People see me on TV two and three times a day, and see me cooking all these wonderfully Southern, fattening dishes. That's only 30 days out of 365. And it's for entertainment.

When it's said and done, the one thing I want to leave on this earth is hope. I have felt hopelessness, and it's a terrible feeling. Hopelessness will destroy you. I want to bring hope to other people.

I loved my own Grandparents with all my heart. I learned important lessons from them about how to treat people, how to cook and how to work.....they showered us kids with love and left the parenting to Momma and Daddy. That's the beauty of being a grandparent - the hard work belongs to someone else. I guess I never really understood the depth of their love for me until I became a grandmother myself... it is unlike any other relationship.

I think no matter what the occasion may be, you can never go wrong by showing up at the dinner table with a hot plate of fried chicken.

I've got two vices: cigarettes and taters.

You can't make stuffing with sweet cornbread.

I'm so glad I'm not a dentist. How many times does someone say, 'Oh, Doc, it felt so good when you were drilling my teeth'? Never. But when you give someone a wonderful cookie, you put a little of yourself in, and you see someone's face light up - that's immediate approval.