#VoicesfromtheStacks

Hungry for some Southern cuisine?

Alexander Smalls– an opera singer, a James-Beard-Award-winning chef, a Tony and Grammy award winner, the co-owner of two renowned restaurants: The Cecil and Minton’s– could be just the chef you can take inspiration from! He’s appeared on numerous TV shows, magazines, and served individuals such as Toni Morrison, Spike Lee, and Quincy Jones. Here at the University of Iowa’s Special Collections & Archives, one of his books graces the shelves.

Grace the Table: Stories and Recipes from My Southern Revivalis a memoir consisting of a combination of storytelling from Small’s childhood and hometown in South Carolina, through Europe, and to Manhattan, detailing Small’s love for food. He interconnects culture, family history, and more while sharing 100s of his recipes created during his travels. This book sheds light on how he fell in love with cooking and his upbringing with Southern Revival cuisine. Some of his recipes include Southern Revival dishes like mac and cheese terrine with Creole sauce, caramel cake, and black-eyed peas with arugula. There are tales from the first meal he cooked at 6 years old, to meeting Joan Sutherland, to touring Europe as one of the star singers of the Houston Grand Opera production of Porgy and Bess.

Small, his recipes and stories, his history and his southern cooking (a mix of traditional and international flair inspired by his travels), are worth the read!

-Matrice Y, Special Collections, Olson Graduate Assistant