June 2005 Archives
We're back after vacation! Technical difficulties forced us to cancel the podcast last week (mainly because we were in Boston and the internet connection was problematic). But we're home and hot, so it's time for more cooling Summer Creole Recipes:
Marinated Shrimp
1/2 cup olive oil or salad oil
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
1/8 teaspoon white pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
1/4 cup chopped scallions
1-2 clove garlic, peeled and halved
1/2 sweet red pepper, cored,seeded and cut into short fine strips
1 teaspoon drained capers, chopped
1 stalk celery, thinly sliced crosswise
2 lbs cooked large shrimp, peeled and deveined
4 lettuce leaves (optional)
1. Combine the oil, vinegar, lemon juice, worcestershire sauce, salt, peppers and cayenne in mixing bowl.
2. Lightly beat together with a wire whisk.
3. Add the scallions, garlic, sweet peppers, capers and celery and stir to mix.
4. Fold in the shrimp.
5. Cover closely and marinate in the refrigerator for atleast 3 hours.
6. Discard the garlic before serving (unless you can eat garlic like I can).
7. If desired, serve in lettuce leaf cups.
Poached lemon chicken
Makes 12 servings
6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut lengthwise into one-inch-wide strips
3 leeks, washed, trimmed and cut lengthwise in half
2 to 3 cups chicken broth
Salt, cayenne and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Put the chicken breasts, leeks and broth in a large saucepan. Cover with chicken broth and season with salt, cayenne and black pepper. Simmer until tender. Cool. Pack in an airtight container with some of the broth to keep the chicken from drying out.
Serve with crème fraiche flavored with fresh lemon juice and chopped fresh dill, or this curry mayonnaise.
Curry mayonnaise
Makes about 1 cup
1 cup mayonnaise
1 teaspoon curry powder (try the Madras curry powder if you can find it)
1 teaspoon horseradish
1 teaspoon tarragon vinegar
1 tablespoon minced onions
¼ teaspoon hot sauce
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Combine all of the ingredients in a small mixing bowl and whisk to blend well. Store in an ice chest until ready to serve.
Double or triple the next recipe, store it in an airtight container and bury it in ice in an ice chest.
Shrimp and orzo salad
Makes 4 servings
6 cups water
2 teaspoons (or more to taste) salt
1 ½ teaspoons cayenne
2 pounds large shrimp, deheaded
½ cup orzo pasta
2 cups mayonnaise
¼ cup Creole mustard
1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh dill
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
½ pint cherry tomatoes
Freshly ground black pepper
Hot sauce to taste (optional)
Put the water, salt and cayenne in a large pot and bring to a boil. Add the shrimp, allow water to come back to a boil and cook for three to five minutes. Remove the shrimp from the pot and spread the shrimp on a large platter to cool.
Add the orzo to the water in the pot and bring to a boil. Cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 10 minutes. Drain and cool.
Shell and devein the shrimp, and cut into bite-size pieces. Combine the mayonnaise, mustard, dill, parsley and lemon juice in a large bowl and whisk to blend.
Fold in the shrimp, the orzo and the cherry tomatoes. Season with more salt if needed, the black pepper and the hot sauce if using. Store in an airtight container and chill.
Barbecued Shrimp Tangipahoa
Ingredients:
36 (16–20 count) shrimp, head-on
½ pound butter
¼ cup olive oil
¼ cup minced garlic
¼ cup minced purple shallots
½ cup sliced green onions
3 tbsps chopped basil
3 tbsps chopped oregano
3 tbsps chopped rosemary
2 tbsps chopped thyme
½ cup Worcestershire sauce
1 cup beer
salt and cracked black pepper to taste
Creole seasoning to taste
Louisiana hot sauce to taste
Method:
Preheat oven to 350°F. In a 13" x 9” baking dish with a 2-inch lip, spread shrimp out evenly. In a 1-quart saucepot, heat butter and oil over medium-high heat. Add garlic, shallots, green onions, basil, oregano, rosemary and thyme. Sauté 3–5 minutes to flavor butter with herb mixture. Blend in Worcestershire and beer. Pour hot mixture over shrimp. Season with salt, pepper, Creole seasoning and hot sauce. Overseason because shells will prevent meat from absorbing most flavors. Place in oven and stir shrimp once during cooking. Cook 15 minutes or until shrimp are pink and curled. Do not overcook, as shrimp will become hard to peel. Place 6 shrimp in each of 6 soup bowls and top with equal portions of herbed-butter sauce. Serve with New Orleans French Bread.
Creole Cream Cheese Cheesecake with Praline Sauce
Makes One 9” cheesecake
½ lb Butter
4 C Graham cracker crumbs
2 ½ lbs Cream cheese
8 oz Creole cream cheese (*must be made 3-4 days in advance)
6 ea Eggs
2 C Sugar
2 T Vanilla
2 C Pecans
2 C Praline liqueur
1 ½ C Dark karo syrup
½ lb Butter
½ C Corn starch
1 ½ C Water
1 T Vanilla
Pinch of salt
To make Graham Cracker Crust:
Melt butter and allow to slightly cool. Pour melted butter over graham cracker crumbs in a large bowl. Mix butter and graham cracker crumbs with a wooden spoon until incorporated. Spoon graham cracker mixture into a 9” spring form cheesecake pan. Firmly press the mixture across the entire bottom of the pan and about half way up the sides of the pan. Use a small measuring cup or juice glass to tightly pack the crust against the pan if necessary. Crust should be about ¼” thick to avoid crumbling.
To make Creole Cream Cheese Filling:
Preheat oven to 300°. Mix cream cheese, Creole cream cheese, eggs, sugar and vanilla in food processor until smooth, occasionally scraping down the sides of processor bowl to ensure that ingredients are thoroughly incorporated. Depending on the size of your food processor, you may need to do this in two batches. Spoon filling into graham cracker crust lined pan. Bake for 2 hours, or until set. Chill for at least 6 hours, ideally overnight, before cutting to serve.
To make Praline Topping:
Evenly spread pecans on a sheet pan and lightly toast in a 300° oven. Bring praline liqueur, karo syrup and butter to a simmer. Make a slurry (culinary term for a thin paste) with cornstarch and water. Temper slurry with a small amount of the hot liqueur, syrup and butter, then add the slurry to the remaining hot liquid, whisking continuously. Continue cooking until mixture begins to thicken. Add toasted pecans, vanilla and salt. Allow topping to cool to room temperature. Spoon over each slice of cheesecake immediately before serving.
Simple Summer Seafood
Sauteed Shrimp with Creole Mustard Sauce
2 pounds fresh frozen shrimp (30-count, head-off) or 4-5 pounds head-on raw shrimp
3-4 tbsp olive oil
creole seasoning
Rinse off the shrimp and peel them. Butterfly the shrimp by slicing them lengthwise, 1/2 to 2/3 the length of the shrimp. Saute in a medium-hot pan with the olive oil, 4-5 minutes. Sprinkle creole seasoning on the shrimp while sauteeing. Serve with Creole Mustard Sauce.
Creole Mustard Sauce
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup Creole mustard
1/2 teaspoon prepared horseradish
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
Juice of 1 lemon
Whisk all of the ingredients together until thoroughly blended. Serve as a sauce for fried soft-shell crabs or crawfish, or any fried shellfish.
Cajun Risotto Cakes With Bayou Sauce
1 package Zatarain's Jambalaya Mix
1 lb Andouille sausage, diced
½ lb crabmeat
½ cup onion, diced
1 celery stalk, diced
1 green pepper, diced
1 egg
2 Tbsp mayonnaise
4 cans chicken broth
½ stick butter
Flour
Peanut oil
Sauté sausage, onion, celery, green pepper for about 8 minutes over medium heat. Add chicken broth and Jambalaya Mix and cook for 25 minutes. Add crabmeat and continue to cook and stir occasionally for 5 minutes. Stir butter into mixture and remove from heat. Store mixture in refrigerator for at least 1 hour. Add egg and mayonnaise to mixture. The mixture should be thick by now. Sprinkle flour about ¼ inch thick on a cutting board. Spoon about a tablespoon of the mixture onto the flour to make one cake. Flatten the cake with a spatula, and flip it to dredge the other side in the flour. Heat nonstick skillet and add about ¼ inch of the peanut oil over medium heat. If the oil starts to smoke, it's too hot! Fry the cake until golden brown, about 4 minutes for the first side and 3 minutes for the second. Mix sauce ingredients and serve over cakes.
Serve with Creole Mustard Sauce
Crawfish and Artichoke Risotto with Crispy Eggplant
* 1 tablespoon olive oil
* 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
* 3/4 cup chopped onions
* 1/4 cup chopped red bell pepper
* 2 teaspoons chopped garlic
* 2 cups Arborio or Carnaroli rice
* 1 cup dry white wine
* 5 to 6 cups shrimp or chicken stock, simmering in a saucepan
* Juice of half a lemon
* 2 teaspoons salt
* Freshly ground black pepper
* 1/2 cup chopped green onions
* 2 cups artichoke hearts, cooked, trimmed and quartered
* 1/2 pound cooked crawfish tails, with fat if possible
* 1/2 cup heavy cream
* 3/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
* 1/4 cup chopped parsley
* 1/2 cup flour
* 2 tablespoons Creole seasoning
* 1 large egg
* 1/2 cup milk
* 1 cup yellow cornmeal
* 1 medium eggplant, cut into 1/2 inch batons
* 1/2 cup olive oil
In a large saucepan heat oil over medium-high heat. When oil is hot, add butter and then onions, bell pepper and garlic and cook until vegetables are wilted. Add rice and sauté for 1 to 2 minutes, stirring constantly, until grains begin to look opaque. Add wine and cook until evaporated, stirring constantly. Add 3/4 cup of the stock, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Continue to stir constantly, adding additional stock in half-cup increments as liquid is absorbed by rice. After rice has cooked for 10 minutes, add green onions and artichoke hearts and cook for 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Add crawfish tails, heavy cream, half of the parmesan cheese and parsley, and stir well to combine. Remove from heat, let sit for 5 minutes before serving, garnished with CRISPY EGGPLANT and remaining parmesan cheese.
In a bowl, combine the flour with 1 tablespoon of the Creole seasoning. In another bowl, whisk egg together with the milk. In a third bowl, combine cornmeal with remaining tablespoon of Creole seasoning.
Dredge eggplant batons in the seasoned flour. Transfer to the eggwash, then to the seasoned cornmeal, shaking off any excess.
In a large skillet over medium-high heat, heat olive oil until very hot. Add eggplant and fry, turning occasionally, until golden-brown on all sides, about 5 minutes. With a slotted spoon, remove eggplant to absorbent towels, and sprinkle with salt. Serve immediately on top of CRAWFISH-ARTICHOKE RISOTTO, garnished with remaining grated parmesan cheese.
Yield: 4 servings
I picked up some veal cutlets at the grocery monday, so that was dinner this evening. I dusted them in flour, ground thyme, and a bit of creole seasoning, then pan-fried them in just a bit of olive oil. Removing them from the pan, I deglazed it with some white wine, tossing the veal in a wam oven for a few minutes.
With the veal under control, I sauteed half an yellow onion and some green onions for a couple of minutes. I took the extra flour from the veal and mixed that with the onions to make a blonde roux, then added chicken stock and white wine, then a very ripe tomato, diced, and some sliced mushrooms. While that simmered, I removed the veal from the oven and poured the juices from that pan into the sauce, then served it all over some angel hair pasta with a nice pinot grigio.
:-)
I bought a jar of Progress Grocery's olive salad yesterday (which inspired me to do last night's YatPundit Podcast on olive salad), so today I made an improvised muffeletta. I had some french bread, ham, cheese, and the olive salad. I heated up the french bread, assembled the sandwich, and here's the result:
The olive salad, from Progress Grocery, or get the recipe from my YatPundit entry yesterday.
Assembling the sandwich:
Lunch!
Cold Creole Appetizers
Shrimp Cocktail, Shrimp Remoulade, Crawfish Pasta Salad, Ravigote Sauce, Crabmeat Ravigote, Artichokes Ravigote
The Recipes
Creole Shrimp Cocktail
Ingredients:
* 1/2 lemon, juiced
* 1 cup tomato juice
* 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
* 1 tablespoon pepper sauce
* 1/2 cup celery, finely chopped
* 2 tablespoons horseradish, grated
Directions:
Combine all ingredients and serve over shrimp in cocktail glasses. Serve with crisp crackers and lettuce salad if desired.
South Louisiana Rémoulade
PREP TIME: 30 Minutes
SERVES: 6
INGREDIENTS:
* 1½ cups heavy duty mayonnaise
* ¼ cup finely diced celery
* ½ cup finely diced green onions
* 2 tbsps finely diced garlic
* ½ cup Creole mustard
* ¼ cup finely chopped parsley
* ½ cup catsup
* ½ tbsp lemon juice
* 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
* 1 tsp Louisiana Gold Pepper Sauce
* Salt and cracked black pepper to taste
METHOD:
In a two-quart mixing bowl, combine all ingredients, whisking well to incorporate the seasonings. Once blended, cover and place in refrigerator, preferably overnight. A minimum of four hours will be required for flavor to be developed. When ready, remove from refrigerator and adjust seasonings to taste.
Commander's Ravigote Sauce
INGREDIENTS
1 cup Creole Mayonnaise
1/2 cup Creole mustard or coarse-ground German mustard
1 tablespoon capers, drained and coarsely chopped
1 medium egg, hard-cooked and diced small
1 1/2 teaspoons prepared horseradish
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
2 green onions, thinly sliced
PREPARATION:
In a large bowl, combine the mayonnaise, mustard, capers, egg, and horseradish. Season with salt and papper. Fold in the green onions. Cover and refrigerate. It will keep for a few weeks. Use in recipes as specifed.
