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Happy Valentine's Day, for those of you who observe it; it's not anything we've ever observed, but it's fun to see the flowers and decorations. Back in New Orlean, it's full on Mardi Gras for the weekend, will probably be some heart-shaped throws for the Saturday parades. I've got beads hung on my fence outside, and a yard flag; a few people have commented, but it's odd to experience not much happening.

For the recipes this week, first up is a smothered pork chop with gravy. My mom would serve it with rice, I'm equally happy with grits, polenta, or biscuits. Next, and easy weeknight meal; use frozen puff pastry and stuff pockets with your favorite fillings. I don't have any puff pastry in the freezer right now, need to rectify that. And finally, a simple fried catfish recipe. I have a specialty meat store close by that carries wild caught US catfish--and Louisiana crawfish tails! I'm going to cook crawfish something for my West Coast family this spring.

Enjoy these recipes, stay safe and healthy, and, as always, let me know what's on your mind.

Best regards,

Susan Ford, Publisher and Editorial Director

Louisiana Kitchen & Culture

P.S. You can easily share this newsletter with family and friends, just use the link at the bottom of the page.

P.P.S. The cookbook is getting rave reviews, check out the table of contents on the order form. Makes a perfect gift!

Previous recipes:

 • Shrimp and Crawfish Fettuccini • Creole Stuffed Eggplant • Baked Stuffed Oysters

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140+ recipes, all but a handful with lush photography, all tried and tested-- and tasted!

Southern-Style Smothered Pork Chops

Serve this with grits, rice, or buttermilk biscuits for soaking up the gravy. The recipe provides instructions for cooking quickly in a pressure cooker, or going low and slow in a slow cooker. From the experts at America's Test Kitchen, they use Lawry's Seasoned Salt, I'd use a Cajun or Creole seasoning mix on mine.

Chicken Caprese Hot Pockets

This is a meal you can put together in about the amount of time it takes to preheat the oven, if you have all the ingredients on hand. And, of course, once you learn the method, vary the filling to fit your personal taste.

Fried Catfish Fillets

Fried catfish will always make the short list of favorite meals for me. My dad was a freshwater fisherman, so it was a rare day when there wasn't some in the freezer, and no one ever said no when my mom suggested catfish for dinner.