An early one from Wednesday's food section, 3 Questions For Bobby Deen:
Bobby Deen used to be mad at his mother. He was a senior in high school
when his mother divorced and moved Bobby and his brother Jamie from Albany,
Ga., to Savannah, where she started a lunch delivery service, The Bag Lady.
Deen was 18, and he thought the move was awful.
And then, it worked out: The timing, the city, the luck. With the
three of them working together, The Bag Lady grew into a restaurant, The Lady
& Sons. Bobby’s mother, Paula Deen, wrote a little cookbook and became a
worldwide sensation.
“I never could have imagined it,” he admits. “But what it tells
me and what my mother has proven to me is, you really can do anything you want
to do.”
Today, Bobby Deen is host of “Not My Mama’s Meals” on the Cooking
Channel and author of “From Mama’s Table to Mine: Everybody’s Favorite Comfort
Foods at 350 Calories or Less.” And his mother Paula has lost more than 40
pounds after being diagnosed with diabetes.
He’ll sign copies of the new book at 7 p.m. Wednesday at Barnes
and Noble in the Arboretum, 3327 Pineville-Matthews Road.
And yes, it’s OK to ask about his mother.
“We’re very close, our lives and what we’ve done doesn’t need
defending. It’s a true, honest story.” Kathleen Purvis
Q: Every kid has a food battle. What
did you battle with your mother about eating when you were young?
“Liver! I didn’t like it. I still don’t love it. My mama would do
beef liver. It was Paula Deen cooking it, so it was good, but it was still
disgusting.”
Q: Between your home in Savannah and
your show in New York, you’re on the road a lot. How do you handle airport
meals?
“It is difficult. In most airports, there’s a Starbucks where you
can get a fruit cup. But I make sure I don’t show up hungry at the airport.
It’s a trap.”
Q: Are there any sacred Deen family
recipes you wouldn’t or couldn’t lighten?
“There is one – but I did it anyway. My favorite is goulash, a
glorified beef-a-roni. I try not to make it because my mama makes it on my
birthday. I did a lighter version and used it in two books. But I’ll be the
first to admit it’s not nearly as good as my mama’s.”
Yes You Can Mac and Cheese
From “From Mama’s Table to Mine,” by Bobby Deen (Ballantine,
$22). By making a changes, Deen lowered this from 30 grams of fat and 584
calories per serving to 7 grams of fat and 293 calories.
4 cups whole-grain elbow macaroni
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 cups nonfat milk
1 cup grated low-fat cheddar cheese
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 ounces low-fat cream cheese (Neufchatel)
1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
COOK the pasta in boiling salted water
for 1 minute less than the package directions suggest. Drain well.
RETURN the empty pasta pot to the stove
and melt the butter over medium-high heat. Whisk in the flour and cook 1
minute. Slowly whisk in the milk and simmer until bubbling and slightly thick.
Whisk in the cheddar, Parmesan, cream cheese, Worcestershire, dry mustard and
pepper.
STIR the pasta back into the pot and
cook until heated through, about 1 minute. Season with more salt and pepper and
serve.
YIELD: 8 servings.
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