Sure, here's a few:
Shrimp Etouffée
- 6 tbsp butter
- 1 cup white onion, finely chopped
- 1/2 cup celery, finely chopped
- 1 cup green onions, finely chopped
- 2 teaspoons garlic, minced
- 4 tablespoons flour
- 1 cup whole tomatoes
- 2 cups fish stock
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- dash of cayenne
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 1/2 cups crawfish meats
In a large saucepan melt butter and sauté onion, celery and shallots until tender. Add garlic and cook 1 minute more. Stir in flour and stir constantly until golden brown. Add tomatoes and brown. Blend in stock and simmer 10 minutes. Add salt, pepper, cayenne, Worcestershire sauce and crawfish, cook slowly 15 to 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Serve with hot rice
From: http://www.brennansneworleans.com/r_crawfishEtouffee.html
-- 2013/02/24
Absolutely delicious. Possibly the best étouffée I've had. The roux seemed thin
so I added another 2-3 tbsp. It ended up thickening a bit over time, but the end
result was about right I think.
There was a bit of oil on top and it was pretty heavy, so I'd reduce the butter
a bit. Maybe by 2 tbps. (Updated recipe above.)
Used medium-grain rice because I wanted something pretty sticky. I liked it, but
Megan thought it was a but too gluey.
-- 2013/03/24
Used 6 tbsp of butter this time and 4 tbsp of flour (updated recipe above) and
it came out great. Possibly a bit too salty, but otherwise excellent texture and
taste. Got rave reviews.
-- 2014/02/18
Came out great, except the roux was a bit lumpy. I sort of dumped the flour in
all at once and ended up with some little balls of flour. Make sure to add it
in slowly and stir vigorously at first.
Potato and Leeks au Gratin
ingredients:
8 cups sliced peeled potatoes (1/4-inch slices)
3 medium leeks (white portion only), cut into 1/2-inch slices
2 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1-1/3 cups 2% milk
1 block (4 ounces) Gruyere or Swiss cheese, shredded
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
crumb topping:
- 1/3 cup dry bread crumbs
- 2 tablespoons butter, melted
- 1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese
directions:
- Place potatoes in a Dutch oven and cover with water. Bring to a boil. Add
leeks; return to a boil. Cover and cook for 5 minutes. Drain and pat dry.
Place in a greased 13-in. x 9-in. baking dish.
- In a large saucepan, melt butter. Stir in the flour, salt and pepper until
smooth; gradually add milk. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or
until thickened. Stir in cheese and nutmeg until cheese is melted. Pour over
potato mixture. Toss bread crumbs and butter; sprinkle over the top.
- Bake uncovered at 350° for 20 minutes. Sprinkle with cheddar cheese. Bake
another 20 minutes or so until the cheese is golden.
Yield: 12 servings.
-- 2012-09-28
Didn't have a Dutch oven, so just boiled the vegetables in a pot. I boiled them
too vigorously, and by five minutes they were soft enough that the potatoes
were falling apart a bit. I didn't know how to "pat dry" and entire pot of
vegetables, so I just left them to drain in the colander while I made the sauce.
I covered the baking dish with tin foil.
It came out OK, if a bit bland. It was pretty soft. It didn't have that crispy
golden top you want. It was more like "boiled vegetables in cheese sauce".
Next time, I should use more pepper and salt. I didn't measure this time and
while I thought I was generous, I think it could have used more. I guess the
potatoes can absorb a lot.
Also, I think it might work better to boil the potatoes whole and then slice
them. It will take longer to boil, but they may end up a little firmer.
And then maybe cook for a shorter amount of time (after all, the potatoes and
leeks are already cooked) and leave it uncovered the whole time.
-- 2012-10-20
Cooked it uncovered this time and it came out miles better. Also seasoned the
béchamel much more, which helped a lot. I did twenty minutes uncovered, added
the cheddar, then another twenty minutes uncovered.
Pralines
From: http://www.southerncreations.com/Pralines/pralines.html
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/emeril-lagasse/creamy-pecan-pralines-recipe2/index.html?oc=linkback
Ingredients:
- 1- 1/2 cups sugar
- 3/4 cups light brown sugar, packed
- 1/2 cup + 2 T. Half and Half cream
- 1/2 stick unsalted butter
- 1 1/2 cups pecans
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1/4 tsp salt
(Emeril's):
1 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup heavy cream
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons water
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups chopped pecans
Directions:
1. Combine all ingredients except the pecans and vanilla in a heavy saucepan.
Stir until it comes to a boil, then turn heat down to a low boil. Stir
occasionally and sparingly; spoon mixture up on sides of pan to melt any
sugar that hasn't melted.
2. Cook until the mixture reaches 239 degrees with a candy thermometer. Remove
from heat. Stir in the vanilla and the pecans. Stir until the mixture begins
to thicken and becomes creamy and cloudy. Spoon onto waxed paper to harden.
If it starts to harden too quickly, stir in a couple of tablespoons of hot
water to soften.
-- 2013/12/17
Tried Emeril's "Creamy Praline Recipe" first. It came out OK, but grainy. His
recipe doesn't say to avoid stirring while it's boiling. We liked this recipe
more. We added a bit more nuts because we felt normal pralines were too much
sugar.
The dash of salt was my addition and is a big help. Maybe try sprinkling a bit
of salt as they cool?
You have to work pretty quickly to spoon them out before it gets too hard. If I
need to make a lot, I wouldn't do a double batch: it's better to just make
consecutive batches instead.
-- 2013/12/18
On further sampling the next day, the first batch of pralines also came out
quite good. Not at all grainy. Not sure about the second batch since most of
those got sent out.
Also, I should try making these with crumbles of maple bacon.
-- 2014/09/18
Tried making pumpkin spice ones. Tossed pecans in:
- 2 tbsp corn syrup
- 2 tsp vanilla
- 3 tsp pumpkin pie spice
Baked them for about five minutes at 350° F then followed the recipe as usual.
They were assertively pumpkin spice tasting (good) but also incredibly sweet
(not so good). The spice ended up coming off the pecans when they were mixed in
the pralines. Next time, probably add the pecans after the praline has cooled
and is ready to pour.
