Cajun Cake Recipe

Though it has pineapple and coconut in it, it doesn't have a tropical island taste to it. The pineapple is in the cake, and if we didn't tell you it was in there I am not sure you would know. It is subtle. The topping is reminiscent of a traditional southern pecan praline and is a perfect accompaniment to a cup of chicory coffee.

Cajun Cake

Ingredients

3 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups white sugar
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 (20 ounce) can crushed pineapple with juice
3/4 cup white sugar
3/4 cup evaporated milk
1/2 pound butter
1 cup chopped pecans
1 1/2 cups flaked coconut

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

2. Grease and flour a 9x13 inch pan.
3. In a large bowl, sift together flour, 1 1/2 cup sugar, salt and baking soda. 

Baking with your  kids is a great way to connect with them

4. Add eggs, pineapple and juice. Mix at low speed until well blended. 

5. Pour batter into prepared 9x13 inch pan and bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 30 to 35 minutes or until done. 

6. Have topping ready when cake is done.

To Make Topping: 

1. In a saucepan, combine milk, 3/4 cup sugar and butter. 

2. Bring to a boil and cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly.

3.  Add pecans and coconut and combine. 

4. Remove from heat.
5. When cake comes out of the oven, Pour on the topping and carefully spread on while cake is still hot.

A little too much topping, oh well gave Tara an
excuse to give it a through taste test. 

Enjoy!

Southern Cornbread Recipe

Nothing says the South like cornbread. This recipe is for an 8 inch skillet and makes a thick cornbread with lots of soft insides. You should fill to within 1/2 to 1 inch of top of the rim. If you use a larger skillet you will get a thinner, crunchier bread. Which, as we all know, isn't as good for sopping up your gumbo.

Cornbread Recipe

Ingredients

2 cups cornmeal
2/3 cup flour
1-1/2 tablespoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
Dash of black pepper
1 and 1/2 cups milk
3 to 4 tablespoons of bacon drippings (I used cooking oil, because seriously, who has bacon drippings handy?)

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees

1.  Put the bacon drippings or oil (seriously...let me know if you use bacon drippings) in the skillet and use a paper towel to coat the interior. Place the skillet in the oven to warm up while you're making the batter.

2.  In a medium size bowl, combine all the dry ingredients and mix well.

3.  Add about 1/2 cup of the milk and stir.

4.  Remove skillet from oven and slowly add about 1 or 2 tablespoon of the hot oil (bacon grease) from the skillet into the batter, stirring well. The skillet and bacon grease should be very hot but not smoking.

Sprinkle the inside of the skillet with (dry) cornmeal and return to oven. (The skillet really is touchy in this recipe.)

5.  Add milk to the batter until it looks like thick pancake mix. If the mix is too thick, add more milk. If the mixture is too thin, add more cornmeal.

6.  Remove the skillet from oven and pour the batter in the skillet. 

7.  Bake at 400 degrees approximately 25 minutes or until the top is a gorgeous golden brown.

Enjoy!

Crab Cakes Recipe

In my opinion, the best crab cakes are more crab and less "cake." I want the ratio of filler to crab to be just enough to hold the shape. These beauties are all about the crab and simple enough to be made while some steaks are perfected on the BBQ out back. I made one batch and before the cooled down, they were gone.

Ingredients

1 pound crabmeat, picked free of shells
1/3 cup crushed Ritz crackers
3 green onions (green and white parts), finely chopped
1/2 cup finely chopped bell pepper
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1 egg
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon dry mustard (same as ground mustard)
1/2 lemon, juiced
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon salt
Flour, for dusting
1/2 cup cooking oil

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350
2. In a large bowl, mix together all ingredients, except for the flour and oil. Shape into patties and dust with flour.

3. Place patties on a lightly greased cook sheet. 

4. Bake in the oven for 15 minutes. Baking them firms up the patties and helps them stay together a bit.

5. Remove from oven.
6. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. 

7. When oil is hot, carefully place crab cakes, in batches, in pan and fry until browned, about 2 to 3 minutes. 

8. Carefully flip crab cakes and fry on other side until golden brown, about 2 minutes.

These were devoured before I could snap pictures! 

These were supper simple and were delicious! I will definitely make these again.

Enjoy!!

Louisiana Red Beans and Rice Recipe

We have been getting together monthly for the last six months and have had very few (two?) recipes that did not turn out as planned. That number increased to three with my attempt at red beans and rice.

This recipe was off to a rocky start when I attempted to locate a ham hock at my local grocers. I walked around the store while texting Mandy trying to figure out if ground mustard was the same as dry mustard (for a different recipe) when I could not find a ham hock. I did find a butcher, but I stumbled over my words and asked for a ham shank.

He hesitated in his reply, "Um, we don't carry those unless it is the holidays." 

"Isn't it a bone? Like for seasoning soups?" 

"Nope." 

"Let me consult the recipe. I meant ham hock, do you carry ham hocks?" 

"Yes, over here. But you want this instead," pointing to a pork shank. I am pretty sure the butcher feared for my dinner guests as I walked away.

When it was time to eat, the beans were still crunchy. Ick! I followed the recipe, I swear! The only thing I can think is that my crock pot should have been on High instead of Low. I left them in the crock pot for an additional 8 hours overnight on low and it was much better. (As a result, I am changing the recipe to reflect 8 hours on high, rather than low.)

Red Beans and Rice Recipe

Ingredients

1 pound dried red beans, soaked overnight
10 cups water
1 pound andouille sausage, sliced into rounds
1 large sweet onion, chopped
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped
8 cloves garlic, chopped
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
6 fresh basil leaves, chopped
1 ham hock
4 cups cooked rice

Directions

1.  Place the beans and water into a slow cooker. 

2.  Brown sausage in a skillet. Remove with a slotted spoon and transfer to the slow cooker. 

3.  Add onion, green pepper, jalapeno pepper and garlic to the drippings. Cook and stir until tender. Transfer everything from the skillet to the slow cooker.

4.  Season the mixture with pepper and Creole seasoning. Add the fresh basil leaves and ham hock. 

5.  Cover and cook on low for about 8 hours, or until beans are tender. If the bean mixture seems too watery, take the lid off the slow cooker and set heat to High to cook until they reach a creamy - not crunchy!! - texture.

Cheesy Grits Recipe

The kids thought this twist on a Southern staple tasted like macaroni and cheese; the adults agreed. With a creamy, cheesy texture even one-year-old Holden couldn't get enough.


Never cooked grits? Scared to cook grits? These are so easy Sarah made them with a newborn on her chest.

Cheese Grits

Ingredients


2 cups whole milk
2 cups water

1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 cup coarse ground cornmeal
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
4 ounces sharp Cheddar, shredded

Directions

1.  Place the milk, water, and salt into a large, heavy-bottomed pot over medium-high heat and bring to a boil. Sarah's Le Creuset Dutch oven worked perfectly.

2.  Once the milk mixture comes to a boil, gradually add the cornmeal while continually whisking. 

3.  Decrease the heat to low and cover. Cook for 20 - 25 minutes, whisking the mixture every 3 or 4 minutes until mixture is creamy.

4.  Remove from the heat, add the pepper and butter, and whisk to combine. Once the butter is melted, gradually add in the cheese.

5.  Serve immediately or as soon as you can wrangle your Supper Club friends to the table from the roof top perch where they were enjoying a Hurricane.

The kids inhaled these!

Enjoy!

Sausage and Chicken Gumbo Recipe

Sausage and Chicken Gumbo Recipe

Recipe


4 green onions, sliced, white and green parts 
Chopped fresh parsley 
1 Tbsp Gumbo File
1 14 ounce can stewed tomatoes with juice 
5 beef bouillon cubes 
1/4 bunch flat leaf parsley, stems and leaves 
3 stalks celery chopped 
8 cloves garlic minced 
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce 
1 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped 
1 large onion, chopped  
1/2 cup all-purpose flour 
1/4 cup vegetable oil 
2 lb smoked sausage, cut into 1/4 inch slices
Salt and pepper 
4 large boneless chicken breast halves 
4 cup hot water 

Directions

Prepare roux in a cast iron dutch oven. 

While the roux is cooking in the oven, season the chicken with salt and pepper. Pan fry the chicken until browned on both sides and remove. Add the sausage and cook until browned, then remove.

Once the roux is complete, remove the pot from the oven. 

Add the onion, garlic, green pepper and celery and cook for 10 minutes. 

Add Worcestershire sauce, salt and pepper, to taste and the 1/4 bunch parsley. Cook, while stirring frequently, for 10 minutes. 

Add 4 cups hot water and bouillon cubes, whisking constantly. 

Add the chicken and sausage. 

Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat, cover, and simmer for 45 minutes. Add tomatoes and Gumbo file. 

Cover and simmer for 1 hour.

Serve over rice. 

Behind The Scenes: The Roux

I wasn't too concerned when I picked the gumbo. I knew (from watching all of those 30-minute meals with Rachel Ray) that if I prepped as much as I could the night before I would be that much ahead in the morning. The day before, I prepped all of the vegetables. I was a chopping fiend. My 4 year old sous chef even helped.

When evening fell all of the veggies were chopped and tucked away in labeled containers in the fridge, dread settled in as I climbed into bed. ROUX! HOW AM I GOING TO MAKE ROUX??

I started posting on Facebook as the night hours ticked by.

My mother, the southern cook, was out of state and only offered, "I should have taught you honey."

Thanks for the support mom!

Meghan posted that she used Alton Brown's oven technique.

I quickly searched the web for more information on this proven technique (well, Meghan said it was proven). I located a video of the technique, it look easy enough and I am visual learner.

I ran to the store first thing in the morning and purchased a cast iron pot. Luckily I found a scale in the kitchen and was able to weigh out the flour. This was the simplest and easiest way to make roux. Who knew? Well, Meghan did...and I am so grateful she did.

When I spoke to my mother a few days later I was so proud to tell her it worked, and teach her something new about cooking roux!


The ingredients: 

This is part of the magic...measure your ingredients by weight rather than by volume. If you are scratching your head and wondering what that means, put away your measuring cups and pull out your food scale.

3/4 oz oil

3/4 oz flour


The Recipe:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and place the oven rack in the center position.

2. In a cast iron dutch oven, whisk the flour and oil together until they form a thick paste. It will resemble the paste your used in kindergarden, the kind they told you not to eat but you did anyway and then wondered why you did because it tasted nasty. Yep, that stuff. 

 
3. Place in the oven and cook for 30 minutes.

It will not appear much different within the first 30 minutes
rest assured you are on the right track. 

4. Whisk and return to oven for 30 more minutes.

5. Whisk again and return to oven for 30 more minutes. The roux should begin to darken at this point.

Notice the roux has begun to darken,
it will also have a nutty scent to it. 

7. Roux is done when it is medium brown to red brick in color.

8. Remove from oven and use immediately. Smile to yourself because to just made roux and didn't burn it!

Enjoy!