Posts

Earlier this week, Blake Shelton and Gwen Stefani announced their engagement and we’re thrilled to learn that The Voice judges have found their forever in each other. Clearly, the world is pretty thrilled too, with the news trending on Twitter and a slew of articles analyzing every detail of the couple’s betrothment. But before we look ahead to wondering when the Oklahoma native will say “I do” to his Golden State Gwen and all of their wedding details, let’s take a moment to appreciate the steady, supportive role Shelton plays in Stefani’s kids’ lives....

It’s a match made in Texas heaven! Blue Bell Creameries has teamed up with Waco wunderkinds Chip and Joanna Gaines on a new line of hand-dipped ice cream flavors inspired by the couple’s favorite desserts. The exclusive flavors will be introduced at the Spring at the Silos event in Waco from March 10 - 12. Stop by to the first to sample Jo’s Lemon Pie, Magnolia Press Chocolate Cake, and more....

The city of Natchez, Mississippi, is giving $6,000 to each person willing to move there and buy a house. The charming river town has launched an incentive program called Shift South, designed to entice remote workers with “the unique quality of life along the bluff of the Mississippi River.” To be eligible, workers are required to buy a house in Natchez or Adams County valued at least at $150,000 or more and live there for an entire year....

Last summer fans of When Calls the Heart, Hallmark Channel’s wildly popular drama, were delighted with the premiere of a spinoff series, When Hope Calls. The only catch was, Hearties had to subscribe to Hallmark Movies Now, the network’s streaming service that is home to a collection full classic movies and series from the beloved television behemoth. It does require a paid subscription, so not feasible for all, necessarily. And some Hearties may have been left out of the joy of watching sisters Lillian and Grace open and run an orphanage in the small Northwest town of Brookfield....

The Corolla Wild Horse Fund is celebrating the birth of a beautiful fall foal! The foal’s arrival was announced on Facebook Wednesday before its gender was known. In a follow-up post, CWHF revealed that the baby horse, a beautiful bay, is in fact a little girl they named Alejandra. “We have been hoping we might get a few fall babies,” herd manager Meg Puckett wrote alongside photos of the sweet family....

Congratulations are in order for one of our favorite stars from When Calls the Heart. Daniel Lissing, who played Constable Jack Thornton—married on screen to Elizabeth Thatcher played by Erin Krakow—is engaged. The 38-year-old actor shared the exciting update on Instagram, writing, “Happy news to share… I get to marry the love of my life,” alongside a photo of him and his beloved kissing. His fiancée, Nadia (who is keeping her last name private for now), also shared the news on Instagram, captioning a photo of the ring followed by a candid of the couple with, “Couldn’t imagine spending my life with anyone else....

After nine weeks in a cast and boot, Ben and Erin Napier’s oldest daughter Helen is up and dancing. Last week Erin shared a video on Instagram of the four-year-old dancing exuberantly in the kitchen—a welcome sight after Helen suffered a broken tibia and fibula in a park accident back in January. “Watching the cupcakes we just made rise in the oven with entertainment provided by H,” the Home Town Takeover star wrote alongside the clip of her daughter dancing to “Give a Little” by Maggie Rogers....

Frank Lloyd Wright-designed buildings can be found throughout the South, and the region is also home to the largest single-site collection of Wright architecture anywhere. A large portion of the buildings on the campus of Florida Southern College are Wright’s distinctive designs. Located in the small Central Florida town of Lakeland, the campus has 13 Wright-designed buildings, including the Thad Buckner Building, Danforth Chapel, Annie Pfeiffer Chapel, and a Usonian house....

McMinnville, Tennessee, native Traci Jones fell in love online—with an 848-square-foot apartment built in 1921 and located in the Hillsboro Village neighborhood of Nashville. “It needed work, but I’ve always had a thing for older buildings,” Jones says. “My dad had renovated houses my entire life, so I learned to recognize potential early.” Instead of seeing the deferred maintenance and dated interiors, including the rolls and rolls of wallpaper plastered on nearly every surface of the apartment, she saw high ceilings, original trim, solid architecture, and large windows that flooded the space with natural light....

You can count on terrific flavor and old-fashioned goodness when a recipe calls for buttermilk. A versatile Southern staple, buttermilk is a main ingredient in creamy salad dressings, fruit-filled smoothies, and of course, flaky buttermilk biscuits. Stirred into quick breads and pancake batters or used alongside convenience products, buttermilk adds tenderness and flavor usually expected only in scratch cooking. This hard working beverage will both quench your thirst and help your pound cakes rise to awe-inspiring heights....

The main reason to write down and share a cake recipe is so that someone else can make that cake with confidence and success. Precise measurements and clear, complete, trustworthy directions are make-or-break distinctions. The words and details should suit how much the recipient(s) know about baking cakes in general and that cake in particular. It’s better to err on the helpful side rather than leave people confused and unprepared. No one likes to waste time and groceries on a faulty recipe....

Sometimes simpler is better. It’s certainly the case when it comes to my most hardworking kitchen appliance. When I was newly engaged, I registered for a shiny, chrome slow cooker with a price tag that positively made me feel guilty. It was a digital version that looked like it had flown straight out of an episode of The Jetsons. I imagined the chilis, soups, and stews that I would set and forget in the days and years ahead....

In an era of kale Caesar salads and turmeric lattes, meatloaf feels decidedly frumpy and uncool. There’s a “Leave It to Beaver” earnestness about the stuff. On dinner tables frequented by Brussels sprouts, meatloaf is the well-meaning uncle who rehearsed knee-slappers all the way down the interstate on his way to the family festivities: Beloved, but not particularly hip. So when I asked my fiancé what sounded good for dinner this week and he suggested “meatloaf,” I cringed a bit....

Jerry Lee Lewis, the groundbreaking rock n’ roll star whose piano-heavy hits dominated the charts in the 1950s, died today in Memphis, Tennessee. He was 87. According to a release from his publicist, Lewis passed away after suffering from various illnesses throughout the years. “He was there at the beginning, with Elvis, Johnny Cash, Chuck Berry, Little Richard, Carl Perkins, Fats Domino, Buddy Holly, and the rest, and watched them fade away one by one till it was him alone to bear witness, and sing of the birth of rock ’n’ roll,” the release added....

Mike Leach, the Mississippi State University football coach known for his innovation, skill, and dry sense of humor, has died, the school confirmed this morning. The 61-year-old died “following complications from a heart condition” after suffering a cardiac event at his home in Starkville Sunday. Leach’s family was by his side when he was pronounced dead at the University of Mississippi Medical Center (UMMC) in Jackson last night. “Mike was a giving and attentive husband, father, and grandfather,” the Leach family said in a statement....

Cooking a steak can be intimidating, but it doesn’t have to be. In total, the entire cook time should be less than 15 minutes, but like a quick race, nailing the first few steps is crucial to the overall result. The key to success in cooking a juicy steak with a nice crust is quick, even cooking—but that’s easier said than done. Even cooking requires careful attention to the turning of the meat in the cooking process....

Part brewer, part tumbler, this two-in-one product from Primula is an iced tea lover’s best friend. You can brew fresh iced tea right in the compact container by adding loose leaf or bagged tea and hot water to the outer chamber. Once the tea has steeped properly, fill the inner chamber with ice and press it down into the outer chamber. Then, screw on the lid to take your chilled tea wherever you’re headed....

First it was banana bread, then sourdough bread, then baked oats. The next baking trend to come out of the pandemic might be professional-level cut-out cookie decorating, a hobby I picked up a few months ago after taking a course from Sarah Grace Roberts, a Collinwood, Tennessee-based baker who teaches virtual and in-person cookie decorating courses through her company Sarah Grace Cookie Co. Besides learning proper technique for mixing royal icing, filing piping bags, flooding your cookies, and more, I picked up a hack for actually baking the cookies for decorating that has been a game changer....

With a PFOA-free nonstick coating, the bundt pan allows you to easily release your cake, so you won’t end up with a crumbled heart with missing pieces. The coating also makes cleanup super quick and simple—just wash it with warm, soapy water. One reviewer commented, “I thought I might have a lot of cleaning to do with all those ridges, but it washed up easily.” BUY IT: $34.49 (orig. $46); amazon....

Macaroni and cheese is a Southern institution. While others around the country serve macaroni and cheese as a dinner entree, Southerners serve it as a side (with every meal). This creamy, casserole-style dish is the perfect complement to pulled pork, fried chicken, hamburgers, chicken and dumplings – you name it. Macaroni and cheese is also, in the South, considered a “vegetable,” which is just another example of how seriously we take it....