European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - April 3, 1992, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Yes they really fn6d gr�61i t01hftt06s�?T by Candy Sagon the Washington Post picture an Alabama country wedding reception in front of an imposing victorian House children frolicking on the Lush Lawn springtime azaleas in Bloom a 30-foot-Long Buffet table crowded with food including icy pitchers of lemonade and a three tiered Pearly White wedding cake decorated with fresh Pink Rose petals delicate Maidenhair ferns and candied violets. Except that its not springtime in Alabama it s a blistering summer in Georgia. The azaleas Are fake the children Are actors and food stylist Cynthia Hizer Jubera is frantically trying to keep the frosting from melting off the cake the Rose petals from Curling up and dying the bees from drowning in the lemonade and her staff of assistants from adding to their injury list of Burns pulled Muscles and heat stroke. Welcome to the glamorous world of food styling for the movies. Jubera of Atlanta was the food stylist for Fried Green tomatoes an engaging tale of women Friendship and Southern food set it the fictional town of whistle Stop ala., that for a while was the second most popular movie in the country according to the Trade paper variety. It stars Jessica Tandy Kathy Bates Mary Stuart Masterson and Mary Louise Parker and is based on the novel by Fannie Flagg. Although most movies usually show food for Only a few seconds in this movie much of the action revolves around the whistle Stop cafe so the food is Paramount. A Quot Babette a feast of the South Quot is How director Jon Avnet described the film to Jubera. What he needed her to do was recreate the food served during the 50 years the film spans from the depression to Modem limes. Although Jubera had 15 years of experience styling food for newspapers magazines and to commercials this was to be her first film and she initially turned Down the Job. But when Avnet saw a photo she had done of a single piece of country pie he knew she would be right for the food and he convinced her to change her mind. Her worst Day she remembers was during her first week on the Job when she had to make a Little bit of All the food to see How it looked on film. A a Universal pictures Fannie Flagg author of a Fried Green tomatoes at the whistle Stop cafe Quot is surrounded by movie East clockwise from left Kathy Bates Cicely Tyson Mary Stuart Masterson Mary Louise Parker and Jessica Tandy. She spent the whole night before making pies and biscuits and frying Chicken Catfish and Green tomatoes. Naively she assumed that everything would look Fine As Long As it was made correctly. What she did no to realize was that food in a movie is rarely shown up close As it is in still photographs so that it needs added color to look attractive from a distance. Quot i can to Tell you How bad the first Sweet potato pie looked on film Quot she now says with a laugh. Quot it looked like hell. It was Brown and ugly and the Green tomatoes looked Gray. It was humiliating. I thought to myself if i Ever get out of this alive i m never doing this  after that she used special food colouring pastes that made the pie and the tomatoes Quot look Day Glo to the naked Eye but just the right Shade on  once the filming got under Way she discovered her other Challenge making everything Safe enough to eat despite the withering heat and the hours it took to get one shot right. Quot everything had to be edible Quot Jubera explains. Quot you could t shellac anything. You  make a pie crust and fill it with cheerios to make it look real. You never knew when an actor would really have to take a bite of  and with the temperature usually nudging 100 degrees the food had to by kept Cool. She and her six to eight assistants spent much of their time Rushing food on and off ice to keep it sate to eat. In fact the heat was so intense especially in the cramped Kitchen where everything had to be prepared that one of her assistants collapsed from heat stroke. And then there were the pies. Every Day for nearly three weeks she made 10 to 20 of them peach Apple Blueberry Lemon meringue and the infamous Sweet potato All with handmade crusts. Quot i had to make five Sweet potato pies each morning and they had to be identical. The crust had to be fluted identically. The pie pans had to look  this was because if a scene was partially shot one Day and finished two weeks later the food had to look the same in the movie the cafe is where most of the food is served and the place is known for More than just its pies. So Jubera and her staff prepared thousands of steaming biscuits and Corn muffins Gallons of Brunswick Stew a whole roast suckling pm. And enough Fried Chicken Fried Catfish collard greens and stewed okra to feed the state of Georgia. Quot and that a not counting the endless batches of Fried Green tomatoes. The tomatoes required some special tinkering to make th6m look appetizing in film. Quot they re not a vivid Green to begin with and on film they looked drab Quot says Jubera. To improve their looks she soaked them in Green tinted water. Then she dredged them in Cornmeal flour and sugar froze them for Quot exactly 10 minutes from film to table t by the Washington Post his recipe that Cynthia Hizer Jubera used for the movie Fried Green tomatoes is of her own invention. Fried Green tomatoes 1 cup Cornmeal 1/2 cup flour 1 Tablespoon sugar 2 pounds 4 or 5 Green tomatoes sliced �?T/4-Inch thick Oil or solid shortening for frying Salt and Black Pepper to taste 4 Servings in a shallow bowl mix together the Cornmeal flour and sugar. Dredge both sides of the tomatoes in the mixture. Press the slices firmly into the meal to coat thoroughly put about Winch Oil or shortening in an cast Iron Skillet and heat Over medium High heat. Add the tomatoes to the hot Oil a few at a time without crowding and Fry about 2 minutes or until Golden Brown. Turn and Cook the other Side for about another 2 minutes. When both sides Are Golden Brown remove from the Skillet Drain on paper re dredged and Fried them. Quot we used an Assembly line to get it right. One person soaked whole trays full of tomatoes. Someone else dredged and froze them. And a third Fried them in a cast Iron  Jubera who grew up in Indiana remembers her Mother s making Fried Green tomatoes. Quot she fed them to us As kids. I remember eating them in the Spring and fall before the red ones came and before the first Frost. A As for the wedding reception scene although it comes As the film opens it actually was filmed after Jubera had been on the Job for three weeks. Quot i made three wedding cakes and had to use them All a Jubera says. Quot it was so hot the frosting Slid off two of them we had to decorate them on a cooler in someone s front  towels and Sprinkle with Salt and Pepper. Serve hot. Per serving 300 calories 5 pm protein 39 pm carbohydrates 15 pm fat 2 pm saturated fat 0 my cholesterol 19 my sodium. Sweet potato pie this recipe adapted from biscuits spoon Brealand Sweet potato pie by Bill Neal Knopf 1990also was used in Fried Green tomatoes. % cup packed Brown sugar 1/2 Teaspoon Salt 1 Teaspoon cinnamon v2 Teaspoon freshly grated Nutmeg 2 Tablespoons molasses 1 vie cups mashed cooked Sweet potatoes 2-3 cup half and half 2 eggs 3 Tablespoons dry Sherry optional 1 partially baked 9-Inch pie Shell makes 8 Servings mix together Brown sugar Salt cinnamon and Nutmeg add molasses and Sweet potatoes. Beat Well. Stir in half and half eggs and Sherry. Pour into pie Shell. Put in preheated 425-degree oven and immediately reduce heat to 375 degrees. Bake about 35 minutes. Per serving 304 calories 4 pm protein 49 pm carbohydrates 10 pm fat 3 pm saturated fat 72 my cholesterol 310 my sodium. The ultimate in Black Forest cake a prepared at the hotel Adler in Triberg Germany. A amps Jim Derheim in Pursuit of cake heaven by Chuck Roberts staff writer our search for the perfect piece of Black Forest cake ended in Triberg Germany. After driving and eating our Way through the Black Forest we finally found it at the cafe Adler. It was sublimely Light and had just the right amount of Cherry schnapps poured into the mixing bowl when it was prepared by Kuno Holzer. It should have been Savoured slowly but after tasting the first for Ful. Well it was Over in minutes afterwards there was an awkward silence at the table. Our Coffee sat untouched steam rising from the cups. Our eyes met and we knew without speaking that it had Arris been a special moment it was our first time but not the last because we ordered eight pieces to go and asked for the recipe. Our search for the perfect Schwarzwalde Kirsch Torto or Black Forest cake began in Freiburg. After finding nothing exceptional our moveable feast settled in at the hotel Linde in Hinter arten. The waiter assured us that he had the Best cake in the Black Forest. He stood with a knowing smile on his face As we took the first bite. It May not have been the Best cake in the Forest but it was certainly the most potent. The Cherry schnapps was so Strong that it is advisable not to eat this concoction near an open flame. From there to investigated reports that the Quot Best Quot was to be found at the hotel Pfaff in Triberg but that proved to be a dry experience. It was the recommendation of a clockmaker that led to the hotel Adler Here is the recipe hotel Adler Black Forest cake 3 layers chocolate sponge cake 7 of. Canned Black cherries 4vi of. Red currant Jelly 3 cups whipped Cream 3 Tablespoons Schwarzz Tolder dlr Schasser Cherry Brandy 1v of dark chocolate shaved spread red currant Jelly evenly on first layer of chocolate cake. Add about i Inch of whipped Cream and the cherries. Put second cake layer on top of cherries and drizzle Cherry Brandy Over it. Add another Winch layer of whipped Cream and top off with last layer of chocolate cake. Cover the top and sides of torte with rest of whipped Cream Sprinkle with shaved dark chocolate and decorate with cherries. Page 14 the stars and stripes Friday april 3, -g92 the stars and stripes Page 15