Listening to a jazz band improvise recently, I thought of food.
Many things take me there. What struck me was the way different musicians and their instruments mixed and mingled to create something so great together, that could never be achieved alone.
It made me think of food because ingredients alone are just that, ingredients. But there are times when flavors and textures come together like magic.
I think of avocados, lemon, and salt. An avocado alone is fine, but with a squeeze of fresh lemon juice and a sprinkle of sea salt, heaven.
When I was little, I would sit at our kitchen counter and watch my mom transform simple ingredients into something so delicious, that when they were cooking, my mouth could not stop watering.
I loved my perch, and mom always let me sample everything along the way, too. Pies were her specialty and I marveled at her crust, which combined just flour, butter, sugar and water.
That’s it, so simple. Let me know if you’d like her recipe.
So yes, jazz and food. They go together. And the right combination, perfection.
At the time of this writing, the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival was on, so I went in search of some local knowledge.
I connected with famed New Orleans chef and Slow Food advocate Poppy Tooker, and Yoakim Bridge neighbor via New Orleans Krissy Zichichi, and they were just the right ingredients.
I asked them for a classic New Orleans jazz dish and without hesitation, both said red beans and rice. I pulled up Louis Armstrong’s recipe, which you will find at the end of this article.
Our great Sonoma County cultural star, the 21st annual Healdsburg Jazz Festival opens at the end of this month and runs May 31 and through June 9. I hope you will take in a concert, or two, or all, and eat and drink at some of our incredible restaurants, or wine taste at some of our local wineries.
It really does take a village to pull this thing off, from founder Jessica Felix and her team, to volunteers, organizers, restaurants, wineries, venues — you name it. This list goes on.
Restaurants like Dry Creek Kitchen, Harmon Guest House Rooftop, Spoonbar, Valette and Campo Fina are featuring special Jazz Festival cocktails and dishes during the run. These restaurants and so many others host visiting musicians and treat them so well. Soda Rock, Miner Family, Landmark and Arbor Bench are winery sponsors. You’ll see jazz greats staying at Hotel Healdsburg, 235, Hotel Trio, inns, guest homes and cottages, and all throughout town.
There is even a Jazz Village and Campus in town this year acting as a hub and central point in West Plaza Park, adjacent to the creek and near the bridge.
When I asked Jessica about her favorite food during the festival, her reply was chocolate, specifically Jimtown’s chocolate pudding, paired with wine. Sounds good, no recipe required.
In 2001, Louis Armstrong’s famous Red Beans and Rice recipe was served at the New Orleans Jazz Fest on the Food Heritage stage as part of the 100th birthday celebration of the musical giant. The recipe was discovered in his papers at the Louis Armstrong Archives at Queens College, and here it is reprinted for you.
Louis Armstrong’s Creole Red Beans and Rice
Serves six or more people
1 pound kidney beans
1/2 pound salt pork (strip of lean, strip of fat; slab bacon may be used if preferred)
1 small can tomato sauce (if desired)
6 small ham hocks or one smoked pork butt
2 onions, diced
1/4 green bell pepper
5 tiny or 2 medium dried peppers
1 clove garlic, chopped
Salt to taste
Use a two-quart pot with cover. Wash beans thoroughly and soak overnight in cold water. Be sure to cover beans.
To cook, pour water off beans and add fresh water to cover. Add salt pork or bacon and bring to a boil over full flame in covered pot. Turn flame down to slightly higher than low and let cook for 1.5 hours. Add diced onions, bell pepper, garlic, dried peppers and salt. Cook for three hours.
Add tomato sauce and cook for 1.5 hours more, adding water whenever necessary. Beans and meat should always be just covered with water (juice), never dry.
To prepare with ham hocks or pork butts: Wash meat, add water to cover and let come to a boil in covered pot over medium flame. Cook for 1.5 hours and then add beans (pour water off) and add rest of ingredients to meat. Cook for 4.5 hours. Add water when necessary. Serve over cooked rice.
Gayle Okumura Sullivan is co-owner, with husband Brian, of Dry Creek Peach & Produce in Healdsburg.
