Baking and decorating cakes is how Sarah Kennedy and Mitchell Miller spend quality time with their 6-year-old daughter, Alivia. So last June, they opened a business in hopes of leaving Alivia a tasty legacy. Yum Yum Crumbs, the couple’s Charlotte-based pop-up bakery, makes cakes — in cups. The base of each cup starts with cake crumbles — maybe espresso, red velvet, or chocolate — followed by pudding, cheesecake, or another delectable filling. Then comes a second layer of cake crumbles and the finishing touch: a topping like frosting, a caramel drizzle, or rainbow sprinkles. Looking for a seasonal fall treat? The sweet potato and pumpkin flavors have got you covered. — Anna Mudd
Yum Yum Crumbs
(980) 474-8641
yumyumcrumbs.com
You’ll find a trove of North Carolina-made (or grown) gifts, like these air plants from the Holly Days Arts and Crafts Show. photograph by Matt Ray Photography
Browse baskets, woodcrafts, jewelry, and other goods from more than 70 craft vendors at Southport Baptist Church. And if you work up an appetite while shopping, visit the concession stand to indulge in a hot dog topped with homemade chili followed by peach cobbler.
(336) 317-2968
southportbaptist.org/womensministry
Served warm in a mug or cold and bubbly in a glass, the sweet-tart taste of hard and soft ciders is one of our favorite parts of fall.
The Prewitt family has grown and sold apples since the early 1800s, and Justin Prewitt, the fifth generation of Prewitt apple growers, carries on that tradition today. Each week during the fall, Apple Hill presses at least 600 gallons of apple cider, which can be purchased at the orchard’s farm market by the gallon, half-gallon, cup, and in slushy form.
(828) 419-7955
applehillorchard.com
This Moore County farm is the first in our state to make hard cider using estate-grown apples. In addition to apples, the farm grows peaches, blueberries, and muscadines, which are used in seasonal, small-batch hard ciders. You can enjoy the farm’s cider in their tasting room and at the Carrboro Farmers Market.
(910) 245-9901
jamescreekciderhouse.com
At this tasting room located within Hook Hand Brewery’s taproom, cozy up to a glass of sage-and-black-pepper cider made with sage grown in Bertie County. Blackwater also offers a variety of dry and sweet ciders made with apples that are mostly grown in our state.
blackwater-cider-llc.business.site
To find more North Carolina cider makers, visit ourstate.com/nc-cider.
Don’t leave the Pecan Harvest Festival without picking up a bag for later. photograph by VeselovaElena/iStock/GettyImages
Whether you say puh-cahn or pee-can, you’re welcome in downtown Whiteville for a weekend all about one of our state’s favorite agricultural staples. Meet the Pecan Queen Pamela Young Jacobs, a member of the Waccamaw Siouan Tribe, during the Queen’s Reception at the Vineland Station Depot; taste burgers cooked by local first responders in the Burger Brawl on Pecan Street; talk to local pecan growers at Pecan Corner; purchase a bag of glazed or salted pecans to snack on; and enjoy many other offerings at this annual event.
(910) 770-1991
ncpecanfestival.com
— Chloe Klingstedt
When it comes to spreading holiday cheer, the residents of this Chatham County town start early.
Our editor in chief shares a few treasured memories from her childhood home, a Christmas Eve night being one of the very first.
We took some, ahem, creative liberties when we combed through Our State’s archives to find a few favorite stories that carry the tune of a Christmas classic.
From decades-old family recipes to a centuries-old Carolina cookie, we’re filling our holiday tables with dishes that have stood the test of time.
