The youngest of ten children, Joe Brown was born to feed a crowd. And he does so nightly as chef/owner of Melange Cafe in Cherry Hill, New Jersey. The crowd loves his food: a marriage uniting the heat of Louisiana cuisine with the passion of authentic Italian cooking. His first cookbook, Joe Brown’s Melange Cafe Cookbook, brings Joe’s assertive and imaginative Louisiana-Italian cuisine into America’s kitchens.
Both Joe Brown’s Melange Cafe Cookbook and the restaurant buzz with Big Easy spirit, Southern hospitality, and simply fabulous food. All of the 100 original recipes in Joe Brown’s Melange Cafe Cookbook feature clear directions, interesting but easy to find ingredients, and a casual, happy approach to cooking. Sepia-toned photos of Joe in action as well as personal observations capture the lively spirit of Melange Cafe.
Loyal customers of Melange Cafe will be delighted to find recipes for the restaurant’s most popular dishes in Joe Brown’s Melange Cafe Cookbook: Pan Smoked Tomato Crab Bisque; Fried Oysters with Horseradish Mustard Reduction; Grilled Shrimp with Pecan Corn Crab Relish; Crawfish Salad with Tomato-Leek Vinaigrette; Seafood Jambalaya; Lobster Gumbo; Sweet Potato Crème Brûlée; and Joe’s famous Crabmeat Cheesecake with Pecan Crust and Wild Mushroom and Onion Sauté.
"My love of cooking comes from my mother, France, who was born in Tennessee," says Chef Brown, who at a young age learned to cook at his mother’s side. While not a Southern cookbook, France’s family background and her influential spirit inspire many dishes in Joe Brown’s Melange Cafe Cookbook, including Chicken, Red Beans, and Rice with France’s Cheese Biscuits; Smothered Chicken; Southern Fried Chicken with Collard Greens; Country Fried Catfish with Corn "Mock-Shoo;" and Knock Down Bourbon Bread Pudding.
Others recipes combine classic Italian ingredients — basil, garlic, rosemary, olive oil, spinach, pasta — with full-flavored Louisiana culinary traditions. Joe’s Louisiana and Italian fusion influence is most evident in Garlic Shrimp and Pasta; Crab Cakes with Tomato-Basil Concassé; Cheese Grit Cakes with Crawfish Creole Sauce; Crawfish Ratatouille with Seared Catfish; Veal Franchaise with Crabmeat; Penne All Arrabiata; Risotto with Wild Mushrooms and Chicken Livers; Sweet Potato Chocolate Ravioli with Pecan Bourbon Sauce; Southern Chocolate Chip Sweet Potato Cannoli; and wonderful gumbo and jambalaya variations.
Hearty recipes for soups, stews, and "one pots" are the heart of Joe Brown’s Melange Cafe Cookbook. Rib-sticking recipes include Crawfish Potato Corn Chowder; Louisiana Sausage and Bean Soup; Roasted Red Pepper Tomato Bisque; Efo Fish Stew; Breaux Bridge Crawfish Étouffée; and Louisiana Dirty Rice and Clams.
Starters, party foods, and salads include Crawfish Stuffed Wontons with Red Pepper Honey Mustard Reduction; Muffuletta Bruschetta; Steamed Crawfish; Not Really Barbecued Shrimp; Crab Cake Salad with Tomato-Basil Dressing; Lamb Salad with Brown’s Balsamic Dressing; and Asparagus and Crab Salad.
Entrees, such as Cajun Turkey with Dirty Rice Dressing; Pan Crusted Salmon with Honey Balsamic Reduction; Tasso-Stuffed Pork Chops; Grilled Rib-eye with Rosemary Jus with Garlic Mashed Potatoes and Caramelized Mushrooms and Onions; Crawfish Pasta in Tasso Cajun Cream; Citrus Chilean Sea Bass; and Crawfish Potpie, are robust and crowd pleasing, yet surprisingly simple to prepare.
Joe has a sweet tooth, and it shows in the dessert recipes: But I Want Chocolate Cake; Chocolate Grand Marnier Cheesecake; Warm Chocolate Pudding Cake; Ricotta Cheese Pie with Flaky Crust; Tiramisu; Bananas Flambé; Pecan Bar Cookies; Chewy Pralines; and Joe Brown’s Beignets.
Named "Best Night Out with a Group, 1999" by Philadelphia magazine, Melange Café opened in 1995 with a focus on providing exceptional meals at moderate prices. Joe, a graduate of The Restaurant School in Philadelphia, has been featured in Cooking Light, Christian Science Monitor, Culinary Trends, Ebony, Black Enterprise, and many other magazines and newspapers. He has also appeared several times on The Food Network’s "Ready, Set, Cook!" and Discovery’s "Home Matters." Joe lives with his wife and son in Voorhees, New Jersey. When not in the kitchen, Joe coaches his son’s football team.
