Uptown Country: 175 Charming Recipes with Flavor and Flair

In a field crowded by the wildly popular likes of the Lee Brothers, Edna Lewis and Paula Deen, it's difficult to stand out as a Southern cook; unfortunately, Lewis's middling entry, an attempt to ""dress up"" traditional southern dishes, does not rise to the challenge. Lewis starts off strong with solid, reliable appetizers that are easy to make, such as Savory Cheese Straws, Gruyere Cheese Puffs and Crab Cakes with Herb Mayonnaise, but hits a wall when it comes to main courses: a Corn Chowder comprised of two pounds Velveeta, four cans creamed corn and one-and-half cups of margarine is hard to describe as ""uptown."" Lewis's chicken enchiladas, which calls for more Velveeta, as well as cream of chicken and cream of mushroom soups, yields a dish better served to unwanted houseguests than loved ones. He fares much better with desserts, which make up roughly half the book; Coconut Toffee Bars, a solid pie crust recipe and classics like Red Velvet and Hummingbird Cake are this volume's best bets. Short recipe descriptions give the book a rushed feel (especially in complicated dishes like multilayered brownies), and there's little in the way of storage advice for concoctions like pizza dough and herb oil.