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Creole Crab and Avocado Salad

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving. Ours was exceptional. This year we celebrated the holiday at my sister-in-law’s house with 34 of the hubby’s closest relatives—his parents, siblings, their families and his double first cousins and their families. I think I’ve mentioned Larry’s double first cousins before. Remember? One of his dad’s brothers married one of his mom’s sisters. They had four kids who are now all grown up with kids of their own. Cool, huh? I think so. Anyway, as you might expect, this group—which currently spans three [ ... ]

Finger Food Friday: Ponchatoula Strawberry Salsa

I introduced you all to this salsa last May when I was celebrating Cinco de Mayo South Louisiana-style. Remember my Gulf of Mexico Shrimp Tostadas? This salsa was one of the garnishments. But since it’s finally spring and one of the sweetest signs of spring in the GNO (Greater New Orleans Area) is the appearance of fresh, Louisiana strawberries at local farmer’s markets and grocery stores, I thought it was only right to give this salsa its own time in the spotlight. Because besides being the perfect sidekick to shrimp tostadas, Ponchatoula Strawberry Salsa is also [ ... ]

Crabmeat on Toast

Preserving family recipes goes beyond collecting and deciphering faded handwritten notes or stained and splattered index cards and patching together these bits and pieces of the past into legible lists of ingredients and sensible instructions. The process also includes the more meaningful task of tracing the recipe’s origin back to a special person or place in time then tying all the elements together with a string of well-told stories punctuated with lots of passion and pride (as well as the occasional reference to a crazy relative or catastrophic kitchen mishap). It’s these associations that remind us of experiences [ ... ]

Finger Food Friday: Seafood Nachos

If you’ve tuned into the Weather Channel at all since my last post, you’re probably privy to the fact that it’s still cold up here in the Northwest Quadrant of the ATL. Yes, we were among the “lucky” ones—those above “that ridge.” So since Tuesday, we have been dealing with snow and ice and snow and ice. And although today is absolutely gorgeous and all the snow and ice has melted (at least on our side of the street), the kids are enjoying their fourth snow day this week (lest you forget, they were off ALL last [ ... ]

Crab and Corn Bisque

While a warm bowl of bisque may not appeal to many of you this time of year, I can’t think of a better way to bring together two of the summer’s most appealing ingredients, Louisiana blue crab and corn. Each serving just screams, “ Sweet sunshine!” And if you already have some rich seafood stock socked away, it will come together quickly. Like most soups, this Crab and Corn Bisque will improve in the fridge for a day or two. And because it can be successfully frozen, I highly recommend doubling the recipe so a few months down [ ... ]

Grilled Soft-Shell Crabs

A couple of weeks back, I pulled out of the freezer what will probably be my last soft-shells of the season. Knowing full well I may not get anymore of these warm weather treasures until next spring, I debated how to prepare them. Should I go for broke and introduce them to some bright new flavors and a bold cooking method? Or, should I play it safe with a tried and true recipe that would not disappoint? Because this batch was frozen, I knew I could approach them a tad more aggressively than I could fresh [ ... ]

Finger Food Friday: Fried Soft-Shell Crab Poor Boys

The hubby and I have been together almost 20 years (I was really, really young when we starting dating. Wink! Wink!). And while we’re not the perfect couple, we do pride ourselves on working hard at keeping our relationship strong. A big part of that is carving out time for each other. We frequently schedule lunch dates and sneak in the occasional night out. But all those outings combined don’t come close to measuring up to the kidless weekends we share each year at the New Orleans Jazz Fest! We’ve been enjoying these date [ ... ]

Seafood Manicotti

For those of you who have bid “farewell to the flesh” for the next 40 days (or at least for the remaining Fridays between now and Easter Sunday), this dish is for you. It is my annual creation added to an ever-growing list of meatless meals I prepare during the Season of Lent. Abstaining from meat has never been a huge lesson in self-denial for me or my family. In New Orleans, where fresh seafood is abundant, it would be a stretch to consider codfish balls, fried shrimp poor boys, all-you-can-eat fried catfish, seafood gumbo, crawfish etouffee, boiled crawfish and, [ ... ]
Category: Crab, Crawfish, Main Dishes, Oysters, Pasta, Roux, Sauces, Seafood, Shrimp  Comments off

Finger Food Friday: Crab Bread

  I’m having a hard time transitioning with the seasons.  Not summer to fall.  Crab to oyster!  Just when I thought I had had my fill of those luscious Louisiana blue crabs in all their glorious incarnations, bam!  I remembered this gem of a finger food that I’ve never shared with you all.  Years back, this bread was the first appetizer I made for any get-together.  Then, somehow, it got overshadowed by the likes of Cajun Egg Rolls, Andouille Baked Brie and Corn Dip.  Today, I’m putting it back in the limelight for reasons you’ll soon understand! This recipe deserves to be [ ... ]

Stuffed Crabs

  Have you ever tried to jot down a recipe while standing over the shoulder of a relative who was whipping things up at the stove? Or better yet, have you ever attempted to decode your grandmother’s shorthand from a stack of decades-old, splattered and stained recipe cards?  If so, kudos to you because I know that means you’ve at least attempted to preserve a family recipe that meant something to you. Well, that’s what I do with all my spare time. I work tirelessly collecting, organizing, testing, writing, photographing and posting family recipes. It’s the easiest and most [ ... ]