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were faced with the arduous task of going through their waterlogged homes and pitching out furniture, freezers and refrig erators packed with decaying food, ruined photo albums, and most of their personal belongings. And while damaged family photos and other memorabilia caused many a tear to fall, there were many who also cried over their molded recipe collections. And so it began — rebuilding New Orleans one recipe at a time. It wasn’t long before The Times-Picayune was inundated with numerous requests for favorite recipes lost in the deluge. Judy Walker, through her Times-Picayune recipe-trading column, Exchange Alley, began the task of finding lost recipes — either from the newspaper’s library, electronic files and other databases, or by putting out the call to readers whose recipe files weren’t ruined by the hurricane and could possibly supply a “lost” recipe. The local, state and federal officials bickered about whose fault it was that citizens were left stranded and wanting, and how the levee system would be rebuilt; meanwhile, faced with the task of removing mountains of debris, the local folks were trying to return to some kind of normalcy. Residents were anxious for their favorite restaurant, corner store, sandwich shop or neighborhood cafe to reopen. They wanted a roast beef po-boy dripping with gravy, a bowl of thick, rich gumbo, or maybe just a cup of café au lait and a hot beignet to give them both physical and spiritual sustenance

as they embarked on the road of rebuilding their homes and their lives. Most wanted the kitchen to be the first room (before their bathrooms) to be redone. Many survived on makeshift kitchens with perhaps a one-burner cooktop with heat supplied by canned butane. Others set up outdoor BBQ or gas grills on which they could prepare meals. A reader wrote: “I, like thousands of others, lost everything in the Katrina flood. I am now living temporarily in Hammond, and I also lost most of my recipes I had cut out of The Times-Picayune over the years. I did have a few in a shoebox in the attic that didn’t get wet. I am sending you a couple of them that your readers might like to have.” Another reader and frequent contributor sent in this note: “Now that we’re pretty much trapped inside by the steamy weather, I’ve been taking time when I can to sort through the basketful of recipes I’ve clipped from magazines and The Times-Picayune . Lo and behold, yesterday I came to the very last food section on August 25, 2005, before the big K. It was a shock to read over these yellowing pages and think about those lost days of innocence. I’m going to save this in my Katrina file, but I’m also thinking that others might like to have some of those recipes again as a remem brance of the days before the storm, when we all could sit at the kitchen table and open the paper to the warm pleasures of culinary possibilities.”

It became apparent to The Times-Picayune staff that a book containing beloved recipes of its readers was in order. Readers were asked to send in requests for their favorite recipes. Within two months, we received over 500 responses. Not only did people make requests for their lost recipes, but also sent in recipes they thought should be included in the collection. The responses ranged from desperation to appreciation, as well as willingness to share recipes. Some kind and generous soul sent a 40-page fax of his personal recipe collection. It’s interesting to note that reading many of the letters felt like going down memory lane. There were those who remembered the Italian seed cakes that appear on the St. Joseph Day altars. Others wanted a simple but popular recipe such as dump cake. Some wanted the recipes from the now-defunct McKenzie’s bakery as well as the recipes for Mile High Pie from the Caribbean Room at the Pontchartrain Hotel on St. Charles Avenue and the cheesecake from Solari’s. One lady was anxious to find a gumbo recipe she remembered from a feature on favorite dishes of Saints football players. We found most of the requested recipes and, needless to say, it was difficult to determine which recipes to include, but we thought the collection offered something for everyone. We included old standards

like gumbo, jambalaya, oyster patties, bread pudding, and grillades and grits. But we also chose to include favorites like Mexican lasagna, Country Club

COOKING UP A STORM

ARROW-CIRCLE-RIGHT After Hurricane Katrina tore through New Orleans in 2005, Cooking Up a Storm: Recipes Lost and Found from The Times-Picayune of New Orleans , was published to tell the story — recipe by recipe — of one of the great food cities of the world and the determination of its citizens to preserve and safeguard their culinary legacy. Paperback and hardcover editions are still available at many local bookstores and online.

Vincent Laforet/The New York Times/Redux 72 ROUSES SUMMER 2025 • WWW.ROUSES.COM