FistFullaRoux

I find that Coke works well with food thats heavy on the salt (pepperoni pizza, for example). To make it special, serve it ice cold in the little glass bottles. Very nostalgic. Iced tea (unsweetened) is another good all-around solution. You can ice just about any tea, so you aren't stuck with the little bags from the grocery store. I have also seen grape juice from wine grapes. It's just bottled fresh instead of fermented. There's some possibilities there as well. There's sparkling grape juice as well.

New Orleans is nearly as much of a melting pot as New York. The populations will fluctuate under normal conditions, but right now, a group of 50 people will skew the percentages. Nuevo Orleans? Inevitable and welcomed, I think. The people who are there right now are going to be major influences in the near future, and since the long term is yet to be seen, those influences will be more marked. I hope that last sentence made sense. It did to me. In other words, It will shift, but it will still be New Orleans. I feel confident in that. It will be different, but as long as it does not turn into the Epcot version, everything will be OK.

Souffles. Make them all day long. Just remember, whipped cream can be used in non-culinary ways too. Talk about special...

It's simple. Restaurants/stores have to protect themselves from liability. Therefore, if they are there without permission, the dumpster divers are trespassing, no matter their motives. If you don't have permission to be there, you are trespassing, which means you are breaking the law. Period. End of story.

2 days worth here. The wireless connection at the hotel was being difficult last night. My brother got into town yesterday, but our lunch was from a drive thru. Time was tight and patience was thin. Taco Bell it is. My brother and his wife joined us and some friends at their home, and fried seafood was on everyone's mind. So 4 big seafood platters from Lagneaux's in Lafayette along with an order of fried crawfish tails was ordered for dinner. 4 platters served 7 adults with plenty of leftovers. Shrimp, crab (not soft shell), catfish, oysters, and frog legs were breaded and fried with abandon. The fries and the jambalaya were curiously untouched. The shrimp were kind of small, the crabs were those hard shelled blue gulf crabs, and the frog's legs were a bit too salty. But overall, everything ranks at least good in the taste department. Brownies for desert, Sideways on the tube, and the company of good friends made it a great evening. This morning we went back to Julien's for lunch so my brither could get his shrimp poboy fix, my wife had the shrimp en brouchette po boy (shrimp wrapped in bacon and grilled), and I had the special ham sandwich. Ham boiled in "crab boil" seasoning (primarily cayenne, salt, and allspice), lettuce and tomato on the perfect french bread that only Julien's gets just right. After more family time, dinner tonight was at Deano's Pizza in Lafayette. If you have the chance, eat here. They do a shrimp pizza that is so good. They skip the red sauce and use a sauce based on the trinity, seasoned perfectly. There's a carbmeat version as well. And they will do a half and half with crab and shrimp. The all meat pizza was also ordered for the table, and was pretty good, using a different type of sausage than the chain places. Breaded and fried mushrooms were the appetizer, and they are darn good. Not brilliant, but tasty. Desert was some old fashioned stick candy I picked up at Cracker Barrel on the way in. Peaches and Cream, Tangerine, and Spearmint. My favorite snoball flavor fix when the stands are closed for the season. Tomorrow we head back to the frozen nawth of Birmingham after watching my best friend's son play in his Pop Warner league Super Bowl. Then back to the grind. We didn't get to see as much of the area as we planned, but the scene is the same all over, as I understand it. It's not pretty. It will take a long time for the area to recover. Things are in limbo with FEMA in a lot of cases, and with insurance companies in others. It will simply take time, but I worry about a lot of these people this winter. It's going to be rough. Don't forget about them. The donations will still be needed. The Red Cross has said that they expect an increased number of fatal house fires this winter from things being done improperly. It's going to get better, though. This area will be stronger than before. But it will take a while. I know that the donations and well wishes had made a huge difference here, and they won't forget it. Acadiana has always been willing to help others, and it is being repaid.

Today was turkey day, and it was good. Thanks were abundant and heartfelt. Turkey and sweet potatoes and green bean casserole and rice dressing.... Yes, rice dressing. It's a Cajun thing. It's not stuffed inside the bird. Rice dressing is a dark roux base with chicken livers and/or ground beef, the trinity, and cooked white rice added to that base and simmered gently until the rice absorbs the flavorful liquid. My family uses mushrooms as well. The rice is precooked and added to the finished broth so it's not creamy like a rissotto, but the grains are not as dry as a a jambalaya. The turkey, as mentioned previously, was bathed and injected with seasoned butter, then slow roasted on a spit over charcoal. The breast was more tender and juicy than the dark meat. So amazing. We were discussing carving techniques and asked me to show him how I did it. I carved and introduced my stepfather to the oyster behind the thigh. I am fortunate that he is very well versed Cajun cook and adventerous enough, but he normally sticks to the breast and drumstick. I took one and he had the other. He looked at me with newfound respect. The sweet potatoes were pre baked, then poached in a brown sugar and butter sauce. The green bean casserole was OK, but I'm not a big fan of it to begin with. After completely stuffing ourselves and bitching about the Saints, we took a serving to my grandmother, who we hadn't seen in over a year. She didn't recognize my post gastric bypass wife. It was so good to see her. I love her dearly, but she doesn't understand anything over the phone, so I really hadn't had a chance to talk to her in a while. That visit was needed and good. We bowed out of the movie tonight to catch up on some rest. Having trouble sleeping in a hotel, I guess. We had dinner in the hotel restaurant because it was open, and we were pleasantly surprised. The waiter was from New Orleans and the cook had been on the job forever. She was shocked when we asked to speak to her and tipped her generously for serving some fine food on a holiday evening. We had the chance to talk to them for a bit as we were the only customers for a while. My wife had fried shrimp, which were frankly spectacular. The usual cornmeal had been eschewed for a basic flour coating. The shrimp were not overseasoned or overcooked. Simple perfection. I had a grilled catfish filet topped with crawfish etouffee sans rice. Oh. My. God. It's a very common dish that is usually quite good and a safe bet, but this was the best meal I have ever had in a hotel. One of the best dishes I've had in Lafayette, and that's saying quite a bit. The last bite on a full stomach was better than the first. This was the first dish I've ever eaten that did that. Simply great. The fish was a little crispy on one side and perfectly moist and flaky. My only complaint about the meal was the baked potato, which was still a little crunchy and served with Promise spread instead of butter. It still worked though. Back to the room for a Lunesta and an early night. New start tomorrow when my brother gets here. He's gonna be pissed when he finds out I'm rooting against his adopted Texas Longhorns this weekend. This means I have to root for Texas A&M Saturday, and may cause us to end up on the evening news or Montel Williams. I look at it as rooting for LSU during the Longhorn/Aggies game. He probably won't see it that way. More travel and damage reports as they become available.

Sapphires and Garlic is a great book. I cheated a bit and we listened to the audio book version of it during a 9 hour road trip to Louisiana for Thanksgiving. It is a fascinating story of her tenure at The New York Times, bookended by her jobs at the LA Times and Gourmet. Far more goes into that job than I ever thought of, and her personal memories are fun and sobering at the same time. A real glimpse into the busy life of a writer, wife, and mother. Highly recommended!

Well, we're here. Apologies for no pictures, but the digital camera got left in Birmingham. Oops. Mea Culpa. We started seeing storm damage around McComb, MS coming in last night. Couldn't see much in the dark, but there was enough to see tree and sign damage. Slept in a bit today after getting in at about 3am, and woke up famished. Went to Julien's on Ambassador Caffery for lunch so I could get my fried shrimp po-boy fix. My wife and I split a whole, delicious sandwich and a half order of fried meat pies. Both were superb. The sandwich was served with Zapp's Crawtater chips. They have gotten a little skimpier with the shrimp, but there was still a sufficient amount. Lafayette and Baton Rouge look fine, if more crowded. I was sorry to see Woods and Waters near The Mall of Acadiana has closed. They were great. Kaplan, Intracoastal City, Gueydan, and the Islands are on tap for exploration while I'm here. I don't know if I can even get into Cameron Parish to see because of the sheer scope of damage there. I do know that only a statue and a church steeple were the only things in Holly Beach to survive. That's were Rita made landfall. Did a little exploring on the way to mom's south of Erath. We went through Henry, LA on LA 330 and saw frightful damage from water, but not so much wind damage. But remember, Rita hit quite a while back, and a lot of weak trees and power poles were damaged and removed after hurricane Lili a couple of years ago. Luckilly, it seems that much of the sugar cane crop survived the saltwater and is being harvested right now. That was a bright spot on a pretty torn up area. There used to be thousands of cows, and we only saw a handfull. The large bales of hay used to feed them during the winter seem to be ruined. Feeding these surviving cattle will be a challenge this winter. Local authorities are asking for hay and feed donations from other parts of the country, and they are starting to filter in. In the Henry area, there was lots of debris along the roads waiting to be picked up. Refrigerators, carpets, cabinets, drywall... The usual suspects after water damage. Not much wind damage, but lots of campers in back yards. After a quick visit with Mom, we came back towards Abbeville and saw that Champagne's grocery store (the only grocery store in town) was gutted (as was their other store in Delcambre) because of water damage. Abbeville itself has some sign damage remaining, but again, anything weak was fixed after Lili. Supper was ultimate comfort food cooked by a friend that loves me. A fresh sausage rice and gravy, with green beans and corn. What's not to love? Homemade comfort food by a loved one is perfection itself. Who cares if the corn came out of a can, simply heated with a little butter? No fancy wines, no fancy dessert (We had cake trimmings. She decorates cakes and had a big bowl full of them. Pick them up and dip them into whipped cream, and life is good). Tomorrow, my step-dad's should-be-famous rotisserie turkey, injected with butter and seasoned well, then turned over a charcoal flame. I am so looking forward to that, even if we will be eating on a picnic table. At least the weather is cooperating. 75 degrees and sunny tomorrow. There's a lot to be thankful for in the midst of destruction. The important people in my life are alive and safe. The damage is being repaired as quickly as FEMA is letting them. Most of the local crops seemed to have survived somewhat (at least in Vermilion Parish), and people are getting back to bitching about the New Orleans/San Antonio Saints. My hometown is growing, if the presence of a few new chain restaurants and hotels are any indication. More updates as I can do it. I may not do one tomorrow, as I think we are going to see "Walk The Line" with friends. I will definitely post this weekend. Happy Thanksgiving. It could always be worse, right?

We're actually staying in Lafayette. Mom's house in Erath is still unlivable, and they are living in the camper in their back yard. Priceline.com does Lafayette now, and we got suites for $40 a night. Hotels aren't completely full, though they are busy. I guess any empty rooms aren't going to be filled with tourists anytime real soon, so they will take what they can get for them. I do plan on making a trip through the southern part of Vermilion Parish to see about some relatives and some family property. I can't say I'm really looking forward to that. I'll take as many pics as I can and share what info I can come up with. I may or may not be able to post it until after the trip, though.

Anyone interested in a post Katrina/Rita thread?

http://www.cnn.com/2005/TECH/internet/11/1...g.ap/index.html The blogger critiques the critic.... Interesting. eGullet mentioned in article

Here's another update - We're still struggling. She is back in the hospital right now (that makes 5 times in 4 months) for pneumonia/pleurisy. Really painful. So far the hospital stays have been for the initial problems, infection of the central line IV, placement of a feeding tube into the stomach (removed 2 weeks later because it didn't work), pneumonia #1, and now pneumonia #2. Strengthwise, she's doing OK, considering she's been knocked down with pneumonia a couple of times in the last month. Right now she's in extreme pain, so about all they can do is give her dilaudid and let her sleep until the inflamation has gotten better. It will be looked over again in a few days. It's still an uphill battle. We were hoping to get back to Louisiana for Thanksgiving, but that's pretty much out the window now. We'll start looking at Christmas. Those prayers and good thoughts are still useful...

Looks like the water came about 3 feet. High water mark is about even with the trim on the siding dividing the green from the beige. 3 feet of water is a helluva lot of damage. That means cleaning up a foot of mud, replacing every bit of furniture, every appliance - including walkins. But that's only if the walls themselves can be salvaged. It looks like a stick built stucture, so every 2x4 stud in there is probably beyond hope at this late date. They may have had a chance if they could have ripped the drywall and insulation out and gotten it dried out quickly. But now, forget it. It would be cheaper and easier to bulldoze the building and start over. They are probably going to end up doing that to entire neighborhoods.

What about the silver ones? Maybe that could work as a backup.

One bakery I used to work at used a duck feather for egg wash on the breads. It left an extremely thin coat on the bread and worked perfectly. And why not use a spray product for the pans?

At the outset, Prudhomme was involved and doing things for his staff and others ... I know because I checked for chefs' names at the beginning. ← Not saying Prudhomme wasn't involved. I'm saying that the first news I heard here in Birmingham was in the last 48 hours through this very website.

Mom got 3 feet of water in her house in Vermilion Parish from Rita, and didn't lose a single satsuma from the tree in her back yard. Funny thing this...

Emeril has never made a secret of his Fall River Mass heritage. He's Portugese and proud of it. The fact that we haven't seen him hauling sacks of crawfish into the back door of Delmonico's as B roll on the evening news does not mean that he hasn't been doing anything. He just hasn't been doing it on camera. Do I have any proof that he's doing anything? No. Do I think he's doing something? He has to be. One of the perks of being the boss and being in the position that he is is that he can hire a hundred people instead of getting dirty himself. Let me be clear. There is nothing wrong with that. If he wanted to put on a pair of rubber boots and stroll down Magazine Street with FTV, NBC, CNN, and ABC in tow, he could and would. He has always backed Louisiana suppliers and vendors. He's probably buying the majority of seafood that Louisiana can provide right now. He is likely to be propping up Louisiana's seafood and food industry for some time to come. He has not been shown sans makeup in front of a downed oak tree, but I think he does care about what is happening in the city. I don't think for one second that he is going to turn his back on New Orleans. From a business standpoint, it would be suicide (Tom Benson, take notes). But from a human standpoint, I think he is trying to stay out of the way (here is where I make a snarky remark about churches being used as speech backdrops and overtaxing security in a hurricane zone) and get some work done. I have more respect for people who can and do put some money and people into a problem instead of standing around navelgazing. There has been a lot of coverage of the storm, and it's only now starting to slow down. But the first I heard about Paul Prudhomme's activities was this week. Brennan's I knew about from day one (OK, maybe 2 or 3) when they were sending cakes to the police station from their bunker on St Charles. It is a big story, one that is likely to be eclipsed somewhat by the troublemaker headed toward Florida at the end of the week. Jim Cantore's flip flops may never dry out. Maybe Emeril is just pacing himself. No sense being a burnout in a dark city.

According to Alton Brown, (IIRC), lemon was originally used to "dissolve" bones stuck in the throat of the eater. The acid didn't really melt the bones, of course, but the action of sucking on a slice of lemon did often dislodge the offender. From there it became customary to include a slice of lemon on a plate of fish, and from there it became common to squeeze the lemon onto the fish iteself.

I regret not watching and helping my aunts and grandmother cook more. I've learned a lot and figured out certain other things, but some things I make will never taste quite right. I also regret that batch of blue cinnamon rolls, but I am willing to write that off as an experiment. It's true. No one eats blue food, especially when it's not supposed to be blue.

What? No County Line? How ca this be a serious discussion of Texas BBQ without County Line? Although, when taken seperately, Salt Lick ties with Stubb's, IMHO for best sauce. Just to throw that info out there.

But wouldn't high voltage seem to make far more of a chemical change to the wine than the magnetic stuff? And it would seem that voltage induced change would be permanent. Whether it's good or not is a different story. And note, this guy claims to make (if I understood the article correctly) the wine "age" versus "seem like it's been breathing for 30 minutes", as others have claimed. You would be caramelizing sugars, at least it seems.

And don't forget anything with brown sugar. Seems that most fall flavors work well with brown gugar.

Sweet potato and marshmallow (if you have ever eaten Thanksgiving dinner in the Southern US, you would understand) And there's always the Jone's Soda version of turkey and gravy... ick. I also think of dates, coconut, pecans/walnuts, and molasses/Steen's syrup as fall/holiday flavors as well. But my grandmother was the queen of holiday candy making in my neck of the woods. But what the hell's wrong with chocolate? Especially as a first attempt. Now you could take off into chocolate/mint or chocolate/cherry combos as well...

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/commo...2^29677,00.html The upshot of the story: Through high voltage and something called an ion exchange membrane, newer wines can be mellowed to take on the characteristics of a more aged wine. What do you think? Hogwash or potential revolution?