MINDY MERRELL & RB QUINN W/ KAT GORDON: SELF-RISING

Join us as we welcome MINDY MERRELL & RB QUINN in conversation with KAT GORDON on TUESDAY, AUGUST 11 at 6:00 PM to celebrate the release of SELF-RISING: THE MAGIC RISE BEHIND BISCUIT AND CORNBREAD CULTURE. 

ABOUT THE BOOK:

Self-Rising: The Magic Rise Behind Biscuit and Cornbread Culture reveals how a combination of simple ingredients sparked a quiet culinary and cultural revolution. Self-rising flour and corn meal--premixed blends of flour or meal, baking powder, and salt--freed home cooks from the guesswork of from-scratch baking and transformed everyday cooking. Throughout the twentieth century, in times of poverty, segregation, and sweeping changes such as electrification, few innovations gave women more control over their time and table.

Part historical narrative and part cookbook, this flavorful account starts in Tennessee, the "self-rising capital of the world," and travels across the Southern US. The first half of the book explores how self-rising products not only helped reshape the domestic sphere but further influenced society, culture, and industry. Vitamin boosts and flour-sack fashion made self-rising products a Southern staple. Radio jingles, blues tunes, and Grand Ole Opry broadcasts spread the word. The second half of the book offers a rich collection of timeless, foolproof recipes built for modern kitchens, including chicken and dumplings, fried pickle chips, chewy brownies, apple crisp, and more. Entertaining and insightful, Self-Rising offers a story about the spirit of Southern cooks--a story of nourishment, invention, and resilience.

PRAISE FOR SELF-RISING: 

Self-Rising is an exploration of intersections--not only of those between subjects like modern milling, the railroad industry, and flour sack manufacturing but also between advertising, radio programming, home economics, and blues music. This book is an approachable and lively look into the history of food, baking, and the US south.

--Deirdre A. Scaggs, coauthor of Simplicity and Excellence: Elizabeth Kremer from Beaten Biscuits to Shaker Lemon Pie

An engaging culinary history-cookbook with recipes that will make you excited to experiment in your own kitchen. The authors skillfully intertwine the 'rise' of self-rising flour and cornmeal with the scientific discoveries, public health considerations, marketing strategies, and cultural events that brought the convenience of these pantry staples into Southern homes. Self-Rising captures important history in the region, one that even people living in the South are forgetting.

--Johnisha Matthews Levi, author of Number's Up: Cracking the Code of an American Family

ABOUT THE AUTHORS:

Mindy Merrell is coauthor of Cheater BBQ: Barbecue Anytime, Anywhere, in Any Weather and two Jack Daniel's cookbooks. She is the 2014 winner of the reality cooking show Chopped, as well as a former columnist for The Tennessean and NFocus, and she has worked with baking brand Martha White.

R.B. Quinn is an attorney, historian, and writer. He is coauthor of Cheater BBQ and a former columnist for The Tennessean and NFocus. 

ABOUT THE CONVERSATION PARTNER: 

Kat Gordon is a baker, teacher, cookbook nerd, and enthusiastic home cook. She's most known for founding Muddy's Bake Shop; after 18 years, she's sold Muddy's, and now operates as 'the Homemade Kitchen', sharing the joy of homemade through in-person & virtual culinary classes and events.
She also consults with values-driven businesses, sharing her recipes for organizational success.