Louisiana has plenty of evidence that mascots can bring people together like nothing else.
Picayune Frog began doing just that over a century ago.
Long before Margaret Orr, Rob Perillo, and Jay Grimes, the Picayune Frog was a driving force in Louisiana weather forecasting. The line drawing of the frog first appeared in the paper on January 11, 1894, providing a glance at the day’s forecast. In 1952, the paper introduced a new weather mascot, Pogo the Possum, but readers demanded the amphibian’s return.
The Daily Picayune Weather Frog, pictured here when it first appeared in the New Orleans newspaper on Jan. 11, 1894. (File image)
In the Picayune Creole Cookbook, first published in 1901, the Picayune Frog is praised, admired and doted on by a grandmother as if she were her favorite grandchild.
“When the Picayune Frog first appeared in New Orleans as the ‘weather forecaster’ for this old and reliable newspaper, it caused a stir throughout the city,” the cookbook reads. “‘Picayune tea’ and ‘Picayune souvenir pins’ became popular, featuring pictures of our Frog in various costumes as the ‘weather forecaster.’ No entertainment, reunion or fair was considered complete without the Picayune Frog.”
The craze for weathermen was so great that the book included recipes for “Picayune Frog Lemonade” and “Picayune Cake.”To stay cool, “Frog Lemonade” seemed like a good idea.
it was.
This drink is delicious — the pineapple juice balances the bitterness of the lemon juice and is perfect for a hot Louisiana summer day.
For a less light and summery dish, we paired the lemonade with “Fricassée de Volaille, Sauce Brune” (Chicken stew), a hearty dish that was perfectly matched with the tart lemonade.
Frog Lemonade was prepared by reporter Lauren Cheramie on Friday, June 14, 2024.
The introduction to “Frog Lemonade” summarizes the recipe’s origins, telling the story of a newspaper publisher who served the lemonade at a booth at a charity festival and raised over $14,000.
“This is all due to the immense and enduring popularity of the Picayune and its famous little weatherman, Frog,” the cookbook states.
But of course.
Braised Chicken in Brown Sauce by reporter Lauren Cheramie on Friday, June 14, 2024.
The chicken stew, on the other hand, was warming, flavorful, and hearty. (To be honest, I added a teaspoon of Tony’s for extra spiciness.) Chicken stew is one of my favorite comfort foods, and this version is the best.
These two recipes were the easiest to make after trying to follow the rather arcane instructions of the previous recipes in this old cookbook.
Maybe it’s just Picayune Frog’s good fortune.
Braised chicken, brown sauce
Fricassee de volailles, Sauce Brune
From the Picayune Creole Cookbook
Braised chicken with brown sauce and white rice, prepared by reporter Lauren Cheramie on Friday, June 14, 2024.
1 chicken
1 onion
1 tablespoon lard
1 tablespoon flour (sifted)
1 finely chopped sprig of thyme, parsley and bay leaf
Salt and pepper to taste
Clean and cut the chicken into pieces at the joints. Season well with salt and black pepper.
Finely chop the onion. Put a tablespoon of lard into a stewpot and when it is hot, add the onion.
When lightly browned, add the flour, sifted well. When browned, add the chicken. Simmer everything for a few minutes, then add the chopped thyme, parsley and bay leaf. Stir well. When all the pieces are nicely browned, add 1 1/2 pints of boiling water or stock. Stir until it starts to boil. Season again. Cover and steam gently for about an hour, or until tender. To make the fricassee, add the chicken livers, hearts and gizzards to the stew. Plate the chicken, pour the hot sauce over it and serve hot. This dish goes very well with boiled rice or potatoes. It’s a simple and elegant dish that anyone can make. This is a plain fricassee.
Frog Lemonade
From the Picayune Creole Cookbook
2 dozen lemons
1 pound sugar
2 quarts of water
1 pineapple
2 bottles of carbonated water
3 dozen strawberries
The famous drink was invented in honor of the Picayune Frog at a large charity festival for the Newsboys’ Home in New Orleans. The Picayune, like other newspapers in the city, attended the festival with the goal of paying off the heavy debt burden that had weighed on the Home. The Picayune had a booth, which was hosted by the female staff of the Picayune and some of the most prominent women in New Orleans. A prominent Creole woman ran the Picayune Frog Tent, where only lemonade was given out. She invented a delicious drink, which she named “Frog Lemonade.” The booth was a major attraction of the festival. The Picayune led the festival, beating all other newspapers by 3:1 as the largest English daily newspaper in New Orleans, and with a total of over $14,000 raised throughout the festival, it also beat various other newspapers by 5:1 and 6:1 margins. It was all due to the immense and enduring popularity of the Picayune and its famous little weatherman, “Frog.”
Here’s how to make Frog Lemonade: Take a large punch bowl. Add 1 pound of sugar, 2 quarts of water, the juice of 2 dozen lemons, the juice of 1 pineapple, and 2 bottles of soda water. Mix well. Add 3 dozen large, fine strawberries and garnish with thin slices of pineapple and lemon. If you don’t have enough sugar, adjust the sweetness to your taste. Fill the bowl with large ice cubes. When you’re ready to serve, fill glasses a quarter full with crushed ice and fill with lemonade. Each glass should hold a few strawberries, 1-2 lemons, and 1-2 pineapple slices. This lemonade is delicious.
