Mar-Apr2016_Final-FlipBook

RACELAND

White Tavern Corn & Shrimp Stew Updated by Robert Danos WHAT YOU WILL NEED 1 pound andouille thinly sliced 2 medium onion, chopped 4 celery ribs, sliced 2 medium sweet red pepper, chopped 2 medium green pepper, chopped ½ cup butter, cubed 6 garlic cloves, minced 4 cups fresh or frozen corn, thawed 8 plum tomatoes, chopped 2 cup vegetable broth 4 tablespoons minced fresh thyme or 4 teaspoons dried thyme 1½ teaspoon chili powder 1 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon black pepper ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper 2 pound uncooked medium shrimp, peeled and deveined 2 cups heavy whipping cream HOW TO PREP In a large skillet, sauté the first five ingredients in butter until vegetables are tender. Add garlic; cook 1 minute longer. Add the corn, tomatoes, broth, thyme, chili powder, salt, pepper and cayenne. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes. Stir in shrimp and cream. Increase heat to medium and bring to a gentle boil. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, for 8-10 minutes or until shrimp turn pink. Can be served with white rice. me that when Papa routinely brought his ducks to her mother to clean, he always said the exact same thing without fail — “feather four and keep the rest” — no matter how many birds he had in hand. I knew then that she knew him well, as that sounds exactly like the turtle soup man I loved. Since moving to the city, I have only sipped this delicacy at an occasional country club wedding or Commander’s Palace dinner. Now, with the help of the Bourgeois clan, I have the original recipe that they saved for all of these years. I’m not saying I will be hunting for turtles anytime soon, but I sure will be cooking the dish I loved so much as a child. Or requesting it from my brother and Henry.

We emailed back and forth as they answered my many questions and generously shared their memories. I was fascinated by all of the hunting, fishing, and “good eating”stories, but especially the ones about making turtle soup. According to Mr. Paul’s five children (one son, Irwin, worked for my grandfather all through high school), the turtles for the restaurant were caught in Lake Fields by several local men, including Slim Zeringue, Walter Kraemer and Toby Theriot, who fished, caught and cleaned frogs and turtles as their livelihood. Loggerheads could weigh as much as 140 pounds and snapping turtles 35 pounds; they were kept in white wooden pens behind the restaurant until needed. Slim’s daughter Bonnie Morris, who lived across the street from the White

Tavern, vividly recalls polishing silver and dusting tables for 50 cents an hour on the weekends and eating boiled turtle eggs the size of ping pong balls as afternoon snacks. Papa and Mr. Paul hunted and fished together for their personal catch, wading in the marshes in hip boots watching closely for small bubbles on the water, which meant they were in luck. The turtles were caught with a net, cleaned by Mr. Paul and cooked by Papa, a partnership that worked for them for over 50 years. Ducks were hunted on the banks of the lake, or they went out in a pirogue or skiff to their reed and grass blinds. Mallards, wood ducks and teals were used in the restaurant and poule deaus, which were plentiful, were only used at home in a jambalaya or gumbo. Rosella Bourgeois told

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