NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2007 Our first and only food cover Photography by BRENDAN BUSH Then-Creative Director Leonard Loria came to us via Southern Living magazine, and this of course became known as our Southern Living cover, with its warm invitation into the Holiday Recipes piece. Inside the issue: Want the recipe, courtesy of long-time (and now retired) Friends of the Blue Ridge Parkway Exec Susan Mills? Here y'go: Walnut Cranberry Cake STEP 1 2¼ c. 1 c. ¼ tsp. 1 tsp. 1 tsp. all-purpose flour/sifted sugar salt baking powder baking soda STEP 2 1 ¼ c. chopped English walnuts 1 ¼ c. chopped dates 1 ¼ c. fresh cranberries zest of 2 oranges STEP 3 2 eggs beaten 1 c. buttermilk ¾ c. sunflower oil SAUCE 1 ½ c. orange juice 1 ½ c. sugar Preheat oven to 350. Grease a 10-inch tube pan. Sift step 1 ingredients together into bowl. Mix step 2 ingredients and first mixture. Combine items in step 3 ingredients with flour and fruit mixture. Mix and pour into tube pan. Bake 1 hour. Place on counter and let it stand until lukewarm so you can turn out onto the serving plate. Heat sauce ingredients in a pot on the stove and boil for 10-15 minutes. Using a wooden skewer, poke holes all over the top of the cake while it's still warm. Pour the heated orange juice mixture slowly over the top of the cake, waiting for it to sink in. MARCH/APRIL 2008 Our first and only celebrity cover, featuring the talented Kathy Mattea Photo by KRISTIN BARLOW Reader reaction, well-documented in the subsequent issue, included many admonishments for our straying from the usual scenic shot: "Enough of this kind of material on TV;" "Better suited for a fashion magazine;" "Leave the cheesecake to magazines that cater to that;" "When will the swimsuit issue come out?" And then this! The plants surrounding the subject were verified to be poison ivy; reader concern prompted Ms. Mattea's manager to confirm that no harming of the subject had occurred with the shot. Inside the issue: West Virginia native Kathy Mattea's favorite place in the mountains? "One of my favorite towns in West Virginia is Lewisburg. There's a wonderful bed and breakfast called the General Lewis Inn. They also have a lovely small theater called Carnegie Hall." JULY/AUGUST 2018 45