I took my family to New Orleans at the beginning of August to meet a guest chef for our restaurant in Sarasota, FL, the Rosemary & Thyme. I have always loved the cuisine of New Orleans – whether Cajun or Creole (the difference is in the Tomato Base) – and I wanted to bring some of those flavors to my customers in Sarasota. Well we had a fabulous stay at the Maison de la Luz hotel ( in Carondelet Street and my wife and I can’t recommend it highly enough. She dragged us on a walking tour which was so hot, my son and I almost collapsed. But we reluctantly learned a lot about the history of Voodoo in New Orleans which was pretty fascinating. We had some great meals, too – notably we had Po’ Boys at Mothers, BBQ Shrimp at Mr. B’s, and Duck Breast at Auguste. This last restaurant was introduced to us by our August Guest Chef, Erik Hunley. Since we got back from New Orleans, I’ve been making my favorite dishes: Gumbo, Jambalya, and Etouffe. In this video, I demonstrate how I prepare Chicken and Sausage Jambalaya in the dining room of the Rosemary and Thyme. This recipe was inspired by one of my all time cooking heroes, Paul Prudhomme. I hope you try it! Also, if you have any New Orleans restaurant recommendations, please leave them in the comments! Let us know how you get on if you make it!
