JOHNSON CITY—Memories of mid-20th century restaurants in Johnson City, civil rights activist Rosa Parks' favorite recipe for salmon croquettes, and Depression-era food from a 1933 Sunday school class cookbook are among the offerings in a new booklet published by East Tennessee State University.
“An Elegant Sufficiency: More Recipes and Remembrances” is a 48-page supplement to the university's award-winning book Home and Away: A University Brings Food to the Table.
The booklet includes 48 recipes accompanied by stories, reminiscences and photographs, all related to ETSU. For example, Judge Stewart Cannon's spinach salad recipe appears with a story about his father's grocery store, which operated on Johnson City's Fountain Square from 1936 to 1951.
“There were two or three service groceries in town,” Cannon recalled. “We owned two delivery trucks which made runs to north and south Johnson City, twice each day, each way. People gave us keys to their apartments or houses. If they were at home, we would tap on the front door. If not, we went to the back door and used the key. We put milk and eggs in the refrigerator and everything else on the kitchen table, along with an itemized bill.”
The salmon croquettes were prepared for Parks by former ETSU student Brent Taylor on December 1, 2000, when the Rosa Parks Library and Museum was dedicated at the Troy State University campus in Montgomery, Ala., near the site where Parks refused to give up her seat to accommodate a white man, an act that led to the Montgomery bus boycott, a pivotal event in the American civil rights movement.
ETSU chemistry professor Dr. Thomas Huang shares a recipe for “Ants Climbing up a Tree,” made with bean thread noodles and ground pork, from his native China.
Picadillo, a seasoned ground beef dish served over rice, is Dr. Ken Mijeski's contribution. The ETSU political science professor learned to appreciate the dish while doing research in Costa Rica, and the recipe, given to him by a friend, is one served often in Cuba by Mary Hemingway, fourth wife of novelist Ernest Hemingway.
Writer John Bowers, now of New York City, writes about the chicken salad sandwiches and lime-aide from his youth that were delivered by Prater-Wilson Drug Store in Johnson City, hot tamales sold on the street downtown, and nickel barbecued pork sandwiches from Guy's.
Elegant Shrimp Salad from professors Arthur and Margaret Hougland, a winning chili recipe from Alpha Delta Pi Sorority and bread pudding from an expatriate Cajun are offered, alongside stories about the health benefits of chocolate and the history of Krispy Kreme doughnuts.
The booklet was compiled and edited by Fred Sauceman, designed by Sam Mays, and photographs were provided by Larry Smith. Sauceman and Smith are longtime employees of ETSU, and Mays, of Jonesborough, is majoring in art at the university.
“An Elegant Sufficiency” can be obtained free of charge with the purchase of Home and Away. The booklet is available at the ETSU Bookstore, Books-A-Million and the Treasure House, all of Johnson City; Main Street Café and Catering and the Storytelling Gift Shop in Jonesborough; Nostalgicks in Greeneville; and at the studios of WETS-FM, located on the ETSU campus. Proceeds from the sale of Home and Away support the station.
For more information, call the ETSU office of university relations at (423) 439-4317 or WETS-FM at 1-888-895-WETS.
NOTE: This booklet is not being sold. It is purely a giveaway item. If someone has already purchased Home and Away and would like a free copy of the booklet, that person should contact our office.