Chef Jason Smith's mouthwatering debut cookbook, Lord Honey, delivers on its subtitle's promise: more than 130 recipes from the American South, updated with fresh ingredients and his signature "country bling" twist. Smith, a self-taught cook and baker from Kentucky, and a winner of three different Food Network shows, brings his farmhouse roots to a plethora of lip-smacking recipes fit for any time of day. His take on classic Southern dishes shows up in several ways: extra richness in a dish (grits laced with Gouda); a marriage of unexpected flavors (sweet breakfast rice topped with berries and honey); or a glug of bourbon in unexpected places--even if his granny wouldn't approve. Lavishly illustrated with full-color photos and snapshots from Smith's own family scrapbook, Lord Honey (Smith's catchphrase, picked up from his granny) provides readers with plenty of inspiration and know-how to get serious and sassy in the kitchen. "Jason loves people through food," cookbook author Carla Hall notes in the foreword. "You feel it; you taste it. [His] sense of family and tradition, along with his sincere approach to staying true to his culinary roots while putting his own touch of love into every dish, will make you feel like you've been wrapped in a warm, cozy blanket on a cold day."

Smith begins, of course, with "Rooster's Crowin' (Breakfast)," reminiscing about his childhood cooking for his relatives on a Kentucky tobacco farm as he dishes up recipes for classics such as Country Ham and Redeye Gravy (made with fresh coffee), and new twists on old favorites, like Just Peachy Sticky Buns, and Apple Hoecakes with Bourbon Syrup. He slips in anecdotes from mornings in the kitchen or the garden with his granny (who had her own opinions about some of Jason's twists on her beloved recipes). Smith continues with stick-to-your-ribs lunchtime dishes, breaking them up into a wide assortment of salads ("Children, let me tell ya somethin' about salads in the South: no lettuce required. We call anything that can be tossed or held together with mayo or gelatin a salad"); sandwiches ("And Lord knows we'll make anything into a sandwich, even our salads. And before ya go thinkin' that the difference between a sandwich and a salad is the bread, don't get too big for your britches, 'cause we even put bread in our salads. So y'all can see that the line between salads and sandwiches in the South can get mighty blurred"); and side dishes like "Devilish" Eggs Three Ways, Roasted Okra and Walnuts with a hot honey sauce, and Blistered Beans with (what else?) Bacon and Bourbon.

Smith's folksy chapter introductions and rambling recipe headnotes, studded with down-home similes, evoke his on-screen personality, and will leave readers chuckling, even if they are unfamiliar with some of the Southern metaphors. He shares his versions of Kentucky dishes like the Hot Brown Breakfast Quiche and Sweet Tea and Bourbon Fried Chicken, indulges his own love for sweet potatoes with Sweet Tater Fritters and Scrumptious Sweet-Tater Bars, and creates some classic Southern mash-ups like a Hobo Salad Sandwich and Pimento-Cheese Waffle Sandwiches.

The "Dinner Bell's Ringin' (Mains)" chapter includes plenty of classics: Smith's takes on meatloaf, steak fingers, catfish, and shrimp and grits, to name a few. Many of these dishes are standbys at Southern community events such as church potlucks, weddings, and baby showers (all of which Smith has catered--his experience includes starting a catering company as a teenager). He has adapted many of them to include healthier or easier-to-find ingredients, and shortened cooking times for busy modern families. He includes plenty of practical tips in bright yellow boxes, from ingredient substitutions to cooking techniques and delicious suggestions for leftovers (also a Southern staple).

Lord Honey's dessert chapter includes twists on Southern classics such as Hummingbird Tart, New-South 'Nanner-Puddin' Trifle (a layered take on banana pudding), and Bacon-Bourbon Pecan Pie. Smith shares the stories behind many of his recipes, whether passed down from friends or learned in his grandmother's kitchen. He includes a chapter on "Picklin' and Preservin' (Condiments)" with recipes like Green 'Mater Chow-Chow, 24-Hour Pickled Beets, Balsamic Grape Jelly, and Perfectly Pickled Pineapple. The cookbook wraps up with a family photo album, including snapshots of Smith's immediate family (and his own childhood) and archival photos of his ancestors. "All of these beautiful souls are with me every day, from my country slang to the love I put into every dish," Smith writes.

In true Southern fashion, Smith can tie nearly every recipe back to his heritage, and he makes sure his readers understand his deep affection and respect for the family and community that raised him and taught him to cook. Written in humorous down-home style, Lord Honey provides plenty of mouthwatering dishes and helpful tips for veteran or aspiring Southern cooks. --Katie Noah Gibson

(photo: Randy Evans)

Jason Smith is a self-taught cook and baker from Kentucky, and a winner on three different Food Network shows: Holiday Baking Championship; Holiday Baking Championship--Kids vs Adults; and Next Food Network Star. He is known for his traditional Southern recipes, elevated with fresh ingredients and a "country bling" twist. His first cookbook, Lord Honey: Traditional Southern Recipes with a Country Bling Twist (coming from Pelican Publishing on August 28, 2023), shares his favorite family recipes and his own creations along with family stories and photos. He lives in Lakeland, Florida.

Take us through your cooking journey.

I was raised on a huge tobacco farm in Kentucky. Everyone had to work--it didn't matter if you could barely walk, you had to do something. We'd be in the fields, walking behind the tobacco setter or sowing corn or tending to the cattle. My grandmother always did all the cooking: breakfast, lunch, and dinner. We'd all eat at Granny's house every day, and I noticed that every time people would eat Granny's cooking, it made 'em so happy. I wanted to make people happy through food. At about six years old, I asked if I could stay and help her instead of going with everybody else.

The very first recipe I ever learned from Granny was chicken and dumplings. My recipe [in the cookbook] shows how to do 'em quickly, because when we made 'em, we'd kill, dress, and cook the chickens, and it took us three or four hours. I had such an awesome childhood, living on that farm, cooking for all of my family. Granny got older, and I kind of took over the cooking part. My mother is more of a dessert cook. Granny always taught me to do the dishes as we went along. I still have that rule: I do the cookin', somebody else does the cleanin'.

In our family, food brought everybody to the table. You could always sit down at our table, and by the time you were done eating, you forgot about all your problems. I noticed that as a teenager: food was the common factor that drew people into a group, and it didn't matter if you'd had the worst day, you could set down and have that meal and it washed all the worries out of you. I still believe that. Food is that one common denominator that really got people to change their outlook. Food didn't drive our family, but it brought our family together.

At 15, I started a catering company. I would cater church picnics and baby showers and wedding receptions. I'm a licensed and master florist and owned a flower shop for years. Then I was a substitute cook in the school system, and a cafeteria manager in the elementary schools. I'm a cosmetologist; I've managed restaurants; I've been a florist, but everything kept bringing me back to food. I eventually sat on a board for the School Nutrition Association, and I started writing recipes for different states, Texas, Florida, the Carolinas. I was writing these recipes and all these schools were loving them. The kids loved them, too.

It was a cold February day, barely spitting snow, and I was sitting with my laptop and I thought, I'd love to be on Holiday Baking Championship. I've always been a competitive person. So I applied, and they called me the next day. I went on there and I won, and fell in love with being on TV, in front of the camera. Even though I was competing, I was also teaching people how to cook and bake. The producers loved my style and accent and personality, and they wanted to pitch a show to the network. I said yes! I wanted to teach people what my grandmother and aunts and mom taught me.

Tell us about your "southern bling" cooking philosophy.

I've always loved bright flashy clothes, glitter and all that. On Food Network Star, they wanted me to stick with the glitter, the bright colors, and the patterns. I figured I could really show people my true inner being through my style, my cooking, and my attitude toward life.

I have 292 flashy jackets--they are rotating. You can only wear 'em on TV once. I donate a lot of the old ones to charities. I sign 'em and they auction 'em off and use that money for their charities. I was raised to always help others and I stay true to that today.

What's the most surprising recipe in your book?

Butternut Squash and Kale Salad! This is a mash-up of several different recipes. You have butternut squash, bacon dressing, kale salad with raw kale. I thought: How can I take these wonderful recipes and make them new and make them something different?

People also pick out my recipe for bourbon and sweet tea fried chicken. They say, "What's with the bourbon?" In Kentucky, we're known for horses, bourbon, and basketball. In that recipe, the bourbon and the sweet tea make that chicken so tender and flavorful. Bourbon breaks down the chicken and makes it tender, and the sweet tea brings in a little flavor. My grandmother would have never used bourbon, but I know she's smiling on me and my cooking journey.

What do you hope readers and/or home cooks get out of your book?

I want people to not only look at this book as a cookbook, but to actually use it. To bring their own family and friends back around the table, and turn the recipes into their own memories. My ultimate dream is for people to use this as a map for their own journey through the culinary world. You can bring family, strangers, whoever, to your own table.

It always comes back to food for me. It just carried me through my life and still does every day. Every recipe in the cookbook has either been handed down through my family or through friends and their family, and a lot of these recipes are heirloom recipes. They're heritage recipes.

I want people to really enjoy this book. You may not even cook! But this book is more than just cooking. It is a road map of where I came from. People can find motivation, inspiration, and stories in it. I can't wait for people to get this cookbook. --Katie Noah Gibson