The FrangloSaxon Cooks

Louisiana Cuisines

Red Bean Salad

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Red Bean SaladIt’s still hot, you don’t want to cook, you probably don’t even want to read – especially not about cooking so we’ll make it short here. In three words: Red Bean Salad.

Three bean salad was all the rage back in the fifties. It powered through the decades and even now shows up at pot lucks and church suppers. And why? Because it’s good and easy. Open cans, throw in some seasonings and oil and you’re good to go. And it also keeps in the fridge for more healthy than Doritos late nite snacking.

This is the Louisiana One Bean Salad version using Louisiana’s favorite bean. I specify cans here but you can cook your own beans and the best way to do that in hot weather is to pre-soak them and then do a quick boil or even quicker prep in a pressure cooker. And don’t forget to add a tablespoon of oil to the water as it will keep the foam created by the beans to a minimum. If you go the canned route you’ll probably use Bush’s or Blue Runner. If so, drain them because you’ll be making the dressing and you don’t want it to be diluted or cloudy.

Red Bean SaladAs you can see from the photo above I went the dried bean route and even used Rancho Gordo’s red bean for a change. It’s a smaller less creamy version of the classic Camellia Red Bean (as featured below). They’re both good so try them both!

Red Bean SaladFor the seasonings I like to keep it simple but the thyme is a classic Louisiana herb and adding it fresh really puts the flavor over the top. The dressing has lemon juice instead of vinegar but if lemons are in short supply use whatcha got! If it’s white vinegar go for it.

C’est fini! Et la salade est servi.

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Red Bean Salad
Author: 
Cuisine: Creole
 
Ingredients
  • For the salad:
  • 3 15 oz. cans of red beans*
  • 1 tsp. celery salt**
  • 1 shallot, finely minced
  • ¼ cup celery, diced
  • ¼ cup bell pepper (any color), diced
  • 1 tablespoon thyme leaves (or one tsp. dried thyme)
  • ½ cup parsley, finely chopped
  • ½ cup chives (or green onions), sliced thinly
  • For the dressing:
  • ⅓ cup oil (olive oil if possible)
  • ¼ cup lemon juice, scant
Instructions
  1. Mix all dry ingredients making sure that the thyme leaves are stripped from the branch before mixing.
  2. Whisk together the oil and lemon juice (or white vinegar) and season to taste with salt and pepper.
  3. If possible it's nice to make a couple of hours before serving to let the flavors marry.
Notes
* Or equivalent amount of dried red kidney beans cooked according to package instructions.
**I usually use Cambridgeshire Seasoning from Savory Spice.

 

Chocolate Chicory Buttermilk Cake

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OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAIf you have but one chocolate cake in your repertoire this should be that cake. Dense, devilish and coated with mocha buttercream icing it’s dessert for grown ups. The addition of a couple of teaspoons of very finely ground coffee & chicory to the icing adds visual and aromatic interest. Best of all the rich flavor comes from Hershey’s dark powdered chocolate – no expensive chunk chocolates that require melting here.

People in Louisiana love their coffee and chicory and everyone loves chocolate so I can’t think of a special occasion where it will disappoint. If you don’t have coffee with chicory, the regular kind will do just fine.

This recipe is pretty straightforward, the only variable consisting in whether you decide to use buttermilk, yogurt or sour cream. If you can find a good rich buttermilk use it. My luck in finding that has been poor these last few years. Seems as if most of what is available is skimmed and watery so I tend to use the yogurt, which, if you buy it in the small individual cups, is exactly the right amount. Interestingly, even though the yogurt and sour cream are thicker than the buttermilk, that thickness doesn’t seem to affect the final product. So whichever you decide to use, half a cup does the job.

Here’s the uncut version:

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAand the cut:

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

 

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Chocolate Chicory Buttermilk Cake
Author: 
Cuisine: Southern
Serves: 8
 
Ingredients
  • Make a liquid out of the following:
  • 1 cup hot water
  • ½ cup Hershey's powdered dark chocolate
  • 2 teaspoons instant coffee/expresso
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla
  • ¾ cup brown sugar
  • ½ cup buttermilk (or full fat plain yogurt or sour cream (the small individual yogurt is about ½ cup)
  • Mix together:
  • 1 stick butter
  • 1¼ cups sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • Stir together:
  • 1⅓ cup all purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • For the icing:
  • 2 sticks of unsalted butter
  • 2 cups of powdered sugar
  • 1 large egg yolk
  • 1 tablespoon each coffee liqueur, vanilla, and very strong coffee with chicory (or instant expresso)
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 350.
  2. Mix the hot water, chocolate powder, coffee, vanilla, sugar, and buttermilk.
  3. While that is cooling beat well the butter, then add the sugar and the eggs.
  4. Now start alternatively adding the dry ingredients with the liquid to the butter/sugar/egg slurry till they are fully incorporated.
  5. Pour into 8" greased and floured cake pans (or, if you're having a Martha moment, you can do the paper lined version...) and bake for about 35 minutes.
  6. For the icing beat the butter till very light and add the powdered sugar.
  7. Mix the yolk, coffee liqueur, vanilla and coffee and add gradually to the butter mixture.
  8. If desired add a couple of teaspoons of very finely ground coffee with chicory.
Notes
If you freeze the layers for about an hour the cake will be easier to frost and will pick up fewer crumbs.

 

Grillades & Grits

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Grillades & GritsGrillades is the breakfast dish you make at night. Wake up, put the pot on to warm and start making the grits. In less time than it takes for people to stumble into the kitchen you will have prepared a delicious, complex and filling meal that will keep family and/or guests full for hours.

Although a classic brunch dish usually eaten out, it can be a lifesaver on holidays when you have lots of people but need something to feed the masses which can be served stoveside.

To start you must flour and saute the meat in batches like this: And note that you can also slice it into strips as I did before adding it to the gravy.

GrilladesThe meat can be beef, veal or pork but since it is a low and slow cooking dish I would opt for the cheaper cuts of beef or pork as veal’s delicate flavor would be really swallowed up in the sauce, or should I say gravy….and we know how southerners like their gravy. After you have browned all the meat set it aside and add the vegetables to the pot:

GrilladesCook for a few minutes until softened then add the beef broth. Stir well and to enhance the gravy I make a paste of the dredging flour and some balsamic vinegar like this:

GrilladesOnce everything is well mixed lay the meat into the gravy making sure it is covered then put the top on and cook until the meat is fork tender. When it’s done you can either serve or refrigerate for the next day.

The other critical component is the grits. Grits are simple as long as you follow a few simple rules. They should be stone ground, stirred well, and salted & peppered thoroughly…and fresh pepper too. The liquid can be water but for really delicious grits I use chicken broth and heavy cream. The heavy cream suggestion came from the owner of the Refuel Café on Hampson Street. He has the best grits in town and that’s why.

And even though the grillades are swimming in gravy, don’t forget to add some butter to the grits (as seen below, pooling around the edges). Eat this for a late breakfast and it’ll last you to mid afternoon. Happily!

Grillades & Grits

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Grillades
Author: 
Cuisine: Creole
 
Ingredients
  • For the Meat Sauce:
  • 2 lbs beef round
  • 1 cup flour
  • 6 tablespoons vegetable oil (or rendered bacon fat)
  • 1 cup onion, diced
  • ½ cup green bell pepper, diced
  • ½ cup red bell pepper, diced
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 3 stalks celery, diced
  • 1 tsp. ground fennel
  • 2 sprigs of fresh thyme or 1 tsp. ground
  • 1 tsp. paprika
  • 1 tsp. red pepper flakes
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1 10 oz. can of beef consume
  • 1 14 oz. can of diced tomatoes
  • 2 tablespoons of the dredging flour
  • 1 tablespoon of red balsamic (or wine) vinegar
  • For the grits:
  • 2 cups grits
  • 2 cups chicken broth
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • salt and fresh black pepper to taste
Instructions
  1. For the grillades:
  2. Pound out meat until about ¼ inch thick, then dredge in flour.
  3. Heat to medium a large pan and pour in oil.
  4. Place in pan to brown on each side. Prepare in batches and set aside.
  5. Add onion, green & red bell pepper, garlic and celery and saute for 5 minutes or until softened.
  6. Add beef consume, diced tomatoes, fennel, thyme, paprika and bay leaves and give it a good stir.
  7. Take the flour from dreadging & enough wine vinegar to make a thick paste then stir into sauce slowly to thicken.
  8. Lay in the meat & make sure it's submerged in the sauce. Cover & cook on low for 2 hours or in the oven at 225 for the same amount of time. If you cook on the stove top check to make sure the bottom isn't burning.
  9. For the grits:
  10. Combine all ingredients, cook over a medium flame and stir continuously until done.
Notes
Be careful when adding salt if you use canned beef consume. The canned soup is very salty.

 

Succotash

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SuccotashYou won’t be sufferin if you eat this simple succotash. Besides tasting good the combination of a grain (corn) with a legume (lima bean) provides a cheap dish that is high in essential amino acids. Which is why native Americans feasted on it when deer and fish were scarce.

The word Succotash comes from the Narragansett word ‘sohquttahhash’ which is Narragansett for ‘broken corn’ but you can just call it ‘tasty’ which is shorter and easier to spell than ‘sohquttahhash.’

In our house it was always baby limas and summer corn but in truth succotash is a style of prep using corn and beans so you can substitute other beans if you have ’em. Red kidney beans, great northern beans, lady cream peas, purple hull peas and crowder peas (all really beans) are great too. Camellia brand has some nice info on Lady Creams that’s worth reading.

Purple hulls, blackeyed, and crowders came to America with African immigrants and are part of the ‘cow pea’ family. You may read up on it at www.purplehull.com This link to an Arkansas website will fill you in (and up) on cow pea history along with information on, I’m not kidding here, ‘garden tiller racing’ competition. This sporting event called the “Tiller Thriller” was hitherto unknown (at least to me) but it looks exciting if somewhat dusty. You be the judge….and if you wash up in Emerson, AR you might just be the judge. Stranger things have happened. If you do I’m sure your duties will be rewarded with a steaming bowl of purple hulls and hog jowl.

But on to the prep! And it’s easy.

Throw about three cobs of corn into a 350 oven. No need to shuck. Just rinse and let cook for about 20 minutes or until done. They will steam in their husks.Soup Macque ChouxPut the limas in a pot of salted water and boil gently for about 10 minutes.

While that’s going fry the bacon in a cast iron skillet until crispy, remove, crumble and set aside. Put the chopped onion right into the bacon grease and cook for about three minutes or until golden then add the flour and cook for a minute. Now start gradually adding the chicken broth until you have a gravy. Season with the celery salt, salt and pepper. Feel free to add some heavy cream to taste if you want to fancy it up a little.

SuccotashAnd finally, cut the corn off the cob, drain the limas and stir it all in. Let it cook over a very low heat for a few minutes then fold in the bacon bits and you are ready to serve. Add some chopped tomatoes and it will be even better.

And for a cheater main course do the following:

Add an extra tablespoon of flour to the bacon grease, and a full cup of chicken broth to make the gravy. Throw in as much leftover shredded chicken (realistically a cup to a cup and a half) as you want. Roll out a premade piece of puff pastry to the size of the skillet, poke some air holes in it and run it in a 425 oven until puffed and brown. With that you’ll have all the major food groups except beer so enjoy!

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Succotash
Author: 
Cuisine: Southern
 
Ingredients
  • 3 strips bacon
  • ½ cup onion, diced
  • 2 tablespoons flour
  • ¾ cup chicken broth (or more if needed)
  • 2 cups lima (or butter beans)
  • 2 cups corn, cooked
  • 1 tsp. celery salt
  • Salt & Pepper to taste
  • Optional: chopped tomatoes
Instructions
  1. Fry the bacon in a skillet until crisp. Remove, crumble when cool and set aside.
  2. Cook the onions in the bacon fat until golden, then add flour and cook for a minute.
  3. Slowly add the chicken broth creating a thin gravy.
  4. If the lima beans are raw, add them and let cook until done. Depending on size this can be 3 to 10 minutes. Next add the cooked corn.
  5. If the sauce has thickened too much add some more chicken broth or water until you get the preferred consistency.
  6. Add celery salt, salt & pepper, sprinkle with bacon & serve.
  7. Chopped tomatoes can be added.