People with cooking blogs should let us know when they update here! I'm looking at Kit and Timberly!

Your stuffed peppers look outstanding, Kit. I haven't tried cubanelle peppers!

That cutter thing looks awesome. I would use the shit out of it.

It's only $14, and I think I'll get my money's worth. I've been eating a ton of salads and I want pretty julienned beets and carrots on them.

My mother became a chef after working as a nurse for umpteen years.

Learning how to make a rue has saved my life.

I know you mean roux, and are you even half serious?

Hahahaha. Rue roux?

Yes! There is no such thing as a bad food thread. Also - Mirka, I know I said I went to lafayette to get you more authentic La stuff, but I lied.

WE WENT TO NEW ORLEANS INSTEAD!

So you'll be getting straight-outta-cajun-country stuff.

Here's my food blog:

http://thekitschykitchen.wordpress.com/

on facebook:

www.facebook.com/thekitschykitchen

NEW ORLEANS! Did you take photos of food you ate there?

I'm so excited, but nervous! I can't wait to try out some unfamiliar ingredients.

Choosing where to eat when I'm there is so hard. I hate eating at the tourist places because, while the food is good, it's contrived new orleans cuisine. It's what tourists WANT cajun food to taste like. On the other hand, the authentic places are hard to find unless you know where to look. And there are like, one or two places in the French Quarter that are authentically cajun.

So, long story short, we just ate blackened chicken at some dive bar since we were only there for a couple of hours. But no pictures! Next time I go, I'll be sure to take pics of the real deal.

I tried to find stuff that you'd still be able to do something with (since la cuisine focuses a lot on fried meats) but the history of cajun/creole food was actually based on whatever vegetables the poor folk had in their garden and whatever animals they could get. So hopefully you'll still like everything.

Also, since this is the cookery/gadget thread, I'll contribute on that front, too:

A nice set of knives will be LIFE-CHANGING for anyone interested in cooking. I didn't know how bad I had it until I won a Santoku knife from OXO. I recently bought a set of $400 knives for like, $130 and I want to start a new religion based on the Santoku knife. It doesn't matter how bad of a cook you are, you feel like you belong on the Food Network when you cook with GOOD knives.

You're so lucky to live so close to a city like New Orleans! I'm in love with vegetables and you to pester for recipes so I think I'm going to have a lot of fun with the ingredients. It's going to be really fun to research and figure out what the hell to cook and how to cook it.

I bought some Lupini beans at Whole Foods the other day because I liked the way they looked...big white beans that I figured would swell when they cooked and I could use to make a version of marinated gigantes beans which they didn't have. It's also impossible to get butter beans here for some reason, though I found some leads on Yelp.

Anyway, the Lupini beans are poisonous! The bag just says to soak them for at least 12 hours, then cook until soft, but not for how long. I looked them up on Wiki and was positive that I had the new non-toxic variety since I bought them at a supermarket, but no. These beans have to be soaked for 12 hours, cooked for two, then soaked in salted water for FIVE days, changing the water each day to make them edible. Apparently, they are adored snack foods in Portugal.

I didn't throw them out and it's day two of the soaking so I'll see if they end up edible. Wiki suggests eating a small amount first, and to make sure the beans are visible or that someone knows I ate them in case I get poisoned! The rarity of the beans means they can get overlooked as a cause of the illness.

I know you're overloaded with cookbooks as it is, but I'll keep an eye out for a vegetarian-cajun cookbook. Or at least a cookbook that focuses mostly on veggies.

As for the deadly beans - that's just too much work for me! Let me know how it goes. Or, if you don't, I'll be sure to report you to the authorities so they can check your place to make sure you're alive!

How do ya'll not have butterbeans over there?!? Like, even in a supermarket you don't have any? I'm fairly certain they're everywhere over here. I'll see if I can russle you up some home-grown beans.

You can point me to an authentic Cajun food blog, maybe.

We don't have butter beans here, not even in the frozen foods section! It's driving me crazy. We have little lima beans, but not the big ones which I have to order online.

I didn't know about the Lupinis until I had soaked them for 12 hours and cooked for an 90 minutes at which point I went online to find out how long they need to cook. So there was no point in throwing them out. It's easy to change the water once a day. The ancient Romans considered them a treat, and they are still enjoyed in Portugal as a snack!

I am going to let a couple of people know when I eat them and just eat a couple at first to see if I get sick. They taste bitter if they haven't been prepared properly so I should be okay.

I just perused google for a second to see if any blogs popped up. There's not much, really, but I did find this blog and it looks interesting!

http://vegandad.blogspot.com/

Whoa, his Cajun chickpea cakes look awesome! When you have time, take a look and tell me if they're authentic? Or if I should add something.

I love okra and fried green tomatoes, but those are generally Southern and not Cajun, right?

Fried green tomatoes are more southern than anything, but okra is a staple in cajun cuisine. The other staple is the Holy Trinity which consists of onions, bell peppers and celery. Almost every dish uses those three things.

Speaking of cookbooks, I'm bidding on one on ebay right now. Ooops! It's an out of print Paula Wolfert book. I'm not going to post  the name unless I win it.

Oh, and I kind of am toying with ordering Butter Beans to Blackberries: Recipes from the Southern Garden

Ooh! Black bean brownie recipe!!

http://happyherbivore.com/2009/05/vegan-blackbean-brownies/

Oh no, I hate cooked bell peppers! I just can't eat them, even the smell freaks me out. Usually I can pick anything off a pizza and move on except bell peppers! I like them raw.

I hate raw bell peppers!! Haha. I don't think it's that huge of a deal in most of the dishes it's used in, though. I saw a big package of "The Holy Trinity" that I thought about getting you this weekend and it consisted of those three veggies super MEGA diced. So it might not be noticeable. I know that the trinity is most important in gumbo. Maybe that's why you don't like it.

That IS probably why I don't like gumbo. Or jambalaya. And yes, I mention those two biggies of Cajun cookery because I am THAT ignorant about it.

Hahaha. You can definitely cook both without bell pepper. I'm pretty sure I don't use bell peppers in either. I love spicy food, so I usually use jalapenos in both recipes. I don't know how you'd do a vegetarian gumbo, though. I mean, you could probably use vegetable stock (since you're really supposed to boil a whole chicken and use the chicken-stock as the base of the recipe), but I don't know that it'd really taste cajun. But even at the very worst, you'd just have a really delicious and hearty soup.

Speaking of Bell Peppers. I like them cooked more than I like them raw. I will eat them either way - but cooked is preferred.

My Mom makes amazing Stuffed Green Peppers. I've been trying to come up with my own way of making them for years. While I've come up with some pretty tasty (and healthy) ways, nothing compares to her recipe.

Anybody have a good recipe for them?

You HAVE to buy a set of nice knives, Pete. I feel like I have superpowers when I'm cooking.

This seems like a pretty good recipe. I might try it soon.

Mexican Stuffed Peppers RecipeServings: 2
Description:
A great South of the Border meal that comes together quickly.

Ingredients:
2 whole green bell pepper, seeded and diced
¾ cup frozen corn, thawed
¾ cup black beans, drained and rinsed
¼ cup cornmeal
1 tbsp chili powder
1 tsp onion flakes
½ tsp cumin
¾ cup salsa
Instructions:

Preheat oven to 375F. Cut peppers into boats and clean out insides. Heat all other ingredients plus 1/2 cup water over med-high heat, until thicker and bubbling, about 3 minutes. Place peppers in an oven dish and spoon mixture into peppers. Cover with foil and bake 20 minutes or until peppers are tender.

That recipe was in a total different direction than I was thinking. But it sounds delicious. Well worth trying.

Also - you might want to edit out "diced" from the green pepper description.

then you better start eating again! i'm happy for your mom. if you have any of her recipes, i hope you'll share.

Haha, it was a copy and paste, man! But it's too late now that you've quoted me!

Also, I'm sure it was a different direction since it's a fat-free, vegan recipe! AHA! I GOT YOU, YOU CARNIVORE!

Jokes. But really, I bet it's pretty good. I love sneaking veg meals on people and then being like, "syke! I got you good!" Saying something is vegan makes people automatically not want to try or like something. At least in my experience. But I'm sure you're not like that, Pete!

I'm constantly trying to get more protein. So I eat a lot of chicken, ground turkey, fish, and eggs.

But I don't mind eating something vegan if it has beans in it.

Thanks! They were so tasty, my husband ate 3 for dinner! I had 2 and saved one for lunch the next day, the flavours in the stuffing developed overnight and tasted even better.

Pete, you should try these, I'm sure you could make the mixture and use bell peppers if you wanted to. the only think i'd do next time is maybe double the quantity of rice used. 1/4 cup isn't much. You could probably even make it with ground turkey instead of beef if you like, maybe just add a bit more tomato sauce into the mixture to keep it moist

http://semolinapilchard.blogspot.com/2010/07/my-new-favourite-pepper-cub...

Thanks! I'm a terrible speller to begin with! Ha ha!

As far as being serious I can say that learning how to cook was a high point in an other wise very turbulent and sometimes abusive relationship that I shared with my mother.

When we cooked together it was like I was a student studying under a very knowledgeable and dedicated teacher. Good times.

I think that being able to cook can save you tons of money otherwise spent on ready made meals and frozen dinners. And in the long run it will improve your health because you know what your putting into your body as opposed to all the preservatives and such you get from other pre-packaged meals.

Has anyone ever seen the special features on Super Size Me where they tried to decompose various McDonald's food products? It scared me a lot because even after six months their fries didn't even grow mold much less start to break down!!!

I updated my cookery blog earlier today with a Miso-Glazed Catfish and Bok Choy recipe.

It was really gross, but that's what is awesome about my blog - REAL REALITY.

That was hilarious, I am so sorry! I don't like catfish, but I did love me some miso glazed fish or scallops so do try it again some time when you have miso. I'd send you some but it has to be kept refriderated.

I wonder how you're going to use up the rest of that fermented soybean paste! I've never heard of it before.

Do you like fermented black beans or have you tried them? I'm addicted!

I liked that post too, Timberly.. I tried to make some cookies that I made back home a while back and they turned out a huge disaster so I never posted them on my blog, but your post makes me think maybe it's just as important to post the things that don't work out as the things that do.. I think I will try that recipe when I can find some miso paste

Thanks! And PLEASE make it. I'd love to know if it's actually any good or not and there's no miso paste to be found in cajun country, apparently.

In the world of food-blogging, I think culinary fails are equally as important as culinary wins. I learned a lot of stuff about cooking by doing it wrong the first time. Haha. Some people are just inherently good at some things and for me, cooking was not one of them. Also, my favorite bloggers post their fails. Keeps 'em human. ;P

Pete, I found this awesome Greek food blog looking for a recipe for giant beans..I think they're called "yiyantes"? I found a bunch of awesome recipes, and even exactly what I was looking for!

The recipe: http://thursdayfordinner.com/2008/11/gigantesyiyantes-greek-giant-baked-...

The about page:
http://thursdayfordinner.com/about/

I've never had that or even heard of it.

I have this awesome really authentic Greek cookbook. No pictures. Shitty paper. A ton of recipes. It was done by the woman's group at a Greek Orthodox Church. When I go home, I'll try to remember to post the name of it.

That blog looks really good though. I'm gonna spend some time on there.

Also, my cousin's fiance is full Greek. Her parents were boaters. She is an amazing Greek cook. As well as my Yiayia (Grandmother). If you ever need a Greek food recipe, let me know.

Thanks, Pete! Yeah, I'm loving that blog so much. Any vegetarian entree type recipes you can get me from your Godmother or cousin's fiance would be awesome!

(Now, I am heading out for some cheesey grits and poached eggs with roasted tomatoes.mmmmmmm)

I decided to be inventive since my mom left me with a basket of raspberries for the week. I made a pasta with raspberries!

I filled two ramicans(sp?) with raw pasta as I set a sauce pan with water to boil.

I chopped some fresh mint

and broke up some fresh rosemary from our garden

Extra Virgin Olive Oil seasoned with ground sea salt and pepper

I mashed the raspberries with the herbs,oil, and spices and chopped garlic

I sauteed some rotting tomatoes which are great for sauces

Nice and steamy!

Pasta is ready to strain

Mixed in all the ingredients

Got lazy with the cheese I should have used grated mozzarella

Out of the oven 5min later and Voila!

And how did it taste?

That seems like a strange combination to me...

It tasted good I think I just needed to add a little more garlic. I think the tomatoes and mint really pull in and tame the raspberries. It was tangy and had I not copped out with the cheese it would have been perfect.

+10, Jaz. That looks awesome.

Looks good, except for 1 thing. I don't do tomatoes, but thats just me. I don't like tomato pieces but I do like tomato sauce.

Thanks Timb.

I'm sure you can use a can of tomato sauce instead Zack. Since it's the first time I tried this there is definitely room to tweak the recipe.

certainly sounds like an interesting combination to me!

ps. it's 'ramekins'

I've basically been living off roasted veggies lately... tomatoes, onions and bell peppers. Slice them up, brush on a little olive oil, salt and pepper, and put them in a 400 F oven for 15 minutes (or a 300 oven for 2 hours, for tomatoes).

Aren't you eating any protein?

I make this pretty good bruscetta type snack that you guys might like. It's kind of like that stuff that Timberly made a while back.

You take some sliced wheat bread and cook it in the oven on both sides so it's pretty crispy.

Slice an avocado into slices.
Slice a tomato into slices.

Put honey mustard on the bread. Layer the tomato and avocado onto that. Sprinkle some basil and a 1/4 tsp of flax seeds on each slice of bread and then drizzle some olive oil over the whole thing.

It's loaded with good fats. Super good for you. And it's delicious.

Of course. I am prone to exaggeration, Pete. I eat a fair amount of dairy, and had a chicken sammie last night.

lol ok good. Just wondering.