Regina Charboneau - Mississippi Current Cookbook A Culinary Journey Down Americas Greatest River

The Mississippi River is Americas greatest. At 2,340 miles in length, the River has provided our nation with an essential waterway for transporting goods and people, played an important role in wars and territorial disputes, and even become part of the American vernacular. How often have you heard someone ask, Is that east or west of the Mississippi? Popular food brands have different names east and west of the River: Edys ice cream is west and Dreyers ice cream east; Hellmanns mayonnaise west and Best Foods east. Call letters assigned to radio stations east of the Mississippi begin with the letter W, while those west of the River start with the letter K.

The Mississippi River also has an extraordinarily rich culinary history influenced by those who have inhabited its shores and waters, making it one of the most significant foodways in America. While many people are familiar with food from the lower stretch of the RiverMemphis barbecue, Louisianas Cajun cooking, and New Orleanss Creole traditionsfew are aware of Minnesotas fish fries, Wisconsins Oktoberfest celebrations, and Arkansass farm suppers.

Join me on a culinary journey with menus and recipes from up and down the Mississippi, from the headwaters in Minnesota to the mouth at the Gulf of Mexico. Youll discover the foods and flavors as we visit in the cities and towns, farms, and historical homes on the River.

I am of the seventh generation of my family to be born in Natchez on the River. Food and entertaining have always been at the center of my life. My mother was known for hosting endless dinners and parties with what seemed like no effort at all. People in town still talk about my fathers cooking skills that came from his deep Louisiana roots. When I decided to travel away from the River, I really traveled awayAnchorage, Paris, San Francisco, Minneapolis, and New York. But no matter how many miles I traveled or the number of years I stayed away, none of those places really felt like home. Home was and always will be Natchez. And just like my parents, my life has always centered around food and entertaining. On my return, my husband Doug and I purchased Twin Oaks, primarily to raise our sons Jean-Luc and Martin as eighth-generations on the River. This historic house was perfect for my love of entertaining. Its six guest rooms allow people to come and partake in my culinary weekends, with cooking classes and tours of historic homes in Natchez, ours and others. Having learned so much about historic preservation with our 1832 home, we were hooked enough to find one of the oldest buildings in the Mississippi Territory and the oldest building in Natchezthe 1789 Kings Tavernto restore. Its now a restaurant offering wood-fired flatbreads and craft cocktails featuring many of the liquors made along the River, including the Charboneau Rum created by Doug and our son Jean-Luc in a distillery on the Kings Tavern property. I would say I am home to stay.

Before my return, my Natchezian cooking roots went with me wherever I lived. After attending cooking school in Paris, I began to combine southern cooking and many of the ingredients that were native to the Lower Mississippi regionpecans, catfish, crawfish, oysters, and collard and mustard greenswith classic French influences. No matter where I lived or cooked, the foods of my River were woven into my dishes.

In my years away, Minneapolis held me for a while for two reasonsits location on the Mississippi and because its my husband Dougs hometown. From the first day we met in Anchorage many years ago, it was the River that connected us, even though our culinary vocabularies were foreign to each other. For the first time I heard words like pierogi, spaetzle, brats, Polish sausage, and White Castle. My culinary lexicon likewise held new words for him: gumbo, oysters, mustard greens, jambalaya, and muffalettos. Through the years, our glossaries blended and expanded along with the cultural changes along the Mississippi.