Wander. Cook. Eat.

1. Eat. As soon as I hit New Orleans, I seek out crawfish etoufee. Any cajun or creole dish will do, but crawfish etoufee is my favorite. This trip, I decided to take the Roux cooking class from the Mardi Gras School of Cooking: Shrimp etoufee, gumbo, and bananas foster. Yum. If you have a sweet tooth, don’t forget to stop by Southern Candymakers – I really do think they make the best pralines.

2. Listen to live music. This is not hard to accomplish since there is a lot of good music in New Orleans. However, for the best music, get off Bourbon Street. Go to zydeco night (or any night, really) at the Rock n Bowl. (Yes, they have bowling thereFor some old school New Orleans jazz go to a show at Preservation Hall. Or, just go spend an evening (or two) on Frenchman Street. If you love jazz and blues, going to Jazz Fest should be on your bucket list.

3. Wander through the Garden district. In the morning, especially, I like to wander the Garden District to look at the houses and watch the trolleys roll by. The gardens and the quiet are nice foil to the French Quarter. On my last trip, I was rewarded for this habit by stumbling upon District Donuts. I noticed a dog waiting patiently outside for its owner, which is always a good sign of a local favorite. It did not disappoint. Their cinnamon rolls are other worldly.

After my trip this year, I’m adding a new one to the list: 4. Visit the Bayou. My mom recommended we take an airboat ride through the bayou. It sounded a bit touristy, but I was pleasantly surprised. Our tour with Ultimate Swamp Adventures through Bayou Segnette was more than just a ride on a fast boat. It was surprisingly educational – I learned a lot about the ecology of the bayou and the important role these wetlands play in reducing coastal flooding. As a bonus we had lunch at Segnette Landing next door where I got to live the lyrics from one of my favorite songs: I had jambalaya and crawfish pie on the bayou. It was delicious.

Machu Picchu is awe-inspiring. It still blows me a way that the Incas designed and built a city on the top of a mountain that could survive 400 years with no one there to do maintenance – in an earthquake-prone area with a serious rainy season. As an engineer, this impresses me. Aside from that the place is beautiful. In addition to the tour of the city ruins, if you are up for a steep hike do the additional trail up Huayna Picchu. The view from the top of both Machu Picchu and the surrounding mountains is unbelievable. On this hike, keep an eye out for orchids on the trail they were beautiful! They limit the number of people who can enter daily and further limit the number who can hike Huayna Picchu, so you must get a ticket in advance. They sell out months in advance. If you use a tour company they will book the tickets and manage logistics for you, which is nice.

Moray surprised me. When we first got there and I saw the circles of terraces, I was a bit underwhelmed. Don’t get me wrong, the vastness of the site is visually impressive. But the history of how they used Moray was what made this site stand out. Because the Incas did not have a written history, for a long time what they used Moray for was a mystery. However, archeologists have learned that the Incas used it as an agricultural center to study the impact of weather on crops and develop new hybrid crops adapted to different parts of the Inca empire. They used the geography of the site, which has many different microclimates, and brought in soil from different parts of the empire so that they could test different crops in different climate and soil conditions and cross-breed them. This is one reason why over 4000 different varieties of potatoes grow in the Andean highlands. As a gardener, this fascinates me.

Ollantaytambo is more than just the town where you catch the train to Aquas Calientes and Machu Picchu. It was built as a royal estate for Pachacuti, one of the Inca Emperors. During the time of the Spanish invasion it was a stronghold for the Inca resistance, led by Manco Inca. In fact, its the site of one of the few battles that the Incas actually won against the Spanish. When you come to Ollantaytambo to catch the train, allow some time to tour the Inca ruins here. Also, keep an eye out for the Inca storehouses built high in the mountains above the town. They used these to store food grown in the nearby terraces.

Cusco, is a bustling, modern city with beautiful Spanish architecture, but also has interesting Inca ruins. In fact, much like modern Rome is built on ancient Roman ruins, modern Cusco sits atop foundations built by the Inca. As you walk the stone streets of old town, you will notice the Inca-style stacked stones in the lower sections of many walls.

Visit Coricancha, the site of the Inca Temple of the Sun. When the Spanish came, they built a convent and cathedral on the foundations of the Inca temple. Two big earthquakes in 1650 and 1950 damaged or destroyed most of the Spanish colonial buildings, but the Inca foundations remained – proof of their engineering and architectural badassery. At Coricancha, they have some of the stones on display so that you can see how the Inca constructed the walls – they look like ancient stone legos.

Step 1. Heat milk and cream over medium heat to almost a simmer (about 5 minutes). Remove from heat.

Step 2. Fill bottom of double boiler with 1/2 inch of water and heat over low heat. In top section of the double boiler whisk together egg yolks and sugar until mixture is a pale yellow and creamy.

Step 3. Place pan with egg yolks on top of the pan with heated water. Keep heat on low and slowly whisk in the warm milk. Stir occasionally while the custard cooks. Do not let the custard boil or it will curdle. The custard is ready when the foam subsides and the custard coats the back of a spoon (180°-185°).The custard can take 40 minutes or more over low heat. If you are in a hurry, you can increase the heat to medium low, but watch your custard closely – it can cook in 15 minutes and the foam may not completely subside before the custard is done. If your custard curdles, see these tips from Cook’s Illustrated on how to fix your custard.

Step 4. While custard cooks, zest the lemons and set aside. A microplane works best to zest the lemons. Squeeze juice from the lemons into a measuring cup. You should have 2-3 tsp. of zest and 1/2 to 3/4 cup of lemon juice.

Step 5. When custard is done, remove from heat. Stir in the zest. Add 1/2 c. of lemon juice. Taste and add additional juice to adjust taste to your liking. Cover and place custard in refrigerator for at least 2 hours or over night to cool. If you need to speed up the cooling process, put the pan in an ice water bath for 20-30 min before putting in the fridge.

Step 6. Freeze the custard. Follow the manufacturer’s instructions for your ice cream freezer. Mine takes about 40-50 min to freeze.

Step 7. Put ice cream freezer in container and place in freezer for 1-2 hours before serving.

Step 1. Coarsely chop pecans. Slice figs into quarters.

Step 2. Stir together balsamic glaze, lemon juice, and honey for the dressing. Set aside.

Step 3. Toss spinach with olive oil. Top with figs, goat cheese, and walnuts. Drizzle a couple of teaspoons of honey balsamic dressing. Add salt and pepper to taste and serve. Reserve remaining dressing for a future salad.

Step 1. Grease a 13×9 casserole dish with butter. Cut bread into 1-inch squares. Spread bread evenly in casserole dish.

Step 2. In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs. Then whisk in the milk, half & half, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, and nutmeg.

Step 3. Pour the eggs over the bread. Stir a little to make sure the egg evenly covers the bread. Cover with aluminum foil. Refrigerate at least 8 hours, preferably overnight (up to 24 hours).

Step 4. Remove casserole from fridge. Preheat oven to 350°. Wash fruit. Chop pecans. Spread chopped pecans and brown sugar on top of casserole. Then spread blueberries and raspberries evenly over the top of the casserole. Slice butter into 6-8 pieces and top casserole with pats of butter.

Step 5. Bake for 1 hour at 350°. Sprinkle with powdered sugar. Serve while still warm.