Summer Corbitt cooking up some Swamp Cabbage with State Plate host, Taylor Hicks. (Submitted photo)

Summer Corbitt and her brother Field Corbitt, both LaBelle natives, helped put LaBelle on the map this past week and they did it through their love of Swamp Cabbage. Summer, has always been a lover of the local delicacy; growing up as a fifth generation LaBellian she developed a love for Swamp Cabbage at an early age and she’s been touting its praises everywhere she goes ever since.

It was during her time working in entertainment marketing for CNN Atlanta when she first caught the attention of her friend, and freelance producer Laurel Ripley, when Summer made the dish for her colleagues at their company pot lucks. When a cooking segment on a television show featuring iconic state foods presented itself, Summer was an obvious choice for the spot.

It was on a new traveling food series, State Plate, airing on the INSP (formerly Inspiration Network) channel that Summer had the chance to bring our much loved local cuisine to the masses! State Plate, hosted by Alabama native and American Idol Taylor Hicks will cross the country creating iconic dishes most loved by the locals in the prospective areas.

Summer was thrilled to accompany Taylor and a film crew down to LaBelle to introduce the tradition of cutting down the Cabbage Palm, paring it down to the heart of the Palm, and stewing it in the time honored way her family has been doing for years.

Bringing a television crew to a local orange grove, owned by Bryan Beer Jr., the process began by Field Corbitt demonstrating how to properly cut down the Cabbage Palm Tree with a chain saw. After procuring the heart of the tree Summer was joined by Hicks in her actual home kitchen to cook up the beloved stew.

When all was said and done Summer and her brother Field were thrilled to have been a part of the production and even more so by spreading their love of our regional iconic cuisine.

At the request of the production team we were unable to share the information on the show before it’s airing but you can now find information and see clips of the episode of State Plate: Florida on tvguide.com and INSP.com