Cajun Food Where You Find It
Cajun French: le sel (lu sel) – salt
Brining has become very popular for meats and poultry. Since neither is on our menu, we decided to try brining fish and WOW! This brine is easy, simple and oh so good. We have used it for catfish as well as salmon and smoked the fish with excellent results. When smoking, we used apple wood which added an extra sweetness.
Mais C’est Bon!
Enjoy!! Continue reading “Fish Brining”
Cajun French: le jardinage (lu jar-deen-aj) – vegetables
Pizza has the reputation of high fat, high calorie food. Because of this pizza is something we enjoy yet rarely indulge in. We had a whole wheat pizza crust and were trying to decide what to do with it. Grilling is a favorite way of cooking for us and so Grilled Pizza was on the menu. Not only grill the pizza but also grill the vegetables that would go on the pizza. This process is a labor of love and does take some time, yet the end product is worth every minute of preparation and cooking. We took what would have been high fat and calorie and made it healthy.
Mais C’est Bon!
Cajun French: la salade (la sal-ad) – salad
Growing up among fields of sugar cane in south Louisiana we are always interested in local products made with sugar cane. Steens, famous for their pure cane syrup, makes cane vinegar from their cane syrup. The vinegar has a light sweet aftertaste and adds a unique flavor to this dressing. This dressing is great with tomato and red onion salad, potato and dill salad, and just about any other salad you prepare.
Mais C’est Bon!
Cajun French: l’écrevisse bouilli (l’ā-krū-vees boo-ee) – boiled crawfish
Crawfish boils bring family and friends together to enjoy the bounty of south Louisiana. Every Cajun family has their own “special” boiling recipe and most are willing to share to prove it’s the best! Besides the enjoyment of the boil itself, one of the best parts is the left over crawfish. Most families plan their boils so there is crawfish left to incorporate in other dishes. Our Saturday afternoon boil was no different and we had crawfish to make our Crawfish Boil Fritter. This is a sweet savory dish and makes a great start to any meal.
Mais C’est Bon!
Cajun French: le cachat (lu ka-sha) – squash
While traveling we see many varieties of fruits and vegetables not available in Louisiana. One such was the Delicata Squash we purchased at the North Platte, NE farmers market. As we normally do with most of our fresh vegetables, the Delicata Squash was grilled using olive oil and salt. We enjoyed it, were glad to have tasted it and added a new vegetable to our food regimen.
What do we see at the Red Stick Farmers Market in Baton Rouge, LA this week but a Delicata Squash – what a surprise. The farmer called it Sweet Potato Squash; no matter the name we had to have it. This time we decided to roast it with fresh sweet red peppers, onions and leeks. We gave the dish a Louisiana spin by using Steen’s Cane Syrup and Creole Mustard.
Interested to know why it was called Sweet Potato Squash, research ensued. We found the name came from the pulp tasting somewhat like a sweet potato. Also the rind is edible which gives another dimension to the squash. While researching we came across an article by “What’s Cooking America”, stating that the Delicata Squash was first introduced in New York City in 1894 and was popular through the 1920’s. Once vegetables began being transported from one area to the other, the Delicata became unavailable due to its thinner more tender skin which was not suited for transportation and storage.
Now with the popularity of farmers markets, vegetables like the Delicata Squash are available and enjoyed once again.
Mais C’est Bon!
Cajun French: la sauce aux tomates (la sos ō tō-mat) – tomato sauce
Salmon was the main dish and we were looking for a side. In the frig we found fresh ears of corn, homemade tomato sauce and left over spaghetti – that was a good start. We first decided to roast the corn, then we added the sauce and finally the pasta and a side was born. The salmon was grilled with rosemary seasoned with salt, pepper and lemon juice.
Mais C’est Bon!
Cajun French: la farine de maïs (la far-een du ma-ee) – corn meal
A loaf of cornmeal and corn bread was one of our purchases at the farmers market. We only find this bread when fresh corn is in season, so we purchase a loaf every week as long as it is available. The bread taste fresh and clean and melts in your mouth!
We wanted to make the bread a part of our lunch so the planning was around the bread. Fresh eggplant, sweet red peppers and tomatoes were also some of our purchases and we had marinaded artichokes so a sandwich was born. Add onions and we were set for stacking a sandwich.
Mais C’est Bon!
Enjoy!! Continue reading “Grilled Eggplant and Artichoke Sandwich”
Cajun French: la bétrave (la bāt-rav) – beet
The taste of Spring.
There is nothing like the taste of fresh Spring vegetables and Red Stick Farmers Market offers a variety to choose from. We have purchased several beet varieties as well as celery root. The past few weeks we have used the beets and celery root separately so this week we decided to make a salad combining both root vegetables. We wanted the vegetables crunchy but not hard so we parboiled them in seasoned water. Cucumber, though not a root vegetable, was added for a crisp taste. The salad brings Spring to the table.
Mais C’est Bon!
Enjoy!! Continue reading “Root Salad”
Cajun French: le cachat (lu ka-sha) – squash
Spring time means squash blossoms!
We get excited when squash blossoms are available at the farmers market. They are fragile flowers yet so much fun to cook with. The first ones of the season are always for stuffing. Unlike most recipes, we do not batter and deep fry; we stuff and pan fry. Pan frying allows the flavor of the squash and its flower to blossom to its fullest flavor.
Mais C’est Bon!
Enjoy!! Continue reading “Stuffed Squash Blossoms and Catfish”
Cajun French: l’huile d’olive (l’ū-eel d’ō-leev) – olive oil
Pasta? Yes, please.
Pasta is very versatile and can be a main dish, side dish or snack. This salad fits all three descriptions. The salad is a great lunch during the heat of the summer or an afternoon snack while enjoying the spring breezes. It is also one of the best potluck dishes for a crowd. Anytime, anywhere this is a great dish!
Mais C’est Bon!
