Louisiana Cookin' July/August 2021

WITH THEIR FLUFFY SHAVED ICE and sticky sweet syrup, snoballs have been one of my favorite sugary treats ever since I was a kid growing up in south Louisiana. Each summer, my siblings and I would ride our bikes to the nearest snoball stand and cool off with our flavor of choice (in my case, sour apple). I look forward to enjoying a few snoballs this summer, but those aren’t the only chilly treats I’ve got my eye on. In this issue, you’ll find irresistible recipes for frozen and chilled desserts to keep you cool all summer. With cinnamon, brown sugar, and height-of-the-season peaches, our No-Churn Peaches Foster Ice Cream (page 53) is at the top of my list. Make sure to save space in your freezer for a few of…

PRESENTED BY CAMELLIA BRAND BIRDY’S BEHIND THE BOWER NEW ORLEANS The team behind Tujague’s, the Bower, and Claret Wine & Cocktail Bar opened its newest spot in the Framework building on Magazine Street. Birdy’s Behind the Bower is a breakfast, brunch, and lunch restaurant that serves Southern-inspired cuisine in its chic dining room and welcoming outdoor courtyard. Dishes range from heartier fare like the Fried Chicken Biscuit with cane syrup country gravy to lighter bites like the Sugar Roots Bowl with quinoa, fresh veggies, and apple cider vinaigrette. birdysnola.com FAUBOURG BREWING CO. NEW ORLEANS The Crescent City’s oldest brewery relaunched as Faubourg Brewing Co. and opened its brand-new 85,000-square-foot New Orleans East brewery in March. It originally opened as Dixie Brewing in 1907 at the corner of Tulane Avenue and Tonti Street. New Orleans…

THIS TIME OF YEAR, Louisiana seafood and produce really shine. Summer vegetables like zucchini and peppers are abundant, and seafood like red snapper is brought in from the warm Gulf waters, ready to be seared, grilled, or roasted. If you’re looking for the perfect warm-weather dinner to serve to loved ones this summer, make this recipe your go-to. The vegetable medley highlights the season’s freshest flavors, and the red snapper is complemented by a bright sauce made with lemon juice and fresh dill and parsley. SEARED RED SNAPPER WITH VEGGIES AND LEMON-HERB SAUCE MAKES 4 SERVINGS This recipe makes for an easy and delicious dinner any night of the week. 4 tablespoons olive oil, divided1 cup chopped yellow bell pepper (about 1 large bell pepper)1 cup sliced carrots (about 2 medium carrots)½ cup sliced…

OKRA IS A FAVORITE VEGETABLE of Louisiana, where it is easily found in home gardens and farmers’ markets throughout the hot summer months. In the Bayou State, okra is most commonly seen in hearty gumbos, but it is a versatile vegetable that is also a treat when pickled, roasted, grilled, or fried. Here, we sautéed okra and stirred it into chicken stew, quick-pickled it as a tangy deviled egg mix-in, and oven-roasted it with spices and served it with a smoky dipping sauce for a unique appetizer or side. CHICKEN AND OKRA STEW MAKES ABOUT 8 SERVINGS This summery stew is like a gumbo without the roux. 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided2 teaspoons paprika1 teaspoon kosher salt3 large boneless skinless chicken breasts, chopped into 1-inch pieces (about 3 cups)½ pound ham, chopped1 cup chopped…

I’M SURE YOU’VE HEARD the phrase “don’t judge a book by its cover.” I implore you not to judge a dish by its ingredients either. I learned this myself in August 2017 when I finally embarked on a trip to the land of my ancestors, Germany. Within an hour of clearing customs and renting a car at Frankfurt International Airport, I was strolling the streets of Schlierbach, Germany, where my seventh great-grandfather, Hans Peter Voltz, was born around 1618. Just as my ancestors had crossed Germany and France in search of a new homeland in Louisiana, so did I crisscross Germany and France not only in search of my German roots but in search of Germany’s tapestry of flavor as well. I traveled from Schlierbach to Kaiserslautern to Ramstein and the Mosel…

IT MIGHT SEEM LIKE RICE, CRAWFISH, AND VODKA have nothing in common, but these three products are more intertwined than one might think. One south Louisiana family seized an opportunity to evolve their rice farming operation to get the most value out of their land, and today, they also run a successful crawfish farm and a distillery. Mike Frugé’s ancestors migrated to south Louisiana in the late 1800s in search of better opportunities. His great-great-uncle John Meleck (the vodka’s namesake) started farming rice as a way to feed his family. The rice was planted in low-lying marsh and was called “Providence rice” because it did not require equipment and instead relied on the right weather conditions to provide rainwater for the crop. Mike and his brother, Mark, are the fourth generation…