LSU Alumni Association News
Geaux Team A Taste of the Bayou for Game-day Feast
By: Holly Prestidge Photos by Joe Mahoney
“A football feast: No matter who prevails in the LSU-Alabama game, the food is always a winner.”
Bill Bagley, from left, Markie Russell, and Stephen LaHaye get a look at the first turkey out of the fryer.
Janice Guidry with a bag of Zapp’s Spicy Cajun Crawtators.
12 LSU Alumni Magazine | Spring 2013
MIDLOTHIAN, Va. – The prayers of purple-and-gold-clad fans couldn’t change the outcome of Saturday night’s college football show-down between the Louisiana State University Tigers and their conference rivals, the Alabama Crimson Tide. Alabama – the favorite – rallied in dramatic fashion during the last minute of the game to pull out a 21-17 win at Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge. But tender fried turkey and pork loins, savory crawfish and andouille sausage cheesecake, and spicy jambalaya sure helped ease some of the pain for those hanging out at Markie Russell’s Midlothian home during what’s become an annual event for local LSU alumni. Since 1996, members of the LSU Central Virginia Alumni Chapter have gathered for feasting and fellowship – usually at Russell’s home – as a prelude to the LSUAlabama game. The game is the reason, but the food – most of which is made with recipes straight from the bayou – steals the show. “We love to eat,” said Russell, the chapter’s treasurer. She was decked out in purple-and-gold-striped overalls over a purple LSU shirt. Her fingernails were painted purple and gold, and gold earrings dangled from her ears. Her dog, Bella, also wore an LSU sweater. “We can’t find Louisiana food up here, so we make it ourselves,” she said. Russell said there are about 50 paid members within the area’s LSU alumni organization, though there are upward of 400 who are on her mailing list, and the numbers grow every year. Many have moved here or been transferred for jobs, she said, or they found refuge in Virginia after Hurricane Katrina. Regardless of why they’re here, many show up at Russell’s home for a taste of Louisiana.
And they are not disappointed. Three turkey fryers filled with cottonseed oil sputtered behind her house Saturday evening, into which went turkeys and pork loins and the occasional battered Snickers bar. (There’s no tie between the fried candy and Louisiana – just an idea spawned by leftover Halloween candy a few years ago.) The fryers were manned by guys with gloves – and timers and calculators – who ensured perfectly cooked meat. LSU alum Martha Junkmann and her family brought another fryer for soft-shelled crabs. Creole seasoning was everywhere. Many of the dishes, including Bill Bagley’s crawfish pies, were made with the “holy trinity” of flavors – onions, bell peppers and celery. (The pies were made with the crawfish meat he froze from the group’s crawfish boil earlier this year, for which the crawfish are flown in from Louisiana.) While just about everyone in attendance was wearing purple and gold or something LSU-related, a few nonLSU folks also were there. Wearing a Virginia Tech ball cap, Clota Gerhardt arrived with a savory cheesecake made with crawfish and andouille sausage and topped with a spicy tomato-mustard coulis. An hour before game time, the spread on Russell’s table resembled Thanksgiving dinner – sliced turkey, sweet praline yams, cornbread dressing and more. On another table, Russell had a metal tin filled with popcorn – tinted purple and gold, of course. Janice Guidry showed up with a Louisiana staple – a bag of Zapp’s brand potato chips, which she held gingerly in her arms like a mother carrying her child. The flavor: Spicy Cajun Crawtators. “I’m dressed appropriately,” she said. “I’ve got my best accessory on.” Editor’s note: This article was originally published in the Richmond Times-Dispatch on Nov. 7, 2012.