Last Updated on 10/13/2008

Published on 5/13/2008

By Nathalie Dupree

www.nathalie.com

New Orleans has been beckoning me for some time. I kept dreaming of shrimp po' boys, Cafe du Monde's beignets, Paul Prudhomme's K-Paul's, Commander's Palace's Barbecued Shrimp, Cafe Adelaide's Creole cheesecake and more. Recipes were floating during my REM, unwilling to stop for me to write them down.

My dreams were inspired in part by Kim Sunee's memoir, "Trail of Crumbs." She had such a passionate love for New Orleans as well as French cooking that it made me want to get up in the middle of the night and cook. Once, I did, just having to try her celery and olives, of all things, which is absolutely delicious and was worth eating at 3 a.m.

Her stuffed crawfish heads wooed me. Although she has a source for them, I couldn't quite see ordering them.

Two weeks ago I realized my fantasies, attending a conference in the Big Easy. There I was on a panel with Tory McPhail, chef of Commander's Palace. Tory has cooked at Charleston's Food & Wine Festival for three years.

I said, "Tory, could we stuff shrimp heads?"

"Why not?" he answered.

And so, when I went to Commander's to eat, there it was, Shrimp Bisque, with a stuffed shrimp head proudly standing up in the middle of the bowl. We followed the bisque with Barbecued Shrimp and Shrimp Remoulade, regardless of their place on the menu.

After a party at Cafe Adelaide, where author Ti Brennan was the consummate hostess, I thought I could eat no more. But I was shameless. All I wanted to do was to get some Creole cheesecake, take it to my room to eat and go to bed. So I did. I sat on my bed and poured the caramel sauce on the cheesecake, pulled out a fork, and ate it as if it was my last dessert. It would have been a worthy one.

Not that all my eating was in grand style. I had that shrimp po' boy at a nondescript place in the French Quarter and it satisfied my hunger. And I ate a muffuletta at Central Grocery, standing in line for half an hour for the honor of purchasing one. They've been making them there since 1906, and it is still worth the effort to get one of the world's best sandwiches.

Big Easy inspirations

These shrimp recipes are courtesy of Commander's Palace restaurant. Chef McPhail is coming out with a new cookbook in the fall, "Commander's Wild Side: Bold Flavors for Fresh Ingredients from the Great Outdoors."

This dish needs head-on shrimp because the fat content in the body is what gives this dish some of its flavor. Make sure the shrimp are fresh. Because of the weight of the head and shell, 1 pound yields only about 8 ounces of meat.

This dish is cooked very fast, so preparation is key.

It is critical that the garlic is not burned while cooking the shrimp. Other fresh herbs, such as marjoram, thyme, etc., may be added.

Serve with French bread, lots of napkins and finger bowls.

New Orleans Style

Barbecue Shrimp

2 pounds large, head-on shrimp

2 tablespoons Creole seafood seasoning

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 large head garlic, cloves peeled and minced

2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary

3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

3 tablespoons hot sauce

1 lemon, juiced, quartered (reserve the juice)

1/3 cup beer

Salt and pepper to taste

1 stick butter, room temperature

Lemon pieces for garnish

Season shrimp with half of the Creole seafood seasoning and lightly toss.

Preheat a large skillet over high heat, put the oil in the pan and heat until the oil begins to smoke. Place garlic and rosemary in pan and stir to brown garlic. Be very careful not to burn.

Add shrimp and carefully stir.

Add Worcestershire, hot sauce, lemon juice and lemon quarters.

Deglaze with beer, stirring to release any bits clinging to the bottom, and boil the mixture to reduce while shaking the pan. Allow shrimp to cook 2 to 2 1/2 minutes (timing will depend on size) and add remaining seafood seasoning. Salt and pepper to taste.

When shrimp are finished cooking, the liquid will have a sauce consistency. Reduce heat to medium high and add butter. Sauté until butter is emulsified and sauce is thick. Adjust seasoning. Remove lemon quarters.

Garnish each serving with a lemon piece.

Commander's Shrimp Remoulade

1/4 cup Creole mustard

2 tablespoons paprika

1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup white vinegar

1 cup finely chopped green onions

Dash of Tabasco sauce

1/2 cup finely chopped celery

1/2 cup finely chopped parsley

1/2 cup ketchup

1/2 cup prepared yellow mustard

2 cloves of garlic, minced

3 eggs (at room temperature)

Juice of 1 lemon

1 1/3 cups salad oil

80 medium shrimp, peeled and deveined (8 per person), approximately 2 1/2 pounds

For the sauce, put the first 14 ingredients into a blender container.

Cover and mix at high speed until well blended.

Remove cover and gradually add the oil in a steady stream. Sauce will thicken to mayonnaise consistency. Chill.

Boil or sauté shrimp until done. Let come to room temperature. Serve topped with remoulade sauce. Serves 10.

I've adapted this muffuletta recipe from several on the Web, so I don't know how close it comes to the one at Central Grocery. Nevertheless, it is delicious.

Note: The Central Grocery lets its olive salad, which includes cauliflower, sit 24 hours before using.

Muffuletta Sandwich

10-inch-round of Sicilian or focaccia bread

2-3 large garlic cloves, crushed

1 cup chopped green olives stuffed with pimientos

1 cup pitted and chopped Kalamata or Italian black olives

1 rib celery, finely chopped

1/2 cup roasted sweet red peppers, chopped

3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

2 tablespoons white wine vinegar

1 cup olive oil

1/3 pound capicola

1/3 pound salami

1/3 pound mortadella

1/3 pound Emmentaler Swiss cheese

1/3 pound provolone

Cut the bread in half horizontally, scooping out a little of the inside to have enough room for the filling.

Toss the garlic, olives, celery, roasted peppers, parsley, vinegar and olive oil together to make the olive salad. Drizzle some of the olive oil and juice from the olive salad on each side of the open loaf to dampen it.

Starting with the bottom half, layer capicola, salami, olive salad, provolone, Swiss cheese and mortadella.

Top with the other half loaf. Slice into wedges. Makes six servings.

This crispy, refreshing salad is a wonderful addition to any table. Tiny pieces of orange are a nice addition on occasion. It is adapted from Kim Sunee's "Trail of Crumbs."

Celery and Olives Salad

1-2 ribs celery, strings removed

2-3 Kalamata olives

2-3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

Slice the celery as thinly as possible. Chip the olives off the pit in small pieces. Toss together with 1 to 2 tablespoons olive oil, adding more as needed. Season well with salt and freshly grated pepper. Serve chilled. Serves 2.

Nathalie Dupree, who lives in Charleston, is the former director of Rich's Cooking School in Atlanta and the author of eight cookbooks, including "Nathalie Dupree's Comfortable Entertaining." She may be reached at nathalie.com.