Queenly cooks

Published 8:08 am Friday, May 31, 2013

The Berry Queens are notorious for their bling, flamboyance, sparkling costumes and their ability to turn a crowd into a frenzy with their outlandish appearances and dance performances. The good will ambassadors of New Iberia have been known to raise an eyebrow or two from a crowd, but they also know how to raise money for a nonprofit organization that is committed to eliminating poverty housing.

The publication of their first cookbook “Berry Queens Cook!” has already proved to be a success in their quest to raise funds for Iberia Habit for Humanity. The cookbook, featuring more than 330 recipes, is presented with the same grandiosity and pomposity that the Berry Queens have become known for when making costumed appearances to promote an event to benefit their community.

“We are basically known for our bling and our cookbook reflects that,” said Stacey Guilbeaux, Queen Rita Book and cookbook committee chairman. “Each of our recipes includes the member’s name and their official queen name. Their royal name comes from something they are interested in or well-known for.”

The Queen’s guide to feeding a family, entertaining royally and spreading world peace with sparkle and bling puts a different twist on the group’s cookbook.

“We are a special breed with our wigs and glitter and we like to do things differently. We wanted to put a different spin on the cookbook,” said Berry Queen member Lory Landry, Queen LeauxLa.

Different it is — with a section highlighting “Let’s Get the Par-tay Started: Appetizers Fit for a Queen,” featuring recipes such a Queen De Bling’s Devilish Egg Salad Dip, Bam-A-Gram’s Southern Caviar, Queen Suga Darlin’s Tex-Mex Dip and Queen Kilowatt’s Pepper Jelly Dip.

The “Winna! Winna! Chicken Dinna! Entrees for Spreading World Peace,” section includes some Cajun favorites, traditional and non-traditional recipes representing queenly favorites of the organization’s members. Queen Faye Dough Dough’s Spaghetti Sauce, Queen De Bling’s A-Mazing Baked Potato Soup and Lola’s Crab Stew are among the recipes featured in the entrée section. A Cajun Souffle or Crawfish Smothered Grits are fitting for Cajun royalty for any brunch or breakfast.

“A Little Sumthin’ Sumthin’ on the Side: Veggies with Jenny-Say-Kwah” offers a variety of recipes featuring “Queen Suga Darlin’ Praline Sweet Potato Casserole. Queen Domestic Goddess’ Greek Salad, Green Tomato Pie, LeauxLa’s Carrot Surprise and Tortellini Spinach Casserole can add variety to any meal.

Many of the cookbook recipes are favorites of the member’s mothers and grandmothers, others are old family favorites passed down from generation to generation and some are new and innovative recipes created by the Berry Queens.

“All of the recipes have been tried and proved to be good,” said Guilbeau. A Berry Queen cookbook would not be complete without “Berry Sweet Desserts” for the perfect end to any meal, Landry said.

The “Pour Some Sugar on Me, Hunny! Berry Sweet Desserts” section features more than 70 scrumptious desserts..

As an added bonus, a section featuring Adult-Like Beverages for Royal Occasions features 25 adult beverages.

Guilbeaux said the cookbook has been a huge success. Initially, 500 books were printed and only 80 books are left. Cookbooks sell for $25 and can be purchased from any Berry Queen member or by contacting Iberia Habitat for Humanity at 367-3083 for further information.