In the Hood

This past weekend was a blast from the past. I had the privilege of doing two book signings at the market that I would consider my neighborhood store. It is a gem for all those who know it – great food, great products and a strong local flair. It was a Pre-Superbowl tasting/book signing and it was a lot of fun seeing so many familiar faces from the community where I grew up (and now where my children are growing up). Scotty’s Market is the name of the place and if you are from Marin County and you don’t know it then you should. Passers-by tried corn bread, Mediterranean dip, sausage skillet, pumpkin cake and rock-e-road. If you haven’t tried these recipes from the book, give it a go, I think you won’t be disappointed. Some cool things from this book signing:
1- The local fire house enjoyed the tasting and bought a book to keep there for meal-time ideas. (I was flattered!)
2- Three pre-teens came by and tasted everything and MADE their parents buy the book.
3- A sweet elderly woman by the name of Glorie wanted the book but hadn’t brought enough money (she was only there to buy milk) I told her not to worry that the book would be on sale at the store and if she really liked it she could come back to get it sometime. She came back 40 mins after she left and asked if I would sign it for her. I was really touched.
4- A good friend of mine from grade school, Jennifer, came by to say hello and I was so happy to see her!
5- My cousin Rochelle came by both days to share her support and she put a huge smile on my face. And she wasn’t the only family member that came by – a lot of them did and I cherrish that.
6- A man stopped to look at every picture in the book and then asked for the publication date. He bought the book.
7- And at the end of the day Scotty’s said that they would sell the book on the magazine rack at check out, when I went by it to check it out, it was next to the Martha Stewart magazine. That was a personal high for me…why I never thought!