Author: Emily Gautreaux

Fall Apart Pulled Pork Sandwiches

After curing overnight and spending some time on the grill, this delicious recipe for barbecued pulled pork from Olive Magazine is sure to satisfy the hungriest of crowds this summer.

While this meticulous recipe requires about four and a half hours of preparation and cooking time, the best results in both flavor and texture can be achieved by dry curing your pork shoulder overnight before roasting it in the oven the following day.

While this recipe gives you a delectable entree with a melt-in-your-mouth texture that can be enjoyed all on its own atop a soft bun, it pairs excellently when it’s topped with crunchy cole-slaw (also included below).

Ingredients:

Pulled Pork:

BBQ Sauce:

  • 9 oz. of ketchup
  • 5 oz. of red wine vinegar
  • 4 ½ oz. of light brown sugar
  • 4 tablespoons of chili powder
  • 2 tablespoons of Worcestershire sauce
  • 2 tablespoons of soy sauce
  • 2 tablespoons of mustard powder
  • 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil
  • 1 teaspoon of ground ginger
  • 3 slices of lemon
  • 2 crushed cloves of garlic

Dry Rub:

Coleslaw:

  • ½ of a yellow onion (finely sliced)
  • 1 lemon (zested & juiced)
  • 1 lb bag of shredded red cabbage
  • 7 oz. carrot (grated)
  • 4 oz. celery (finely sliced)
  • Sprig of parsley (chopped)
  • 1-2 tablespoons of mayonnaise
  • 2 tablespoons of sour cream
  • 2 tablespoons of sugar
  • 2 tablespoons of white vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon of mustard powder
  • 2 teaspoons of celery salt
  • Optional: 1 large handful of roasted peanuts (roughly chopped)

Recipe:

  1. Begin by mixing the dry rub ingredients together with 1 tbsp of salt and then spread the dry rub all over your pork shoulder. You’ll want to ensure that it’s well-coated will the entirety of the rub. Wear gloves and pat the dry rub into the meat on all sides before wrapping the pork shoulder in aluminum foil. Lastly, your pork shoulder prep concludes by curing the shoulder in a chilled environment minimum of four hours but preferably overnight.
  2. Make your barbecue sauce by combining all ingredients in a small saucepan, and then cook the sauce over medium heat for approximately 20 minutes. Afterward, take the saucepan off the heat, and fish through the BBQ sauce, removing the lemon slices.
  3. For the coleslaw, begin by softening your onion in your lemon juice for 10 minutes. Afterward, mix the onion with your cabbage, celery, carrot, and parsley. Combine the mayonnaise, sour cream, sugar, vinegar, mustard, celery salt, and lemon zest together, add it to the cabbage mix, and toss it.
  4. After a patient curing period, take your pork shoulder out of the refrigerator and bring it to room temperature. While it’s sitting on the countertop, preheat your oven to 300°F. Heat some soil in a large, non-stick frying pan or skillet, and then brown the pork shoulder on all sides by frying it.
  5. Afterwards, place the browned pork shoulder into a roasting dish, and roast it in the oven “low and slow” for at least 3 ½ hours. The best results can be achieved by roasting the pork shoulder for about 6 hours. You can tell it is done whenever the meat is falling apart or when an instant-read thermometer stuck into the thickest part of the porkregisters at 170°F.
  6. After your meat is cooked, shred the pork shoulder into large chunks that would be ideal sizes for your sandwich buns. Toss the shredded pork with your barbecue sauce and heat throughout, adjusting your seasoning to taste. You’ll want to mix the pulled pork with ⅔ of your barbecue sauce and use the remaining 1/3rd of the sauce for topping off the buns. Serve the pulled pork into soft buns, top it with sauce and a dollop of crunchy coleslaw, and enjoy!

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LDOE Invests Over $4 Billion in COVID-19 Stimulus Funds

The Louisiana Department of Education recently announced in a press release that it will commit $4 billion in congressional stimulus funds to combat instructional gaps made apparent by the pandemic. The $4 billion investment is provided through Congress’s Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) Fund.

School systems will be able to access these funds through a grant application program called “Achieve!” This grant program will provide districts with a budgeting process and planning method set to support priority-aligned educational initiatives through September 2024.

Dr. Cade Brumley, the Louisiana State Superintendent of Education, added to the excitement by announcing that the state would additionally invest another $300 million to support educators, students, parents, and their larger communities. This amount is in addition to the state’s announced $4 billion capital infusion that is funded by three separate stimulus recovery packages approved by Congress in recent sessions.

The LDOE press release stated that over 90% of these state funds will be fed directly into Louisiana school systemswith the remaining 10% being allocated to stakeholders in schools and communities. Speaking on both the state’s billion-dollar investment as well as his office’s pledged $300 million, Dr. Brumley stated: “this once-in-a-lifetime resource gives us a chance to make short and long term impact for students across our state. We must overcome the very real pandemic-related deficits, but also recognize this catalyst opportunity to be better for our future.”

To determine where their recovery efforts would best be served, the LDOE had asked community stakeholders to identify the top areas where school systems needed the most support from the stimulus. The following were identified as the main areas to address: “student engagement and attendance, mental health and well-being, support for learner’s diverse needs, and academic recovery and acceleration.”

At the conclusion of the 2020-2021 school year, the American Enterprise Institute had recognized Louisiana for having the eighth most aggressive reopening plan in the nation while also being the state with the seventh-greatest percentage of students actively participating in daily, face-to-face instruction. As the school year concluded, Louisiana reportedly had over 70% of its students participating in face-to-face instruction on a daily basis.

Despite the multitude of mitigation efforts implemented by the LDOE in the previous school year, many gaps in academics, student-offered services, educator development, and other areas began to emerge not just for Louisiana but the United States as a whole. These barriers to higher quality learning were made much more apparent and prevalent due to the pandemic, thus signifying an area for growth.

The over $4 billion investment announced by the Louisiana Department of Education will be used to close these academic, instructional, and educational gaps while also following the direction of guidelines previously unveiled by the Department in January 2021.

The stimulus plan is called “Believe to Achieve: Educational Priorities,” and it aims to serve as the state’s blueprint for combating any loss to instruction, particularly for the most vulnerable of Louisiana students. In the full statement, Dr. Brumley commented on the plan, saying that it’s being implemented at an opportune time when both public trust as well as transparency are necessary within all levels of the government. He added that “this multi-year plan will provide long-lasting, positive outcomes for Louisiana students. Our department was already committed to enriching student lives, but this influx of funds will provide an opportunity to create a more robust learning experience for every learner, especially following a year of unprecedented academic and emotional challenges.”

LDOE assured the public that the Department would keep stakeholders informed throughout the implementation of the “Achieve!” program by committing to keep the public up to date on the following three tenets:

  1. Transparency of funds.
  2. Planning that is priorities-based and strategic.
  3. Collectively impactful investments.

LDOE is set to release a fiscal dashboard in August to report on how the state’s school systems are budgeting and spending their relief funds. The dashboard will include both state and local data released on a monthly and quarterly basis.

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Visiting the Sophisticated City of Tallahassee, Florida

While it doesn’t have the Kennedy Space Center or the magical expanse of Walt Disney World Resort within its city limits to draw in its tourists, the capital city of  Florida (Tallahassee) is a pinnacle of southern charm, unforgettable hospitality, and sheer sophistication, as evidenced in this feature from the blog Travel Pulse.

 The city of Tallahassee stands proudly in the western panhandle of Florida as being more than the sum of its parts. This is due to the fact that many Americans typically view the city as solely being the home of notable football programs and collegiate achievements. These tourists are often surprised by the multitudes contained within this aptly nicknamed “southern gem” for its vibrant arts district, breathtakingly lush park grounds, and a plethora of quaint experiences to be had within its boundaries.

Tallahassee, Florida is the eighth-largest city in the state of Florida and the 126th-largest city in the nation, and because of it being home to Florida State University, Florida A&M University, and Tallahassee Community College, it’s still widely considered to be a significant college town. This classification contributes to the lively spirit that is seen embodied throughout the city’s recreational, historical, and social scenes.

Residents and tourists alike take advantage of the numerous eco-adventures offered by the city such as its many biking, hiking, and paddling trails from which the beautiful scenery of the capital city can be observed. Consider booking an expedition (ranging from beginner to expert) that has you adventuring down the Munson Hills Mountain Bike Trail or one of the city’s other offered trails. Tallahassee has so many trails to traverse that the city has a resource named “Trailahassee” that helps to guide its visitors and residents to make the most out of the city’s 700+ miles of trails.

Outside of being a notable collegiate city, Tallahassee also is the capital seat of the state of Florida, giving a home to the Florida State Capitol, Supreme Court of Florida, Florida Governor’s Mansion, and dozens of additional state agencies. This is in addition to the city also being widely-known for its contributions to the field of science with it being home to the National High Magnetic Field Laboratory as well as the domain of public safety with it being recently honored by the American Public Power Association for receiving the prestigious honor that is the 2021 E. F. Scattergood System Achievement Award. This award names Tallahassee as having the top public utility in the entire country for “demonstrated achievements that made a difference in the community, improved service to customers and enhanced the profile of public power.”

If you find yourself wanting to see a more social and creative angle to the city, then look no further than Tallahassee’s Arts & Creative District where everything from live performances, art classes, and vibrant festivals can be enjoyed from the Railroad Square Craft House. Additionally, immerse yourself in the worlds of both architecture and nature with the secret gardens and floral marvels found at the Alfred B. Maclay Gardens State Park. The gardens encompass over 1,000 total acres that wrap around Lake Hall, and they offer adventures in canoeing, horseback riding, and biking alongside vibrant artwork made from the state of Florida’s own flora.

Round out your trip by immersing yourself in the rich history of the city by exploring the Tallahassee Historical Museum and Capitol Building where you can stroll through the preserved gardens, living exhibits, animal sanctuaries, and even a “Tree-to-Tree” zip line. On the premises, you’ll also find the Florida Historic Capitol Museum that is housed within the original capitol building, and since it was originally constructed in 1902 there is plenty to be learned from its architecture as well as its archives, making it a perfect destination for anyone interested in the state’s history and politics.

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Savory Dinner Recipes Perfect for Your Cast Iron Skillet

Cooking your favorite dishes in the reliable instrument that is the cast-iron skillet has certainly garnered more and more support over the past few years, and it’s for good reason. Because if the tool is preserved, seasoned, and cleaned correctly, countless meals can be enjoyed by way of its superior cooking practices. So, take out your trusty cast-iron cookware instrument, and test out its celebrated benefits with Country Living’s curated list of delicious dinner recipes you can cook right in the cast-iron pan!

Every cook’’s cast-iron story is different, as you might have inherited your skillet from a previous generation of accomplished family chefs. Alternatively, you might find yourself to be breaking in your cast-iron skillet for the very first time. Either way, it cannot be overstated that the cooking instrument is among the more versatile cooking tools found in the modern-day kitchen, but this is only true if it’s properly taken care of.

A well-seasoned cast-iron pan can last decades or even entire generations if you take careful attention to properly clean it after each use so that you preserve the seasoning on the surface of the pan, making it relatively non-stick. Though, if you are unlucky in preserving that “surface seasoning” and your pan needs to be re-treated, that is also possible, and since the average non-stick pan only lasts for a maximum of a few years, the cast iron skillet might just be one of the more reliable and long-lasting cooking dishes on the market today. So survey the following cast-iron recipes from Country Living’s archives for the next time you need your steak dinner perfectly seared or the heat of your cornbread skillet perfectly contained.

Fig and Rosemary Glazed Skillet Chicken

This recipe comes from Julie Chiou’s food blog “Table for Two,” and it aims to highlight the heat-trapping benefits of the cast iron skillet by roasting rosemary, garlic, and butter-seasoned chicken drumsticks and thighs in a 425°F oven. Throughout the cooking process, you’ll take the skillet out of the direct heat to brush a savory, balsamic rosemary and fig preserve glaze atop the dark chicken pieces until it’s thoroughly cooked. This recipe blends together the sublime flavors of sweet fig preserves and herb-apparent rosemary to give you an unforgettable chicken dinner recipe that’s easy to prepare and bring out whenever you need it.

Skillet Scalloped Potatoes

This recipe, which originated from the “kitchen kapers blog” known as “Host the Toast,” can be served as a hearty dinner side dish or as a hefty breakfast staple due to its abundance of cheese and potatoes. Always a welcome paining at most dinner tables, the golden-brown potato and cheese combination is widely considered to be a family favorite, and this recipe is no exception as this dish can be served up alongside a simple-to-prepare mac and cheese plate or a platter of mozzarella-melted bread for expectedly celebrated results. Layers of thinly-sliced and herb-seasoned Yukon Gold potatoes evenly line the bottom of a 9-inch cast-iron skillet in this recipe in an overlapping spiral pattern. This is done so that each piece of potato can be properly dressed by the butter, milk, and cheese mixture that is poured atop the vegetable before it’s all wrapped in foil and baked to golden-brown heaven.

Outside of the above two standouts from Country Living Magazine’s 72 cast-iron recipe collection, the following are also notable dishes you should consider testing out in your own kitchen.

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Louisiana Restaurants Found Off the Beaten Path

Whether you’re a bonafide Louisiana resident or a visitor to the state, you’ll no doubt find yourself in search of the celebrated Cajun, Creole, and southern cuisine that the state is known for. Though, such unforgettable dishes don’t have to be ordered from a five star restaurant found in the New Orleans French Quarter.  These quintessentially-Louisiana meals are more often found in the state’s more rural locations, and to better supply you with an itinerary for the leading Louisiana restaurants that are off the beaten path, the website Only In Your State has curated the following list of rural restaurants that are “so worth the drive.”

Bayou Lagniappe- Louisiana Restaurant

One of the State’s premier names in seafood comes from an unassuming building in the town of Berwick, Louisiana. Located (quite literally) mere steps away from the Atchafalaya River and Berwick Bay, this seafood shack specializes in freshly-captured Louisiana seafood in all its many forms. The restaurant is known to be most popular during crawfish season when their partnered fishermen are able to bring in loads upon loads of large crustaceans for a regular night of boiling.

Additionally, the Louisiana restaurant’s location also specializes in its offerings of seafood sandwiches, hamburgers, and po’boys. Stop in some time for the notorious braised beef po’boy that spends its morning “slow-braised” in “beef jus” for a savory meal that is best eaten with multiple napkins or a fork and knife combination. Outside of breaded dishes, the restaurant also offers a hearty crawfish etouffee, pepper jelly bacon chicken breast,  and a fried seafood platter named the “Bayou Lagniappe Taster Plate.” Named after the francophone term for “something given or obtained gratuitously or by way of good measure,” this restaurant is right to be named “Lagniappe,” as this rural treasure specializes in all things extra.

Suire’s Grocery- Louisiana Restaurant

Ask around on an average afternoon for a good meal in Kaplan, Louisiana, and you’ll be thankful that you’re pointed in the direction of Suire’s Grocery. As is often the case in rural Louisiana, the suggestion to visit a grocery store for a good meal isn’t a sly way to hint that you could pick up your own ingredients for an afternoon of cooking, but instead, it is the ideal place to get the much-sought-after delicacy that is the plate lunch, and if you’re going to Suire’s, you best get there early.

Enjoy the allures of a southern home-cooked meal by ordering a plate of every fried piece of freshly-caught seafood known to man and enjoy the breaded pieces alongside rice dressing, potato salad, freshly-baked bread, and/or a cup of gumbo. Notable standout dishes include the seafood platter for a hefty sampling of Suire’s best, the chicken and sausage gumbo, and the smoked sausage po’boy. The restaurant’s motto is “if you want country cooking, come to the country,” and with authentic Louisiana cuisine to be found inside a styrofoam container from the counter at Surie’s Grocery, there’s no better motto for the establishment.

BubbaQue’s- Louisiana Restaurant

This last Louisiana restaurant from the more extensive list is the first and last name in commercialized Louisiana barbecue. While the best BBQ dishes are said to be found in the backyards of your Louisiana uncle’s friend, this restaurant with its two locations in Alexandria and Leesville definitely gives that Sunday afternoon grill a run for its money.

The BubbaQue motto is “low and slow,” hinting at the preparation practices for the booking of their more tender meat selections. Often cooking at a low heat throughout the morning and night, the restaurant’s pulled pork, Texas brisket, smoked turkey, and “sticky bones” baskets are its notable staples. Offered as both a hearty basket or a plate lunch, you get your choice of side dishes from this celebrated establishment, and with two locations in the state, you’re never terribly far from genuine Louisiana cuisine.

 For more Louisiana-related articles, click here.

Senate Resolution to Congratulate First Louisianan to Win National Spelling Bee

After Zaila Avant-garde became the first Louisianan to ever win the 2021 Scripps National Spelling Bee on July 8, 2021, Louisiana senators Bill Cassidy and John Kennedy introduced a resolution to the Senate congratulating her on her massive achievement, according to a KATC article.

Born in Harvey, Louisiana, the 14-year-old Zaila Avant-garde became not only the first Louisiana resident to win first prize at the 93rd annual Scripps National Spelling Bee, but   Avant-garde was the first African-American Champion of the event in its total 96-year history.

The final rounds of the event took place at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Lake Buena Vista, Florida after the event had originally been postponed the previous year due to COVID-19. Avant-garde, whose last name is in honor of the jazz legend John Coltrane, won the competition by correctly spelling the word “murraya,” which is defined by Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary as being “a genus of tropical Asiatic and Australian trees having pinnate leaves and flowers with imbricated petals.”

Upon winning the competition, Avant-garde, who has only been spelling competitively for just two years, quickly became a notable household name in the United States as she was congratulated by numerous celebrities, nationalinstitutions, and American presidents.

Throughout the competition, Zaila Avant-garde was very vocal about her dream to attend Harvard University after high school, but that hasn’t stopped Louisiana’s higher learning institutions from attempting to recruit her just hours following her win. Just one day after she had claimed the $50,000 grand prize for correctly spelling her final word, Avant-garde had received a formal invitation from the Louisiana Community and Technical College System offering her a full-ride scholarship to attend any of Louisiana’s community and technical colleges.

This preliminary offer was then followed by William Tate, the newly-named president of Louisiana State University, offering the teenage champion a full-ride scholarship to the LSU Roger Hadfield Ogden Honors College the following morning. Afterward, Baton Rouge’s Southern University became the third Louisiana academic institution to offer Avant-garde a full-ride scholarship.

Like LSU’s president, Southern University president-chancellor Ray L. Benton offered the scholarship to Zaila via Twitter, but Benton also created a “Zaila Day” at the school in honor of the speller’s remarkable achievement, saying, “”our student leaders, faculty, and alumni look forward to meeting with you. We welcome you to the #JaguarNation!”

So now, outside of her being gifted numerous scholarships from academic institutions, appearing on NBC’s “Today” show, and receiving an invitation to attend the ESPY Awards from the event’s celebrity host Anthony Mackie, Avant-garde has a biography and a congratulatory resolution in the senate thanks to Louisiana senators Bill Cassidy and John Kennedy.

The full resolution highlights the younger speller’s many accomplishments in the world of spelling such as her spending “most of her days spelling around 13,000 words per day” and going on to having “survived several rounds of fierce competition this year” facing off against competitors “from across the United States, American Samoa, the Bahamas, Canada, Europe, Guam, Jamaica, New Zealand, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.”

The resolution also highlights the impressive fact that Zaila Avant-garde currently holds three Guinness World Records for basketball, specifically for the most basketballs dribbled simultaneously, the most basketball bounces, and the most bounce juggles in one minute.

The Senate resolution continued to congratulate Avant-garde on winning the 2021 Scripps National Spelling Bee, an event that is described as being “the largest and longest-running educational promotion in the United States and is administered by the E.W. Scripps Company and local sponsors, most of whom publish daily and weekly newspapers.”

Apart from the congratulations, the resolution also served to solidify the fact that the champion, named “Miss Zaila” in the resolution, is the first winner from the State of Louisiana as well as the first African-American to win the Scripps National Spelling Bee, thus bringing “an immense sense of pride” to her hometown of Harvey and the state as a whole.

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