News for October 2011
Gumbo Cook-Off between Alabama and LSU fans
Tuscaloosa- Alabama and LSU fans will compete in the first-ever LouisiBama Gumbo Bowl Tailgate Cook-Off as part of game day celebrations in Tuscaloosa on Nov. 5.
Four Alabama fans and four LSU fans will put their gumbo recipes to the test in front of Bryant-Denny Stadium before the big game. The winner of the cook-off will take home the Gumbo Bowl Tailgate Grand Champion trophy. Judges for the challenge include Alabama football star Kenny Stabler and LSU football star A.J. Duhe, as well as Alabama Executive Chef and Great American Seafood Cook-off winner Jim Smith. For information on being one of the Alabama fans selected for the cook-off see www.alabama.travel.
Other events planned for the LouisiBama Gumbo Bowl include a shot at the world’s record for the largest pot of gumbo.
The world’s largest pot of gumbo is a joint effort by Alabama football All-American and All-pro Miami Dolphin legend Bob Baumhower, Chef Steve Zucker from Baumhower’s namesake restaurants and renowned award-winning chefs John Folse and Rick Tramonto. This unique cooking team will be preparing the gumbo in a huge 300-year-old cast iron pot being brought in on a flatbed tractor trailer from South Louisiana to Tuscaloosa.
The gumbo recipe the chefs are using will feed 10,000 people and calls for 750 pounds shrimp, 450 pounds catfish fillets, 100 pounds claw crabmeat, 50 pounds white crabmeat, 200 pounds alligator meat, 25 pounds Louisiana crawfish tail meat, 200 pounds diced onions, 75 pounds diced celery, 100 pounds diced green bell pepper, 150 pounds sliced okra, 50 pounds garlic and 20 pounds butter. The Guinness Book of World Records will be verifying the gumbo for the record.
Bowls of the gumbo will be sold to the pre-game football crowd for $5 with all proceeds going to benefit Tuscaloosa area charities and their work in the tornado recovery effort. For information on purchasing advance tickets see www.alabama.travel.
Edited: October 25th, 2011
Birmingham chef Frank Stitt selected to Esquire Restaurant Hall of Fame
Frank Stitt
In 1984, when the words Southern and cuisine were rarely used in the same sentence, Esquire named Highlands in Birmingham one of the Best New Restaurants in America. I wrote that chef-owner Frank Stitt’s bistro appealed to “the affluent suburban crowds coaxed out of their clubs to come downtown and eat well for a change” – Georgia Bay scallops with basil, for example, and local baked oysters. Back when Paula Deen was working as a bank teller, Alabama-bred Stitt was already at the forefront of New Southern cuisine. Since then, he’s opened two other excellent restaurants and racked up awards. But what he hasn’t done is also remarkable: He has not left Alabama, instead staying put to turn out highly personal food that has inspired a wave of Southern chefs. And yet like any great chef – and any true Southerner – he keeps searching for better ways to do things, which means his days of influence are far from over.
For the complete article please see http://www.esquire.com/features/food-drink/best-restaurants-2011/best-chefs-america-1111.
Edited: October 19th, 2011
Alabama Bed & Breakfast Inns
Alabama boasts more than 100 bed and breakfast inns as alternatives to hotel and resort accommodations. Many of these inns predate the 20th century and served as homes of prominent residents, while those constructed in the late 20th century resemble 19th-century Victorian homes. Several bed and breakfast inns are historic landmarks and contain original antique furniture left by their former residents; they sit on palatial properties in rural areas or in historic districts.
For a site that list all the “indepentantly inspected” bed and breakfast, visit the official state association website at bedandbreakfastalablam.com
For an Alabama Bed and Breakfast that is Birmingham’s romantic getaways retreat. Whether it’s a wedding honeymoon, a week-end romantic getaway, or a family get-together, escape to our Logan Martin Lake home, and relax right on the shore of the Coosa river. Treasure Island Bed and Breakfast awaits you!…
Edited: October 7th, 2011
Chasing colors from Treasure Island Bed and Breakfast
The state tourism website alabama.travel has a great interactive toolto help determine when fall color peaks in Alabama. www.alabama.travel/activities/tours-and-trails/fall-color-trail/
Based on its predictions – and you can look out the window yourself to confirm this – slight changes will be evident in North Alabama through next weekend. The Birmingham area to the north should be near its color peak on Oct. 22, and areas north of Cullman will peak around Oct. 29. North Alabama will be past its peak on Nov. 19.
The Alabama tourism department also suggests the following scenic drives/areas:
1. Oak Mountain State Park, Pelham: Peavine Overlook and Peavine Falls
2. Oneonta/Blount County: covered bridges, Palisades Park
3. Cullman/Cullman County: Ave Maria Grotto, covered bridge
4. Bankhead National Forest, Winston and Lawrence counties: Double Springs
5. Natchez Trace: Lauderdale and Colbert counties
6. Joe Wheeler State Park, Rogersville: Joe Wheeler Dam area
7. Monte Sano State Park, Huntsville: Warpath Ridge Trail and its overlooks
8. Scottsboro/Jackson County: Russell Cave National Monument, Alabama 79 across Skyline Mountain, Alabama 65 through Paint Rock River Valley
9. Guntersville State Park, Guntersville: Buck’s Pocket State Park
10. Gadsden/Etowah County: Noccalula Falls Park
11. DeSoto State Park and Lodge, DeSoto Falls, Little River Canyon, Fort Payne: Lookout Mountain Parkway, DeSoto Parkway and Old DeSoto Parkway. Alabama 176, part of Lookout Mountain Parkway, includes scenic overlooks of Little River Canyon.
12. Cheaha State Park, Lineville: Bald Rock and Pulpit Rock trails, Talladega Scenic Drive, Skyline Drive and Skyway Motorway.
www.alabama.travel/activities/tours-and-trails/circle-of-colors/
For the complete article please see http://blog.al.com/living-times/2011/10/travel_feature_enjoy_the_color.html.
Edited: October 5th, 2011
Head for the hills at Treasure Island Bed and Breakfast
At Alabama’s highest point (2,407 feet), Cheaha State Park near Anniston offers chalets, cabins, hiking trails, waterfalls and some good views of Talladega National Forest. Lake Guntersville, Joe Wheeler, Buck’s Pocket and DeSoto state parks offer opportunities to walk the woods. Drive up Lookout Mountain on Alabama 117 to poke around the tiny downtown with the circa 1884 Mentone Springs Hotel, little shops (look for Oprah favorite Orbix glass from Fort Payne), restaurants like Wildflower Cafe, Log Cabin and Magnolia Joe’s. Little River Falls, Little River Canyon, Cloudland Ski resort and DeSoto State Park are nearby. There are lots of B&Bs and inns tucked in the mountainous terrain. The town’s Fall Colorfest is always the third weekend in October, which would make it Oct. 14-16 this year. Friday features a bonfire, and Saturday and Sunday include entertainment, a parade and arts.
Edited: October 5th, 2011