Recipe Weekend / Cookbook Review- Miss Kay's Duck Commander Kitchen by Kay Robertson with Chrys Howard

Mom got this cookbook from her girls for Christmas, and we've all been oogling and placing post its on different recipes, since she opened it!

Our family is not all native Louisiana, as you know. I come from the perfect split- one grandfather from Arkansas (via Mississippi and Georgia), one from Minnesota, a grandmother from Louisiana and one from Canada via New Hampshire. So I'm perfectly split Yankee and Reb. Which is evident in my likes and dislikes when it comes to food- down here we're considered a bit eclectic in our general meal plan! But if there is one thing that binds the entire family together, it is FOOD. And that is what this book is about- family, faith and food! Also known as the Southern tradition!

Synopsis:

The sassy, country-cookin’ matriarch of the Robertson clan and star of A&E®'s Duck Dynasty® dishes up her fabulous recipes and stories in this irresistible family cookbook.

In this book you’ll find everything from Jase’s Favorite Sweet Potato Pie to Phil’s own special recipes, like his scrumptious Crawfish Fettuccine. There’s “girly” food for a gathering of your best girlfriends, like Aunt Judy’s Cranberry Salad, as well as dishes straight from the hunt like Boiled Squirrel and Dumplings. 

In addition to more than one hundred specially chosen recipes, there are plenty of old family snapshots of the days before the Duck Dynasty® series on A&E® and stories of the family and how they live. Gather your family around the table and serve up delicious home-cooked meals with recipes like . . . 

• Willie’s Famous Chicken Strips 
• Melt-in-Your-Mouth Biscuits 
• Cheesy Corn Casserole 
• Fresh Strawberry Pie 
• Best Brisket Ever 
• Crawfish Balls 
• Creamy Green Grape Salad 
• Papaw Phil’s Homemade Ice Cream 

And more!

Review:

No matter what your view about the whole TV show thing (I won't give the channel their name and any excess advertising), the one thing that we all love about the show is Miss Kay and her cooking!  This second cookbook includes tidbits about the the family, including some great snapshots, that would make any fan of the show happy! But the recipes are the true star of the show 

In Louisiana there tends to be 2 groups of cooking- Cajun and Creole, that everyone focuses on. But the truth of the matter is there is also a third area, which is North Western Louisiana cooking, which can be very different, and pretty much has influences from the other 2 areas, plus a good base of traditional Southern dishes, that could be found from Mississippi to Georgia.  This cookbook soundly falls into that third category. In looking through it, I found many recipes so close to my Mom's recipes that I had to do a double take. I also found some very close to Suzanne's dad's recipes, which makes since as he is from Ville Platte.Others were close to family recipes, but with a bit of a difference that made us want to try them out as soon as possible!

And all of that is what makes this a great starter cookbook for any newlywed or son/daughter in their first home! All the basics are covered, as well as game dishes (which the guys will really like)/ You could easily add it to a basket of basics, including some spices, and have a lovely housewarming gift that will keep on giving.

As the new year is approaching and it is Southern tradition to have Hoppin John and cabbage/greens, on the new year to bring prosperity and luck in the year to come, I thought I'd share Miss Kay's recipe for Pinto Beans and Sausage- her version of Hoppin John!

Pinto Beans and Sausage

Makes 8 servings

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. package pinto beans
• 1 2.4 oz pack of Zatarain's red bean seasoning blend
• 1 stick butter
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 medium onion, finely chopped
• 2 tbsp crushed garlic
• 1 hambone (saved from Christmas dinner is the tradition)
• 1 lb andouille sausage, mild or hot
• white rice for serving
• cornbread for serving- Mexican Cornbread preferred (recipe in book also)

Directions
1. Wash and rinse the pinto beans in a strainer. Put the beans in a slow cooker and fill cooker with water  3/4 of the way to the top. Cook on low overnight.
2. The next morning, drain off the water and rinse the beans again in a strainer. Note- this reduces the gases in the beans. Fill cooker with fresh water again to 3/4 of the way to the top, and add seasoning mix and the beans..
3. In a medium skillet, melt butter with oil, then add garlic and onions, on medium high heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are translucent, about 7 minutes.  Then add the vegetables to the beans in the slow cooker.
4. Cut off any meat from the ham bone and add it to the cooker, stir all together, then add the ham bone to the cooker as well. Cook beans mixture for 4 hours on high.
5. While the beans are cooking, heat the oven to 250 degrees. Cut the sausage into small pieces and brown in the oven for 20 minutes. Place on paper towel lined plate, to drain off the grease.
6. When the beans are tender, pour them into a large pot and put the pot on the stove. Add the sausage and cook on medium heat for about 45 minutes, to one hour.
7. Serve with or over rice, and with cornbread on the side.

Note: Kay's Mexican cornbread is an old fashioned recipe incorporating bacon, corn, jaleopns and cheese!


About the Author:
Kay Robertson is the revered matriarch of the Robertson family and star of Duck Dynasty. Kay believes her cooking talents are a gift she must share, so she often ends up feeding all of the family and most of the neighborhood. Her most famous dishes are banana pudding, fried deer steak, crawfish pie, and sticky frog legs.

About the Editor:
Chrys Howard is the mother of Korie Robertson, Willie Robertson's wife, from the Duck Dynasty show. She was a senior editor and creative director for Simon & Schuster. She has edited and cowritten more than 100 books and is the author of nine books with more than 1,000,000 copies in print in six languages. She received a Silver Angel Award from the Hollywood based Excellence in Media organization, the J. C. Penney Golden Rule Award, and has been named among the Who's Who of American Teachers. Chrys Howard lives in West Monroe, Louisiana, with her husband, John. They have three grown children and eleven grandchildren.