POTS AND PANS CITY BLOG

Cooking in the heart of Cajun country is an art form. There really is very little science to this particular form of cooking that includes a lot more than mere lagniappe from the pantry or the spice cabinet. Cajun cooking is something that has often been imitated around the country and around the world but can very rarely be accurately duplicated.

One of the fascinating things about Cajun cooking is the fact that there are very few exact recipes. Most, if not all authentic Cajun cooking is done to taste rather than measurements. Even more amazing is that from day to day one person can make the same dish over and over and it is quite likely to taste a little bit different each and every time it is made. The major reason for this is that in addition to being an art form in and of itself, Cajun food is often made even more delicious or mysterious simply by the mood of the one doing the cooking.

I’m sure that many of you have watched as Emeril Lagasse makes some special concoction and exclaims "Bam!" there is a good bit of that when it comes to Cajun cooking. Something that goes far beyond the ingredients in the recipe and somewhere into the heart and the soul of the cook in question. There is a reason that many southern cooked dishes are referred to as soul food and you should not for one second forget that New Orleans is in the heart of the Deep South.

The most difficult thing, perhaps when it comes to preparing good Cajun dishes outside of the New Orleans region is finding the right ingredients. It is nearly impossible to find the fresh seasonings and spices that are essential to most Cajun cuisine outside the heart of the old south. Not only that, but fresh crawfish and andouille sausage are a little difficult to come by during the heart of a Michigan winter.

If you are determined to learn to make Cajun food of your own, you must first find the ingredients. Specialty food shops or those that will special order might be your best bet. There are some grocers that will carry a limited stock of Cajun seasonings on their international food aisles. Keep in mind that these sources are extremely limited. Once you have the ingredients, it’s time to let a little jazz blare from your speakers in order to set the mood. Most of the best Cajun dishes require a substantial amount of time for simmering and this should be considered. Cajun food is not to be rushed-much like the citizens of the Big Easy. The food will be ready in time and as the one cooking the food you must learn to accept that about Cajun food. It has a way of letting you know when it is ready that is almost mythical until you’ve experienced it for yourself.

Cooking Cajun food will try your patience, try your talents, and in some cases zap your energy, as it tends to be an emotional process for many. On the other end however, Cajun food is some of the richest and most delicious food on the planet. Mastering the ability to cook this wonderful food will make you a slave to its flavor for many years to come.

Panini for breakfast anyone?  A panini sandwich doesn’t just have to be a lunch or supper food.  If you include breakfast ingredients, a panini goes well for a breakfast meal as well.  This panini recipe (more like French toast than anything else) is a breakfast delight, with the cinnamon-y French toast with ham and gooey cheese in the middle, sweetened at the end with flavorful maple syrup (and you know how well ham and maple syrup compliment each other).  This is the ultimate in a panini breakfast sandwich.

Ingredients:

• 3 eggs, beaten
• 1 cup half & half cream
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• ¼ tsp. cinnamon
• ¼ tsp. nutmeg
• 1 TBSP. packed brown sugar
• ¼ tsp. salt
• 8 slices of French bread (cut ½ “ thick)
• 8 thin slices of ham
• 4 slices of gruyere cheese
• Maple syrup

According to the manufacturer’s direction, preheat your electric panini press until hot.

Add the eggs, cream, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, brown sugar and salt into a medium bowl, and whisk until frothy and well blended.  Pour into a shallow baking dish and set aside.
Assemble the sandwich by placing the ham and cheese between two slices of bread.  Press down gently on the sandwich.  Place the sandwich into the egg mixture and soak for about 30 seconds on each side (until egg mixture has penetrated into the bread).

Place the sandwich on your heated panini grill and put the top down.  Grill for about 5 minutes or until the sandwich is golden brown on both sides.  Repeat with remaining sandwiches.

Serve the breakfast French toast panini sandwiches hot, with you favorite maple syrup on top.

Believe it or not, trouble free cooking is a common desire around the world. Even those among us who love cooking and eating almost equally will be the first to confess that being able to cook without the worry of creating a mess, spilling, or burning would be a blessing. Truthfully speaking there really is no such thing as trouble free cooking though there are things you can do that will take a good deal of trouble out of your cooking.

Most of the tips here will be beneficial to novice or beginners in the culinary arts however, there are some great refresher tips for those who are more experienced when it comes to cooking as well. Hopefully you will learn some things through the next few paragraphs or at least remember some things you had forgotten.

First of all, cleaning as you go will take a lot of the trouble out of what comes after the cooking. When asked the least favorite thing about cooking most cooks proclaim without a second of hesitation that the clean up by far is the worst thing about cooking. To make things easier, clean as you go. Keep a sink of hot sudsy water ready to go the entire time you are cooking and wipe up any spills that occur immediately to avoid sticky messes that are much more difficult to clean afterwards. You should also note that if you transfer your food to serving dishes and immediately wash your pots and pans they will be much easier to clean than if the food is allowed to sit in them while your family dines.

My best friend is constantly burning her dinners. The reason? She believes in high or low when it comes to cooking and there is nothing in between. Very few meals should be cooked on high. You are much better off to begin the food preparation at a medium or medium high temperature and to adjust accordingly.

Make sure your oven is preheated. The temperature of the oven does indeed make a difference in the cooking process. While there are those that believe preheating is a simple waste of electricity it is what is required in order to achieve the optimal results when cooking. Most modern electric ovens will signal when the proper temperature has been achieved.

Select recipes that fall within your comfort zone in order to avoid making mistakes or becoming too stressed about the cooking process. Once you’ve decided on your recipe read it through a couple of times in order to be certain that you not only understand all the steps involved but also have all the necessary ingredients before beginning.

Wash your hands thoroughly and wash your hands often. Remember the sink of sudsy water I mentioned above? You’ll want to use it quite frequently in order to wash any surface, cutting board, plate, or utensil that has come into contact with raw meat in order to avoid cross contamination. The same holds true for your hands.

While to some degree these tips may seem a bit simplistic, when it comes to trouble free cooking there really is no such thing. The more you do to make the cooking process seem as effortless as possible the more trouble free your cooking will really be.

Hearty soups like this one can be used as a total meal.  Thick and chunky with lots of meat and vegetables, you only need to serve this soup with a crusty loaf of bread to receive rave reviews. 

• 3-4 beefy soup bones
• 1 small steak or ¼ lb. stewing beef, cut into cubes
• 2-3 onions, chopped
• 2 stalks celery, chopped
• 3-4 carrots, peeled and sliced
• 3 medium potatoes, peeled and cubed
• 6 cups water
• 1 can diced tomatoes
• 3 beef bouillon packets
• Salt and pepper
• 1 tsp. dried basil
• 1 tsp. minced garlic
• 1 tsp. dried thyme
• Dash of Worcestershire sauce
• 1 TSBP. Cooking oil
• ½ cup frozen corn
• ½ cup frozen peas
• 3 cups chopped fresh spinach
• 1 cup medium flat egg noodles

In a large stock pot, heat oil and brown meat cubes.  Add water. Bring to a boil and skim liquid of fat.

Reduce heat and add all remaining ingredients, except corn, peas, spinach and noodles.  Simmer, covered for approximately 2-3 hours. 

Add egg noodles, corn and peas, and cook for another 15 minutes.  Stir in spinach and cook for 5 minutes more.

Serve hot.

When it comes to cooking, there are many dietary restrictions that will be encountered along the way. One restriction that is gaining some degree of notoriety in recent years is the need for a gluten free diet. Gluten is a substance that is commonly found in flour products that a decent sized portion of the population has a negative reaction to in some form or another. For these people, gluten free isn’t a choice it is absolutely necessary.

Gluten free cooking does impose many restrictions and often makes it quite difficult to enjoy something the vast majority of us take for granted-dining out. The good news from those who require gluten free cooking is that more and more restaurants are beginning to acknowledge this condition and offer some selections that are gluten free. It takes time, just as it did with the low carb craze for the demand for these products to make it worth the industries’ while to make adjustments in their way of preparing foods.

While on the one hand it is frustrating to not have the option of dining out, there is some challenge to finding new and tasty foods and combinations for cooking each and every night without falling into a rut of the same old foods that you know you can eat without worry. Consider cooking gluten free a challenge rather than a chore and you may find that the process is much more enjoyable. You might even find that you appreciate the meals you’ve worked hard to prepare even better because of the great sense of accomplishment.

There are many resources available for those who need to eat gluten free foods. There are even more and more ‘convenience’ or prepackaged foods that are designated for gluten free cooking. This means that those who once had no option but creating meals from scratch do now have the occasional shortcut available to them. We are even finding cookie and cake mixes that are now gluten free in order to enjoy some of the finer things in life for those who would have been completely deprived only a few short years ago.

Changes are being made and resources are being shared through the Internet that help not only adults that require special gluten free cooking and diets but also support for the parents of children who must have gluten free diets. Cooking for children in the best of circumstances is often difficult. It is even more difficult when there are excessive dietary restrictions that often eliminate the possibility of our children enjoying childhood favorites. That is why it is so important to seek out the many resources and recipes that are available for gluten free cooking.

If you require a gluten free diet and have no idea where to start or what you should be cooking you should check out the many websites and blogs online that address the issues and needs that are faced by those requiring gluten restrictions. You will probably be amazed at the wealth of information that is available. Also, if you have a Trader Joes or Whole Foods store in your area, most of them either offer or will order gluten free products for your cooking needs.

Gluten free cooking does not have to be the chore many of us think it must be and all gluten free food doesn’t taste like cardboard. Take the time to get to know the wonderful gluten free recipes that abound and incorporate them one at a time into your cooking repertoire. You will be amazed at how wonderful you feel as well as how great the food tastes.

A dessert wine is a sweet wine that is served with or instead of a dessert.  They are often fortified wines like port, sherry or Madeira, or late harvest wines.  Dessert wines could also include Sauternes, Tokaji, Ice Wines and Commandaria. Dessert wines are typically made from older vine-ripened grapes that are even slightly shriveled, which have concentrated the sweetness in them. Dessert wines can be tricky to make because the older fruit are more delicate and the grapes can bruise quite easily.  The longer the grapes remain on the vines to get sweeter, the greater the risk to the wine-maker.

Ice wines are especially sweet and can be expensive.  They are a late harvest wine that because of their sweetness can be served by themselves as a dessert, or go well with fruit or light desserts.  Serving an ice wine with a bowl of fresh fruit drizzled with a little dark unsweetened chocolate would go well together. Strawberries dipped in dark bitter-sweet chocolate would be a good pairing.

A dessert wine served with a dessert such as chocolate should always be sweeter than the dessert it accompanies. It is therefore necessary to pick the type chocolate you are serving with your dessert wine as carefully as it is to choose the wine.   A dessert wine served with a very sweet chocolate dessert would be cloyingly sweet and over-powering in your mouth.  It may give the feeling of eating too much sweet candy all at once.

In choosing the right type of chocolate to pair with a dessert wine, the percentage of cocoa contained in the chocolate is important. The amount of cocoa in the chocolate used will dictate how sweet the chocolate will be—the percentage of cocoa information is usually found the product label.  Milk chocolate, as a rule, has about 30% cocoa and 70% sugar, which generally makes it very creamy and too sweet that does not compliment the palate when served with a dessert wine. 

Darker chocolates with a cocoa percentage range closer to 70% makes a better match with dessert wines such as Madeira.  There are also chocolates that are infused with cinnamon, lavender, pepper or other flavorings that can be found at specialty chocolate shops that would be a pleasant match with a dessert wine.

For a dessert wine and chocolate experience to serve at your next dinner party, a suggestion would be to serve a fruit and chocolate platter.  Arrange various fruits on one side of a platter, and bitter or specialty bitter or bitter-sweet chocolates obtained from a specialty shop on the other half.  Also try including some of the unique-flavored chocolates on the platter for a different taste experience.

This is a handy kitchen calculator gadget that helps with such things as enabling you to accurately scale recipe ingredient portions for more or fewer servings.  Other features include metric and U.S. weights and measures conversion and a timer with alarm.

Calculated Industries makes two different kitchen calculators.  The KitchenCalc 8300 runs around $20.00 and the 8305 Pro model is larger and comes with two alarms.  The 8305 costs just under $30.00.  Both calculators come with soft plastic covers to protect from spills and splashes.  Both models can also perform normal calculator functions.

Limes are a small green fruit that are a member of the citrus family.  They have a distinctly unique flavor quite apart from the lemon although they are similar.  The lime tends to have a fresh taste with a very aromatic smell.  The whole fruit can be used in culinary endeavors—the skin, juice and the pulp.  Limes are typically picked and used when they are in their unripe (green) state.  Limes actually turn yellow when they are fully ripe.

Lime trees or bushes like a tropical or near tropical climate to thrive.  There are dwarf varieties that are suitable for growing in large pots on a sunny patio, which can be moved indoors during the winter.

There are several varieties of limes that are typically eaten, which include the Mexican Lime (also known as the Key Lime from Florida fame), the Persian Lime and the Kaffir Lime.  Depending on the variety, the harvesting of limes usually takes place from early summer to fall.  Many varieties, after the tree has been established, continue to produce limes throughout the year.

When buying limes, choose the fruit that is bright green in color, are firm to the touch and which feel heavy for their size.  Avoid ones which have blemishes, have soft spots or that look shriveled.  Whole limes keep well in the fridge and can last for about 10 days or more.  If the skin becomes pitted, the lime has probably reached the end of its storage life.

The juice of the lime freezes well, and you can also freeze the zest if it is to be used chopped or pureed.  It is a good idea to wash your limes thoroughly before using the zest. A good tip when trying to get the juice out of a lime is to roll the whole fruit on a hard surface or counter first.  The pressure releases the juices from the lime.

Limes are considered low in saturated fat, cholesterol and sodium.  They are high in Vitamin C content and in dietary fibre.  They also contain calcium, iron and copper, minerals your body requires for its healthy maintenance. 

As a bit of lime trivia, in the past English people were referred to as ‘Limeys’.  This came from the fact that frequently English sailors used to take limes on their long sea voyages to help ward off scurvy, a disease caused by a Vitamin C deficiency.

Lime Cream Pie

Pie Crust:

• 1 cup flour
• ½ tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. white sugar
• 1/3 cup vegetable shortening
• 2 ½ TBSP. cold water (approximately)

Add flour, salt, sugar and shortening in food processor.  Process in short bursts until ingredients are combined and has the texture of small peas.  Add cold water a little at a time.  Add only enough water to hold pastry together.  Shape into a ball and wrap with plastic wrap.  Refrigerate for about an hour.  After and hour, unwrap and roll out the pastry on a lightly floured surface, about 1/8” thick shaping into a circle as you work.  Gently lay pastry in pie plate.

Bake pie crust at 425? F for 12-15 minutes.  Cool before filling.

Filling:

• 1 can sweetened condensed milk
• 1/3 cup fresh squeezed lime juice
• Grated zest of one lime
• ¼ tsp. salt
• 2/3 cup well-drained crushed pineapple
• Whipped cream

Combine first 4 filling ingredients in a pot.  Cook over medium heat until thickened.  Gently add in the well-drained crushed pineapple and stir together.  Remove from heat and chill for approximately 3 hours.  Turn into baked and cooled pie shell. 

Serve with generous dollops of sweetened whipped cream.

You have heard of Lemon Meringue Pie and Coconut Cream Pie, but have you tasted the goodness of a Coconut Meringue Pie?  This un-typical pie blends the smooth creamy taste of tropical coconut with the light fluffy sweetness of traditional meringue.  It is a melt-in-your-mouth pie that is sure to be a crowd pleaser at any gathering, family or otherwise.

Coconuts come from a large palm tree, which can reach a height of 30 ft. The coconut palm is found throughout the tropical world and is used for decoration as well as many culinary and non-culinary uses.  The nut from the tree (or coconut) is very light and buoyant and has been known to float away and germinate anywhere the climate is right.  Floating coconuts have been found (and to be viable) as far away as Norway.  But, the coconut does like the warm tropical climates best.

The coconut is a simple dry nut, with distinct layers.  There is the fibrous outer layer or husk with an inner harder layer (the endocarp).  Most coconuts you see in stores are presented in the hard layer form.  The coconut meat is inside of the endocarp and in the very middle is the coconut water.

The coconut meat high in saturated fat, but it contains less fat than some other nuts families, such as peanuts or almonds.   Some believe that the saturated fat in coconuts is actually healthier than the saturated fat found in other foods, but that has yet to be proven.  Coconut meat does contain less sugar and more protein than can be found in other popular fruits such as bananas, apples or oranges.  Coconut is also relatively high in minerals such as iron, phosphorus and zinc.

The coconut water found in the centre of the coconut should not be confused with the coconut milk found in cans in your grocery store.  Coconut milk is grated coconut meat combined with water to form a thick smooth milk-like substance.  Coconut milk is used often in cooking.  The pure coconut water found in coconuts can be drunk fresh.  It has a sweet milk flavor.

Meringue, another essential part of the Coconut Meringue Pie, consists of beaten egg whites and sugar.  The egg whites when beaten change the protein bonding structure to form a stiff consistency.  There are three stages of meringue according the to stiffness of the peaks formed when the beater is lifted from the beaten egg whites—soft peaks, medium and stiff peaks.  Stiff peaks are preferable for making meringue pies.

After the egg whites have been beaten (with the sugar added), the meringue is placed in the oven for a short time to lightly brown the topping.  A soft golden color is desired. 

Tips for making the perfect meringue:

• Be sure the eggs are at room temperature
• When separating the eggs, be sure that there is no yolk whatsoever in the egg whites
• Use a clean, grease-free bowl—glass is best

Coconut Meringue Pie

• 8” frozen pre-baked pie shell
• 1 pkg. (4 serving size) vanilla instant pudding mix
• 1 can coconut milk
• 2 tsp. coconut extract

Meringue:

• 2 egg whites – room temperature
• ¼ cup super-fine white sugar

Combine vanilla pudding mix, coconut milk and coconut extract in a bowl.  Mix together as per package directions.  Spread in pre-baked pie shell.  Chill for 1 hour.

Beat egg whites and sugar together until stiff and soft peaks form.  Spread over pudding mix. 

Bake at 350? for 10-15 minutes until meringue is golden.  Remove from oven.  Chill pie for another hour before serving.

Custard pies have always been a family favorite because of their smooth creamy texture.  Adding another flavor, like bananas, to the custard increases the flavor experience.  Custard pies can be served cold, as is, but are also great when topped with whipped cream (for another layer of extravagance). If you also add bits of shaved chocolate on top of the whipped cream, you will truly have a dessert that dreams are made of.

Sometimes, though, custard pies can be tricky to make.  Some can turn out lumpy and others watery.  One important tip with custard pies is that they must be kept well chilled if not eaten almost at once.  The eggs can be subject to adverse bacterial activity if not kept refrigerated, even if there is no apparent evidence of spoilage.  As a general rule, custard pies should be eaten within 3 hours of baking. They should then be refrigerated.

If you want to make a good custard pie, typically the piecrust needs to be baked at high heat to be flakey, while the custard filling requires a low heat.  The best way to deal with this problem is to partially pre-bake the piecrust. 

Use a high temperature, like 450° F, to start the pie crust baking.  You bake the pie crust at that temperature for about 10 minutes, then reduce the oven heat to 325° F.  The filling should be standing by and ready.  As soon as the pie shell has baked for the required 10 minutes, pull out the oven rack and turn the filling into the hot pie crust.  You can also remove the pie shell from the oven, fill it and then return it to the oven.  You must be quick, however, and return the filled pie to the oven at once without letting it cool too much.

With some custard pies you can cook the filling separately and then just before serving, spoon the cooled filling into a fully baked and cooled pie shell.  You can prepare and cook the custard filling over (not in) a pan of hot water. A good tip when pre-paring a custard filling is when the custard has thickened over the hot water, beat it until it is cool to allow the steam to escape, otherwise the steam will remain in the filling and it may become too watery.

The following is a recipe for a standard Banana Custard Pie.  As mentioned, you can top it with whipped cream or shaved chocolate for a more decadent treat.

Banana Custard Pie

PASTRY:

• 1 cup flour
• ½ tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. white sugar
• 1/3 cup vegetable shortening
• 2 ½ TBSP. cold water (approximately)

Add flour, salt, sugar and shortening in food processor.  Process in short bursts until ingredients are combined and has the texture of small peas.  Add cold water a little at a time.  Add only enough water to hold pastry together.  Shape into a ball and wrap with plastic wrap.  Refrigerate for about an hour. 

While dough is chilling, prepare the pie filling.  Have it ready to turn into the hot pie shell at once.

FILLING:

• 3 ripe bananas
• 3 eggs
• ½ cup sugar
• ¼ tsp. salt
• 2 cups ½ + ½ cream
• 1 tsp. vanilla

Whipped cream sweetened with ¼ cup sugar

Purée bananas in blender or food processor until smooth.  In a large bowl, beat eggs.  Add puréed bananas and remaining ingredients.  Mix together until smooth.

After the dough has been chilling for an hour, unwrap and roll out the pastry on a lightly floured surface, about 1/8” thick shaping into a circle as you work.  Gently lay pastry in pie plate. Crimp the edges.  Prick pastry with a fork all over.  Bake at 450° F for about 10 minutes. Reduce the oven heat to 325° F and fill the shell while it is still hot.

Turn well mixed filling into prepared and partially baked pie shell.  Bake at 325° F for about 30 minutes or until a knife inserted into the centre comes out clean.  Cool on rack.  Top pie with sweetened whipped cream before serving.