L’Observateur / May 13, 2000

LAPLACE – Cindy Abraham learned to cook from her grandmother, Anna Mae Miller, and her great-grandmother, Rachel Jaurdot. Since she grew up in NewOrleans, it was only natural that they taught her how to cook Cajun dishes like crawfish bisque, artichokes, shrimp creole, and also Italian dishes.

Though she is a successful cook today, she didn’t start out that way. Thefirst thing she cooked was a big disaster, she confessed. When she was only9 years-old she saw a picture of a vegetable stuffed roast in a fancy French cook book. It looked so good she decided she would try to make one herself.Somehow it didn’t come out the same, the meat was cooked but the carrots were still raw.

Cindy has come a long way since her first cooking experience. She is not onlya wonderful cook today, she also teaches children and adults how to cook.

Cindy teaches cooking at The Cooking School at the Riverwalk in New Orleans.

She says they cater mostly to tourist who want to learn how to cook Cajun food – and they do – in about two hours they prepare a Cajun meal with a main dish, appetizer and dessert.

She also teaches cooking to children for the Jefferson Parish Recreation Department at Miley Playground in Metairie. The cooking camp consists of sixone-week camps. There, children learn to make pasta from scratch and theyalso learn to make homemade tamales. She says she doesn’t just teach themto make easy dishes because the great thing about children is they have a lot of time and they like to create. Cindy says, when she teaches the children,she lets them make their own mistakes – because they learn from their mistakes. This is her fourth year teaching the art of cooking at the camp.Even though the majority of her students are girls, she says they seem to be getting more boys to enroll each year.

When Cindy’s not busy teaching, she also runs Effortless Events catering business. She has been catering locally for about four years, including theRiver Parishes area. With her extensive cooking experience – kitchensupervisor for House of Blues in New Orleans and working for Andrea Appuzo, owner of Andrea’s Restaurant of New Orleans, she was able to pick up a variety of styles for cooking. She has no problem preparing whatever herclients request and will do the cooking on-site.

Her next River Parish catering event is Aug. 4 at 6 p.m. at the Dupont PeroBuilding in Reserve. She will prepare Italian cuisine for the LaFlambeauChapter of the American Business Women’s Organization murder mystery dinner. Anyone interested in having Cindy cater their event can call her at835-7968.

For the past few years, Cindy has also been in the process of putting together a cook book of St. Joseph’s Day cooking and baking traditions. Shesays it is an important project for her because she feels it is an art that is slowly fading away and must be preserved for generations to come.

Another project she would like to participate in is cooking for the LaPlace Andouille Festival. She says, since andouille has become such a popular trendon television food channels, many of the tourist who attend her class at the Cajun Cooking School at the Riverwalk are anxious to hear stories about the Andouille Festival.

STRAWBERRY TIRA MISU 4 eggs, separated 1/2 cup sugar 4 3-oz. pkgs. cream cheese, softened3/4 cup heavy cream 2 tsps. unsweetened gelatin powder, soaked in 1 tbsp. water1 tsp. vanilla3/4 cup strawberry liqueur 24 ladyfinger cookies 2 pints strawberries, washed and quartered 2 tbsps. cocoa powder (optional)Cook egg yolks over double boiler until starting to thicken and lemon colored.

Whip egg whites until stiff peaks form. Combine cream cheese, heavy cream,vanilla, 2 tbsps. liqueur and gelatin and beat for five minutes with an electricmixer. Gradually add in sugar. Fold in yolks and then whites. Pour theremaining strawberry liqueur into a shallow bowl. Quickly swipe 1/2 of theladyfinger cookies through the liqueur and lay them across the bottom of an 8X8-inch pan. Pour 1/2 of the cream cheese mixture over the ladyfingersand layer 1/2 of the strawberries over the cream cheese. Repeat theprocess. If you like dust a little cocoa powder over the top, using a sifter.Refrigerate for at least an four hours. Cut into squares and serve.Serves eight.

CINDY’S WHITE HEAT CHILI 3 lbs. pork loin, cut into 1-inch cubes2 tbsps. olive oil1 yellow onion, chopped 2 cloves garlic, minced 2 tbsps. White Heat chili powder, see recipe following4 green chiles, roasted and peeled 24 ounces tomatillos or salsa verde 3 cups water 1 tsp. concentrated crab boil1/4 cup tequila 2 tbsps. corn flour, dissolved in tequila4 dashes Tabasco sauce jalapeno White heat chili powder: 2 tsps. coriander seed, crushed2 tsps. ground cumin1/2 tsp. white pepper2 tbsps. granulated garlic1 tsp. oregano1/2 tsp. ginger1 packet Goya ham seasoning pinch of chipotle pepper, ground Heat oil in a Dutch oven. Add pork and onions and cook until brown. Add thegarlic and chili powder and cook for another five minutes over medium heat.

Add the next four ingredients and simmer for 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Add thetequila-corn flour mixture and cook for 20 minutes more. Season to tastewith Tabasco green jalapeno sauce.

Caution: When Cindy entered her chili into Vaquero’s Restaurant cooking contest they said it was too hot! She said she has toned it down a bit.

CRANBERRY BUTTER 1 stick butter 1/4 cup mayonnaise 1 cup whole berry cranberry sauce Whip butter until fluffy, fold in mayonnaise and cranberry sauce.

This is what makes one of the spreads that make Effortless Events finger sandwiches unique!

MINI-MUFFALETTAS 1 lb. extra lean ham, sliced thin1 lb. mozzarella cheese substitute, sliced thin16 dinner rolls olive salad: 2 ozs. small olives, rinsed and drained1/2 red bell pepper, chopped and blanched 2 stalks celery, chopped and blanched 1/2 cup cauliflower flowerets, chopped and blanched 3 green onions, sliced 1/8-inch thick 2 cloves garlic, chopped fine 1/4 cup low-calorie Italian salad dressing Prepare olive salad – combine all ingredients in a closed jar and marinate overnight. Layer buns with 1 tbsp. olive salad, 2 ozs. of ham and 2 ozs. ofcheese. Toast in a 300-degree oven until cheese is melted.Back to Top

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