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Spinach, Crabmeat and Brie Soup

Just the other day, I was flipping through an old cookbook when out fell a recipe from the food section of the Times-Picayune, New Orleans’ daily newspaper.  The clipping, which obviously had a few years on it, was a recipe for Crabmeat & Brie Soup from The Dakota, a suburban New Orleans restaurant.  I had a vague recollection of that recipe and a similar one involving brie from Flagons A Wine & Bar Bistro.  (Flagons was another great New Orleans restaurant that closed many years ago.)  I remember wanting to borrow a couple of ideas from these two recipes to [ ... ]

Three Ingredient Muffins

This is a short and sweet post to accompany a short and sweet recipe (or two).  Last year, my wonderful neighbor and baker extraordinaire, Lisa, turned me on to these great chocolaty muffins that she makes with nothing more than a can of pumpkin, a box of chocolate cake mix and chocolate chips.  Count them:  1-pumpkin; 2-chocolate cake mix; and, 3-chocolate chips.  That’s it.  They’re scrumptious and super moist thanks to the pumpkin, yet they don’t taste like pumpkin.  Since my daughters and I are vanilla girls deep down inside, I decided to try a similar recipe using yellow cake [ ... ]
Category: Desserts  Tags: , ,  4 Comments

Meatballs and Spaghetti

It’s unseasonably and unwelcomely cold outside today, but that suits my mood just fine because I have no intentions of leaving the house.   All I want to do today is cook, in my own kitchen, all by myself.  I tend to get cranky like this when I’ve been away from home for too long.  Don’t get me wrong, I love the holidays and I’m very grateful that we were able to spend Thanksgiving week in New Orleans with our family.  But after eight days on the road and three days of laundry and other wifely chores, I simply need [ ... ]

Roux: Top 10 Tips For Mastering a Roux

Truth be told, I didn’t learn how to make a dark, rich roux from my family.  My relatives, who are all incredibly talented and passionate cooks, prepare meals with a heavy Creole hand.  So their sauces and gravies generally rely on butter-based white and blond roux.  My mom’s Seafood Gumbo, a recipe handed down from my great-grandmother, also follows Creole lines.  The gumbo is thickened with a light roux and okra and is flavored liberally with tomato sauce.  I was a young adult before I associated the rich, smoky flavors of other gumbos, étouffées and dark gravies with a roux.  [ ... ]