Although I love all the holiday food that includes baked turkeys, roasted wild ducks and geese, turduckens and all the popular sides like rice dressing, sweet potatoes, macaroni and cheese, green bean casserole and a whole lot more, I often host an all-seafood holiday meal. You might want to entertain the idea of doing this for your family and friends.

If you can, get a sack of oysters to shuck for oysters on the half-shell – some to serve with cocktail sauce (a combination of ketchup, horseradish, hot sauce and fresh lemon juice) and others to prepare for oysters Bienville. Then again, you can fry some up to make oyster po-boys (don’t forget the French bread) and dress the sandwiches with tartar or remoulade sauce. If oysters aren’t an option, by all means, begin the meal with crawfish or shrimp boudin (yes, we have both on our website). Offer remoulade sauce in which to dip the boudin! Wonderful.

Move on to lobster tails (we have that too), which can be slow-poached in butter to prevent the tail meat from becoming dry and tough. I pinched the recipe for this from Thomas Keller at the French Laundry, and I think you’ll love this technique.

Maybe shrimp is more to your liking? Shrimp is so versatile – they can be boiled and served with cocktail and/or remoulade sauce. Try them tossed with salad greens and dressed with vinaigrette dressing for a light supper. Hey, get some eggplant and make eggplant Bechamel.

You can also opt to try our yellow fin tuna (sashimi grade). I’ll tell you how to prepare it for an appetizer or main course.

TURKEY BONE GUMBO

What to do with your turkey carcass? Every year around this time, my friends call me for this recipe. If you don’t already have this, make a copy to put in your recipe files.

A friend of mine goes around his neighborhood on the day after Thanksgiving to gather any unwanted turkey carcasses to make one fine gumbo. The carcasses are simmered in water and other seasonings for a few hours to render a rich broth, which is the basis for the gumbo. Nothing goes better (well, you could serve baked sweet potatoes like some people do in south Louisiana) with gumbo than potato salad and hot crusty French bread.

Put the call out to your friends and neighbors to save you their turkey carcasses and settle in for the better part of the afternoon to make this delicious gumbo.

TURKEY BONE GUMBO

Makes 8 to 10 servings

• 3/4 cup vegetable oil
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups chopped onions
• 1 cup chopped bell peppers
• 1/2 cup chopped celery
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne
• 1/2 pound smoked sausage, chopped (optional)
• 1/2 gallon turkey broth (recipe follows)
• 1 1/2 pounds turkey meat, chopped, plus any reserved meat from the carcass in the broth
• Reserved onions and celery from broth
• 2 tablespoons chopped parsley
• 2 tablespoons chopped green onions

In a large cast-iron pot or enameled cast-iron Dutch oven, combine the oil and flour. Stirring constantly and slowly for 20 to 25 minutes, make a dark brown roux, the color of chocolate. Add the onions, bell peppers, celery, salt and cayenne. Cook, stirring often, until the vegetables are soft, about 5 minutes.

Add the sausage and cook for 5 minutes, stirring often.

Add the broth and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 45 minutes.

Add the turkey meat, the reserved onions and celery and cook for 15 minutes. Add the parsley and green onions. Serve in soup bowls with steamed rice.

Turkey broth

Makes about 1/2 gallon

• 1 turkey carcass
• 3 ribs celery, cut into 4-inch pieces
• 2 medium onions, peeled and quartered
• 1 gallon of water, or enough water to cover the carcass
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 tablespoon black peppercorns
• 4 bay leaves

Place the carcass in a large stockpot. Add the celery, onions, water, salt, peppercorns and bay leaves. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium and simmer, uncovered, for 2 hours. Remove from heat.

Skim any oil that has risen to the surface. Strain through a large fine-mesh sieve. Reserve any meat that has fallen off the bones and pick off any meat that may still remain on the carcass. Reserve the onions and celery.