Amanda talks about the Lowcountry, those spongy bits of land divided by slow-moving rivers between Savannah, Georgia, and Pawleys Island, South Carolina. "Several groups made major contributions to our cuisine," she says. "The American Indians taught us to hunt, fish, and grow the three sisters: corn, beans, and squash. The Africans brought food memories and taught us how to cook differently. The French Huguenots, the British, and other European groups all brought their foodways too," Amanda continues. "Lowcountry cooking is the first fusion food."

Amanda began Carolina FoodPros, which offers the tours, after a successful 30-year career with stints at the CDC and USDA. Yet it's most obvious that growing up as a 10th-generation South Carolinian spices her outlook.

"The holidays have always been a time of celebration with enormous feasts after the harvest," she explains. We stop to talk with Karen Kennerty, a farmer who specializes in growing gourmet produce on Wadmalaw Island for restaurants and the market. We inspect okra and pecans and discuss collards, black-eyed peas, and hoppin' John. As we leave, we pass booths of poinsettias (first brought to the U.S. by Charlestonian Joel Poinsett), handmade wreaths and swags, and amber-toned ciders.

left: The tour pauses for a quick demonstration of decorating techniques at Kennedy's Market and Bakery.