Nana’s Cajun Kitchen 101: No-Oil Roux, Cast Iron Care & Smothering 101
Generations of flavor, fresh for your table
Our secret ingredients and kitchen wisdom
What makes our recipes truly special? It starts with the freshest ingredients, especially the "Cajun trinity" of onion, bell pepper, and celery. We also champion the timeless tradition of cooking with cast iron cookware, bringing out rich flavors that simply can't be replicated. Learn our tips for selecting, preparing, and caring for your cast iron to elevate your culinary journey.
Welcome to our kitchen, where every dish tells a story. Discover authentic Cajun recipes, cherished family favorites, and clever kitchen hacks that make cooking a joy. We invite you to explore, create, and share the love of good food with your friends and family.
12 Spices Every Cajun Kitchen Needs
Cajun classics and family treasures
Dive into our collection of recipes, ranging from budget-friendly quick meals to cherished family favorites passed down through 12 generations. Whether you're looking for an easy weeknight dinner or a traditional Cajun feast, you'll find inspiration here. We believe good food brings people together, and we encourage you to try a recipe or method and share the delicious results with your loved ones.
*NANA’S FRUIT BOX 🍓*
Tree to table. Real fruit, real sugar, real Louisiana. Cobblers, preserves, pies, and anything else Nana can dump ice cream on. No “natural flavoring” nonsense. Just what Nana’s Mama made.`
Browse all Nana’s fruit recipes →
Lemonade Crisp Topping | Make Once, Freeze All Season | Apples, Pears, Peaches
Baby, Nana don’t make crisp topping every time she bakes fruit.
Slow Cooker Apple Butter | 4 lbs Apples = 6 Jars | House Smells Like Fall
Baby, Nana’s slow cooker starts bubbling and the whole house smells like Fall.
5-Ingredient Apple Tart | Cream Cheese + Caramel | 8x8 Pan No Leftovers
Baby, Nana don’t make full-size pies anymore. Pawpaw and me can’t eat a whole 9-inch pie. And Nana refuses to give away the good stuff.
Mountain Dew Apple Dumplings | 1980s Church Cookbook Recipe | 30-Minute Dessert
Baby, if you didn’t grow up in the 80s, let Nana explain: We put soda in EVERYTHING.
Blueberry Dump Cake | 4 Ingredients + No Mixing Bowl | Church Cookbook Easy
Baby, my Mama showed up to every funeral, potluck and baby shower with a 9x13 Pyrex and a smirk. “What you bring?” “Dump cake.” “You didn’t even mix it?” “That’s why it’s called DUMP, sha.”
Blueberry Pound Cake with Cake Mix | Cream Cheese + Pecans | Stays Moist 5 Days
Baby, Nana brings this cake to every funeral, baby shower, Tuesday, and “just because” in Pearl River.
Blueberry Cranberry Cobbler with Bisquick | Make Now, Bake Later
Baby, Mama invented this cobbler the year U-Pick blueberry season ran into Thanksgiving.
Blueberry Muffins with Jiffy Mix | 18 Muffins in 30 Minutes
Baby, Nana knows Mama didn’t have time to sift flour.
Blueberry Bread Pudding with Brandy Sauce | Church Cookbook Recipe That Feeds 12
Baby, this is the recipe Nana pulls out when I need to impress Pawpaw’s cousins from Texas.
Chilled Blueberry Soup with White Wine | 5-Ingredient Southern Appetizer
Baby, let Nana tell you something. Fancy don’t have to be hard.
Butter Crisco Blueberry Cookies | Soft, Cake-Like & Makes 7 Dozen
Baby, let Nana tell you about the day I learned Butter-Flavored Crisco was a gift from the Lord.
Tips, tricks, and shortcuts for every cook
Cooking doesn't have to be complicated. Our kitchen tips, tricks, and shortcuts are designed to make your time in the kitchen more efficient and enjoyable. From meal prep strategies to clever ingredient substitutions, we'll help you cook smarter, not harder. Discover how simple techniques can transform everyday meals into extraordinary experiences.
*NANA’S CAJUN & CREOLE KITCHEN 🌶️*
Louisiana recipes. Dark roux, Trinity, Tony’s. No shortcuts. Gumbo, jambalaya, étouffée, red beans. What Nana’s Mama made. What Pawpaw won’t eat anywhere else.
Browse all Nana’s Cajun & Creole recipes →
Aunt Corrine’s Crab Gumbo Recipe: Why She Cleaned Blue Crabs With a Toothbrush
Everybody in Manchac knew 3 things: Aunt Corrine made the best gumbo, she cussed at the Saints, and she cleaned her crabs with a toothbrush. Here’s the recipe and the reason.
Grandma Laura’s Garfish Patties: From Louisiana Bayou “Trash Fish” to Treasure
Everybody in Ponchatoula called garfish “trash fish.” Too bony. Too hard to clean. Not worth the trouble.
Oyster Dressing | Dr. Merlin Allen's Louisiana Church Cookbook Recipe
Baby, in Louisiana we don’t do “stuffing.” We do dressing. And at Nana’s house, Thanksgiving ain’t Thanksgiving without Oyster Dressing.
Fried Soft Shell Crab | Daddy's Recipe | Louisiana
Baby, soft shell crab season in Louisiana is shorter than Pawpaw’s patience. When it hits, Nana clears the calendar.
Crawfish Etouffee | Ms. Vi’s Church Cookbook Recipe
Baby, Nana’s gonna tell you the truth. If your etouffee has cream of mushroom soup in it, bless your heart. That’s not etouffee. That’s casserole.
Alligator Spaghetti | Mr. Fernel’s 20-Gallon Church Cookbook Recipe
Baby, Nana found a recipe that starts with “50 lb. alligator meat” and “Cook in a 20 gallon wash pot.” Mr. Fernel Leader wasn’t playing. This is Manchac church cookbook cooking – feed the whole parish or don’t bother.
Sauce Piquant | Mrs. Hebert’s Church Cookbook Recipe
Baby, “sauce piquant” sounds French and fancy. It ain’t. It’s Cajun for “we had some meat and a pantry full of cans and we made supper.”
Congree | Mrs. Carmen’s Chowder Pea Jambalaya Manchac Cookbook Recipe
Baby, if you’re from Louisiana and you don’t know Congree, you missed some good eatin’.
Stuffed Mirlitons | Mrs. Pattie’s Shrimp & Ham Church Cookbook Recipe
Baby, if you didn’t grow up with mirlitons on your fence, you ain’t from Louisiana. Nana’s grandma had ‘em growing up the chicken coop.
Eggplant Dressing | Crawfish Cornbread Casserole Church Recipe
Baby, this ain’t your Mawmaw’s cornbread dressing. This is what happens when a Louisiana church lady looks at eggplant season, crawfish season, and stale cornbread and says “hold my sweet tea.”
Meal in 1 Cabbage | 5-Generation Cajun Nana Recipe – One Pot Supper
Baby, some recipes come with stories. This one comes with 5 generations of Cajun Nanas who had kids to feed and not much money.
Shrimp and Lima Beans | Church Cookbook Recipe | Butter Beans
Baby, some recipes don’t need fancy. They need butter, shrimp, and beans.
*NANA’S DESSERT BOX 🥧 *
Oven to table. Real butter, real sugar, real Louisiana. Cakes, cookies, puddings, and anything else Nana can hide from Pawpaw. No “low-fat” lies. Just what Nana’s Mama made.
Browse all Nana’s dessert recipes →
Aunt Juanita’s Carrot Cake Recipe: Moist 1930's Louisiana Bundt Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
If you’re from Louisiana, you know the best recipes don’t come from Pinterest. They come from spiral-bound church cookbooks with butter stains on page 17. This is page 17.
Mama’s Famous Coconut Poke Cake Recipe: 1970's Louisiana Church Cookbook with Cream of Coconut
Mama’s Famous Coconut Cake: The Ponchatoula Poke Cake That Ended All Potluck Wars.
Church Cake with Jiffy Banana Mix | Pineapple Pudding Dessert | Potluck Favorite
Baby, they call it “Church Cake” because Nana’s seen 3 fistfights break out over the last piece in the fellowship hall.