The Menu
Blackened Chicken Salad
Creole Onion Soup with Garlic Cheese Toasts
Pain Perdu with Pecan Cane Syrup and Bananas Brulee
The Ramos Gin Fizz
Recipes for:
My Creole Seasoning
The Recipes
Blackened Chicken Salad
Servings 8
Source: "National Pasta Association"
htt p://ilovepasta.org/resource-center/recipes/blackened-chicken-salad
1 pound Radiatore, Medium Shells or other medium pasta shape -- uncooked
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 tablespoon spicy Creole seasoning (1-2 tablespoons)
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
1 1/2 cups fat-free mayonnaise
3 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons capers -- drained (optional)
1 teaspoon anchovy paste (optional)
1 cup chopped tomatoes
1/2 cup sliced green onions
1/2 cup chopped green pepper
Prepare pasta according to package directions. Drain and rinse under cold water; drain again.
Rub chicken with Creole seasoning. Coat a large, heavy skillet with cooking spray. Add oil and place over medium-high heat until hot. Add chicken and cook 5 to 7 minutes on each side or until chicken is done. Remove chicken from skillet, and let cool. Cut chicken into 1/2-inch pieces and set aside.
Combine mayonnaise, parsley, chives, lemon juice, mustard, capers, and anchovy paste; mix well.
In a large bowl, combine pasta, chicken, mayonnaise mixture, tomatoes, onions, and pepper. Cover and chill thoroughly.
Per serving:
337 Calories (kcal); 3g Total Fat; (9% calories from fat); 21g Protein; 55g Carbohydrate; 35mg Cholesterol; 742mg Sodium
Food Exchanges: 3 Grain (Starch); 2 Lean Meat; 1/2 Vegetable; 0 Fruit; 0 Fat; 1/2 Other Carbohydrates
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
My Creole Seasoning
Another staple in my kitchen is a good Creole Seasoning. A lot of people use Tony Chachere's, or Chef Paul's, I like to make my own, it's easy if you have all the spices on hand, and you have control over the heat and salinity. One of the many things I like about Paul Prudhomme's cookbooks, is that he gives a seasoning mix recipe for each dish. He always uses 3 peppers in every seasoning: Black, White, and Cayenne, because they all touch a different place on your tongue. What I like to do is make a base seasoning, that I can add on to for each dish. For instance, if I want a Southwest seasoning, I add cumin, chipotle, and ancho chili powder. You can also omit the salt if you prefer. This is a good basic Creole Seasoning:
http://neworleanscuisine.blogspot.com/2005/03/creole-seasoning-recipe.html
1/2 Cup Kosher Salt
1/3 Cup Paprika
1/4 Cup Granulated Garlic
4 Tbsp Onion Powder
1/3 Cup Freshly Ground Black Pepper
3 Tbsp White Pepper
2 Tbsp Cayenne Pepper
2 Tbsp Dried Thyme
2 Tbsp Dried Basil
1 Tbsp Dried Oregano
Combine all ingredients and place in an airtight jar or plastic container.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Creole Onion Soup
This is a small recipe, about 6 - 9 servings.
This is a New Orleans Cuisine recipe I made tonight to use up some of my Beef Stock that wouldn't fit in the freezer. Creole Onion Soup is very similar to French Onion Soup, except it is creamed at the end. I also don't put a ton of cheese on this soup, instead I float a few Garlic Toasts which are topped with grated Gruyere and Chives, see below. You could certainly pile on the cheese a la French Onion if you prefer.
http ://neworleanscuisine.blogspot.com/2005/04/creole-onion-soup.html
9 oz Unsalted Butter ( 3/4 stick)
12 Large Spanish Onions, Thinly Sliced into 1 - 2" Pieces
6 tsp Granulated Sugar
3 Tbsp Minced Fresh Garlic
9 Tbsp Flour
6 oz. Dry Red Wine
9 Cups Beef Stock
6 Tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
9 Sprigs Fresh Thyme
2 Fresh Bay Leaves
Pinch Cayenne
Pinch White Pepper
4 oz Heavy Cream
Kosher Salt and Black Pepper To Taste
Melt the butter over Medium Heat in a Heavy Bottomed Dutch Oven. Add the Onions and Sugar, raise the heat to high until the onions are transparent, stirring often, about 3-5 minutes.
Lower the heat to medium and cook the onions, stirring occasionally, for about 15 minutes or until the onions are nicely caramelized.
(A lot of cooks make a mistake during this step of trying to cook their onions too fast, if you do you will get bitter onions. This is true for any time you cook onions. Just a hint I pickup from my Grandmother.)
Add the Garlic and cook for 2 minutes.
Add the flour stirring constantly until well incorporated, about 2 minutes. Whisk in the Wine and Beef stock, bring to a boil.
Reduce the heat to a simmer, add the Fresh Thyme, Bay leaves, Worcestershire Sauce, Cayenne, White Pepper, some Salt (not too much yet) and Black Pepper. Simmer this for about 1 1/2 hours. Turn the heat to low and whisk in the Heavy Cream, adjust the seasonings.
Garlic Cheese Toasts
Preheat the Broiler.
Slice a baguette on the bias into as many pieces as you need, about 1/2" thick.
Broil these on both sides until Golden Brown. Rub the toasts on both sides with a smashed garlic clove. Top with grated Gruyere Cheese and Freshly Ground Black Pepper, place back under the broiler until the cheese melts, about 1 Minute. Top with thinly sliced Chives.
Float 2 of these on top of each serving of Creole Onion Soup.
Pain Perdu with Pecan Cane Syrup and Bananas Brulee
(This recipe will make enough batter for 6 - 8 servings.)
Pain Perdu or Lost Bread is a brunch and breakfast favorite in New Orleans. If you have leftover French Bread from the night before, this is an easy, economical, and wonderful breakfast, I'm eating it right now as a matter of fact
. It
will turn out best if you use lost bread, or stale bread, if your bread is too
fresh it will get soggy and lose some of it's texture. Still good, mind you, but
not as good. I have an interesting classic Creole recipe for this from the 1901
Picayune's Creole Cook Book, the batter used is as follows:
10 Eggs
4 Tbsp of Orange Flower Water
1 Cup Sugar
The Finely Grated Zest of a Lemon
6 Tbsp Brandy
I will have to try this one sometime, sounds interesting, and of course they fry the bread in Lard. Ahh, the Good Old Days! Of course, Lard has only half of the Cholesterol of butter, which I use, so I shouldn't talk. If you don't have Steen's Cane Syrup, you could use Molasses, or good old Maple Syrup. If you can find it though, it's a great product.
6 Eggs
1 Cup Milk
1/4 Cup Banana Liquer
1/2 tsp Ground Cinnamon
A dash of Nutmeg
2 Tbsp Vanilla Extract
2 Tbsp Vegetable Oil
2 Tbsp Unsalted Butter
Leftover French Bread, Cut into 3/4" thick Slices
Pecan Cane Syrup (Recipe below)
Bananas Brulee (Recipe below)
Mint Sprig
Powdered Sugar (Optional)
Whisk together the Eggs, Milk, Banana Liquer, Cinnamon, and Nutmeg. Heat the Oil and Butter (this will keep the butter from burning) over medium heat. When hot, dredge the bread slices in the batter, making sure they soak up quite a bit, then place the bread in the oil/butter mixture and fry until they're a nice golden brown on both sides and cooked through. You can keep them warm in a low oven until ready to serve.
Serve drizzled with the Cane Syrup (recipe below), dividing the Pecans between plates. Garnish with the Bananas Brulee (recipe below) and the Mint. Give a dusting of Powdered Sugar if desired.
Serve with Cafe Noir, Cafe au Lait, or if you're in the mood a Ramos Gin Fizz!
Pecan Cane Syrup
2 Tbsp Unsalted Butter
1 tsp Toasted Sesame Oil
1/2 Cup Pecan Halves
1 Cup Steen's 100% Pure Cane Syrup**
2 Tbsp Bourbon (optional)
http://www.steensyrup.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc ?Screen=CTGY&Store_Code=STEENS&Category_Code=SYR
** If you can't find the 100% Pure Cane Syrup, subsititute it with 1/2 c. light corn syrup and 1/2 c. honey.
Heat the butter and Sesame Oil over medium heat in a small saucepan. Add the Pecans, and saute until Fragrant. Add the Steen's and Bourbon, mix well and keep warm for serving.
Bananas Brulee
1 Banana (per guest)
Granulated Sugar
Kitchen Torch
Cut the Bananas in half lengthwise. Cover the flat sides with a heavy coating of sugar, as in Creme Brulee. Flame with the torch until the sugar is Caramelized and has a hard shell.
The Fairmont's The Ramos Gin Fizz
Along with the Sazerac, the Ramos Gin Fizz is one of the most well known cocktails of New Orleans. The drink was invented in the 1880's by Henry C. Ramos at Meyer's Restaurant, which he owned. The drink was made famous, however, by the Roosevelt Hotel (now The Fairmont) where Louisiana Governor, and later Senator, Huey Long did all of his business. Huey proclaimed the Ramos Ginn Fizz his favorite drink. On one occasion, in full Huey Long fashion, he took the bartender from the Roosevelt Hotel with him on a business trip to New York, to show them how to properly make the drink. He called it his gift to New York. The Roosevelt trademarked the drink in 1935. The Fairmont still makes a great Ramos Gin Fizz in their Sazerac Bar, I sampled it on my last trip. Here is their version of the drink that I found online from Saveur magazine:
http:// neworleanscuisine.blogspot.com/2005/04/ramos-gin-fizz.html
3 dashes Lemon Juice
2 dashes Lime Juice
3 dashes Orange Flower Water
1 1/4 oz. Dry Gin (they use Gordon's)
1/4 of the White of one egg
1 Tbsp Powdered Sugar
3 oz. Milk
Add the contents to a cocktail shaker with plenty of ice. Shake very well until good and frothy, strain into a cocktail tumbler.
Orange Flower water is the most important ingredient in this drink, but go easy with it, a little goes a long way, when you smell it you'll believe me. I generally put about one small dash. There is a French company that produces it called A. Monteaux. Here is a link to where you can order it. I also found a 10 Fl. Oz. bottle from a Lebanese company at my local grocery store.
http://www.thespi cehouse.com/spices/orange-flower-water
I guess you can use the orange extract..the orange flower water is only used for its pungent flavour, and you can substitute it with even orange zest or vanilla extract, depending on your preference/taste.
Blackened Chicken Salad
Creole Onion Soup with Garlic Cheese Toasts
Pain Perdu with Pecan Cane Syrup and Bananas Brulee
The Ramos Gin Fizz
Recipes for:
My Creole Seasoning
The Recipes
Blackened Chicken Salad
Servings 8
Source: "National Pasta Association"
htt p://ilovepasta.org/resource-center/recipes/blackened-chicken-salad
1 pound Radiatore, Medium Shells or other medium pasta shape -- uncooked
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 tablespoon spicy Creole seasoning (1-2 tablespoons)
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
1 1/2 cups fat-free mayonnaise
3 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons capers -- drained (optional)
1 teaspoon anchovy paste (optional)
1 cup chopped tomatoes
1/2 cup sliced green onions
1/2 cup chopped green pepper
Prepare pasta according to package directions. Drain and rinse under cold water; drain again.
Rub chicken with Creole seasoning. Coat a large, heavy skillet with cooking spray. Add oil and place over medium-high heat until hot. Add chicken and cook 5 to 7 minutes on each side or until chicken is done. Remove chicken from skillet, and let cool. Cut chicken into 1/2-inch pieces and set aside.
Combine mayonnaise, parsley, chives, lemon juice, mustard, capers, and anchovy paste; mix well.
In a large bowl, combine pasta, chicken, mayonnaise mixture, tomatoes, onions, and pepper. Cover and chill thoroughly.
Per serving:
337 Calories (kcal); 3g Total Fat; (9% calories from fat); 21g Protein; 55g Carbohydrate; 35mg Cholesterol; 742mg Sodium
Food Exchanges: 3 Grain (Starch); 2 Lean Meat; 1/2 Vegetable; 0 Fruit; 0 Fat; 1/2 Other Carbohydrates
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
My Creole Seasoning
Another staple in my kitchen is a good Creole Seasoning. A lot of people use Tony Chachere's, or Chef Paul's, I like to make my own, it's easy if you have all the spices on hand, and you have control over the heat and salinity. One of the many things I like about Paul Prudhomme's cookbooks, is that he gives a seasoning mix recipe for each dish. He always uses 3 peppers in every seasoning: Black, White, and Cayenne, because they all touch a different place on your tongue. What I like to do is make a base seasoning, that I can add on to for each dish. For instance, if I want a Southwest seasoning, I add cumin, chipotle, and ancho chili powder. You can also omit the salt if you prefer. This is a good basic Creole Seasoning:
http://neworleanscuisine.blogspot.com/2005/03/creole-seasoning-recipe.html
1/2 Cup Kosher Salt
1/3 Cup Paprika
1/4 Cup Granulated Garlic
4 Tbsp Onion Powder
1/3 Cup Freshly Ground Black Pepper
3 Tbsp White Pepper
2 Tbsp Cayenne Pepper
2 Tbsp Dried Thyme
2 Tbsp Dried Basil
1 Tbsp Dried Oregano
Combine all ingredients and place in an airtight jar or plastic container.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Creole Onion Soup
This is a small recipe, about 6 - 9 servings.
This is a New Orleans Cuisine recipe I made tonight to use up some of my Beef Stock that wouldn't fit in the freezer. Creole Onion Soup is very similar to French Onion Soup, except it is creamed at the end. I also don't put a ton of cheese on this soup, instead I float a few Garlic Toasts which are topped with grated Gruyere and Chives, see below. You could certainly pile on the cheese a la French Onion if you prefer.
http ://neworleanscuisine.blogspot.com/2005/04/creole-onion-soup.html
9 oz Unsalted Butter ( 3/4 stick)
12 Large Spanish Onions, Thinly Sliced into 1 - 2" Pieces
6 tsp Granulated Sugar
3 Tbsp Minced Fresh Garlic
9 Tbsp Flour
6 oz. Dry Red Wine
9 Cups Beef Stock
6 Tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
9 Sprigs Fresh Thyme
2 Fresh Bay Leaves
Pinch Cayenne
Pinch White Pepper
4 oz Heavy Cream
Kosher Salt and Black Pepper To Taste
Melt the butter over Medium Heat in a Heavy Bottomed Dutch Oven. Add the Onions and Sugar, raise the heat to high until the onions are transparent, stirring often, about 3-5 minutes.
Lower the heat to medium and cook the onions, stirring occasionally, for about 15 minutes or until the onions are nicely caramelized.
(A lot of cooks make a mistake during this step of trying to cook their onions too fast, if you do you will get bitter onions. This is true for any time you cook onions. Just a hint I pickup from my Grandmother.)
Add the Garlic and cook for 2 minutes.
Add the flour stirring constantly until well incorporated, about 2 minutes. Whisk in the Wine and Beef stock, bring to a boil.
Reduce the heat to a simmer, add the Fresh Thyme, Bay leaves, Worcestershire Sauce, Cayenne, White Pepper, some Salt (not too much yet) and Black Pepper. Simmer this for about 1 1/2 hours. Turn the heat to low and whisk in the Heavy Cream, adjust the seasonings.
Garlic Cheese Toasts
Preheat the Broiler.
Slice a baguette on the bias into as many pieces as you need, about 1/2" thick.
Broil these on both sides until Golden Brown. Rub the toasts on both sides with a smashed garlic clove. Top with grated Gruyere Cheese and Freshly Ground Black Pepper, place back under the broiler until the cheese melts, about 1 Minute. Top with thinly sliced Chives.
Float 2 of these on top of each serving of Creole Onion Soup.
Pain Perdu with Pecan Cane Syrup and Bananas Brulee
(This recipe will make enough batter for 6 - 8 servings.)
Pain Perdu or Lost Bread is a brunch and breakfast favorite in New Orleans. If you have leftover French Bread from the night before, this is an easy, economical, and wonderful breakfast, I'm eating it right now as a matter of fact
. It
will turn out best if you use lost bread, or stale bread, if your bread is too
fresh it will get soggy and lose some of it's texture. Still good, mind you, but
not as good. I have an interesting classic Creole recipe for this from the 1901
Picayune's Creole Cook Book, the batter used is as follows:10 Eggs
4 Tbsp of Orange Flower Water
1 Cup Sugar
The Finely Grated Zest of a Lemon
6 Tbsp Brandy
I will have to try this one sometime, sounds interesting, and of course they fry the bread in Lard. Ahh, the Good Old Days! Of course, Lard has only half of the Cholesterol of butter, which I use, so I shouldn't talk. If you don't have Steen's Cane Syrup, you could use Molasses, or good old Maple Syrup. If you can find it though, it's a great product.
6 Eggs
1 Cup Milk
1/4 Cup Banana Liquer
1/2 tsp Ground Cinnamon
A dash of Nutmeg
2 Tbsp Vanilla Extract
2 Tbsp Vegetable Oil
2 Tbsp Unsalted Butter
Leftover French Bread, Cut into 3/4" thick Slices
Pecan Cane Syrup (Recipe below)
Bananas Brulee (Recipe below)
Mint Sprig
Powdered Sugar (Optional)
Whisk together the Eggs, Milk, Banana Liquer, Cinnamon, and Nutmeg. Heat the Oil and Butter (this will keep the butter from burning) over medium heat. When hot, dredge the bread slices in the batter, making sure they soak up quite a bit, then place the bread in the oil/butter mixture and fry until they're a nice golden brown on both sides and cooked through. You can keep them warm in a low oven until ready to serve.
Serve drizzled with the Cane Syrup (recipe below), dividing the Pecans between plates. Garnish with the Bananas Brulee (recipe below) and the Mint. Give a dusting of Powdered Sugar if desired.
Serve with Cafe Noir, Cafe au Lait, or if you're in the mood a Ramos Gin Fizz!
Pecan Cane Syrup
2 Tbsp Unsalted Butter
1 tsp Toasted Sesame Oil
1/2 Cup Pecan Halves
1 Cup Steen's 100% Pure Cane Syrup**
2 Tbsp Bourbon (optional)
http://www.steensyrup.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc ?Screen=CTGY&Store_Code=STEENS&Category_Code=SYR
** If you can't find the 100% Pure Cane Syrup, subsititute it with 1/2 c. light corn syrup and 1/2 c. honey.
Heat the butter and Sesame Oil over medium heat in a small saucepan. Add the Pecans, and saute until Fragrant. Add the Steen's and Bourbon, mix well and keep warm for serving.
Bananas Brulee
1 Banana (per guest)
Granulated Sugar
Kitchen Torch
Cut the Bananas in half lengthwise. Cover the flat sides with a heavy coating of sugar, as in Creme Brulee. Flame with the torch until the sugar is Caramelized and has a hard shell.
The Fairmont's The Ramos Gin Fizz
Along with the Sazerac, the Ramos Gin Fizz is one of the most well known cocktails of New Orleans. The drink was invented in the 1880's by Henry C. Ramos at Meyer's Restaurant, which he owned. The drink was made famous, however, by the Roosevelt Hotel (now The Fairmont) where Louisiana Governor, and later Senator, Huey Long did all of his business. Huey proclaimed the Ramos Ginn Fizz his favorite drink. On one occasion, in full Huey Long fashion, he took the bartender from the Roosevelt Hotel with him on a business trip to New York, to show them how to properly make the drink. He called it his gift to New York. The Roosevelt trademarked the drink in 1935. The Fairmont still makes a great Ramos Gin Fizz in their Sazerac Bar, I sampled it on my last trip. Here is their version of the drink that I found online from Saveur magazine:
http:// neworleanscuisine.blogspot.com/2005/04/ramos-gin-fizz.html
3 dashes Lemon Juice
2 dashes Lime Juice
3 dashes Orange Flower Water
1 1/4 oz. Dry Gin (they use Gordon's)
1/4 of the White of one egg
1 Tbsp Powdered Sugar
3 oz. Milk
Add the contents to a cocktail shaker with plenty of ice. Shake very well until good and frothy, strain into a cocktail tumbler.
Orange Flower water is the most important ingredient in this drink, but go easy with it, a little goes a long way, when you smell it you'll believe me. I generally put about one small dash. There is a French company that produces it called A. Monteaux. Here is a link to where you can order it. I also found a 10 Fl. Oz. bottle from a Lebanese company at my local grocery store.
http://www.thespi cehouse.com/spices/orange-flower-water
I guess you can use the orange extract..the orange flower water is only used for its pungent flavour, and you can substitute it with even orange zest or vanilla extract, depending on your preference/taste.
