Louisiana Cookin' November/December 2019

THERE’S NOTHING like the sound of the trinity hitting hot roux, is there? And the smell of chicken and spicy andouille sausage bubbling on the stove while the Saints play in the background? Priceless. That’s how most of our Sundays in the fall and early winter go. As the leaves finally drop and Thanksgiving passes, we are constantly torn between which incredible Louisiana holiday events to experience. This year, we hope to make it up to Natchitoches with the girls for the Festival of Lights (and the Holiday Trail of Lights) and start a new family tradition of going to Lutcher on Christmas Eve for the lighting of the bonfires. No matter how long you’ve lived here, there are some exciting surprises in store for you this holiday season, and you…

PALM & PINE NEW ORLEANS Amarys and Jordan Herndon opened their highly anticipated restaurant Palm & Pine on Rampart Street in July. The duo previously ran a pop-up called Old Portage. At Palm & Pine, the Herndons offer a casual fine-dining experience with a menu that draws inspiration from “The South, and South of That” (Louisiana and the South in general but also the Caribbean, Mexico, and Central America). That results in mouthwatering dishes like Coconut Marinated Gulf Fish with jerk sweet potatoes and Drunk Shrimp with mezcal chile butter. palmandpinenola.com BAYOU RUM BARREL LIBRARY LACASSINE Last summer, Bayou Rum unveiled its new Barrel Library and Event Center. In addition to an expanded event space to host private events, the new center also gives Master Distiller and Operations Director Jeff Murphy and Master…

WITH ITS LIGHT AND AIRY TEXTURE, angel food cake is one of our favorite desserts. Better yet, it’s deceivingly simple to make, requiring only a handful of ingredients you probably already have in your kitchen. This cake is utter perfection on its own but is even better dressed up with whipped cream and juicy satsuma segments. SATSUMA ANGEL FOOD CAKE MAKES 1 (10-INCH) CAKE This angel food cake has a beautiful vanilla flavor that pairs well with whipped cream and fresh Louisiana citrus. 1½ cups bleached cake flour2 cups granulated sugar, divided2 teaspoons vanilla extract2 vanilla beans, split lengthwise, seeds scraped and reserved, divided2 cups egg whites, room temperature(about 14 large eggs)1 teaspoon cream of tartar½ teaspoon kosher salt2 teaspoons satsuma zest½ cup cold heavy whipping cream2 tablespoons confectioners’ sugarGarnish: satsuma segments 1. Preheat oven…

‘TIS THE SEASON FOR MARSHMALLOW-TOPPED SWEET POTATO CASSEROLES, and while we can’t argue with a classic, this year, we’re shaking things up with a few new ways to cook sweet potatoes. Whether you try our twice-baked sweet potatoes topped with tasso and cracklin’s, crispy hasselback sweet potatoes with pecans, or the shrimp and grits cake appetizer, you’re sure to have a crowd-pleaser for any parties you attend this holiday season. SWEET POTATO GRITS CAKES WITH SHRIMP MAKES 24 Sweet potatoes and rice grits form the base for these elegant, party-perfect appetizers. 2 cups low-sodium chicken broth3 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided1¾ teaspoons kosher salt, divided¾ teaspoon ground black pepper, divided1 cup rice grits*1 medium sweet potato, peeled and grated2 small Fresno peppers, seeded and thinly sliced1 tablespoon minced shallot24 large shrimp, peeled and deveined (tails…

AS SUMMER petered to a close in St. James Parish, wild black cherries were in season. That’s when we helped Daddy macerate the cherries in crock jars filled with brandy. Slowly, autumn arrived on the river, which meant harvesting persimmons, pecans, mandarins, squash, and, of course, sugarcane. Before we knew it, bonfire season was upon us. When the last school bell rang indicating that Thanksgiving vacation had begun, all hands were on deck to start gathering the necessary tools to create St. James Parish’s best bonfire for the Christmas season. Now, it always seemed that a leader with managerial skills somehow “rose to the surface,” so to speak. As the second-eldest Folse son, I quite often took that position. In our early years, we made the traditional cone or pyramid-style structures before…

NEW ORLEANS IS A COCKTAIL TOWN, and since it first opened seven decades ago, the Carousel Bar in the Hotel Monteleone has enticed guests to take a coveted seat at the bar and enjoy one of its artfully crafted drinks. With an alluring selection of specialty cocktails (including a few that were first created at the famed bar), live music performances, and knowledgeable bartenders, the Carousel Bar remains a favorite of both locals and tourists. The city’s only revolving bar was first installed at the Hotel Monteleone in 1949. The bar turns on 2,000 large steel rollers and makes one full rotation every 15 minutes, allowing patrons to overlook bustling Royal Street as they spin past the large fan windows. With its authentic carousel top, which was installed in 1992, and…