RouxBDoo

One of my absolutely favorite type of cuisine is the food/cooking from New Orleans. It's a good thing that my family loves it also!!!

I have been perusing the many blogs of this type of cuisine and found a blog that I just can't stop reading! It is sooo making me want to hop on a plane and get to NOLA!

This is the blog: http://rouxbdoo.blogspot.com/

Check it out.... there's recipes, reviews of restaurant etc.... perfect for a FOODIE!!!!

WHO DAT~ POBOY!

In honor of The New Orlean's Saints playing in last night's SuperBowl, we decided to support them by having Shrimp PoBoys for dinner. They were delicious! Alyssa even commented that "these taste better than the ones we had in New Orlean's"! I don't know about that but hey, i'll take the compliment! The recipe is from Tyler Florence. It calls for Shrimp AND oysters but we passed on the oysters. We also had the Sweet Potato Matchsticks on the side. That recipe is also below. I did all of the prep work before the game. At 1/2 time, I made the shrimp and matchsticks.

Shrimp and Oyster Po' Boys
Recipe courtesy Tyler Florence
Show: Tyler's UltimateEpisode: Ultimate Po Boys
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

Yield:
4 to 6 servings

Ingredients
24 medium-sized oysters, shucked
1 1/2 pounds medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 cups buttermilk
2 tablespoons hot sauce, plus more for sandwich
2 cups fine ground cornmeal
1 1/2 tablespoons onion powder
1 1/2 tablespoons garlic powder
1 1/2 teaspoons smoked paprika
Pinch cayenne
Peanut oil, for deep-frying
Kosher salt
2 soft sub or hoagie rolls
Creole Mayonnaise, recipe follows
Finely shredded iceberg lettuce
Tomato slices
Lemon wedges

Directions
In a large bowl, soak the oysters and shrimp in a mixture of buttermilk and hot sauce for 20 to 30 minutes. In a shallow dish, whisk, together the cornmeal, onion powder, garlic powder, paprika and cayenne.
In a deep-fryer or heavy-bottomed pot, heat enough oil to come halfway up the sides of the pot, to 375 degrees F.
Drain the oysters and shrimp and toss them in the seasoned cornmeal. Working in batches, fry the oysters and shrimp until golden and crispy, about 3 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. Season with salt, to taste.
Split the rolls and smear with Creole mayonnaise. Line with plenty of shredded lettuce and tomato slices. Top with fried oysters and shrimp. Cut each roll into 2 to 3 pieces. Serve with hot sauce and a wedge of lemon.

Creole Mayonnaise (Remoulade): (I cut in half which was still too much!)
2 cups mayonnaise
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup roughly chopped cornichons
1 tablespoon creole mustard
2 tablespoons Louisiana hot sauce
2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1/2 lemon, juiced
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Combine all the ingredients well in a large mixing bowl. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.
Yield: about 3 cups

Sweet Potato Matchsticks
Recipe courtesy Tyler Florence
Show: Tyler's UltimateEpisode: Ultimate Po Boys
Rated: 5 stars out of 5Rate itRead users' reviews (2)
RECIPE
COMMENTS & REVIEWS(2)
Cook Time:
15 min
Level:
Easy
Yield:
4 to 6 servings

Ingredients
Peanut or vegetable oil, for deep-frying
3 to 4 sprigs rosemary
3 to 4 sprigs fresh sage
6 sprigs fresh thyme
4 to 6 cloves garlic, separated but unpeeled
2 to 3 large sweet potatoes
Cajun Seasoning, recipe follows

Directions
Begin by putting the oil, herbs and garlic in a heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat. Bring the oil up to 365 degrees F, then remove the herbs and garlic with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. They should be nice and crackly at this stage. Reserve for garnish.
Using a mandoline, cut the sweet potatoes into matchsticks. Put in a large bowl of ice water to remove any starch. Soak for a few minutes and rinse with fresh cold water until it runs clear. Drain the matchsticks and pat dry in a kitchen towel, to remove as much water as possible. Fry in 365 degree F oil, in small batches, until crispy and golden, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer to paper cones, resting in cups, and season with Cajun spice mix. Peel the garlic cloves and sprinkle over the matchsticks along with the fried herbs before serving.
Cajun Seasoning:
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon smoked paprika
Pinch cayenne
1 teaspoon kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Mix all the ingredients together in a small bowl.

OUR NEW ORLEAN'S FEAST...

Scott commented to us that he missed Red Beans & Rice so we thought it would be nice if we made New orlean's favorites and let Scott & Alyssa invite some of their friends over to enjoy it with us. We decided that 'Saturday night' would be perfect.

I didn't realize it when we picked the date (August 29th) for this feast but today is the anniversary of when Hurricane Katrine hit New Orleans. What a perfect day to honor the people and part of what makes them special.
On the menu...
Corn & Crab Soup
Gumbo
Jambalaya
Red BeansRice
Shrinp Etouffee
Corn Bread

Alyssa made the Gumbo.
Making the roux is the toughest part. You need to stir that stuff for like an HOUR before it gets to the proper color! Talk about a labor of love!

Corn Bread in my favorite cast iron pan.

Jambalaya

Shrimp Etouffee

Red Beans

I put labels on the table so everyone would know what they were eating.

My plate!

I have to say... I was very impressed with our efforts. It was a lot of work but everyone enjoyed themselves and had a great food experience. Most of the kids had never had this kind of foods so it was great to have them try them. I think my favorites were the Gumbo and the Shrimp Etouffee. YUM!!! Good times!!

Here's the recipes:

SHRIMP ETOUFEE (or Crawfish)

½ pound butter
¼ cup flour
1 cup green onions, chopped
1 cup yellow onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
½ cup green pepper, chopped
½ cup celery, chopped
1 bay leaf
¼ teaspoon thyme
1 teaspoon basil
8 oz. tomato sauce
½ teaspoon white pepper
2 teaspoons salt
1 tblsp. Worcestershire
Tabasco to taste
2 cups water
2 pounds Shrimp (1 kilo)
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tblsp. grated lemon rind
¼ cup minced parsley
2 tablespoons cognac

1. Make a walnut-colored roux with ¼ cup butter and flour.
2. Add green onions, yellow onions, garlic, green pepper, celery, bay leaf, thyme, basil and the rest of the butter. Sauté uncovered, over medium flame for 30 minutes.
3. Add tomato sauce, white pepper, salt, Worcestershire, Tabasco and water. Bring to a boil.
4. Reduce heat and simmer slowly, uncovered, for 1 hour. Stir occasionally.
5. After 1 hour, turn off fire.
6. Immediately add shrimp, lemon juice, lemon rind, parsley and cognac.
7. Serve over white rice or with French bread.

Best if made the day before or early in the morning. Cover & refrigerate. Reheat quickly, without boiling.

CORNBREAD
1 1/3 cups Flour
2/3 cups Cornmeal (yellow)
2/3 cups Sugar
½ cups Corn Flour (use ¼ Cup Flour and ¼ Cup Cornmeal)
5 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1 1/3 cups Milk
5 tablespoons unsalted Butter, melted
1 Egg, beaten

In large bowl, mix Flour, Cornmeal, Sugar, Corn Flour (see note), Baking Powder, and Salt. Mix well, breaking up any lumps.
2. In another bowl, combine the Milk, Butter and Egg.
3. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, blend just until mixed and large lumps are dissolved. Do not overbeat.
4. For Bread: Pour into a greased pan and bake at 350 F until golden brown, about 55 minutes.
For Muffins: Spoon mixture into 12 greased muffin cups. Bake at 350 F until golden brown, about 45 minutes

Red Beans & Rice
1 pound dried red beans
1 meaty ham bone
1 ¾ quarts water (enough to cover ham bone)
3 cups chopped Bermuda onion
1 bunch green onions, chopped
1 cup parsley, chopped
2 large cloves garlic, crushed
1 Tablespoon salt
Dash red pepper
1 teaspoon black pepper
½ teaspoon sugar
Dash Tabasco
¼ teaspoon oregano
¼ teaspoon thyme leaves
1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
½ (8 oz.) can tomato sauce
Seasoned salt to taste
Cooked Rice
Soak beans overnight in water to cover. Drain. Cook beans and ham bone in water slowly for 3 hours. Add all ingredients except seasoned salt. Cook slowly for 1 ½ hours. Cool. Reheat and simmer for 1 hour. Add seasoned salt to taste. Served over cooked rice. Serves 8.

The other recipes will be added when I have more time!

CAJUN SHRIMP ETOUFFEE

Last night's dinner was delicious. In keeping with the Mardi Gras theme for this time of year, I decided to make a dish that I loved when we went to New Orleans. It was pretty easy and had just the right amount of heat. Enjoy!

Cajun Shrimp Etouffee
An authentic Louisiana recipe with a rich and spicy fresh tomato based roux with fresh garlic, bell peppers, celery and onions mixed with crawfish and shrimp. Serve over steamed rice.
PREP TIME
20 Min
COOK TIME
50 Min
READY IN
1 Hr 10 Min
INGREDIENTS
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 small green bell pepper, diced
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 stalks celery, diced
2 fresh tomatoes, chopped
2 tablespoons Louisiana-style hot sauce
1/3 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper (optional)
2 tablespoons seafood seasoning
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 cup fish stock
1 pound crawfish tails
1 pound medium shrimp - peeled and deveined
DIRECTIONS
Heat the oil in a heavy skillet over medium heat. Gradually stir in flour, and stir constantly until the mixture turns 'peanut butter' brown or darker, at least 15 or 20 minutes. I use a large fork with the flat side to the bottom of the pan in a side to side motion. This is your base sauce or 'Roux'. It is very important to stir this constantly. If by chance the roux burns, discard and start over.
Once the roux is browned, add the onions, garlic, celery and bell pepper to the skillet, and saute for about 5 minutes to soften. Stir in the chopped tomatoes and fish stock, and season with the seafood seasoning. Reduce heat to low, and simmer for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Season the sauce with hot pepper sauce and cayenne pepper (if using), and add the crawfish and shrimp. Cook for about 10 minutes, or until the shrimp are opaque.