Modern Creole: Do you know where your turkey necks will end up?

 

The holidays are coming. Do you know where your turkey necks will end up?

Southeast Texans with Louisiana ties may already make their turkey necks into gravy. Chef Eric Cook’s recipe for Smothered Turkey Necks is for those who never knew how they could “perfume a kitchen.” He writes that if the smell does not entice you, you are truly missing out on one of the deepest poultry flavors that you can experience.

The chef loves Steen’s cane syrup and cane vinegar and suggests including them in your “everyday pantry.” His book is “Modern Creole: A Taste of New Orleans Culture and Cuisine.

Creole White Beans simmer all day when you’ve got chores around the house and let the neighbors know something good is going on in the kitchen. The “smell can be intoxicating” and would make a good scented candle, he writes. Tasso ham and a pound of bacon go in his pot.

Recipes include:

·        Pan-Fried Frog Legs with Garlic Butter

·        Chicken Gizzard Grillades with Stone-Ground Grits

·        Artichoke Boulettes with Green Remoulade

·        Merliton Slaw with Caviar Ranch

·        Muffuletta Salad

·        Monday Red Beans and Rice (for wash day)

·        Whole Redfish Court-Bouillon

·        Seared Group with Satsuma Beurre Blanc

I am ready to pack a go-bag and head to New Orleans right about now.

 

Manuel shares Creole heritage at Museum of the Gulf Coast

Remember Rita Manuels gumbo from St. Mary Hospital? Remember her on the Pete and Rita Zydeco show? You know she’s a photographer, too.

Zydeco Memories: Past and Present will open at Museum of the Gulf Coast with a reception from 4 to 7 p.m. on Oct. 5. I’m hearing that some of the famous musicians she has photographed may be bringing their scrub boards and other instruments for a little jam session. I don’t want to miss that. The show will be up in the Dunn Gallery through Dec. 28.

Darragh Doiron is a Port Arthur area foodie ready for some Creole flavors and zydeco music. Share your culinary adventures with her at darraghcastillo@icloud.com