Extreme Cuisine

William Bohannon’s Creole Cream Cheese

Posted by philocrates 5/15/02 6:37:04 pm

1/2 gallon skim milk
1 tablet rennet
1/2 cup whole buttermilk
1 1/4 cups nonfat dry milk
Pinch of cream of tartar

In a large microwave dish heat the milk to 170 degrees F (75 degrees C) and hold for 20 minutes, using the “Hold” function and the microwave probe attachment.
Immediately stir in the other ingredients to blend.
Cover with plastic wrap and let stand for 24 hours at room temperature.

Drain and discard liquid from the cheese clabber.

Line a colander with 2 layers of cheese cloth and turn cheese into colander.
Place colander over bowl for more draining.
Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 36 hours.

Place finished cheese into bowl use as desired.
Keeps 2 weeks covered in the fridge.

Makes 12 ounces.

NOTES: The cheese only took 3 hours to make.

After the Rennet tablet (crushed well) was sprinkled in the slightly cooled milk mixture, it clabbered right away (about 1 1/2 hours).
I drained it in the colander then put it in the cheese cloth and wrung it dry carefully.
The cheese needed several wringings with rest in between for sufficient drainage.
The finished cheese resembles Feta crumble cheese but the flavor is like mild mascarpone.
I put it in the food processor on high speed until it was very smooth and creamy like mascarpone.
I freshened the taste with a few drops of lemon juice (store bought mascarpone contains citric acid).

The cheese was not quite a smooth as the commercially whipped kind but the flavor was very good.
This recipe is the closest thing to mascarpone that one can make at home with ease.
A little tinkering with the proportions should yield a very good clone.

Alligator Sauce Piquante

This is a Cajun recipe which makes a thick stew which is traditionally served over rice.

3 pounds alligator meat*
Dollop of bottled steak sauce
1/2 cup solid vegetable shortening
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
3 large onions, peeled and chopped
1 large green bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1/2 cup chopped scallions
8 ribs celery, chopped
1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste
1 tablespoon cayenne pepper, or to taste
1 cup water
Salt (optional)
Hot cooked rice

Chop alligator meat into small strips add a dollop of steak sauce, to coat.
Heat some of the shortening in a large saucepot or Dutch oven; add alligator and brown.
Remove meat; set aside.

Add remaining shortening and flour mix well.
add onion, green pepper, scallion and celery; sauté slowly until vegetables are tender.
Add tomato sauce and tomato paste mix well. Add cayenne pepper and water.
Cover and cook over medium heat for 30 minutes.

Stir in reserved alligator meat.
Cook 1 hour, or until meat is tender.
Add salt to taste.

Serve over cooked rice.

NOTE: Any fowl or seafood can be used in place of the alligator meat.

Cajun Chicken Nuggets

1 envelope onion soup mix
1/2 cup plain dry bread crumbs
1 1/2 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon thyme leaves
1/4 teaspoon ground red pepper
2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, cubed
Vegetable oil

In a large bowl, combine onion soup mix, bread crumbs, chili powder, cumin, thyme and pepper.
Dip chicken in bread crumb mixture, coating well.

Arrange chicken in a 13 x 9-inch microwave-safe baking dish, then drizzle with 2 to 3 tablespoons oil.
Microwave uncovered at HIGH for 6 minutes or until chicken is done, rearranging chicken once; drain on paper towels.

Cajun Pepper Steak

1 pound beef (round or sirloin) cut into strips
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
Tabasco sauce to taste (that means USE A LOT)
1 1/2 cups water
2 large onions, cut into strips
2 bell peppers, cut into strips
2 tablespoons cornstarch (or all-purpose flour and a little water)
Steamed rice

Brown steak in oil for about 5 minutes turning to go both sides. Add 1 1/4 cups of the water and Tabasco Sauce.
Simmer for 10 to 15 minutes.

Add the onions and and bell pepper and simmer for 5 minutes. Continue simmering until meat is tender.
If the gravy is too thin, thicken it by mixing 1/4 cup of water with the cornstarch or flour stirring until there are no lumps.
Remove beef mixture from heat and slowly add the thickening mix while you continue stirring. Return to heat and simmer until gravy thickens.

Serve over rice.
Garnish with chopped shallots and make sure the bottle of Tabasco is on the table.

Cajun Beer Can Chicken

1 (3 1/2 to 4 pound) chicken
1 (12 ounce) can beer
4 teaspoons dry Cajun seasoning, divided

Using a bottle opener, make three more openings in the top of the can.
Empty 1/3 of the beer out to make it only 2/3 full of liquid.
Lightly oil the exterior of the can with vegetable oil. Wash chicken inside and out and pat dry with paper towels.
Sprinkle 2 teaspoons of dry Cajun seasoning (optional) into the cavity and two teaspoons over the outside of the chicken.
Put a little foil on the tips of the leg bones to prevent blackening.

Set up gas or charcoal grill for indirect grilling.
For charcoal grills, mound briquettes into two piles on opposite sides of grill. Light.
Preheat only one side of gas grill, at a temperature of 350 degrees F.

Stand the beer can on an aluminum pie plate, piece of aluminum foil or special beer can chicken roasting pan.
Carefully ease the chicken onto the can, and spread drumsticks away from the body to support the bird in a tripod position.
Add chicken, locating the bird between the two piles of charcoal on charcoal grills, or on the side away from heat on gas grills.
Cover the grill and barbeque chicken over indirect heat for about 1 1/2 to 2 hours, or until the breast meat reaches 165 degrees F.
Remove chicken carefully, as there may be hot liquid remaining in the can.

Yield: 4 servings

Pork Creole Po′ Boys

1 (1 pound 2 ounce) pork tenderloin
3 to 4 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 tablespoons cider vinegar
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1/4 teaspoon crushed hot peppers or to taste
French-style baguette, cut into 4 x 5-inch sections
Lettuce leaves
2 medium tomatoes, sliced
1 onion, thinly sliced

Sauce
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon hot paprika
1 small onion, finely chopped
2 stalks celery, finely chopped
1 small green or red bell pepper, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 small fresh green chile, seeds removed and chopped
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1 (14 ounce) can chopped tomatoes
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
Salt

Sauce: Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Stir in the paprika, onion, celery, bell pepper, garlic and chili. Cook for 2 minutes, until it begins to brown.
Add the brown sugar, thyme and tomatoes and reduce the heat to medium-low.
Cook for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the sauce thickens and the tomato liquid is evaporated.

Stir in the parsley and season with salt.
Transfer to a bowl and set aside until ready to serve.

Burgers: Place the pork on a cutting board.
Holding a knife at a 45 degree angle, slice the pork into 8 thin scallops.
Arrange in a shallow dish and add 2 to 3 tablespoons of the oil, the vinegar, garlic and crushed hot peppers.
Turn the scallops to coat well.
Set aside for 30 minutes to let marinate, then drain.

Heat a ridged, black grill pan over medium high heat and brush with a little of the remaining oil.
Add the marinated scallops and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, turning once, until browned and just cooked through.
Remove from the pan and drain on paper towels.

Lightly toast the cut sides of each baguette section and brush with the remaining oil.
Arrange a layer of lettuce leaves, tomato, and onion slices on the bottom half of each section.
Top each with 2 slices of pork scallop and a generous spoonful of the Sauce. Cover with the baguette tops and serve immediately.

Bloody Mary Crawfish Jambalaya

1/2 cup Bloody Mary mix
1 (8 ounce) can beef consommÃ&copy
1 cup chopped onions
1/2 cup chopped green bell peppers
1 small fresh jalapeno, seeded and chopped
1 (4 ounce) can sliced mushrooms, drained
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted
1 pound peeled crawfish tails
2 1/2 cups long-grain rice (uncooked)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cayenne

Combine all of the ingredients in an 8- to 10-cup rice cooker. Do not add water.
Turn on cook cycle.
When the cycle is over, keep on the warm cycle for at least 30 minutes.
Do not attempt to cook this in a smaller rice cooker.

Makes about 8 servings.

Roasted Pecan Butter Pecan Pie (Louisiana Cajun)

Dough
1 cup plus 3 tablespoons flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
7 tablespoons cold, unsalted butter, cut up
1/4 cup ice water

Sift 1 cup of the flour and the salt into a large bowl.
Add butter, and working quickly with a light touch, cut butter into the flour with a spoon and fingertips until mixture is the texture of coarse cornmeal.
Add ice water and stir until well blended.
Form the dough into a ball and place on a flat surface floured with the remaining 3 tablespoons flour.
With a floured rolling pin, roll out dough to a thickness of 1/4 to 1/8 inch.
Place an ungreased 8 1/2-inch round pie pan face down on top of the dough and cut around the pan, leaving a 3/4-inch border.
Lightly flour the top of the dough and fold it in quarters.
Carefully place dough in the pie pan, with the points of the folded dough centered.
Unfold dough and line the pan bottom and sides, gently pressing dough into place and draping a little over the rim.
Flute the edges.
Refrigerate prepared pie shell until ready to use.

Pecan Filling
1/2 cup pecan pieces or halves, dry roasted until dark
3 large eggs
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup dark corn syrup
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 cup pecan halves

Process roasted pecans in a food processor until they become a relatively smooth butter, 2 to 3 minutes, scraping sides down as needed with a rubber spatula.
Place eggs in a medium-size bowl of an electric mixer and beat on high speed a few seconds until frothy.
Add sugar, corn syrup, butter, vanilla extract, salt and pecan butter.
Beat on medium speed a few seconds until well mixed, pushing sides down as needed.
Stir in the unroasted pecan halves. Pour mixture into prepared pie shell.
Place on a cookie sheet and bake at 350 degrees F for 40 minutes.

Reduce heat to 325 degrees F and bake until filling is browned on top and crust on edges is lightly browned, about 40 minutes more.
Remove from oven and let cool at least 30 minutes before serving.

Fried Alligator

1 pound alligator meat
1 can beer
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon Season-All
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
Cornmeal
Vegetable oil

Slice meat into finger-size strips.
Mix beer, flour, Season-All, salt and pepper to form a batter.
Coat alligator meat with batter, and dredge with cornmeal.
Fry in hot oil until golden brown.

Serves 4.

Cajun Bayou Chicken

1/2 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup hot pepper sauce
3 tablespoons Cajun seasoning
2 pounds fresh chicken
1 gallon zippered storage bag

Combine liquid ingredients and spices in bag to create marinade. Mix well.
Place chicken in bag and seal.
Marinate in refrigerator 2 hours.

Drain chicken and discard marinade.
Grill, bake, broil or sauté chicken as desired until fully cooked. Refrigerate leftovers.

Cajun Chicken with Penne Pasta

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
1 whole chicken breast
4 tablespoons Cajun seasoning, divided
1 cup whole milk
12 ounces dry penne pasta
2 tablespoons white wine
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

Cut the raw chicken into bite-size pieces and season with 3 tablespoons of the seasoning.
Melting the butter in a heavy saucepan.
After the butter has melted, grill the chicken in the saucepan until fully cooked.
Meanwhile, cook the pasta until almost done, about 12 minutes.

Add the milk, cooked pasta, Parmesan cheese and white wine into the saucepan with the butter and chicken.
Reduce heat to medium-medium low.
Cook until the pasta is fully cooked and the sauce is thick enough to coat a spoon.
Continue to slowly add more milk if you want to make the sauce more white.

Serve in pasta bowls and sprinkle the top with the remaining seasoning.

Cajun Tartar Sauce

1 tablespoon onion, finely chopped
1/8 teaspoon red pepper
1/8 teaspoon white pepper
3 tablespoons sour pickles, chopped
2 tablespoons minced green onion
1 clove garlic, chopped
2 tablespoons parsley, finely chopped
1 teaspoon dry mustard
8 ounces mayonnaise
2 teaspoons capers, chopped

Combine all ingredients; mix extremely well.
Chill before serving.
Wonderful with any kind of seafood.

New Orleans Bread Bowl

1 tablespoon oil
4 (16/20 count) shrimp
4 (20/30 count) scallops
1 ounce crabmeat (imitation or fresh)
2 tablespoons green bell pepper, minced
2 tablespoons onion
2 tablespoons celery
2 tablespoons tomato
1 teaspoon Cajun spice
1 cup chicken stock
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 tablespoon water
1 tablespoon green onion
1 (10 ounce) bread bowl (carved out center)

Heat skillet, add oil, and saut&Atilde© peppers, onions, celery, and toss.
Add all seafood, tomato, chicken stock, and Cajun spice.
Dilute cornstarch and water, add chicken stock mixture and simmer.

Serve in bread bowl with chopped scallions.

River Road Crawfish Stew

This is the most popular of all crawfish dishes cooked in Bayou country.

2 pounds cleaned crawfish tails
1/4 cup tomato sauce
1 cup vegetable oil
3 quarts crawfish stock or water
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup chopped green onions
2 cups chopped onions
1 cup chopped parsley
1 cup chopped celery
Salt and cayenne pepper to taste
1 cup chopped bell pepper
Dash of Louisiana Gold Pepper Sauce
2 tablespoons diced garlic

Any shellfish stock or fish stock may be substituted, but the dish will be good even if plain water is used.
In a two gallon stock pot, heat oil over medium high heat.
Add flour and using a wire whip, stir constantly until dark brown roux is achieved.

When brown, add onions, celery, bell pepper and garlic and sauté until vegetables are wilted, approximately 3 to 5 minutes.
Add crawfish tails and cook until meat is pink and slightly curled.
Stir in tomato sauce and slowly add crawfish stock stirring constantly until all is incorporated.

Bring to a low boil, reduce to simmer and cook thirty minutes, stirring occasionally.
Add green onions and parsley and season to taste using salt and pepper.

When done, serve over white rice with a few dashes of Louisiana Gold Pepper Sauce.

Oven Fried Cajun Ranch Steak

1 (1/2 to 3/4 pound) round steak
1 cup Cajun Ranch Dressing
1/2 cup cornmeal
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
Nonstick cooking spray

Cajun Ranch Dressing
1 (16 ounce) bottle ranch dressing
2 teaspoons Cajun spice

To make Cajun Ranch Dressing: Mix well; store in container and refrigerate.

Marinate round steak in Cajun Ranch Dressing in a zip-type bag for 8 hours or overnight, turning it every now and then.

Mix cornmeal, bread crumbs and garlic powder together.
Roll round steak in bread crumb mixture.
Place in 9-inch pan that has been sprayed with nonstick cooking spray.
Spray the round steak with the nonstick cooking spray.
Place in a preheated oven at 350 to 375 degrees F.
Bake for about 30 minutes or until done.

Hot Cajun Red Sauce

Serves about 4 for dipping shrimp or crawfish.

1 cup chili sauce
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoons horseradish
6 drops Tabasco sauce
1/2 teaspoon celery salt
1/8 teaspoon salt

Combine all ingredients, cover and chill overnight.

Cajun Roast Beef

The gravy this makes is great!

1/4 cup instant minced onion
1/4 teaspoon instant minced garlic
1 tablespoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons ground black pepper
3/4 teaspoon ground red pepper
3 tablespoons water
1/4 cup cider vinegar
1 (5 pound) boneless beef roast
1 teaspoon cornstarch
1 teaspoon water

Combine the first 7 ingredients and let stand 5 minutes to soften onion and garlic.

With a paring knife, cut 1-inch slits about 1 1/2 inches apart in all sides of the meat, sticking the knife to the middle of the roast.
Pry open slits and fill each with about 1/2 teaspoon of the mixture, using the point of a teaspoon.
Cover and marinate overnight in the refrigerator.

Place roast on a rack in a roasting pan.
Cover with foil or roaster cover.
Bake at 325 degrees F for 3 1/2 hours or until meat is tender, removing cover 40 minutes before baking time is up to permit meat to brown.

Remove roast to a platter.
Skim excess fat from pan drippings. Blend cornstarch with the 1 teaspoon water.
Add to drippings.
Stir and cook until gravy is slightly thick.

Serve with rice or potatoes and gravy.

Yield: 12 to 14 servings.

Cajun Pork with Noodles

1 pound pork tenderloin, cut into bite-size pieces
1 tablespoon minced onion flakes
1 tablespoon Cajun seasoning
1/2 cup mushrooms
2 cups milk
2 tablespoons cornstarch thinned with water
1 box cooked spaghetti

In a large skillet brown the pork tenderloin until it turns white on all sides.
Add the minced onion flakes and cook until they are slightly toasted.
Add milk, mushrooms and Cajun seasoning. Finally add the cornstarch and cook until thickened.

Meanwhile, cook the spaghetti according to the directions on the box.
Drain noodles and mix the pork tenderloin mixture together with the noodles.

Yields 3 to 4 servings.

Cajun Tomato Gravy

1 large onion, finely chopped
3 stalks celery, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, pressed
1 cup shallots, finely chopped
2 small cans tomato paste
1 small can tomato sauce
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
Salt and pepper, to taste
2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese, grated
1 teaspoon AccentÂ

In an iron skillet, sauce onion, celery, garlic and shallots. When vegetables are done, add one cup water; reheat, then add tomato paste, tomato sauce, sugar, salt, pepper, Parmesan cheese and Accent&Acirc.
Simmer very slowly for at least 30 minutes.

Crawfish Pies

1 large onion, chopped
1/4 cup chopped green onions
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 bell pepper, chopped
2 ribs celery, chopped
1/2 cup butter
1 (10 3/4 ounce) can cream of celery soup
4 tablespoons tomato sauce
1 pound peeled crawfish tails
1/4 cup chopped parsley
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon red pepper
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 cup milk
1/2 cup Italian bread crumbs
1 egg, beaten
18 individual unbaked tart shells

Sauté onions, garlic, bell pepper and celery in butter until limp.
Add soup, tomato sauce, crawfish and parsley. Cook on low heat for 10 minutes.
Turn off heat.
Add salt, red and black peppers, and milk.
Mix well.
Add bread crumbs and mix well. Add egg and mix again.
Pour into individual unbaked tart shells. Bake at 350 degrees F for 35 to 40 minutes.
Makes 18 individual pies, which will serve 8 to 10 people.

NOTE: These pies freeze well.
Do not bake until ready to use.