January 12, 2017 | Louisiana Kitchen & Culture

January 12, 2017

It's been a cooking marathon! We're knee-deep in recipe testing, cooking, and photographing for the next issue, and it's smelling a lot like crawfish. My favorite so far, maybe the crawfish étouffée by a smidge. It takes me back to the spring of 2007 when I was commuting in and out of New Orleans, deciding whether or not I was really going to move back to the south.

I spent 2 weeks or so a month from February through May at a hotel in the French Quarter and would take a stroll each evening to pick up something for dinner. I ate a lot of crawfish étouffée. I loved it then, and I love it now; LKC reader and contributing writer Bill Broussard has all but volunteered himself to write a feature story on the different versions of étouffée to be found around the state; almost like gumbo, there are about as many different versions out there as there are cooks. We'll put that one on the books for an issue later this year. If you or your family has a favorite recipe for the dish, I'd love to hear about it!

It's time to start making your plans for Mardi Gras parades around the state; we've started compiling a list. If you know of a parade that we don't have listed yet, email the details you have to Jim and we'lll get it updated.

Enjoy this week's recipes, share them with family and friends, and, as always, let me know what's on your mind. Also, keep in mind that food banks struggle this time of year; consider making a donation if at all possible.

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Susan Ford

Susan Ford, Publisher

Louisiana Kitchen & Culture

Miss last edition's recipes?

• Most viewed last week: Seafood-Stuffed Bell Peppers

• Haydel's King Cake

• Chicken Pot Pie with a Cheddar Crust

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	Lasagne with Rich Meat Sauce From one of the first cookbooks I ever bought, Classic American Food Without Fuss, this is a simple, classic meat-based lasagne. My second-generation northern Italian husband recoils with horror at the thought of meat sauce with lasagne - he's a cheese and tomato sauce only purist - but I love it. Click to forward this email and recipes.

	Shrimp Stew Serve this satisfying stew over fluffy white rice on a cold winter evening; it's sure to take the chill off. Excerpted from "From the Kitchens of Martha Stewart Living: One Pot the authors call it Cajun Stew; the inclusion of tomatoes swings it more to the Creole side of the Louisiana equation. Delicious, in any case. Click to forward email and recipes.

	Grits & Beef Grillades Feel free to substitute in pork or veal for the beef, or a mixture of pork and beef. You can make this in the crock pot, serve it for breakfast, brunch, lunch, or dinner. It'll always be welcome on the table. Click to forward email and recipes.