Red Beans and Rice

I went to New Orleans for a bachelor party in March and when we weren't out on the town we actually got to enjoy some amazing Creole and Cajun food. My favourite was Red Beans and Rice. This was traditionally a "wash day" meal because you could throw everything in the pot and head down to the river or wherever people did laundry back in the day. Usually people use leftover ham from the previous meal but Jess hates ham so I ended up using bacon and it turned out great. I love the smokey flavour of the sausage combined with the creaminess of the bean sauce.  

Ingredients

• 1 pound dried red beans
• ½ pound chopped bacon
• 1 chopped yellow onion
• 2 stalks chopped celery
• 1 chopped green pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• Pinch cayenne
• 3 bay leaves
• 2 tablespoons chopped parsley
• 1 pound smoked sausage (see my Andouille recipe)
• 3 tablespoons chopped garlic
• 10 cups chicken stock
• 4 cups cooked white rice
• 1/4 cup chopped green onions 

 Here is a picture of one of the post cards I got framed after we got back:

Directions

1. Place the beans in a large bowl or pot and cover with water by 2 inches.
2. Let soak for 8 hours or overnight. Drain and set aside.
3. In a large pot, cook the bacon over medium-high heat.
4. Add the onion, celery, and bell pepper to the pot. Season with the salt, pepper, and cayenne, and cook about 4 minutes.
5. Add the bay leaves, parsley, sausage, and cook, stirring, to brown the sausage, about 4 minutes.
6. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute.
7. Add the beans and stock and bring to a boil.
8. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the beans are tender and starting to thicken, about 3 hours.
9. Remove from the heat and with the back of a heavy spoon, mash about 1/2 of the beans against the side of the pot.
10. Continue to cook until the beans are tender and creamy, 20 minutes.
11.  Remove from the heat and remove the bay leaves.
12. Serve over rice and garnish with green onions.

 

Cajun Style Andouille Sausage

This was my first foray into meat smoking and I think it was very successful. I will definitely change a few thing next time but was very happy with the final product, (next time I will use pork casings instead of the collagen ones I had on hand, I will use curing salts, and I will get my meat from a butcher instead of using the prepackaged pork that has a lesser fat content). The smokey flavor mixed with the spice of these sausages is mouth watering.
I fell in love with Andouille on a trip to New Orleans for a bachelor party... despite spending an inordinate amount of time on Bourbon Street we actually ate some amazing food from the area including dishes that feature Andouille as a key ingredient. My favourite dish was Red Beans and Rice with smoked sausage.
To make this sausage it ate up most of a day but was well worth the effort.

Ingredients:

• 5lbs ground pork butt
• 3 tbsp smoked paprika
• 5 - 6 feet pork casings
• 2 tbsp minced garlic
• 2 tbsp salt
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 1 tbsp black pepper
• 1 tsp cayenne pepper (2 if you want to amp it up a bit)
• 1 tsp red pepper flakes
• 1/2 - 3/4 of a light beer
• 1 tsp curing salts (this is optional if you "hot smoke" your sausage, I didn't use it this time but will in the future because it cuts the risk of pesky things like botulism)
• 3-4 cups Pecan wood chips

Directions:

1. Prepare your sausage casings for stuffing according to the suppliers instructions.
2. Mix the meat and spices thoroughly and refrigerate for a couple hours to have them blend.
3. Soak your wood chips in water or beer for 30 min then get your smoker ready to go (I smoked mine on a natural gas bbq).
4. Smoke your sausage at 170 F to 250 F (my bbq was pretty constant at 200 F on the lid thermometer, I'm guessing it was probably closer to 225 F under the lid) until the internal temp of the sausages reads 165 F. My sausage took about 3-4hrs.

Sweet Buttermilk Biscuits

I slightly modified my biscuit recipe to make more of a cakey biscuit that is perfect to pair with jams and preserves and scarf down with a cup of tea.

Ingredients:

• 1 3/4 cup flour
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 2tbsp white sugar
• 1 tsp cinnamon (extra to top)
• 1 tsp brown sugar (extra to top)
• 6 tbsp unsalted butter (cold and cubed)
• 3/4 to 1 cup buttermilk

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.
2. Line a baking tray with parchment paper.
3. Add the dry ingredients to the food processor with the butter.
4. Pulse the processor until the dough looks like wet sand.
5. Add most of the milk and pulse a couple times until you have a wet dough.
6. Turn the dough out onto a floured counter top.
7. With your hands, press the dough out until it is around half an inch thick. 
8. Fold it over on itself and repeat (I fold it 7 times but that's just cause I like the number 7).
9. It will pretty much double in height in the oven so pat it down to half of the final height you want.
10. Cut it into rounds using a cookie/dough cutter or a drinking glass (If you have nothing round I guess you could make square ones)
11. Repeat the process with the scraps but try not to work the dough too much.
12. Top with sugar and cinnamon.
13. Bake the biscuits for around ten minutes (try to keep an eye on the bottoms because they cook pretty quick, I ended up broiling them for a minute to get the tops golden).
14. Try not to burn your mouth as you start stuffing them in.  

Spaghetti Sauce with Corned Beef

I get nostalgic thinking about this recipe because it was the standard spaghetti sauce recipe that would be simmering away on the stove when I was a kid. It wasn't until I was older that I realized that everyone else wasn't on the same page as my family for their spaghetti nights.
This is actually one of the oldest recipes in my family passed down a few generations. It was born out of the post WWII era of affordable (canned) foods and is tastier than you would imagine.
It can be thrown together and heated in about 45min. I actually have an affinity for canned/processed meat and think they can actually be enjoyable (in moderation).

Ingredients:

• 2 cans tomato soup
• 1 can tomato paste
• 1 can corned beef (Hereford is my brand of choice)
• 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
• 3 bay leaves
• 2 tbsp chili powder
• 1 tbsp garlic powder
• 1 tbsp onion powder
• 1 tsp red chili flakes
• basil or oregano (fresh or dry if you want)

Directions:

1. Mix everything in in a sauce pan and simmer on low until heated thoroughly. 
2. Remove bay leaves and serve hot topped with extra cheese. 

Stuffed Potatoes

There is something about the creaminess of the filling mixed with the crust of melted cheese and potato skin that makes me drool over stuffed potatoes. You can pretty much eat them as their own meal depending on what you put in them. This is a fairly standard recipe with cheese, bacon, onion and sour cream but you really don't need more than that for the potato to compete as the tastiest part of the meal. 

I try to make sure that the skin is seasoned well so that the whole thing can be eaten. There is nothing more disappointing than a hollowed out skin sitting on a plate after someone abandoned it for the garbage. 

I find that it is easier to make these over two days (one day to bake and the second to fill).

Ingredients:

• 2 Russet potatoes
• 1/2 a package of bacon
• 2 scallions, chopped
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
• Salt, pepper, and garlic salt

Directions:

1. Clean the potatoes then prick them all over with a fork (this will keep them from exploding in the oven).
2. Coat with olive oil, salt, pepper, and garlic salt.
3. Bake on a cookie sheet at 350 F for an hour to an hour and fifteen minutes.
4. When cool enough - slice each in half lengthwise and scoop the insides into a mixer.
5. Cook the bacon until crisp then soften the onion in the bacon grease (I dumped all the bacon grease in with the potato filling).
6. Chop the bacon in to small pieces.
7. Add the bacon, onions, sour cream and cheese to the mixer.
8. Mix thoroughly.
9. Re-fill the skins with the improved potato.
10. Sprinkle a little extra cheese on the tops.
11. Heat the potatoes at 350 F for about 30 min.
12. When they are starting to look bubbly turn the broiler on low until the tops are nicely browned.
13. Serve hot (not molten hot) with sour cream and fresh scallion.

 

Steakhouse Cheese Bread

 

A couple of weeks ago my friend took me for dinner at Caesar's Steakhouse & Lounge in downtown Calgary. I have been there a handful of times in the past and love the food and throwback atmosphere. The steak is always great but the thing I crave the most is their cheese and garlic bread. I have a feeling that they are so good mostly because they are doused in butter, garlic, and cheese. 
Jess and I went to Canmore this past weekend made a "steakhouse" dinner including Teriyaki steak and mushrooms, stuffed potatoes (recipe coming), and my version of Caesar's cheese bread. I don't think their recipe includes the cheese sauce that I used but it ended up being very tasty, easy to prepare, and different than the usual.

*** If you are at all concerned about calories, salt, fat, carbs or your general health I recommend avoiding this recipe at all costs... if you are a glutton like me continue on to your destiny.

Ingredients:

• 1 loaf of French bread
• 1 can cheese sauce/soup (I used Campbell’s Condensed Cheddar Cheese soup)
• Parmesan cheese (I used a 1/3 of a shaker of Kraft Parmesan Cheese)
• 1/2 cup melted butter

Directions:

1. Slice bread lengthwise. 
2. Coat both sides with the melted butter.
3. Turn your broiler on low.
4. Apply a thick layer of cheese sauce. 
5. Shake a thick layer of Parmesan over the cheese. 
6. Put in oven until the Parmesan browns and it looks like boiling lava. 
7. Serve hot.

Caesar Salad Dressing

Living in one of the best beef producing areas of the world I grew up with an affinity for "Steakhouse Classics". Our family menu would usually consist of steak marinated in teriyaki sauce, fried mushrooms, stuffed potatoes, bread and Caesar salad. My Dad was the grill master, my mom would make the potatoes and my brother always made the salad dressing. I usually would just show up and stuff my face.
This dressing recipe is not for the faint of heart (excuse the idiom) because it includes two things that make some people squeamish and makes me salivate. Raw egg yolk and anchovies are two of the stars of this dressing and quietly make your taste buds explode without realizing you are devouring raw unborn chicken mixed with preserved oily fish.
I once watched a documentary on these old Spanish ladies hand stuffing tins of anchovies and was amazed at how methodical they were. The taste can be overpowering but if you find the right balance they can make a great addition to many meals.

Ingrediants:

• 2-3 cloves of garlic
• 1 egg yolk
• 1 Tbsp lemon juice
• 1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• 6 Tbsp olive oil
• 2 Tbsp red wine vinegar
• 2-3 anchovy fillets
• 1 cup parmesan
• fresh ground pepper

Directions:

1. Place everything but the cheese in a food processor and puree.
2. Toss the salad with the cheese and dressing.

 

Potato, Jalapeno, and Cheddar Perogies

Perogies are one of my favourite foods. They make me nostalgic for when I was a kid and our family would make sausage and perogies in mass quantities. They are versatile because you can put anything you want in them.
One of my best friends had a garden on his patio this summer and he has been dropping of baggies of herbs and veggies periodically over the summer. He recently dropped off a bag of home grown jalapeno peppers. I was shocked that you could grow them in Calgary and am always amazed when someone can spend time growing something. I have no problem cooking all day because I know that I am going to stuff my face at the end of it but gardening is so delayed that I couldn't handle spending time waiting months to enjoy something.
These were so good we ended up making perogies again this week. I used the dough recipe from a previous post and made 2.5 dozen.

Ingredients:

• 2 russet potatos
• 3 jalapeno peppers (Seeds removed)
• 3 cups cheddar cheese
• 1/2 cup butter
• 2 cloves garlic
• salt and pepper

Directions:

1. Peel the potatos then cube and boil them until soft.
2. Melt the butter in the microwave.
3. In a food processor puree the jalapenos, butter and garlic.
4. In a stand mixer combine all the ingredients until mixed well.
5. Cool for 45 min in the fridge so that it hold together when filling the dough.

 

Hoisin Beef Short Ribs

This recipe is a mishmash of a bunch of different food inspirations and can generically be labelled as an "Asian" meat that will be tasty in almost anything. I decided to make beef short ribs because Jess and I were reminiscing about these steamed buns we used to get in New Zealand for a buck at this International Cafeteria near our apartment.
I don't have a steamer so I decided to bake the buns using the recipe for Chinese Cocktail Buns I used a while ago. I had extra meat while I was cooking and ended up making some Banh Mi subs that were amazing. After making the Banh Mi I had an even better idea and cut the buns in half and stuffed in the carrots, cilantro, cucumber, and other sandwich fixins to make mini Banh Mi subs. I didn't get a photo because we had company over but they were fun little snacks to fill up on.

Ingredients:

• 3 lb boneless beef short ribs 
• 1 medium onion
• 2 medium carrots
• 2 ribs celery
• 1 1/2 cup hoisin sauce
• 2 cup beef stock
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 3/4 cup orange juice
• 1/2 can tomato paste
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• 2 cups water
• Salt and pepper
   

Directions:

1. Heat 2 tbsp oil in a large, heavy pot over medium-high (I used the liner to our slow cooker). Sear the ribs 2-3 minutes per side.
2. Add  the onion, carrots, and celery until soft and a bit browned, 10 minutes.
3. Add the tomato paste and stir to coat. Cook for 2 minutes.
4. De-glaze the pan with the beef stock.
5. Add the hoisin, orange juice, brown sugar, and water. Bring to a simmer.
6. Cook in the slow cooker for 4 hours, stirring every hour.
7. Remove the ribs and chop to serve.

Sweet as...

Vector Crunch French Toast

I am sorry for being absent on the blog but I've been busy since our little baby Jack was born. To get back in the swing of things I figured I would start out with something simple with ingredients that most people would have in their kitchen. I crusted French toast with cereal and it was the perfect way to take a fairly pedestrian breakfast and make it a memorable one.

Ingredients:

• some form of sliced bread
• 3 eggs
• splash of milk
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 2 cups crushed cereal (I used Vector)
• syrup and jam to top it

Directions:

1. I only had two cups of cereal so I just took the bag out of the box and smashed it up on the counter.
2. In a bowl mix up the eggs, milk, vanilla, and cinnamon.
3. Dunk the bread in the wet mix then coat it in the cereal crumbs.
4. Brown the bread in a buttered skillet then top with syrup and jam.