Mardi Gras in Louisiana is over now for another year but some things never change.

People down there know how to fix exciting food and love to eat.

They say it may be the only place in the world where, when you sit down to eat with another person or a group of folks, you find yourselves quite naturally talking about a meal you ate earlier in the day or the day before, your expectations for the meal you’re sitting down to enjoy, and the meal to follow later in the day or the next day.

Our older son was in Louisiana for about six years pursuing doctoral studies, and every time we visited we found ourselves falling right into that pattern. But we found out we really had to plan or be prepared for disappointment.

The first year we did our tour-guide research, we picked a number of restaurants we wanted to visit as we traveled from New Orleans out to Cajun Country. One of the restaurants we chose for a Monday lunch was Lafitte’s Landing Restaurant, Donaldsonville, La., run by Chef John Folse.

We made sure to leave enough travel time to arrive at the restaurant in timely fashion for lunch, but failed to notice that the restaurant was closed on Mondays.

Next time around, in 1998, we were more careful in our planning. The place was open and we had a great lunch, and, to remember the occasion, we bought a cookbook, Something Old & Something New: Louisiana Cooking With a Change of Heart, by Folse and Dr. Craig M. Walker, a cardiologist. A book with lots of great ideas, it has the traditional recipe for some favorite Louisiana dishes on one page and a heart-healthy version on the opposite page.

Anytime we go looking for a new way to prepare something very familiar, or to find something we haven’t tried, we check out the cookbooks for ideas, then modify them to suit our tastes and eating preferences.

Our first recipe for the Fridays of Lent was inspired by one I saw in Folse’s Something Old & Something New. I was looking some months ago for a different way to prepare catfish and was intrigued by a recipe Folse had for trout fillets and crawfish tails.

I had neither of those ingredients but I did have the catfish and pecans. Besides, his sauce had minced garlic in it so why not try it?

Food, like prayer, is very personal. Work with what you have and stay with what works to bring you closer to the Lord.

This recipe for Saucy Catfish is an adaptation of an adaptation. Feel free to change the ingredients, add or subtract. I once tried making it with a half-pound of peeled medium shrimp in the sauce.

Saucy Catfish

1-1½ lb catfish fillets

3 tbsp olive oil

3 tbsp flour

1 small onion, chopped

1/3 cup chopped red ball pepper

1 tbsp minced garlic

2 cups water

¼ cup white wine

½ cup pecans, toasted and chopped

½ cup chopped green onion or cilantro or parsley

½ tsp cayenne pepper

½ tsp black pepper

½ tsp smoked paprika

juice of one lemon or 2 tbsp lemon juice

pepper sauce and salt to taste

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. In cast iron skillet heat the oil, saute onion and bell pepper until they begin to wilt, add garlic. Sprinkle in the flour, stirring constantly until you get a blond colored roux. Slowly add the water and wine until it takes on consistency of a sauce. Bring to a rolling boil, reduce to a simmer 5-10 minutes.

Add cayenne pepper, black pepper, smoked paprika, lemon juice, and salt and pepper sauce to taste.

Place fillets in a glass baking dish, pour the sauce over the fish, cover and bake 25 minutes at 350 degrees.

While the fish is baking, place the pecans (or hazlenuts or almonds) on a baking sheet in the oven for no more than 4 minutes. Take them out, let them cool slightly and chop on a cutting board.

When fish is ready, remove to a service plate or individual dishes, top with sauce, chopped green onions or chopped cilantro and toasted pecan pieces.

The Saucy Catfish goes well with a vegetable rice pilaf prepared with frozen mixed vegetables tossed into the boiling water with the rice and a little butter. Round out the meal with a green salad.

Let us pray:

Lord Jesus Christ, may our Lenten fasting turn us toward all our brothers and sisters who are in need. Bless this table, our good food, and ourselves. Send us through Lent with good cheer, and bring us to the fullness of your Passover. Amen.

Catholic Household Blessings

and Prayer

To look over some of last year’s recipes, check our Monitor archive: Monitor Lenten Recipes 2001