Hit Us with Your Best Shot: Jay D's Louisiana Memorial Day Photo Contest

Calling all food photographers (amateur or otherwise)!

Skirt steak tacos shot in natural lighting, using ingredients from Indie Plate.

This Memorial Day Weekend, hit us with your best shot. From May 27 through 30, we'll be monitoring the hashtag #sauceandstripes for the best photos featuring Jay D's Louisiana inspired products.

Skirt steak roulade, a great Memorial Day option. Recipe here.

Here's how to enter to win two tickets to our July 8 James Beard preview dinner at LCI:

1) Head to your favorite local grocery store (or pantry) and grab Jay D's Louisiana Barbecue Sauce or Jay D's Louisiana Molasses Mustard. Or act now and get it from jayducote.com/shop. All online orders through Memorial Day also get a free Jay D's koozie!

2) Snap a photo of a recipe or dish utilizing Jay D's Louisiana inspired products

3) Tag @jayducote and #sauceandstripes so we can see your photos and select our winner

We'll be reposting some of our favorite Facebook, Twitter and Instagram posts throughout Memorial Day weekend, and we'll choose the winner on Memorial Day.

Barbecue meatballs? Absolutely. 

Best of luck, and may the odds be ever in your favor!

The Official Bite and Booze Holiday Gift Guide

by Sydney Blanchard

The original idea for this post was to make a gift guide for the Baton Rouge food lover. But then we realized...it's hard not to be a food lover in a city like Baton Rouge. Like, pretty much everyone on your holiday shopping list probably loves to eat, right?

Yeah, that's what we thought.

Here are some locally available items we know we'd love to receive during the holiday season, so there's a pretty good chance someone you know will appreciate them, too.

Heck, we'll just come out and say it: we think we've got pretty good taste.

For the Louisiana Transplant

South Louisiana Supper gift box from Red Stick Spice Company, $28

For the Fast Peeler 

Love Crawfish, Love Louisiana tee from Storyville, $16

For the Grillmaster

Himalayan Salt Plate at Shoppers Choice, $32

For the One Who's Tired of Burning Everything

Pastry and Savory Leisure Classes at Louisiana Culinary Institute, around $125

For the Indulgent Health Nut 

Hanleys Foods Dressings at Calandro's Supermarket, $5

For the Craft Beer Aficionado  

Tin Roof Merch at the Tin Roof Tap Room, $20

For the Recipe Collector

Louisiana Cookin's Louisiana de Mer Cookbook, $20

For the President of the Jay Ducote Fan Club 

Jay D's Holiday Bundle, $25

For the Hosts with the Most

Donner-Peltier's locally produced spirits, around $30

For the Farmer's Market Frequenter 

Taste of Louisiana gift basket from Indie Plate, $45

For the Fashionable Foodie

Mimosa New Roads Pecan Necklace, $30

For the Wine Snob

Landry Vineyards Wines available at Calandro's Supermarket, around $15

For the One with the Freezer Full of Gumbo

Gumbo Print from Defend New Orleans, $20

For the Spice Junkie

Slap Ya Mama gift basket, $20

Culinary Bucket List: "Bayou in the Big Apple" Dinner at the James Beard House

by Jay Ducote

Jay Ducote at the James Beard Hous

In the food world, the James Beard Awards are pretty much the "Oscars" of the industry. The James Beard Foundation, named after the legendary American culinarian, hands out the prestigious awards to chefs, restaurateurs, food writers, and more.

The Foundation converted James Beard's old brownstone house in Manhattan into their offices and a space for one-time-only dinners with rotating chefs from around the country.

While winning a James Beard Award is one of the ultimate milestones of a career in the culinary arts, getting invited to cook at the James Beard house is also one of those monumental achievements for aspiring chefs.

Being in the food world and even carrying a membership card for the James Beard Foundation, one of my bucket list dreams has been to dine at the James Beard House. However, I didn't just want to go to some random dinner on an odd trip to New York. Instead, I figured that I'd wait for a chef who I happen to be friends with to get the invite, and then I'd plan a trip to New York around that dinner.

Cody Carroll, Owen Hohl, Brad Andries and Jay Ducote with Louisiana Redfish at the James Beard House

So as fortune would have it, this summer while in the middle of my Food Network Star run, I got the news that Chefs Cody and Sam Carroll from Hot Tails in New Roads and the newly opened Sac-a-lait in New Orleans had been invited to cook at the James Beard House in October. I knew I didn't want to miss this dinner put on by Louisiana Culinary Institute graduates and the former King and Queen of Louisiana Seafood. I booked a trip for Team Bite and Booze to head to the Big Apple.

Brad Andries and Cody Carroll prep for their dinner at the James Beard House

The night before the dinner at the James Beard House, Cody told me that if I wanted to come help them prep, they could use a couple extra hands. An opportunity to actually cook in the James Beard House?! I couldn't pass that up. We showed up around noon the next day. I threw on an apron and got to work. I could feel the history. The legacies of chefs like Julia Child and Jaques Pepin filled the kitchen. In many ways, slowing down to savor the experience, I realized how truly awesome it was.

Jay portions out grits for one of the dishes at the James Beard House

From noon to around six I helped chop, slice, and portion different components of the 6+ course meal. The kitchen at the James Beard House is notoriously tiny. There are ample small corridors to squeeze through and low hanging obstacles on which to bump my head. As a rather large dude, it certainly proved to be as cozy as advertised. There is an atrium and a back yard to get a little extra head room and fresh air, though. 

The Damn Thistle made with Oryza Vodka

The dinner got started with cocktails and passed hors d'oeuvres. The Damn Thistle (pictured above) and barrel-aged sazerac were both big hits with the fun-loving crowd. The Damn Thistle starts with Louisiana's Oryza Vodka and finishes with elderflower, pineapple, lime, and hibiscus. We also feasted on deviled crab, pig's ear, and duck tongue appetizers as we mingled with other folks attending the dinner. Before long, with our stomachs ready for the task at hand, we sat down for the formal six course supper with wine pairings.

Turtle Boudin Noir, Louisiana Pear, Fingerling "Brabonts", Sugarcane-Cured Chappapeela Pork Jowl, Pickled Mirleton

Sweet Fried Alligator, White Remoulade, Hand-Mashed Mirleton

P&J Oysters, Louisiana Wild Mushrooms, Duck Egg Carbonara, Mustard Green Vermicelli

Lost Fish: Perdu-Style Gulf Fish, Whipped Creole Potato Salad, Sweet Corn Calas, Crawfish Etoufee 

Lightly Fried Thin-Cut Venison, Cast Iron Seared Venison Sweetbreads, Hand-Rolled Gnocchi,
Truffle and Acadiana Honey, Creole Andalouse, Cane-Soaked Red Onion

Aged Banana Pudding, Pointe Coupee Pecan Butter, 'Nilla Wafer Crumble, Whip Cream

The meal could not have gone much better. Each dish came out seemingly exactly as the chefs intended. The flavors were true to Louisiana while being elevated and sophisticated for a refined palate. Turtle, alligator, oysters, duck, gulf fish, crawfish, venison and more rolled through the kitchen of the James Beard House and onto the taste buds of inspired diners. Congratulations to the chefs for pulling off a successful dinner experience. "Bayou in the Big Apple" certainly left its mark!

Piper, Liz, Jay, Cody, Sam, Blair and Sydney pose after the dinner at the James Beard House

Cooking Culture with Stephany Novoa

To call Stephany Novoa a prodigy wouldn't be an overstatement. The Sous Chef at Mestizo Louisiana Mexican Cuisine in Baton Rouge balances being a full-time business student at LSU with her culinary career and family life.

Stephany (far right) stands behind the prep table in this behind-the-scenes shot with other featured LCI chefs

Stephany grew up cooking with her Honduran family, though her mother wasn't initially pleased with her culinary ambitions.

Stephany is one of LCI's great success stories. She's young, ambitious, and helping mold Baton Rouge's restaurant culture.

Check out this video, made by tommystv in conjunction with Visit Baton Rouge and LCI, to learn more about Stephany!

Cooking Culture with Chef Traci Vincent

By now you're probably familiar with the Cooking Culture series we made with tommysTV featuring Visit Baton Rouge and four successful Louisiana Culinary Institute graduates.

Chef Traci Vincent was the first LCI student we interviewed. Her openness, her warm personality, and her great sense of humor proved her the perfect Cooking Culture candidate.

Chef Traci Vincent displaying her culinary chops for the cameras at Louisiana Culinary Institute 

The Baton Rouge native discovered her passion for cooking Louisiana cuisine when she was working in Washington, D.C. She missed home, and she missed the food she grew up with, so she started cooking for herself and for her friends.

She moved back home, enrolled at LCI, and the rest you can watch here:

Cooking Culture with Chef Nathan Gresham

If you didn't know, a few months ago, Team Bite and Booze collaborated with Visit Baton Rouge, TommysTV, and four Louisiana Culinary Institute graduates to showcase what Baton Rouge's food scene has to offer.

Behind the scenes in the kitchen at Beausoleil 

One of the chefs we got to interview was Chef Nathan Gresham at Beausoleil Restaurant & Bar. Chef Nathan journeyed across the country taking on a number of cooking jobs before winding up as a chef-owner at Beausoleil. His story is definitely unique, but not unheard of around here.

People have a tendency to fall in love with Baton Rouge.

Chefs Ryan Andre' and Nathan Gresham prepare an outdoor dinner for the Cooking Culture video series

Without further adieu, here's Chef Nathan Gresham in his own words.

Be sure to check out all four of the Cooking Culture videos!

Gourmet in the Garden returns on May 1st

Last year, team Bite and Booze took home the Best of Show prize at the annual Gourmet in the Garden event, a progressive dinner in the LSU AgCenter Botanic Gardens. This year, the event is coming back even stronger with more chefs creating signature dishes with farm-fresh products. The showcase goes down from 7-10 PM on Friday, May 1st. Proceeds benefit the Gardens and the Louisiana Culinary Institute. 

Local beverages including beer, wine, and spirits will also be served as live music plays throughout the gardens. 

Tickets are $60 in advance and $70 at the door, subject to availability.  Must be 21 years of age.  ID's will be checked at registration.  Casual cocktail attire requested.

LCI is Teeing Off at The Masters

I truly can't speak enough about the success of the Louisiana Culinary Institute. They have been selected as the organization to aid world class chefs from 27 different culinary establishments during The 2014 Masters tournament at Augusta National from April 3-14! This is one of the biggest and best golf tournaments in the country, drawing athletes and crowds from all over the world. This is an amazing step for LCI and will no doubt shine a light on their hard work and impeccable skills on the culinary world stage. Congratulations to them and good luck to all of the instructors, alumni, and students that will be representing LCI and Louisiana at The Masters! 

Here's a video that I helped produce about LCI, in case you aren't familiar with their state-of-the-art culinary school right here in Baton Rouge.

Leading the LCI team will be Chef Instructor Chef Derrick Beverley and LCI graduate Nathan Roose who is currently the General Manager at Sammy’s Grill in Zachary. I'm so proud of their much deserved success. Drop by their Facebook or Twitter to congratulate them or sign up for some leisure classes and learn some skills from their world class chef instructors! Of course, if you're interested in culinary school, you can get much more information at www.lci.edu.

Bite and Booze to cook at Gourmet in the Garden

Gourmet in the Garden is a progressive dinner amongst the flora of LSU AgCenter's Botanic Garden at the Burden Center on Friday, April 25th. Every bite taken represents support of the Botanic Garden and Louisiana Culinary Institute's Foundation which provides scholarships and support for their students. I'll be there whipping up a rockstar dish for the all the attendees with LCI student Aimee Tortorich. I know Chef Chris Wadsworth and LCI grad Paige Lucas will be there as well. Maybe we'll get a few more challengers out there too. Also, the music of Kirk Holder and Charles Pierce will fill the air. There will be gourmet dishes prepared by some talented chef's, a few drinks, and good times to be had.

To learn more about the event visit the Gourmet in the Garden Facebook Page or join the event and see who's going!

Tickets are on sale now and are going fast, grab yours now!

GIVEAWAY: LCI Basic Knife Skills Leisure Class

BASIC KNIFE SKILLS AND COOKING HOW TO'S
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2013 - 5:30 PM - 8:00 PM
Chef Derrick Beverly, CEC, ACE, CDM

I'm giving away two spots for this upcoming leisure class at the Louisiana Culinary Institute to one lucky winner. You and a guest will be able to attend the class on Monday, November 4th from 5:30 to 8 PM. Chef Derrick Beverly will show you how to use and feel comfortable with your kitchen knives. He will show you how to properly cut vegetables, meats, and fish. He will also teach you basic cooking techniques that you can use in your own kitchen. Plus, you can bring your kitchen knives and get them sharpened (limit 3 per person)! At a minimum, a chef's knife is required for this class but you might as well bring your whole set or at least three that you'd like to get sharpened. The two tickets to this class are a $250 value that I'll be giving away to one lucky reader!

To win, leave a comment below telling me how you'd like to improve your knife skills. It could be learning how to properly hold a knife, learning when to use each kind of knife, or getting pro tips on how to chop and onion or dice a bell pepper. For an extra chance to win, send a tweet to @biteandbooze and @LAculinary with the link to this post in it or mention Bite and Booze and the Louisiana Culinary Institute on Facebook when sharing the link to this post!

You have until the end of the day on Wednesday to enter and I'll be informing the winner of their free leisure classes on Thursday!

Also, gift certificates for LCI leisure classes are available and are perfect for holiday gifts. If you know anyone interested in cooking or entertaining, they'll love an LCI leisure class!

For more about LCI, watch this video that I helped produce with TommysTV:

Bite and Booze Radio Show: Chef Alex Hamman and Stephanie Sander

Chef Alex Hamman from the Louisiana Culinary Institute and Stephanie Sander from Stephsandy Consulting join me for this exciting episode of the Bite and Booze Radio Show. We talk about cooking biscuits, social media strategy, food writing, and much more. Enjoy!

The Bite and Booze Radio Show presented by Calandro's Supermarket airs on Saturdays at 5 PM on Talk 107.3 FM in Baton Rouge.  It is also available on iTunes.  The show's sponsors include Calandro's Supermarket, Visit Baton Rouge, Slap Ya Mama Cajun Seasoning, Louisiana Cookin' Magazine, Juban's Restaurant, the Tin Roof Brewing Company, and the Louisiana Culinary Institute.

Bite and Booze Radio Show: Garden Fest

This Saturday is Garden Fest at the LSU AgCenter Botanic Gardens at the Burden Center on Essen at I-10.  This plot of land is an escape from the city right in the middle of it all.  LSU does a lot of horticulture and ag-based research there, and it can be really fun to take hayride through the grounds.  What's even more fun is eating omelets from the Louisiana Egg Commission, good food from LCI students, and then drinking Louisiana rum early in the morning.  I'll be there to judge a Louisiana rum cocktail contest at 11 AM.  Come join me for all the good times!  And, as a special treat, I had Lisa Manda from the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry as well as Jeff Kuehny from the LSU AgCenter on my radio show this past week to talk about all the Garden Fest events.  Listen to it below.  There's also a special interview with the Watershed Distillery in Columbus, OH!

Podcast Powered By Podbean

The Bite and Booze Radio Show presented by Calandro's Supermarket airs on Saturdays at 5 PM on Talk 107.3 FM in Baton Rouge.  It is also available on iTunes.  The show's sponsors include Calandro's Supermarket, Visit Baton Rouge, Slap Ya Mama Cajun Seasoning, Louisiana Cookin' Magazine, Juban's Restaurant, the Tin Roof Brewing Company, and the Louisiana Culinary Institute.

The Freshman Class on Cooking Channel filmed at LCI in Baton Rouge!

From January through April, a camera crew from the Cooking Channel followed four freshman at the Louisiana Culinary Institute in Baton Rouge during  their first semester of culinary school.  The show will premiere this upcoming Monday, June 10th, at 9:30 PM CT.  I'm excited about watching the show, and if you keep watching throughout the season, you might see me a few times too!  The camera crew filmed me chatting with one of the students at Highland Coffees, recording the Bite and Booze Radio Show with a couple of the students, emceeing the Louisiana Feast of Fields, and eating beignets!  Hopefully I'll make the final cut at least once.  Set your DVRs now for:

The Freshman Class
Series Premiere on Cooking Channel
Monday, June 10th
10:30PM ET | 7:30PM PT

Episode 1 titled "Meet the Freshmen" will introduce us to these real first semester culinary students:

The new class of incoming students arrives at Louisiana Culinary Institute, where they're drilled in the school's strict policies. They immediately prepare for a make-or-break-it test on sanitary practices.  Meanwhile, Tiffany's husband shocks her with his extreme reaction to her starting school, as Jared wonders whether he should reveal his disabilities from PTSD, and Ben frets about disappointing his family. Jasmine also reveals a surprising secret about her full time job.

About The Freshman Class:

The Freshman Class follows four aspiring chefs from day one of classes at the Louisiana Culinary Institute in Baton Rouge through their final exams at the end of their first semester as they embark on the journey to earn a culinary degree. These students are chasing their dreams all the while taking a big risk - culinary school is expensive, difficult, and offers no guarantees. Follow the journey and get an insider's look into the trials and triumphs of being a culinary student. Produced by Punched In The Head Productions for Cooking Channel.

Bite and Booze Radio Show: LCI Students

This week's Bite and Booze Radio Show presented by Calandro's Supermarket features Frank Rancatore, an LCI Student that will in the new show, The Freshman Class, which airs on the Cooking Channel Monday June 10th at 9:30 PM, Cecilia Ramos, LCI student and Race to Cannes winner, and Erin Kenna, my Bite and Booze intern.  If you're interested in culinary school or want to hear more about the TV show, make sure to give it a listen!

Podcast Powered By Podbean

The Bite and Booze Radio Show presented by Calandro's Supermarket airs on Saturdays at 5 PM on Talk 107.3 FM in Baton Rouge.  It is also available on iTunes.  The show's sponsors include Calandro's Supermarket, Visit Baton Rouge, Slap Ya Mama Cajun Seasoning, Louisiana Cookin' Magazine, Juban's Restaurant, the Tin Roof Brewing Company, and the Louisiana Culinary Institute.

Happy National Buttermilk Biscuit Day

Myself with King Biscuit at Fete Rouge
Photo by Jenn Ocken

In case you don't know, Baton Rouge, Louisiana is home of self-proclaimed "King Biscuit."  Chef Alex Hamman, a baking and pastry instructor at the Louisiana Culinary Institute is something a biscuit aficionado.  He's had biscuit recipes published in magazines, and he takes pride in every pillow of flaky dough that be bakes.  So on National Buttermilk Biscuit Day, which is today, May 14th, 2013, Chef Alex baked up a batch of golden treats at LCI, and I got to eat some!

I can't give away the recipe, nor do I know it.  But I know there is butter, buttermilk, and love.  And layering is key.  So for those of you who haven't had any biscuits today, I'm sorry that you likely won't have any as good as the ones that I got to eat, but you should still find a biscuit tonight.  Tis the season, after all.

King Biscuit's Biscuits

Basic Sausage Production Class at LCI

In august I had the opportunity to attend a leisure class at the Louisiana Culinary Institute.  Jeremy Wells from FairelesCourses.net joined me in Chef Dave Tiner's Basic Sausage Production class.  I have long been a fan of grilling, smoking, and eating sausages, so I was really excited about the opportunity to learn about different sausage making tips and ingredients.

The results from my Basic Sausage Production class at LCI

The class size for the class was limited to 12 so everyone could get their hands dirty and receive plenty of attention from the certified chef instructors.  We made four different types or raw sausages: Breakfast, Italian, Bratwurst, and Chorizo.

Chef Dave instructs the class about cleaning and testing the sausage casings

Each member of the class started their sausage recipes with one and half pounds of ground pork shoulder.  From there they all differed based on the unique seasonings and ingredients of each sausage.  For the Italian sausage we toasted our own fennel seeds before mixing them with the meat.  We also cased all of the sausages other than the breakfast sausage which used sage as a key ingredient.  I wanted to form that one into patties.

Jay's mixing bowl for homemade Chorizo with just enough paprika!

At the end of the class Chef Dave had some different sausages for us to try and we also got to go home with about six pounds of sausage that we hand-mixed and cased.  I learned a fair amount about the basics of sausage production and it only made me want to take some more advanced charcuterie classes so I could really get into curing meats and smoked sausages.  If any of you are interested in taking a Saturday leisure class at LCI, make sure to check out their schedule here: http://www.lci.edu/site36.php.  And remember, never stop learning, especially when it comes to eating and drinking!

Jay shows off some of his homemade sausage!