Some people call this kind of eatin' 'Soul Food', but it's just Southern cooking... and yes it does touch our soul! Besides the food listed below, don't forget vidalia onions, black-eyed peas, corn puddin' (this is not a desert!), sweet tea in a mason jar (the house wine of the South), lemon chess pie, fried green tomatoes, chicen 'n dumplings, fried chicken, catfish, yellow squash, cabbage and corn on the cob!

"Southerners can't stand to eat alone. If we're going to cook a mess of greens we want to eat them with a mess of people." - Julia Reed

A Moon Pie is a miniature full-moon-shaped, edible, sticky, somewhat crunchy concoction of graham cracker cookie dough and marshmellows which is covered with chocolate. Born in Tennessee in the early nineteen hundreds, Moon Pies were originally made for coal miners as a special treat to brighten their black days under ground. Legend has it that the name Moon Pie originated with a miner who once said, "I'd like a cookie as big as the moon." Well, the Moon Pie is not as big as the moon but it is big on flavor. After the first bite into a Moon Pie the flavor explodes, filling the mouth with a delectible taste that is pure bliss. It is no wonder that Moon Pies have held their popularity since their genesis in the early nineteen hundreds. Country folk swear that after the first bite into a Moon Pie, an image of the Man-in-the-Moon appears on the surface of the pie - and winks. It is true that since Moon Pies hit their zenith in 1950, in excess of 125 million of these sweet treats are bought yearly. The two Carolinas eat more Moon Pies than all of the other states combined. Moon Pies are a Southern phenomenon. In days past, the four-inch in diameter Moon Pies were nearly always eaten with an RC Cola--Royal Crown Cola. Today, it is hard to find an RC Cola, though Moon Pies are still strong on the shelves. Lunch = a moon pie & a RC co-cola!

There is no debate in North Carolina that barbecue should be pit-cooked and pork. There is, however, is great disagreement about which parts of the pigs should be barbecued and whether tomatoes should be any part of the finishing sauce. Down east, the whole hog, split down the middle, is barbecued . The finishing sauce is a sharp, tomato-free vinegar-and-pepper ketchup. West of U.S. Highway 1, only the shoulders are barbecued, and the milder finishing sauce contains a touch of tomato. Which is better? That most likely depends on which joint you happen to be in at the moment! A good barbecue joint has a modest dining hall. In addition to plain tables, disposable paper place mats, and chairs with wooden seats, it will likely also have a counter with stool seats that swivel. A portrait of an elderly founder on the wall somewhere near the entrance is always a good sign. So are pictures, statues, and other sundry likenesses of pigs. A parking lot packed with a mixture of Harleys, pickup trucks, and Eldoradoes is an even better sign. The pits themselves are generally housed out back in a separate building to avoid burning down the joint in the event of a flameup. The building will have a screen door with a spring on it that twangs when the door slams shut. The hardwood in the yard nearby will be of various ages. You may not see smoke coming from the pit chimneys except when the wood is being burned to coals. But, you should always be able to smell it! Should you find copper lines leading to the pits from a silver tank the size of a small elephant out where the woodyard ought to be, drive on. You ain't there yet! The founder's son has sold his soul to the Devil for the ease of that modern-day bane of barbecue, propane. Come back in a couple of years and you will find a brand new McDonalds there with a drive-up window right where the pits once stood. Good barbecue is a hard way to make a buck.

This Southern staple isn't just for breakfast! There is no such thing as a 'Grit Tree'. Southerners like to hide a smile when a Northern friend wants to know where grits grow. Grits are coarsely ground corn or hominy cooked as a cereal or a side dish to the Southern breakfast of Eggs, Bacon or Country Ham, Red-Eye Gravy and Biscuits... but it is also wonderful as a side dish with catfish! In the Deep South, grits are a staple. And now, it seems that Grits are 'Chic'. Several upscale restaurants in Atlanta have them on their elegant dinner entree menus. There's even cook books just about Grits! But no matter how fancy or 'Chic' they become, the basic Grits and Red-Eye Gravy will remain in front... The word grits comes from the Old English. "grytt", for "bran", but the Old English "greot" also meant something ground. Some cookbooks refer to grits as hominy because of regional preference for the name. Americans have been using the term "grits" since at least the end of the 18th century.

Cornbread - the Bread of the South Ask ten Southern cooks and you'll get ten different recipes for making cornbread. But one ingredient a true Southern cook will not include in her, or his, recipe is sugar... Always use buttermilk when cooking cornbread. Regular milk makes inferior tasting cornbread. Our grandmothers knew cornmeal straight from the mill, usually ground from the corn raised on family land. If it is available, stone ground corn meal makes the best cornbread. Our generation knows mostly of the self-rising brands that come from the grocery stores. To make good cornbread, you need a properly cured cast iron skillet. Hush puppies are a favorite accompaniment to fried catfish, and are often served with other types of fried fish. Also known as corn dodgers, hush puppies are deep-fried little cornmeal breads. The popular legend surrounding the hush puppy takes us back to Civil War days. Southerners would sit beside a campfire, preparing their meals. If Yankee soldiers came near, they would toss their barking dogs some of the fried cakes with the command "Hush, puppies."

makin' bisquits (done 3 times a day)

Watermelons - Watermelons grow on a sprawling vine which is a member of the gourd family. It is native to Africa where it probably has been cultivated for at least 4000 years. The flesh of the melon is sweet, very juicy, and is usually red (although it is sometimes yellow). It is moderately nutritious. Southerners grow and consume vast quantities of these melons, which are large and may weigh up to 50 pounds. The rinds are sometimes used to make preserves or pickles.

Okra - Okra is a member of the hibiscus family and is native to Africa, where it is still a major vegetable crop. According to some sources, it was first introduced into the West Indies by slave ships, and from there to New Orleans and Charleston by the same means. The West African name is nkruma, which sounded like "okra" to the English. The French thought it sounded like gombaut, and this is the source of the word "gumbo". The okra plant grows tall and has large showy flowers. The seed of the plant grows in a pod. The young, tender green pods are extensively used as a nutritious vegetable. Okra is served fried, boiled, mixed with other vegetables, or in soups and gumbos.

Several Virginia Algonquian Indian words have been borrowed by the English language, including hominy, tomahawk and pone (as in cornpone.

Ummmm... um. Tastes jus' like chicken!