Recipe of the Week: Black-Eyed Peas, Creole Style

Leave a comment

Start the New Year off right with a southern meal designed to create plenty of luck for everyone at the dinner table. Black eyed peas form the solid foundation of a tasty southern New Year’s Day tradition. To bring financial good fortune, serve up a side of your favorite leafy green. Mustard greens are standard, but you can use any leafy green you love – spinach, cabbage, or the interesting greens from sweet potatoes.

What delicious New Year’s Day traditions do you enjoy?

Happy New Year!

Ingredients:

4 oz bacon, cut into 1 inch pieces
4 oz ham, cut into 1 inch pieces
1 onion, chopped
1 green pepper, deseeded and chopped
1 cup celery, chopped – include some of the delicious leaves
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 jalapeno, deseeded, and minced
2 t Creole seasoning mix
1 t dried thyme
3/4 t dried oregano
1/2 t dried basil
2 bay leaves
1 pound black-eyed peas, sorted, rinsed, and soaked
1 (15 oz) can diced tomatoes
4 cups chicken stock
Water as needed

Garnish: sliced green onion

Click here for directions.

Creole and Cajun Seasoning Mixes

Leave a comment
Preservation Hall Jazz Band pose for a Creole Christmas

Preservation Hall Jazz Band pose for a Creole Christmas

What is the difference between Creole and Cajun?

If the recipe calls for tomatoes, it’s Creole.

Creole cooks lived in the city and had greater access to and money for out of season produce. The seasonings reflect that addition.

Cajun recipes almost always use the “Holy Trinity” of vegetable seasonings – sauteed onions, bell pepper, and celery.

Mix it up fresh or stir up enough seasoning to keep a little on hand. To make the larger amount, use the measurements indicated in parentheses. Then use 2 1/2 tablespoons or more of the mix for each recipe. Otherwise, use the smaller amount listed on the left hand side for one family sized recipe.

Both mixes are low salt. If you are used to more, add a little extra while cooking.

Instead of extra salt, how about seasoning the mixture with a little music from the Preservation Hall Jazz Band! Read More

Jambalaya with Chicken and Pecan Smoked Sausage

Leave a comment

Jambalaya WM

Ingredients:

2 T olive oil
1 T butter, unsalted
12 oz pecan or garlic smoked sausage, sliced into 1/2 inch pieces
1/2 lb tasso diced
1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
2 cups onion, chopped
1 cup celery, chopped
1 large green bell pepper, chopped
1 large shallot, minced
1 T garlic cloves, minced
2 bay leaves
2 t paprika
1 1/2 t granulated onion
1 1/2 t granulated garlic
1 1/2 t dried basil
1 t chili powder
1 t dried oregano
1/2 t dried thyme
1/4 1 ground black pepper
1/4 t ground white pepper
1/4 t celery seed
1/4 t cayenne pepper, more or less to taste
1 (8 oz) can tomato sauce
1 (14.5 oz) can tomatoes, diced
2 1/2 cups chicken stock
1 1/2 cup rice

Garnish: green onion, sliced Read More

How to Make Cajun Roux

Leave a comment

Roux caramel WMMindfully meditative to create, roux is a slow cooked mixture of equal parts fat and flour used as a thickening agent. Why is this Creole instead of Cajun?

Cajun roux is made with vegetable oil.

Creole roux is made with butter, clarified or not.

The longer roux cooks, the more it deepens in color, developing an wonderful nutty flavor.

Roux does not always need to be dark. It may be blonde, caramel, peanut butter, or deep walnut. It’s all good for cooking. You decide when the roux is done. It all depends upon the recipe it will enhance, your palate, and the time you have for cooking.

My favorite all-purpose roux is a beautiful caramel (like the one to the left). It can be made in about 12-15 minutes. Dark walnut roux requires patience as it it can take up to 45 minutes of steady stirring as it finishes to nutty perfection.

Creole Roux

Ingredients:

1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup all-purpose flour Read More

Creole Chicken and Rice Stew

Leave a comment

946e21ba66e97c01cf30c86b0dea8b96_fj3f

Serves 8
Ingredients:

1 T olive oil
2 cups carrots, sliced
1/2 cup celery, sliced – include a bunch of the leaves
1 small onion, chopped, approximately 1 cup
1/2 bell pepper, chopped
1 heaping T fresh chopped garlic
1 bay leaf
2 T Creole Seasoning mix
1 t dried basil
1/4 t fresh cracked black pepper, or to taste
2 cups chicken stock, low to no sodium
28 oz tomatoes, hand squished
1 cup brown rice
1 1/2 lb boneless skinless chicken breast, approximately 2 breasts
Dashes of Tabasco sauce to taste
2 T parsley
2 green onions, sliced Read More

Shrimp Po Boy

Leave a comment

Shrimp Po Boy2 WM

Ingredients:

5 garlic cloves, peeled and quartered on the diagonal
1/2 cup butter
1 t dried parsley
2 lb large shrimp, peeled and deveined, head and tails removed
1 T paprika
1 T garlic powder
2 t onion powder
1 t salt
1 t ground black pepper
3/4 teaspoon cayenne
1 t oregano
1 t thyme
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup yellow cornmeal
1 t paprika
1 t garlic
1 t onion powder
Pinch of cayenne
6 French bread sandwich rolls, crispy outside, soft inside
Vegetable oil, enough to keep 1 inch deep in a pan for frying

Toppings: mayonnaise, Louisiana red pepper sauce, lettuce, tomato, dill pickles slices Read More