A Real Southern Cook in Her Savannah Kitchen by Dora Charles is a wonderful compendium of recipes from a cook who whose family history and professional background contribute to the quality of her recipes.   Her claim to fame is that she worked with Paula Dean, the TV cooking personality and author, at her original restaurant, The Lady and Sons, in Savannah for 22 years before going out on her own.

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In fact, she helped Dean launch the restaurant and ultimately her career from the very beginning.  Lines formed out the door with diners  there for Charles’s cooking and such hallmark dishes as sweet potato pie, fried ribs, smothered pork chops, collards, corn bread and more done in her inimitable way.

My version of Dora Charles's berry cobbler with blueberries and strawberries

My version of Dora Charles’s berry cobbler with blueberries and strawberries

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