After 
the Garden Tour and the House Tour and additional free time to wander taking pictures, we were told to meet at the Barn whenever we heard the farmhouse dinner bell ring to summon us for lunch.
We could hardly wait to sample recipes made from P. Allen Smith's Seasonal Recipes From The Garden Cookbook. Our meal was made by his chef and served by lots of smiling hostesses.
We were greeted at the Barn door as we all entered. Antique lanterns were prominently displayed on a long wooden table just outside the Barn door. 
Here's our delicious menu. We had already been told that the Buttermilk Pecan Pie recipe was worth the price of the cookbook:
Here are our servers delivering the food as we all find our seats: 
Here's our plate of delicious Chicken Salad over a bed of greens. It all looked delicious: 
There was one empty spot at our table, and we were hoping Mr. Smith would make his way to it...("over here P. Allen, over here!") but alas, he was already slotted to sit with special visitors at their reserved table. Oh, well, next time: 
After the meal, he answered questions from our group for quite a while. He was quite interesting and very entertaining as he told us about buying the property and lots of other facts about Moss Mountain. We could tell that he loved entertaining his guests:
The large vegetable paintings that decorated the barn walls were done by Mr. Smith and smaller versions were sold in his gift shop, although with a price tag: 
After lunch was over, Mr. Smith signed his cookbooks for anyone wishing to purchase one from the gift shop: 
Of course, both my sister and I bought one since it's a very useful souvenir of our visit, don't you think? There's a pie recipe on page 240 and a cookie recipe on page 180 we have to try out!: 
And here's my sister Bet after he signed her book: 
As we prepared to leave after everything was over, I was so thankful to have had the opportunity to visit P. Allen Smith's Moss Mountain farm. I had talked about making this trip so many times, and even in the rain it was beautiful!
These two sisters had a very delightful Sister Trip! 
After driving that far from home, we planned other excursions while in Arkansas. What else did we do, you ask?
Well...I guess that's Part 4....and Part 5. Stay tuned.
~ Deb
What a great trip this must have been -- and a part to go!
Posted by: Rose | Wednesday, June 22, 2016 at 04:20 AM
I'm really enjoying reading about your trip, Deb. The one time we drove through Arkansas I was struck by how poor everything looked so I'm happily surprised to see what wonderful place this farm is. And I absolutely love those white hydrangeas on the tables.
Posted by: Toni | Wednesday, June 22, 2016 at 05:22 AM
That looks like a delicious luncheon! Did you eat the flowers? :D
I would have purchased the cookbook too!
Posted by: Tammy | Wednesday, June 22, 2016 at 09:30 AM
Sounds like you and Betty had a wonderful adventure! I'm glad you got to make this trip together.
Posted by: Becka | Wednesday, June 22, 2016 at 01:01 PM
Wow that looks like it really was a fun trip.Agree an autographed book is always worth buying.Let us know how the recipes turn out from pages 180 and 240.
Posted by: Tammy C | Thursday, June 23, 2016 at 07:50 AM
Oh I have LOVED reading about your trip!! From watching his shows, Moss Mountain looks like it's pretty close to heaven on earth!! Was it that way in real life???????
His,
Shari
Posted by: Shari | Thursday, June 23, 2016 at 09:11 PM
I really enjoyed your narrative of this beautiful trip. I'm glad the rain didn't spoil it for you-it just made everything look lush and thriving! Thank you for sharing your excursion:)
Posted by: Kim C | Friday, June 24, 2016 at 06:45 AM