CHRISTINE HARVEY / L’Observateur / July 31, 1999

Connie Hatfield is one of those old-fashioned kind of cooks. She actuallymakes things from scratch instead of using mixes.

She readily admits, however, that she no longer makes her own pie crust.

Hatfield said the pre-made kind available at the grocery store tastes just as good as one she would make herself.

A resident of Norco, Hatfield is originally from Pelham, Ga. She begancooking when she got married, making her husband’s favorite dishes that included cornbread, biscuits and gravy.

But when they moved to LaPlace 24 years ago, Hatfield discovered a love for the local cuisine.

She said she enjoys spicy food and has been unable to find anywhere else in the world that can replicate Louisiana cooking.

“Nobody else has the secret,” Hatfield said.

Following her husband’s death 10 years ago, Hatfield was fortunate enough to have found love a second time around. She and husband Tommy met atLaPlace’s First United Methodist Church and have been married now for six years.

Tommy, a lover of truly regional cuisine, including rabbit, squirrel and deer, brought some changes to his wife’s cooking style.

His favorite dish she makes is red beans and rice with deer sausage, he said.

Aside from her love of cooking, Hatfield said she is grateful for the opportunities she’s been given so far.

“I think I’ve just had the best life of all,” she said.

Before retiring in 1995, Hatfield taught kindergarten at LaPlace Elementary School for 20 years.

She did not begin her teaching career until she was 41 years old, once her three children got older. By then she already had obtained both herbachelor’s and master’s degrees from Southeastern Louisiana University.

She also completed a plus 30 program after she began teaching.

Now both retired, the Hatfields love to travel, recently visiting the Grand Canyon, Las Vegas and Tombstone, Ariz.

And Connie loves bringing a homemade dish to her weekly poker club meetings. This week she brought two chocolate pies with meringuetopping.

Not everyone brings a dish to the games, but Hatfield said she does so because it gives her pleasure to do it.

“I love to cook. It’s just something I’ve always enjoyed,” she said.Hatfield shared some of her favorite recipes with L’Observateur:

CHOCOLATE PIE

2 cups milk, heated 3 eggs, separated 2 1/2 tablespoons self-rising flour 1 cup sugar 3 tablespoons cocoa 1 tablespoon vanilla 1 pie crust, pre-baked

Sift sugar, flour and cocoa together. Gradually add 1 3/4 cup of milk to dryingredients in a thick pot. Beat egg yolks in a small bowl and addremaining milk to the yolks. Combine yolks with the other mixture. Cookuntil thick. Add vanilla. Pour into pie crust. Top with meringue (see recipebelow). Bake in 350 degree oven for 12-15 minutes until golden brown.

MERINGUE

3 egg whites 1/2 teaspoon vanilla 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar 6 tablespoons sugar

Beat egg whites with vanilla and cream of tartar until soft peaks form.

Gradually add sugar. Heat until stiff, and all sugar is dissolved. Spreadover chocolate filling.

ICE BOX COOKIES

3/4 cup margarine 1 cup sugar 1 egg 1 teaspoon vanilla 2 cups all-purpose flour 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 cup nuts

Cream margarine and sugar. Add egg. Sift flour and baking soda together.Blend into egg mixture. Add vanilla and nuts. Divide dough into two pieces,and roll each into a log. Wrap each half in wax paper. Freeze for at leasthalf a day. Slice logs and bake on an ungreased cookie sheet at 350 degreesfor 10 minutes or until done. Unused logs can be frozen indefinitely untilready to bake.

CHICKEN A LA KING

1/4 cup onion, chopped 2 tablespoons green pepper, chopped 2 tablespoons margarine 1 can cream of mushroom soup 1/3 cup milk 1 1/3 cup cooked chicken, cubed 2 tablespoons pimento, diced salt and pepper to taste

Saute onion and green pepper in margarine. Blend in soup and milk. Addchicken and pimento. Heat slowly over medium heat, stirring often. Serveover toast. You may want to double or triple the recipe for more people.

BEEF STROGANOFF

1 lb. lean beef, cut into bite size pieces1 stick butter 1/2 cup onion, chopped 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour 1 1/4 teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon pepper 1/4 teaspoon paprika 1 can cream of chicken soup 1 can sliced mushrooms 1 can water chestnuts, sliced 1 cup sour cream

Saute onions in butter. Roll beef in flour. Cook beef in butter for 5minutes. Add soup, mushrooms and chestnuts. Cook until beef is done. Cool.Add sour cream and warm before serving over chow mein noodles or rice.

You may want to double or triple the recipe.

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