The Best Pickles Yet: English Cucumber Pickle Chips

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Today I just made the best homemade pickles ever. The secret? English cucumbers plus a flavorful pickle brine. I just couldn’t pass up blemish-free, organic English cucumbers which I noticed during our most recent shopping trip to Costco’s. Sold in two pound bags, this was a larger quantity that we could possibly eat. Call it an impulse purchase. I have never seen such long cucumbers. I decided that these long, cylinder cucumbers — uniform in size with small seeds — would make perfect pickles. So, here I am making pickles in September. I used a recipe which is sweet and flavorful. These pickles turned out to be crisp and delicious! Holiday presents, perhaps?

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French Dip “Sliders” Au Jus in the Instant Pot

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One of my favorite sandwiches of all times is a French Dip Po-Boy. This sandwich is made with tender roast beef, sautéed onions and melted cheese. Flavorful beef broth or “au jus” is served for dipping the crusty French bread sandwich. You can’t find a better po-boy that this one. It has been awhile since I’ve made these sandwiches, but I’m in the spirit. Plus, it is football season – again – and these sandwiches make an easy game day meal. Just “grap and go.” I “downsized” the sandwiches by using small pistolette rolls to make “sliders” rather than large po-boys.

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Knock-Out Corn Dip

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Here’s an incredible snack dip which is perfect for an autumn football gathering or party. Just open cans! Who would guess that the star of your next party would be “Knock-Out Corn Dip” or that canned corn would make any sort of exciting dip. Watch out. This appetizer can become quite addictive. Our friend, Regina, has been bringing the corn dip to every social event that our little music group has had for the past five or more years — I’ve lost track. Now we tease Regina and remind her to bring the corn dip and chips to parties. The main ingredient is canned Fiesta-style corn which is a colorful medley of corn and peppers. Mix in a sour cream dressing, cheese, seasonings and green onions. Wow. This is a spicy and delicious concoction. I modified the recipe by including fresh corn cut off the cob.

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Southern Baked Beans with the Instant Pot

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I have vague dreams (or nightmares) of celebrity chefs visiting on late night talk shows and cooking an entire meal using four Instant Pots. Now, where in my kitchen can I put four Instant Pots to cook at the same time and still have counter space to prep the ingredients? I think these television shows were aired prior to or during the Covid pandemic. I guess my vision will remain a memory as I hear from the media that the original Instant Pot company has filed for bankruptcy. Not that it matters. If we all take care of our four Instant Pots, we will be cooking in them for many years to come. I still use my one and only Instant Pot from time to time for several select dishes such as this delicious “Southern Baked Beans” recipe.

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Roasted Cherry Tomato Pasta Sauce

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Cherry tomatoes are tiny versions of the wonderful, ripe tomatoes which I love so much in the summertime. There are many varieties of cherry tomatoes and they all grow prolifically in Louisiana gardens. This bowl of assorted minature tomatoes was grown at the LSU AgCenter Botanic Gardens at Burden on their research farm. The tomatoes were “on sale.” Some were “research” tomatoes — all were difference sizes, shapes and colors. “Take as many as you want,” the kind lady said. That was music to my ears. I came home with over three pounds of these small tomatoes. This was more than I could use in salads. I did not want to let the tomatoes go to waste and decided to experiement making a pasta sauce with most of them. How did the sauce turn out? Quite unique, very tasty.

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Hot Pink Ice Cream Cookie Sandwiches

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What a pleasure, the “Barbie” movie came out this summer turning our world into a sea of pink. I love the bright and splashy color, “pink,” and the vibrance which it has added to our universe. A little fantasy and imagination helps balance all the sobering news in our world. To celebrate the Barbie theme, I devised a shortbread ice cream cookie sandwich to share. And, it is delicious. Cherry-infused ice cream filling and bright pink icing make the cookies mighty tasty. I named them “Hot Pink Ice Cream Cookie Sandwiches” to avoid any copyright infringment issues with the Mattel folks. It takes several steps to make this dessert, but it is worth it. The shortbread cookies with pink icing can stand alone, but why not add a cherry ice cream filling?

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Brabant Potatoes — a New Orleans Classic

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When you are given a cookbook which has more recipes for oyster dishes than vegetables, there’s a good chance that it may relate to the cuisine of New Orleans. A friend gifted me an old cookbook which she no longer wanted. Since I live in Louisiana, I seemed like the natural person to get the cookbook. Little did she know what a treasure it is — if you like cookbooks. The vintage cookbook, era 1960s, is written by the parents whose daughters attended the Ursuline Academy of the Old Ursuline Convent — which dates to 1727. The cookbook is filled with classic recipes of New Orleans — these Catholic parents would have come from established families in the city. As I skimmed through the pages, I stopped at “Brabant Potatoes.” Now, here’s a dish you won’t find outside of New Orleans. I decided to make a version of this classic Louisiana dish of “French Fries.” If you like potatoes, you will love this dish!

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Cajun-Asian Fusion Stuffed Gypsy Peppers

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I decided to get creative and find a way to use the sweet-flavored gypsy peppers which I grew in my summer garden. I concocted a dish which has both Cajun and Asian elements which I am calling, “Cajun-Asian Fusion Stuffed Gypsy Peppers.” I used a traditional Cajun stuffing of pork, rice and lots of vegetable seasonings. The Asian fusion component comes from Indonesian Sambal Oelek Ground Fresh Chili Paste which I added to the stuffing. This paste gives a different flavor “twist” to the stuffed pepper dish. And the mild gypsy peppers are a great pepper to use for stuffing. The result is a flavorful rice and pork casserole and supper entree.

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Brownie Ice Cream Sandwiches with Strawberries

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“Brownie Ice Cream Sandwiches with Strawberries” is just a whimsical, fun summer dessert. The little members of the family can help stir up the brownie batter and everyone will enjoy eating the dessert. The recipe combines a delicious chocolate brownie with vanilla ice cream and strawberries for the filling. The dessert is frozen and then cut into bars. Who can resist these brownie ice cream sandwiches? And surprise, the strawberries are the star of this recipe. This dessert needs plenty of freezing time (at least 4 hours), so allow adequate time to make the dessert. Let’s get started.

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New Orleans Style Homemade Onion Rings

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In addition to great seafood, New Orleans serves some awesome onion rings. I had this revelation during one of our recent visits into New Orleans. We ate at the neighborhood restaurant, Deanie’s Sea Food Kitchen, on Magazine Street, in the Garden District. This little restaurant is not especially known to tourists. Rather, it is a place where locals patronize. The seafood plates are fantastic. We indulged in a soft-shell crab po-boy and got homemade onion rings as an appetizer. While onion rings are not unique to New Orleans, the ones served in this city have evolved into something special. At Deanie’s, the colossal stack of onions are “hand-cut, battered in buttermilk and fried until golden fried.” They are delicious. Back home, while shopping at our local farmer’s market, I noticed some huge white onions. I decided to try to replicate Deanie’s onion rings. It was definately an experiment!

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