A Simpler Time...

I found out the other day that I am actually priceless or worth the price of a high end toaster (grin). I was at my cousin's home and she was telling family stories. 

She told me that in 1949 electric toasters were such a delight to have, a novelty you might say, a different era completely in things that were precious to own.

My mother loved toast.  I knew this because my mother has had toast at night for as long as I can remember with a little glass of milk.

Well, the story goes that my daddy wanted a little girl so (he came from a family of 6 brothers and  1 sister)...anyway, daddy told mama that if she had baby girl that he would buy her a brand new shiny "electric toaster" from Montgomery Wards. 

I can still see that shiny 1950's toaster sitting in the corner of the counter in her little kitchen!  Priceless to me.

BUTTERNUT SQUASH SOUP

Time for all of the winter soups...this soup is on page 5!  Bon Appetit!

1 large peeled butternut squash
3 tablespoons of butter
1 large onion chopped
2 ribs of celery diced in half moons
32 ounce box of Swanson's chicken broth
1 tsp of white pepper
1 tsp of ground nutmeg
salt to taste
sour cream and extra nutmeg

In a large, heavy bottomed pot, melt the butter. Sauté the onion and celery for 3 to 6 minutes or until the onions are translucent. Add the chicken broth and the peeled squash that has been cut into one inch pieces. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 45 minutes. Ladle out the softened squash and place into a blender or food processor; puree, reserving the liquid. Add the pepper, nutmeg and salt to this mixture. Return this mixture to the pot of liquid. Whisk until creamy. Reheat. Ladle the soup into bowls serving each with a dollop of sour cream and a dusting of nutmeg. 

Announcement!

Beginning October 21st, you will be able to purchase Roux, Simple Cajun Recipes at the West Baton Rouge Parish Museum Gift Shop, on Jefferson Street in Port Allen, LA.  Ask for it by name. Bon Appetit!

Thanksgiving Menu

It is time to think about your menu for Thanksgiving!  You can start buying your ingredients now, so you will not be so rushed that week!  Also, write your Gift List now so you can take advantage of the sales on "Black Friday"; make a plan to shop with one of your friends and meet for lunch that day.  My father and I always made that Friday our special day!  We would get up early and head to his favorite store (Target).  It was truly the only time that I had my dad all to myself!

Turkey
Ham
Small Pork Loin Roast (page 26) with
White Rice and Gravy
Rice Dressing (page 13)

Green bean Casserole (page 14)
Carrot Souffle
Yam bake
Dinner Rolls
Sweet Potato Pie (page 48)

Holidays!

Everything is ready for the holidays...Roux, Simple Cajun Recipes can now be purchased at Glaser's False River location, The Vintage Shop (can be ordered) on Magazine Street in New Orleans, Plantation Pecan and Gift Company in Baton Rouge, Louisiana and at our website.  Bon Appetit!!!

HOW TO BOIL SPAGHETTI

Put a large pot of water onto boil with 2 tablespoons of olive oil and 1 tablespoon of salt.

When the water comes to a rapid boil, drop in your spaghetti stirring it to be sure it is completely covered by the water.

When it comes back to a boil, cover it and time it 11 minutes.

Taste one to make sure it is not hard, then pour into a colander and rinse with cold water to stop the cooking process.

Spring 1990

With the innocent squeals of joy, my daughter emerged from the school bus, poster flying in hand---shouting, "Mama, Mama, it was the last one. I knew how much you loved strawberries and I bought this for you at the fair."  Flying beside her was a strawberry poster...I covet it now...hanging in a frame among lithographs and expensive art...it is truly the only piece of art I possess that is priceless.

Butter me up...

I have an Aunt that used to toast bread in the oven. Then she would pour melted butter on every corner of that bread!  I was always in awe of this ritual; watching her melt the butter in a little pot, in the little trailer, placed in a little yard, where they lived. It was absolutely the best toast I ever had in my life.

She wore red lipstick with drawn in brows to frame her face; smoking unfiltered Camels while she did this wonderous toast breakfast for a 7 year old and her four children.  She was a little pudge pot of a woman and I loved her dearly.

While I was finishing my toast (I am a slow eater), she would line up her four children, my cousins, and lather them up with baby oil and make them go outside...then it was my turn...I stood still while she oiled me up like a suckling pig ready for the oven, holding my toast above my head.

As she hung clothes I would sit akimbo in the shade of the little trailer, eating my toast, watching my cousins bake in the hot summer sun!  They were so in style in 1957 with their 1990's savage tans! I, on the other, opted for toast instead...

Roux, Simple Cajun Recipes

ROUX is just a straightforward book of good recipes.

My mother was French (therefore, the Five Mother Sauces) and German (ergo, the Cabbage Rolls) and my father was Vraie Cadien, a true Cajun, (so, there you have the Gumbos, the Crawfish boils and the Bourre (card) games.

ROUX is a compact book, and can be packed easily for trips, placed in purses, brief cases and back packs. 

It can be brought easily anywhere you desire to share with your friends and family. 

This size book makes it easy for you to do.

So, please enjoy! Bon Appetit!

Susan D. Savant

One copy is 20.00 including postage and handling. Send a Personal Check, Money Order or Cashier's Check payable to Susan D Savant at P.O. Box 2042, Baton Rouge, LA 70821.

Be sure to include your name and mailing address. 

Pecan Tassies

One of the Women's Club I used to belong to had wonderful Christmas parties.  The menu was always the same generation after generation!  Pecan Tassies were a must on the menu.  Bon Appetit!

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F., with an oven rack in the middle of the oven

Tassie  Filling

1-1/2 cups pecan halves chopped
3 large eggs, room temperature
2 cups packed brown sugar (light or dark)
3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup 2 tablespoons light corn syrup
3 tablespoons butter, melted 

Dough

Either Pillsbury roll out pie crust which is easily cut into circles

and tampered down into a greased mini muffin pan or this recipe:

Cream Cheese Dough

2-1/3 cups (291grams) all-purpose flour-measured

by fluffing, scooping and leveling
3 tablespoons powdered sugar
Pinch salt
12 tablespoons (6 ounces) butter, cold
12 ounces cream cheese, cold
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Place 1 teaspoonful of nuts into each cup. Spoon in 2 to 2-1/2 teaspoons of the sugar/egg mixture,

filling the tarts to within a scant 1/8-inch of the top. Do not fill the tarts up to the top, as the filling expands as it cooks and tarts that have overflowed are hard to remove from the pans after baking.

Place the pans on a cookie sheet and bake for 26-28 minutes, until the filling is puffed and the pastry is lightly browned. Remove the pans to a cooling rack. Let the pastry stand for 5 minutes. While the pastry is still warm, run a skewer along the top edge of the pastry to loosen it from the pan and then remove the tarts from the pans (if you wait, you'll be unable to remove them from the pans unless you have a Teflon pan or have buttered the pan heavily). Set the tarts on a cooling rack to cool completely

SERVING AND STORING

Keep tassies at room temperature for a day, but because they have a moist filling, it might be safer to refrigerate them after a few hours. They should be eaten at room temperature, however. Tassies can be frozen for up to 3 months. Store them in an airtight container. To defrost, place them in one layer on a pan or plate, cover loosely with plastic, foil or waxed paper. They'll defrost in an hour or two.

Lasagna for Game Night!

Whether it is for a sports night or just friends coming over for a leisurely parlour game of Mahjong or Scrabble, this dish can be prepared a day ahead of time (refrigerate and cover with foil) so you can enjoy your company.

1 box of lasagna noodles (uncooked)
1 lb. of ground beef
1 large onion chopped
1 large jar of marinara or spaghetti sauce
1 large container of cottage cheese
1 large egg
1 package of grated mozarella cheese
1 package of grated parmesan cheese

     Preheat oven to 350°F. Brown ground meat with onions, drain.
    
     Combine the ground meat mixture with the marinara or spaghetti sauce in a large bowl.
     In a separate bowl combine egg and cottage cheese.
     Spread 2 tablespoons of ground meat mixture into the bottom of a glass, oven proof 9x13 pan.
     Place a layer of noodles in the pan; spread meat over the noodles. Then spread cottage cheese mixture over the meat; sprinkle a layer of mozzarella cheese next.
     Repeat with noodles, meat, cottage cheese, mozzarella and top with parmesan cheese for the last layer. (Makes three layers)
     Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 45 minutes. Remove foil and bake another 15 minutes.
     Be sure to let the lasagna cool for 20 minutes and don't boil the noodles beforehand.

1960 Summer Trips

      A lot of my life was spent in New Orleans.  It was here that I learned how to fry chicken and  make French potato salad. 
     I also learned how to eat chili dogs, while standing on one of the French Quarter street corners, without dropping any sauce or mustard on my white shirt!
     After a two hour drive from Lafayette and a roadside stop in Livonia, Louisiana, we were finally at our destination;  to visit my Aunt, Uncle and cousins in LaPlace.  That night all of the children slept on pallet quilts in the tiny living room at my Aunt Eunice and Uncle Pemon's home. 
     Early in the morning,  my mother and Aunt would fry chicken and all of the fixin's to take with us to " The City" as New Orleans is called (not Big Easy) for the day.  You could hear them in the early morning behind the swinging kitchen door laughing and drinking coffee.  The smell of the chicken permeated the house.  You knew that this was going to be an exciting day for everyone!
     The trip started off at Ponchartrain Beach where we could choose only three "rides" because it was 25 cents a ride and money was tight.  There were four of us under 12 years old, standing in line to ride your special ride, with Daddy. Then off to City Park where other family members would meet us. Then the men would sit at one of the picnic tables, smoking and playing Bouree (a card game) while my mother and Aunt would lay out the picnic dinner.  We would all eat after a game of croquet and then nap through the afternoon on big quilts that were laid on the soft St. Augustine grass. (I can still feel the softness that surrounded me on those lazy summer days.)
     In the evening our parents would "pack up the day" and our families would head to the French Quarter for beignets and cafe au lait at Cafe Du Monde. 
    After "window shopping" late into the evening, we would eat hot dogs from one of the "Lucky Dog" stands for supper. 
    We would then say our goodbyes and pile into Dad's little Cheverolet Coupe and head back to Lafayette on Highway 90! (no Interstate). Crowded together in the back seat of the car, shoulder to shoulder, legs everywhere, we four children, with pillows scrunched up, slept all of the way home.
    I miss those days.

Coming Soon!

I am very proud to announce that Roux, Simple Cajun Recipes will be at the West Baton Rouge Museum Gift Shop in Port Allen, Louisiana for the holidays!
Ask for it by name!

Cafe Au Lait (Coffee Milk)

1/4 cup coffee
3/4 cup whole milk
1 Tb. granulated sugar
Heat milk until it is very hot, but not boiling.  Pour in mug, add sugar; stir.  Then fill to the brim with hot coffee. Voila! Bon Appetit!

Chili Time!

 Nothing like a hearty bowl of Wagon Trail Chili for supper!  Cool nights finally!  We sat out on our porch with friends night before last and had Wagon Trail Chili (page7) served with crusty french bread. Simple to prepare and just delicious for a cold night!

Wagon Trail Chili

1 1/2 pounds of ground chuck
1 onion, finely chopped
1 can of beef broth 14 oz
1 large jar of picante sauce; ; mild, med., or hot
1 can of diced tomatoes
3 cans or red chili beans, drained
shredded cheddar cheese
sour cream

Brown ground meat with onions. Add beef broth, picante sauce, diced tomatoes and chili beans. Simmer 10 minutes. Serve over rice or ladle into soup bowls topped with a sprinkle of cheddar cheese and a dollop of sour cream.   Serve with crusty french bread or homemade cornbread (page 35).