To Southerners, recipes are very sacred things. Precious as any antique sideboard or inherited engagement ring, they are heirlooms themselves; memories made on our palates and in our hearts, all while sitting around cozy kitchen tables or on quilts stretched out over sun-warmed lawns. When we get together and talk about food, our grandmothers and mothers are elevated to mythical deities. "When my grandmother fried chicken, she never..." "When my mother...