Category Archives: Cooking Techniques

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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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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Mile High Lemonade Ice Cream Pie

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Here’s an absolutely luscious dessert for hot summer days, “Mile High Lemonade Ice Cream Pie.” The dessert is a spin-off on the venerable “Mile High Ice Cream Pie” made famous at the Carribean Room of the Pontchartrain Hotel, in New Orleans. My dessert features a graham cracker crust and a filling of vanilla ice cream mixed with lemonade concentrate. It is topped with a thick meringue which is broiled in the oven. The tart, citrus lemonade flavor and meringue topping complement each other perfectly. My taste tester friends and husband devoured this dessert. A meringue is a little tricky to make; but definately is worth the effort and that “touch” makes this dessert special. This may be my favorite recipe of the summer.

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Ida’s Watermelon Preserves

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I’ve been told that my grandmother Ida’s “Watermelon Preserves” were the best anywhere around. This summer I decided to see for myself and make a batch. However, I had quite a surprise when I read the recipe — the preserves are made with only the white part of the rind — not the watermelon pulp. Now, do you know of anyone who eats watermelon rind? Apparently my ancesters did. Grandma Ida’s recipe consists of three ingredients — the white part of the rind, sugar and a little lemon juice. When cooked down on the stove, the sugar thickens into a thick syrup and the small chunks of rind flavor the preserves. Hey, this is really candied watermelon rind! No wonder everyone liked “Ida’s Watermelon Preserves.” This novel recipe turned out to be a very, very sweet summer treat.

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How to Make Hazel’s Dill Pickle Spears plus a Refrigerator Version

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My husband loves “Mustard Seed Pickles” which his mother canned and preserved when he was growing up. The pickles were loaded with mustard seeds. As a boy, he would reach into the refrigerator for a pickle and lick the mustard seeds off with his tongue. Now his mother is 96-years-old. She still managed to locate the handwritten recipe. Unfortunately, I couldn’t decipher her instructions. Although I’ve tried countless times, I just can’t seem to make his mother’s mustard pickle recipe likes he remembers. Instead, I’m using a similar recipe from my own mother for “Dill Pickle Spears.” And this recipe is great; I have made it countless times!  Today my daughter and I had a “pickling party” preparing the traditional dill pickles which are heat processed so they can be preserved and stored at room temperature for months. We also made a refrigerator version for folks who are a little sceptical of home canning. Both recipes make small batches of pickles — it is easier for a home cook to handle.

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Steen’s Cane Syrup Whole Wheat Rolls

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Today, I’m making “Whole Wheat Rolls” using my Instant Pot. These flavorful rolls have a hint of molasses flavor due to the Louisiana Steen’s Cane Syrup which I added. What does an Instant Pot have to do with making yeast rolls? One of the most difficult steps in baking breads, in my opinion, is finding a warm spot in my kitchen which is just right for the dough to rise. Too hot, and the dough is hard as a rock. Too cold, the dough never rises. I’ve had so many flops. I was excited to learn that my new Instant Pot has two modes — Yogurt and Sous Vide — which can be used for the first dough proofing step. I’m experimenting today. I am using a food processor for mixing and kneading the dough, so this recipe is super simple.

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Steamed Oriental-Style Chicken with Kale and Sticky Rice

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I sent my husband to the grocery market to purchase rice and he returned home with a bamboo steamer. I certainly don’t need another “kitchen appliance.” However, since my husband was kind enough to run an errand for me, how could I ask him to return the bamboo steamer? Steaming vegetables and other foods is such a healthy way to cook things; I decided to give the bamboo steamer a trial run. Today I cooked “Steamed Oriental-Style Chicken with Kale” in the two layer steamer. I served it with sticky rice (also cooked in the steamer) and a simple dressing. It was an interesting experiment, really a meal-in-one, and my husband liked the resulting dish!

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Blueberry Scones

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I love these tender, flaky “Blueberry Scones” and can’t get enough of them. I have several quarts of blueberries in my freezer remaining from last summer’s backyard blueberry crop. So whenever I see an idea for using blueberries, I’m ready to try the recipe. A blueberry scone recipe in our local newspaper insert caught my attention. I have become pretty good at making homemade biscuits. Scones are similar — just a richer version. This recipe is delicious and easy to make because of several short cuts and tips that I learned while baking many batches of biscuits. I can prepare this recipe in just a few minutes. Here is how I made these melt-in-you mouth scones.

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“Irish Bread Pudding with Whiskey Custard Sauce”

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In the spirit of St. Patrick’s Day, I’m making “Irish Bread Pudding.” You may ask, what is so Irish about bread pudding? I am making my favorite New Orleans-style bread pudding recipe and I am adding Irish Cream to the custard. Irish Cream is a liqueur containing whiskey, cream and various flavors such as coffee and vanilla extracts, sometimes chocolate. To be labeled legally as “Irish Cream Liqueur,” the whiskey must be produced in Ireland. Bailey’s Irish Cream is the quintessential Irish brand of this liqueur. When the Irish Cream Liqueur is added to this extra-rich bread pudding, the dessert really has some kick. And as some interesting trivia, New Orleans actually has a significant Irish population. The first Irish immigrated to this city in the late 1700’s, attracted because of Catholic traditions. More Irish settled in the city during the potato famines. The first Patrick’s Day celebration was held in 1809  So, let’s celebrate St. Patrick’s Day in a festive manner with this “Irish-inspired” dessert.

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Old-Fashioned Pumpkin Flan

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I’ve always wanted to make a “Flan” and was excited when I stumbled across a recipe for “Pumpkin Flan” in a vintage cookbook. It is another prefect recipe for Thanksgiving and the holidays. A custard-type dessert with caramel topping is by far my husband’s favorite dessert. In Louisiana, custard flans and a similar dish, crème brûlée, are standards on most traditional restaurant menus. I can always guess what dessert we will order when we go out to eat. This recipe for “Pumpkin Flan” is a baked custard using whole eggs, spices, cream and pumpkin puree. It includes a hard caramel glaze. This recipe, or at least the caramel glaze, is tricky to make. I included fresh pumpkin pulp from my “sugar pumpkins” in the custard which gives this flan a definite Thanksgiving “pumpkin pie” taste. The “Pumpkin Flan” turned out great including my caramel glaze. Creamy and smooth. Delicious.

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