
OYSTERS BIENVILLE
New Orleans chef Justin Devillier shares his favorite recipe for baked oysters.
photo: PETER FRANK EDWARDS

SHRIMP ON THE ROCKS
Forgo the fry basket in favor of salt-baked shellfish dipped in tangy comeback sauce.
photo: JOHNNY AUTRY

VIVIAN HOWARD’S PARTY MAGNET
“Cheese balls are so clichéd they’ve actually become cool,” Howard says. “Socially acceptable or not, when this thing is put out at a party of any kind, people hover over it like it’s a crystal ball.”
photo: REX MILLER

DEVILED HAM & BISCUIT CRACKERS
James Beard Award–nominated Virginia chef Ian Boden spins two Southern classics into one tasty appetizer.
photo: BRENNAN WESLEY

PIMENTO CHEESE STRAWS
For Georgia chef Mimi Maumus, the only thing better than a cheese straw is one stuffed with pimento cheese.
photo: JOHNNY AUTRY

THE POOLE’S DINER MAC AND CHEESE
Chef Ashley Christensen shares the recipe for the most requested dish at Poole’s Downtown Diner in Raleigh, North Carolina.
photo: JOHNNY AUTRY

SWEET POTATO CASSEROLE WITH SORGHUM
Tandy Wilson of City House, in Nashville, Tennessee, shares his recipe for sweet potato casserole, a dish inherited from his grandmother.
photo: PETER FRANK EDWARDS

PEAR SALAD
“You got pears out of a deviled egg tray with cheese and mayo or you didn’t get pears at all,” says chef Justin Burdett of Local Provisions in Asheville, North Carolina. Here’s his elevated version of the Southern classic.
photo: JOHNNY AUTRY

CORNBREAD OYSTER DRESSING
Chef Edward Lee of 610 Magnolia in Louisville, Kentucky, shares his recipe for oyster dressing—a complex balance of salt and sweet that will stand up to all the other flavors at the holiday table.
photo: PETER FRANK EDWARDS

SWEET TEA-BRINED COUNTRY HAM
A holiday ham recipe rooted in Southern tradition.
photo: PETER FRANK EDWARDS

GLAZED HAM WITH BUTTERMILK DROP BISCUITS
Billy Allin, chef-owner of Cakes and Ale in Decatur, Georgia, shares his tangy-sweet upgrade to traditional holiday ham.
photo: JOHNNY AUTRY

DUCK WITH SATSUMA SAUCE
Duck and sweet satsumas combine in a centerpiece dish that can upstage any Thanksgiving turkey.
photo: PETER FRANK EDWARDS

BOURBON PECAN PIE
It’s hard to beat a fresh pecan pie, unless you add a little bourbon.
photo: JOHNNY AUTRY

APPLE JACK STACK CAKE
Originally, each layer was baked at home by individual cooks, likely in cast-iron skillets, then brought together and assembled for church suppers and gatherings. This rustic Appalachian Apple Stack Cake is communal cooking at its finest.
photo: PETER FRANK EDWARDS

ROSETTES
A sweet West Virginia tradition, these melt-in-your mouth fried pastries are like a cross between donuts and funnel cakes.
photo: EMILY HILLIARD

BENNE SEED PEANUT BUTTER BALLS
Benne seeds and chocolate kicked up with chile raise the bar on a traditional party-time treat.
photo: JOHNNY AUTRY