2 minute read
Mardi Gras Eats
by Wade Longworth
With the winter holidays behind us we turn to looking ahead to future celebrations. The month of February offers a couple different holidays that we can partake in. Depending on who you ask this month can be one centered around the love of a significant other or can be used to celebrate the Mardi Gras. In the traditional sense it’ s a day to celebrate before the beginning of Lent. One of the more common things to give up during this period is meat. That means having one last big bash with some delicious food is in order. Not much can get more delicious than some New Orleans staples such as a Jambalaya with a piece of King Cake all washed down by the famous Hurricane cocktail. This article will give a brief description about these wonderful dishes as well as a link to a great recipe for making them at home.
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Jambalaya
When Spanish settlers arrived in New Orleans, they began altering their traditional paella rice dish to incorporate locally grown ingredients. This later became its own tradition known as jambalaya, now a popular New Orleans staple and what thousands of consider their favorite comfort food. What goes in jambalaya is your decision. Most commonly, jambalaya contains sausage (likely Andouille), seafood, and beaucoup Cajun spices. If you have creole tastebuds, add more Tabasco. If not, be careful!
King Cake
King cakes are one of the earliest New Orleans Mardi Gras ’ food traditions, dating back to 1870 when settlers brought this dessert to the Big Easy all the way from France. The original New Orleans King Cake is a ring shaped, cinnamon-dough creation usually iced with Mardi Gras green, yellow, and purple colors. If you have not had at least one king cake before Fat Tuesday, you have not experienced Mardi Gras to her fullest.
Hurricanes
This local libation was created with rum at Pat O’Brien ’ s bar during World War II when whiskey was hard to come by. The name for the drink came from the glass it’ s served in that resembles a hurricane lamp. If you can ’t make it to Pat O’ s, you can still find Hurricanes at almost any New Orleans bar or you can make it at home with rum, lemon juice, and passion fruit syrup. It may sound like a standard mixed drink but remember it isn ’t named after a natural disaster for nothing!
