Blog Archives
03
Apr 2012
Apr 2012
Before my kids were born, I prided myself on making salad dressings from scratch. But having three kids in two and a half years left little time to prepare anything beyond three squares and two snacks a day. Once my babies were old enough to appreciate salad dressing, it was all Hidden Valley Ranch. Twelve years and three blenders later, their palates have finally expanded and I’m back on the homemade dressings track! These days, the one at the top of my list is Green Goddess. There’s nothing better than pulling a couple of handfuls of fresh herbs from my [ ... ]
Category: Salad
2 Comments
30
Mar 2012
Mar 2012
Most New Orleanians are traditionalists when it comes to red beans. They fix them one way and one way only–cooked down for several hours in a large pot of water with the Holy Trinity (onions, celery and green bell pepper) and various types of pork. The beans are served over rice and the dish is usually reserved for Mondays, which long ago were wash days.
I’m all about tradition and love my Red Beans and Rice. But I’ve come to learn that there’s more than one way to cook them. My favorite, non-traditional red bean dish is this Roasted [ ... ]
Category: Appetizers, Finger Food Fridays, Snacks
Tags: Appetizers, Finger Food Fridays, Snacks One Comment
27
Mar 2012
Mar 2012
Growing up, Easter dinner always revolved around my mom’s perfectly baked Chisesi’s ham. (Chisesi’s Pride makes some of the finest smoked meats in New Orleans.) She bathe it in a sweet and savory mixture of brown sugar, coca-cola and yellow mustard. Then she studded the top with canned pineapple rings and marashino cherries. It was and still is one of the best baked hams I’ve ever tasted. Unfortunately, we can’t get Chisesi hams here in Atlanta (although the company recently expanded and is looking to make their fine pork products available nationwide–yay!). Even worse, I won’t be able to [ ... ]
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
//
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
