Bananas Foster

There are a handful of things that make me nostalgic about where I grew up, the food of New Orleans being one of them.  From my early childhood, yearly trips to the Big Easy were a chance to explore all the culianry delights the city had to offer.

As I've grown older and geographically farther away, I'm constantly trying to recreate these classic dishes that I love so much.  One of these is Bananas Foster; one of the most popular desserts in the city.  It's truly a New Orleans creation as it's genesis can be traced back to Brennan's on Royal Street

It's an incredible fun and easy dessert to make; especially if you have an inner pyro like me.  And, keeping with the Brennan's tradition it's just as much about the show as the taste (they still prepare the dessert table-side).

All you need are

1 Ripe Banana (the more ripe the better) - split in half length-wise then cut into small chunks

1/4 cup Brown sugar

1 Tbsp. Butter

Cinammon to taste

1 oz. Rum (or banana liquer) -use a decent quality

Vanilla Ice Cream

Lighter or Open Flame

a fire extinguisher in the vicinity is also probably a good idea

The above will make a small serving for 2 people, adjust accordingly.

Allow a shallow skillet to heat up, then add in the butter.  Once the butter is melted add in the bananas and brown sugar and allow to cook/soften for 1-2 minutes.  Season with cinnamon to taste.

Now comes the big finale, remove from the heat and add the alcohol and add the flame; be sure to have you and your guest stay back from the pan as it will ignite and make culinary fireworks.  For a beginner, I recommend using a stick lighter, however with experience you can just use the open flame from a gas stove.

Once the flame subsides you can spoon it over the ice cream and enjoy.  Serve immediately because the warm mixture will melt the ice cream quickly.

Tilapia Meuniere

Tilapia done meuniere style.  This most French of dishes is one of my most favorite to cook and eat.

Tilapia is dredged in wondra and then pan fried.  You can't be afraid to let it go a little brown; that's when you really get great flavor.

The sauce is a lemon butter sauce with capers.  I have to be honest I went most of my life disliking capers after I tried them when I was young and had a bad experience.  However, after hearing my brother go on-and-on about them I thought I would give them another shot.  Turns out, I really like them; I guess it's one of those taste you have to grow into.

The sauce is made by reducing white wine (or Vermouth) in a pan until the volume is half.  Then add capers and lemon juice and let simmer for about a minute.  Finally, whisk in softened butter (use good quality) until the sauce is emulsified and smooth.  I would love to give you more exact directions but it's really something I've learned to do by feel.  If your looking for measurements I would recommend Julia's book; like I said this is truly classic french.

The Tilapia was accompanied by roasted Brussel sprouts.  These were simply tossed with oil, salt and pepper and roasted until soft and brown.  These turned out great and I'm planning to create a roast brussel sprout salad that I will detail later.

Marscapone Ravioli w/ Pork Belly & Sweet Pepper Chutney

I'm continually trying to perfect my pork belly & pasta recipe; the latest interation being marscapone ravioli w/ pork belly and sweet pepper chutney.

I prepared the pork belly as usual:  It gets a light sear on each side and is then added to a cast-iron pot where it's braised with a little water in the oven very slowly (275 degrees) for a few hours.  When the pork belly is done it will simply fall apart at the touch.

Next, for the sweet pepper chutney, about a half a jar of sweet peppers are needed (8-9 peppers).  Any type of pepper can be used as long as they are not spicy, however, if your peppers aren't slightly pickled then a small of amount of vinegar or lemon should be added to the chutney.  Next, one of the most important steps is removing all seeds from the peppers.
Once the peppers are prepped they can be added to the blender with the other ingredients:
1/3 cup of tomato sauce
1/2 tsp. oregano
salt
pepper
Everything is then blended to as smooth as possible; but,even with the best blender the mixture will still be a little chunky.


Finally, the ravioli.  Homemade pasta is filled with a mixture of marscapone, parmesan and chives.  Once the raviolis are boiled they are then tossed in a light sauce of crème fraîche, garlic and mushrooms.  The ravioli and sauce were great the filling however was not a success.  It definitely needs something to bind it so it doesn't turn so liquidous during cooking.



All in all a successful dish.  The chutney with the pork belly is defintely worth making in the future.

I must give credit to the Iberian Pig for inspiration of this dish (The Castellucci's new restaurant in Decatur).

Refried Black Beans

Homemade refried beans are amazingly easy and take about as much time as opening that can of pre-made beans.
Simply add about a tablespoon of vegetable oil to a pan and heat on medium.  Add some minced garlic and stir for a few seconds.  Before the garlic begins to brown add a can of black beans (beans and liquid).  While the mixture is bubbling about use a masher and mash up the beans until you get the desired consistency.  Turn off the heat and season to taste with salt.

Once you get the basic beans you can expand by adding onions or chipotle peppers.  I also recommend getting the low-sodium beans and seasoning them yourself with salt, chili powder and cumin.

Shrimp Tacos

I picked up some homemade tortillas at the new farmers market up the street and decided to make grilled shrimp tacos.
The seasoned grilled shrimp are served up with cilantro, creme fraiche and a roasted tomatillo and avocado sauce.

Roasted tomatillo and avocado sauce:
4 Tomatillos
1 poblano pepper
handful of cilantro
1/2 an avocado
2 Tbsp. Lime juice

Dry roast the tomatillos and poblano pepper in a cast iron skillet until charred and softened.  Let cool and add to blender with cilantro and lime juice, puree until smooth.  Cut the avocado into small chunks and add to the blender, continue blending until creamy and smooth.  Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper to taste.  Chill for about an hour before serving over the tacos.

Specialty Ingredients

I have quiet a few specialty ingredients that I often use so I thought I would start a new section to highlight some of these (and supply links for acquiring them).  On the right you'll notice a NEW PAGE for specialty ingredients; I hope to keep this section as an archive and periodically update it.  To kick it off I've included three great items I use all the time.

BLT

Sometimes the simplest things are the best.  A simple BLT can be extraordinary with high quality ingredients.

The summer really is the only time of year to have a BLT as having great tomatoes are crucial.  Also, you have to use great bacon; this was thick-cut, applewood smoked.  The tomato and bacon were put on top of sourdough with some Bibb lettuce.  Finished off with some NY cheddar and Dijon mustard (I'm not a mayo guy).