September is National Rice Month. You may have already celebrated that 100 times already this month. This is where we grow it and love it. What do you think they might be doing about it in South Carolina? Making a chicken bog. Never heard of that? Me either, and the book with the recipe explaining it is relatively unheard of outside of the Carolina region. They call it kind of a gumbo but the thickness makes me think of kind of a jambalaya. Get the book and you can make it and tweak it to your heart’s desire.

The book is “Smoked: One Man’s Journey to Find Incredible Recipes, Standout Pitmasters and the Stories Behind Them.” Ed Randolph, owner of Handsome Devil Barbecue, took on this task. Are you kidding me? This book could be torture to read if you were hungry, or could serve as a heavenly travel wish list because you’ll want to go to all the places mentioned. Texas sites include Truth Barbecue in Brenham (Are the cows happy about this place?); Salt Lick Barbecue in Driftwood, a place I’ve had the good fortune to try and love; Black’s Barbecue in Lockhart tells how they do giant beef ribs (How about that with some creamed corn?); Hardcore Carnivore in Austin deals with Texas smoked tri-tip steak in a deep mahogany color; and Leroy and Lewis Barbecue in Austin has Smoked Confit Beef Cheeks (I don’t want to see that get made but I sure want to eat it), and they share a cucumber salad marinated in rice vinegar with sambal; and Lockhart Smokehouse in Dallas does smoked lamb chops and puts blue cheese in the coleslaw. The author managed to go from California to New York so you can eat all the way across the country. Be sure to enjoy the rice along the way.

Are you a Hueligan?

What do you have in common with people in 80 countries who want to be healthy?

Maybe you never heard of Huel, said to be the fastest growing nutrition brand in the world, which has sold over 50 million meals in 80 countries. The bottle is attractive and the people drinking it in the advertisements are beautiful. So what if I cracked a joke that was like a famous meal drink for much older people? This stuff, especially chocolate, has my attention. I gave a sample bottle to someone and he ended up buying a case of it in a day’s time. Get it in bottles or get it in powder to save more dollars. Your biggest question maybe why is it called Huel. That’s a funny name. It stands for human fuel. See what they did there?

So what if you’re not a straight up drinker? Just like I would do, people get all gourmet and cook with that stuff. I mixed it with egg and made a nice French toast. Lovers of this product spice it up with cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice. Why here is your perfect opportunity for an annual pumpkin update: Add pumpkin spice into some vanilla Huel.

Here is more on Huel. You already know if you are into this kind of thing:

–      Nutritionally Complete: Huel Powder is a nutritionally complete food that is high in protein and fiber, low in sugar and salt, rich in phytonutrients and contains all 27 essential vitamins and minerals

–      Plant-based and Lactose/Soy/GMO-Free: It contains no lactose or any animal products, no soy and no GMO

–      Huel is Food:  Huel can replace any meal or even as a between-meal snack. In this way it can be an add-on improvement to your diet to ensure you’re giving your body what it needs.

–      Vegan/environmentally friendly: Being vegan and producing zero food waste means Huel has much less of an environmental impact on the planet than many other food products

You can also get more information at Huel.com.

Darragh Doiron is a Port Arthur area foodie who is into rice month, or any and just about any other celebration of food and the people who get it to the table. Reach her at darraghcastillo@icloud.com