Tamale Trail... Mississippi Delta

Tasty Tribute to New Orleans Chef John Besh

With so much talk of the New Orleans Saints being in the super bowl this year, I'm reminded of my last visit to that delicious city. The assignment was to shoot a story on acclaimed Southern chef John Besh. Winner of the James Beard Award for Best Chef of the Southeast in 2006, Besh grew up in Southern Louisiana and incorporates Louisiana's rich culinary traditions in each of his restaurants: Restaurant August, Besh Steak, Lüke, La Provence, The American Sector and Domenica. While Besh's food is famously brilliant and his appreciation for local ingredients and local cuisine celebrated, it's Besh's endearing, tireless and... well... kinda goofy personality that's at the root of his success.

Chef Tarver King, The Ashby Inn in Paris, Virginia

text by Tanner Latham

Tarver King’s giddy personality and infectious laugh are as attractive as his imaginative cuisine. His food will engage all your senses. For example, thin curls of smoke rising from a burning leaf on the plate signals the essence of Fall; a nearby diner loudly crunching a tapioca starch cracker sparks curiosity and conversation.

Tarver stodged at The French Laundry, Philadelphia’s La Bec Fin, The Inn at Little Washington in Virginia, and The Fat Duck in London. At the ripe old age of 27, he served as the executive chef at the 5 Star/5 Diamond Woodlands Inn & Restaurant in Summerville, SC.



These days, Tarver helms the restaurant of the Ashby Inn, a charming, 10-room stay anchoring the tiny hamlet of Paris, Virginia.







If you’re anywhere near there, (roughly 60 miles west of Washington, D.C.) do yourself a favor and make a reservation.



Here are five of Tarver's dishes and his own explanations of them.

Flavored Tapioca Starch Crackers
"These are the puffiest, crunchiest, crispiest cracker you could imagine. We made tapioca starch crackers flavored like buffalo wings (infused with Frank’s Hot Sauce...I love Frank's Hot Sauce), curry, salt and vinegar, and dill pickles."


Apple Cider Chestnut Soup
"The soup is infused with smoky cured ham, butter, and onions. It is bright crisp, creamy, and buttery. How do you get the feeling of Fall? Burning leaves. The burning leaf under the bowl instantly transports you to the season."


Grilled Pate de Campagne
"The pate comes with a crispy, crunchy fried egg yolk that cracks and spills out everywhere, and then we have bright, pickled chow chow, which is pickled cabbage and peppers. We wanted to have the herbiness that flies through the whole dish and brings everything into its own, and that was really held together with the nasturtiums that grow right outside in our garden. They have a beautiful flowery element to them."


Mustard-Crusted King Mackerel with Lentils and Smoky Bacon
"The lentils have a beautiful, grainy flavor, and we infuse them with a little bit of sherry vinegar to give them that acid--that brightness to cut through all the fats. We use the mustard crust for that crunchy, crispy texture. The idea behind the presentation is that the mackerel has these beautiful flakes. We just very gently break it to show you the pearly, juicy fish on the inside. So you have a crunchy crust, creamy lentils, smoky bacon, and bright frisee greens."


Panna Cotta
"The idea behind the panna cotta with spice is that by the end of the meal, we want you to feel like you’re moving forward into Winter. We wanted to give you the idea of white snow and evergreen. You get the brightness of cranberries and fennel, which we got from the Vineyard Nursery down the road. I always consider anise a holiday flavor. The dessert has four different forms of fennel: candied fennel seeds, candied fennel bulbs, fennel foam, and then the fennel fronds. You get creamy, sour, bitter, crunchy, and crispy, all at the same time. It’s supposed to give you the idea of a cardinal in the snow with the evergreens."

Culinary Faces: Ree Drummond - The Pioneer Woman

Way back in February of this year, I had the pleasure of spending some time in Pawhuska, Oklahoma, photographing Ree Drummond, The Pioneer Woman, and her incredible life. Well, the story finally hit the printed page in this month's issue of Southern Living. Which means I can now share those photos with you. (Yes, we shoot stories that far in advance of going to print.)

Ree's life on the range as a cattle-rancher's wife, mother of 4 and downright amazing home chef, blogger and photographer is something to behold. And, if you haven't checked out her new cookbook, The Pioneer Woman Cooks, please do. It's already on Amazon's top seller list.

Enjoy the photos! Here's to you, Ree! Keep up the great work... We love you, your family, and of course, cowboy Josh!!

Featured on Decor8 blog!!

Just want to say thank you to decor8 blog for your lovely story this week. I've been in Maine and a friend called to share the news. What an honor. Thank you.

It's Pumpkin Season...

Roasted Pumpkin Seeds



Hands-On Time: 5 min.; Total Time: 40 min. Also known as "pepitas," pumpkin seeds are a great source for many vitamins. You can also roast acorn squash seeds using this method.

Yield
Makes about 1 cup

Ingredients
1 cup shelled, raw pumpkin seeds*
2 teaspoons olive oil
1/4 teaspoon ground thyme
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
Preparation
1. Preheat oven to 350°. Rinse seeds, and pat dry. Toss together seeds and remaining ingredients in a bowl. Spread in a single layer on an aluminum foil-lined or parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until toasted. Cool completely in pan (about 15 minutes).

*Fresh pumpkin seeds may be substituted.

(Southern Living, OCTOBER 2009)


Pumpkin Acorn-Squash Soup



Hands-On Time: 45 min.; Total Time: 1 hr., 55 min.

Yield
Makes about 8 cups

Ingredients
1 medium-size pie pumpkin (about 3 1/2 lb.)
1 medium-size acorn squash (about 2 lb.)
4 tablespoons butter, divided
2 tablespoons honey, divided
1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
1 medium-size sweet onion, chopped
4 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme
4 1/2 cups chicken broth
1/4 cup half-and-half
1 teaspoon cider vinegar
1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Freshly ground pepper to taste
Preparation
1. Preheat oven to 400°. Cut pumpkin and squash in half lengthwise, cutting through stem and bottom ends. Reserve seeds for another use. Place pumpkin and squash halves, cut sides up, in an aluminum foil-lined shallow pan.

2. Microwave 2 Tbsp. butter in a microwave-safe bowl at HIGH 25 seconds or until melted; stir in 1 Tbsp. honey and 1/4 tsp. salt. Brush cut sides of pumpkin and squash with butter mixture.

3. Bake pumpkin and squash at 400° for 45 minutes or until tender. Let cool completely (about 15 minutes). Scoop out pulp, discarding shells.

4. Melt remaining 2 Tbsp. butter in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add onion, and sauté 5 minutes or until tender. Add thyme; sauté 1 minute or until fragrant.

5. Stir in broth and pumpkin and squash pulp. Increase heat to medium-high; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, and simmer 10 minutes. Remove from heat, and let cool 10 minutes.

6. Process soup, in batches, in a food processor or blender until smooth. Return soup to Dutch oven. Stir in half-and-half, next 4 ingredients, and remaining 1 Tbsp. honey and 1/4 tsp. salt. Cook, over low heat, stirring often, 3 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Serve immediately.

TRY THIS TWIST

Kitchen Express Roasted Pumpkin-Acorn Squash Soup: Substitute 1 (15-oz.) can pumpkin for fresh pie pumpkin and 2 (12-oz.) packages frozen cooked pureed squash, thawed, for fresh acorn squash. Decrease butter to 2 Tbsp. Omit Steps 1, 2, and 3. Proceed with Steps 4 through 6, simmering 6 minutes in Step 5 and stirring in 2 Tbsp. honey and 1/2 tsp. salt with half-and-half in Step 6. Hands-on time: 30 min.; Total time: 55 min.

Note: We tested with Publix Cooked Squash. Be sure to use unsweetened squash puree for best results.

(Southern Living, OCTOBER 2009)

Culinary Faces: Chef Domenica Catelli

Back in May, I had the pleasure of photographing and hanging out with rising-star chef personality Domenica Catelli. Based in Houston, TX, and author of cookbook "Mom-a-licious: Fresh, Fast Family Food for the Hot Mama in You!," Domenica's energy is boundless and her credentials are longer than I can possibly type in this blog post. Among them: recurring judge on Iron Chef America, featured chef on Fox News in Houston for "Fox Grill" and chef to celebrities like Oprah Winfrey, Montel Williams, Thandie Newton and George and Barbara Bush. But she's best known for getting kids to eat their veggies.

More importantly, she's cool! Thanks, Domenica for a great shoot! It's assignments like this that make me love my job.

The story runs this month in the October issue of Southern Living. Check it out.