Carson Galley

Have you ever heard of the fudge bottom pie?  That is one of the most popular recipes by Carson Galley  that is still made to this day, but his ligancy goes far beyond that.  Carson was the head chef at the University of Wisconsin at Madison from 1926-1954.  In addition Carson is one of the first celebrity chefs; having pioneered one of the first cooking shows on television called WBA Cooking School, a show that was well ahead of the Julia Childs Show .  After a month's worth of shows Carson and his wife Beatrice, who worked on the show with him, would compile all of the recipes into a mail order booklet, which would be the inspiration behind his first cookbook Seasoning Secrets: Herbs and Spices   published in 1949.  Besides being a great chef and television pioneer, Carson was also active in the NAACP. If you are interested in taking a look at these recipes click here to download a copy.  In the cookbook you will find not only the recipe to the fudge bottom pie, but some other southern favorites along with a couple of recipes calling for hickory nuts.  I have never heard of this particular nut but it still seems to be in existence so don't be surprised if you see a new product that contains these nuts.  I hope you enjoyed this little excerpt but most of all I hope it sparks some curiosity in you to keep learning about cooking history!