Friday Treats

It’s Friday night!!!
Got something to share?

Alright, so I’m going to give up some of my best Creole Recipes for tonight’s Treats.  The first one is a shrimp recipe with a ‘secret’ ingredient.  No one will guess there’s a bit of cinnamon in it usually.  I love this one.  Tom used

'Creole Dancer' by Henri Matisse

to serve this one up at the Flamingo.   It’s a bit of roux, so you have to remember to pull the warm ingredients off the flame before you mix in the spices or they’ll cake up.  It’s great for this time of year.  I also add a little red crushed pepper to it but that’s up to you.  I’ve found my tolerance for hot stuff is getting pretty high.

Shrimp Supreme

(serves around 4-6 people)

1/4 cup onion, chopped

2 tablespoons celery, minced

1/4 cup butter

1/4 cup flour

1 -2 tablespoons chili powder

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1/2 tsp cinnamon

2 cups tomatoes (creole if you can find them),peeled

1 pound cooked shrimp, peeled and deveined

Cook onion and the celery in butter until soft and translucent.  Do not let them brown.  Lift the pan from the heat and let it settle a little and begin mixing in the flour, chili powder, salt and cinnamon.  Add the tomatoes and stir them until they blend in with the rest of the stuff.  Then, put it back on the heat and let it simmer at a really low temperature about 10 minutes.  Stir so it cooks evenly ever so often.  Make sure it’s not too hot or the bottom will burn or stick.  Right before you’re going to serve it, drop in the shrimp.  I usually serve this with rice or some thick crusty Italian bread to get up the red gravy.

This one I usually take with me to balcony parties on Mardi Gras Morning and I take them to Vaughn’s or BJ’s too for game days.

Spicy Ham Fritters

(makes about 20-30)

2/3 cup flour sifted

1 tsp baking powder

1/3 cup milk

1 egg

1 tablespoon aromatic bitters

2 cups ground cooked ham

1/2 cup crushed pineapple, drained

Fat for deep frying

(Optional if you’re keen on hot stuff: Cayenne pepper for sprinkling and/or Louisiana Hot Sauce for dripping)

Sift the flour with the baking powder in a mixing bowl.  Add milk, egg, bitters and mix until smooth.  Fold in the ham and the pineapple.  Drop by teaspoonfuls into deep hot fat (about 350 F).  Fry them until they are golden brown and then drain them on paper towels.

Okay, one more for tonight.  This is another good seasonal recipe. I’ve tried it with a bunch of different squash including our local favorites that we all have in our backyards, the marvelous alligator pear or Mirliton.

Squash and Pecan Casserole

Opps! It was last week ... yall missed it!!!

(about 4- 6 servings)

3 1/2 cups acorn squash, cooked and mashed

1/2 cup coarsely chopped pecans

1/3 cup honey

1/4 cup butter (melted)

grated rind of 1 lime or lemon (about 2 tablespoons)

1 tablespoon lime or lemon juice

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp nutmeg

1/4 tsp ground cloves

1/8 tsp white pepper

Whole pecans for garnish

Combine all ingredients except the whole pecans.  Blend them together completely.  Spoon the mixture into a 1 1/2 quart greased casserole dish. Top the mixture with the whole pecans.  Bake it at 375 for about 20 to 30 minutes.

It makes a great holiday take along dish too and if you use Mirlitons you can consider yourself an honorary Bywater Bohemian.


88 Comments on “Friday Treats”

  1. grayslady's avatar grayslady says:

    These sound wonderful, dakini. Do you go to a butcher to purchase ground ham? How finely should it be ground?

    • dakinikat's avatar dakinikat says:

      I have an old meat grinder that I got from my grandmother. I just grind it so that it looks like hamburger and I use leftover ham from holiday hams.

      • grayslady's avatar grayslady says:

        We had one of those when I was growing up, but since my mother never knew how to cook, I don’t think it was ever used!

        • dakinikat's avatar dakinikat says:

          lol! My dad used to make ground beef sandwiches with it. He’d take leftover potroast and grind it up and then add a little mayo. I used to love them!

          • Dee's avatar Dee says:

            What, no chopped pickles in the ground beef? Maybe its a German-American thing.

            I am always amused when I go into a grocery store in Kansas and look at the pickle choices. Where I live now in N.C. I have about 70% fewer choices. Whenever anyone opens my refrigerator they ask why I have so many different kinds of pickles. I always ask why they have so few.

            Obama is a Judas Goat

          • bostonboomer's avatar bostonboomer says:

            Here in Indiana where I am now, there is a butcher shop that makes ham loaf with ground ham. It is fantastic! I’d like to try making it myself but I wasn’t sure how to get the ground ham. I was thinking of asking at the grocery store if they would do it for me.

          • Dee's avatar Dee says:

            BB – You can probably find one of the old style meat grinders at the Goodwill store or a junky antique store. I see them regularly.

  2. Pips's avatar Pips says:

    Can’t compete with the creole recipes – though this is southern too and my personal all (and old!) time favorite turkey stuffing. From Marion Brown’s “The Southern Cook Book”, but I found the exact same recipe, introduction and all, online so that saved me the typing. 🙂

    Pecan Turkey Stuffing

    The most delicious stuffing that has ever been made. A choice old Charleston recipe.

  3. dakinikat's avatar dakinikat says:

    Okay, this is a funny,feel good kind of thing and more on technology and kitties!!!

    Inventor/robotics expert Scott Harris, head of the Boise, Iowa-based company Apriori Control, has created a Web-controlled system that manipulates robotic arms. While waiting for more profitable clients, Harris and Apriori have decided to lend the tech to Idaho and Oregon humane societies. And what does that mean for the rest of your work day? You get to play with kittens!

    Users queue up for 120 seconds of kitty mania, during which they guide a robot arm and watch, in real time, as a piece of string swings and teases a feline. At the time of writing, six people were currently in line to interact with cats, and there are two black cats and one tiny tabby having a go. The interface is clean and simple. You click up and down to move the robo-toys, and swap to different activities. We didn’t experience any video lag watching the kitties pounce and play. (Our Internet Explorer did crash a couple times, but that just might be IE).

    play with kitties from your desk at work!!!!

  4. cwaltz's avatar cwaltz says:

    Okay, I’ll risk looking like the cooking novice that I am. What are aromatic bitters and where do I find them at the grocers? The ham fritters sound like something I could make here and serve with mac and cheese and not have everyone turn their noses up at them. I don’t do seafodd that much anymore since they made a mess of the Gulf. I’m not convinced that the oil in the food chain is okay. How sad is it that I have no faith in the FDA? Particularly when I’m a person who believes in good government. Sigh

    • dakinikat's avatar dakinikat says:

      They’re used by bars for mixed drinks. You can find them around the bar mixer stuff.

      • cwaltz's avatar cwaltz says:

        Does it qualify as alcohol? Our stores aren’t allowed to carry any of the hard stuff. You have to go specifically to an ABC store(state run).

        • dakinikat's avatar dakinikat says:

          it depends … usually the Angostura doesn’t but I suppose it depends on the store and maybe the county?

        • HT's avatar HT says:

          I don’t know about down there, but here you can get angostura bitters in the grocery store.

          • cwaltz's avatar cwaltz says:

            Beer and wine coolers and wine are the only thing VA stores carry, the rest is controlled by state run liquor stores. Although that could be changing soon if the current governor has his say. He wants to sell the control and put the money in VA coffers.

          • cwaltz's avatar cwaltz says:

            Yep the money from the liquor stores are used by the state although I’m not sure if it is that profitable since the state would have to pay for rent, utilities, and employees to man the stores. The biggest benefit is that it helps keep the harder stuff from the kids or at least that was what I read as a pro for keeping it in state hands.

            • dakinikat's avatar dakinikat says:

              I used to live in Edina MN and they funded the schools primarily from their two liquor stores. You had to buy everything there. City was totally dry otherwise.

        • bostonboomer's avatar bostonboomer says:

          It isn’t alcoholic. You can buy bitters in the grocery store in the section with tabasco, steak sauce, worcester sauce, that kind of thing.

  5. HT's avatar HT says:

    I still have one of those meat grinders although I haven’t used it much lately. This recipe is really rich, but honestly, it’s amazing.

    Chicken in a wine sauce (don’t have a name for it, but trust me, it’s delicious0
    6 to 12 chicken breasts – boned and skinned (amount of meat depends on the number of people at the table)
    4 cloves of garlic
    4 tbsp of butter
    1/2 cup of dry sherry
    1/2 cup of diced onions
    3/4 lb of mushrooms, sliced
    2 tbsp flour
    2 cups chicken broth
    1/2 cup dry white wine
    1/2 tsp salt
    1/2 cup shredded cooked ham (optional)
    1 cup seedless grapes
    2 cups hollandaise sauce.

    bone and skin chicken. Season with als and pepper and crushed garlic. Leave for 15 minutes, then cover with flour. Heat 3 TBSP butter (or oil) and saute chicken pieces till browned. Place in warmed casserole dish and pour sherry over chicken. Put in oven on warm
    Melt 1 TBSP butter in skillet and saute onion till soft. Add sliced mushrooms and cook 2 minutes. Blend in flour and gradually add chicken broth. Stir till smooth. Add wine, salt and ham. Pour sauce over chicken and bake covered in a 350 degree oven for 1-1/2 hour . Uncover, stir in the grapes and top with the hollandaise. Broil until the hollandaise turns brown and bubbles.

    • dakinikat's avatar dakinikat says:

      ooooh, anything with that much garlic has to be wonderful!!!

      • cwaltz's avatar cwaltz says:

        Heh, in my house I have to sneak garlic in. My husband says it has a bitter, metallic taste. I put it in some spicy marinade the other day and he could tell and that was just 2 cloves. I can’t imagine what he’d do if I put 4 in something.

        • dakinikat's avatar dakinikat says:

          My rule is there is no thing as too much garlic!!!

        • HT's avatar HT says:

          Once garlic is baked, it loses that “metallic” taste and just adds flavor. That’s why roasted garlic is so popular.

          • dakinikat's avatar dakinikat says:

            Interesting, I never thought about that.

          • cwaltz's avatar cwaltz says:

            Hubby is quite the charecter. He’s positively a food loyalist and is probably the least adventurous person I know culinary wise.

            If it weren’t for me I have little doubt he’d still be ordering a #7 at the little mexican eatery we frequent. The only reason he knows he loves chorizo or carne asada diablo is because I like to order everything off a menu at least once. Once he falls in love with an ingredient or recipe though…..watchout, you’ll be eating it for 2 weeks straight. It’s quite endearing when it isn’t maddening.

  6. cwaltz's avatar cwaltz says:

    I’m more of a recipe reader than a creator. Usually I’ll tweak recipes I find online. My favorite sites are places like pioneer woman, joy the baker, annies eats and several of the mommy sites. This week I’ve been doing alot of freezer prep so I’ve been hanging with Jess at Life as Mom who has a freezer plan and links to others with freezer plans. I’ve also been on the hunt for a decent bread machine dinner roll recipe so that I don’t have to have any mono or di whatsitnots in my rosemary butter sea salt dinner rolls(and plain rolls for Mr Picky).

    • dakinikat's avatar dakinikat says:

      Ever since Katrina and the complete unreliable energy service down here, freezers are out of the question for me. I’m even nervous when I put more than ice in the freezer compartment of the fridge.

  7. Boo Radly's avatar Boo Radly says:

    Stuffed Mirlitons

    4 mirlitons
    1 stick of butter
    1 lb shrimp – peeled, deveined, boiled
    2 cloves garlic
    thyme
    bay leaves
    1 tlbs chopped parsley
    bread crumbs
    salt & pepper

    Wash mirlitons, par boil til tender. Cut in half – scoop out centers, sve shells. Chop inner pulp & put in skillet with melted butter. Add shrimp, onion, garlic, thyme, bay leaves and parsley – simmer 20 minutes. Season to taste. Cook 10 minutes over low flame stirring. Stuff into mirliton shells, sprinkle with bread crumbs, dot with butter. Bake at 370 degrees until brown Mirliton – chayote squash.

    This is the best I got til I find my beloved Deidre Stanton recipe book from 40 years ago. New Orleans has the best food evah!
    Sob, I’m so hungry now stuck in WNC with no source for fixin’ my favorite Oysters Rockefeller or escargots.

    • bostonboomer's avatar bostonboomer says:

      Awwww…

    • HT's avatar HT says:

      Boo, sorry for my ignorance, but what are merlitons?
      Now for Oysters Rockefeller, I had a recipe to die for however I think I screwed myself in my efforts to clean out the debris in the house. My recipe has gone walkabout.

      • dakinikat's avatar dakinikat says:

        They’re also called alligator pears. You can see a picture of one up above because we had our annual neighborhood Mirliton festival this last weekend. There really hard wrinkly green squash.

    • dakinikat's avatar dakinikat says:

      If it makes you feel any better, I’m not trusting the oysters down here at all. I haven’t had them raw since the Oil Gusher and they look sickly these days. Some one is going to have to really convince me they’re safe and it’s not going to be the FDA.

  8. janicen's avatar janicen says:

    Okay, we just got home after our favorite Friday Happy Hour hangout, Bellle Vie in Midlothian, VA where Ben, the bartender makes the most amazing Belgian Chocolate Martinis I have ever had. Here’s a link if you ever get to the Richmond area…
    http://www.bellevieva.com/default.html

    I’m going to share a recipe I got in Seattle for a Speedy Coq Au Vin. It’s easy, and delicious.

    1 Chicken cut into pieces
    6 small onions (very small, but not pearl onions. I usually use cippolini onions)
    6 or 8 mushroom caps. Either white or cremini.
    3/4 cup dry red wine (I use white wine)
    1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley
    2 tablespoons dried thyme or 4 teaspoons minced fresh thyme
    1/2 tsp coarsely ground black pepper
    2/3 cup melted butter

    Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Lightly coat a 9-by-13 inch baking pan with cooking spray.

    Rinse the chicken and pat dry with paper towels. arrange the pieces in the prepared pan. Arrange the onions and mushrooms around the chicken. Pour the wine over the chicken and vegetables.

    Sprinkle the parsley, thyme and pepper over the chicken and vegetables, the drizzle everything with the melted butter.

    Bake, uncovered for 75 minutes

    *This is so easy, and it tastes incredible. I’m not a mushroom fan, but my husband is, so he gets all the mushrooms, but if more than one person likes them, just add more.

    Make it a point to try it, you won’t regret it.

  9. HT's avatar HT says:

    Janicen, sounds delicious, and I will definitely try it.

    Dak, as a New Orleans denizen, you are familiar with Antoines. Do you have the recipe for Bananas Foster?

    • dakinikat's avatar dakinikat says:

      yes .. I do … Let me go find it. I also have good one for bread pudding if you like that too. And my grandmother’s date pudding. Those are real traditional for down here.

      • grayslady's avatar grayslady says:

        I used to have the recipe for the Bon Ton Cafe bread pudding. I asked them for it, and they gave it to me. Soooo generous–couldn’t believe it. Unfortunately, I lost the recipe when I moved, but it was the best!

        • dakinikat's avatar dakinikat says:

          ouch! I woulda taken that!!!

        • dakinikat's avatar dakinikat says:

          I actually have a recipe for Beignets from scratch too. Got it from a lady in Lafayette.

          • grayslady's avatar grayslady says:

            I would like to try that. I love Beignets, and there’s only one place–about 40 miles from here–that serves them.

          • dakinikat's avatar dakinikat says:

            okay

            Des Croxinolles Francais

            1 cup boiling water
            1/4 cup shortening
            1/2 cup sugar
            1 tsp salt
            1 cup evaporated milk
            1 cake yeast softened in 1/2 cup lukewarm water
            7 1/2 cups sifted flour
            2 eggs, well beaten

            Get a large mixing bowl. Pour boiling water over shortening in bowl. Add sugar and salt. Mix. When mixture is lukewarm, add the milk and softened yeast. Add the beaten eggs. Stir in four cups of the flour. Beat hard. Add more flour so that you get a soft dough.

            Place the dough in a greased bowl. Grease the top of the dough then cover it with wax paper and a lid or a cloth. Keep it in the fridge until you’re ready to use it. DO NOT let the dough rise before you fry it.

            Then roll the dough to 1/4 inch thickness. Cut into squares. Fry in hot deep fat (360-370 F) Brown on one side, then turn and brown on the other side. Then you drain them. It’ll make about 60 total and you don’t have to do them all it once.

            Then just go crazy with powder sugar and think ol’ Mrs. Aucoin for letting her family recipe go.

          • grayslady's avatar grayslady says:

            Thanks. Sounds like something I can do. I was afraid it would require a stand mixer, and I don’t have one of those.

          • dakinikat's avatar dakinikat says:

            I usually just use whisks. I’ve spent a lot of time post-Katrina without electricity so I’ve reverted to using grandmother’s tools

    • dakinikat's avatar dakinikat says:

      actually, I use this recipe from Brennan’s and I just found it online.

      http://www.brennansneworleans.com/r_bananasfoster.html

    • Boo Radly's avatar Boo Radly says:

      HT – if Dak doesn’t have it – I do. The recipe book I mentioned are recipes from the oldest, bestest restaruants in NOLA. That was my children’s favorite dessert for years. I can’t wait to make your chicken in wine sauce.

      • dakinikat's avatar dakinikat says:

        Thought I had it in my Louisiana Laniappe cook book … that’s where most of my cajun recipes come from that I haven’t gotten from other people.

      • HT's avatar HT says:

        Okay buddy, share! I’ve lost my recipe and I love Bananas foster, so give me the real deal! If I recall correctly, I’ll have to make a trip to the liquor store. No problem, my mouth is watering just thinking about the final result.

  10. Boo Radly's avatar Boo Radly says:

    can spelling be like horse shoes….close enough? Please excuse me.

  11. grayslady's avatar grayslady says:

    I couldn’t manage without my pressure cooker–quick cheap eats. I put up a recipe for pressure cooker beef stew at Food.com (recipe #361437) if anyone’s interested. I adapted it from an Emeril pressure cooker beef stew recipe, but his had too much liquid, he cooked his too long, and it had some strange ingredients that I didn’t feel belonged in a classic beef stew. If you’re lazy, you can just buy the classic Emeril Essence rather than mixing the spices, but since I make this recipe a lot in the winter, I always have a plastic container of pre-mixed Essence ready. This recipe also lends itself very well to modifications for Boeuf Bourgignon or Beef Stroganoff.

    • dakinikat's avatar dakinikat says:

      Do you know that India gives out pressure cookers free to families because it saves electricity? I think that’s pretty cool.

      • grayslady's avatar grayslady says:

        Makes sense to me, although I didn’t know that about India.

        I bought mine about 10 years ago as a pair–a 5 liter, plus a companion about 3″ high that I use all the time for asparagus and other vegetables.

        • HT's avatar HT says:

          You’ll think me strange, but up until 10 years ago I still had my grandmother’s pressure cooker – Triply aluminum which is unheard of today, and in a moment of insanity, I gave the darned thing away.

  12. HT's avatar HT says:

    I had so many recipes that were passed down to me and I seem to have given them away. Strange, I would love some Scotch Eggs, or Cornish Pasty (can you tell, I’m from the British Isles). I can whip up a shepherd’s pie without thinking, but some things you need to have in writing. I’ve also learned over the years to love food from other cultures (hence my obsession with Bananas Foster). I think food brings people together, it goes beyond strictures imposed by religion, race, nationality. We all can relate and share recipes. (Now give me the GDamned Bananas Foster recipe) Ahem, I get carried away at times. Dak I was in your beloved city many years ago and it was the trip of a lifetime. My then husband was on a business trip, and as he was busy most days I felt free to explore and I did. You’ll love this, I asked a hotel employee for a map and the places to visit, and she advised me that I should not venture out alone because of the roving gangs of blacks. Mind you, that was a long time ago (the hotel was right across from the Superdome) and honestly, the only roving gang of anything was a lone jogger around the track. N’awlins was also the first place that I heard the term he/she. It was quite an education for a Canadian, but I loved it. Now give me the recipe for the Bananas Foster. I know how to make Eggs Benedict in my sleep, but Bananas Foster…….

    • dakinikat's avatar dakinikat says:

      Did you check the Brennan’s version that I linked to?

    • grayslady's avatar grayslady says:

      HT, I would *love* a good recipe for Shepherd’s Pie, if you have one. I’ve never found a first class recipe in a cookbook. Also, do you use a piping tube for the potatoes or do you just spoon them in?

      • HT's avatar HT says:

        Grayslady, in my family shepherd’s pie was always how one used the leftover roast beef, so it was just putting together the leftover beef, vegatables and gravy and making mashed potatoes to top it all off. And we didn’t do fancy stuff like piping, we just spooned the mashed taters on top. I know it sounds a bit gross, but both my kids love shepherds pie – or I should say one does, the other is a vegan, not by choice but because of allergies and celiacs. She to this day loves the thought of shepherds pie, however she is unable to eat it.

        Thanks Dak, I had not checked out the link, but I will now.

      • minkoffminx's avatar Minkoff Minx says:

        Grayslady, I have a recipe I make for a Spanish like Sheperd’s pie that uses ground chuck…I made this recipe up because I love stuffed potatoes, but did not want to deal with the time and effort in actually making them. If you like I can post the recipe here…

        • dakinikat's avatar dakinikat says:

          Post please!! My girls love Shepherd’s pie.

        • minkoffminx's avatar Minkoff Minx says:

          Spanish Way with Shepherd’s Pie

          little olive oil (just enough to fry with)
          a medium onion- chopped real fine
          a 1/4 of a small green pepper- chopped real fine
          3 nice big garlic cloves- chopped real fine
          12 pimiento stuffed olives- 6 of them chopped up fine, 6 of them sliced up
          small box of raisins- chopped fine except for about 10 or 12 of them (these will remain whole)
          1 big bay leaf
          some crushed oregano (about a teaspoon maybe more to taste)
          parsley dry or fresh chopped fine (about a teaspoon)
          1 15oz can of tomato sauce
          2 squirts of ketchup
          lemon juice (about a teaspoon and a half)
          hot sauce (I give about 3 good shakes)
          salt and pepper to taste (but add a little salt at first because the olives will give off salt when you cook them)
          pinch of sugar
          dry sherry about 1/2 cup
          1 pound ground chuck
          2 big potatoes
          whole milk
          butter/margarine
          Parmesan cheese- a couple tablespoons grated
          2 large eggs
          bread crumbs- regular

          Fry up the onion and green pepper till it is soft, add garlic, the chopped pimiento-olives, the chopped raisins, bay leaf, oregano, parsley, salt and pepper. Let this fry up a few minutes then add/crumble in the ground beef. Be sure to stir frequently so that it does not stick to the bottom of the pan. Fry until the meat is browned. Then add the sherry, rest of the olives and whole raisins, ketchup, lemon juice, hot sauce, sugar, tomato sauce. Cook on low and let the sauce reduce a bit. Keep stirring, do not let the mixture dry out…but do not let it be to saucy either. Adjust the seasoning, you may need to add more oregano or more salt and pepper…the raisins will give off some sweetness, but if you need to add more sugar (used to help with the bitterness of the tomato sauce) then do so.

          Boil up the potatoes, if you have left over mashed potatoes you can use that…if not then when the potatoes are done, peel them and use a mixer to whip them up with the milk, Parmesan cheese, butter, eggs, salt and pepper. Beat this mixture until it is a good consistency…not too thick and not too thin. It will puff up when you bake the pie.

          Get a glass baking pan and spray some oil (like pam) on it. Pour the tomato sauce meat mixture in the pan. Spoon the mashed potato mixture over this and spread it out evenly over the meat. Sprinkle the bread crumbs over the top, I cover the entire top of the potatoes but I do not pour a lot of the bread crumbs over them. Then take some butter/margarine and dot the top of the bread crumbs.

          Put this in a 350 oven and bake until it is done. The potato mixture will puff up a bit and the top of the bread crumbs will get toasty…you may need to finish it with the broiler to brown the top of the pie.

          Serve with hot sauce, to sprinkle on the top.

    • Rikke's avatar Sima says:

      I was running errands all night (fitting someone into a dress I had made for her) and wasn’t around when this thread was live, but I have to admit I LOVE Cornish Pasties.

      My partner was dubious, but I got a recipe, tweaked it like I wanted, and now it’s his recipe and he makes them. I just sit back and eat. I will find the recipe and post it on another recipe night when I’m actually around :).

  13. Outis's avatar Outis says:

    I hope I’m not too late. Thanks for the recipes! I was so looking forward to this thread tonight!!

    Here is a recipe that Dak probably knows but I serve it to my European guests and they almost die. It’s a pasta from Coop’s in New Orleans. I have a jar of the spice blend mixed up which makes it very easy. Mmmm.

    COOP’S PASTA OPELOUSAS

    ¼ cup olive oil
    1 Tbsp. garlic, minced
    4 oz. boneless chicken, cut into 1″ pieces
    2 oz. tasso, chopped
    4 shitake mushrooms, sliced
    2 Tbsp. white wine
    3 oz. shrimp
    2 oz. heavy cream
    ½ tsp Bayou Blend (see below)
    3 oz. green beans
    6 oz. cooked fettuccine
    2 Tbsp. green onions, minced

    Heat oil. Add garlic, chicken, tasso, and mushrooms. Saute 2 minutes.
    Deglaze pan with white wine. Stir until wine reduces to 1 Tablespoon.
    Add shrimp and saute for 2 minutes.
    Add heavy cream and Bayou Blend. Cook until liquid thickens.
    Add green beans. Simmer 1 minute. Add fettuccine to the pan. Mix well. Serve garnished with green onions.

    COOP’S BAYOU SPICE BLEND

    4 parts Salt
    3 parts Cayenne pepper
    3 parts Ground Black Pepper
    3 parts Granulated garlic
    2 parts MSG
    1 part Ground cumin
    1 part Paprika

    Do not substitute.

  14. HT's avatar HT says:

    Outis, sounds really good.

  15. grayslady's avatar grayslady says:

    Okay, dakini, you are in luck. I found my bread pudding and whiskey sauce recipes–I had filed them under creole rather than desserts! So, since tonight is creole night, here they are. The first recipe is from the Bon Ton Cafe. The second is from the New Orleans School of Cooking.

    Bon Ton: (Serves 12)

    Pudding:
    1 Loaf Stale French Bread
    1 Qt Milk
    3 Eggs
    2 Cups Sugar
    2 Tbsp Vanilla
    3 Tbsp Margarine, melted
    1 Cup Raisins

    Whiskey Sauce:
    1 Stick Margarine
    1 Cup Confectioners Sugar
    2 Egg Yolks

    Soak bread in milk; crush with hands until well mixed. Add eggs, sugar, vanilla, and raisins and stir well. Pour margarine in bottom of thick pan and bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour, 15 minutes. Cool pudding, cube, and put into fireproof individual dessert dishes. When ready to serve, add sauce and heat under broiler for a couple of minutes. Serve with extra Whiskey Sauce.

    Whiskey Sauce: Cream the sugar and egg until well mixed. Add melted margarine and continue to dissolve. Add whiskey to taste until the sauce is creamy smooth.

    New Orleans Cooking School: (Serves 18)

    Pudding:
    1 10-oz Loaf French Bread
    4 Cups Milk
    2 Cups Sugar
    1 Stick Melted Butter
    3 Eggs
    2 Tbsp Vanilla
    1 Cup Raisins
    1 Cup Shredded Coconut
    1 Cup Chopped Pecans
    1 Tsp Cinnamon

    Whiskey Sauce:
    1/2 Cup Butter
    1 1/2 Cups Confectioners Sugar
    2 Egg Yolks

    Combine all ingredients; mixture should be very soft but not soupy. Pour into buttered 9 x 12 (or larger) baking dish. Place into NON-pre-heated oven. Bake at 350 degrees for approximately 1 hour, 15 minutes until top is golden brown.
    Serve warm with Whiskey Sauce.

    Whiskey Sauce: Cream butter and sugar over medium heat until all butter is absorbed. Remove from heat and blend in egg yolks. Pour in whiskey gradually to your own taste, stirring constantly. Sauce will thicken as it cools. Serve warm over warm bread pudding.

  16. paper doll's avatar paper doll says:

    I found my bread pudding and whiskey sauce recipes

    OMG! I’m in heaven!

    • Outis's avatar Outis says:

      I am going to copy this and all these wonderful recipes into my books. They’re all keepers! I wish I could make them all right now. Already looking forward to what everyone comes up with next week!

      THANK YOU!!!!!!!

  17. minkoffminx's avatar Minkoff Minx says:

    This is a fantastic post, with awesome comments. Thank you Sky Dancers.