New Orleans Again

Just went to NOLA for a long weekend. Little did I know that it would be the biggest water event there since Katrina. Ten inches in about 2 hours. We took off our shoes and waded home Saturday evening.

We were there for the 10^th annual Antiques Forum by the Historic New Orleans Collection. We have gone several times and have been impressed with the work and the programs, etc. done by the Collection. The forum had nothing to do with food but the title, “In Their Hands, Creative Masters of Southern Decorative Arts,” perhaps should have had something to do with the Southern art of cooking. I go to NOLA for the food really.

We started our NOLA eating by going to our new favorite neighborhood restaurant, Palidar 511, where we can walk easily. I had their shishito pepper appetizer. These are showing up at a lot of places these days and they lend themselves to eating raw or in salads; I especially like them grilled, and I wrote about them last year with a sauce. We have them in the garden this year and can have them about once a week.

Day one was the bus tour of some neighboring plantations. The food is not the show here but uncorking the wine before lunch is a tradition. This year our bus got stuck in the soggy soil next to the levee at the first house. We exited; the staff got the wine and we sat in the rockers on the front gallery as the wrecker pulled the bus out about an hour later.

One stop was the 1795 Magnolia Mound Plantation house. It is early for Louisiana and the dining room and parlor are some of the most colorful around. The Friends of Magnolia Mound are responsible for the furniture collection and gave us a welcome bag containing two of their books; one was The Magnolia Mound Plantation Kitchen Book, a well put-together compendium of food ways and customs of early Louisiana with recipes from the period translated for today.

That night our son who works at John Folse’s Revolution was off and we took him to Le Petite Grocery. All was good but the yellowfin tuna was the best with a side of field peas with a vinegary cilantro sauce. I need the recipe for the sauce. Le Petite’s chef Justin Deviller was chosen best chef South by the James Beard Awards in 2016. He has another restaurant in the CBD, Balise, and is opening a third in the French Quarter, maybe later this year. Then we can walk.

Lunch on the first day of the forum was at Antoine’s as it is so close. It is not my favorite of the old line restaurants but I like to go. We had their coolinary menu---a special at many local restaurants in August which, due to the heat, is a down time. The baked oysters were good and they had a very good bread pudding, perhaps as good as Galatoire’s banana bread pudding. Then there is Commander’s bread pudding soufflé which is kind of over the top.

We took a break from good food that night and had a salad and pizza from Mona Lisa which is a half block away from our bedroom.

Better food on Saturday when we lunched at Bayona’s. Susan Spicer now has two other restaurants that we haven’t yet visited (and one of them flooded Saturday evening) but we love her 29 year old flagship on Dauphine. My husband had his usual sazarac but here they have a smoother one made with cognac. An appetizer I will plan to duplicate was great: Crostini with a truffled egg salad, then tomato slices, their house cured bacon (I will use Benton’s, my very favorite) and arugula. For dessert which we don’t normally order (but again we were doing the coolinary special three course meal) my husband had the cheese course, which is something I like and does not do you in with sugar. I had one of their specialties: smoked duck with peanut/cashew butter in puff pastry---only a hint of sweetness.

 

 

We again did the forum‘s Sunday Jazz Brunch. It was at Arnaud’s. This is perhaps my favorite old line restaurant. I am again amazed at some statistics of theirs: they have 17 dining rooms and can serve 1000 people at one time. Our favorite maitre’d, Charles, was on duty. We always remember him from the time he read our daughter’s name which was spelled in Arabic on her necklace. He is Lebanese but also lived in Dubai as I once did.

The meal was in Arnaud’s main dining room which is glamorous. We were met with cocktails: mimosas or Bloody Mary’s. They passed around one of my favorites, souffléed potatoes, which I always have here or at Galatoire’s; have never tried to do them at home. The appetizer was shrimp remoulade. Their remoulade sauce is their most famous creation and the recipe is, of course, a secret. But you can buy it bottled. The entrée was a classic fish amandine with haricot verts. Dessert was crepes suzette. Wine flowed freely as did conversation and the jazz band was on hand to entertain. They played for me two of my favorites: Louis Armstrong’s ‘What a Wonderful World’ (My daughter-in-law came down the aisle on that one 10 years ago.) and ‘Do You Know What it Means to Miss New Orleans’ (I came in on that one.).

Coffee and then home. What a good four days!!

What a good bread pudding we had at Antoine’s. So you need the recipe.

Bread Pudding with Bourbon Sauce

Serves 6-8

Nonstick vegetable spray

4 cups cubed French bread

1 cup canned fruit cocktail

½ cup raisins

1 ½ quart milk

4 eggs

1 ½ cups sugar

2 tbsp. vanilla

2 tbsp. clarified butter

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Lightly coat the bottom of a large baking dish with nonstick vegetable spray. Line the bottom with half of the breading. Cover with fruit cocktail and raisins. Top with the remaining bread.

Heat the milk to boil.

In a large mixing bowl, beat the eggs, sugar, and vanilla with a wire whisk. Add hot milk, mix well, then pour this mixture over the bread and fruit combination. Allow the bread to soak up the liquid.

Dot the surface of the bread pudding with clarified butter, then bake until firm, approximately 25 minutes.

Serve hot or cold, cut into squares, with the following sauce.

Bourbon Sauce

2 cups hot milk

2 eggs

½ cup sugar

3 tbsp. corn starch

2 tbsp. soft butter

1 tbsp. vanilla

1 oz. bourbon whiskey

Heat milk.

In a double boiler over a medium-low heat setting, mix eggs, sugar, corn starch, and butter. Gradually stir in the hot milk using a wire whisk, and stir constantly until the sauce thickens. Stir in the vanilla and bourbon and serve by pouring over the bread pudding.

 

Eggplant

Eggplant is in the garden (Well ours is actually in large pots on the patio.) and I always look for new ways to prepare them.

Eggplant is a member of the nightshade family, which also includes potatoes, peppers, and tomatoes. Like all nightshades, it is considered a type of fruit, but is cooked and eaten like a vegetable.

There are many eggplant varieties, which range from dark purple to pale mauve, and from yellow to white. The large purple variety is the more commonly grown and eaten. I like to use the long slender oriental kind.

Eggplant can be bitter when either under-or-overripe. Select eggplant that is firm to the touch. It skin should be glossy with no brown streaks or spots and should have a healthy green top.

Store eggplant in the refrigerator only if your kitchen is hot or if you won’t be using it within 2 days. Otherwise, keep it at cool room temperature away from direct sunlight.

Two recipes which you should try are from the August/September 2017 issue of ‘Fine Cooking’.

 

Spicy pasta alla norma

Serves 4

Kosher salt

3 Tbs. olive oil; more as needed

1 ½ lb. Italian eggplant (about 2 medium), cut into ¾-inch dice

2 large clove garlics, chopped

2 lb. ripe tomatoes, cut into ¾-inch dice (or one 28-oz. can whole peeled tomatoes, with juice

1 tsp. dried oregano

1 to 1 ½ tsp. crushed red pepper flakes

12 oz. fettuccine

½ cup chopped fresh basil; more for garnish

1/3 cup fresh ricotta or ¼ cup grated Grana Padano or Parmigiano-Reggiano, for serving

Bring a large pot of well-salted water to a boil.

Heat 2 Tbs. of the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add one quarter of the eggplant and 1/3 tsp. salt, and cook, stirring often, until the eggplant is browned and softened, about 8 minutes. Transfer to a bowl. Repeat with the remaining eggplant, adding more oil if needed.

Heat 1 Tbs. if the oil in the same skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook, stirring until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the tomatoes and oregano, and cook, stirring until heated through, about 2 minutes. Add the eggplant and pepper flakes and toss to combine. Keep warm.

Cook the pasta according to package directions until al dente. Reserve 1 cup of the pasta cooking water. Drain the pasta and transfer to a large bowl. Add the eggplant mixture, toss to combine, and add a little of the cooking water if he pasta seems dry. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Serve with a dollop of ricotta or some grated cheese. Drizzle with olive oil and garnish with basil leaves.

 

Garlicky stir-fried eggplant

Serves 6 as a side dish

2 lb. Chinese or Japanese eggplant (about 6 medium)

Kosher salt

1 Tbs. cornstarch

2 Tbs. vegetable oil; more as needed

1 Tbs. Asian (toasted) sesame oil

10 large cloves garlic, minced (about 3 Tbs.)

2 tsp. finely grated fresh ginger

1 Tbs. soy sauce; more to taste

Sliced scallion (green part only, for garnish)

Slice the eggplant on the diagonal ¾ to 1 inch thick, larger pieces cut in half lengthwise.

Put the eggplant in a colander in the sink or over a bowl, toss with 1 Tbs. salt, and set aside to drain for about 45 minutes. Rinse the eggplant thoroughly, pat dry, and transfer to a large bowl.

Sprinkle the cornstarch over the eggplant and toss to coat evenly. Heat the oil in a 12-inch skillet or wok over medium-high heat. Add just enough eggplant to create a single layer so that no slices overlap. Cook, flipping once, until the eggplant is golden and a bit charred, 2 ½ to 3 minutes total. Transfer the eggplant to a paper-towel-lined rimmed baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining eggplant, adding more oil as needed.

Wipe the pan clean, then add the sesame oil over low heat. Add the garlic and ginger, and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 20 seconds. Return the eggplant to the pan. Add the soy sauce, and toss to combine, about 1 minute.

Serve topped with the scallion, and season to taste with soy sauce. You can also serve this over rice.

This recipe is really delicious!

 

Succotash

Succotash is a simple dish of corn and beans. But history has it that it was probably served at the first Thanksgiving instead of the buttery potatoes or the apple pie. In the winter it was dried beans instead of fresh plus a little meat or fish. Succotash was a nourishing Native American staple, a thick stew that could feed a crowd. It is also a lot of fun to say (It’s from the Wampanoag msíckquatash, meaning “boiled corn kernels”).

Today nearly all succotash recipes maintain the marriage of corn and beans, but the original tough field corn and native shell beans (typically cranberry beans in New England) have largely been replaced by sweet corn and lima beans. In its many adaptations, corned beef, salt pork, potatoes, tomatoes, okra, and peppers have all made their way into the succotash pot, along with butter, fresh herbs, and sometimes even a splash of cream.

In my August 2017 issue of ‘The Local Palate’ Frank Stitt and Timothy Hontzas did two very different recipes of succotash. Of course I did my favorite chef, Frank Stitt’s recipe. He used fresh field peas and fresh herbs to use his summer bounty. It is a great way to use all those summer vegetables.

 

Frank Stitt’s Succotash

Highlands Bar and Grill, Birmingham, Alabama

Serves 4

½ small red onion, cut into 1-inch thick slices

1 cup cooked butterbeans, Lady Peas, or Sea Island Red Peas

2 tomatoes, seeded and cut into ¼-inch dice

2 ears corn, shucked, boiled for 4 minutes, and kernels cut off the cob

½ small shallot, finely minced

4 sprigs dill fronds, coarsely chopped

Several chives, finely chopped

1 tablespoon sherry vinegar

Kosher salt and freshly ground white pepper

3 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for drizzling if desired

Prepare a hot grill o preheat broiler. Grill or broil onion slices, turning once, until lightly charred on both sides, about 3 to 4 minutes per side. Let cool, then cut into ¼-inch dice.

In a large bowl, combine the charred onion, butterbeans or field peas, tomatoes, corn, shallot, dill, and chives.

Stir in sherry vinegar and season with salt and pepper. Stir in olive oil, taste, and adjust seasoning as needed.

Tomatoes and Bread Salads

Tomatoes and crusty bread are made for each other. Tomatoes are coming to an end in our summer heat but you can still buy some nice ones at the markets.

There is nothing like the sweet juice of a good tomato soaking into a good piece of bread. A tomato and bread salad is a great main course for lunch, a light supper, or a sensational side. You can make bread salads with different types of breads and one of my favorite is the faffoush salad made with pita bread. There are so many different things you can add to these bread salads, that you never have to make the same one twice.

Just a few things to remember when preparing bread salads. Toast your bread first. Let cool before cutting into bite size pieces. Use a variety of tomatoes, and salt for a few minutes before adding the other ingredients. Oil and vinegar is the classic dressing but some garlic is good because it gives the flavor a pop. You can change the type of vinegars and boost flavors by adding shallots, onions, and anchovies.

Fresh herbs are always good to add to the bread salad. Whatever is in the garden is good, but basil, parsley, mint and cilantro are always winners. Bonus ingredients like olives, roasted red peppers, capers, thinly sliced fennel, cucumber, salad greens, beans, and cheeses like feta and mozzarella are good additions. Just use your imagination.

 

From ‘Fine Cooking’ August/September 2017.

Basic Tomato and Bread Salad

Serves 6-8

¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil; more as needed

1 Tbs. plus 2 tsp. red wine vinegar

1 ½ tsp. minced garlic

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

1/3 cup thinly sliced shallot

8 oz. rustic Italian bread, sliced ¾ to 1-inchthick

1 1/3 lb. ripe beefsteak tomatoes

1 lb. ripe tomatoes of your choice

½ cup torn fresh basil

½ cup coarsely chopped fresh mint

½ cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, thinly sliced

In a small bowl, whisk the oil, vinegar, garlic, and a pinch each of salt and pepper. Add the shallot and stir to combine.

Heat a broiler or gas or charcoal grill to medium high. Brush the bread slices with olive oil on both sides and season slightly with salt. Broil or grill the bread, flipping once, until nicely toasted, 3 to 4 minutes total. Transfer the bread to a cutting board, then tear or cut in into ¾-inch to 1-inch pieces.

Cut the tomatoes into pieces from ¾ inch to 1 inch, and transfer to a large bowl. Toss the tomatoes with the dressing and a good pinch of salt, and let sit for 5 minutes.

Toss the tomatoes with the bread, basil, mint, sun-dried tomatoes, ¼ tsp. salt, and ¼ tsp. pepper. Let sit, tossing occasionally, for 15 to 20 minutes before serving. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Fattoush-ish Bread Salad

Serves 6-8

¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil; more as needed

1 Tbs. plus 1 tsp. red wine vinegar

1 tsp. minced garlic

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

½ cup thinly sliced red onion

8 oz. pita bread or other flatbread, such as naan

1 ¼ lb. ripe beefsteak tomatoes

1 lb. ripe tomatoes of your choice

1 small cucumber; peeled, seeded, and diced (about 1 cup)

3 oz. feta, crumbled (about 1 cup)

½ cup coarsely chopped fresh mint

½ cup coarsely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

1/3 cup pitted black or green olives, quartered lengthwise

2 Tbs. coarsely chopped fresh oregano

In a small bowl, whisk the oil, vinegar, garlic, and a pinch each of salt and pepper. Add the onion and stir to combine.

Brush the pita with olive oil on both sides and grill or broil the bread, flipping once, until nicely toasted, 3 to 4 minutes total. Transfer to a cutting board, then cut or tear into 3/4-to-1 inch pieces.

Cut the tomatoes into pieces from ¾ to 1 inch, and transfer to a large bowl. Toss the tomatoes with the dressing and a good pinch of salt, and let sit for 5 minutes.

Toss the bread, cucumber, feta, mint, parsley leaves, and oregano with the tomatoes. Let sit, tossing occasionally, for 15-20 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.