If someone had asked Carley Sizemore what profession she would go into 10 years ago, she would have said she was following in her mother’s steps to be a teacher.

Now, she runs a restaurant in Athens that belongs to one of the biggest franchises in the country.

Sizemore is from a small town near Fort Payne called Sylvania. Her mom, Debbie Sizemore, has been teaching at Sylvania High School for 35 years.

“I was in school to be a high school history teacher and I was about a semester away from graduating when (Ruby Tuesday) offered me a management position with the company,” said Sizemore.

Sizemore said she actually started her career in the restaurant business at a small steak house in Fort Payne when she was a sophomore in high school. She applied for a job at Ruby Tuesday in Scottsboro about two weeks before it opened and was hired.

In 2000, she was offered a management position with the company and last year was offered a general manager position for the restaurant in Athens.

She said she comes from a small town and that’s what she likes about Athens.

“I like it. It’s a small town atmosphere, but it’s bigger than the small town I was used to,” said Sizemore, referring proudly to the one-traffic-light Sylvania. “I like Athens, the people are nice.”

Her love of cooking and food was ingrained by her family, she said. Her father, Charles Sizemore, grew crops like potatoes, soybeans, corn and other vegetables.

“My dad was a farmer so we always had fresh vegetables,” she said.

She said she and her brothers were brought up on the small town way of life. She and brothers, Chip and Chad, learned to cook from their parents and grandparents, and loved to have their friends come over.

“Mom and both of my grandmothers are wonderful cooks,” she said. “My friends always loved coming to the house because she always had something going. She always had fresh everything.”

Schoolteachers and vegetable farmers aren’t millionaires, she pointed out, which prompted them to be creative with their dinners occasionally. Pies and dishes like Shrimp Creole were special treats, she said.

“Sometimes we just had to make up stuff with what was in the cabinets,” she said.

As in most small Southern towns, Sundays were special at the Sizemore’s.

“On Sunday mornings, Dad was always at church and cooking breakfast,” said Sizemore. “And we always had coconut cakes on Sundays, too.”

Now Sizemore’s back to hosting family and friends, just in a larger capacity, she said, at Ruby Tuesday in Athens.

“It’s the most fun I’ve had at a job in a long time,” said Sizemore.



Below are some recipes Sizemore wanted to share that were passed down from her mother.



Momma’s

Chocolate Pie



Ingredients:

1 cup corn starch

4 tbsp. cocoa

2 cups milk

4 eggs, separated

1/4 stick margarine

1tsp vanilla

pinch salt



Directions:

Mix dry ingredients well with a wire whisk. Add egg yolks, milk, and vanilla; beat thoroughly. Add margarine, and cook in double boiler, stirring constantly until thick (7 to 10 minutes). Pour into baked 10-inch pie shell and cool for 10 minutes.



Meringue Topping



Directions:

Beat egg whites; when half beaten, add 8 tsp of sugar and 1 tbsp cornstarch. Beat until stiff peaks form. Spread over pie and brown in oven.





Shrimp Creole



Ingredients:

1 bell pepper, chopped

1 medium onion, chopped

1 cup sliced celery

1/4 tsp garlic salt



Saute ingredients in 2 tsp of oil until transparent.

Stir in:

2 cans tomato soup

1 can water

2 tsp lemon juice

1/4 tsp. Tabasco

Salt and pepper to taste



Directions:

Simmer everything for 15 minutes. Add 2 tbsp File Gumbo and stir. Add 1 lb. Peeled shrimp; heat until shrimp is warm about 2-3 minutes). Serve over rice.