Workin' on my skills...

Stay tuned for some badass Creole recipes coming out of Yours Truly. That's right. I'm pushin' up my sleeves and gettin' down and dirty the Richard way. I'm tired of searching high and low for some REAL Creole cuisine. I will be posting my "experiments" in the next couple of days! Keep checking back!

Whodidily Cupcakes!

I finally found the love I've been looking for! I never knew I could love a cupcake quite like this. I swear, each bite is like a sacred experience! Ok, pretty crazy, but you can only understand after taking a bite of ANY one of Whodidily's Cupcakes in Montecito (1150 Coast Village Rd).

From "Oreo Dollip" (oreo cookie cake with oreo butter cream frosting topped with OREO cookies! shoot me!!!) to their signature Red Velvet "Oompa Loopa"---the combinations seem almost endless, and somehow you always have room for just "one more!" Or maybe thats just me...

Whats almost just as fun as eating, is the atmosphere. You literally step into Willy Wonka's little Cupcake shop. Its really a delight stopping by on my way home from work! I can't say enough good things about this place! DEEEE LICIOUS!!!

Avocado Festival & and my own take on funnel cakes :)

Unfortunately as much as I love living in Carpinteria, I gotta say this year's Avocado Festival was pretty weak. Where were all the avocado?! I did enjoy my first DEEP FRIED AVOCADO. Why not deep fry an avocado?! Lets deep fry everything.

Including FUNNEL CAKES. Ahhh, my all time favorite festival pastime. Brings me back to the ol' Contraband Days festival back home. I can scarf down a cake in seconds.

Two big thumbs up for the poor guy sweating his ass off in the funnel cake cart at the festival. That was the only booth with a line! Its been very hard for me to find funnel cakes that live up to my southern fried standards, but this was perfect! (load me up on the powered sugar next time!)

Well Sunday was the last day of the festival and I wasn't going to say goodbye until I got another powdery mouthful of my favorite treat! I ran...RAN to my Mr. Funnel Cake man. :(

No. He was closed. That really hurt. But I dried my tears and dragged Alphonso to the grocery store.

We are DEFINITELY having Funnel Cake for my birthday. I am a funnel cake pro!


Ingredients:

1 egg
2/3 cup milk
2 tbsp. sugar
1 1/4 cup flour
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking powder



Directions:


1. In a deep skillet, heat about two cups of oil over medium-high heat until hot. Test the temperature by dropping a pinch of flour into the hot oil. If it sizzles right away without smoking, it's perfect.

2. Beat egg and milk. Mix all other ingredients in a separate bowl and slowly add to the egg mixture, beating until smooth.

3. Using a funnel, drop into hot oil working from center outwards in a web pattern. (You can use a gallon sized freezer bag instead of a funnel by pouring the batter into the bag, snipping off a small corner of it, and squeezing the batter into the oil.)

4. Cook for about 2-3 minutes, remove from the oil when golden brown and crispy.

5. Sprinkle with powdered sugar and serve.

Ode to Lentils

I've recently decided to get my health on lose some weight AND finally keep it off for good (or at least til I have kids). At the same time I'm trying to venture out of the Creole box for a second and find flavor in more raw, organic foods, and foods that have more nutrients...etc. But I will always be country at heart! My foods gotta taste good, now! I can't sit there and munch on a carrot all day.

That's why I gotta give a shout out to

LENTILS!

De-smackin-licious, y'all!

High in fiber...They taste like Taco Bell beans to me! Haha.

Anyhoo. Mmmm. Love me some lentils.

Sweet Potatoes Au Gratin

Mmm...you don't know what you've got til it's gone. How true is that! I'm so sad to say Savoy on Figeroa is no more! I hate the saying "Sign of the Times", but what else can I say? It's sad to say goodbye to places like this that make Santa Barbara what it is. Hopefully it's not replaced by another Starbucks. Let's work hard to support our local businesses whenever we can. That is what attracts visitors and newcomers to this amazing town.

Damn! They had some good Sweet Potatoes Au Gratin!

Let's hope things turn around soon! Save our local businesses!

I know...I know...I'm a procrastinator...

Ok, so I said I was going to start this blog, and so dammit I'm gonna start somewhere!

I'm starting off with this little restaurant, mainly because I've given it such a bad rap since the day I moved to Santa Barbara. And honestly...I've never even eaten there until the other day. I'm always skeptical of "Cajun" restaurants in California, because honestly, most of the time they have no idea what Cajun or Creole cuisine is. Its not about just throwing some bellpeppers and sausage, and calling it a day. Its about flavor. And if its Creole, its about LOTS of flavor. And I think alot of places out here lack that.

CAJUN KITCHEN- Carpinteria, CA

Well, lets just say I was having a really bad morning, and just couldn't decide what I wanted to eat. So I took a stroll down Linden Ave. in Carp, not really feeling in the mood for anything. I passed Cajun kitchen twice (rolling my eyes each time). I vowed to never eat there...I'm not really sure why...maybe because it just never struck me as a Cajun style restaurant...But neither myself nor my wallet was in the mood to shell out big bucks on a breakfast, so I decided to take my chances with the ol' Cajun Kitchen.

I gotta say, I kinda felt a home w/ the little New Orleans decor they had on their walls. Everyone working there was very friendly...and though they were mostly Mexican, they had a lil' southern hospitality goin' on! And I like that!

So I ordered the Catfish Benedict...

The moment of truth...Delicious! The Catfish was actually seasoned really well! But of course everything is better with a little Tony's Creole seasoning (which I really appreciate seeing on every table). You can't go wrong when you have Tony's. I say, you can't consider your restaurant Cajun/Creole with no Tony's! And I see that alot unfortunately. In fact...it just pisses me off.

So just for having Louisiana's beloved Tony's Chachere's Creole Seasoning (which you can pretty much find at any grocery store in town) I rate that place a 10! I also appreciate the fact that there was no Mexican Hot Sauce on the table. As much as I love me some Mexican Hot Sauce, there is a time and a place for everything, and that ain't in a Cajun restaurant! (ahem-Popeyes Chicken!) Just salt, pepper, Tony's, and 2variety's of Louisiana's great Tabasco Sauce. God bless America, and God Bless the Cajun Kitchen. And God Bless Tony Chachere.

Little side project.

This little blog is dedicated to all the true Cajuns, Creoles, and fellow countrymen who have left the dirty south, but are in a constant search for: GOOD FOOD!

I've moved from Lake Charles, Louisiana to Santa Barbara, California in 2005. I still find myself struggling to find a flavorful meal. In a land of skinny, organic food crazed men and women, I try to keep it as real as possible. WHERE'S THE SOUL FOOD?!

I created this blog to document my search for some good home cookin', that has flavor, spice, and that same feeling you get when you sit down at Grandma's table. Whether its Creole food, Mexican, or just plain hamburgers & french fries, I wanna try it out! And you'll be the first to know how its rates out (in my eyes...or mouth.)

I'm mainly sticking to the Santa Barbara/LA area...just b/c I ain't got no money to go further than that. But basically I'll be giving ya'll the heads up on some good eatin' in this area! Bon appetit!