Friday, May 16, 2008

Oyster Rockefeller (Rockerfeller) Dip




Ingredients:


  • 1 can chopped spinach

  • 6 oysters chopped fine

  • 3 medium onions chopped fine or grated

  • 1 bell pepper finely chopped or grated

  • 1 tbsp flour

  • ¼ block of butter 1/4 pound

  • seasonings to taste

Directions:
Original recipe says to cook flour in butter but not to burn it. However, I usually make a roux as I think it gives it a better flavor.

Add onions, bell pepper and seasonings to the roux. Saute about 30 minutes or until tender. Add spinach and oysters. Simmer an additonal 30 minutes. If you prefer more of an oyster taste add some of the oyster juice.

Enjoy with your favorite cracker.



(Serves --)



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Marinated Onions and Tomato Wedges




Ingredients:


  • ½ tsp black pepper

  • ¼ tsp thyme

  • ¼ tsp oregano

  • ¾ tsp salt

  • 3 stems of green onion (onion tops), chopped

  • ¼ cup chopped parsley

  • cup canola oil

  • ¼ cup red wine vinegar

  • ¼ tsp garlic powder

  • 6 medium tomatoes, quartered or sliced

  • 1 medium Mayan sweet onion sliced

Directions:
In a shallow dish with a cover, combine all the ingredients except the onions and tomatoes. Stir well then add the tomatoes and onions to the mixture and cover. Place in the icebox anywhere from 1 hour to overnight. When serving you could add additional tomatoes (optional) and garnish with avocados. Works well with baked turkey and steamed carrots.


(Serves 6)



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Chrissy's Vegetarian Rice Dressing




Ingredients:


  • 1 medium yellow onion

  • 1 medium bell pepper

  • 1 stalk celery

  • 1 ½ cup fresh mushrooms

  • 1 can cream of mushroom soup

  • 1 can Swanson's Vegetable Broth

  • 1 package Yves Vegetarian Ground Round

  • 3 tbsp roux

  • cayenne to taste

  • black pepper to taste

  • 2 cups cooked rice

Directions:
Cook rice. Chop the fresh vegetables. Over medium heat in a Magnalite pot, saute the onions, bell peppers and celery until the onions are slightly wilted. Add mushrooms and continue to saute. Stir for about 4 minutes.

Add the can of cream of mushroom and stir. Next, pour the vegetable broth into the empty can of cream of mushroom. Stir and add. Bring ingredients to a slight boil. Add in roux and stir mixture until the roux is totally dissolved. Add in the vegetarian ground beef. Add red and black pepper to taste. Stir and cook for about 2 more minutes. Add the rice about 1/2 cup at a time to the mixture. Tip: add less rice for a "wetter" rice dressing.

(Serves 4)



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Roux




Ingredients:


  • ¾ cup oil (Canola or Vegetable)

  • 1 cup all purpose white flour

Directions:
Heat a heavy skillet or cast iron pot and add oil. Once oil is heated, slowly add the flour, stirring constantly until all is blended. Continue to cook over medium to low heat, stirring constantly until flour and oil blend to form a brown roux the color of a dark copper penny. The longer you cook it, the darker the roux will become. Remember don't rush the cooking of the roux; allow the mixture to develop at its own pace. Transfer to cooking pot and add warm water to hot roux for thickness desired.

The mixture will make 5 quarts gumbo juice or one large fricassee dish. Many cooks add onion, bell pepper, and celery mixture right at the end of the cooking process. This spreads the flavor through out the roux. You can double or triple the recipe and store the unused roux in a covered container in your icebox for weeks to be used for future dishes.

Roux can be used to flavor or thicken gravies. A dish made with roux always taste better the next day or if frozen the next time it is reheated. If you push the roux too far or burn the roux, the flavor becomes too bitter to use. Throw out and start again.



(Serves --)



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Shrimp Stew




Ingredients:


  • jar roux

  • water

  • 1 onion, chopped

  • 1 bell pepper, chopped

  • 1 stalk celery

  • Tony Chachere's all purpose seasoning

  • 1 pound shrimp, peeled and de-veined

  • 1 handful chopped onion tops

  • 1 handful chopped parsley

  • 2 cups rice

Directions:
In a Dutch oven pot combine water & roux. Mix well and let mixture come to a boil then reduce heat. At this time you can adjust the roux or liquid if you need extra. You want this sauce to stick to your rice.

Add the onion, bell pepper and celery. Cook down until veggies are soft...I like to cook down (continually cook on low fire) my roux about an hour or so. Add the clean shrimp and cook until shrimp are pink, 5 to 10 minutes more, season well. Turn off heat and add the onion tops and parsley. Serve over hot rice. If you can not buy pre-made roux see this web site for making your own roux.

(Serves 4)



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Seafood Gumbo




Ingredients:


  • 1 pound crab meat

  • 1 pint oysters

  • 1 pound raw shrimp

  • 2 tbsp vegetable oil

  • 2 tbsp flour

  • 2 onions chopped

  • 1 green pepper chopped

  • 1 cup chopped celery

  • ½ tsp garlic salt

  • ½ tbsp red pepper

  • 4 bay leaves

  • 1 tbsp file'

  • 1 cup green onion tops

  • 2 quarts water

Directions:
Make a dark roux with the flour and oil in a large Dutch oven. Saute the onion, pepper, and celery in roux. Add the water and the seasonings and cook for ½ hour. Add shrimp and cook for 10 minutes. Add crabmeat, oysters and green onions, and simmer for 10 more minutes. Serve over rice.

(Serves --)



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PawPaw's Catfish Courtbouillion I




Ingredients:


  • 4 pounds catfish, keep filets as whole as possible

  • 1 cup chopped bell pepper

  • 1 cup chopped onion

  • 1 cup chopped celery

  • 1 gallon water

  • 6 cups tomato sauce

  • 2 tbsp parsley chopped fine

  • ½ cup green onions chopped

  • 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

  • 2 tsp salt

  • 2 ½ tsp red pepper, although I cut it to 1 ½ -2 tsp

  • 2 ½ tsp black pepper

  • 2 tsp garlic salt

  • 3 tsp paprika

  • 1 bay leaf

  • ½ cup flour

  • ½ cup oil for roux

Directions:
In a medium heavy gauge stockpot, boil the 3-4 lbs of catfish filets in one gallon of water to make fish stock. Approximately 10 minutes. Authors Note: After trial and error I recommend keeping the filets as whole as possible - when you re-add them to the dish they will break apart but it will be in decent chunks. Do not break them up or you will end up with shreds. If you have catfish heads you can use them as they season (flavor) the water even more. Carefully remove fish head from the water and set aside.

In a separate pot, make the roux using ½ cup flour and ½ cup oil. Add all other ingredients to fish stock. Boil all of the ingredients and the roux for one hour instead of the recommended 25 minutes - I find that the roux needs longer to boil than just 25 minutes. Add the bay leaf; then add the catfish and simmer for 30 minutes. To prevent scorching, shake the pot from side to side; do not stir. Stirring has a tendency to break up the fish. Serve over rice and enjoy. Most of the old cooks like to add the ½ cup parsley and ½ cup onions tops in the last few minutes of cooking. This is optional.






(Serves 6)



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Pan Fried Oysters




Ingredients:


  • ½ cup flour

  • ½ cup yellow cornmeal

  • ½ tsp salt

  • 3 tbsp parsley dried

  • ½ tsp garlic powder

  • ½ tsp onion powder

  • ¼ tsp lemon pepper

  • 2 tbsp oil

  • 2 tbsp butter

  • 1 ½ pint oysters, 18 to 20

Directions:
Drain the oysters. In a separate bowl, mix all the dry ingredients. Coat the oysters in the mixture and set aside for a few minutes on a paper towel. Heat a frying pan (preferably Teflon coated) with the oil and butter. Careful the butter may have a tendency to burn.

Brown the oysters on one side and then turn to brown on other side. Serve warm with your favorite sauce or enjoy plain with a twist of lemon. The flavor is great!

(Serves 18)



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Crawfish Etouffee (Etoufee)- Lite Version




Ingredients:


  • 1 pound crawfish tails or shrimp

  • 1 onion chopped

  • 1 bell pepper chopped

  • 2 stalks celery (chopped fine)

  • 2 tbsp butter or canola oil

  • 1 can cream of mushroom soup (reduced calorie)

  • 1 can cream of celery soup (reduced calorie)

  • 1 can Rotel tomatoes original or spicy

  • 2 cans water

  • ½ cup parsley

  • ½ cup green onions (onion tops)

  • 4 tbsp catsup (large dollop)

  • 1 pod of garlic optional

  • black pepper - to taste

Directions:
In medium saucepan over medium heat, saute onion, bell pepper, celery and garlic (optional) until onions have wilted. Add the Rotel tomatoes and stir until tomatoes are heated.

Add the cans of cream of mushroom and cream of celery. Stir and then add enough water to dilute the mixture to form a thick gravy. Remember, your crawfish or shrimp will give off water in the final steps of the cooking. Lower the heat and cook until mixture is heated, stirring as needed to prevent scorching. Add black pepper if desired. Note that the soup provides enough salt for this dish. Easy on the salt if you do decide to use it.

Rinse the crawfish in a colander to remove the crawfish fat that they were packed in. Drain well. Add crawfish to the mixture along with the parsley and green onions. Cook no more than 10 minutes. In the last couple of minutes of cooking, add a large dollop of catsup mainly for coloring but does give a nice taste to your dish. Serve over rice.


(Serves 4)



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Crock-Pot Jambalaya




Ingredients:


  • 12 ounces skinless chicken breast cut in 1 inch cubes

  • 1 pound smoked sausage

  • 2 bell peppers chopped

  • 1 onion chopped

  • 2 celery stalks chopped

  • 3 garlic cloves minced

  • 1 can whole tomatoes

  • cup tomato paste

  • 1 can beef broth

  • 1 tbsp dried parsley

  • 1 ½ tsp dried basil

  • ½ tbsp oregano

  • 1 tbsp Tabasco

  • ½ tbsp salt

  • 1 pound shrimp (optional)

Directions:
In a crock-pot add all together except shrimp. Cook on high for 4 hours. Add shrimp and cook an additional 30 minutes. Serve over rice or combine with enough rice to the desired consistency.


(Serves 8)



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