What’s the secret behind that sauce? Fort Mill chef tells all in new book

Joy Smith starts life with dessert first.

Smith, of Fort Mill, is known for her adventurous spirit. She traveled to Antarctica two years ago at the age of 70 and shortly before that trip went skydiving. She continues to climb mountains, travel and ride horses.

Smith’s inspiration to make the most out of each day comes from her former University of Richmond creating writing professor Clifford Dowdey, who had a saying.

“’Live life on the right-hand side of the menu,’” Smith said. “He wanted us to go out into the world and live life to the fullest.”

That motto is reflected in Smith’s recently published cookbook, “Tell Me a Story, I’ll Bake You a Cake,” where desserts come first.

“So I put the whole book backwards,” she said. “Not too many people start with dessert first, but I did.”

Smith’s cookbook includes recipes from 10 years of “Cooking with Joy,” a food column she wrote for the Fort Mill Times, along with stories connected to each dish.

“It’s not just a cookbook; It’s a story and picture book,” she said. “It’s all three in one.”

The stories are filled with humorous anecdotes from Smith’s life, including from her childhood in Roanoke, Va.

Rather than the typical posed image, her author photo shows Smith at the top of the Peaks of Otter in Virginia, which she climbs each year on her birthday.

“It’s short, funny and right to the point,” she said. “I have a quirky sense of humor.”

The cookbook’s title reflects that it’s a story book as much as a recipe collection, Smith said. The cover, designed by Kim Hajas, features Smith’s now 41-year-old daughter Whitney on her first birthday when she smashed her face into the red velvet cake.

That story is with the first recipe in the book, Peggy’s Red Velvet Cake.

“People want to know who this baby is,” Smith said.

Smith put her favorite recipes in the book that she has “begged, borrowed or stolen” over the years, including No Brainer Braided Loaf, Thanksgiving Pumpkin Bread, Old Virginia Beef Stew and Aunt Esther’s Swedish Meatballs.

A popular dish is Marvin’s Favorite Meatloaf, named for Smith’s husband. People now stop and compliment him on the dish, she said.

“He got to be famous for my meatloaf,” Smith said. “It’s probably people’s favorite recipe out of the whole book.”

Though the culinary arts run in her family, Smith did not start out a cook.

“My mother was a really good cook,” she said. “I did not know how to even boil water.”

Smith gradually learned to cook thanks to friends’ recipes. She also started to read and collect cookbooks.

“The creative side of me kicked in and now I really enjoy it,” she said.

Smith toyed with the idea of starting a food column, but did not expect it to become what it did.

“People seemed to like it and it grew some legs,” she said of her monthly contributions to the Times.

Now her cookbook is available all around the world in both digital and print versions, with stories that everyone can relate to.

“It all started with the Fort Mill Times columns,” she said. “It’s been a nice journey.”

This story was originally published November 25, 2016 at 5:22 PM with the headline "What’s the secret behind that sauce? Fort Mill chef tells all in new book."