Just as families look forward to Thanksgiving, hosts look forward to the yearly Country Store Bake Sale that will help round out those Thanksgiving feasts with homemade cakes, pies, cheese straws, rolls, breads, candies, cookies, jellies and more. The much-anticipated 56th annual Country Store in Columbus takes place from 10 a.m. to noon Tuesday, Nov. 22 at the Stephen D. Lee Home at 316 Seventh St. N. Lynda Rood is one of many supporters making good things to eat for the event presented by the Association for the Preservation of Antiquities in Columbus and Lowndes County.
Rood and her daughters did a lot of “playing in the kitchen” when the girls were growing up in Columbus. Come November each year, one of their projects was to make goodies for the annual Country Store held at the historic Lee Home. Daughters Tory McClure and Bishop Chavers are grown now, living in Dallas, Texas, and Birmingham, Alabama, respectively. But that doesn’t rule out some baking practice when mother and daughters — and now grandkids, too — get together.
On a recent visit to Birmingham, Lynda teamed up with Bishop and Bishop’s children, Reagan, 15, and Reid, 13, to make desserts. Reagan and Reid are no strangers to cooking with their grandmother. She has several times hosted “mystery camp” for them; the siblings never knew what was on tap for the day’s camp. Often, they would end up in the kitchen.
“We just have a lot of fun,” said Lynda. “We find there’s no such thing as a generation gap when we’re in the kitchen.”
Local landmark
As with many others in Columbus, Lynda’s family has ties to the Lee Home. It once served as the home economics building of Stephen D. Lee High School, which stood where the current Columbus-Lowndes Public Library is now. After a new Lee High was built on Military Road, the structure became exclusively the junior high school, which Lynda attended.
When fire destroyed the junior high in December 1959, the home was left standing, but had sustained major smoke damage and had a large hole in its south wall. In 1960, the Antiquities Association and the Columbus-Lowndes Historical Society joined forces to save the home, creating the Stephen D. Lee Foundation, according to library archives. The gracious Lee Home now serves as a community venue and houses the Florence McLeod Hazard Museum. The Country Store benefits the foundation which maintains the home.
“This event is special; it was begun 56 years ago by a group of ladies who were working to repair the Lee Home after the devastating fire,” said Rita Douglass, president of the antiquities association.
Because this is the 56th annual sale, the fundraising goal is $5,600, Douglass noted. “But hopefully we’ll raise over $6,000, We’ll be donating money for reworking the stairs in the Lee Home.”
Early birds
Although the sale officially begins at 10 a.m. next Tuesday, enterprising shoppers can stop by the Lee Home beginning at 8 a.m. to pick up a number for lining up prior to 10 a.m. Doing so offers a sneak peek at many of the homemade items up for sale and gives the buyer a better chance of getting their first picks. (It’s possible all items could sell out before noon.)
“The presentation is beautiful,” Douglass said. “Betty Waters really fixes them up. They make great hostess gifts if you’re going somewhere for Thanksgiving.” An autumnal centerpiece by Mildred Austin will also be raffled off Tuesday. Tickets will be $1.
John Davis of Columbus is usually one of those shoppers picking up an early number on sale day.
“The Lee Home Antiquities Society Country Store Bake Sale is man’s best friend this time of year!” he said. ” A fellow can pick up great baked goods to surprise and help his wife, mother, daughter or any host on Thanksgiving Day.”
Davis’ immediate family is 52-strong, and everyone brings something different to the big dinner. The bake sale lets him bring the perfect cake, pie or sweet, “not to mention homemade yeast rolls that taste like your grandmother made them — great items, great fun, great taste and all for a great cause,” he said.
Counting down
In the days remaining before Tuesday’s Country Store, Lynda Rood and dozens of others will be busy creating their specialties for it. One of Lynda’s will be a carrot cake made from a recipe in “A Grand Heritage” cookbook, compiled by Heritage Academy. She shares that recipe and two others today.
“Why struggle to create a fabulous dessert or appetizer or bread when you can pick it all up at the sale,” she said, “and help support the Lee Home at the same time.”
For more information about the Country Store, contact Douglass at 662-327-3193 or Lillian Wade at 662-328-8012.
NANCY’S BOSTON CARROT CAKE
For the cake:
2 cups sugar
1 1/3 cups vegetable oil
4 eggs
3 cups plain flour
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons cinnamon
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 1/2 cups grated carrots
1 cup pecans, chopped
1/2 cup raisins
For the frosting:
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
3 tablespoons butter
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 1/2 cups sifted confectioner’s sugar
Optional: Decorate sides with toasted pecans and top with marzipan carrots.
(Source: “A Grand Heritage,” Helen Olive)
RICH CHOCOLATE CAKE
2 eggs
2 cups buttermilk
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups plain flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons soda
4 squares unsweetened chocolate
1/2 cup butter
For chocolate icing:
1 pound powered sugar, sifted
1/2 cup evaporated milk
1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
4 squares unsweetened chocolate
1/2 cup butter
(Source: “A Grand Heritage,” Julia Wade Franklin)
LEMON CHESS PIE
4 eggs
2 cups sugar
1/2 cup milk
6 tablespoons butter, melted
1 tablespoon plain flour
1 tablespoon cornmeal
Juice and grated rind of 2 lemons
1 (9-inch) pie crust slightly baked
(Source: “A Grand Heritage,” Margaret Mauldin)
Jan Swoope is the Lifestyles Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 32 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.