Archive for the Category » Seafood «
07
Dec 2012
Dec 2012
In New Orleans, we love our hot sauce. The trinity of top local brands includes Tabasco, Crystal and Louisiana Hot Sauce. Each has a loyal following. My dad’s dad Beau, for instance, carried Tabasco everywhere he went and always had an emergency bottle stashed in his glove box. I think he put it on everything but dessert. The hubby is also a huge Tabasco man. Me? My favorites are Tabasco and Louisiana Hot Sauce with very specific uses for each. Tabasco has more heat than Louisiana Hot Sauce and because of that it’s a must in my cocktail sauce and [ ... ]
Category: Appetizers, Beverages, Finger Food Fridays, Poor Boys, Seafood, Shrimp
Tags: Appetizers, Finger Food Fridays, Shrimp Recipes Comments off
05
Oct 2012
Oct 2012
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 [ ... ]
Category: Appetizers, Crab, Finger Food Fridays, Po-Boys, Seafood
3 Comments
01
Oct 2012
Oct 2012
This soup is tied to one of my earliest cooking disasters. One day while I was in the seventh grade home alone and bored, I decided to make–or attempt to make–Oyster and Artichoke Soup. I had no idea what I was doing and didn’t even think to ask for help or search for a recipe (which at that time would have been limited to my mom’s red accordion recipe file and a couple of regional cookbooks). My only points of reference were a flavor memory I had banked from a local restaurant meal and the title of that menu item. [ ... ]
Category: Main Dishes, New Orleans Classics, Roux, Seafood, Soups
4 Comments
26
Sep 2012
Sep 2012
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 [ ... ]
Category: Crab, Main Dishes, New Orleans Classics, Seafood
2 Comments
07
Sep 2012
Sep 2012
A couple of years back, I started a fun little tradition with the hubby and our three children called “Fry Nights.” Fry Nights are dinners composed of an entire meal that is … are you sitting down? Deep fried. That’s right. A plate full of delectably crispy and crunchy foods that have been totally immersed in a “hot frying medium.” Oh yeah! About three or four times a year, this party of five throws caution to the wind, our waistlines and our heart health by eating a supper prepared entirely in a vat of peanut oil. Best part is, there’s [ ... ]
Category: Appetizers, Finger Food Fridays, Fish, Main Dishes, New Orleans Classics, Sauces, Seafood
5 Comments
03
Aug 2012
Aug 2012
Are you hungry for something rich and luscious and seafoody? Good. Because that’s exactly what I’m cooking up for today’s Happy Hour! I’m making crawfish pies which consist of sweet crawfish meat smothered in a creamy, roux-based sauce with the perfect amount of Cajun Country kick. Throughout the backroads of South Louisiana, you’ll typically find these savory pies prepared as you would a large dessert pie. The pie is sliced and served along with a green salad or some sort of stewed vegetable. But they can also be made into individual portions using mini pastry shells like these.
For years, I [ ... ]
Category: Appetizers, Crawfish, Finger Food Fridays, Seafood
Tags: Appetizers, crawfish, Finger Food Fridays, Seafood 16 Comments
06
Jul 2012
Jul 2012
Do you ever notice how some of your best kitchen creations are made on the fly? Pulled together spontaneously with whatever’s lurking in the fridge or lingering in the pantry? That’s the story behind this finger food. Because I hate to waste, especially real food … good food, I was stressed out about using up some leftover boiled shrimp and ripe and ready avocados I had on hand. My initial thought was to simply toss them in a salad with greens and a lemon vinaigrette. But as I was cleaning the greens, I remembered that I had a fresh loaf [ ... ]
Category: Appetizers, Finger Food Fridays, Seafood, Vegetables
Tags: Appetizers, Finger Food Fridays, Seafood, Vegetables Comments off
28
Jun 2012
Jun 2012
Have I ever introduced you to Child No. 3? Oh, I’m sure I have if only briefly. Blair. My beautiful, bright-eyed third of three. Still considered my baby, even as she approaches double digits. Highly inquisitive. Funny. Mother hen. Accomplished grazer. Nicknamed “junior” by the hubby because she’s so much like her momma–especially when it comes to sleeping (gets a solid 10 each night) and eating (lover of mass quantities of all things edible).
On the eating front, her habits are so closely aligned with mine they’re downright frightening! Take this tuna salad for instance. She eats it one of three [ ... ]
22
Jun 2012
Jun 2012
Marinating crabs is a time-honored way to breathe new life into and extend the enjoyment of leftover boiled crabs. My grandmother’s dear friend Josie, who was like an aunt to us, began making this glorious finger food for my family decades ago. It’s a happy mess of highly seasoned boiled crabs drenched in what is best described as a chunky olive oil-based vinaigrette and eaten in the same manner as boiled crabs–with your hands. Most of us will jump at the chance to host a backyard crab boil just so we can set aside a dozen or so crabs for [ ... ]
Category: Appetizers, Crab, Finger Food Fridays, Main Dishes, New Orleans Classics, Seafood
Tags: Appetizers, crab, Finger Food Fridays, Seafood Comments off
01
Jun 2012
Jun 2012
In Louisiana, we define the four seasons by Crawfish, Shrimp, Crab and Oyster. It’s a unique and appetizing way to get through the year. As one delicious season ends, another much-anticipated one begins. Currently, crawfish season is winding down and shrimp season is gearing up. Plump, juicy, sweet Louisiana shrimp. There’s nothing like them! And this season, however young, is already proving to be grand. I know because I had the good fortune of receiving a pound of wild jumbo Louisiana shrimp straight from the deck of the Anna Marie (a South Louisiana fishing vessel) through the efforts of the [ ... ]
Category: Appetizers, Finger Food Fridays, Seafood, Shrimp
Tags: Appetizers, Finger Food Fridays, Seafood, Shrimp Recipes 2 Comments
