Ruth Rayford was a fantastic cook and human being who also raised nine kids and always looked great doing it. I, by contrast, would have looked like a wet dishrag, cooking and yelling at kids all day long. Not Aunt Ruth. She was the kind of gorgeous that was cool, calm and collected, and she looked good in anything, anywhere. And… Read More My First Woman Crush
I’ve always been intimidated by the precision that’s required in baking done right. I have a few sweets that I do well, but I’ll head to the packaged baking mix section of the grocery store in a New York minute. Unfortunately, as we all know, boxed mixes taste like box, right? Yes, most of the time, but… Read More Battle of the Blueberry Muffin Mix
I often listen to music while writing and cooking, and I am always on the lookout for new songs that inspire me. A good friend suggested the group Black Violin to me a few days ago and I am in love. The cut “Running” from their album Stereotypes is on continous loop right now. Find out… Read More Things I Like: Black Violin
Growing up, I had only seen gumbo done one way: whole hog. It had everything – blue crabs, shrimp, oysters (sometimes), sausage, ham, chicken…EVERYTHING. But when I left New Orleans to attend LSU in Baton Rouge, I came across Chicken and Sausage Gumbo. Gumbo with only two ingredients? This had to be the work of… Read More Quick Chicken and Sausage Gumbo
SoulCreole is a philosophy of cooking rooted in the southern Louisiana culinary tradition and complemented with the culinary heritage of the Mississippi Delta. SoulCreole’s one rule: FLAVOR. The food must have taste. You want arugula on your po-boy instead of iceberg lettuce? Sure. Smoked turkey in your red beans instead of pickled pork? Fine. Brown rice or (gasp!)… Read More What is SoulCreole?
This weekend I headed “down the road” to Point a la Hache, a small fishing town in Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana. Several of my father’s brothers made a living dredging oysters and harvesting shrimp for years in this tiny hamlet in the “toe” of the boot that is the state of Louisiana. Hurricane Katrina almost wiped it… Read More Oysters with Butter and Garlic
I’m not a red-sauce-over-rice kind of person, so Shrimp Creole has not been on my radar for decades, even though it is a Louisiana classic. But I am a get-out-of-your-comfort-zone kind of person, so I made Shrimp Creole tonight with 1 part brown roux and 2 parts tomato paste as the base. Everyone raved, so maybe… Read More Shrimp Creole
One of my first food memories is of Popeye’s Famous Fried Chicken. Most folks know these days that eating Popeye’s – or any fast food – on a regular basis is probably not the smartest nutritional decision, but back in the bad old days, Popeye’s chicken was IT, baby. I first remember eating Popeye’s when… Read More Dirty Rice, So Nice
Every year, the first cold day in New Orleans always reminds me of when I was a kid and my dad would make a pot of vegetable beef soup big enough to feed an army. It drove my mother crazy (one day of leftovers is her limit), but it was fine by me because I… Read More Vegetable Beef Soup
Visit any well-established spot in New Orleans and you will inevitably see white beans and rice as one of the Monday-through-Friday plate lunch options. White beans and chicken, white beans and sausage, white beans and pork chops, white beans and fried fish – the pairings are endless. “White beans” can be any of several varieties… Read More White Beans: (Not) Always a Bridesmaid
Nicole Moliere 