Cajun Hot Tomato Bread
Source: Sweetened With Honey, The Natural Way Cookbook by the National Honey Board, 1994
1 cup liquid Bloody Mary mix
1 cup water
1 package active dry yeast
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup chopped green onion tops
1/4 cup chopped parsley
1 clove garlic, pressed
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper, optional
5 to 6 cups flour
Combine Bloody Mary mix and water in small saucepan. Cook over low heat until mixture reaches 105 to 115 degrees F; pour into large warm bowl. Add yeast; stir until dissolved. Add honey, oil, onion tops, parsley, garlic, salt and cayenne, if desired. Mix well. Add 1 cup flour and stir until smooth. Stir in more flour until firm dough is formed. Knead dough on lightly floured board about 5 minutes or until smooth and elastic.
Shape dough into a ball. Place in greased large bowl; turn to grease all sides. Cover bowl and set in warm place to rise about 1 hour or until doubled.
Punch dough down and divide in half. Roll 1 piece on lightly floured surface into rectangle. Roll up tightly from short side jellyroll style.
Pinch seam to seal; place in greased 9 x 5 x 3-inch loaf pan. Repeat with other portion of dough. Cover and set in warm place to rise about 1 hour or until doubled.
Bake in preheated 400 degree F oven about 30 minutes or until loaves sound hollow when tapped and crust is brown. Remove from pans and cool on wire racks.
Cajun Praline Pecan Fudge
Chocolate, peanut butter and divinity are typical flavors of fudge created in any home in bayou country. The addition of roasted pecans and praline liqueur adds an interesting twist to this simple recipe.
1/2 ounce praline liqueur
1 cup chopped pecans
1/4 pound butter
3 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup evaporated milk
1 (12 ounce) package semisweet chocolate chips
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 (7 ounce) jar Marshmallow Creme
In a 2-quart heavy bottom pot, melt butter over medium high heat. Add sugar and evaporated milk and blend well into butter. Bring to a rolling boil, reduce heat to simmer and cook approximately five minutes. Be careful not to scorch butter as mixture will caramelized.
Remove from heat and stir in chocolate chips, vanilla extract, Marshmallow Creme, praline liqueur and pecans, whipping constantly. Stir until mixture becomes creamy and slightly thickened. Pour into a buttered 9-inch cake pan and allow to cool two hours.
Cut into squares.
Cajun Mayonnaise
Prepare this mayonnaise 24 hours before using so that flavors blend.
Yield: 1 cup
1/2 cup reduced-calorie mayonnaise
1/2 cup nonfat plain yogurt
1/2 teaspoon crumbled dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon garlic salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
2 pinches cayenne pepper
2 pinches black pepper
Combine all ingredients in a small bowl. Refrigerate, covered, until ready to use.
Per tablespoon: 29 calories, 3 grams fat, 3 milligrams cholesterol
Cajun Quiche
1/2 cup uncooked rice
1 (16 ounce) can stewed tomatoes, undrained
2 tablespoons butter, divided
1/2 cup (4 ounces) chopped chicken livers
6 eggs, divided
1/2 cup chopped celery
1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 cup skim or low-fat milk
1 teaspoon garlic salt
3/4 teaspoon basil leaves, crushed
3/4 teaspoon thyme leaves
1/4 teaspoon ground red pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
In medium saucepan, stir together rice and tomatoes. Bring to boiling. Cover and cook over low heat until rice is tender and liquid is absorbed, 15 to 20 minutes.
In skillet over medium heat, cook chicken livers in 1 tablespoon of butter until tender but not brown, 1 to 2 minutes.
Beat 1 egg. Stir in cooked rice and livers. Press mixture onto bottom and up sides of greased 9-inch pie plate, forming thick edge around rim. In same skillet cook celery, green pepper, and onion in remaining butter until tender, 3 to 5 minutes. Sprinkle into rice crust. Beat together remaining eggs, milk, and seasonings. Pour over vegetables. Bake in preheated 375 degree F oven until knife inserted near center comes out clean, about 30 to 40 minutes. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.
Yield: 6 servings.
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 Rib Eye Steaks
Begin marinating the steaks the day before you plan to serve them.
Yields 6 servings
1 cup vegetable oil
1 onion, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon plus 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
3 (16 ounce) rib eye steaks
1 tablespoon paprika
1 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon white pepper
Combine oil, sliced onion, garlic powder and 1 tablespoon black pepper in a 13 x 9 x 2- inch glass baking dish. Add steaks to marinade, turning to coat. Spoon half of sliced onion evenly over steaks. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
Prepare grill (medium-high heat) or preheat broiler.
Remove steaks from marinade.
Combine paprika, cayenne, salt, white pepper and 1/2 teaspoon black pepper in small bowl. Sprinkle each side of each steak with 1 teaspoon spice mixture. Grill or broil steaks until cooked through, about 8 minutes per side for medium-rare.
Cut each steak in half. Divide steaks among plates; serve.
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.
Cajun Sausage Roast
1 (3 pound) pork loin roast
1 pound smoked Cajun sausage
1 small onion, chopped fine
1 small green bell pepper, chopped fine
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1/2 cup cold water
2 to 3 tablespoons cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon Kitchen Bouquet
Seasoning Mix
Granulated garlic
Dried chives
Parsley flakes
Black Pepper
Salt
Seasoning Mix: Mix granulated garlic, chives, parsley flakes and black pepper to make seasoning mix. Add salt to mix.
Cut the whole loin into smaller roasts, about 6 inches long. Cut a hole through the center of each roast, along the center axis of the roasts and insert the sausage. If the cross-section of the roast is big enough, cut two parallel holes. Open the holes to the size of the smoked sausage and pour about 1 tablespoon Seasoning Mix into the long holes and push something through the roasts to distribute the seasoning. Slide the smoked sausage through the longitudinal holes in the roasts until about 1 inch of sausage protrudes from each end. Dust inside and outside with seasonings and salt. Allow to sit and marinate at room temperature for 30 minutes.
Place the roasts on a rack inside a covered roaster. Pour the cut-up onion and bell pepper into bottom of roaster and place, uncovered, in a 425 degree F oven for approximately 30 minutes or until seared lightly on the outside.
Cover roaster and continue to cook with a meat thermometer until done inside, about 160 165 degrees F on meat thermometer.
Remove roasts, trim end faces of excess sausage and chop fine. Add cornstarch dissolved in cold water. Add soy sauce and thicken sauce over medium heat. Adjust color of sauce with Kitchen Bouquet and adjust seasonings.