Comfort Food From Louisiana: New Orleans Chef Recipe: Crabmeat-Shrimp Fritters, Creole Tomato Dressing

Comfort Food From Louisiana: New Orleans Chef Recipe: Crabmeat-Shrimp Fritters, Creole Tomato Dressing: From Denny:  Like to make easy fritters for the family for a quick meal?  I sure remember those yummy clam or corn fritters my mother used to make on Saturdays when I was a kid.  Apple fritters are equally tasty, especially when dusted with some cinnamon and sugar.  So, when I run across yet another variation to The Fritter Family then I'm game to try it.

This new fritter recipe comes from New Orleans Chef John Besh and Zatarain's.  Claw crabmeat, corn and small shrimp are featured in this recipe along with its own special tomato creole dressing.  Pull out your food processor to make this easy tasty dressing of Creole seasoning, garlic, Creole mustard (like stone ground mustard) and tomato.  Chill for an hour and then you are off to the dinner races!

Funny Friday Weekend iPhone 5 Case

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Comfort Food From Louisiana: Creole Style Avocado Salad

Comfort Food From Louisiana: Creole Style Avocado Salad: From Denny:  Want an easy dip that is quick to make in this summer heat?  Who wants to spend time working in a hot kitchen when you can be out by the pool munching, right?

Try this refreshing dip with avocado.

Louisiana Seafood Beach Tote

Check out awesome Louisiana eating: oysters, shrimp, crawfish, gumbo, jambalaya

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Comfort Food From Louisiana: Chef Recipe: Crab Calas with Remoulade Sauce

Comfort Food From Louisiana: Chef Recipe: Crab Calas with Remoulade Sauce: "From Denny:  Chef Poppy Tooker is a New Orleans icon, much loved and respected as she is interesting.  She is like a walking trivia foodie encyclopedia and she sure does relish telling the tall tales of Louisiana food and history.

Check out some of her latest trivia offerings and appearances to tantalize your mind as much as your tastebuds:

* Louisiana's Crystal Hot Sauce was used in WWI Army field rations. I'm a bigger fan of Louisiana Hot Sauce.  It's milder than Tabasco and less vinegar.  Goes great on eggs in the morning.

* Camellia red beans are the finest grade of red beans.  Camellia buys up all the Hayward (finest top grade) beans, leaving grades A and B for the rest of the country.  Hayward grade beans are named for the family that founded Camellia in New Orleans back in 1923.  They still own it today.

Can we ever imagine the Monday wash day without Camellia red beans?  Life might never have been the same in New Orleans.  Even Louis Armstrong might not have been known for his endearing signature statement, 'Red beans and ricely yours.'"

5 Cajun, Creole Recipes: 2 Gumbos, Dirty Rice, Pickled Shrimp, Shrimp Stuffed Vegetable Pear

Chef Emeril Lagasse's Creole Dirty Rice dish

From Denny: This is a continuation of last week's post about the Association of Food Journalists annual conference held in New Orleans this month. There were so many recipes posted in our local newspaper! They were skimpy on the photos though.

Some more history on how Louisiana cuisine developed over the centuries with the melting pot of immigrant cultures... Did you know there are two kinds of Italian cooking in New Orleans? One is with the Arab Slavic influence and the second is more French and Spanish seasoning.

What food stands out as an example contrasting the two cultures? Red gravy (think spaghetti sauce). The Arab Slavic seasons with a pinch of cinnamon and sugar to their version of red gravy as a way to take the edge off the sourness of the tomatoes, especially if they are not fresh but canned. (I use dark brown sugar.) The French and Spanish don't use sugar at all. They also don't use a roux base to make their gravy.

What about Creole? They employ a roux to thicken the red gravy, use tomato sauce but never tomato paste. From Chef Leah Chase who cooks Creole style, "Vegetables were cooked down or stuffed in the Creole kitchen. We stuff everything, including people.”

Typical ingredients in the Creole kitchen are garlic, bell peppers, onions, tomatoes, salt, pepper, bay leaves, thyme and paprika. Celery was not on their radar most of the year until the holidays. And they love to use wine in their cooking too.

For the Creole table, Sunday was gumbo day, Monday was red beans and rice day. Turtle stew was served on Easter holiday. Fridays you were out of luck to get a meal with meat as they observed the old Catholic custom of sacrifice that day, substituting fish.

The following recipes are a sampling of the food loved centuries later to this day that is Creole and Cajun. Hey, if it tastes good, eat it! That's the motto in Louisiana!



Seafood Gumbo

From: Chef Poppy Tooker

Serves: about 10

Ingredients:

Gumbo crabs are small crabs mainly used for flavor.
2 lbs. shell-on shrimp
1 medium yellow onion, chopped, onion skin reserved
1 gallon plus 1 cup water
Vegetable oil for frying as needed, plus 1/2 cup
2 lbs. okra, cut in 1/4-inch slices
1 cup all-purpose flour
3 stalks celery, chopped
1 medium green bell pepper, chopped
4 gumbo crabs
1 (1-lb.) can whole tomatoes
2 tsps. fresh thyme
1 bay leaf
1 clove garlic, peeled and smashed
Salt and pepper, to taste
1 bunch green onions, chopped
Cooked rice

Directions:

1. Peel and devein shrimp, set shrimp aside; save shells. Combine shells and onion skins in a stock pot. Add 1 gallon plus 1 cup water; boil for 20 minutes. Strain; reserve shrimp stock.

2. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, add 1/2-inch oil. Add okra and fry until light browned. Remove from skillet and drain on paper towels.

3. In a large stockpot, make a dark roux by whisking 1/2 cup oil and flour together over medium heat. Cook — stirring frequently — until the color becomes milk chocolate brown, about 30 minutes. Add onions to the roux, stirring until it darkens to a bittersweet chocolate brown color, about 5 minutes more.

4. Add celery and bell pepper. Sauté for 5 minutes, then add the gumbo crabs, tomatoes, okra, thyme, bay leaf and the shrimp stock. Add garlic and salt and pepper to taste. Simmer 45 minutes or longer.

5. Ten minutes before serving, add shrimp and green onions. Serve hot over cooked rice.



Chicken Andouille Gumbo

From: Broussard’s Restaurant

Serves: 12

Ingredients:

1-1/2 lbs. chopped andouille sausage
3 cups chopped onion
1/2 cup green pepper
1/2 cup celery
1 lb. chopped okra
Water or half water/half chicken stock
1 tbl. oregano
1 tbl. thyme
2 tbls. filé
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup flour
1 lb. chopped chicken (white and dark)
Salt and pepper
Cooked rice

Directions:

1. Sauté the sausage then add onions, bell peppers, celery and okra. After, add 1 gallon of water or stock or half water and half stock and all spices. Cook for 30 minutes.

2. In a separate pot, melt 1/4 cup butter. Add 1/4 cup flour and cook until dark brown.

3. Add roux to gumbo and stir to mix in. Then add chopped chicken and cook 30 more minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Serve with plain white rice.

Note: Can also be made with seafood, such as shrimp and crabs.



Ashley’s Pickled Shrimp

From: Susan Spicer of Bayona

Serves: 8 to 10

Ingredients:

1/4 cup lemon juice
1/2 cup apple cider or red wine vinegar
2 tsps. Dijon mustard
1/4 cup sugar
1 clove garlic, minced
1 cup olive oil
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1 large red onion, cut in half then thinly sliced
3 tbls. capers
2 bay leaves (preferably fresh)
2 tbls. chopped flat-leaf parsley

For shrimp:

1 lemon, quartered
2 bay leaves
1 tbl. coriander seeds
1 tbl. mustard seeds
1 tsp. black peppercorns
1 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
2 tbls. salt (kosher or sea salt)
2 lbs. medium or large shrimp, peeled and deveined, tails on

Directions:

1. In a large bowl, whisk together lemon juice, cider or vinegar, mustard, sugar, garlic, olive oil, salt and pepper, onion, capers and bay leaves.

2. Place a large pot filled with about 1 gallon water over high heat. Squeeze the lemon quarters into the water, dropping rinds into the pot. Add bay leaves, coriander seeds, mustard seeds, peppercorns, pepper flakes and salt to the pot; bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for about 5 minutes, then add shrimp and return to the boil. Cook until shrimp become opaque and the tails turn bright pink, about 3-4 minutes.

3. Drain well then transfer the still-warm shrimp to bowl of marinade. Marinate shrimp for at least 15 minutes before serving. If made ahead, remove shrimp from marinade before refrigerating; reserve marinade. Dress shrimp with marinade and sprinkle with parsley before serving.

Note: One bag crab boil can be used in place of the bay leaves, coriander seeds, mustard seeds, peppercorns and crushed red pepper flakes.



Stuffed Mirliton With Shrimp and Ham

From: Chef Frank Brigtsen, Brigtsen’s Restaurant

Makes: 13-1/2 cups (12-15 portions as a side dish).

Chef’s Notes: The mirliton, also known as chayote, vegetable pear, or christophene, is a member of the squash family, but is a very unique vegetable with its smooth texture and sweet flavor. In New Orleans, the pale green, pear-shaped mirliton is a “backyard” vegetable, grown in home gardens on trellised vines and harvested in the fall, just in time for holiday tables. Found in specialty grocery stores.

Ingredients:

6 large mirlitons
2 tbls. unsalted butter
2 cups diced ham (1/2-inch pieces)
2 cups finely diced green bell peppers (1/4-inch pieces)
4 cups finely diced celery (1/4-inch pieces)
6 cups finely diced yellow onions (1/4-inch pieces)
2 bay leaves
4 tsps. salt
1/4 tsp. finely ground black pepper
1/4 tsp. ground white pepper
1/4 tsp. ground cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp. whole-leaf dried thyme
1 tsp. whole-leaf dried oregano
2 tsps. whole-leaf dried sweet basil
1 tbl. minced fresh garlic
2 cups peeled medium-size Louisiana shrimp
1 cup shrimp stock
4 tbls. unsalted butter
1 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese
3 cups finely ground plain French bread crumbs
2 eggs

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

2. Prepare the mirlitons: Place the mirlitons in a large pot and cover generously with water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until the mirlitons are tender, 40-45 minutes. Drain the mirlitons and cover with ice until fully chilled. Peel the mirlitons with a vegetable peeler. Slice in half lengthwise. Remove the seeds. Slice the peeled mirliton halves in half again, lengthwise, and slice into wedge-pieces about 1/4-inch thick. (This should yield about 8 cups of mirliton meat.) Set aside.

3. Heat 2 tablespoons butter in a heavy pot over high heat. Add the ham and cook, stirring constantly, until brown.

4. Add 1-1/2 cups of bell peppers, 3 cups of celery, 4 cups of onion and the bay leaves. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions turn dark brown (caramelized).

5. Add the remaining bell peppers, celery and onions. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the second stage of onions turn soft and clear.

6. Reduce heat to low. Add the salt, black pepper, white pepper, cayenne, thyme, oregano, basil and garlic. Cook, stirring constantly, for 1-2 minutes.

7. Add the shrimp and cook until pink on the outside. Add the shrimp stock and cook for 1-2 minutes. Add the mirliton and heat until warm. Remove from heat.

8. Mix in remaining 4 tablespoons butter.

9. Fold in the cheese and bread crumbs.

10. Temper the eggs: In a small bowl, add the eggs. Add 3 spoonfuls of the mirliton dressing, one spoon at a time, until the eggs are heated through. Fold the egg mixture back into the dressing and blend well.

11. Transfer the mirliton dressing to a shallow pan (sheet pan) and bake at 350 degrees until brown and crusty on top, 35-40 minutes.



Creole Dirty Rice

From: Chef Emeril Lagasse

Makes: about 3 cups, serves 4. It is served at Emeril’s Delmonico restaurant with pork cheeks.

Ingredients:

1 tbl. vegetable oil
1 tbl. butter
1/2 cup chopped yellow onion
1/2 cup chopped bell pepper
1/4 lb. ground pork
1/4 lb. chicken livers, puréed
2 bay leaves
1 tbl. finely chopped jalapeño, seeds and membranes removed, if desired
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. ground coriander
1/4 tsp. ground cumin
1/4 tsp. cayenne
2 cups cooked long-grain, white rice
1/4 cup beef stock or canned, low-sodium beef broth
Kosher salt and black pepper, to taste
Dash of Tabasco or other Louisiana hot sauce, to taste

Directions:

1. In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium-high heat. When hot, add the butter, onion, and bell pepper; sauté vegetables until tender and lightly caramelized, about 4 to 6 minutes.

2. Add the pork and cook, using the spoon to break the pork into small pieces of meat, until well-browned, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the liver purée, bay leaves, jalapeño, salt, coriander, cumin and cayenne. Cook until spices are fragrant and liver is cooked through, 2 to 3 minutes.

3. Add the rice and beef stock; continue to cook, stirring, until well-combined and rice is heated through, 2 to 3 minutes longer. Add kosher salt and pepper, if necessary. Finish with hot sauce, to taste.

*** For part one of the food conference - 3 Oyster Recipes: Awesome Louisiana Food From National Food Conference

*** Thanks for visiting, everyone, come back often and eat well!

Recipe: Simple Easy Creole Fried Fish

Photo by ViNull @ flickr

From Denny: This is a simple recipe typical of how people cook freshly caught fish on the weekend at their river camps throughout Louisiana. If you like yours spicier, then add your favorite Cajun spices to the flour dredge like we do at our house!

Catfish, farm raised filets from the grocery store or wild caught is commonly cooked this way. The cornmeal gives a roasted corn taste and lots of extra crunch for the fish. Because of the mustard, the fish inside is wonderfully moist and tender. Tenderness, taste and crunch: can't beat that! :)



Photo by danperry.com @ flickr

From: Thomas Gresham

Serves: 6

Ingredients:

1-1/2 to 3 lbs. fish fillets, speckled or white trout, catfish, sacalait or bass

Salt and pepper, to taste

3 tbls. yellow mustard, such as French’s

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. black pepper

1/4 cup cornstarch

3/4 cup yellow cornmeal

Cooking oil

Directions:

1. Trim and wash fish fillets. Pat dry with paper towels. Place fillets in large bowl; salt and pepper generously.

2. Add mustard to fillets. Stir fish fillets gently to coat with the mustard. Let coated fillets sit for 30 minutes.

3. Blend flour, salt, black pepper, cornstarch and yellow cornmeal.

4. Heat cooking oil to 350 degrees.

5. Dredge fish pieces one at a time in meal mixture and place in deep, hot fat (a frying basket is excellent to use, also a 3-quart cast-iron saucepan for deep frying).

6. When fish pieces float to the top and are golden brown, remove them from the pot and place on paper towel-covered plate to drain. Keep warm until ready to serve.

Recipe: Simple Authentic Cajun Shrimp Creole

Assortment of famous Louisiana dishes like gumbo, jambalaya, crawfish bisque and more Image via Wikipedia

From Denny: Cajun cooking has evolved over 244 years since the first Acadian settlers arrived in Louisiana. They were originally deported by the English from Nova Scotia and it was ten years later they migrated to Louisiana. For generations the French and English have carried on a cultural clash and divide so this deportation came as no surprise even in the New World. It did bring terrible hardships to the Acadians as they strove to develop a new life in an inhospitable environment.

The lines between Cajun and Creole cuisine have blurred over the past few decades ever since Justin Wilson popularized Louisiana cuisine back in the 1970's with what was locally known as "good hunting and fishing camp food." Wilson also was a fan of hot sauces and so the idea of Cajun food as "hot and spicy" stuck in the national mind ever since. The reality is that Cajun did not originate as one with fiery pepper sauces, cayenne pepper and spices but rather, to this day with the oldest generation, was a savory and flavorful cuisine style.

The authors of this regional cookbook offer up insight into the subtle differences from region to region in Louisiana because Louisiana is a lot like France in that respect. The 22 counties considered as Cajun Country (which includes some of the state of Texas), known as parishes here, are divided into cultural regions: Acadian Coast, The Wetlands, Upper Prairie, Lower Prairie, the Bayou Region, Southwest Louisiana and the Marshes and Coast.

French Onion Soup Image via Wikipedia

This regional, simple, 100 recipe cookbook (lots of illustrations but without photos) offers recipes from each region, so you get a look at six different versions of the celebrated and widely known gumbo dish. They include side dishes, traditional French soups like Belle Rose French Onion Soup and then on to desserts too, one known as Dark Sugar Pralines.

The cookbook has lots of great Cajun resources like listings for food festival events, Cajun web sites for food and events and tourism.

What this cookbook is all about is easy comfort food made by real people for home style cooking. It's also an easy pleasurable way to learn about a different culture through food!

*****



Photo by afagen @ flickr

Lily B's Shrimp Creole

From: “Cooking in Cajun Country” new cookbook by Karl Breaux with Cheré Dastugue Coen (Gibbs Smith, $16.99, paperback)

My Amazon store has the book for $12.74 and available for free shipping too! Check it out, go here.

Serves: 4

Ingredients:

4 Tablespoons butter

1 cup chopped onion

1 cup chopped celery

1 small green bell pepper, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

Salt and pepper, to taste

1/2 tsp. dried basil

2 cups chopped tomatoes or 1 can diced tomatoes, with juice

1 lb. fresh shrimp, peeled and deveined or 2 cups frozen shrimp*

(* Health Warning: try to buy Louisiana or American shrimp as Chinese and other Asian shrimp lives in heavily polluted waters, polluted with heavy metals! Check your package for country of origin before purchase.)

1/2 to 1 cup water

Cajun/Creole seasoning, to taste

2 cups cooked Louisiana rice

Directions:

1. Melt butter in a saucepan over medium to medium-high heat. Sauté the onions, celery and bell pepper until soft, about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and sauté 5 minutes more.

2. Add salt, pepper, basil and tomatoes and stir; add shrimp. If using frozen shrimp, add 1/2 cup water and simmer for 10 minutes. If using fresh shrimp, add shrimp and 1 cup water and simmer until shrimp turn bright pink, about 15 to 20 minutes. Do not overcook.

3. Add Cajun/Creole seasoning to taste.

4. Serve over 1/2 cup cooked rice per serving.


Have a great weekend, everyone, and thanks for visiting! Good eating!


Cajun, Creole, Louisiana, shrimp creole, Society and Culture, Soups and Stews, Justin Wilson, Acadian, Cajun cuisine, Nova Scotia, Cook, Home

Recipe: Slow Cooker Shrimp Creole

Image by billmichalski via Flickr

From Denny: You are in a rush but want to eat something simply divine and are craving seafood. This recipe is the answer to your food prayers! Cook everything but the shrimp the night before or if you work part time cook it right before you get home. If you are out for the afternoon running errands and playing school taxi for the kids then this recipe is tailored for you. Cook the shrimp the last hour before dinner when you are home to tend it.

Normally, when cooking on the stove top you add the shrimp at the last minute before serving as it cooks up in 30 seconds to 2 minutes. With the slow cooker it is a much slower process. Cooking the sauce is the secret to any meal and the slow cooker specializes in that perfect slow blending of flavors we love so well in Louisiana!

Dedicating this awesome and easy recipe to the shrimp fishermen down Lafayette way who bring us these tasty crustaceans. The annual Shrimp Festival is going on right now and this weekend in Delcambre, Louisiana - make sure you pay them a visit!

From: Julie Kay @ 2theadvocate.com

Serves: 6 to 8

Ingredients:

1/4 cup canola oil

1/4 cup flour

1 onion, chopped

1 medium green bell pepper, chopped

1 clove garlic, chopped

1 teaspoon Creole seasoning

1 (10-ounce) can Ro-tel brand tomatoes, mild

1 cup water

1/4 cup green onions, chopped

1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped

1 1/2 pounds raw, peeled shrimp

Hot cooked rice


Directions:

1. Put flour and oil in microwave dish and microwave on HIGH for 4 minutes until light brown in color. Add in onions, bell pepper, garlic and Creole seasoning and microwave on HIGH for 2 additional minutes.

2. Transfer to slow cooker and add in Ro-tel tomatoes, water, green onions and parsley. Cook on LOW for 5 hours.

3. Add in shrimp and turn cooker to HIGH. Cook another hour, until shrimp are pink.

4. Spoon shrimp over hot cooked rice to serve. Enjoy!



Slow cooker, shrimp creole, Shrimp Festival, Baton Rouge Louisiana, Cajun, Creole

Shrimp Festival: In Delcambre, Louisiana Starts on August 12

Shrimp Festival is from August 12th to 16th outside Lafayette

From Denny: Looking for more Louisiana Bloggers. One new blogger friend posted up today on one of my blogs. She had a problem being able to leave a comment - turns out Blogger now knows about the issue. Same goes for the Followers from Blogger widget acting weird and not showing your friends and links to their blogs.



Anyway, put Marguerite on my blog list so you can visit her blog, Cajun Delights. She lives in Lafayette, about a 45 minute drive from Baton Rouge. That's the beauty of south Louisiana for a tourist: you can fly into New Orleans, drive to the capital city Baton Rouge (Red Stick)in an hour 15 minutes, stay over a day or so and visit various attractions and eat well, then take a day drive to Lafayette in 45 minutes and definitely eat well when you arrive there! :)



Delcambre Shrimp Festival, go here. Delcambre is about 20 miles outside Lafayette where this time of year they perform the annual blessing of the ever so productive shrimp fleet. Many other attractions like yummy cook-offs (there goes my diet: again...) and as is typical in Cajun Country there is fun toe-tapping live music the whole family can enjoy!

Recipe: Slow Cooker Chicken and Andouille Sausage Gumbo

From Denny: Use a larger slow cooker for this recipe, a 5 to 6 quart size is better as anything smaller is filled to the brim and may bubble over! Before you know the cats may be jumping up on the counter to lick up all the gumbo goodness... :)

From: Delicious Tabasco Recipes for your Crock-Pot Slow Cooker

Serves: 8 to 10

Ingredients:

1 cup onion, coarsely chopped

1 cup celery, coarsely chopped

1 cup green bell pepper, coarsely chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

6 Tablespoons vegetable oil, divided

2 1/2 to 3 pounds chicken parts

1/2 pound andouille sausage or kielbasa sausage, cut into 3/4-inch cubes

2 teaspoons fresh parsley, chopped

2 bay leaves

1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

2 teaspoons Tabasco brand pepper sauce, or to taste

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 1/2 quarts water

1/3 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup green onions, chopped

Hot cooked rice


Directions:

Image via Wikipedia

1. Add onion, celery, green bell pepper and garlic to bottom of stoneware. In skillet, over medium-high heat, brown chicken pieces in 3 Tablespoons vegetable oil until almost golden. Add sausage to skillet and continue cooking meat until chicken is golden brown.

2. Add all browned meat and poultry to stoneware on top of the vegetables. Add parsley, bay leaves, thyme, Tabasco pepper sauce, salt and pepper to stoneware. Pour water over all. Cover and cook on Low 5 to 7 hours or on High 2 to 4 hours.

3. In skillet, over medium heat, mex flour with the remaining 3 Tablespoons vegetable oil and cook, stirring constantly until the roux is dark brown. Add 1 cup of hot liquid from the slow-cooker mixture to the roux, a little at a time, stirring until smooth.

4. Stir roux mixture into stoneware, cover and finish cooking, 1 1/2 hours on Low or 1 hour on High. Add green onions at end of cooking time and let stand at least 10 minutes before serving. Remove chicken bones and skin before serving, if desired.

5. Remove from heat and stir in green onion and parsley; adjust seasoning if needed. Let gumbo stand 10 to 15 minutes. To serve, mound about 1/3 cup rice in each soup bowl, then ladle about 1 cup gumbo around rice.

Note: Leave yourself a little time for deboning and removing the skin from the chicken meat, adding to the overall time to prepare this slow cooking dish.



chicken and andouille sausage gumbo, Soups and Stews, gumbo, Slow cooker, slow cooking, Tabasco sauce, Cook, Home, Tabasco, Chicken, chicken and andouille sausage gumbo, Cajun and Creole, Baton Rouge Louisiana, New Orleans

Recipe: John's Cajun Pot Roast

Another version of Pot Roast Image by Offbeat Photography via Flickr

From Denny: Here in Louisiana we aren't shy about dining on meat even in hot weather. Pot Roast is a perennial American favorite and Cajuns have their spin on it. My father-in-law, John, was Cajun and a wonderful cook. He didn't have a wide range but what he cooked was awesome and everyone licked the plate! :)

He had been an Army cook in WWII. Originally, he was an infantry soldier in General Patton's pack. The story goes that Patton's troops were forever outrunning their supply lines. What that means to those of you who have never been in combat is that they often were on rations or went hungry. Everyone knows an army runs on its stomach.

Well, John was not about to be denied a good meal. Like any good Cajun country boy he just went out and shot himself a big plump rabbit. He soon had it skinned, skewered and roasting over an open fire. The whole camp smelled it and came moseying over for a friendly meal. John looked at them and yelled, "Ya bunch of Momma's boys! Go get your own damn supper!"

Of course, John was an only child and yes, a Momma's boy but at least he knew how to hunt and was independent enough to take care of himself. He had a real disdain and fear for those spoiled soldiers whose mothers did too much for them. Why? Because he saw them get shot first, killed and in large numbers during the war. He was upset they refused to be teachable in order to save their lives. "War is not a country club!" he often used to say.

It was then that the Army realized the man was resourceful and could cook better than anything listed for recipes in the Army handbook. John was taken off the field and placed on Kitchen Duty where he fed at least 4,000 men a day, three times a day.

He used to tell stories of what it was like to clean the Army cooking pots. We all would scratch our heads, wondering why that was such a big deal. Then he would describe how he had to get a ladder - he was a tall man too - to climb down into the pots to scrub them! Can you imagine how long it took for water to boil in pots that large? It must have taken hours for what we do in smaller portions for our families in only 15 minutes!

John used to cook a wonderful simple Cajun version of Pot Roast on Sundays, his favorite meal. As a new bride I was fascinated with his cooking. He also was a friend of the famous Justin Wilson who started the national obsession with Cajun and Creole food.

Justin Wilson was a fishing and hunting buddy of my husband's maternal uncle, J. B. Roux - yes, Roux really is his last name. Uncle J. B. was an incredible gumbo cook, a big bear of a man and terribly funny. He and John cooked together often, especially on Christmas Eve when they cooked gumbo together for everyone when they came by to visit during the holiday.

Anyway, Justin Wilson was interested in recording all the campfire recipes and Cajun style cooking he could. Uncle J. B. and the other friends were so used to their cooking they thought it was silly. They thought everyone knew how to cook like they did. In their minds, they could not conceive of anyone being a bad cook or not knowing how to cook the obvious.

Anyway, Justin recorded it, started up a local cooking show, wrote and sold books, made videos, went national and then international. If not for Justin Wilson, Uncle J. B.'s recipes and that of his friends would never have been published and perished with them when they died.

Over the years I've adapted John's recipe to make it my own.

John's Cajun Pot Roast

From: Denny Lyon

Total: 3 hrs 40 mins
Active: 40 mins
Makes: 6 to 8 servings

Ingredients:

3 teaspoons salt (or to your taste)

3 Tablespoons Tony Chachere's (Cajun seasoning, or to your taste)

2 teaspoons freshly ground cracked black pepper (or to your taste)

1 4-pound boneless chuck roast, trimmed of excess fat

3 Tablespoons canola oil

1 large red/purple/Cajun onion, coarsely chopped

4 medium celery stalks, coarsely chopped

1 green bell pepper, diced or sliced in strips

8 medium garlic cloves, slivered lengthwise in strips

3 Tablespoons tomato paste

2 cups low-sodium beef broth

4 fresh thyme sprigs

Optional: 8 dahes Tobasco sauce (John liked some heat!)

Optional: Fresh mushrooms

Directions:

Heat the oven to 325°F and arrange a rack in the lower third or you can place this roast in an electric skillet on the kitchen countertop like John did to simplify cleanup.

Here comes the fun tactile part: Take a small paring knife and poke and dig lots of hole in the meat all over, including the fat area. Then push the garlic slivers into each hole with a little of the spice combination or a salt and pepper combination, your choice.

Combine all dry spices in a small bowl. Evenly rub spice mix on all sides of the roast; set aside.

Heat oil in a Dutch oven/electric skillet or a large, heavy-bottomed pot with a tight-fitting lid over medium heat until smoking, about 5 minutes. Add meat and sear it, browning on all sides, about 20 minutes total; remove to a plate.

Add onion, celery, bell pepper and leftover garlic to the pot, season with salt, and cook until just softened, about 5 minutes. Add tomato paste and stir to coat vegetables. Pour beef broth into the pot and scrape up any browned bits called "fond" from the bottom.

Add thyme, meat, and any accumulated juices to the pot and bring to a simmer. Add Tobasco sauce if you are including some spicy heat. Cover and cook in the oven/electric skillet until fork tender, about 2 1/2 to 3 hours. At the last 20 minutes, add the fresh mushrooms if you are including them. John loved mushrooms and used them often.

Melt in your mouth, exploding with flavor! Serve over rice or with fresh parslied and buttered new potatotes. It's quite awesome when you get a bite of roast with a mellow garlic flavor from the simple cooking technique of inserting those garlic slivers into the meat before searing. Enjoy!

Creole Vs. Cajun - Kissing yet Distant cousins

Creole Vs. Cajun - Kissing yet Distant cousins - "To start with, as far as Creoles go, it seems that if you put two New Orleans historians in a locked room and ask "What exactly is a Creole?" only one will come out alive."

By NOLA in the ocho
Photo by snuzzy @ flickr

Roux - The Secret to Great Cajun Cooking

Roux - The Secret to Great Cajun Cooking: "Traditionally, Creole roux is used with lard or bacon fat, while Cajuns utilized butter. Modern-day Cajuns now use vegetable oil and it is usually cooked until the color appears copper to dark brown. However, some do use a light brown roux in their recipes. Cooking it until it reaches a dark brown color imparts a unique and rich flavor like no other to whatever dish is being prepared."

By Cayenne_Pepper

Recipes: Crab Fingers, Doorstop Pork Chops, Hazed Ribs

Louisiana’s Abita Brewing Company is a bit hit!

This is the place where Louisiana’s Abita Brewing Company began. Since 1994 it has moved to a larger location, growing to more than a local and then regional beer; it now has national presence. Examples of Abita beer: Winter Warmer, a delicate spice taste; Amber Light; Wheat, a summer brew; English Bitter, which has a bite to it; Cask Condition Double Bock, a non-filtered, self-carbonated, hand-pumped, English-style bock; Purple Haze; Turbo Dog and many others. The names as are colorful as the Louisiana people. They also make some great non-alcoholic root beer.

This full service 100 table restaurant in Abita Springs, Louisiana (near Baton Rouge) still retains the original brewing equipment of the brewery’s humble beginnings. Abita Beer can be viewed by diners making special small batch brews for the restaurant.

Martin and Vula Essaied have owned the Abita Brew Pub since 1998. Vula is a native of Greece and Martin is from Tunisia. They met while working in a restaurant in Canada. They say they use beer in 75% of their recipes at the pub.

It didn’t take long for this couple new to Louisiana to start giving Louisianans what they love: seafood and meat dripping in sauces and marinades. They chose to promote locally brewed Louisiana Abita beer. Here are three of their most popular dishes. When you visit south Louisiana, make sure to come by this Abita Brew Pub (985 - 892 – 5837) and the Abita Brewing Company’s site nearby for an enjoyable visit!

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Brewers’ Crab Fingers


Yield: Serves 4 to 6 as an appetizer

From: Martin and Vula Eaasied, Abita Brew Pub, Abita Springs, Louisiana

Ingredients:

4 Tablespoons butter, softened

2 ounces Worcestershire sauce

4 sprigs fresh rosemary

3 cloves garlic, chopped

Salt, black pepper, Creole seasoning, Tabasco sauce to taste

1 pound crab fingers

8 ounces Abita Amber beer


Directions: Combine all ingredients except the crab fingers and the beer.

Heat sauté pan and add butter mixture. Saute crab fingers in butter.

Add beer and let simmer no more than 4 minutes. Serve with hot French bread.


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Doorstop Pork Chops


Ingredients:


Cornbread (1 pan of your favorite cornbread recipe)

4 to 6 double-cut (thick) pork chops

Salt, black pepper, Creole seasoning, oregano, thyme to taste

2 green bell peppers, diced

1 large onion, diced

4 stalks celery, diced

½ pound andouille sausage, diced

6 Tablespoons butter or oil

Root Beer Glaze (recipe follows)


Directions: Prepare a pan of your favorite cornbread recipe. Break up cornbread into small pieces.

Combine salt, black pepper, Creole seasoning, oregano and thyme and rub on pork chops. Grill chops and set aside.

Dice peppers, onion, celery and sausage. Sauté in butter or oil until soft.

Combine vegetable sausage mixture with cornbread pieces.

Place a mound of cornbread mixture on plate; top with a grilled pork chop and spoon Root Beer Glaze over chop. Serves 4 to 6.


Root Beer Glaze


3 cups Abita Root Beer

A few sprigs rosemary

Directions: Place root beer and rosemary sprigs in saucepan on simmer. Reduce until you have a thick glaze. It’s ready when it coats a spoon.


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Hazed Ribs

Yield: Serves 6.


Ingredients:


3 racks baby-back ribs

1 ounce whole black peppercorns

¼ cup Zatarain’s Crab Boil

Salt and black pepper to taste

Abita Purple Haze beer, enough to cover ribs

16 ounces Brewmaster’s BBQ Sauce or your own favorite barbecue sauce recipe

6 ounces Abita Golden Beer

1 bell pepper, diced

½ onion, diced

1 stalk celery, diced

Vegetable oil


Directions:

Combine ribs, peppercorns, crab boil, salt and pepper in a baking pan. Add ribs and enough Abita Purple Haze Beer to cover ribs. Bake in a 350° F. oven for 2 hours or until tender.

Meanwhile, sauté diced vegetables in enough vegetable oil to coat bottom of pan (about 2 tablespoons) until tender. Add barbecue sauce and Abita Golden Beer. Let simmer until mixture thickens.

Grill baked ribs, basting with vegetable-barbecue sauce mixture, until warmed through. Fall-off-the-bone good! Serves 6.


Note: For other recipes visit my other fun blog -
Romancing The Chocolate

Recipe: Shrimp-Stuffed Eggplant

Shrimp-Stuffed Eggplant

Serves 4. Bake at 400° F. for 20 minutes.

From: Corinne Cook of The Advocate in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.


Another popular vegetable in Louisiana is eggplant. Could be from the influence of the Sicilian immigrants 100 years ago. Whatever the reason, it is a beloved dish when it is stuffed with seafood as a particular favorite.

Here the eggplant is halved lengthwise and partially cooked. The flesh is scooped out and then cooked together with onions, bell peppers, shrimp and garlic for the stuffing that is placed back into the shell and baked. Don’t worry if the eggplant shell tends to collapse or flatten from the weight of the stuffing. You are still able to pile quite a bit of the stuffing above the shell’s edge. Anything else left over can be placed in a casserole dish and baked as the stuffing dish it is!

Make sure you purchase small to medium-sized eggplants and they have smooth, shiny, blemish-free skins.


Ingredients:

2 small to medium eggplants

1 ½ lbs. shrimp

¼ cup vegetable/canola oil

1 onion, chopped

1 bell pepper, chopped

2 ribs celery, chopped

2 cloves garlic, chopped

4 slices day-old bread

1 Tablespoon butter

Salt, black pepper, cayenne pepper to taste

2 eggs, slightly beaten

¼ cup chopped fresh parsley

¼ cup Parmesan cheese for topping


Directions:


Cut eggplant in half length-wise. Do not peel. Drop halves in boiling water and cook for about 5 to 10 minutes or until they are just tender. Drain.

Peel and devein shrimp. Cook shrimp in a little water or sauté in a little oil until just done. Do not overcook – usually 30 seconds per side or less.

Using a knife or grapefruit spoon, remove the eggplant pulp. Leave some of the pulp around the edges to form a shell. Don’t worry if the shells don’t stand upright. You can still put the stuffing over the flat shell. Put shells in greased baking dish. Chop eggplant pulp into small pieces; reserve.

Sauté onion, bell pepper, celery and garlic in oil until soft. Add chopped pulp.

Wet the slices of bread under running water and squeeze out most of the water.

Add the bread, butter and the salt and pepper to the eggplant mixture. Stir until bread is mixed with the eggplant and seasonings. Remove from heat and gradually stir in the beaten eggs. Blend well. Add cooked shrimp and fresh parsley.

Spoon stuffing into eggplant shells. Sprinkle with Parmesan and bake in 400-degree oven until heated through, about 20 minutes.


Note: For other recipes visit my other fun blog -
Romancing The Chocolate

Recipe: Cream of Crawfish Soup

Cream of Crawfish Soup

Serves 6 to 8. Voted one of Baton Rouge, Louisiana newspaper's: The Advocate’s Best of the Best recipes in 2004.

From: “Roux to Do” cookbook, published by Covington, Louisiana Junior League


Ingredients:


1 lb. crawfish tails with fat

½ cup chopped green onions

1 cup chopped fresh mushrooms

2 cups chicken broth, heated

½ stick butter

1 onion, finely chopped (about 1 cup)

½ cup flour

2 cups whipping cream, warmed

2 cups milk, warmed

2 teaspoons salt, or to taste

2 teaspoons cracked black pepper, or to taste

2 teaspoons Creole seasoning, or to taste

2 teaspoons garlic powder

Paprika for garnish


Directions:

Process the crawfish tails, green onions and mushrooms in a food processor until ground but not mushy, adding 1 cup of the chicken broth, if needed.

Melt butter in heavy 3-quart saucepan over medium-high heat. Add chopped onion and saute for 5 minutes. Stir in the flour with a whisk. Cook 1 or 2 minutes, stirring constantly.

Add remaining chicken broth and stir until well blended. Add the ground crawfish mixture and mix well. Simmer over medium heat for 5 minutes, stirring constantly.

Add the whipping cream and milk. Season to taste with salt, pepper, Creole seasoning and garlic powder. Mix very well.

Bring to boil then reduce the heat to the lowest setting. Simmer for 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat.

Ladle into soup bowls. Garnish each lightly with a pinch of paprika.


Note: For other recipes visit my other fun blog –
Romancing The Chocolate