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A volunteer operation that feeds 20,000 individuals each week started out with a chance grocery shopping encounter. Four years ago, a member of Collierville United Methodist Church in Collierville, Tennessee, was shopping at local Costco when he spotted an employee loading up pallets of leftover fresh produce. According to WREG, he inquired about the fate of what appeared to be still-edible food. He was surprised to learn that it was all headed for the dumpster....

Good news for people who like eating while in motion: Amtrak may be bringing back the beloved dining car. That’s right, eating your Whataburger honey butter biscuit behind the wheel is no longer the most glamorous way to eat-on-the-go. Back in the fall of 2019, Amtrak announced that it was getting rid of the classic dining car —the ones with china and flatware on a white tablecloth—in favor of pre-packaged options....

For those who haven’t been, the Texas State Fair is a feast for the senses. Between the swirling fair rides, live country music, competitive baking contests, rodeo tournaments, and a Ferris wheel you can probably see from space, it’s known for being joyously over-the-top—fitting for any event representing the Lone Star State. But the country’s largest state fair is truly known for two things: Big Tex and food, specifically deep-fried food....

When most people plan a trip to Austin, Texas, they end up dreaming about barbecue. After all the city is home to some famous rib joints, including Franklin, Iron Works, and just outside the city, Salt Lick. The most famous Austin barbecue outpost, though, may be Stubb’s. While their two restaurant/venue locations in Austin serve up some mean pulled pork, it’s their sauce that has made them a household name across the South—even in cities that think sauce has nothing to do with real barbecue....

Only 11 minutes of hands-on time goes into the summer side dish recipe that my friends and family can’t stop raving over. Who doesn’t love an easy win? With our Baked Beans recipe, that’s exactly what you’ll get. No matter whether there’s a brisket on the smoker or burgers on the grill, our Baked Beans with bacon are always in my oven. I’ve been making a version of this summertime staple for nearly a decade at this point, and they still go down as one of my requested dishes of all time....

Joanna Gaines is about as close to a real-life superwoman as it gets. We mean it when we say there’s nothing this business mogul, home design maven, chef, and mom-to-five can’t do. Seriously, even her beauty tips are on point! Not surprisingly, the Fixer Upper star’s latest foray into the cookbook world was a smashing success. From her biscuits to her chocolate chip cookies, if she’s making it, we’re eating it....

In his first interview since he announced his battle with stomach cancer, Toby Keith seemed optimistic about his eventual return to performing. “I’m thinking about getting back to fightin’ shape,” Keith, 61, recently told CMT Hot 20 Countdown’s Cody Alan. “I need a little bit of time to just rest up and heal up. It’s pretty debilitating to have to go through all that, but as long as everything stays hunky-dory, then we’ll look at something good in the future....

Few dishes have a closer link to Southern home-cooking traditions than the casserole. Recipes, ingredients, and methods vary from kitchen to kitchen, but the idea of mixing different food items, baking in a deep and sturdy dish, and serving to friends and family is near and dear to many Southerners’ hearts. Although casseroles are common and well-loved in American kitchens, it can be challenging to define exactly what constitutes a “casserole....

While vacations are supposed to be for snooze buttons, waking up for breakfast can be one of the best ways to see a city as it is, especially in Savannah. While most tourists are sleeping off their late nights on River Street, you can miss the amateur hours when they emerge from their hotel rooms with a quiet meal amongst the locals with the morning light peeking through palmettos and live oak branches....

Good news: You don’t have to be the “hostess with the most-est.” Sure, some people out there are good at flower-arranging and playlist-curating and chicken-roasting and ice-sculpting, but for the rest of us, it is just fine to be a one-party-trick pony. If you’ve already discovered your go-to hosting move, three cheers! But if you have yet to harness your hosting powers, we’ve got you covered. Fledgling hosts and hostesses, meet the house cocktail....

Strolling through my woodland garden the other day, I chanced upon a spot of blue I hadn’t expected. Upon closer inspection, it turned out to be a native perennial I planted with high hopes last summer. Those hopes have been fulfilled. Name of the plant – Hepatica acutiloba aka sharp-lobed liverwort or sharp-lobed hepatica. Native to northern and eastern North America, sharp-lobed liverwort gets its name from its use in folk medicine to treat liver ailments and leaves that are divided into three pointed lobes....

We are a region of long-held superstitions. We paint our porch ceilings light blue to stave off the “haints.” We hang mirrors outside our garden and save old wine, sparkling water, and even Bud Platinum bottles to put on dead tree branches for the same reason. We won’t invite 13 guests to dinner nor will we leave a rocking chair without ceasing its motion to ward off illness and misfortune....

Close your eyes and think of your dream home. What’s inside? A grand entry with soaring ceilings? A KitchenAid mixer? If you’re like me, and organization and efficiency are as much of priorities as a glamourous chef’s kitchen, then your dream house has been outfitted with wall-to-wall bookshelves for the perfect vignette. Nothing makes a house feel more like a home than built-in cabinetry. Luckily, built-ins aren’t a luxury that are out of reach and the options for customization are endless....

We know, we know, cleaning the refrigerator can be an ordeal. But doing so can help enhance the longevity of your fridge, and ensure that it runs as efficiently as possible. One common, often overlooked area for cleaning that can wreak havoc on your refrigerator running smoothly? The door gaskets. Also known as refrigerator door seals, these are the pliable strips running around the outer edges of your refrigerator and freezer doors that keep your machine completely closed and keeps the cold air inside the machine....

Ladies and gentlemen, it’s the news we’ve all been waiting for. Today, Netflix officially confirmed that season four of Virgin River will premiere on (drumroll please) … Wednesday, July 20! The latest installment of the soapy hit will consist of 12 drama-filled episodes. Alexandra Breckinridge, Martin Henderson, Tim Matheson, Annette O’Toole, Colin Lawrence, Benjamin Hollingsworth, Grayson Gurnsey, and more of your favorite Virgin River locals are all slated to return along with the introduction of a new regular to look forward to....

There’s something so refreshing about starting over. Every year, January offers an opportunity to start a new chapter, turn over a new leaf, and step into a renewed version of yourself. Not only do we get the chance to level up ourselves, but we also can make small tweaks to benefit the space around us, including our home. “January is an ideal time to cleanse from the holiday season and dive into our new year’s resolutions, so it is important to recognize the value of prioritizing, refreshing, and streamlining our spaces during this time,” explains Crimsyn Hawk, a professional organizer and owner of Spaced Organization in Atlanta, GA....

There’s something magical about a summertime trip to the local ice cream shop. Whether you opt for a scoop of vanilla with rainbow sprinkles, a chocolate milkshake, or maybe even a root beer float, ice cream enjoyed under the Southern sun gives us instant flashbacks to the warm-weathered days of our childhoods. In fact, we’d argue that a milkshake is the ultimate (read: extra-nostalgic) summer treat. You can make a milkshake out of pretty much any ice cream flavor and with any type of milk....

There are some things we do in the kitchen that are grounded in knowledge, the kind that was picked up from a reliable source, whether Mama, Grandma, or Great Aunt Ida. But there are little passed-down tidbits hailing from these great ladies, and the ones who came before, that might not be as sound as we were led to believe. Not to knock the know-how shared throughout generations, but there have been some “tried-and-true” cleaning techniques, laundry-related processes, and sanitizing methods that we’ve decided to store in the archives, rather than make our own—for one reason or another....

You may have a list of home-improvement projects you’ve been promising to get to. Maybe you started inside—by repainting the living room a mood-boosting shade or by redecorating the bedroom with comfortable furnishings. On walks around the neighborhood, admiring other houses, inspiration sets in. How can you update your brick house to make it the best-looking one on the block? Paint can instantly refresh a home’s exterior without any major renovation....

Pecans are a wonderful fall ingredient, whether in a tasty pecan pie or in a sweet praline. But we have created new recipes to use pecans for all courses from appetizers all the way to dessert. Easy Pecan Recipes Pecan-Cheese Crisps Preheat oven to 400°. Stir together 1 1⁄2 cups (6 oz.) freshly shredded Parmesan cheese and 3⁄4 cup finely chopped toasted pecans in a small bowl. Spoon cheese mixture by rounded tablespoonfuls 2 inches apart onto parchment paper-lined baking sheets, forming mounds....