Archive for » 2012 «
23
Mar 2012
Mar 2012
I’ve got a real treat for you today and it doesn’t require any cooking! Today’s finger food is all about bringing a few high-quality ingredients together to create a memorable meal–a Finger Food Friday meal. In this case, it’s blue cheese and honey. Sweet honey drizzled over a salty and tangy blue transported by nothing more than a plain, crisp cracker or toasted bread slice. Yum! Several years ago, I discovered this amazing duo and have done a lot of experimenting since with different varieties of each. What I’ve learned is the type of cheese or honey is not nearly [ ... ]
21
Mar 2012
Mar 2012
So you’re probably looking at my picture wondering why the heck I calls these things Codfish Balls when they’re actually more like cakes or patties. Well, to be honest, I’m not sure. All I know is my family and many other New Orleans families refer to them the same way. It is what it is, and I’m not about to shake up the family dynamic by changing the name to fit some textbook or cookbook definition.
Codfish Balls have always been my favorite Lenten meal. Unfortunately, many years ago the canned codfish people (Beaver and maybe Gorton) [ ... ]
16
Mar 2012
Mar 2012
I recently read on NOLA.com that New Orleans ranks second in St. Patrick’s Day celebrations. This was according to Fodor’s, who sums up our week (that’s week, not day) of frolicking as “a mad mix of Mardi Gras and Irish-inspired brouhaha.” Well, I couldn’t have described it better myself! It really is a fun time to be in the City, even if you’re not Irish. And from my perspective, there are two main ways to partake in the festivities. If you’re looking to celebrate the occasion with “big people,” a block party is the way to go. Parasol’s and Tracey’s, [ ... ]
Category: Appetizers, Beef, Finger Food Fridays
Tags: Appetizers, Beef Stock, Finger Food Fridays Comments off
13
Mar 2012
Mar 2012
I wanted to let you all know that last week I was invited to do a guest post on my friend Shea’s blog, Dixie Chik Cooks. Shea is “a Southern Belle” (Birmingham to be exact) “who thinks about what’s for dinner while eating lunch.” Sounds like a native New Orleanian, doesn’t she? I’d love for you to hop on over to her site and check out my recipe for Chicken Sauce Piquant. Once there, I hope you’ll stay awhile and get to know Shea through all her wonderful stories and recipes. Happy Tuesday!
Genêt
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Category: Chicken, Main Dishes, New Orleans Classics
Tags: Chicken, New Orleans Cooking, Rice 7 Comments
08
Mar 2012
Mar 2012
I consider Dirty Rice to be one of several endangered New Orleans family dishes. Poppy Tooker, local food personality, culinary teacher and author, uses that term to describe South Louisiana foods and food traditions on the brink of extinction. We both agree that to prevent those culinary treasures from being lost or forgotten, we need to continue to cook, eat, share and, in some cases grow, them. This week, I did my part by preparing this incredibly aromatic and homey rice dish.
Dirty Rice is similar to Rice Dressing. The main difference is Dirty Rice calls for ground pork along with [ ... ]
02
Mar 2012
Mar 2012
In New Orleans, we have this sauce called bordelaise. It bears the same name as, but is much different than the classic French sauce. The French version is all about red wine and bone marrow. Ours is garlic-centric. We like to toss it with pasta, spoon it over sizzling seafood and steaks and splash it on steamed veggies. Believe me when I say, this sauce is delicious on everything and anything … including pizza! Yes, pizza. I use it as both the sauce, in place of the traditional red gravy/marinara base, and to amp up the flavor of my mild [ ... ]
Category: Appetizers, Finger Food Fridays, New Orleans Classics, Pasta, Snacks
Tags: Appetizers, Finger Food Fridays 2 Comments
29
Feb 2012
Feb 2012
I spent much of my preteen years hanging out with (borderline pestering) my dear neighbors, the Broussards. They were the parents of two young children and I was an aspiring babysitter. For those two reasons and many others, our relationship flourished. Under their roof, I learned to successfully change cloth diapers (Remember those?), spoon-feed a starving baby, negotiate nap times and navigate the terrible twos. I also learned to crochet, make homemade mashed potatoes in the microwave and roll brucioloni. I was fortunate to have a second family to love and help guide me through [ ... ]
Category: Beef, Main Dishes
3 Comments
24
Feb 2012
Feb 2012
I’m sharing a bit of food nostalgia with you on this Friday. It centers on Mock Oyster Dip, a glorious concoction of garlicky, cheesy goodness containing chopped broccoli and mushrooms meant to imitate the flavor and texture of oysters. Mind you, this is not French-Creole haute cuisine. It’s comforting New Orleans family finger food made with processed cheese and canned soup. It’s special because each bite awakens wonderful distant memories and important milestones. Over countless servings of warm Mock Oyster Dip that my family dished up at birthday parties, graduation parties and holiday dinners, I observed the various ways food [ ... ]
Category: Appetizers, Finger Food Fridays, Vegetables
Tags: Finger Food Fridays, Vegetables 7 Comments
23
Feb 2012
Feb 2012
New Orleanians love fresh vegetables. And thanks to the City’s fertile soil and subtropical climate, there’s a huge variety of beautiful vegetables available year-round. They’re served traditionally as salads and side dishes. But they also make frequent appearances as sassy appetizers and sumputuous meat-and-seafood-stuffed entrees. Some are even cleverly transformed into dreamy desserts. Because they’re so plentiful, home cooks are always looking for new and creative ways to serve them. And it’s always a great accomplishment to prepare an otherwise frowned upon veggie in a can’t-get-enough-of-it way. That’s what happened with me and [ ... ]
17
Feb 2012
Feb 2012
Back when I was sporting my 19-year-old metabolism, fried vegetables were my go-to finger food. Almost every weekend, I’d prepare a batch of deep fried cauliflower, mushrooms or eggplant. I’d make them in much the same way I would panee (New Orleans lingo for battered and pan fried) veal or pork chops–soaked in an egg wash, rolled in Italian bread crumbs and submerged in hot oil. I could easily get an entire week’s worth of vegetable servings in one sitting with those crispy hunks of Deep South love. Now that I’m a little older and question whether I still have [ ... ]
Category: Appetizers, Finger Food Fridays, Side Dishes, Vegetables
Tags: Appetizers, Finger Food Fridays, New Orleans Cooking 2 Comments
