WINONA - Mississippi author, Martha Hall Foose, of Tchula entertained guests at the annual Taster's Luncheon Tuesday with her tales of life in the Mississippi delta. Reading selections from her cookbook, Screen Doors and Sweet Tea, Foose illustrated how, in the South, memories and food are intertwined.

"In the South, we entertain each other," Foose said. "And of course, everything in the South revolves around food. If you have a party, everyone always ends up in the kitchen. That is why I chose this as a career."

Foose, the former executive chef of Viking Cooking School, told the 100-plus in attendance that putting a cookbook together is a very "ardent" task. However, she divided the recipes into three categories: Old family favorites, a new take on an old classic, and tributes to people and places. What resulted were seven chapters covering party fare, grilling favorites, casseroles, and luscious desserts - in the style Grandma made.

Mingled with tidbits of Southern life, like a Jackson woman whose mother sends homemade pie crusts to her through FedEx and her belief that biscuits should be square so country ham will fit perfectly, Foose's recipes run the gambit - traditional Southern fare to gourmet fusion dishes with her own little twist.

In its fourth printing from Clarkson Potter Publishing, Screen Doors and Sweet Tea has received high acclaim from famous chefs like Paula Deen to literary groups. In fact, she is one of three nominees for the James Beard Award for American Cookbook of the Year.

Deen stated, "This is one cookbook I would proudly have in my kitchen! It has great information and wonderful recipes!"

A native of the Mississippi delta, Foose attended Ecole Lenotre cooking school in France. She returned to Mississippi and opened Bottletree Bakery in Oxford and later Mockingbird Bakery in Greenwood.

Foose was the ideal match for this year's luncheon as well as to celebrate National Library Week.

Winona Librarian Bootsie Weed said, "Fiction are the most popular books in the library, but cookbooks are second."

Foose agreed, "Even if you don't cook and just read a cookbook is good. Sometimes imagining cooking will take your mind off your trouble."

The annual Taster's Luncheon is held every year in honor of National Library Week. Guests enjoy a buffet of homemade dishes prepared by the Friends of the Library. As a special parting gift, every recipe is printed in a cookbook and given to each person attending. This year, dishes ranged from chocolate pecan cobbler to Rotel grits to Tomato soup aspic.