From NO to your door

Not sure what took me so long to figure this out but a couple years ago realized I could mail NO food items home to myself vs trying to transport via suitcase or backpack on flight home. Think disappointment- and embarrassment- of having several bottles of NO hot sauce very publicly confiscated by the TSA folks at Armstrong airport in NO a couple years back got me thinking differently. At this point anytime I'm in NO I make sure to make groceries (as they used to say) at Rouse's market gathering up my favorite Louisiana-centric non- perishables. I pack em in a box and mail it to my home back East Where i can enjoy a little bit of Louisiana eatin from a distance. As you can see in photo below, I tend to favor canned goods and condiments along w Zapp's chips . This last shipment included a whole line of Zapp's items. In addition to some chips also grabbed up their spicy bean dip (excellent) and a couple of items I hadn't tried before: jars of Cajun Picante and a Smoky Salsa which I think will become regular items in future shipments. Also included are the requisite red beans (dried and canned) and NO local favorite Blue Plate mayo. I had in the past tried on more than one occasion mailing home one of my favorite NO treats - Hubig's pies- but discovered they do not fair well when shipped via mail so now I bring those home via my carry on bag - they are Homeland security safe! Yeah you right.

DIY Shrimp Po' Boys in Philly

I had a taste for a fried shrimp po' boy yesterday so here's what I did to build my New Olreans style sandwich. I started with a Leidenheimer roll- purchased frozen from the Khyber Pass Pub (see post earlier this month for review and details) in Old City Philadelphia. I went out and got some freshly fried shrimp from Chicken Time in Roslyn, PA. Dressed the sandwiches using lettuce, tomatoes, dill pickles and then slathered on some bottled remoulade sauce made by Louisiana Fish Fry Company (I think I bought in my local Super Giant grocery store). Anyway, as a side added some Zapp's chips purchased at Wegman's in Warrington, PA and voila- a pretty tasty New Orleans Fried Shrimp Po' Boy right here at home!

(Note: Speaking of Zapp's, the Louisiana based company was recently purchased by Pennsylvania's own Utz Potato Chip Company- hoping this means Zapp's products will soon be more available here on the East Coast).