Spanish Rice - from Anna Treadway Smith

Voices Board member Annette Campo recently interviewed her grandmother, Anna Treadway Smith, and filed this story about her recipe for "Spanish Rice."

"Someone else needs to learn how to make this stuff," Anna said. She was always threatening not to bring her famous dish to family gatherings - neither Anna's son nor her daughters ever learned how to make it 'right.' The grandchildren started protesting my poor grandmother's appearance without the dish!

"I don't remember the first time eating the rice; it's like realizing you blink or breath. It's just always been there...all cheese filled and delicious," Annette said. The grandkids would fight over seconds and thirds. Annette, now 31, has perfected the dish. "My grandmother is still with us, crazy...Italian-French-Cajun, loud as all us St. Bernardians are - card playing, God-fearing, and a little off her rocker, but she's ours."

The dish has come to be a part of my life. It seems so simple, but a tad too long in the oven or not enough seasonings or the wrong kind of cheese, and it's just not right.

SPANISH RICE
2 or 3 blocks of mild cheddar cheese (Winn Dixie brand)
1 1/2 cups rice
.25 lb pack of ham (Winn Dixie brand)
2 tall cans of Hunts tomato sauce
1 bell pepper
1 container of Creole Seasoning
1 pk Sweet N Low

In the crockpot, add Sweet N Low, seasoning, ham, chopped bell pepper, and tomato sauce. Cook on a low setting for three hours. Boil rice when ready to take off the sauce, and stir rice and gravy together in a baking pan. Bake for 30 minutes at 375 degrees.

Serving Saint Bernard

Serving St. Bernard is a project of the Voices Foundation, a non-profit group devoted to preserving the folklore and stories of the people of St. Bernard. We want to know about your traditional family dishes, and hear stories from your family's kitchen.

We invite you to share recipes, photographs and anecdotes of your family's culinary experiences. What's your favorite memory of 'ya mom and dem' in the kitchen? How has the unique agriculture and seafood of our region played into your experiences?

With our parish's changing landscape, it is perhaps more important now than eer to record our rich history. This project has been partially funded through a grant from the Louisiana Division of the Arts.

Please post your stories in the form of comments on this blogspot, or email to
servingstbernard@gmail.com

Visit the Voices Foundation website at www.voicesoflouisiana.org