June 6, 2025 *I'm still at the getting organized stage *and still have a few boxes to unpack. The next big chore is going to be to paint the place; we get a lot of sunlight and I'll go with a buttery yellow and cream color scheme. We're just steps from the beach, and the sunlight is welcome. For the recipes this week, first up is a collection of chimichurri-style sauces that I love to serve alongside any grilled or roasted food. They taste like summer to me. Next, an easy summer meal using my favorite seafood: Gr ...Continue Reading

May 30, 2025 *We're far from settled *in our new home in Long Beach; the movers arrived a week ago and I promptly came down with a nasty summer cold, so I still have boxes to unpack and organizing to do. I have time. Imagine my excitement when I found frozen Louisiana crawfish tails from Breaux Bridge in a specialty meat market just down the street! And they're not that much more expensive than what I was accustomed to paying in New Orleans. I will be introducing my West Coast family to the mud bugs. For the rec ...Continue Reading

May 10, 2025 Mother's Day Gift Idea! A copy of my autographed cookbook makes a great gift for Mother's Day. Order here. *This is our last weekend *in New Orleans! We had friends over for hamburgers on the grill Thursday night, and will be saying our final goodbyes (at least for now!) over the weekend. There are many mixed feelings about the upcoming move, but we'll be a lot closer to Jim's family, and part of my family. The family I leave behind here will come visit. The friends will too. For the recipes this we ...Continue Reading

May 10, 2025 Mother's Day Gift Idea! A copy of my autographed cookbook makes a great gift for Mother's Day. Order here. *This is our last weekend *in New Orleans! We had friends over for hamburgers on the grill Thursday night, and will be saying our final goodbyes (at least for now!) over the weekend. There are many mixed feelings about the upcoming move, but we'll be a lot closer to Jim's family, and part of my family. The family I leave behind here will come visit. The friends will too. For the recipes this we ...Continue Reading

May 3, 2025 Mothers Day Gift Idea! A copy of my cookbook makes a great gift for Mothers Day. Order here. I have a family reunion tomorrow and, for the first time, I'm not cooking anything to take for the pot-luck. My kitchen is all but packed up, plus, I just don't have the time. My sister flies in this afternoon and I'm making a quick meal for her; baked sweet potatoes, smothered green beans, butterbeans, a ham steak, and will use the last of my cornmeal for some cornbread. Then the cornbread skillet gets packed ...Continue Reading

April 18, 2025 Mothers Day Gift Idea! A copy of my cookbook makes a great gift for Mothers Day. Order here. Jim and I are moving back to California next month; a new chapter in our lives, much closer to family we've not been close to in almost 20 years. We will really miss the family I still have here, and all the great friends we've made here, but here we go on to the next chapter of our lives. I will, of course, continue  with this newsletter, presenting great recipes for your consideration. May be in ...Continue Reading

April 18, 2025 I got a great compliment from a customer this week. A gentleman called to order a second copy of my cookbook, My Louisiana Kitchen. Like me, he owns hundreds of cookbooks and spends a lot of time in the kitchen. He told us that he considers my cookbook to be one of the best that he owns, and that he'll be cooking from it for years to come. That's really gratifying to hear; I put countless hours worth of work into developing my recipes over the years, then even more hours selecting the ones to inclu ...Continue Reading

April 4, 2025 Many thanks to those of you who've ordered copies of my cookbook, My Louisiana Kitchen. I expect we'll be sold out before summer, so now is the time to reserve a copy for yourself  or it will make a perfect Mother's Day gift. I'm getting really positive feedback from happy cooks all over the country. I'm happy about that; also more than a little surprised at how often I pull it out to look up one of my own recipes to cook! Speaking of, for the recipes this week, I'm starting with the class ...Continue Reading

March 28, 2025 Countdown to French Quarter Fest! I intend to be more responsible this year; last year, after a long cold rainy winter, the weather was so nice for the first day and we set up our group of friends in the full sun. For some reason it didn't even occur to me that I needed heavy duty sun screen on, and my arms sunburned so badly I couldn't go outside for a few days. Missed the rest of the Fest. Not going to do that this year! For the recipes this week, I'm starting with my favorite technique for fried shri ...Continue Reading

March 22, 2025 Spring has sprung! We're enjoying beautiful weather this week, and I seem to finally be on the mend after a more than 2 week battle with COVID. I managed to avoid catching it all these years, but Mardi Gras did us in this year. Thankfully Jim and I were both fully vaccinated, so the symptoms weren't too severe; Jim was back to normal in just a few days. It decided to linger with me. For the recipes this week, I'm starting with a decidedly decadent recipe for Crawfish Mac and Cheese, a special treat ...Continue Reading