See what we ate in Tennessee

April 6, 2010

Yesterday, I gave you a little tour of Don Shadow's Shadow Nursery in Winchester, Tennessee and also of Falls Mill, the local grist mill where fabulous grits, cornmeal, and flour are made. Don has amazing energy and my group and I certainly worked up a good appetite keeping up with him. Next stop was the pre-civil war home of the Shadow's, where we were served a fabulously satisfying traditional Southern meal prepared by the lovely Blackberry Patch Cakes and Catering. Don and his wife, Mary, were such gracious hosts and we enjoyed every minute of our visit. WARNING - You may experience hunger pains.

: We were served the crunchiest buttermilk fried chicken.

: And a real old-fashioned Southern potato salad

: Southern ham on flaky whipping cream biscuits

: Little open-faced tomato sandwiches

: A really good slaw laced with celery seeds

: Don’s grandson, Elijah, wanted to show me his beautiful chickens. Here I am learning that fun trick that I put on YouTube.

: Here are Don’s fishing buddies L.C. Daugherty and Jim Wimley – they came by to fry us up their fresh catch of croppy fish. Some people call it crappy fish.

: The fried croppy was delicious! Can’t you tell from my expression?

: And so were the hush puppies made from corn meal ground at Falls Mill – so crisp and tasty.

: All the frying was done in this fryer out in the garage.

: Here I am with the wonderful crew from Blackberry Patch Catering – Martin, Jackie, Jennifer http://www.blackberrypatchcatering.com/1501.html

: This fruited iced tea was very refreshing.

: Blackberry Patch Catering is known for their blackberry cobbler.

: Coconut macadamia nut cake

: The blackberry cobbler was served with homemade vanilla ice cream.

: Don showed me some of his many world travels.

: A portrait with Don’s family – Charles, Evan, Elijah, me, Don, Jennifer, Ethan, and Mary

: This is Andrea Mason – garden editor from TV – standing with an heirloom apple tree.

: Don gave us a demonstration of how to bud a witch hazel shrub. Budding, a form of grafting, is typically done in August.

: Budding is the union of one bud and a small piece of bark from a healthy budstick onto a strong rootstock.

: Ethan loves running around the nursery.

: I loved this block, but where’s my horse?

: Here we are taking off after a most fulfilling visit.

: Tennessee is a very beautiful place.

: Don’s antebellum home has one great tree – a magnolia grandiflora of great size.

: The view from the front door was so impressive.

: Don and his wife, Mary, were consummate hosts.

: A Japanese bronze with a camellia arrangement

: Andrew and my gardener, Shaun, enjoyed looking at Don’s book on dogwoods.

: Don and his wife, Mary, collect handmade wooden bowls, Tennessee baskets, and beautiful pieces of pottery.

: More of the collection

: And some more

: My lunch plate – fried chicken with gravy, potato salad, slaw, ham biscuits, broad beans, fried croppy fish, hush puppies, and tartar sauce

: A fine old daffodil was cut from the garden.

: These unusual and delicate daffodils were so fragrant.

: This is Don’s father’s salesman book. He grew and sold apple and other fruit trees in Mississippi and these hand painted illustrations were what he showed prospective growers.

: More apples

: Beautiful peaches

: And handsome plums

: Bunches of cherries

: And clusters of grapes

: A selection of berries and nuts

: After lunch, we continued our tour – At Don’s property adjacent to his home, he grows witch hazels, and more than 140 heirloom apples. We were given a great ‘fruit’ lesson.