Georgia caterer Harmon holds to Baton Rouge flavors

Caterer Jane Hall Harmon may live and work in Georgia, but she hasn’t forgotten her Baton Rouge roots.

Harmon was born in Jackson, Miss., s grew up in Baton Rouge, where she said she developed an “appreciation of fine foods in restaurants, my own family’s kitchen and other fine cooks.”

She attended LSU and worked for Delta Airlines and in Washington, D.C., for former U.S. Sen. John Breaux, of Louisiana, before launching her new career as a personal chef for professional golfer Nick Faldo and then opening her catering business.

Though her business has taken off, she still finds time to keep in touch with her Louisiana relatives and friends — and she likes to share recipes.

Harmon has even named her catering company for her former hometown. The Baton Rouge Chef Inc. in Augusta, Ga., specializes in Cajun, Creole and French regional foods.

“Of course, living here in Georgia, I have to do Southern, too,” she said. “This (Augusta) isn’t a foody town. They like fried chicken, mac and cheese and green beans.”

She comes back to Louisiana often to buy specialty food items.

Harmon recently sent five recipes for some of her most requested dishes.

The Southern sweet tooth is obvious with the selections — three desserts to two featuring vegetables. Her version of the late U.S. Sen. Allen Ellender’s recipe for Creole pecan pralines and simple, open-faced tomato sandwiches are her most requested dishes, she said.

The praline recipe is from the Baton Rouge Junior League’s cookbook “River Road Recipes: A Second Helping” but she’s tweaked it some over the years, she said.