A Little Bit of (Crawfish) Monica in My Life

What foods would you like to make?

The thing about books and myself is that, from my tween years (back when “tween” wasn’t in anyone’s vocabulary) I’d formed a (possibly unhealthy) habit of partnering reading time with snack time.

I read books every day, but nothing beat the joy of Friday afternoon reading. On Fridays, I could start reading as soon as I got home, homework pushed off to the last minutes of Sunday afternoon. It was a time of pure enjoyment with no niggling worry from another looming school day… With such an attitude, it’s no wonder I had the conviction to homeschool before I even had any concrete plans to start a family. 😂

In any case, part of the euphoria that was Friday afternoon reading (there were many parts, starting with the five-book stack from the school library – St. Scholastica’s Academy had the most awesome grade school library, a veritable haven for bookworms like me) was the accompanying after-school snack. My mother always made sure there was plenty. As a rule, I had to have something salty, something sweet, and a cold drink while I was reading.

The presence of munchies was especially crucial when the story was riddled with descriptions of food. They set off such cravings, which were somewhat assuaged by the fact that I was already eating.

Books have always been an inspiration for me to try out new food. I was the pickiest eater as a kid. My ham sandwich consisted of bread, ham, and a slice of cheese. I couldn’t stand mayonnaise, ketchup, pickles, or vegetables. I’m better now as an adult, definitely more adventurous when it comes to food. The only thing I still very reluctantly tolerate is ketchup.

But my curiosity about any unfamiliar food was usually piqued by something I read in a book. For instance, I wanted to see for myself what Eggs Benedict were after a character in a book I was reading said that they looked like one-eyed monsters. I learned about pizza bianco from a book titled Live from New York (affiliate link – loved this book as an adolescent, but it felt like I was the only one in the world to have ever read it 😄). I was moved to try my hand at baking a pie after reading about Jessie Alden of The Boxcar Children baking one using a bottle as a rolling pin on Surprise Island (affiliate link). I thought, if a fictional 12-year-old orphan can do it, so can a real-life 28-year-old newly-wed.

My most recent book food fascination is Crawfish Monica. I learned of it from a cozy mystery I was reading. The book was Muffalettas and Murder, book one of Jann Franklin’s Small Town Girl Mysteries. (It’s an entertaining read, very funny. If you decide to buy a copy through this link, I’ll get a tiny commission at no extra cost to you.📚✨) The way she described it is super intriguing. Have a gander:

I found a recipe online with a five-star rating (the others were at 4.5 or lower), BUT there was only one rating thus far, so I’m not really sure it’s the best. The author does seem like she knows all about it because of her repeated reminder to only use Louisiana crawfish and not Chinese. Does anybody know the difference?🦞

Now, it doesn’t get cold enough where I am for crawfish to thrive. I’ve seen some frozen crawfish sold here, but chances are they’re from China. The author urges to use shrimp instead in the absence of Louisiana crawfish, so that’s probably what I’ll be doing and reserve the actual crawfish treat when I visit New Orleans.

In the book, Crawfish Monica was a Christmas Eve dinner staple. That might just be for the MC’s (main character) family. According to articles I read, it’s most popularly consumed during Jazz Fest, which is from late April to early May.

Anyway, something’s kind of bugging me about my research (non-extensive, it consisted of about three one-paragraph articles) findings. The MC in the story is a widow with grown children. I’m thinking she’s at least in her 50s. Crawfish Monica, however, was developed in 1981 by Kajun Kettle Foods Founder Chef Pierre Hilzim, who named the dish after his wife.

Now, the MC grew up having her dad’s perfected recipe every Christmas Eve (such restraint – I’d probably have it all the time. My emotional quotient is shockingly low). My problem is that I was five years old in 1981. My eldest child is turning 18 this year, but I had her when I was 29. The MC could have started really young. Reading the story, I got the idea that she was much older than me, but, now, thanks to Crawfish Monica, I’m thinking we might be the same age. I don’t know how I feel about that. I still get flabbergasted that all these old people I encounter online or in person are my age. Or even younger!!!

Sigh. I’d better get right on making my Shrimp Monica or my cholesterol level might soon no longer be eligible for it.

Why is this post so long? I do go on and on. In any case, I’d like to know what food you learned about from a novel and now want to try.🙃