “Livin’ ___ Prayer”, 2 words 16 Bats and cats are often seen as these in Halloween decorations 18 Spirit-raising event 19 Hocus ___ (magic trick) 20 Maintain 21 When bats fly and vampires hunt 23 French for summer 24 Toward sunrise 28 Go bad SOCIAL SECURITY

• Receive more than you should and have to pay it back;

• Changing your address or persons moving in or out of the household;

• Have a penalty deducted from your SSI payment; or

• Receive less than you should and take longer to receive the correct amount;

Other options include speaking with a representative by calling toll free at 1-800-772-1213 (TTY 1-800-325-0778) or visiting or writing your local Social Security Office.

For a complete list of reporting responsibilities for all our pro grams, please read our publication, What You Need to Know

id you know that certain life changes can affect your Supplemental Security Income (SSI) payments? Sometimes your circumstances may change after you apply for or begin to receive SSI. When that happens, it’s important for you to tell us about these changes. This will ensure that you receive the benefits to which you’re eligible.

• Changes in resources, including money in financial ac counts and buying or selling extra vehicles, stocks, invest ments, or property.

When You Get Supplemental Security Income at ssa.gov/pubs/ HowEN-05-11011.pdftoreportchanges

• Free SSA Mobile Wage Reporting app for smartphones.

Kylle’ McKinney, SSA Public Affairs Specialist, can be reached by email at kylle.mckinney@ssa.gov. crossword

• Changes in income, wages, or self-employment income;

in wages

• Changes in marital status (including any same-sex relation ships);

Answers on Page 41 October

Report changes in a timely manner

by Myles Mellor

• Starting, stopping, or changing jobs;

Securing your today and tomorrow starts with being informed. Please share this information with your friends and family—and post it on social media.

You can conveniently report your wages using our:

• Online Wage Reporting Tool using your personal my So cial Security account. If you don’t have an account, create one today at ssa.gov/myaccount

15 Enterprise Boll Weevil Fall Festival, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. in downtown near the Boll Weevil monument. This free outdoor

Gulf Shores 49th annual National Shrimp Festival. Concerts on two stages at Gulf Place all four days, plus shrimp any way you want it and a variety of seafood and non-seafood favorites. Arts and crafts vendors, sandcastle contest and 5K and 10K run. Myshrimpfest.com

6-8

Sylacauga Marble Valley’s ninth annual open house and yard sale. 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. 2373 Coosa County Road 5 (Marble Valley Road.) Daily drawing (one ticket per person); food will be available. All yard sale and event drawing proceeds go to the Marble Valley Fire Department. Search for the event’s page on Facebook.

8 Alexander City Oktoberfest, 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Charles E. Bailey Sportplex, 1685 Arena Road. Kid-friendly event with kids’ activities, live music, lots of vendors, food and more. 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Search for the event’s page on Facebook.

7-8

Boaz October Harvest Festival in historic downtown. 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. More than 225 arts and crafts booths, food court, kids’ area with free inflatables, antique car show, festival pageant, daily entertainment, Moon Pie and RC Cola contests. New this year is an antique tractor and engine show. 256-593-8154 or search for the event’s page on Facebook.

14-15

event showcases Main Street merchants and restaurants, handcrafted gifts, décor, art, festival food and more. Enterprisealabama.com

October | Around Alabama To place an event, e-mail events@alabamaliving.coop. or visit www.alabamaliving.coop. You can also mail to Events Calendar, P.O. Box 244014, Montgomery, AL 36124; Each submission must include a contact name and phone number. Deadline is two months prior to issue date. We regret that we cannot publish every event due to space limitations. Like Alabama Living on facebook Follow Alabama Living on Twitter @Alabama_Living

Waverly Fall Boogie No. 10 at Standard Deluxe. This festival of music, art, food and Southern culture features live music on the outdoor stage, including Mike and the Moonpies and Vandoliers. Gates open at noon; bring chairs and blankets. StandardDeluxe.com

Eclectic 29th annual Alabama Cotton Festival, along Main Street, First Avenue and in the pecan orchard. More than 150 food and craft vendors, dog show, classic car show, art and photo contest and a free kids’ zone featuring inflatables, carnival games, face painting, the “chicken run” and more. TownOfEclectic.com

Clanton Fall for the Arts, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., Clanton Conference and Performing Arts Center, 1850 Lay Dam Road. Vendors will sell handmade items and other treasures. Food, fun, gifts, appraisals (trash or treasure) and silent auction. Free indoor event. Chiltoncountyartscouncil.com or 205-245-9441.

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Alabama Living OCTOBER 2022 29

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15 Gantt Fall Fest 7, Pier 7 Road, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Free family-friendly community event with live music, car shows, arts and crafts vendors, food, kids’ activities including BIMO the Magician and bouncy house, horse and buggy rides, community awareness programs and more. 334-508-2797.

Eufaula second annual Eufaulafest, formerly the Indian Summer Festival, in the Seth Lore Historic District. Artists, designers, craftsmen and makers of all kinds will gather to celebrate the arts and things of the South. Eufaulafest.art

Troy Pioneer Days, Pioneer Museum of Alabama. Craftsmen will demonstrate rope making, woodworking, spinning, jewelry making, Dutch oven cooking and more. $12, with museum members and children under 5 free. Pioneer-museum.org

22 Montgomery Oktoberfest Festival, Messiah Lutheran Church, 6670 Vaughn Road. Live music, German and American food, pet adoptions, used book sale, treasure room, beer garden, arts and crafts, community marketplace, children’s play area, raffles and more. 2 to 6 p.m.; free admission. Search for the event’s page on Facebook.

Athens 55th annual Tennessee Valley Old Time Fiddlers Convention, on the campus of Athens State University. Bring the family and enjoy a uniquely American musical and cultural experience. Tickets are $17-$25. Tvotfc.org

Cullman Peinhardt Living History Farm Day, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Learn what farm life was like in the 1930s and 1940s in north Alabama. Hands-on activities as well as pumpkins, cotton, sweet potatoes, bluebird houses, apple pigs, wooden pegs, crosscut saw rounds and more. $10 per person; ages 2 and under free. 1711 Talley Ho St. peinhardtfarm.com

6-9

Dothan Fall Farm Day at Landmark Park, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sponsored by the National Peanut Festival. See how peanuts were harvested in the Wiregrass nearly 100 years ago. Cane grinding, syrup making, butter churning, soap making and other traditional farm activities. Music, antique tractors, wagon rides and quilt display. $8 adults, $6 seniors and military, $4 for kids, free for park members and children 2 and under. Landmarkparkdothan.com

Hartselle 2022 Alabama Gourd Show presented by the Alabama Gourd Society, Sparkman Civic Center, 406 Nance Ford Road SW. 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Free. Kids’ patch, demonstrations, ribbon competition area, vendors selling gourds of all kinds and classes available. 256-347-9480 or alabamagourdsociety.org

A contractor installs blown cellulose insulation in an attic to minimize energy waste.

Consider building and insulating the exterior walls in the base ment or installing foam insulation on foundation walls. Check your local building code requirements. Recommended R-values for floor insulation range from R-13 to R-30. Also insulate heating and cooling ductwork located in unconditioned spaces to prevent energy waste.

Insulation made easy

Insulation level recommendations are based on your geograph ic location. Generally, the colder the climate, the higher the recommended R-value.

Insulation is rated in R-value. The R stands for resistance to heat transfer. The higher your R-value, the slower the heat transfer, or less wasted energy. There are several different types of insulation, including fiberglass batts, blown fiberglass, cellulose and foam. Each has its own R-value listed on the packaging. To determine the R-value of your existing insulation, multiply the number of inches by the R-value per inch for the type of insulation.

Miranda Boutelle is the vice president of operations and customer engagement at Efficiency Services Group in Oregon, a cooperatively owned energy efficiency company. She also writes on energy efficiency topics for the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, the national trade association representing more than 900 local electric cooperatives.

Air sealing can be done as a DIY project, but it is challenging to pinpoint and properly seal air leaks. Consider hiring a contrac tor to complete a blower door test and seal leaks.

Think of insulation as a cozy sweater and air sealing as a wind breaker for your home.

Exteriorhatches.walls and walls separating heated and unheated areas of the home—such as garages or enclosed porches—should be in sulated to an R-value ranging from R-13 to R-21, based on your location and wall construction.

Insulation rating

30 OCTOBER 2022 www.alabamaliving.coop | Consumer Wise |

Attics can be insulated using batts or blown-in insulation. Rec ommended R-values range from R-30 to R-60. If you use your attic for storage, you can build a raised platform with room for insu lation underneath. Add insulation and weatherstripping to access doors or

DIY considerations

Air sealing prevents drafts and air infiltration from outside. It can im prove efficiency, comfort and indoor air quality.

It isn’t pretty, but insulation and air sealing typically provide the biggest bang for your buck when it comes to home ener gy efficiency improvements. When installed together, they can save you money and make a big difference in comfort and energy use.

Q: What cost-effective improvements will make my home comfortable year-round?

The typical locations for insulation are the at tic, walls and floor. If you have a forced-air heating or cooling system, your ductwork should be in sulated, too. You want a consistent thermal barri er around your home for maximum efficiency. A bonus to insulation is it can reduce noise from the outside of your home.

Making insulation and air sealing a priority adds comfort, effi ciency and savings to your home.

Attic insulation mini mizes energy waste and can help maintain a more consistent tem perature throughout your home. Combined with air sealing, it also can prevent ice dams from forming on your roof in colder climates.

Sheet metal and high-temperature heat-resistant caulk should be used to seal gaps between framing, chimneys and metal flues.

Importance of air sealing

el. If your home wasn’t insulated when it was built, you can have the insulation blown in by a contractor. Blown-in options include cellulose, fiberglass and foam.

Where to insulate

Your home should also be insulated between the floor and crawlspace or unheated basement. If your basement is heated, in stall insulation in the box sills—the area between the foundation floor of the home’s main level.

If you are considering a DIY approach, protect yourself when going into spaces with insulation. Wear a properly fitted mask or respirator. Wearing a Tyvek suit and gloves also is recommended. Kneepads can come in handy and make the crawling more bear able.If you are planning a DIY approach for air sealing, do your re search about best practices for the proper home ventilation. Before going the DIY route, contact two or three local contractors for a project estimate. Sometimes the contractor can get cheaper bulk pricing on insulation.

PHOTO COURTESY PROJECT HOME

Wall insulation can be installed during construction or a remod

Typically, air sealing is done around plumbing and electrical penetrations with spray foam or caulk. If using spray foam around gas appliances, temporarily turn off pilot lights. Spray foam is extremely flammable.

You know that cozy sweater is no match for winter winds, so you need an extra layer to stop it from ripping through. The same goes for your home.

he best chance to bag a large white-tailed deer buck typical ly occurs during the “rut,” or breeding season. During the rut, habitually wily bucks lose a bit of their wariness in their quest to breed with as many does as possible.

John N. Felsher is a professional freelance writer who lives in Semmes, Ala. He also hosts an outdoors tips show for WAVH FM Talk 106.5 radio station in Mobile, Ala. Contact him at j.felsher@ hotmail.com or through Facebook.

Earlier this year, the state confirmed Chronic Wasting Disease, or CWD, for the first time in Alabama deer. Similar to Mad Cow Disease, CWD affects the nervous system in deer and ultimately kills the animal.

“Weemaciated.needeveryone to help us with our CWD sampling efforts to help make sure we have a healthy, viable deer population for the future,” Cook says.

“Overall, Alabama now has plen ty deer in most counties,” Cook says. “It’s hard to beat Black War rior WMA for big deer. People who know the area and have hunted it for years generally have great success.”

Chronic Wasting Disease confirmed in Alabama

PHOTO BY JOHN N. FELSHER

“The rut is very spot specific in Alabama,” Cook says. “We have deer rutting from November to early Feb ruary. Anyone who wants to travel around the state and hunt different ruts can do that all season long. If they put in the time, sportsmen can hunt different public areas around the state during peak rut all season.”

“We will be sampling hard again in that area during this hunting sea son as well as the rest of the state,” Cook says. “We’ll continue to do what we can to try to slow down how rapidly CWD spreads throughout the state. Fortunately, CWD doesn’t spread very fast. We can do things to keep it from spreading faster than it wouldHuntersnaturally.”canbring deer to various places throughout the state so biologists can test the animals for CWD. A deer exposed to CWD could take months or even years to develop symptoms. Many positive deer look normal at first. As the disease progresses, infected deer stagger around and might drool excessively. They become less wary of people, drink and urinate frequently and look

This year, sportsmen should en joy a very good season throughout Alabama. For the biggest bucks, head to Black Warrior WMA. The largest wildlife management area in the state covers 91,263 acres of Law rence and Winston counties near Moulton. In addition, the property sits within the 181,230-acre Bank head National Forest.

32 OCTOBER 2022 www.alabamaliving.coop | Outdoors |

In Alabama, the rut doesn’t happen all at once. With few deer in Alabama decades ago, the state brought in whitetails from other states as well as relocated deer from parts of Alabama with whitetails to areas with few or no deer. The deer retained their instinc tive rutting timeclock.

In that part of the state, the rut usually begins in mid-Novem ber and peaks around Thanksgiving. The rut continues into early December. Because the rut begins early in that area, the season in that zone opens earlier than most of the state.

For deer numbers, Cook recommends the Sam R. Murphy, Bar bour and Oakmulgee WMAs. Murphy covers 16,372 acres in La mar and Marion counties near Guin. Barbour sits on 28,214 acres of Barbour and Bullock counties near Clayton. Oakmulgee spreads across 44,500 acres of Bibb, Hale, Perry and Tuscaloosa counties.

“Sam Murphy consistently offers the best opportunities for harvesting deer,” Cook says. “It’s good deer country with varying ages of clear cuts and young pine stands so there’s abundant cover for deer. Barbour has always been a good area for deer. The deer population in Oakmulgee has been trending upward each year. It has some antler restrictions, so it also offers opportunities to potentially kill a big buck.”

“On Jan. 6, 2022, we had our first confirmed Alabama case of CWD in Lauderdale County,” Cook says. “About a month later, we had anoth er positive in Lauderdale County. We knew we’d eventually find CWD in that part of Alabama because of its proximity to areas in Mississippi and Tennessee that both have a high presence of it.”

Hunters killed those two deer about five miles apart near Flor ence. Colbert County sits just across the Tennessee River from Lauder dale County. The state established a “CWD Management Zone” for those two counties.

Sportsmen who think they killed or spotted an infected deer should contact the nearest state wildlife office. For more information on CWD see outdooralabama.com/cwd/latestcwd-information.

2022 should be a good season for deer hunters in Alabama

“Deer breed at basically the same time every year, regardless of weather, moon phase or whatever,” says Chris Cook, Deer Program coordinator for the Alabama Division of Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries. “Rut dates, duration, etc. vary very little from year to year.”

Alabama has a healthy herd of bucks like this one all across the state.

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Alabama Living OCTOBER 2022 33 P.O. BOX 389, ADDISON, AL 35540 256-747-8178 • FAX: 256-747-8760 WE SELL: Steel Trusses • Hay Barns Lumber • Equipment Sheds Building Material Packages Painted Metal • Work Shops Insulation • Kneebraces Galvalume Metal STEEL TRUSS BUILDINGS BUILT TO YOUR SPECIFICATIONS CECIL PIGGCECIL PIGG STEEL TRUSS, INC. The Moon Clock and resulting Moon Times were developed 40 years ago by Doug Hannon, one of America’s most trusted wildlife experts and a tireless inventor. The Moon Clock is produced by DataSport, Inc. of Atlanta, GA, a company specializing in wildlife activity time prediction. To order the 2022 Moon Clock, go to www.moontimes.com. DOUG HANNON’S FISH & GAME FORECAST 2022 EXCELLENT TIMES MOON STAGE GOOD TIMES

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Fiber: adds the feelings of gratification, or feeling "full," and aids in digestion. Fiber lowers high cholesterol levels, reduces the risk of heart disease, helps control blood sugar levels, and helps in maintaining a healthy weight. A medium sweet potato (105 calories) baked in its skin has 4 grams of dietary fiber, equal to or greater than the fiber in some instant oatmeal.

Source: Marilyn Agee-Carroll, Human Nutrition, Diet, & Health Regional Extension Agent, Alabama Cooperative Extension System

Sweet

Food styling and photos: Brooke Echols

Potassium: Eating habits, including foods that are a good source of potassium and that are low in sodium, may reduce the risk of high blood pressure and stroke. Potassium is a mineral crucial for life. Potassium is necessary for the heart, kidneys, and other organs to work correctly.

Researchers have also determined that sweet potatoes con tain anti-inflammatory, anti-diabetic, and anticancer proper ties.

weet potatoes pack a huge nutritional wallop, not to mention they are a delicious addition to any meal. And did you know that in 2021 Gov. Kay Ivey proclaimed the sweet potato as our official state vegetable? Thanks to the hard work of some homeschooled students in North Alabama, the Legislature passed legislation recognizing the sweet pota to with the honor. Sweet potato crops bring in about $9 million to the state annually, according to the Alabama Farmers Federation. And our readers are big fans, as they sent in more recipes for sweet potatoes than any other topic this year. Try them all, and don’t feel a bit guilty, because a helping of sweet potatoes with the skin on gives you:

Potatoes

| Alabama Recipes |

Vitamin A: in the form of beta carotene: when eaten with the skin, one medium sweet potato contains over 100 percent of the recommended daily amount of vitamin A. A whole sweet potato contains 1400 mcg of vitamin A in its skin. That's more than 150 percent of your daily requirement in a single serving, which plays a role in vision, bone development, and immune function.

mail:

¼ teaspoon nutmeg, up to another ¼ teaspoon to your taste ¼ teaspoon cinnamon, or to taste

1 tablespoon unsalted butter, plus ½ tablespoon for soufflé Sugar,dishes for soufflé dish

¼ cup brown sugar

For the Rum Sauce: 2 tablespoons butter 1 tablespoon cornstarch

4 eggs

Rebecca Quick has been baking since she was in the 5th or 6th grade, so creating her winning Sweet Potato Pound Cake recipe came natu rally. “My mother always baked a pound cake and we are all sweet potato people,” she says, so she made it her goal to create the best of both worlds. She looked up several recipes, including one by Paula Deen, and took her own mother’s recipe and added spices used for fruit cake and a little more cinnamon for taste. “It took me a couple of times to get the right amount of potatoes,” she adds, “and sometimes I use less potatoes. You want a really good sweet potato that’s not stringy and mashes good.” And she doesn’t use canned potatoes, as fresh is always best. She made the winning cake for her daughter for Thanks giving recently and it was a “big hit.”

2 teaspoons baking powder

2½ cups mashed sweet potatoes

Cook of the Month: Rebecca Quick, Cullman EC

Sweet Potato Pound Cake

1 cup butter

Rum Sauce: Melt butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Mix together the sugar and cornstarch and stir into the butter. Pour in milk and cook stirring frequently until the mixture begins to boil. Continue cooking until thick, stirring constant ly. Remove from heat and stir in rum. Serve warm. Cook’s note: For the best and most dramatic effect, serve immediately; otherwise, like any good soufflé, they will begin to deflate as they cool. These may also be served as a side dish without the rum sauce.

1 cup mashed sweet potatoes 3 large eggs, separated, and at room temperature ¼ cup maple syrup

½ cup sugar ¾ cup milk ¼ cup rum

Coming up next... February Decadent Desserts Deadline to enter November 4 March: Pizza | December 2 April: Biscuits | January 6 More upcoming themes and deadlines: Visit our website: alabamaliving.coop Email us: recipes@alabamaliving.coop

Sweet Potato Soufflé

Rub 1 large sweet potato with cooking oil. Place it on a baking sheet and bake at 400 degrees for 1 hour. Let cool and then remove the flesh and mash with a fork. After removing the sweet potato from the oven, reduce oven temp to 375 degrees. Prepare four 6-ounce ramekins by buttering all sides and then dusting each with sugar, tapping out the excess. In a medium saucepan, melt 1 tablespoon butter over medium heat. Add flour, and cook while whisking until golden, about 2 minutes. Gradually add milk, whisking constantly, until thickened, about 1 minute. Remove from the heat. Stir in the mashed sweet potatoes and egg yolks, followed by the rum, maple syrup and pumpkin pie spice. Set aside. Place the egg whites in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whip egg whites on high speed with a pinch of salt until it just reaches stiff peaks. Whisk ¼ of the whipped egg whites into the sweet potato mixture, then gently fold in the remaining whites using a rubber spatula. Pour mixture into the prepared ramekin dishes, filling nearly to the top and smoothing the surface. Place filled ramekins into a 9x12-inch baking dish. Cover the bottom of baking dish with water. Bake 35 minutes in the preheated oven. Carefully remove soufflés from the oven, set each souffle’ on a plate, dust with confectioners' sugar.

1½ cups granulated sugar

USPS Attn: Recipes, P.O. Box 244014 Montgomery, AL 36124

Recipes can be developed by you or family members. You may even adapt a recipe from another source by changing as little as the amount of one in gredient. Chosen cooks may win “Cook of the Month” only once per calendar year. To be eligible, submissions must include a name, phone number, mail ing address and co-op name. Alabama Living reserves the right to reprint recipes in our other publications.

1 cup pecans, chopped

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

1½ teaspoons vanilla

1/8 cup rum

For the Soufflé:

Cook potatoes, mash and set aside. Cream butter and sugars. Sift dry ingredients in bowl. To butter and sugar mixture, add eggs one at a time. Mix in sweet potatoes, then dry ingredi ents and vanilla. Pour into greased and floured bundt pan and sprinkle with pecans. Bake at 350 degrees for 55-60 minutes. Check at 55 minutes to make sure it’s not too brown.

Janet CentralParkerAlabama

For the Soufflé:

¼ teaspoon pumpkin pie spice Pinch of Confectioners'salt sugar, for dusting

½ cup whole milk

1 teaspoon baking soda

Alabama Living OCTOBER 2022 35

3 cups cake flour

2 cups sugar

2 teaspoons baking soda 1 teaspoon sea salt 8 whole eggs

½ cup + 1 tablespoon chopped nuts

Bring sweet potatoes and water to a boil, cooking until tender; drain pota toes. Add 1 cup sugar and butter; set aside. In a separate bowl, mix together oil, ½ cup sugar, flour and milk; pour into greased baking dish. Add hot sweet potatoes over batter. Sprinkle with cin namon and bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes or until crust is golden brown. Crust will envelop sweet potatoes as cobbler cooks.

2 tablespoons butter

1 cup sugar-free BBQ sauce

Brooke Burks

1½ sticks margarine

4 cups cooked pulled pork

Rita Marshall-DeKalbBriscoe EC

1 teaspoon vanilla flavoring

Sweet Potato Pancakes

1 tablespoon cornstarch

1 cup sour cream

1 cup shredded low-fat cheddar cheese Chopped green onions

Mix both types of flour, baking soda, pie spice and sea salt together. Add eggs, sweet potato puree, vanilla and honey in another bowl. Pour the wet into the dry ingredients and stir in chocolate chips until batter is smooth. Heat frying pan with a little olive oil and pour ¼ cup batter onto the pan, cooking until middle is set up and edges begin to dry, then flip. Top with sugar-free syrup. Yields up to 10 servings. Cook’s note: this is a diabetic friendly recipe.

Mary TallapoosaAvantRiver EC

Sweet Potato Cobbler

The sweet potato is probably the perfect food, in my hum ble opinion. Where else can you get all that sweet deliciousness in a side dish? I am here to tell you though, it is meant to be the star of the show! With this simple method, we show you how to take your sweet potatoes from the supporting cast to the main character of your supper! This is also a really tasty way to use up any BBQ leftovers. If you want to make it healthier, head over to thebutteredhome.com for our recipe for a sugar-free BBQ rub, an easy way to make sweet potatoes in the Instant Pot AND a delicious and healthy pulled pork recipe using pork tenderloin!

2 packages crescent rolls

2/3 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 cup pureed sweet potatoes

Sugar free syrup

¾ teaspoon salt

1 package sweet potato patties, cut in half

Frosting:

2 tablespoons butter

1½ teaspoons pepper

½ cup Cinnamon,milk to taste

Sweet Potato Dumplings

2 cups water

2 teaspoons cinnamon 1 teaspoon baking soda

Beat eggs, sugar, sweet potatoes or yams (whichever used) and cooking oil together until mixed well. Sift flour, bak ing powder, salt, cinnamon and baking soda together, then beat in with egg mixture. Fold in chopped nuts and coco nut and pour into greased and floured 13x9x2-inch pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes or until the middle is firm to the touch. Allow the cake to cool until just warm and then frost. Combine all frosting ingredients and spread on cake while it is still warm.

¾ cup plain flour

2 cups tapioca flour

Sweet Potato Cake

¾ cup nuts, chopped

1 teaspoon vanilla flavoring

½ cup vegetable oil

1 teaspoon salt

2 cups sweet potatoes, thinly sliced

4 cups water

2 cups blanched almond flour

1½ cups sugar, divided

Peggy Key North Alabama EC

¾ cup coconut

patty half in a crescent triangle. Place in a baking dish. Heat

1¼ cups cooking oil

Photo by The Buttered Home

½ stick butter

2 cups all-purpose flour

4 medium cooked sweet potatoes

Cut potatoes open and add a bit of butter, salt and pepper. Top with equal portions of pulled pork, cheese, sour cream, onions and BBQ Sauce.

½ cup +1 tablespoon coconut

Kim CovingtonJohns EC

4 eggs

2 teaspoons baking powder

water, sugar, margarine, cornstarch and vanilla. Pour over dumplings. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes or until crescent rolls are brown. Sprinkle with cinnamon when done.

RollCinnamoneachpotato

BBQ SweetPork-StuffedPotatoes

2 cups mashed sweet potatoes or yams

2 cups sugar

8 ounces cream cheese, softened 1 box confectioners’ sugar

36 OCTOBER 2022 www.alabamaliving.coop

2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice 4 tablespoons honey 2 teaspoons vanilla

Alabama Living OCTOBER 2022 39

To help achieve these goals and maintain optimum operations, TVA has been investing in its nuclear fleet throughout FY22.

continues to supply reliable, carbon-free energy for years to come.

Also during the August 31 meeting, TVA’s Board of Directors approved management’s request to delegate authority to the CEO related to the application for subsequent renewal of the operating licenses for Browns Ferry Units 1, 2 and 3, subject to all required and appropriate environment reviews and reports to the Board.

Browns Ferry Nuclear Plant powers us toward a clean energy future

40 OCTOBER 2022 www.alabamaliving.coop | Our Sources Say |

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) last issued oper ating license renewals for Browns Ferry’s Units 1, 2 and 3 in May 2006, allowing continued operation of all three units until 2033, 2034, and 2036, respectively. In order for all three units to continue to provide carbon-free power to the TVA grid for an additional 20 years beyond the expiration dates stated above, these NRC licens es need to be renewed through the Subsequent License Renewal (SLR) application process.

By the end of the calendar year 2023, TVA plans to submit its SLR application (SLRA) to the NRC to request an additional 20 years of operation of all three BFN units. With the receipt of the SLR from the NRC, TVA proposes to maintain and operate BFN Units 1, 2, and 3 until 2053, 2054, and 2056, respectively.

License renewal of all three units will maximize the use of this existing asset to support the TVA’s goal of generating electricity at the lowest feasible cost for the people of the Tennessee Valley. Re newal of the current operating licenses would allow Browns Ferry to continue supplying up to 3,900 MWe capacity of safe, clean, reli able, and cost-effective base load power for the long-term.

During a scheduled maintenance outage at Browns Ferry’s Unit 3 this year, teams completed the replacement of feedwater pump heaters with more robust heaters, along with more than 300 new fuel assemblies. These upgrades will help ensure that Browns Ferry

hether it’s during the extreme heat of summer or frigid cold in winter, Browns Ferry Nuclear Plant helps maintain stable loads, powers millions of homes with clean energy, and utilizes one of the lowest cost fuel sources available.



Kevin Chandler is the customer relations director, Regional Relations South, for the Tennessee Valley Authority.

A new, more robust feedwater pump heater will help Browns Ferry Nuclear Plant provide carbon-free energy well into the future.

Together with TVA’s two other nuclear sites, Browns Ferry is playing a vital role in enabling TVA to achieve its carbon reduc tion goals. During the August 31 Board of Directors meeting, TVA discussed the strategy laid out in its Strategic Intent and Guiding Principles targeting a 70 percent reduction in carbon emissions from 2005 levels by 2030 with a path toward an 80 percent reduc tion by 2035. TVA aspires to attain net-zero emissions by 2050 without impacting costs or reliability through collaborating with government, industry and research organizations to help develop the necessary technology to support decarbonization.

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Closing Deadlines (in our office): December 2022 Issue by October 25 January 2023 Issue by November 23 February 2023 Issue by December 23 Ads are $1.75 per word with a 10 word minimum and are on a prepaid basis; Telephone numbers, email addresses and websites are considered 1 word each. Ads will not be taken over the phone. You may email your ad to hdutton@areapower.com; or call (800)410-2737 ask for Heather for pricing.; We accept checks, money orders and all major credit cards. Mail ad submission along with a check or money order made payable to ALABAMA LIVING, P.O. Box 244014, Montgomery, AL 36124 – Attn: Classifieds. How To Place a Line Ad in Marketplace

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to puzzle on Page 28

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Lewis Carroll, Through the Looking Glass

Then he ate ‘em.

I was worried.

taught my son a skill others could admire.

It was a rite of passage for my adoles cent son and a moment of parental pride for me, his father.

My boy was barely in his teens when we had this father-son moment. Today he is grown, married, gainfully employed and father of my first grandchild.

With more attention being paid to pre serving wetlands, controlling pollution and regulating dredging, new beds were opened. The 2021 oyster harvest more than doubled what was gathered in 2020. 2022 could be even better.

Full of himself as a young puppy.

He did, and the shucking began.

Harvey H. (Hardy) Jackson is Professor Emeritus at Jacksonville State University. He can be reached at hhjackson43@gmail.com

shells. The Indians, I am told, would build a big fire, throw the oysters on the coals and when the heated shells popped open, supper was served.



The future looks bright for oyster lovers like me, my son, and the next generation.

Down on the Gulf Coast there are an cient Indian middens -- garbage dumps -some almost 100 feet thick, full of broken pottery, bones of fish and fowl and deer, and oyster shells, thousands of oyster

42 OCTOBER 2022 www.alabamaliving.coop | Hardy Jackson's Alabama |

In praise of oysters

But best of all, I love them raw.

And I stood by, satisfied that I had

A few years ago, I had read reports from Mobile Bay that a decline in water quality caused by dredging and pollution threat ened the oysters and their habitat.

I gave him a glove, an oyster-knife, and an“Seeoyster.that little place at the end of the shell. Stick the point in there and twist it.”

Though I provided crackers and hot sauce, he ate ‘em like his daddy did, slurped right out of the shell, straining the grit between your teeth.

Then I got the good news.

Illustration by Dennis Auth

Which brings me around to shucking.

When I got the news of the blessed event I began to wonder, will he and his offspring ever have a moment as we did?

The adventure began when I got a cool er full of oysters and took them home to where the boy was waiting.

I love Steamed,oysters.smoked, stewed, fried.

A loaf of bread, the Walrus said, ‘Is what we chiefly need: Pepper and vinegar besides Are very good indeed -Now, if you’re ready, Oysters dear, We can begin to feed.

Oysters are coming back.

It’s Co-opNationalMonth!

October 2022 Cullman

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