Lafcadio Hearn

Patrick Lafcadio Hearn (1850 – 1904), known also by the Japanese name Koizumi Yakumo (小泉 八雲), was a writer, known best for his books about Japan, especially his collections of Japanese legends and ghost stories, such as Kwaidan: Stories and Studies of Strange Things. In the United States, Hearn is also known for his writings about the city of New Orleans based on his ten-year stay in that city. Lafcadio Hearn's La Cuisine Creole is the first Creole cookbook, featuring recipes collected "from leading chefs and noted Creole housewives". It includes gumbos with oysters, okra, and shrimp; "grenouilles frites" or fried frogs; plum, sweet potato, and gingerbread pudding; and a number of beverages, several of which use absinthe as the main ingredient.