The Cajun Hatter Returns to Cajun Country

This month a Louisiana hat-maker relocated his custom-made hat shop from New Orleans’ Magazine Street to the heart of downtown Lafayette in an attempt to reconnect with his cajun roots, as reported in an Advocate feature.

Colby Hebert, the owner of The Cajun Hatter, is relocating his shop to Jefferson Street so that he can connect with the culture that inspires a bulk of his commissioned orders. The decor of this new location, found on the main thoroughfare of Lafayette, Louisiana’s downtown scene, is aptly decorated with artifacts of Cajun culture at every turn. From the antique room divider in the front parlor space to the moss-laden accenta pieces, reminiscent of a swamp tour, the small Acadiana shop is definitively cloaked in the Acadian style.

Hebert moved his shop to its third location since starting the business; previously The Cajun Hatter had been located in New Iberia and Magazine Street in New Orleans. Hebert identified for The Advocate’s Julia Guilbeau that he felt as if he was doing something wrong by contributing to the legacy of his culture while being two and a half hours apart from it all.

Hebert had said that when in New Orleans, he “was working so hard and in so many ways not only to help with Cajun preservation but also just to step into that Cajun identity that I have in every way. It was at the point where I’m like, I can’t do this anymore and not be here in my culture and directly contributing to my culture.”

From a young age, Colby Hebert, a New Iberia native, was interested in hats as a fashion accessory and always found that he wanted to try his hand at creating something unique and bold in design. He began this journey as a hat collector, inspecting each piece and trying to understand the finer details involved in each hat’s construction. This natural curiosity soon led to Hebert making custom hats whether in his free time or as a part of his profession as a costume designer in the film industry.

From this experience in outfitting actors, Hebert began to see fashion not from the traditional perspectives of a wearer or an observer- but from that of a maker. Soon after departing from the film industry, he opened up a hat shop in New Iberia before later moving to New Orleans, and now Lafayette.

Back in Acadiana, Hebert remarked on the great opportunity he has with his business now by stating, ““we have a great thing here that a lot of people argue is dying out. Being here in that pivotal moment where we start to decide how we want to redefine culture here makes me feel good.”

As expected, each product made in The Cajun Hatter comes personally-crafted, as Hebert makes almost all of his hats by hand, using mainly wooden tools and decades-old traditional techniques of past haberdashers. In fact, the only “real machinery” used are his steamer and iron. Due to the notable quality of the materials, his prices begin at $400, covering the personalization of the product.

In true cajun-country fashion, the hats are being made with beaver, or more recently, felt nutria fur, which is such high quality that it’s likely to outlive the wearer. Hebert notes that nutria are quite an overpopulated species in Louisiana that continue to contribute to coastal erosion, so by using their fur, less overall waste is created.

“You want to make something that is sustainable, lasting and not something that is going to be material or consumer waste,” Hébert said. “[Customers] have chosen a type of fur that creates such a high quality felt that it might outlive you. It might outlive your children.”

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Green Bean Casserole from Scratch

Whether you’re practicing for Thanksgiving dinner or complimenting a savory dinner in July, a green bean casserole that’s made from scratch is always treasured and respected, and this simple, yet savory, detailed recipe guide from Gimme Some Oven hits the homemade nail on the head.

Ingredients

Green Bean Casserole:

  • 2 lbs fresh green beans, trimmed, and cut into bite-sized pieces
  • 1 batch of Mushroom Alfredo Sauce
    • 2 tbsp butter or olive oil
    • 8 oz. baby bella mushrooms, thinly-sliced
    • 4 cloves of garlic, pressed or minced
    • 3 tbsp all-purpose flour
    • ½ cup of vegetable stock
    • 1 cup milk
    • ½ cup freshly-grated Parmesan cheese
    • ½ tsp fine sea salt
    • ¼ tsp freshly-ground black pepper
  • 1 batch Crispy Onion Topping
    • 1 tbsp butter or olive oil, divided
    • 1 medium red onion, peeled and thinly-sliced
    • ½ cup Panko breadcrumbs
    • 1/4th cup freshly-grated Parmesan cheese
    • ¼ teaspoon each fine sea salt and freshly-cracked black pepper

Recipe for Green Bean Casserole:

  1. Preheat your oven to 375°F
  2. Heat a large stockpot of water over high-heat until it’s boiling. Meanwhile, trim and cut your green beans, then add them to the boiling water. Cook them for 3-5 minutes, depending on your preferred level of crispiness, though it’s a good idea to undercook them, as they’ll cook more in the oven. Use a slotted spoon or strainer to transfer the beans immediately into a large bowl of ice water, and give them a quick stir, preventing them from cooking longer. Afterward, set aside.
  3. For the next step of this green bean casserole, melt ½ tablespoon butter in a large sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add the onion and sauté for 2-3 minutes, occasionally stirring until the onion is partially cooked, still holding its shape. Transfer the onion to a clean bowl and add the remaining ½ tablespoon of butter to the sauté pan along with the panko and stir to combine. Cook this for 2-3 minutes, occasionally stirring until the panko is lightly golden. Remove this from the heat and transfer the panko to the bowl with the onions. Add in the Parmesan, salt, and pepper, and toss the onion mixture until evenly combined, setting it aside.
  4. Briefly rinse and dry the sauté pan; then return it to the stove. Melt the butter over medium-high heath, and add the mushrooms and sauté for 5 minutes, stirring it occasionally until lightly browned and soft. Add the garlic and sauté for 1-2 more minutes, stirring occasionally until it’s Then, stir in the flour and sauté for an additional minute while stirring occasionally. Then, add in the vegetable stock and stir until the flour is evenly dissolved. Then, stir-in to combine the milk and Parmesan, and cook the sauce until it reaches a simmer and thickens. You can then remove it from heat and season it with salt and pepper to taste.
  5. Combine the green beans and mushroom alfredo sauce in the stockpot, and stir the green bean mixture until it’s all evenly combined. Transfer this to a 9 x 13 baking dish, and spread the green bean mixture out in an even layer, wherein you’ll sprinkle it evenly with the crispy onion topping mixture.
  6. Bake this dish for 25 minutes, or until the crispy onion topping is golden and crispy. You’ll want to watch this carefully so that it doesn’t burn, but if it begins to char, lay a piece of aluminum foil on top of the casserole.
  7. Remove from the oven and serve this side (or main dish) warm, by garnishing it with extra freshly-cracked black pepper and parsley while plating.

Once comfortable with the ingredients and procedure for green bean casserole , feel free to spice it up by adding extra cheese, cajun seasoning, bacon, or a little “kick” with crushed red pepper flakes or jalapeno slices. Customize this traditional side dish, and upgrade it to an unforgettable main dish.

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Tips for Smart, Safe 2020 Holiday Travel

In a year like 2020, the warmth, community, food, and chance to travel that the end of the year holiday season brings is seen as a highly-needed break from the daily stresses of life.  However, now more than ever, caution must be taken to ensure an enjoyable, yet safe holiday season transpires.  Travel Pulse has compiled several steps travelers can take for safe 2020 holiday travels.

Monitor Your Destination Early and Often

While there are expected to be far fewer crowds than in previous years and simply no shortage of deals to be snagged for flights and resort stays, travelers shouldn’t be swept up in the excitement that a reunioning gathering of loved ones could generate, as the latest travel restrictions, quarantine orders and health and safety guidelines of your destination should be regularly monitored. So, as you are holiday shopping and planning, be sure to research what your destination requires of its incoming travelers, as some places are requiring visitors to self-isolate for a minimum of fourteen days, if they are hailing from a “hotspot,” while others are asking visitors to complete health questionnaires and/or submit a negative coronavirus test result prior to entry. As a general rule of thumb, as this tip is the most serious, travelers at a higher risk of severe illness should avoid areas with high infection rates or, at the very least, exercise extreme caution.

Purchase Travel Insurance

Sure it’s often ignored, skipped over, or hastily signed, as a traveler focuses more on the type of seat getting them to the destination rather than the worse implications, but travel insurance shouldn’t be taken for granted this year. It’ll be a great idea to research some travel insurance policies prior to departure or booking, as the right choice in policy could cover medical costs and even medical transport back home, in the event of a passenger becoming severely ill, whether or not due to the pandemic. In fact, look into your specific destination, because many resorts, such as Sandals are offering complimentary travel insurance to their guests for an added layer of flexibility and peace of mind in these times.

Wear a Face Mask

This travel accessory that for many was first observed in international airport terminals should not be overlooked this year, as it has become one of the most effective tools in the fight against all viruses, not to mention that its utilization has become a requirement in most places such as airports, airplanes, hotel lobbies, bars, restaurants, and indoor attractions. It’s suggested that those choosing to travel for the holidays embrace face mask culture or choose to stay home. So, plan ahead! Coordinate masks with your traveling party or commission some personalized masks; just be sure to pack several, ensuring a clean, effective, and stylish accessory every time.

Actively Practice Social Distancing

Ignoring the pandemic, nothing is worse than anticipating a trip for months or weeks, packing, stressing about getting to the airport on time, and getting sneezed on in public or noticing that the passenger near you has been sneezing for the past minute, thus you attive sick on day one. That can be mitigated every year by maintaining a safe distance of six feet between yourself and others, but special attention should be paid to the practice this year, especially if you’re traveling in a high-traffic hub like a train station or airport. Remember, the CDC’s updated guidelines define “close contact” as being within six feet of someone with the virus for a cumulative total of fifteen minutes or more over a period of 24 hours, so be practical, yet mindful!

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Theatre Baton Rouge Starts its 75th Season Opening

Amongst every challenge to live theatre 2020 has brought its way, Theatre Baton Rouge will be celebrating its 75th season by presenting a blend of in-person and online, broadcasted performances in October, November, and December, The Advocate reports.

Since 1946, Theatre Baton Rouge has produced over 400 productions of dramas, comedies, and musicals for the local community, and amid the pandemic, live, engaging theatre is a highly-coveted commodity. Jenny Ballard, the managing artistic director of Theatre Baton Rouge remarked that there is simply “no substitute for live theater. You can have 400 channels on your TV at home. You can have every conceivable iteration of Shakespeare … but there is nothing that compares to being in the room. It is a special intimacy.”

This season, the Theatre Baton Rouge performers will be staging three productions. “Vintage Hitchcock: A Live Radio Play”will be staged October 29-31 over the Zoom Teleconference app. In November, live audiences up to 40 people will be able to see “An Act of God,” and up to 80 audience members can see the troupe’s production of “It’s a Wonderful Life”come December. Also that month, TBR will stream their “The Gift of the Magi” online.

For 75 years now, this theatre has been adapting to the changing environment in order to remain relevant as social and entertainment attitudes, options, and tastes have varied dramatically since 1946.  What would eventually be known among the cultured of Louisiana’s capital as Baton Rouge Theatre began its stored career as the Baton Rouge Civic Theatre with a production of “The Male Animal” at the Woman’s Club on East Boulevard. In fact until the Harding Field theatre became its home in 1948, the theatre staged productions at various venues around the city.

Jerry Leggio, a member of the theatre who began acting in the late 1950 recalled actors exiting stage having to run around the back side of the building in order to return to stage on the opposite side, as the venue at the Harding Field theatre had no backstage. The theatre was built in order to entertain servicemen stationed at the airfield with live performances and films, but weather proved to be quite challenging as rainfall would regularly cancel performances or interrupt them, as it did during the theatre’s run of “A Streetcar Named Desire” in 1959.

Though, just as the theatre proves to be versatile in adapting to the challenges of COVID and 2020, the actors improvised. Leggio recalled in his interview with The Advocate, ““One night, I went out and came back so wet I had to inject a line: ‘Stella, don’t you know it’s raining outside? Of course, everybody knew what I was doing.”

Theatre Baton Rouge changed its name in 1951 to the Baton Rouge Little Theatre, and Theatre House Magazine rated it as the third-best community theatre in the country due to its quality and community support. In fact, while operating as a membership-based theatre, prospective members had to wait for existing members to leave in order to be granted entry.

With time and community support, the Theatre Baton Rouge’s operations and legacy grew exponentially, starting with its first artistic director, Lee Edwards, who committedly held the role until his death in 1978. Edwards was followed by Frank Pope, Henry Avery, Roy Hamlin, Keith Dixon, and J
Enny Ballard, all of whom have succeeded in carrying on the legacy of this staple of Baton Rouge.

Ballard remarked, ““We have a lot of great things happening, but as soon as COVID lets up, we plan to be able to shoot back into action, but in the meantime, we’re doing what we’re doing, and we’re doing it really well.” So, as the expression goes, despite it all, the show truly must go on.

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DOE Introduces Teacher Recruitment & Retention Fellowship

Earlier this month, the Louisiana Department of Education selected school system leaders from across the state to assist in an effort to create a program foe teacher recruitment and retention for the educators in Louisiana’s most vital certification areas, as reported by an LABelieves’ press release.

The State’s Department of Education selected “human capital leaders” from sixteen Louisiana school systems to participate in the fellowship, which will be operating through the national organization, Urban Schools Human Capital Academy. This organization is a non-profit aimed at supporting and bringing together leaders in schools and districts to drive a measurable improvement in teacher and principal quality. The USHCA operates in sixteen states, and has experience in providing new and existing school and district leaders to grow their management skills and become leaders, or human capital leaders.

This particular fellowship will consist of two national workshops and monthly state sessions for this particular Louisiana cohort, which will begin in late October, concluding in Spring 2021. The Louisiana Department of Educationhopes that this effort will bring highly-effective educators and leaders from across the state in order to ensure that every student learns from a high-quality teacher without interruption in personnel.

In the release, State Superintendent of Education, Dr. Cade Brumley stated, “An effective teacher has the power to transform the lives of countless children, which is why we must do everything we can to attract and keep the very best in Louisiana. This fellowship will expose system leadership to what’s working for districts around the nation, while also sparking collaboration that will lead to innovations in our state.”

The sixteen Louisiana school Systems participating in the fellowship program are:

Avoyelles Parish

Caddo Parish

Catahoula Parish

City of Baker School System

Grant Parish

Iberville Parish

Livingston Parish

Morehouse Parish

Ouachita Parish

Pointe Coupee Parish

Rapides Parish

St. Charles Parish

St. Landry Parish

St. Tammany Parish

Tangipahoa Parish

West Baton Rouge Parish

In addition to the monthly Louisiana cohort meetings, the two national workshop portions of the fellowship give state educators the opportunity to collaborate not only with other educators, wherein great strategies, ideas, and materials are shared, but they will also be networking with other human capital professionals from across the U.S, learning the best, tested practices for attracting and keeping effective teachers. While this year the national workshops will be delivered virtually, the national arm of the fellowship plans to focus on how exactly school systems can adjust their recruitment and retention strategic plans during the pandemic.

At their planned monthly meetings, the Louisiana cohort will map out what Louisiana-specific challenges in relation to teacher recruitment and retention are unique to the state, allowing leaders to explore innovative solutions and how best to implement them. Already, the Louisiana human capital leaders have requested the following strategies they would be eager to explore:

  • Building teacher communities across parish lines in order to support educator development and retention.
  • Implementing a structure to share teachers across parish lines, especially in the vital subject areas, such as Advanced Math and Science.
  • Introducing a common interview process for teachers across parish lines.

In Dr. Brumley’s 100 Day Report, the need for an enhanced teacher recruitment and retention program in Louisiana was outlined, and it’s much-needed due to the fact that over have of the Louisiana teachers leaving the profession do so within their first ten years in the classroom. Subjects outlined as having the largest-need areas for teachers are math and science, yet only 8 percent of all program completers earned their teaching certification in math and only 7 percent earned it in science. Needless to say, this fellowship is a refreshing take on a vital challenge facing Louisiana school systems.

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Salted Glazed Pumpkin Bread Perfect for Fall

With fall comes the crunching of the leaves, the zipping of outerwear, and the inevitable preheating of a convection oven for the timeless autumnal treat: the baking of pumpkin-based dishes, and nothing is more celebrated by the whole family than this recipe for a loaf of pumpkin bread with a glaze of salted brown butter, as provided by the talents at Serious Eats.

Ingredients

For the Pumpkin Bread:

  • 8 ounces (1 ⅔ cups, 225g) of all-purpose flour
  • a half ounce (2 tablespoons, 15g) of malted milk powder
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon (4g) kosher salt
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon ground allspice
  • ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
  • ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
  • 2 large eggs
  • 8 ounces (1 cup, 225g) pumpkin or butternut squash purée
  • 5 ounces (⅔ cup) neutral oil
  • 4 ounces (½ cup; 115g) granulated sugar
  • 4 ounces (½ cup; 115g) light brown sugar
  • 2 ounces (¼ cup; 55g) milk, any fat percentage
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Recipe:

For the Pumpkin Bread Glaze:

  • 2 ounces (½ cup, 60g) powdered sugar, sifted
  • ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
  • ⅛ teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1 ounce (2 tablespoons, 30g) unsalted butter
  • ½ ounce (1 tablespoon, 15g) milk, any fat percentage
    ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract

This pumpkin bread recipe uses:

Note:  If using table salt in lieu of kosher salt, simply use half as much by volume as the above indicates.

  1. Begin prepping for the pumpkin bread by greasing an 8 ½ by 4 ½- inch loaf pan and line it with a 7- by 13-inch sheet of parchment paper so that it hangs over the sides of the pan, forming a sling. Adjust your oven rack to a lower-middle position and preheat it to 350°F.
  2. In a medium bowl, whisk the following together: all-purpose flour, malted milk powder, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, baking soda, allspice, nutmeg, cloves, and ginger until it’s well-combined, typically after 1 minute.
  3. In a large bowl, whisk together your eggs, pumpkin/squash purée, oil, granulated sugar, brown sugar, milk, and vanilla until thoroughly combined and all sugars are dissolved.
  4. Combine your flour and egg mixtures, and whisk just until it’s incorporated and no dry flour remains.
  5. Use a flexible spatula, and scrape your batter into the loaf pan. Then, bake until the loaf is domed and golden brown, and a cake tester inserted into the center comes out with few moist crumbs attached (or an internal temperature of around 200°F), about 1 hour.
  6. Transfer pan to a wire rack that’s set in a baking sheet, letting it cool for 30 minutes. Run a butter knife along the edges to loosen it from the pan, then lift the loaf using overhanging parchment (remember?), and return it to the wire rack after removing the parchment paper.
  7. Begin your glaze by combining your set aside sugar, salt and cinnamon in a small heatproof bowl.
  8. Melt the butter in a 1-quart stainless steel saucier over medium-low heat, increasing to medium and simmering. Stir with a heat-resistant spatula while the butter hisses and pops. Continue cooking this until framing subsides and you’re scraping up brown bits from the bottom. When the butter is golden yellow and the milk solids are chestnut brown (about 5 minutes), remove from the heat.
  9. Add milk, vanilla, and butter, along with your scraped brown bits to the powdered sugar mixture, and whisk until it’s smooth. You should then have 3 ounces of glaze that you will slowly drizzle evenly over your bread.
  10.  Allow the glaze for the pumpkin bread to set for 10 minutes, slice with a serrated knife, and serve.

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