by Bob Ratliff

Few states produce the variety of foods that Mississippi provides for the dinner tables of the nation and the world-shrimp from the Gulf Coast, catfish from the Delta, beef and dairy products from throughout the state, almost every vegetable crop imaginable, sweet potatoes and fruits ranging from blueberries to apples.

It's only natural, then, that much of the research conducted at Mississippi State University focuses on the production, marketing, and preparation of those products. Some of the results have been MSU's world-famous Edam and other cheeses, new uses for muscadines, and improved ways to prepare catfish. The university's work with those products-and many others-has given generations of Mississippi State cooks the opportunity to perfect their craft with some of the finest products available.

One of the latest is Cary Sutphin, administrator of the A.B. McKay Food and Enology Laboratory. Sutphin is an MSU alumnus and a distinguished graduate of the Culinary Institute of America who has practiced his culinary art at the Pontchartrain Hotel in New Orleans and for Marriott Hotels in Washington, D.C. During his more than 20 years at Mississippi State, he has prepared meals ranging from elegant dinners for heads of state to picnic baskets for tailgate parties.

In order to share Sutphin's knowledge of Mississippi foods, Vance Watson, director of the Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station, asked him to write a cookbook containing some of his favorite recipes. The result is A Taste of Class, a unique combination of Mississippi State history, kitchen tips, and recipes for everything from fried catfish to an entire Italian-style wine dinner.

"The cookbook is a permanent repository for some of our culinary research activities," Watson said. "The menus and recipes, for the most part, use Mississippi products."

Examples include roasted corn chowder with MSU cheddar cheese, Memphis-style barbecued ribs, and MSU Vallagret vegetable bisque.

The recipes are contained in plans for entire meals-ranging from a "Presidential Dinner" to a "Creole Supper."

"This cookbook represents the way Mississippi State entertains its guests," Sutphin said. "They have included some who have come to this corner of Mississippi expecting the stereotypical 'backwoods' school and who left with an appreciation for a university on the cutting edge of technology with a great tradition of hospitality for visitors."

Guests of the university who Sutphin has prepared meals for have included novelist John Grisham and chef and cookbook author Paul Prudhomme.

The production staff for A Taste of Class included Robyn Hearn, editor; Marco Nicovich, photographer; and Betty Mac Wilson, graphic artist-all of MSU's Office of Agricultural Communications.

Since its release in February, the cookbook has received critical acclaim, including an ADDY award from the American Advertising Federation and the Agricultural Communicators in Education's highest honor for a publication-a Gold Award.