As a Southerner, I take every opportunity I get to celebrate. As a foodie, I believe the heart of any celebration is the food I put my soul into, just as Southern families have for generations. The idea for That Thing in a Jar came to me by taking those treasured recipes to present in fun, portable packages—after all, no matter how special a Southern meal is, it's never too special to present informally, even in a jar. Times like these make the importance of the simple things strikingly clear. So I propose to start a revolution about making life simpler, and as any revolution of simplicity should, it starts small: with a meal in a jar. Be it a Mason jar, jelly jar, quilted preserve jar, Ball jar...just a jar.

A quarter-century ago I hosted my first dinner party. I wish someone would have told me then that I was supposed to enjoy it, too. As a child growing up in Marietta, Georgia, my mother never entertained and my grandmother preferred not to. She hosted bridge club once a quarter and at the ripe old age of 7, I lamented over the recipes, table decorations and timing of serving their desserts on silver trays that I polished. My grandmother made four dishes and none of them particularly well, so there was no pressure for her. As much as I adored her, I didn't get my Martha Stewart gene from living with her. My other grandmother in Alabama could only make one thing, that was tomato aspic - a mincemeat of indeterminate particles suspended in a viscous, grayish-pink blob with that traumatized my husband beyond words on our visits. Thanks to Food Network and the epicurean movement, times have changed and our minds and kitchens are filled with options galore. 

So many options, though, can paralyze hosts to the point where guests can't enjoy their homes or create memories. As with interior design, many would-be hosts don't know where to get started so they never do anything. Our appliance repairman once told us many homes in our own subdivision did not even have dining tables. That seems sad and needless to me. Here's hoping That Thing in a Jar can take some pressure off. You have to get started somewhere.

Not only does the jar presentation offer a simple starting point; it's also campy and has a funk factor. Already we are getting feedback of brides having jar food served at their weddings, jar food showers, jar BBQ's and jar hostess gifts. One idea we are using is having all recipes printed, rolled in scrolls and tied with ribbons then put them in quart jars as party favors. Guests react as if it's the best gift ever. Maybe it is.

In the first two decades of my adulthood, I was involved in literally hundreds of fundraisers, galas and events for my clients and friends. In our personal life, I hosted wedding & baby showers, dinners, family occasions, birthdays for our five children and holidays at home. It never occurred to me to strategize on ways to remove the elements of stress. Especially difficult were parties at home. I could not tear myself out of performance mode. Often when company arrived I had no make-up on and had not even considered what I was wearing. Needless to say I was certainly not ready to transition to a pleasurable time. Stress is the most unforgivable (or "unattractive," as my beloved late grandmother used to say) trait of a party host.  So as a way to help others learn my past, I am thrilled to introduce this concept...perhaps it will be the revolution that changes how you do things. It's the start of giving yourself wonderful permission to make changes to entertain or prepare a meal for your family simply and well. Something about food in a jar takes the pressure off not only the hosts but guests too. It's refreshing and sassy. I like sassy.

We will be providing updates and soon will roll out That Blog in a Jar which will include recipes from top chefs, cooks and foodies that love jar food for breakfast, lunch, cocktail parties and dinners.  We are hosting a 14-course first event for recipe samplings for our soon to be released cookbook,  Summer of Jar Love. Bravo Top Chef Hector Santiago of Atlanta's Pura Vida and many more gifted chefs and cooks will be there to "throw down."  Check for the attached page of recipe titles to be served at that event and added to the site as soon as we receive the final versions. I will include my blackberry cobbler with gingerbread biscuit in a jar for you.  The Ellderflower liqueur infused into the whipping cream is going to be the kicker, that and a lovely spring fresh lavender.  In the winter we will be hosting tastings for the cold weather version, Winter Comfort in a Jar.  Plus, we hhave knitters working away creating colorful koozies named: That Wrap for a Jar so that warm food can be served and held without the heat transferring to eager hands. I can just see it now, campfires hosts serving jar food with Bohemian koozies. Fun times...

Please sign up for eblasts that will include recipes, some simple and some chic....thanks for stopping by to visit That Thing in a Jar. Since being featured in Daily Candy, hundreds of you have reached out to say you love this eco- friendly entertaining alternative.  Jar clean up is a breeze!  What a blast to find a niche in an ever-changing food scene! 

Bon Appétit and check back soon!  Put some love in a jar and enjoy your life.

Contact  Toren Anderson   toren@bellsouth.net   770.591.8191

                             Photos by Chris Hornaday www.christopherhornadayphotography.com