Archive for » 2011 «
04
Aug 2011
Aug 2011
I know … you read the title of this post and thought rice? Why a post about cooking rice? Well, in New Orleans rice is a big deal. Aside from being a top cash crop, it serves as a breakfast, lunch and dinner staple. However, it’s probably one of the most overlooked ingredients, in terms of preparation. It tends to get overshadowed by the time and effort needed to create the great foods that are commonly ladled over it like Gumbo, Red Beans, Étouffée and Shrimp Creole. But it’s sooooo important. A mushy [ ... ]
29
Jul 2011
Jul 2011
I’ve got football fever bad and it’s not even August! I think it’s from the flood of news coverage following the NFL owners/players agreement. I’m just thrilled the season will start as scheduled. And by the sound of things, the Saints are building another winning team. Isn’t it exciting? And you know, the only thing better than watching football is throwing a football party. Which brings me to today’s finger food. I’m revisiting Caesar Salad Pancetta Cups–one of the dishes I hurriedly prepared for last season’s Super Bowl. Back in February, I [ ... ]
22
Jul 2011
Jul 2011
This Tomato-Pesto Tart is a deliciously savory hand-me-down recipe. My sister’s mother-in-law Pat handed it down to my sister Giselle who handed it down to me. Maybe what I should have said is that my sister simply handed it over to me since we’re of the same generation. Either way, I’ve got a copy and I’m sharing it with all of you!
This tart could easily be called “Summer Pie” because it hits two of the most vibrant flavors of the season, tomatoes and basil. For the best tasting tart, use the freshest ingredients. If you can get your [ ... ]
Category: Appetizers, Finger Food Fridays, Vegetables
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21
Jul 2011
Jul 2011
Last weekend, we returned home from our family vacation in Destin, Florida to find a handful of summer squash (yet another family garden project) eager to be picked. They were beautiful, but in an odd way. Their pale orange color and firm, bumpy skin made we question if we had planted what I thought was yellow crooknecks. I didn’t think much more about it until I went to prepare the squash for this recipe Their usually tender skin was tough to penetrate with the knife. So I decided to peel the outer layer, which did make for easier slicing. [ ... ]
15
Jul 2011
Jul 2011
I have no intentions of preheating the oven or even lighting up the grill today. It’s just too doggone hot to play with fire inside or out, if you know what I mean. So, I’m planning three no-cook meals beginning with fresh strawberries and a hard-boiled egg for breakfast and ending with Prosciutto-Wrapped Asparagus and a refreshing cocktail for dinner.
Now I don’t know about you, but I was raised on only a handful of fresh vegetables and asparagus wasn’t one of them. No, the asparagus I was familiar with came from the grocery store shelves. I’m not [ ... ]
Category: Appetizers, Finger Food Fridays, Salad, Vegetables
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08
Jul 2011
Jul 2011
Have you figured out by now that I’m a chips-and-dip junkie? Oh yeah! My addiction is well-documented in many of my Finger Food Friday posts … and there’s plenty more where those came from! I spend the better part of most days playing around with refrigerator finds in the hopes of creating yet another hot, cold, creamy or chunky dip to scoop onto whatever salty, crunchy vehicle I have on hand. Today, for instance, I have an unopened bag of Xochitl (pronounced “so cheel”) thin and crispy tortilla chips–my new favorite–and a handful of perfectly [ ... ]
04
Jul 2011
Jul 2011
Happy Fourth of July! Happy Birthday America! Happy 91st Birthday Mimi ( my maternal grandmother and the matriarch of our family )! Happy Birthday Emily ( my 9-year old niece )! There are so many reasons to celebrate today. So let’s eat cake — or Mississippi Mud Pie!
Mississippi Mud Pie is a down-home, unfussy sweet I associate with July 4th family get-togethers. There are countless variations, but our family recipe relies on a baked pecan crust and a rich, chocolatey pudding layer which represents the muddy banks of the Mississippi. It’s [ ... ]
01
Jul 2011
Jul 2011
Througout the years, I’ve eaten deviled eggs every which way. Many were decades-old family recipes that followed some combination of mashed yolks, mayo, mustard and sweet pickle relish. Others were filled with more interesting ingredients like crabmeat, chipotle peppers or Underwood Deviled Ham in the can. Do you remember that stuff? All of them were delicious, even the ones with pickle relish–which I firmly believe should be relegated to hotdogs! At home, however, I’ve always stuck to my traditional recipe of Hellman’s mayonnaise, Dijon mustard and black pepper. I’ve relied on those basic ingredients [ ... ]
30
Jun 2011
Jun 2011
If you want to add some sizzle to your summertime side dishes, serve this Bourbon Creamed Corn at your next cookout. Sure beats the canned “cream style sweet corn” we’re all too familiar with. It’s also a pleasant change from the grilled or boiled corn on the cob that frequents most backyard bashes.
This recipe is my best attempt at recreating a restaurant side I ate many years ago. I had to make it a couple of times before I got the cream-to-bourbon ratio just right. But I think I’ve finally nailed it. I also faced the challenge of balancing out [ ... ]
24
Jun 2011
Jun 2011
Are there certain foods you love but haven’t had in years? It could be a favorite childhood dish or maybe one of the first things you learned to cook on your own. If your answer to that question is yes, have you ever stopped to ask yourself why? I do that Q&A thing throughout my daily ritual of “recipe diving” (the fine art of digging through years and years of recipes for inspiration and sustenance) and meal planning. That question is also one of the reasons I started this blog–to protect “endangered” foods. You know, the ones on [ ... ]
