Virginia Willis has several cookbooks to her credit, but something about her newest collection of essays and recipes is connecting with people in a way she only dreamed it might.
Since "Secrets of the Southern Table: A Food Lover's Tour of the Global South" was released last month, the Atlanta chef has been featured in places where Southern cooks who preach food justice and cultural competency don't often find themselves, including Forbes and People magazine. "CBS This Morning" suggested a spread of her dishes for Memorial Day entertaining and invited her to sign one of those shiny white plates reserved for the hottest celebrity chefs.
"I'm astonished and thankful," says Willis. "I'm happy that it's shining a light on what I'm trying to do."
Willis has long strived to gently educate home cooks that the modern South is no longer defined by fried food, gravy and greasy greens. She tastefully made that point in her last book, "Lighten up, Y'all: Classic Southern Recipes Made Healthy and Wholesome," which won a 2016 James Beard Award in the category Focus on Health.
In "Secrets of the Southern Table," she invites readers to embrace the complex flavors and personal narratives that recent and established immigrants to the South bring to the table.
"I love fried chicken and biscuits, but that's a very one-dimensional way of looking at Southern food," Willis says. "Everyone is welcome at my table."
SHARED STORIES
Each chapter of her new book starts with informative essays that explore the motivations of people who grow or cook food for appreciative consumers. One of the most inspiring pairings contrasts two Georgia farms: White Oak Pastures, established by a veteran returning home from the Civil War on land that's been farmed sustainably by six generations, and Gilliard Farm, founded by a former slave emancipated by the Civil War. Today, it's managed by his great-great-grandson. It's not only one of the oldest African-American farms in Georgia, but also the entire United States.
Willis eloquently describes the struggles and triumphs of people dedicated to making a difference in feeding their communities. That means everything from reclaiming over-farmed land, celebrating handmade products and giving credit where due for the diverse culinary traditions that co-exist under the broad umbrella of Southern food. Among the intriguing stories shared are those of the Mexican barbacoa makers of Lexington, Ky., who are dubbed Appalachicanos; the Vietnamese shrimpers of East Texas; and the Greeks who have been feeding Birmingham, Ala., since the 19th century.
Willis credits Triangle food lovers with being more savvy than people in many other parts of the South about food equity and acknowledging the contributions of immigrant cooks. She attributes this to the area's abundance of high-profile cooks, cookbook writers and academics who are actively engaged in both preserving historic Southern foodways and expanding it.
Among the experts that Willis cites is Marcie Cohen Ferris, newly retired UNC professor of American Studies and author of "The Edible South: The Power of Food and Making of an American Region."
"As a recovering history major, I respect her work so tremendously," Willis says. "Trying to sort of translate her academic work into something a lay person can grasp or have a takeaway from is important to me."
April McGreger, who recently announced she is shutting down her award-winning Farmer's Daughter Pickles & Preserves, is among the artisans, farmers and chefs profiled in the book. Willis says two other entrepreneurs also have changed their business model since the book was submitted for publication.
"It is incredibly difficult and very expensive to produce artisan goods," says Willis, who sat in McGreger's Hillsborough kitchen as she converted produce grown by Hmong farmers of Chapel Hill's Transplanting Traditions into glossy pumpkin and ginger preserves. "You can't get any more Southern than putting up, and yet there's this incredible cross-cultural and slow-food heritage. I can't help but admire that."
SOUTHERN INSPIRATIONS
Willis shares stories and recipes from other familiar Triangle names. Cookbook writer Nancie McDermott, whose Down East-style Chicken Bog from "Southern Soups & Stews" is adapted with an Asian twist as Ginger Chicken Bog, and Crook's Corner chef Bill Smith, whose popular Atlantic Beach Pie, an easy-to-make classic currently on the dessert menu, was rechristened as Lemon Icebox Tart with Saltine Crust.
She also spotlights her friend Sandra Gutierrez of Cary, a cookbook author and food writer who has become a go-to expert on the impact of Latin American immigrants on Southern food and communities.
"She's become this badass on the Southern Latino experience," Willis says admiringly. "I'm so excited about her finding her voice and becoming more vocal, understanding her place and how she can influence and affect."
Willis recalls her first taste of Gutierrez's Latin Fried Chicken as "an absolute revelation." She turns it into Latin Fried Chicken Chopped Salad, included below.
Beyond the Triangle, Willis includes Charlotte Observer food editor Kathleen Purvis, Greensboro grilling expert Elizabeth Karmel, award-winning writer Ronni Lundy of Burnsville, and several books published by UNC Press. Another connection is her godmother Jenny Wingate, formerly of Winston-Salem, who shares her recipe for Moravian Sugar Cake.
"It was my goal with this book to include as many names and inspirations and recipes and quotes, races and genders, cultures and sexes," Willis says. "It was a reaction to me living part of my life outside of the South, travelling so much and coming home again, and coming to the realization that people don't understand the South."
The book also reflects growing racial and cultural tensions since the 2016 election, what Willis calls "the polarization of emotions and feelings."
"I strongly feel that, in the sort of position and platform I have, if I can share other voices and views, I want to do it. And it's also a cookbook," she adds with a laugh, "with a lot of accessible recipes for people."
