Mama would’ve been so proud

It started with Mama. All good stories and jokes in our family, including me, started with her.

Like many women, Southern ones particularly, she enjoyed reading recipes. When she died, I mined through hundreds of recipes torn from newspapers and magazines. I saved every one, organizing them, and even tried an incredibly good recipe for beef roast. Finally, after years of trying, I can make a delicious rump roast.

Many years ago, this penchant for recipe searching led her to a chocolate cake that became a signature dish (along with deviled eggs and chicken and dumplings) for her. The sheet cake which is topped with an incredible icing of powdered sugar and cocoa became such a hit — especially when eaten directly from the oven — that it earned the nickname