About our Cookbook – Mice’s Book of Yummy! and how our cookbook came about!
There is something in the art of cooking that often takes the mind back to the particular moments of the past; much as an oldie goldie played on some obscure radio station. Subtle yet persistent elements that conjure up images of mothers, grandmothers, aunts and nannies filling old houses with aromas of local culinary culture. A roux being prepared for some future gumbo; coush coush rousing youngsters out of bed in the morning; pepper pocket filled roasts welcoming all nostrils that enter the front door. These simple magics of everyday Cajun life are one of the familial threads that link generation to generation and in doing so, create a tradition within those families.
Having grown up on a farm in Lafayette, La., I have been fully immersed in the great culinary mélange that is Cajun cuisine. My mother, Therese Picard Thibodeaux, was what you could call a prototypical Cajun cook. Adept at all aspects of food preparation, it is with her that the recipes in this book originate. Throughout the years, many of her recipes were handed down to her children. In some cases, you will find two different versions of the same recipe. The fact is, Therese did not always cook from a written recipe. One had to watch as she cooked, taking notes along the way. Therefore, her recipes often varied each time she cooked.
I began collecting Mama’s recipes, along with my own in 1995, in order to create cookbooks for my children; and hopefully for them to pass on to their children. The kids loved them so much, as did friends and relatives, that I found myself making more and more copies as the years went on.
As the years progressed the book grew, accumulating extra recipes from all corners of the family. Zack (an accomplished chef in the Marines) contributed some of his fine recipes. His wife, Kaysha added a few as well as did Maggie and her husband Ronnie. Of course, I expect the book will continue to grow as pretty much everyone in the family likes to cook.
And so, Billy and I decided it was time for an update. This time around it’s housed in a 3-ring binder in the hope that as we all get new recipes, alterations, alternative recipes, etc.; they can easily be added to this cookbook.
Adrienne & Billy
AKA Mice and Cabill 2019