Where did the blog dude go?

Yes, it's true. Overworked and underblogged is the story of my recent life. But fear not kin, I am making a comeback. I am re-firing up the front burners and ready to dive into to another chapter of exciting, family get togethers and tasty new recipes. So don't count me out, I just had to make some halftime adjustments. Happy Eating!

Wii had a great time!

Wii are so glad that you all could make it to our treso de mayo celebration. Can't wait till next month.

Love,

Missy, Bradford and Wrigley

Festive Food

As New Orleanians, it's no secret that eating is a way of life. I don't mean simply food as sustenance, but more of how it is part of the fabric of who we are. The food we eat here is symbolic of our culture. It's over the top, over indulgent, but darn hard to resist. New Orleans is a unique in the sense that one could identify this city purely on taste. In one day you could have beignets at Cafe du Monde, a shrimp poboy at Domilise's and dinner at Antoine's, and walk away saying that's what New Orleans tastes like. There's not many places you can do this, anywhere. Yesterday I was walking through all that is the French Quarter Festival with 400,000 of my fellow neighbors when I realized how great is it that you have an opportunity at $4-5 a pop to tastes so many aspects of New Orleans cuisine, while listening to the best music this city has to offer on 18 different stages. Now of course the hordes of people undoubtedly can slow things down considerably, but what you are waiting for is unlike anything else you could find. Certainly it is easy to get discouraged at all the lines and waiting, but the truly good news is that all these people want to come out and celebrate what's great about our city, and the more people that do that, the better off we will be. Look out Jazz Fest, you're little brother is growing up.

Treso de Mayo

The April event has been moved to May 3rd.

For this family get together we will be celebrating the Mexican independence day a little early with a family style fiesta. There will be plenty of margaritas and fajitas and cheese dip to go around.

We will being early at 11:00 a.m., 317 Henry Clay.

Dyed or Dead Eggs?

Is it ok to eat a blue, yellow, or multicolored, hard boiled eggs? This is always an interesting question the day after Easter because many ponder the safety of eating the prized easter decorations. The truth is, the dye won't hurt you and making green deviled eggs or pink egg salad could prove to be a good conversation piece. However, the enemy lies in the temperature and not the color. Hard boiled eggs should not sit out at room temperature for more than a couple of hours, they are supposed to be refrigerated until eaten. So, if your colorful dozen had been hanging out in the Easter basket since Saturday, its time for the trash.

I Dig Pig

Ah, pork. The mere mention of the word and I can practically smell the bacon frying. By all accounts, pound for pound, pork has to be the most flavorful meat on the planet. In fact when I do a quick run in my head of my all time favorite foods, I believe pork is in every one. Pulled pork sandwich: yep that's a gimme. Chicken and andouille gumbo: yep, pork butchered and smoked to local tastes. Pasta carbonara: yep, panchetta because italian speaking pigs count too. I did say planet. Of course bacon, but that's another gimme. To quote Emeril Lagasse, "pork fat rules." In celebration of the pig and oh yeah, my birthday, this Friday we will be eating at Cochon in the warehouse district. Cochon is french for you know what, and having been here before, I am already thinking of all things pork. Sad I know, but that's just who I am. Chef Donald Link, who also owns Herbsaint, has put together a great menu that showcases the pig from trotter to tail and how traditionally it has become a part of the cajun/southern palate. There is everything from homemade boudin and cochon du lait, to pickled pig's tongue and crispy pig's ear salad to a fried oyster and bacon sandwich. Digest that for a second...a fried oyster and bacon sandwich. My heart hurts, but you have to admit that sounds pretty tasty.

Sucre is Sweet

Actually, Sucre is a sweet boutique. French for the word "sugar," Sucre has brought something truly unique to Magazine St. and uptown New Orleans: High quality, artisanal chocolates and confections. But don't let the impressive display of bite-sized chocolates distract you from all this place has to offer. Where do I begin and where do I stop? Homemade ice cream, gelato and sorbet. French macaroons, parfaits and marshmallows. Croissants, foccacia and breakfast pastries. Did I mention all this is made fresh right there in the store's kitchen? I have to say it is easy to feel like a kid in a candy store because there are just so many things that you want to try. For Vivienne it was easy, for upon entering the front door, the beautiful display of colorful gelato and sorbets were directly in her line of sight (clever planning). "I want chocolate ice cream." Done deal. For Lauren and I, considerably more deliberation, then we finally decided to try out the lunch menu. Oh by the way, the also have a super lunch menu. We split a grilled portabella on foccacia with fresh mozarella and a just-made chicken salad on croissant, then of course a chocolate covered macaroon. By far what blew us away about Sucre was the freshness, quality and attention to every detail that is really hard to find in just about any restaurant, cafe or ice cream parlor. Throw in the friendly, helpful service we received and I'd say it was a top notch experience. Honestly, I could probably go on about this place for another hour, but I will stop here and leave you with this - one of the truly valuable aspects of Sucre is that it feels like you could be anywhere in the world. It's the kind of place that somehow suspends time and that right there should be treasured by all.

From Scratch

Upon flipping through the latest issue of Saveur magazine, I became utterly and instantly inspired. There's a pun nestled in that statement, but I'll get to that in a minute. What I am here to preach this Sunday evening is that everything is better when you make it from scratch. I'm not just talking about better tasting, but better for you. There's no processing when you make something with your own hands. Depending on what you are making, there's usually an opportunity to use local ingredients, which in turn is better for your local food environment. Oh yeah, and you are always guaranteed it will taste fresh. And now for my utter, er...udder inspiration. Or should I say butter inspiration. We do not have a farm, nor a laboratory, but Lauren and I have been pretty experimental when it comes to making food from scratch. Although we have tossed the idea around of making our own cheese or butter for some time, it does take a time commitment and even beyond that, you have to know a cow that will supply you with fresh milk. Homemade cooking just got a little more difficult, but believe it or not this is manageable. One really just needs to find a local cow share to lock in the fresh milk needed on a regular basis and dedicate some time each week to the process of churning or aging cheese. So, do we take the leap unto this next level of fresh food...why the heck not? Now we just need to find someone to bake fresh, crusty bread.

My Favorite Meal

Fresh coffee. Sizzling bacon. Eggs frying. Cinnamon rolls rising. Today's newspaper. Champagne waiting for a splash of OJ. Breakfast is a good meal, isn't it? Well, it can be if you take the time to enjoy it. As we all know, the first meal of the day is often skipped, or typically consists of a simple bowl of cereal or a granola bar. But when you make the time to enjoy it, breakfast can easily become the best meal of the day. I forget that sometimes, because by default, I always seem to think you need to rush through this meal to get on with rest of your day. However, when you set aside a few hours on a given Saturday to enjoy a nice, homemade breakfast with your family, nothing could be sweeter.

Breakfast Is Served

Alright ya'll, we're having breakfast at our house this Saturday, Feb. 16th at 10:30. As usual, this get together promises to be a good ole time and if you like to sleep late on Saturday, its ok to show up in your pajamas. Hell, we might still be in our pjs. If you feel you must bring something, champagne is a good option. Nothing goes better with breakfast than mimosas in our book. Hope to see everyone there.

Love That Chicken

What is it about fried chicken that locals crave so much on Carnival Day, that they are willing to wait in line at 6 a.m. to make sure they have a box to bring out to the parade route later in the day? I'd be curious to know where/how this tradition got started because Popeyes is undoubtedly synonymous with Mardi Gras, so much so that many would say it is the Fat Tuesday food of choice. But why? Can't be because of the way it leaves your hands greasy while you are trying to catch beads, cups, etc. Maybe it's because it comes in a self contained box and tastes great hot, cold or outdoor room temperature. Whatever the case may be, we gotta have it and simply eating a thigh "straight outta da box" is one of our favored, local past times. It certainly adds to the experience and provides a comfort that can't be matched by barbecue or pizza.

Who Is The King of Cakes?

Every year, right about this time, I start really craving king cake. I try to fight it with everything I've got because after all I'm only two weeks out of the holiday season. But I'm a New Orleanian, and as a New Orleanian it is my birthright to move directly from christmas season into carnival season, no questions asked. Well, actually there is one question: Where do I find a really good king cake? Certainly there is no problem finding a king cake and I liken the seasonal treat to a bowl of gumbo. Everybody has it, but finding a truly enjoyable one can be a challenge. At it's worst king cake is dry but can be rectified by a good coating of icing and crunchy, colored sugar. However, at it's best king cake is moist, not too sweet and heated up in a toaster oven for a few minutes to give it that just out of the oven greatness. Every year I ask every other person where they get their king cakes from and I get the standard answers. Randazzo's, Haydel's, Gambino's, Dorignac's.......Whole Foods. Ok, quick sidenote, Whole Foods does plenty of things well, but king cakes are not one of them. Also, I'm going to throw stuffed or filled cakes out of the equation here because it's cheating. I'm looking for good king cake in it's true form. So far, for the last three years, my favorite has been the one I have bought from the small coffee shop called Coffee &. That's no misspelling, the place is called Coffee &. This endearing dive of a donut and coffee shop manages to make a pretty decent king cake that I would say ranks up there with my all-time favorite McKenzie version. But I long for more. No offense to the fine folks of Coffee &, but this place is more of a video poker destination than it is a bakery and I truly believe there is better out there that I just don't know about. So I ask you, where have all the good king cakes gone?

Pure Comfort

If I did not know anyone in our family and Greg and Mary merely invited me over to join their family for dinner on Saturday, I would have left their home with one impression: Good, old-fashioned family dinners still exist. Maybe it had something to do with the informal formality of all of us sitting down at a nicely set table to share a meal together. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy the comfortable casualness of our monthly eat togethers; however, in this instance I took a particular pleasure in seeing our family sit down to a nice meal without it being a holiday. Memories of a time gone by, or at least my childhood came rushing back. And then there was the food. Sure, everyone wants food that is delicious and enjoyable, but good, down-home cooking creates an experience like no other. I can't choose a favorite dish here because each one for me was simply comfort food. It was like a comfort sampler and the more I ate the more I wanted more. Even beyond all of this, maybe what made everything feel warm and fuzzy (aside from the wine) is that we talk about what a fun time we had at the last get together and start immediately planning for what's on deck next month. Cheers to you Hollier Hills and I'd like another helpin'.

Happy New Year!

We're back in the comforts of our own home today after a week and a half excursion to Taos, New Mexico. Although I did not make my weekly report last week (busy between skiing and recovering), there was a whole lot of cooking going on in our ski valley lodge. Being how we were with Lauren's father, his wife and her family, 5 of the 9 people staying in the house were Korean, which allowed us many opportunities to observe the preparation and sample the flavors of korean cooking. Spicy soup broth, pickled kimchee and bean cakes quickly became part of our daily diet. But my job was not to merely enjoy korean cuisine but to also offer a slice of my culture, a taste of New Orleans. Everyone wanted gumbo, so I gave them gumbo. Not just gumbo made with andouille sausage, but andouille sausage I transported from Jacob's smokehouse in LaPlace, where you will find the best andouille anywhere, seriously anywhere. The gumbo was a hit and served as a nice change up in our daily offerings of soup. Koreans eat soup everyday, which I must note is an added bonus on a cold, ski vacation. I hope everyone enjoyed the New Year's holiday and we look forward to seeing you next weekend at Hollier Hills.