Shopping for The Dunces

Shopping for the A Confederacy of Dunces supper was unique because I got to buy some ingredients down in New Orleans, but I also had to use Amazon, I'm sorry to say, because one ingredient wasn't so easy to find.  I made up for that corporate purchase by stopping into many of my favorite local Astoria shops.

I came back from New Orleans with some Slap Ya Mama seasoning and the Mardi Gras King cake mix. After getting back from the south gritless, I did some research, and apparently it's not that easy to find slow grits, and only instant grits are readily available.  That's when I decided I had to go through amazon, and with my free shipping, it was pretty easy to get my hands on a container of real Quaker grits.  I went ahead and picked up an oyster knife for Liza while I was at it.

On Thursday I went over to my favorite Grocery store, Berry Fresh Farms, and picked up a lot of staples I needed for the menu, especially my ingredients for the olive salad (that would go into the "Ignatius Hot Dog") which I made that night to give it ample marinating time for Saturday.

On Friday I stopped into my fish store in Jamaica, Queens after work to pick up 30 Oysters, 8 servings of Sole and 1 pound of shrimp.  I took the subway back to Astoria and stopped into Muncan Foods on Broadway for a half pound of bacon and a dozen of their hot dogs.  This place is a meat lover's dream.  I've shopped here for three out my four suppers, and they never disappoint.  There are so many interesting types of cured and smoked meats from a range nationalities.  It's definitely worth a look.

On Saturday I stopped into The Ditmars Flower Shop for my New Orleans balcony-inspired fern-like center pieces.  This is a beautiful shop, the workers are always helpful and friendly.  The quality is great, and I find the prices to be very fair.  Then I went to Rose and Joe's Bakery under the N/Q for my 3 loaves of semolina bread.  This is great little bakery, and I can't believe I never realized they also sell Sicilian pizza in the back.  I'm definitely stopping there the next time I don't feel like cooking.  For the final stop, I went across the street to Rosario's Italian Deli to pick up the Genoa salami, Swiss cheese and Virginia ham for the Ignatius Hot Dog. Then I got my butt (and Liza's butt) into the kitchen.

If you're an Astorian and have not been to these places, I suggest that you do!

A Confederacy of Dunces: The Dinner

The Astoria Book and Supper Club met for the fourth time this past Saturday, September 15th...the meeting was for A Confederacy of Dunces, written by John Kennedy Toole.  Set in New Orleans, I decided this was my opportunity to cook up a Big Easy inspired meal, and that the book would be the perfect conversation starter.   People seem to either love or hate this book and the "Dunces" that it follows, and I would say the guests, myself and my sous chef Liza's opinions on the matter were split 50/50.  On to the meal...

The Place Setting with Menu and Discussion Questions

The Set Table, Pimm's Cup in the pitcher on the left

I set the table as New Orleansy as possible, and the drink I offered for the night was a Pimm's Cup, which personally, I love.  To make it I used Pimm's, homemade lemonade, lemon-lime seltzer and cucumber slices.  It is such a refreshing drink, and it definitely puts a smile on your face.

Homemade Potato Chips and Remoulade

The guests began to arrive, I had them meet in the living room where they were greeted with some homemade potato chips that were seasoned with "Slap ya Mama" creole spices that I bought down in New Orleans.  Crispy, salty and spicy, I was very happy with how they came out, and I have Liza to thank for their perfection (I did start my Saturday slicing the potatoes without a mandolin, I must add).  I made the remoulade sauce the night before, and it came out great, even Miko (my feline) couldn't seem to resist it. 

Sazerac Cocktail

This was my attempt at a Sazerac Cocktail, a New Orleans classic.  I made it with Cognac, a splash of bitters and simple syrup with a twist of lemon.  Definitely puts hair on your chest (and I didn't even use absinthe, which the recipe called for!).

Oysters and Garlic & Herb butter pre-broiling

Once all the guests arrived, they were seated at the table and it was time to stick the first course in the broiler.  Earlier, Liza shucked the oysters, while I put together the garlic and herb compound butter.  We broiled them for about 5 minutes, sprinkled on the Parmesan and threw them back in for another minute.

Broiled Oysters

I'm was pretty happy with the finished product, they weren't overdone at all, and look how cute the little fork looks on the plate!  That was a last minute discovery that made me very happy plating and function wise.

Cheesy Shrimp and Grits

The next course was the Cheesy Shrimp and Grits.  This was my first time making grits, and it's a little dangerous that I still have most of the container left, because they are really tasty with some cheddar cheese added to them! I added sauteed leeks, red bell pepper and rendered bacon to the cheddar grits, and lastly, added raw chopped shrimp to the hot grits, cooking the shrimp just by stirring them in.

Cheesy Shrimp and Grits at the Table

We decided to serve the grits in my old-fashioned champagne glasses, very cute if you ask me!

The Ignatius Dog!

Oh boy, the moment I was waiting for!  This is my Ignatius Dog, an invention I'm pretty proud of.  The main character in A Confederacy of Dunces is Ignatius, and hot dog eating figures prominently in the book.  I wanted to use the Muffaletta sandwich (a classic New Orleans staple) on the menu somewhere, when a light bulb went off, and I realized the ingredients that make up the Muffaletta crossed with a hot dog would actually taste great!  I think it did and my guests thought it did, and this is something you can put together home!  I promise to post an Ignatius Dog tutorial very soon!

Cornmeal Crusted Sole over Corn Salad served with Remoulade Sauce

The fourth course (I must say I was pretty tired at this point, and I think my guests may have been a little full after the giant hot dog) was the cornmeal crusted Sole over corn salad, and it was served with more of my remoulade sauce.  I soaked the sole in buttermilk for a few hours, and then dredged it in some seasoned cornmeal.  I fried it up and then seasoned it again with the 'Slap Ya Mama' creole seasoning.  I roasted the corn earlier, and added it to chopped red onion, jalapeno, scallions, orange pepper and parsley.  I dressed it with a honey and rice wine vinaigrette.

Mardi Gras King Cake

I had purchased a box of Mardi Gras King Cake in New Orleans, because I just didn't know if I would find the little freaky flesh-colored baby that I needed to hide in it, OR if I would be able to find purple, green and gold sugar crystals.  I know so little about baking that I can't even shop for baking...

Where's the baby?

The cake was swirled with a praline brown sugar butter, which gave the cake the perfect amount of sweetness, because this was more like a sweet bread (not to be confused with sweetbreads)...I actually liked it a lot, since I don't have much of a sweet tooth, and it was nice to have a slice with some tea the next morning.

The fourth meeting was a success for sure, and I'm happy to say that I already know what book I want to cook next....

You Must Eat in NOLA Before You Can Cook NOLA

This past weekend I went down to New Orleans to celebrate with a big group of friends. Conveniently, this coming weekend I'm hosting the Confederacy of Dunces inspired Supper.  It was tough, but I found times to escape my own Confederacy of Dunces to take full advantage of trying out some dishes I'll be cooking, buying ingredients, and checking out a statue of our protagonist, Ignatius J. Reilly.

On Saturday morning, while nursing my Bourbon Street hangover, I strolled around the 90 degree streets with my camera and took New Orleans in.  I had to laugh at the "Lucky Dog" hot dog carts parked along many street corners around the French Quarter.  I couldn't help picturing Ignatius wolfing down his dogs, burping away and wreaking his havoc.  If that description doesn't make you want to read the book, I don't know what will.

Could This Be Ignatius' Cart??

Later in the day, I walked through the open air French Market, half of the stalls being very cheesy novelty gifts, the other half fooooood...I didn't eat anything, but I did buy myself some "Slap Ya Mama" creole spices that I plan on using for a couple of the dishes.  I opted to not buy the instant grits they were selling.  I'll test my luck to find some slow grits in NYC.  How else can you make them regular, creamy or al dente?

Next, I went into a gift shop on Decatur and couldn't believe my luck: there was a box of Mardi Gras King Cake mix for sale, that included the requisite plastic baby, and green, purple and gold sugar crystals.  This will make my life much easier, and probably make the cake a lot more authentic looking, since I don't exactly pride myself on baking.

On Monday, my last day in town, I head over to pay a visit to Ignatius' statue on Canal Street.  It did not do him justice on the size scale, but I just love that New Orleans loves him.

I met up with my friends who I had been nagging all weekend about trying a Muffaletta, and we head over to the birthplace of the Muffaletta, Central Grocery.  Guess what? They're closed on Mondays.  So we went to Johnny's Po Boys and guess what?  They ran out of Muffaletta ingredients.  Time was now of the essence, I couldn't miss my flight for a sandwich, no matter how rational that sounds.  So we raced over to Franks on Decatur.  It probably wouldn't have been my first choice, but we sat outside on their balcony, they put my order in ASAP, and I must say, I loved it!

Frank's Muffaletta

The olive salad was very good, with a great olive oil taste.  Salty meat, creamy cheese and tangy olive salad goes verrrrry well on semolina bread!  I can't wait to turn this sandwich into a hot dog on Saturday, and hopefully wow the crowd with my new-found knowledge of New Orleans fare.