Fall has got to be my favorite time of the year. What a blessing it is to wake in the morning to a cool dawn, after suffering through another brutal South Mississippi summer. It’s a great time to go for a walk in the Desoto National Forest or a bike ride around the old Biloxi cemetery.
Its also time to change the family menu. No more summer salads, no more lite meals fit for a hot day. As a matter of fact, I hardly feel like eating at all in a Mississippi summer.
Fall foods are completely different, big, hearty recipes, well seasoned and accompanied with Mississippi grown rice, a good pasta (like David Chang’s ramen) or a perfect imported Italian pasta. I think it must be instinctual, for those of us with Northern European heritage, when the weather turns cool, we know its time to put on a few pounds, just in case the winter is harsh, snow filled and bitter cold. Anyway, it’s a good excuse to crave hearty food.
At the top of my fall foods list has got to be Jambalaya. It’s a dish that some food historians think may have derived from Spanish paella, but then again, lots of food cultures call for veggies and proteins being cooked with rice.
I always start with smoked Conecuh sausage. Brown it well, add onions, bell pepper, maybe a few seeded and diced jalapenos and simmer for a bit. Now add as much garlic as you like, and simmer for a few minutes. Add 1 cup of Mississippi raised rice (Two Brooks is best) and two cups of chicken stock, and simmer, stirring occasionally, lid on, until the rice is done. I always add a good drizzle of hot sauce (my favorite is Valentina) at the end.
Gumbo is another great fall food, as well as shrimp etouffee, and of course, fried shrimp, oysters and fish. Another great fall tradition in this part of the world is a shrimp boil. It’s a social event, not just a meal. To do it right, it has to be outside, with picnic tables covered in newspaper, lots of friends and lots of cold beer. In a highly seasoned broth, boil sausage, corn, an onion or two and potatoes. When they are almost done add the shrimp, simmer for a few minutes, then add ice to stop the cooking. Let it sit for a bit, drain, then pour on the table and make sure to have lots of paper towels on hand.
