Holiday Gift Suggestion - Chasing the Gator

It’s refreshing to read a cookbook authentic to Cajun lifestyles, a way of life that directly relates to the food cooked, served and eaten in Cajun Country/South Louisiana. Chef Isaac Toups grew up in Rayne, son of a "Prairie Cajun" and a "Coastal Cajun," and, even though he runs two restaurants in New Orleans, his debut cookbook screams down-home Cajun.

The chapters in "Chasing the Gator: Isaac Toups and the New Cajun Cooking" say it all — The Boucherie, Community Table, Homestead, Fish Camp and Hunt Camp, — full of recipes and cooking instructions, plus Toups’ crazy anecdotes and Boudreaux jokes. The dishes represent the heart and soul of Cajun cooking, basically what Toups describes as what people catch and what people grow, accented by “in-your-face flavor.”

“'Cajun is a lifestyle, it’s a mindset, it’s an area, and it’s a people,” Toups writes in the introduction. “This isn’t the history of classic Cajun food. That’s another book. This is the story of a young wild Cajun and the experiences that made me the cook I am today.”

Naturally, there’s lots of pork dishes, wild game, seafood from the state's wetlands, lakes and bayous and the trademark boudin (Note: His comments about where boudin is best will surely cause a fight). But what makes this cookbook special are the wonderful photos of how to stuff sausage, pick crabs, cut open a pig for roasting and cleaning fish. It’s a joy to read as much to use for cooking instruction.

Toups wrote the book with Jennifer V. Cole, a native of Mississippi and a deputy editor at Southern Living magazine. Toups has been named a James Beard Best Chef of the South Semi-Finalist or Finalist since opening his New Orleans restaurant, Toups’ Meatery in 2012 with his wife, Amanda. He was named an Eater Young Gun of the South, Eater New Orleans Chef of the Year and a Top Chef fan favorite, not to mention an advocate for preserving America’s wetlands.

Louisiana Book News is written by award-winning author Chere Dastugue Coen, who writes Louisiana romances and mysteries under the pen name of Cherie Claire. Her first book in each series is FREE to download as an ebook, including "Emilie," book one of The Cajun Series, "Ticket to Paradise," book one of The Cajun Embassy series and "A Ghost of a Chance," the first Viola Valentine mystery.

Cookbook Thursday: Jyl Benson's 'Fun, Funky and Fabulous' New Orleans

            New Orleans food writer Jyl Benson takes on the more colorful side of New Orleans cuisine in “Fun, Funky and Fabulous: New Orleans’ Casual Restaurant Recipes,” with photography by Sam Hanna and illustrations by Simon of New Orleans. It’s a fun trip through a city whose cuisine continues to evolve, spotlighting recipes from unique spots such as Vega Tapas Café, Juan’s Flying Burrito, The Three Muses and Miss Linda’s New Orleans Soul Food.  

            Benson will be signing copies of this eclectic cookbook from 1-3 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 21, at Oil and Vinegar Louisiana culinary shop, 6111 Pinnacle Pkwy. in Covington. The book features three recipes from Covington chefs Keith Frentz and Nealy Frentz of LOLA Restaurant and we'll be serving samples to snack. She will also sign copies at 4 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 24, at Coquette, 2800 Magazine St. in New Orleans, with Chef Michael Stolzfus serving up samples from the book.

            The official book launch will be at 6 p.m. March 5 at Octavia Books in New Orleans with Chef Michael Nirenberg of Fulton Alley serving the andouille tots shown on the book’s cover.

            Here’s a recipe for chilled crab and cappellini salad by Chef Isaac Toups of Toups’Meatery.

Chilled Crab and Cappellini Salad

From “Fun, Funky and Fabulous: New Orleans’ Casual Restaurant Recipes”

Juice of 1 lemon

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

1 teaspoon sugar

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Salt and white pepper to taste

8 ounces dried cappellini pasta cooked until al dente, chilled

1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley

1 tablespoon chopped fresh chives

1 ounce of your favorite caviar

8 ounces jumbo lump crabmeat, picked over for shells and cartilage

20 satsuma, tangerine or blood orange segments, membranes removed

4 large basil leaves, cut in a chiffonade

            Directions: Start with well-chilled ingredients. Whisk the lemon juice, mustard, and sugar in a bowl until the sugar has dissolved. Add the oil in thin rivulets, whisking constantly until emulsified. Season with salt and pepper. Add the cappellini, parsley, chives and caviar; toss gently to coat. Gently fold in the crabmeat, taking care not to break up the lumps. Divide the salad evenly among four chilled salad plates. Divide the citrus segments and basil evenly among the plates.

Louisiana Book News is written by Cheré Coen, the author of “Forest Hill, Louisiana: A Bloom Town History,” “Haunted Lafayette, Louisiana” and “Exploring Cajun Country: A Historic Guide to Acadiana” and co-author of “Magic’s in the Bag: Creating Spellbinding Gris Gris Bags and Sachets.” Write her at cherecoen@gmail.com.