Only Two Louisiana Recipes Make Southern Living’s ‘Iconic’ List

At any given moment at any given place in Louisiana, there is a conversation going on about food. In New Orleans, they might be discussing oysters. In Delcambre, they're probably talking shrimp. In St Martin Parish crawfish has probably been brought up for discussion more than once. In Louisiana food is life. We don't eat to live, we live to eat.

I guess you could make a similar case for many of our neighboring states. I know food is pretty darn important in Texas with its briskets and whatnot. In Arkansas, they have Possum Pie which is very misleading because it contains no possum at all. And Mississippi has its Mississippi Mud Cake and pot roasts. And many of those recipes are considered to be "iconic" for the people who live in and travel to those states.

What Recipes Are Considered to be Iconic in Louisiana?

If you were to ask me that question I would probably start out with a gumbo recipe or a jambalaya recipe. I could also swerve to include red beans and rice. I am guessing that many of you would probably be thinking along similar lines as me, maybe you'd include crawfish or etouffee on your list. Oddly enough, none of those great Louisiana recipes were included by Southern Living Magazine when they published their list of 31 of the South's Most Iconic Recipes.

The list did include the Mississippi Mud Cake and the Texas Brisket but there was no mention of gumbo, crawfish, etouffee, or even oysters. In fact, the two recipes the Southern Living team added to their list from Louisiana are both sweet treats.

The first one mentioned by the author Josh Miller is Louisiana Crunch Cake. Isn't that a Mississippi thing, Josh? I guess it could be considered both. If you've never had it the recipe features an abundance of toasted coconut on the top and bottom of the cake. It makes for an interesting texture and chew. Of course, if you don't like coconut, you're probably not going to find this cake and recipe to be that iconic.

The second "iconic" recipe to be featured on the Southen Living list is King Cake Beignets. I am not against them but I don't see the big deal. They're just regular beignets covered in colored sugar and icing instead of powdered sugar. I am sure they are great with a cup of hot coffee but just because they look like a Mardi Gras king cake does that make them iconic?

You can see all 31 of Southern Living's Iconic Recipes of the South by following this link. You can also get the recipe to attempt to recreate those tasty treats at home. That is if you're not too busy making gumbo or etouffee or crawfish or some other more iconic dish that Louisiana is truly known for.