Shrimp Creole

Creole cooking is different from Cajun cooking. It has influences from Haiti, Spain, and France., and was actually developed in New Orleans from 1st generation of European descent. Creole cooking [KREE-ohl] In the 18Th century, the Spaniards governing New Orleans named all residents of European heritage Criollo. The name, which later became Creole , soon began to imply one of refined cultural background with an appreciation for an elegant lifestyle. Today, Creole cookery reflects the full-flavored combination of the best of French, Spanish and African cuisines. Its style, with an emphasis on butter and cream, is more sophisticated than CAJUN COOKING (which uses prodigious amounts of pork fat). Another difference between the two cuisines is that Creole uses more tomatoes and the Cajuns more spices. Both cuisines rely on the culinary "holy trinity" of chopped green peppers, onions and celery, and make generous use of FILÉ POWDER. Probably the most famous dish of Creole heritage is GUMBO.
Today we will be making a Shrimp Creole, which will demonstrate the abundant use of tomatoes in Creole Cooking.

SHRIMP CREOLE

1/4 cup of flour	5 tsp. of salt
1/4 cup bacon drippings	1 tsp pepper
1 1/2 cups chopped onions	1/2 tsp red pepper
1 cup chopped onions	Cayenne pepper sauce (Tabasco)
1 cup chopped celery with leaves	2 bay leaves
1 cup chopped bell pepper	1 tsp. sugar
2 cloves of garlic minced	1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 can (6 0z) tomato paste	1 Tbsp. lemon juice
1 can (16 oz)chopped tomatoes, undrained	4 lbs. peeled raw shrimp
1 can (8 oz) tomato sauce	cooked rice
1 cup of water

Make a dark brown roux of flour and bacon grease a large heavy pot, by cooking over medium heat, stirring constantly until mixture turns dark brown. (This could take 20- 30 minutes, roux is the basis of many Creole and Cajun dishes such as Gumbo. The roux needs to be cooked in a heavy cast iron skillet or dutch oven, which allows the roux to brown without burning so easily. A lighter pan will probably burn the roux before the color, which directly affects the flavor, is achieved.)
Add onions, green onions, celery, bell pepper and garlic; saute until tender. Add tomato paste and mix well with the vegetable. Add the remaining ingredients except the last three. Simmer for 1 hour. Add shrimp and cook about 5-10 minutes.(shrimp will turn pink when done)
This is best if made the day before and reheated, but not boiled. Add parsley before serving, and serve over cooked long grain white rice. ENJOY

Cajun Spicy Eggplant Casserole

For those of you who are not fond of eggplant, which by the way is really good for you, I suggest this recipe, since the eggplant is disguised. It is a hardy dish that my Mother served with her "pecan onion green beans," I will blog that recipe later").

This is a fairly easy recipe to make, just a little preparation time. I usually cook my eggplant one day, and put the casserole together the next day. This really makes it a quick dish. It is a good dish to take to covered dinners and I assure you (except if you live in Louisiana) no one else will bring it. It is something different, and very tasty. I do at times top the casserole with cheddar cheese, instead of the Parmesan cheese, add a few more calories.....and if I am really into comfort food, I will use Velveeta. Try it both ways and see which one you prefer. Let me know how you feel about eggplant once you have tried the recipe.

Cajun Spicy Eggplant Casserole

4 medium size eggplants
1 can tomato paste
1 tomato, chopped
1/2 tsp.basil
1 large onion, chopped
1 bell pepper, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
4 Tbsp
1lb ground beef
1 can tomato paste
Seasoned Bread crumbs
Salt & cayenne pepper to taste
Parmesan cheese
Paprika

Cut eggplants into large cubes, boil until tender. Drain extremely well, preferably overnight. Meanwhile, saute tomato, onion, pepper and garlic in hot oil. cook ground meat separately and drain off extra grease. Add tomato paste to meat in pan and cook on low heat until paste begins to darken and thicken. Add all vegetables and basil to meat mixture and drained eggplant cubes. Mix thoroughly, add salt and cayenne pepper to taste, and add bread crumbs until mixture is not mushy but has some texture. Spoon into large baking dish, sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and paprika. Bake at 350 degrees for about 20-30 minutes or until well done and the top is browned. You can use a cheddar, american, or velveeta cheese if you like. Experiment.

In the future I will be posting:
Cajun Style Macaroni & Cheese,(real comfort food),
Crawfish Etouffee,
Dirty Rice,
Shrimp Creole

Louisiana Red Beans & Rice

Everyone is Louisiana has a special way they cook their red beans and rice. This is a classic dish that is eaten on a regular basis in Southern Louisiana. This is the way Helon cooked the beans and I continue to cook the same way.


This is a dish I served many times on Super Bowl Sunday. It is easy to cook, you don't have to hang in the kitchen, and it feeds extra people that drop by.


I serve my beans and rice with a green salad and french bread. Sometimes I make cornbread to go with the beans and rice, so I will add a corn bread recipe also.


Enjoy.

Red Beans & Rice

1 ham bone

1/2 lb cubed

1 lb dried red/kidney beans( I use the small but the large are more traditional)

1 large onion, chopped

1 cup chopped green onions top and bottoms

1/4 cup chopped green pepper

1/4 cup chopped parsley

1/2 tsp of basil

2 bay leaves

1/4 butter(no margine substituted)

Salt and cayenne pepper to taste

Cooked long grain white rice

1 lb smoked sausage.

Place beans in a heavy pot, (now this is where you need to have that cast iron dutch oven) with enough water to cover, bring to a rolling boil for 3 minute, then let soak overnight in the same water. In the morning, bring beans to a boil and add remaining ingredients, except for the rice. Reduce heat and simmer for 3 hours. The ham bone is very important for the flavor. Beans will become very creamy, most will remain whole. Add cold water as needed. Serve over rice. Garnish with the smoked sausage. (I also add the sausage to the beans for about 1 before the beans are done. Get that smoky taste going.)

Southern Cornbread

1 egg

1 1/3 cups milk or 1 3/4 cups of buttermilk

1/4 cup vegetable oil or melted shortening

2 cups White self-rising corn meal mix

Preheat oven to 450. Grease a 9- inch cast iron skillet or baking pans place in oven to heat. beat egg in mixing bowl. Add remaining ingredients, stir until smooth. Batter should be creamy and pourable. If batter seems to thick, add a little more more liquid. Pour batter in prepared pan. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown. Makes 6-8 servings.


For a crowd, I double the recipe and bake in corn stick molds. (as soon as my scanner is working I will scan a picture of the corn sticks.)


Check Helons Store for the corn stick molds.

Heart Cake

Since Valentines Day is approaching, and I have posted my "Be My Valentine Cake" I wanted to post this "Heart Cake" recipe, which also uses the 2 pan system to make a heart. This was the cake that I got the idea from for the "Be my Valentine Cake" .. The recipe makes a yellow cake, which is very moist and buttery. If you don't have the time....use a good cake mix, a white one would be nice. The yellow cake mix can be use for many cakes. All Southern cooks had a special cake recipe. This was Helon's basic recipe. Please do not substitute oleo for the butter. Use the butter. This cake is intended to taste good, not be low fat & healthy.
This is a quick and easy dessert for that special day, and everyone loves cake. You can decorate with strawberries or use candies.. You could use a white frosting and tint it pink if you don't like strawberries. Also you could use raspberries. Strawberry frosting was the way my Mother served it. You can use your imagination. Have Fun. The main thing is the shape and that it is a symbol of love.

Easy Yellow Cake:

• 2 cups sifted all purpose flour


• 2 teaspoons of baking powder


• 3/4 teaspoon salt


• 1 1/2 cups sugar


• 1/3 cup shortening


• 1/3 cup (5 1/2 tablespoons) butter softened


• 3/4 cup of milk


• 1 teaspoon vanilla


• 3 eggs

Preheat oven to 350F Grease and flour 1 round and 1 square baking pan. Sift flour baking powder and salt together into mixing bowl. Add remaining ingredients to flour mixture. Beat with electric mixer on low speed for 30 seconds, scraping bowl constantly. Turn mixer on high speed and beat for 3 minutes, scraping bowl often. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake for 25 -30 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pans and follow directions for assembling heart on the "Be My Valentine Cake" below.

Strawberry Frosting:

• 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) of butter softened


• 4 cups of confectioners sugar(about 1 lb)


• 1 package (10 ounces)frozen sweetened strawberries thawed.

Cream butter and sugar together in mixing bowl until light and fluffy. Drain strawberries, reserving juice. Blend strawberries into creamed mixture, adding reserved juice as needed to achieve desired spreading consistency.

This is a recipe from the 70's and strawberries were in frozen containers like juice. You can use frozen strawberries from the bag, just sweetened them. Also you can use fresh strawberries, but Juice them first. (cut up berries add 1/4 sugar and toss , cover) they will make their own juice.

Be My Valentine Chocolate Cake

This cake actually had another name, which has been lost. I named it "Be My Valentine Cake "because when I was in Jr. High in Monroe Louisiana, I baked this cake for my boyfriend,for Valentines day. I then proceeded to take it to school on the school bus, carrying it on a foil covered large cookie sheet. What made this a great" Valentine " was that I baked in a round and square pan(directions below) and made it in the shape of a Valentine. Since the cake is a chocolate cake with chocolate frosting....think of chocolate...Valentines Candy......I decorated it in red. I actually wrote my boyfriends name and Be My Valentine on the cake. So it was a cake Valentine....or a Valentine Cake.

I decided to post this cake not only because V.D. is approaching, but because the recipe also calls for buttermilk, which if you follow my previous post on "Buttermilk Pie" and baked it, you have buttermilk leftover. Since we have already established that we ain't going to be drinking it....lets use it up in this recipe which calls for 1 3/4 cups of buttermilk.
This is YmmmmGOOD.......Enjoy

Be My Valentine Chocolate Cake

• 1/2 cup (1 stick of butter)
• 4 squares (1 oz each) unsweetened chocolate
• 2 eggs
• 1 3/4 cups of buttermilk(that's a lot of buttermilk but wait and see how good it makes this cake)
• 2 teaspoons of vanilla
• 2 1/2 cups sifted self-rising flour
• 2 cups of sugar
• Dark Chocolate Frosting (recipe follows)

Preheat oven to 350F. Grease and flour two 8 inch sq.pans, or two 9 inch round pans. ( if you are making the Valentine Shape you will use 1 sq pan and 1 round pan,see diagram below). Combine butter and chocolate in a small saucepan. Melt over low heat; remove pan from heat and set mixture aside to cool. Beat eggs in mixing bowl with electric mixer for about 2 minutes on medium speed. Blend in buttermilk and vanilla. Add flour and sugar to buttermilk mixture;beat until well blended. Stir in chocolate mixture. Pour batter in prepared pans. Bake for 30 - 35 minutes or until cake begins to pull away from the side of the pan and toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pans for 10 minutes. Remove from pans and cool completely on wire racks. Then frost.

Dark Chocolate Frosting:

• 2 cup (1stick of butter)
  
• 4 squares 1 oz each of unsweetened chocolate
  
• 4 cups sifted confectioners' sugar(about 1 lb)
  
• 1/2 cup evaporated milk
  
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
  
• 2 teaspoons vanilla

Combine butter and chocolate in medium saucepan. Melt over low heat, remove pan from heat. Gradually blend in sugar, milk, salt and vanilla. Beat until smooth.

To make the valentine shape cut the round cake in half. Turn the square per the diagrams above. Put frosting between the half rounds and place against the square cake. Frost top and sides of cake. Decorate as desired.

Buttermilk Pie

Before you gag, I will tell you it doesn't taste a thing like buttermilk. You know years ago buttermilk was a staple in most kitchens. Of course country people made the milk themselves. It was the liquid left over after the cream was churned into butter. I am including a link for more detail description of Buttermilk. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buttermilk

My mother grew up in the country in Louisiana. Buttermilk was a constant in her house. Most of the folks in the 1930's and before drank buttermilk. To distinguish between the milks, regular milk was called "sweet milk." My father would send me to get him a glass of milk and would either ask for"buttermilk"sweet milk"There was never just milk in my house. I can still remember the carton that buttermilk came in...it was Borden's brand and in a green carton.

Besides being a popular drink in the South, Buttermilk is used in Southern Cooking quite a bit, from a buttermilk chocolate cake( which I will be adding later) to a milk wash for breading chicken, onion rings, etc.

This is an old recipe that is written on stained paper, you can see the drops of vanilla on the paper. Keep in mind that whether you like buttermilk or not...this is a great pie, that taste like a very rich custard.

I am also including the recipe for the pie crust which is excellent. What makes this crust different is it is made from oil, instead of shortening such as Crisco. Years ago most pie crust were made with shortening, or Lard.
If you don't have time to make your own crust, you can cheat and buy a good commercial pie crust. I prefer Marie Callendars brand of pie crust when I cheat. Mrs. Smith is also good.

Pie Crust Made with Oil.

1 1/2 cups flour
1/3 cups of corn oil
1 tsp of salt
3 tbsp of cold milk

Mix flour salt pour oil and milk in to flour mixture all at once.
Stir until mixed(use hands if needed) Pat into a smooth ball, flatten slightly and place between 2 12" squares of wax paper.
Dampen table top to keep paper from slipping roll out gently to edges of paper. Peel off top paper and ease crust into pie tin. The paper side will be up, remove and flute edges. Prick the bottom of the crust thoroughly with a fork, Bake 8 to10 minutes , cool and add filling.

Butter Milk filling

3 cups sugar
1 1/2 cup buttermilk
1 cup of butter (real butter) or 1 1/2 of oleo melted
6 TBSP of flour
5 eggs
2 tsp of vanilla

Mix and Assemble

Mix flour sugar, 1/2 of milk to beaten eggs. Add rest of milk and fold in melted butter. Add vanilla. Pour into crust. Bake at 425 for 10 minutes, then turn oven to 350 and bake until knife comes out clean.
Make 2 pies.

Let cool and enjoy. I look forward to any feedback.