Cajun Shrimp and Rice Casserole

I know everyone's got Super Bowl fever, but let's not forget Mardi Gras is coming up soon and I couldn't resist making something to celebrate the event. This dish is spicy, cheesy, Cajun and comforting. You make it all in one large skillet and then pour it into a casserole to bake. We loved it!

Cajun Shrimp and Rice Casserole

From Noble Pig

Ingredients:

1/4 cup butter

1/3 cup finely diced shallots

3 teaspoons Cajun seasoning, divided

1 pound large shrimp, deveined and peeled (41/50)

1/4 cup  all-purpose flour

2 cups whole milk

12 oz shredded pepper jack cheese

4 oz shredded Gruyere cheese

4 oz  shredded Parmigiano-Reggiano

1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 can (15.5 oz) chili beans, drained

4-1/2 cups cooked long-grain rice

1 jar (2 oz) pimentos, drained

3 Tablespoons butter, melted

1/2 cup Panko bread crumbs

Method:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

In a large, deep, nonstick skillet, melt 1/4 cup butter over medium heat. Saute shallots and 1 teaspoon of Cajun seasoning until softened, about 2 minutes. Add shrimp and cook until just pink, about another two minutes. Add flour and stir until fully incorporated. Slowly add milk, stirring constantly, breaking up any little lumps. Bring to a slight boil and cook for one minute

Slowly add all three cheeses, stirring and making sure they are fully incorporated. Stir in remaining 2 teaspoons Cajun seasoning, cayenne, chili beans, rice and pimentos. Pour into a 2-quart casserole dish.

Melt 3 Tablespoons butter and mix with Panko bread crumbs. Sprinkle over the top. Bake for 20 minutes

Update on the move. I'm in. Look familiar?

Mushroom Bread Pudding

I love mushrooms. And while I've been making this dish for years, only my father and I pigged out on it. One would think I'd give it up, but no, I made it year after year. Frankly, if the cook and her dad love it, they ought to have it. I can pass up mashed potatoes and gravy without a qualm. I'd rather eat mushrooms. Morels, if I've been fortunate enough to freeze some. As far as the rest of my family is concerned, it all harks back to choices...they want the mashed potatoes, fine. Pass me the mushroom bread pudding.

This recipe has been in my files since the 60's, it's one of those MasterCook recipes I stashed without attributing. We lived in a subdivision back then where everyone exchanged recipes constantly; I bet half my recipes come from those days. I've only made one change over the years, I substituted leeks for shallots. Oh yes, and Gruyere for Swiss. I matured in the kitchen. :) Doubtful anyone even knew what Gruyere was in that 1960 neighborhood!

If you agree with the "table's too full on Thanksgiving" theory, don't make it for the big dinner. Make it for supper one night during the holidays. Perfection with steak.

Mushroom Bread Pudding

Ingredients:
1 1/4 cups mushroom stock
1 1/4 cups heavy cream
1 cup milk
4 eggs
salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 Tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 leeks, sliced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 teaspoons fresh thyme
4 cups shiitake, morel, cremini or chantarelle mushrooms or a combination
1 cup gruyere or similar cheese
Button mushrooms and stems leftover to make stock
1 loaf of bread, stale ( or briefly toasted in the oven) 1/2 inch diced (about 6 cups)

Method:

Boil some regular mushrooms to make stock- including leftover stems. Reduce this stock until 3/4 cup. You may freeze stock at this point. 
Add heavy cream and reduce again until 1 1/2 cups. Allow to cool slightly.
Whisk milk, eggs, 3/4 teaspoon salt and add stock mixture, set aside.  
Melt butter, add olive oil, then leeks, garlic and thyme and saute 8 or so minutes or until leeks are somewhat browned and tender. Add sliced mushrooms and saute another 8-10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. You may freeze mushrooms at this point. 
Line bottom of  casserole or baking dishes with 1/3 of the bread, put half mushrooms, more bread, the remaining mushrooms, ending with bread. Pour stock over all. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. Bake 350 oven for 2 hours.
Chefs notes: I made this pudding in several 5" ceramic baking dishes, so adjusted the time.

Ina First Fridays: Lobster Mac and Cheese

Welcome to Ina Fridays!
Everyone loves mac and cheese and Ina has several versions in her repertoire, each one a winner......one of my favorites is her mac and cheese for adults which she refers to as a "grown up" mac and cheese...it has Roquefort plus two other cheeses AND bacon!  I bet you've tried at least one of her recipes.
I turned to this one when my family was visiting last year....kind of a Florida-oriented mac and cheese, what with the lobster. (They really would have preferred a dinner of stone crabs. But.....$$$$$$!)
Everyone arrived hungry from their flight and started to dig in before I could take some decent photos. And then rather impatiently (you can see someone in the background in red) waited for me to snap just two. Not every good ones, either, as I didn't take the time to bring a piece of lobster to the front to show you! But you can trust me AND Ina...the lobster's in there and this is a great mac and cheese.

Lobster Mac and Cheese
2009, Ina Garten, All Rights Reserved

Ingredients:
Kosher salt 
Vegetable oil 
1 pound cavatappi or elbow macaroni 
1 quart milk 
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, divided 
1/2 cup all-purpose flour 
12 ounces Gruyere cheese, grated (4 cups) 
8 ounces extra-sharp Cheddar, grated (2 cups) 
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg 
1 1/2 pounds cooked lobster meat 
1 1/2 cups fresh white bread crumbs (5 slices, crusts removed) 

Method:
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Drizzle oil into a large pot of boiling salted water. Add the pasta and cook according to the directions on the package, 6 to 8 minutes. Drain well.

Meanwhile, heat the milk in a small saucepan, but don't boil it. In a large pot, melt 6 tablespoons of butter and add the flour. Cook over low heat for 2 minutes, stirring with a whisk. Still whisking, add the hot milk and cook for a minute or two more, until thickened and smooth. Off the heat, add the Gruyere, Cheddar, 1 tablespoon salt, the pepper, and nutmeg. Add the cooked macaroni and lobster and stir well. Place the mixture in 6 to 8 individual gratin dishes.

Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter, combine them with the fresh bread crumbs, and sprinkle on the top. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until the sauce is bubbly and the macaroni is browned on the top.

                                                                           ******************************************

Ina Fridays participants:

Alyce from moretimeatthetable.blogspot.com 

Mireya from myhealthyeatinghabits.com

Nancy from mypicadillo.com  

Veronica from mycatholickitchen.com

Linda from There and Back Again 

Chaya from bizzybakes.blogspot.com

Ansh from spiceroots.com  

Minnie from TheLady8home.com

Bhavna from justagirlfromaamchimumbai.com/ 

B. from The Rocky MountainWoman 
Ria from Ria's Collection
Linda from Tumbleweed Contessa
Peggy from Pantry Revisited

Mushroom, Leek and Fontina Gratin

Gratins are one of my favorite things to make. Any vegetable with a bread crumb topping is a delicious side dish for meat or fish and they are fairly simple to make. Great for entertaining and you can assemble ahead of time, ready to pop in the oven when you need it.

This mushroom gratin is slightly more involved than some gratin recipes, but I love the rye bread in the topping and the fontina and leeks are delicious additions.

Mushroom, Leek, and Fontina Gratin

From Fine Cooking Magazine by Liz Pearson

Ingredients:

2 oz. (4 Tbs.) unsalted butter; more at room temperature for the dish 

1-1/2 lb. medium to large white mushrooms, quartered (8-1/2 cups) 

4 Tbs. extra-virgin olive oil 

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper 

1 lb. mixed “wild” mushrooms (such as oyster and shiitake), trimmed and cut into bite-size pieces (7 cups) 

1-1/2 cups coarse fresh rye breadcrumbs 

4 oz. coarsely grated fontina (1 cup) 

3 medium to large leeks, trimmed, white and light-green parts only, cut into 1/4-inch dice (about 2 cups), and rinsed well 

1/2 cup dry vermouth 

1 cup heavy cream 

4 sprigs fresh sage, plus 1 Tbs. chopped fresh sage leaves 

Method:

Position racks in the top and bottom thirds of the oven and heat the oven to 450°F. Butter a 9x13-inch (or similar) baking dish.

In a large bowl, toss the white mushrooms with 2 Tbs. of the oil, 1/2 tsp. salt, and 1/4 tsp. pepper. Spread the white mushrooms evenly on a large rimmed baking sheet. Toss the “wild” mushrooms with the remaining 2 Tbs. oil, 1/2 tsp. salt, and 1/4 tsp. pepper in the bowl and spread on a second large rimmed baking sheet. Roast, stirring the mushrooms and rotating the baking sheets once, until golden-brown and any liquid has evaporated, about 25 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 350°F.

Meanwhile, melt 2 Tbs. of the butter and pour into a medium bowl. Add the breadcrumbs and fontina and toss well.

In a 12-inch skillet, melt the remaining 2 Tbs. butter over medium heat. Add the leeks and 1 tsp. salt and cook, stirring often with a wooden spatula, until golden, 7 to 10 minutes. Add the vermouth and boil, stirring and scraping up any browned bits, until reduced by half, 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in the heavy cream, sage sprigs, 1/2 tsp. salt, and 1/4 tsp. pepper and bring just to a boil over high heat. Lower the heat to medium low and simmer for 5 minutes to infuse. Remove the pan from the heat and discard the sage sprigs.

Add the mushrooms and chopped sage to the leek mixture and toss to coat. Transfer to the prepared dish. Top with the breadcrumb mixture and bake in the top third of the oven until the breadcrumbs are golden-brown, about 30 minutes.

Let rest for 15 minutes before serving.

Sarah Leah Chase's Scalloped Tomatoes

Hi everyone!  And happy Labor Day! 
We're back and had a wonderful time. Once I get my photos organized, I'll do a post on our Nevis vacation. (I still have one more island post to go on our French Polynesian adventure of several years ago. That'll come first.) I'm looking forward to visiting all of you and find out what you've been doing. 
My daughter and I made a reading list for you. Click here to see what we read and loved this summer.

Sarah's Cold-Weather Cooking is one of my favorite cookbooks. I've mentioned it several times and cook from it frequently. It was published in 1990 and this recipe for Scalloped Tomatoes was included in it. Ina Garten made it on her TV show a couple years ago and mentioned the recipe was from her friend Sarah Chase. My ears perked up....Ina has mentioned Sarah before and always generously gives her full credit.  She adapted Sarah's recipe slightly, so I double checked the original in Sarah's cookbook. I made a mental note to give it a try, but never got around to it. Last year, Deb from Smitten Kitchen posted Ina's version and gave it a thumbs up. So it sure has made the rounds.

I know it says "cold weather" in the cookbook title, but this recipe sure seems loaded with summer flavors to me  (garden tomatoes and fresh basil!) so I finally got around to making it.  And shame on me, I made Sarah's original recipe with bacon grease. How could I not?? You can find Ina's recipe HERE. What a super side dish to serve with something on the grill. Actually, I was nibbling on it for a couple days after as well. All those lovely Parmesan and bacon-encrusted croutons! 

Scalloped Tomatoes
From Cold-Weather Cooking by Sarah Leah Chase

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons bacon fat

2 cups (1/2-inch diced) French bread

16 plum tomatoes, cut 1/2-inch dice (about 2 1/2 pounds)

1 tablespoon minced garlic (3 cloves)

2 tablespoons sugar

2 teaspoons kosher salt

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/2 cup julienned basil leaves, lightly packed

1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Method:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Heat the bacon fat in a large (12 inch) saute pan over medium heat. Add the bread cubes and stir to coat with the oil. Cook over medium to medium-high heat for 5 minutes, stirring often, until the cubes are evenly browned.

Add the tomatoes, garlic and sugar to then pan and continue to cook, stirring often, for 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, add the basil and remove from the heat.

Pour the tomato mixture into a shallow (6 to 8 cup) baking dish. Sprinkle evenly with the Parmesan cheese and drizzle with 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes until the top is browned and the tomatoes are bubbly. Serve hot or warm.

                                                             

A Quickie

The Kitchen Witch always calls this kind of recipe "White Trash Motherlode", which I think means some of our really old recipes using a can of Campbell's soup... or any of those 50's and 60's type dishes we remember from childhood.  That doesn't mean it isn't delicious, just that it isn't exactly a garden fresh, healthy, I'm-on-a-diet kind of food.

My kids used to love this one, another of the recipes from that cooking contest I told you about when I posted the Mustard Ring. Unfortunately, I lost the card this one came on so can't give you the cook's name, but I know she will forgive me. (If she ever reads this, which I doubt.) This one did NOT win a prize- it's just not unusual or complicated enough, but it's the kind of recipe I loved when I had 3 kids all a year apart to deal with. With everyone going in a different direction, it was hard to come up with something that could be made quickly and in advance, baked slowly and it could sit in the oven for late arrivals. And....everyone liked it.

It's an easy peasy recipe. Just throw it all together and dump it in a casserole. It bakes for quite a while and gets all nice and crunchy. One of those casseroles you like to scrape the empty dish to make certain you got all the good stuff. I know it's naughty of me to post this when bathing suit weather is coming for most of us, but I'm willing to bet we've got some cold weather coming yet and this recipe will warm you up! Just make a fresh salad and veggie (so you feel self righteous) and you've got dinner!

Veal and Sour Cream Casserole

Ingredients:
2 pounds veal cut in chunks
1 large onion, sliced
2 tablespoons crisco
2 cups wide noodles, cooked
1 can mushroom soup, undiluted
1 pint sour cream

Method:
Brown veal and onion in Crisco. Add cooked noodles to meat and then add the soup and sour cream. Place in casserole and bake 2 hours at 300°.

Noodles À La Choy

A few weeks ago, Grace at A Southern Grace did a posting on a little treat made with chow mein noodles. It reminded me how much I used to love those things; I ate them by the handful just like peanuts. Got my hand swatted for it too. Anyway, Grace surprised me by turning them into a sweet. Who would have thought?

It also brought to mind a recipe I used to make quite a bit for my family: Hot Chicken Salad. And guess what's on top? You got it... those buttery, crunchy chow mein noodles. A neighbor gave me the recipe years ago. She said she found it in one of her many Junior League cookbooks. (Those cookbooks are gems; they're filled to the brim with tried and true family recipes.) This was a really popular dish years ago, exactly the kind I like to revisit or reinvent. So I dug it out of my file and made it for dinner a couple weeks ago. The dish was as good as I remembered...crunchy, cheesy and oh my I still love those Chinese fried noodles on top. It's been a long time since I made this so I worried the noodles would get too brown during baking, but they seem to get even more crunchy and buttery.  I'm giving you the basic recipe; you can improvise to your heart's delight!

Hot Chicken Salad

Ingredients:

3 cups chicken, cooked and diced (see note below)

2 cups celery, diced

1/2 cup slivered almonds, toasted

1/2 cup water chestnuts, sliced

1/4 cup pimento, sliced

1 cup mayonnaise

1/2 cup sour cream

3 Tablespoons lemon juice

2 Tablespoons grated onion

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 cup chow mein noodles

1/2 cup cheddar cheese, grated

Method:

Mix chicken, celery, almonds, water chestnuts and pimento together in a bowl. Blend mayonnaise, sour cream, lemon juice, onion, salt and pepper. Toss together and put in casserole. Top with cheese and sprinkle with the noodles. Bake at 350° for 30 minutes.

Note: The Barefoot Contessa knows how to make perfect chicken for a chicken salad. I copied down her directions and have been making it that way ever since. She was right. The chicken is perfectly done, nicely seasoned and delicious. If you aren't using leftover chicken or turkey for this recipe, here are the directions for some nice juicy chicken breasts:

Place chicken breasts on a baking sheet and rub olive oil all over them. Sprinkly generously with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. Roast in a 350° oven for 35 to 40 minutes or until cooked through. Cool slightly. Remove meat from the bones and discard skin.

Spaghetti Casserole

My mother came by her talents in the kitchen naturally, from her own mother, my Grandma Sarah Doherty. Grandma Doherty and her sister Carrie owned a bakery in Detroit for many years. When I was a child, she lived with us 5 or 6 months of the year and did we love it! Her pies and pastries were out of this world and her homemade noodles could weaken you at the knees. I would come home for lunch from school (Ah yes, we went home for lunch back then!) and noodles would be hanging over open cabinet doors, drying on dishtowels. Mother would grab a batch, boil them briefly, dump them in a frying pan with butter and a little scallion and when they were nearly brown, she dropped in some swiss cheese just to add insult to injury.

We never knew what to expect from the kitchen when Grandma was there. The house always smelled like bread and pastry. However, I think my favorite treat was something called a Long John. Does anyone even make them anymore? Guess it doesn't matter, 'cause nobody could possibly make them as good as Grandma Doherty. In case you don't know what I'm talking about, Long Johns are a rectangular yeast-based donut and Grandma dolloped them with confectioner's icing. Right out of the fryer, words cannot begin to describe....

                                        

Mother, who cooked as well as HER mother, not only could do pies and pastries, but was creative as well. She was one of those home cooks who could taste something and go home and replicate it, nearly exactly. Wish I could do that!

                                              

                                                                        

One casserole in particular was a long time family favorite. We had it for supper off and on and Mother sent it with us for church suppers, school events and whenever we had to take food someplace. I don't make it much anymore but it was the first dish my middle son taught himself to make and he has been cooking it ever since he left home. Now it's one of HIS family's favorites. It's simple, it's vegetarian and I bet you have every single ingredient needed to make it in your pantry right this minute. There's no reason you can't add meat or just about anything else you like, but I still prefer it plain, simple and very cheesy. In fact, I think whole wheat spaghetti would taste delicious in this dish, so you could at least claim there was something healthy in it! My father used to look at it and ask "Is there something under the melted cheese?" I still like plenty of cheese, cooked until it's crunchy on the top and sides. And wait 'til you taste it warmed up for lunch the next day.

Mother's Spaghetti Casserole

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 tablespoon butter

1/3 cup chopped onion

1 garlic clove, minced

1 large can whole tomatoes, drained and cut up

1/4 cup tomato ketchup

1 pound box spaghetti (use just a little less)

8 ounces sharp cheddar cheese

1/4 cup tomato paste (optional, I never use it)

salt and pepper to taste

Method:

Sauté the onion in the butter and olive oil. When nearly done, add the garlic so both are slightly caramelized. Set aside. Boil the spaghetti in salted water until al dente. Drain the spaghetti and add the onion mixture. Cut up the cheese and add half. Add the tomato ketchup and salt and pepper. If you are using tomato paste, add it here. I don't ever use it.

Pour into a casserole, top with the rest of the cheese and bake in a 375° oven for 35 minutes until brown and bubbly. Serves 4 big eaters with leftovers.