Visiting friends

Brandywine Tomatoes

Little Queenie

On our way home from Smith Mountain Lake we had a lovely but brief visit with my fellow transplanted New Orleanian, Leigh Harris and her husband Rick at their home in North Carolina.  The drive there from Smith Mountain Lake was breathtaking and it was much closer than I realized, so I hope to make the stop a tradition.  Leigh's house is exploding with personality: the numerous plants, books, art, furniture and even the walls and cabinets truly reflect the joie de vivre she has always emanated.  Leigh, aka Little Queenie, is one of my most colorful friends and she is just so full of love and life.  It was a delight to finally see her after nearly six years of thinking I might never see her again; she is one of several of my musician friends who left New Orleans after Katrina and never returned. Leigh is an amazing singer who is well-known and loved in New Orleans; you can hear her on the soundtrack toTremé, which I recommend you go and buy right away if you don't have it already.  While you're at it, check out anything by Leigh Harris, or Little Queenie and the Percolators. 


We made a visit to The Hungry Farmer Café and to the fabulous local farmers' market, where I bought some Tupelo Honey.  Did you know that White Tupelo Honey is the only type of honey that doesn't crystallize or granulate?  It has to do with the low ratio of glucose to fructose.  Rick made us some garlic bread on whole grain crusty bread and Leigh fixed us a lovely supper of smoked chicken accompanied by fresh corn on the cob cooked in crab boil.  When folks in Louisiana boil crawfish, crabs or shrimp, they throw corn and new potatoes in the mix with crab boil, cayenne pepper, salt, garlic and onions.  I always try to find Rex Crab Boil, which was made by my grandfather's company, New Orleans Imports, but these days Zatarain's is easier to find, and it's not bad.  ;-)  If there are any leftovers, you can make the most flavorful potato salad on the planet, and use the spicy corn in a myriad of ways, limited only by your imagination.  Leigh had bought some collard greens the day before, so I threw together a kind of collard slaw with julienned apples and miniature sweet peppers in various shades of yellow, red and orange.  It was so colorful and pretty!  I made a dressing with apple cider vinegar, oil and honey, which was a nice complement to the flavors of the slaw.  Next time I think I'll cut the collards into very thin slivers, though, and let them macerate in the dressing longer; they were fresh and tasty, but a little tough and chewy.


We drank some wine and after dinner, we shared memories of New Orleans and our families and childhoods.  I was tickled to death to hear Leigh describe her grandmother, who talked exactly like my mother!   I also discovered that Leigh and I are both Ebay queens who share a love of old linens and beautiful fabrics from all over the world. 


All too soon it was time for bed, so we could get on the road in the morning and get home before dark.  After a period of torrential rain, it was a beautiful drive through the Appalachian Mountains and the Ohio River valley.  I love the mist and fog that makes the mountains mysterious and elusive.  We drove through the quaint town of Eaton, Ohio, whose striking and beautifully landscaped old homes bespoke an ubiquitous prosperity I would not have thought possible in a 21st century small town.  From there it was a hop, skip and a jump to Indiana and home again.  Traveling is exciting and educational, but it's so good to be home - and some of the most gorgeous Brandywine heirloom tomatoes I've ever seen are waiting to be picked.  Heaven in my mouth, or as we New Orleanians would say: "Dere's a pawty goin' on in heah."