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Edie Hand Entertains at The Viking Store
By ASHLEY BONEStaff Reporter
An event at the Viking Store in Franklin truly was a night to remember on Dec. 6.
 | Photo by Ashley Bone
Edie Hand makes Maui banana bread for an audience at the Factory’s Viking Store.
|  | Photo by Ashley Bone
Edie Hand, country music artist Woody Bradshaw and Ronnie McDowell lead the audience in Christmas carols. Bradshaw bows as “Silent Night” comes to a finale.
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Renowned television and radio personality, best-selling author and friend of many, Edie Hand, was present to cook and entertain guests in the studio kitchen.
Country music artists Ronnie McDowell, Woody Bradshaw, Lynette Dove, sang and led the audience in a chorus of Christmas Carols.
Hand, a Birmingham, Ala. resident, has appeared on television shows such as “Hee Haw”, “As the World Turns” and “Fox and Friends”, among others. She is author of “The Presley Family & Friends” cookbook.
With the late Buddy Killen, Hand co-wrote “A Country Music Christmas”, a cookbook that encompasses traditional holiday recipes from country music legends. Killen was the publisher of Elvis’s Heartbreak Hotel album and passed away last year before he was scheduled to go on the book tour with Hand. A Christmas CD with traditional tunes is included with the book.
Hand captivated the audience with stories from her past while preparing Maui Banana Bread and Always on My Mind Biscuits with Chocolate Gravy. Her Always on my Mind biscuits with chocolate sauce were a traditional treat made by her grandmother she said . She added, Willie Nelson also grew up eating them, explaining the title of her recipe.
Mike and Deni Karpowich drove from Huntsville, Ala. for the event.
“It was great,” Mike said. “We’ll definitely be back.’
An interesting fun fact about this southern lady is her second cousin was the late Rock and Roll Legend, Elvis Presley. Their grandmothers were sisters. Hand said she enjoys sharing stories during the holiday season.
“The most poignant moments are around the table,” Hand said. “People share stories and break bread together.”
The oldest of five children, Hand said her favorite Christmas memory is from her younger years on a farm in Red Bay, Ala.
“Every Christmas, my brothers and I would get up early and ride horses at dawn while we sang carols,” she said. Her brothers are now deceased but before her brother, Terry, passed away, he asked her to share their story with the world.
And share she did.
A song she co-wrote is called “The Last Christmas Ride” and appears on the 14th track of the CD which comes with “A Country Music Christmas.” With a full orchestra accompanying her, Hand herself is singing the song about her favorite Christmas memory.
“It’s about hope,” she said. “It gives people encouragement saying, its ok to let go and its ok to give.”
She also wrote a novella about ”The Last Christmas Ride” which tells her family’s story.
Fran Abbagnaro of Brentwood, attended the event with five of her friends from water aerobics and their instructor.
“This was my first class, but it won’t be my last,” she said. “Edie was hilarious and delightful.”
Hand is one to always help others so a portion of her book profits benefit the St. Jude’s Research Hospital and the Country Music Hall of Fame.
A nationwide audience can enjoy Hand and her stories on NBC’s The Today Show this Christmas Eve.
If you missed Edie Hand last week, she is scheduled to be back in February with her newly released “Cooking Cajun and Creole with Miss Edie and The Colonel”. It includes food history and Cajun recipes from the South. Hand’s books are available for purchase at most major bookstores and Amazon.com. For additional information about Edie, visit her Web site at www.ediehand.com. For information about the Viking Store and classes there visit www.thevikingstore.net.
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