The stories that speak to all of us share one universal truth: We all have to eat.
Susan Puckett was food editor for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution for almost 19 years before leaving in 2008 to pursue independent projects. She has written or edited eight cookbooks and collaborated on several others. Her latest book, "Eat Drink Delta: a Hungry Traveler's Journey Through the Soul of the South" (University of Georgia Press) is due out in Fall 2012.
Her previous books include “A Cook’s Tour of Mississippi,” “A Cook’s Tour of Iowa,” “The Ultimate Barbecue Sauce Cookbook,” “The South the Beautiful Cookbook,” and “The 5:30 Challenge: Five Ingredients, 30 Minutes, Dinner on the Table.”
While at the AJC, she and her staff garnered dozens of awards for writing and editing from the James Beard Foundation and the Association of Food Journalists. In 2008 she was one of five newspaper food editors recognized by Saveur magazine in their annual top 100 tribute to food-related people, places and things. She is a longtime member of the Southern Foodways Alliance, and her forte throughout her career has been finding and telling food stories with a sense of place. She has also shepherded stories by chefs and other food professionals into print. Virginia Willis and Maggie Glezer both wrote their first newspaper stories for Susan, and later produced nationally award-winning cookbooks. A piece on biscuits written by chef Scott Peacock for the AJC was chosen to appear in Holly Hughes’ Best Food Writing 2008. John T. Edge earned a James Beard Foundation nomination for the quarterly Saving Southern Food series Susan edited.
Susan has a journalism degree from Ole Miss and also studied nutrition at Iowa State University. She has also been a food writer or editor at the South Florida Sun-Sentinel, [Cleveland, OH] Plain Dealer, Cincinnati Enquirer and [Jackson, Mississippi] Clarion-Ledger. She has been published in numerous national publications including Saveur, Country Home, Woman’s Day and Restaurants and Institutions.
A native of Jackson, Mississippi, Susan lives in Decatur, Georgia, with her husband and rescued greyhound. When she isn’t in the kitchen, on the road, or at her computer, she can often be spotted jogging at a tortoise pace on various routes around the city.
/// Susan Puckett is the newest
Atlanta Magazine food columnist!
The Southern Recipe Restoration Project beyond print...
On February 21, 2010, a special dinner was held at Watershed Restaurant honoring
Slow Food International founder Carlo Petrini, who was visiting from Italy.
Members of the Slow Food Atlanta chapter asked me to help them plan a family
dinner theme based on heirloom recipes and stories shared by six top local
chefs. Photo courtesy of Labor of Love.
Click links to see how these chefs brought their own family histories to
life for a very special evening.
Slow Food Atlanta - Event announcement
Our Labor of Love - Event slide show