Kat Robinson, a Writers' Colony at Dairy Hollow resident who has been coming to the Writers' Colony for a decade now, recently returned for a stay to work on her 12th book, The Great Arkansas Pie Book, which will be released this April. She is the author of the 2018 compendium Arkansas Food: The A to Z of Eating in the Natural State. A Little Rock-based author and food historian, Kat is well known for her culinary travelogues featuring regional food including Arkansas’ most significant restaurants, mom-and-pop dairy bars, and where to find a great homemade pie. Robinson is also the filmmaker behind the 2021 documentary Arkansas Dairy Bars: Neat Eats and Cool Treats, and the host of the Emmy-nominated show Make Room for Pie. Learn more at www.tiedyetravels.com.
During her two-week stay, Kat tried and refined dozens of different heritage pie recipes pulled from nearly 100 Arkansas community cookbooks, and came away with 50 pie recipes that will appear in the new book. Over the course of her residency she used:
14 dozen eggs
17 pounds of flour
12 pounds of sugar
3 pounds graham crackers
4 gallons milk
7 pounds of butter
2 gallons heavy cream
Kat Robinson observes, "The Culinary Suite is such a unique place for food writers, with an extraordinary, spacious kitchen featuring all sorts of equipment to allow you to experiment and conjure the recipes you need for your projects. I have returned to Writers' Colony multiple times to utilize the space to create books and articles. I know when I stay here, I have the solitude I need to concentrate on cooking and baking and the support of a great staff who make sure I have what I need. I'd recommend it to any cookbook author." Kat will be returning for another residency in February to continue working on her pies. Keep an eye out in our weekly email, on our Events page, and on our socials for an opportunity to try some of those pies!
The Culinary Suite was designed for cookbook and culinary writers to test their recipes, but it's also a comfortable, roomy suite with a beautiful kitchen and access to a large deck and a front porch perfect for writing, taking a break, or even entertaining as part of your culinary work! For February, we’re offering reduced rates for new bookings for residencies! Book a residency for at least two nights in February, and you’ll get the low rate of $75 per night, including the Culinary Suite. That’s a significant discount on our most expensive suite!
Thank you to Kat Robinson for sharing a little peek into her process. The Culinary Suite is one part of what makes the Writer's Colony so special, and it warms our hearts to see the beautiful culinary creations inspired in that space. See more photos of her residency and process below.
