ragin' cajun

southern creole dishes that'll add spice to your life.

crockin' red beans and rice

I'm always a little hesitant recreating my Cajun fiance Greg's favorite and familiar Louisiana dishes.  After he tried my cleaned-up version of red beans and rice,  I felt confident in sharing this recipe with the world. This protein packed dish is sure to be a crowd pleas-er good enough for a Cajun!  I used a recipe out of the Louisiana Cooking Magazine, "Fall Comfort with a Cajun Flair," modifying it to suit our dietary needs.  I like to soak the beans and do the prep during the day and cook this dish in the crock pot all night. This dish could also easily be prepared in a large stock pot on the stove.

Makes 10 - 1 cup servings


ingredients:

2 Tbsp olive oil
1 pound all natural chicken sausage
1 quart no-sodium vegetable stock or water 
2 cloves of garlic,  finely minced
1 large sweet onion,  diced
4 stalks celery, diced
1 large yellow bell pepper, seeded and diced
1 large red bell pepper, seeded and diced
1 pound dried red kidney beans, soaked in cold water a minimum of 4 hours, drained
2 bay leaves
2 tsp dried chili pepper flakes
2 tsp kosher salt
2 tsp Cajun seasoning
1 tsp dried sage (optional)
2 tsp dried parsley
2 tsp smoked paprika

1. In a large non-stick crock pot insert, or a large non-stick dutch oven, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium-high heat. Cook the sausage and the onions stirring occasionally, until the onions have slightly caramelized and the sausage has browned, about 10 minutes. Add the garlic and cook another 2 minutes, making sure that the garlic does not burn.
2. Add celery and bell peppers, and cook until tender, about 10 minutes. Add the soaked beans and 3 cups of stock into the pot. Add bay leaves, Cajun seasoning, pepper flakes, salt, sage, parsley, and paprika, and stir well.
3. Place the lid on the pot and bring to a boil. Transfer the insert of the crock back to the crock pot and turn on low for 8-10 hours or high 4-6 hours.

4. Once the beans are soft, using a hand mixer (shown) or a potato masher, cream some of the beans making sure to leave some of the beans whole. Serve over brown rice or quinoa with some fresh crusty artisan bread (recipe found under wonder breads tab), oh and don't forget a few dashes of your favorite hot sauce! Enjoy! 

Shannon   




















craw fish etoufee

I was introduced to Etoufee by my sister and brother-in-law, Charlotte and Jerry.  Their version is the classic cajun recipe.  I decided to clean it up and bit and happened upon a local's, Holly Clegg's cleaned up recipe. This recipe is my own adaption of  Holly's Crawfish Etoufee recipe.  Holly Clegg is a Baton Rouge resident and author of more than a dozen cookbooks.  I've changed a few of the ingredients to suite my own taste.  Please feel free to do the same as needed.

Makes 4-1 cup servings:

Ingredients:

• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 3 Tbsp whole wheat flour
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1/2 chopped sweet yellow bell pepper
• 1 tsp Spice World Premium Minced Squeeze Garlic
• 1 cup low sodium vegetable broth
• 1 Tbsp paprika
• 1 12 oz Boudreaux's Brand Crawfish Tail Meat, thawed (or fresh if you like to peel and devein)
• Salt and pepper to taste
• How You Call It Cajun Seasoning to taste
• 1 bunch green onions, stems only, finely chopped
• 2 cups brown rice or quinoa, cooked 
• homemade potato salad (optional)

In a large nonstick skillet coated with nonstick cooking spray, combine oil and flour.  Cool over medium heat until light brown, about 6-8 minutes, stirring constantly.  Add onion, yellow pepper and garlic.  Saute until tender, about 5 minutes.

Gradually add broth and stir until thickened.  Add paprika and crawfish.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and cook for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Season to taste.

Add green onions and cook another few minutes before serving.

To serve add 1/2 cup cooked brown rice/quinoa to bowl.  Add 1 cup E'toufe'e on top of rice.  Top off with a good sized dollop of potato salad.  Enjoy!

Shannon and Jill


cajun potato salad

This is an adaption of grandma's famous potato salad.  Sorry grandma, just a few changes!  We decided to clean up the recipe by adding sweet potatoes and leaving the skins on!  The key to this recipe is to use freshly boiled eggs, still hot to the touch and whipping in some mayo and relish, creating a creamy dressing more reminiscent of salad dressing then egg salad, which you'll then add to the boiled potatoes.  

yield: 6- one cup servings

ingredients: 

6  red potatoes cubed, cooked with the skins on
2  sweet potatoes cubed, cooked with the skins on
6  eggs, hard boiled and peeled
1/2  cup of mayonnaise or Follow Your Heart vegenaise (my favorite)
1 heaping tablespoon of Mt. Olive reduced sodium, sweet pickle relish
"How You Call It" cajun seasoning, to taste - any low sodium, cajun seasoning will do
 salt and pepper to taste

preparation:

Boil the potatoes until soft, about 20 minutes.  In the meantime make your dressing by mashing the hot, boiled eggs until creamy using a potato masher or a fork.  Add the relish, mayo and the cajun seasoning until well blended.  Set aside. When the potatoes are tender, drain and transfer to a large bowl. Let the potatoes cool for about 15 minutes. Once the potatoes have cooled slightly, slice, dice, and powder the potatoes using your hands.  Next, add the dressing, insuring not to leave a drop behind, stir until creamy, leaving a few chunks of potato for texture.  The consistency should be similar to a 'smashed' potato.

Shannon