Leigh Goff works for the Agriculture Committee as well as the Game, Fish and Parks Committee in the Georgia House of Representatives.
As you might guess, Goff was a political science major in college, but she had a long career with Delta Air Lines, then retired for a time, before finally using her degree at the state Capitol.
When she’s not working, Goff likes to cook. And, like so many Southern women, she credits her mother with inspiring her.
“My mother is a good cook, and a nice entertainer, and I guess that just sort of rolls downhill,” she said, adding that, growing up in a small town, family and food were a traditional part of the culture.
Credit: Lynn Ford
Credit: Lynn Ford
“I grew up in a little, bitty small town, Madison, Georgia, and there were just not a lot of dining-out options,” Goff said. “So, the way I grew up, you came home from school, and ate supper together. And, that was the same way with my husband and son. We would say a blessing and have supper.”
Between the pandemic, and selling her house, Goff allowed that 2020 wasn’t her “best cooking year,” but she ended up back in Madison, living in her mother’s lake house.
“This was a strange holiday season,” she said. “I’ve been around my 91-year-old-mother, and my younger brother, and a sister who’s married with three children. My mother normally hosts everybody for Christmas Eve, but she was sort of stressed out, with my niece’s wedding coming up. So, we just made ‘Chicken Quarantine,’ with a salad, and bread, and a plate of Christmas cookies.”
All joking aside, Chicken Quarantine is Chicken lasagna Florentine. It’s a hearty and homey recipe that’s made the rounds on the internet.
Besides layers of chicken and noodles, with cheddar cheese, mushroom soup and sour cream, it’s topped with a mixture of Parmesan cheese, chopped pecans and melted butter.
“It’s probably a Southern Living original,” Goff mused. “To me, the pecan stuff doesn’t sound good on paper, but it really is delicious. Just put it with a salad, and you’re good to go. Just wait about 5 minutes after you take it out of the oven, and it does slice nicely, and plate pretty.”
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