We came to the Southern Living parking lot carrying coolers, paper sacks, plastic bags, and even a roasting pan to fetch a very special pre-Memorial day treat--smoked pork butt.  Southern Living's Managing Editor Kenner Patton  organizes the annual smoke-fest as a fund-raiser for the Briarfield, Alabama, volunteer fire department, of which he is a member.  Let me just say that Kenner and his crew produce very fine pork shoulders--fork-tender and juicy with deep, smokey flavor. 

We enjoyed ours for lunch today, with all the fixings--baked beans, slaw, light (white) bread, sweet pickle slices, Coca-Cola Cake, and apple dumplings.  To top it off, Executive Food Editor Scott Jones shared a magnificent bottle of Frank Family Vineyards 2005 Napa Valley Zinfandel.  You may be more accustomed to beer with your butt, but Zin is considered the perfect barbecue wine.  What a wonderful way to celebrate the upcoming weekend. 

At this point, Kenner had been up only 32 hours; he was headed home to start another smoking session for butts to be delivered tomorrow. We didn't get his recipe, but check out the article "Barbecue 101: The Art of Low and Slow" in the June issue of SL.  Or follow this link to award-winning pitmaster Chris Lilly's recipe.

We've had the most beautiful weather this week in B'ham.  I'm hoping the Memorial Day weekend will be more of the same.  I've invited a few friends over and we’re celebrating the holiday with a menu from members of the Seafarer's Yacht Club of Annapolis.  Last May I spent a few days with the Seafarer's as they kicked-off the boating season with their flag-raising ceremony.  This year the ceremony marked the beginning of the club's 50th year.  Once the formal ceremony wraps up,  members host guests for boat outings on the Chesapeake, and a kingly spread of fabulous food at the clubhouse.   If you're lucky enough to join them for the festivities, it's a real treat---they are some of the friendliest, most hospitable folks I’ve met.   Captain Ed Morris (pictured with me on Seascape) and his wife Tanya own sailboat Autumn Mist. Though I didn't have time to go sailing with them, I did have a chance to visit some of the other boats, including the Monoponson II, Naima, and Her Way. 

Wish I was there. .  . I'll channel them through the menu--- Jerk Chicken, Jean's
Potato Salad, deviled eggs, garlic bread, and more.  (Check out the May issue of  Southern Living for the recipes.)  My Alabama group will enjoy fireworks after hours from the patio---not quite as spectacular as colorful starbursts over the Chesapeake, but food fellowship, and friends are enjoyable anywhere.  Let me know what's cookin' at your place for the Summer holidays.

Some people give their moms flowers, chocolates, and cards for Mother’s Day. My son, Aaron, gave his a case of Mexican Coca-Cola.

Stephanie, his mom/ my wife, loves the sugar-sweetened version of the "Real Thing," and, apparently, she’s not alone. Friends, gourmands, and, of course, Mexican Coke salesmen have touted the stuff. Pepsi even recently starting selling – for a limited time, they say – a sugar-sweetened version of their cola called Pepsi Throwback. (Both companies also make a Kosher version of their colas for Passover that are sweetened with sugar.)

Being a curious lot – and the owners of a whole case of south-of-the-border Cokes – we decided we’d see just how different the sugar drinks were from the high-fructose ones. So, my wife, kid, and the latter’s buddy Heath, and I decided to administer a taste test to several friends this past Sunday. Participants blindly tasted Mexican Coca-Cola, which is sweetened with cane sugar; Pepsi Throwback, reportedly sweetened with sugar made from cane and beets; and Coca-Cola Classic and regular Pepsi, both of which are sweetened with high-fructose corn syrup. The results shocked us.

Let’s face it – all brownies are NOT created equal.  There’s a lot of room for wiggle – cakey, fudgy, edge, or center piece.  Brownies are “one of THOSE foods”.  We love the way we love ‘em!  Seriously, I can hardly imagine eating an edge piece of a cake-like brownie.  I’d rather not indulge at all. Guess that makes me a brownie snob?!

Snob or not, I can easily admit to brownies being one of my favorite foods and as such, I want them PERFECT!  The obsession started long ago when I would test out brownie recipes on my family, experimenting with bake time and ingredients.  To this day, my family never let’s me forget the number of times I had them eat brownies just to achieve brownie bliss!

In case you're wondering,BROWNIE BLISS is all about the right combination of pan, batter depth, sugars, and secret ingredients like espresso. My at-home Friday night favorite brownie has a little bourbon and instant espresso.  Take-to-the-party brownies have dark chocolate chunks and get baked in mini muffin pans for bite-sized  perfection.  If I have the time, I like to top these little bites with mocha frosting and chocolate shavings. 

By now, I’m sure you’re thinking that I’m over-the-top about brownies, but I’m not alone in my feelings.  Take our upcoming brownie story (due out in September).  Laughingly, I warned my brownie-loving editor, Shirley Harrington, that once testing started, we would likely have a table-divided – over texture, richness, you name it!   Among our Food Staff, brownies, like so many other foods (cornbread, pound cake, greens, grits), evoke a long list of must-haves.  I was hoping for brownie bliss among the staff, but definitely not holding my breath.  To my uber-amazement, we sailed the base recipe through with rave reviews!!  Next up, it was time to move on to new-fangled brownie concoctions like brownies with blueberries, ginger, candy bars, etc.  This phase of testing definitely sent chills down the spines of the hard-core brownie purists (of which I am one).   Yet, despite moments of BROWNIE INTERRUPTED, we walked away with NEW TWISTS ON AN OLD FAVORITE. 

Whether you’re an edge-lovin’ brownie eater or you prefer fudgy, dense brownies, you will love our recipes in the September issue.  These recipes deserve their place among our BEST EVER BROWNIES!

Cakey or fudgy?  Edge or center - which do you prefer?

Photo courtesy of Anshu_Si at www.flikr.com/photos/anshu_si

Surrounded by groceries is a norm in our test kitchens.  With daily recipe testing and tasting, there is never a shortage of food around here.  It is easy to lose oneself in this bounty and forget that many people in our communities go without this basic human necessity.

To give back to the community, I participated in the 7th Annual Great Vegetable Run as an adult volunteer.  The event was part of the Global Youth Service Day and brought together over a hundred of local high school students and adult volunteers to deliver food to those in need.  We spent close to an hour sorting donated produce (potatoes, onions, carrots, fruit) into 200 individual brown bags, each of the bags to be donated to a family. 

April was Spring Cleaning month in the Southern Living Test Kitchens and we were all determined to put things in order and simplify our lives.