Photo: COURTESY OF RALPH BRENNAN RESTAURANT GROUP
Photo: MARGARET HOUSTON
Photo: COURTESY OF EMERIL’S HOMEBASE
Photo: CHRIS BOEK
Photo: COURTESY OF LA PETITE GROCERY
Photo: CHRIS GRANGER | COURTESY OF RALPH BRENNAN RESTAURANT GROUP
Photo: DENNY CULBERT
Photo: ALISON GOOTEE
King Cake Cupcakes
This miniature take on a Carnival tradition is made from a traditional French-style dough, then sliced it into small disks, and baked in a cupcake tin.
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Photo: JACQUELINE STOFSICK
Photo: ANGIE MOSIER
The Cochon Butcher Muffuletta
The muffuletta (moof-uh-leh-ta), a massive sandwich of meat, cheese, and tangy vegetable relish on a round sesame roll has been a cornerstone of Crescent City cuisine for more than a century.
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Photo: COURTESY OF COCHON BUTCHER
Cajun Queso
Chef Isaac Toups rejects the idea that seafood and cheese cannot coexist. This combination of Gruyère, saffron, and crab meat is ample proof.
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Okra Soup
Personal chef and caterer B. J. Dennis’s take on this classic Southern comfort food substitutes shrimp for beef and recommends adding smoked meat for extra flavor.
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Photo: WADE SPEES
Crawfish Étouffée
As an Alabama chef with New Orleans roots, Bill Briand has a number of tricks up his sleeve when it comes to making étouffée. None more critical than keeping the roux from burning. “Have your glass of wine or your cold beer next to you, and don’t leave it alone,” Briand says.
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Ojen Cocktail
Ojen, this simple Carnival cocktail’s main ingredient, was first produced in nineteenth-century Spain. After New Orleanians had difficulty tracking down bottles of the popular anise-based liqueur, local Sazerac Co. revived it and now produces its own.
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Photo: COURTESY OF RALPH BRENNAN RESTAURANT GROUP
Carnival Punch
Hosts in New Orleans serve this festive batch cocktail during parade watch parties. “The recipe incorporates first-of-the-season Ponchatoula strawberries for the Strawberry cordial,” says Katy Casbarian, co-owner of Arnaud’s Restaurant and the French 75 Bar.
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Photo: Sara Essex Bradley
Photo: EUGENIA UHL
Photo: MARGARET HOUSTON
New Orleans Barbecue Shrimp
This tasty, messy Louisiana favorite necessitates head-on, shell-on shrimp, according to Chef Donald Link. “There is some sort of magic created by having the heads on, and in the way the flavor melds with the butter and black pepper”
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Photo: CHRIS GRANGER
Photo: ERIC MEDSKER, COURTESY OF TEN SPEED PRESS
Photo: Courtesy of Emeril's Homebase
Photo: JOHNNY AUTRY | FOOD STYLING BY CHARLOTTE AUTRY
Photo: Johnny Autry
Photo: RANDY SCHMIDT
Photo: Courtesy of Bayou Bakery, Coffee Bar & Eatery