Our Cooking in a Crunch feature is about easy to prepare meals and a quick conversation with the cook. So here is what Selene Richardson has to say about how, and why, she learned her way around the kitchen like a rock star.
When did you first learn how to cook?
When my dad told me, “you better get in there and learn how to cook, or someone else will be cooking for your husband”. “LOL, daddy, I’m 12,” I said. So, I started learning how to cook at age 12 because I didn’t want someone else to cook for my husband to be. LOL! I loved my daddy!!
- What are your favorite dishes to cook?
Mash Potatoes, Greens, Ribs, Jambalaya, baked chicken, Potatoes Salad… just to name a few. 
- How does having meals with the family help you to connect better?
My husband and I were both raised by southern parents (Alabama & Georgia and Mississippi). A good meal is the heartbeat of our home. We grew up eating together as a family, and we built our family on that same principle.
- What kind of drinks do you like to serve together with your meals?
Water, and a good glass of wine (sometimes).
- What do you like best about cooking?
I love it when my mom & mother-in-law validate my cooking. When they say, “O, this taste so good!”, or when my husband says, “this is good, Nene”, or when my son says, “Mom, let me slap you, this is so good”, or when my daughter just makes her food disappears in a moment’s notice.
My Mom’s Georgia Peach Cornbread
- 1 1/2 cup of yellow cornmeal
- 1 cup of all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon of baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon of salt
- 3/4 cup of vegetable oil or 1 1/2 stick of unsalted butter (I like the oil personally)
- 2 large eggs
- 1 1/2 cup of milk
- 1 cup of sugar
Mix thoroughly
Pour in a greased cast-iron pan
Bake for 35 minutes on 375
