Family

Family from Milady's side roared into town Monday night.  This particular crew from Missouri.  Milady and PawPaw are in full hospitality mode.  One thing I've always done is cook for crowds, so having an extra half-dozen mouths to feed isn't much of a challenge.

On Monday, we didn't know what time they'd be in, so we made a big crock pot of Italian Beef.   It's not a cajun recipe, but it's a crowd-pleaser.

Last night was gumbo.  The clan from Missouri didn't understand gumbo, which is simply a regional stew.  Like many cultures, we put our stamp on some particular foods, and gumbo is ours.  But, in the final analysis, it's simply a hearty stew, made from whatever happened to walk, swim or crawl past us.  Last night was chicken and sausage gumbo, but I brought home some good andouille and some good craft sausage and we talked about the differences in sausage, which is also a food that stretches across cultures.

Tonight, I'm going to pick up some catfish and alligator.  We're frying tonight.  If the weather doesn't cooperate, I'll set up the fryer in the garage.(and, it looks like the weather will be really crappy for the next 24 hours or so).  The kinfolks fry fish in Missouri, too, but I'm going to take the menfolk into the frying area and show them some tips on a nice, well-done Cajun fish-fry.

I tell you all this because I'm making a list of things we need (and today it's a short list), but I've got to work today, and in the pre-dawn darkness with a cup of coffee at my elbow, it's a good time to plan the rest of the day.  I'll schedule this post for later, because I hear Milady stirring and it's time to let the dog out.

Tomorrow evening, I'm boiling crawfish for them.  I've already reserved a sack of crawfish at my favorite seafood vendor, and she tells me that the ones coming up this week and very nice indeed.

It's off to the races at PawPaw's House, and we're having fun.