A Little Creole Soul - Penne alla Nawlens

It all started when I decided to cook dinner for my youngest brother and his family, minus my niece who was at the beach with my parents. I was toying with the Macaroni alla Nawlens, that I made some time ago. When I mentioned Andouille floating in a sea of cheese and pasta, the idea was met with zeal. So it was decided... Penne alla Nawlens it was. This is when the problem started.

As I mentioned, I already made this recipe, or at least something along the same venue, a while back (Macaroni alla Nawlens), but I figured, in light of my recent successes without using béchamel as a base, that it was time to re-vamp the recipe a little.

When I started looking at the recipe it became glaringly apparent that I was off my "game". If memory serves me correctly, though I was attempting to recreate a recipe I had eaten at the New Orleans Cafe in old Town San Diego, I was in a hurry, I was hungry, and I was simply cleaning out the refrigerator of so many small pieces of cheese. Which would be fine, except for the fact that I blogged about it. I probably shouldn't have, as I had not entered into the project with any sort of definitive plan. (even an experiment needs a plan) I was simply making it up as I went along. And while it was tasty, I think it could be much better....

So I post this again, but THIS time, it is with a serious endeavor to create a Macaroni and Cheese dish that actually reflects the flavors of Cajun/Creole cuisine.

First, as I mentioned, the béchamel HAD to go. This is based on Heavy Cream, Butter, Crème Fraîche and Cheese (lots of Cheese). Secondly, I had to attempt atoning for my mistake; when I originally threw this together I committed a cardinal sin that shall haunt me to the end of my days (cause I knew better). I completely left out the "Holy Trinity". I have no idea what I was thinking, but the combination of Onion, Celery and Bell Pepper is quintessential to ANY Creole/Cajun dish. Sure, I had thrown in some onion, but that is a pale shadow of what is possible. Lastly, the cheese had to be addressed. So I sat and contemplated. I finally went with 1 firm cheese (Gruyere), 1 semi-firm cheese (Emmental), and 1 smooth melting cheese (Danish Fontina). A lot simpler, but more flavorful, than the train wreck of cheeses I used before. The funniest part is, that I actually used less cheese this time, but without the béchamel, it had SO much more cheese flavor. Awesome!

After all, if I am gonna cook for family, I SHOULD be putting my heart and soul into what I am doing. They're worth it. So without further nonsense babbling.... I present Macaroni alla Nawlens, the way I should have made it the first time. And I must admit, I was not disappointed at all, it was SO much better this time.

Penne y Formaggio alla Nawlens

24 oz Andouille Sausage
1/2 Bell Pepper, chopped (I used left over peppers from some other dishes, thus the rainbow)
1/2 medium White Onion, chopped
1 rib Celery, chopped
1 Cup Heavy Cream
4 oz Butter
6 oz Emmental
8 oz Fontina (Danish red wax type)
8 oz Gruyere
8 oz Crème Fraîche
1/4 tsp Cayenne Pepper
1 lb Penne (Elbows or Cavitappi will work too)
2 oz Panko

Slice up the andouille. (I use Aidelle's cause that was all I could find)

Set a large pot of water over high heat so it can come to a boil while you are grating all the cheeses so your ready.

Once you have grated all the cheese, grab a handful from the pile and set it aside for later.

Place Heavy Cream and Butter in a small sauce pan, melting it over low heat.

Place 1 TB Olive oil in a saute pan set over medium flame.

Add the andouille (in batches if necessary) and saute until lightly browned, but more importantly, until you have some of the fat rendered into the pan. (you're gonna need that for the next step)

When you have fried all the andouille, set it aside.

Add the "Holy Trinity" to the hot andouille fat, and saute until soft.

You should be able to drop your pasta now, boil for 1/2 the time called for on the package.

Begin preheating the oven to 325 degrees.

Once the Butter and Cream are melted and homogeneous, add a handful of the cheese mixture and whisk until melted and smooth before adding another handful.

Add all but 1 handful of the shredded cheese.

When all the cheese (except for the handful you set aside) has been added and is melted, add the Crème Fraîche and whisk again. (it will look a little runny)

Whisk in the Cayenne Pepper (add more if you have a higher heat threshold)

Drain the penne (don't forget to give it a really good shake to get the water out of the tubes) then pour the pasta back into the pot you boiled it in.

Add the Fried andouille and the Holy trinity.

Pour the hot cheese sauce over the top.

Then toss everything to coat it really well.

Add the reserved handful of cheese and stir it in.

Immediately pour the mixture into an 9 x 13 casserole dish. (Hooray for old CorningWare!)

Sprinkle with Panko.

Bake for 15-20 minutes or until is begins to bubble.

Switch on the broiler on and place under the element for 3 minutes to finish of the top crust.

Then indulge in spicy cheese happiness.

(My nephew sure did)

Now if I only had some Crayfish.

Hoooo wee!!
~~

Swaddling Swine - Würstchen im Schlafrock

(Gr. "Sausage in a Dressing gown")
Whether you call them Porcine in Pashmina, Hogs in House Coats, Farrows in Frocks, Boar in a Bedspread or, like here in the States, Pigs-in-blankets, they are a multicultural phenomenon. In Isreal they are referred to as "Moses in the ark". In Russia, "COCNCKA B TESTE" <-- The 'N' should be reversed (Sosiska v teste, "sausage in the dough").

Why all this info regarding a sausage wrapped in dough? Friday April 24th is National Pigs-in-a-Blanket day. So swaddle your swine as you see fit, be it breakfast sausage in pancakes, Vienna sausage in croissants or Hot dogs in Bagel dough. Wrap it up, baby!!!

Normally I use Hot Italian Sausage and Puff pastry, but tonight I decided to get in touch with my German roots and grabbed some Bratwurst.

1 lb box of Puff Pastry
8 Bratwurst
8 thin slices of Swiss cheese (Emmenthal is best)
Brown Mustard
1 egg lightly Beaten
(optional) Finishing Salts

Thaw the Puff Pastry according to directions.
I use Trader Joe's Brand, I think the quality is better than Pepperridge Farm for 1 simple reason.

Pepperridge Farm is made with Hydrogenated oil, Trader Joe's Brand is made with Butter, as Puff Pastry should be. There is also a bonus... Trader Joe's brand is $1.50 cheaper!!

Unfold a sheet of Pastry and cut into 4 equal pieces.

Spread a little mustard, leaving the edges clean.

Add a piece of Swiss,

then bratwurst.

Roll up and seal with egg wash.

Place them on a parchment lines baking sheet and brush all over with egg wash then sprinkle with finishing salts if desired.

Bake for 20-25 minutes or until Pastry is Golden Brown.

Which Salts did I use...??

Murray Ridge from Australia

Salish Alder Smoked from the Pacific NW

Alaea Salt from Hawaii

Black Lava Salt from Hawaii

Sel Gris from France

Mangia!!
~~

The Pursuit of Happiness - Perfecting the Reuben

Food Origin: The Reuben Sandwich… this is going to be long.
Debate continues as to the origin of this sandwich. Some swear it was 1916 when Arnold Reuben, owner of Reuben’s Delicatessen in New York served the first Reuben. Others swear it was Reuben Kulakofsky of the Blackstone Hotel in Omaha Nebraska circa 1925. Still others claim it was Fern Snider of the Rose Bowl Restaurant, still in Omaha, in the 1956 National Sandwich Contest. Well, after a lot of reading and digging I have deduced, with my keen senses, the true origin of the Reuben sandwich.

It was Colonel Mustard in the Billiard room with a Candlestick.

Regardless of the WHO, the WHERE, or the WHEN, the Reuben is one of the quintessential sandwiches. This is noticeable by the fact that you can refer to it as “A Reuben” and people know you are talking about a sandwich and not the guy next door. All GREAT sandwiches have experienced this phenomenon, a Monte Cristo, a Grilled Cheese, a Muffaletta, and a BLT, just to name a few. Yes, like all these, the Reuben has taken the world by storm and can be found everywhere. Now that is not to say that all Reubens on the menus of the world are *good* Reubens, just that they exist. But truly great Reubens can sometimes be found in the most unlikely places. After all, one of the best Reubens I have had in my life came from a little “Chinese” deli in Riverside, California. Go figure.

There is yet another mystery regarding the famed Reuben… The Dressing… I was raised with Mayonnaise gracing my rye bread. Thousand Island, which seems to be the accepted norm now days, was not allowed in the house for my mother abhorred all things with hidden sugar, and let’s face it, Thousand Island dressing might as well be dessert it is so sweet. In my research, however, I discovered that the original Reuben was made with Russian dressing…

This presents its own set of issues…. There is NO single recipe for the elusive Russian dressing, from which Thousand Island was derived. Oh yes, there are recipes claiming to be original but they range from Mayonnaise based to Yogurt based to Oil based and back again, containing everything from caviar to chopped boiled eggs and yes, even sweet pickle relish and ketchup. (Thus, the connection of Thousand Island dressing is made.) One thing was abundantly clear though; Russian dressing is spicier than Thousand Island, since it contains Chili sauce or Cayenne pepper, an ingredient that was a standard in almost all the recipes I found.

It was at this point, however, that I realized that I was not going to really be able to produce a Traditional Reuben sandwich at home, since no one seems to know what one *really* is. So I have resigned myself to producing what I THINK is as close as I can get in the modern age…

I decided to tackle this by concentrating first, on the individual ingredients.

Corned Beef...
This year I was privy to the idea of steaming instead of crock-potting it. I decided to experiment after a little internet browsing through the LA times.

Simply place water and the spice packet, if you have one, in the bottom pot. (I used my wok, cause it has this nifty steamer grate… THANKS DAD!!! My dad is the guru of kitchen gadgetry)

Line the steamer basket with cabbage leaves (I use a Napa cabbage)

Place the meat on top with the fat facing up.

Cover and Steam for 50 minutes per lb.

Remove and slice after cooling slightly…. YUM!!!

I snitched some… Tender, Juicy and delicious!!!!!

Ok, the Corned Beef completed!!

Now, Dressing...I had purchased Annie’s Organic Thousand Island dressing as a base… Why? There were four reasons:

• It contains no High fructose Corn Syrup like all the others (It’s sweetened with good old fashioned sugar)

• It is based on Yogurt instead of Mayo or just oil, which I feel more closely resembles the Russian Salad dressing.


• Well… It’s organic, which always makes me feel better, since none of the other stuff is.


• Finally, it was on sale and actually cheaper than Wishbone, Kraft, Girards or Ken’s Steak house.

So, to my Thousand Island I added some Cayenne pepper (I resisted using Chipotle powder)
Dressing designed……

Cheese...

OK, Swiss is the cheese. There is no doubt about that. But I was being stubborn, if I was going use Swiss cheese, I wanted SWISS cheese… Thus I needed Emmental… The Original, that most U.S. Swiss, as well as the Norwegian Jarlsburg are modeled after.

Cheese chosen.....

Saurkraut….

Being of German, Dane, and Swiss descent; or DaSwiGerm, if you will (The 'w' is pronounced like a 'v'). I know my Kraut… Whether it be Zuurkool, Surkal or Kapusta (which is actually Polish). The point is that I love Sauerkraut; mixed in mashed potatoes, served over knockwurst/bratwurst, eaten directly from the jar with a fork, or on my Reuben. Love it!!! But I am picky…

A little about kraut… Sauerkraut is cabbage that has been lacto-fermented. The same way as cold process pickled cucumbers (Barrel Pickles). This process is performed in 3 phases utilizing the beneficial bacterial beasties (they are small) already contained in the cabbage leaf, lactobacillus being one of them. This family of beneficial bacteria is responsible for producing buttermilk, Sour Cream, Creme Fraiche, Yogurt and changing the 'pH' of most Cheeses. Thusly, sauerkraut should really only contain the following:

Cabbage, Water, and Salt, maybe with caraway seeds and a little sugar for those Bavarians out there.

My choice is usually Bubbies because is contains only those three ingredients.

Sodium Bisulfate, Sodium Benzoate and High Fructose Corn Syrup have no business in sauerkraut. For all the touted health benefits of sauerkraut, I would think the presence of artificial preservatives and HFCS would pretty much cancel those out.

Sauerkraut Selected……..

Bread…
Kimmel Rye bread made with Caraway seeds… This is where I deviated a little, I love Sour Dough, and I found a Sour Dough Rye with Kimmel (Caraway Seeds) so I was good to go!!!

Bread bought....

That's everything... WHEW!! Finally, on with the Sandwich…….

The Reuben

2 sliced Sour Kimmel Rye Bread

Unsalted Butter

Thousand Island Dressing (with added Cayenne) or Russian (if you can find it)

Emmental

Sauerkraut

Corned Beef

2 Skillets (sorry but your gonna need 2)

Sandwich knife (or a bread knife and a butter knife)

Let us begin….

Butter the bread slices on both sides and lay on a little waxed paper.

Slice your cheese fairly thin.

Portion out your Sauerkraut if making more than one sandwich. (this is heat and eat, no waiting)

Heat up both skillets. Please DO NOT use Raw Cast Iron for the corned beef and kraut, it will react and taste funny. I do, however, like to use cast iron for the bread and cheese.

Begin grilling or pan searing the bread in one skillet while heating the corned beef in the other.

When the beef is just about heated through move it to the edges of the skillet and add the kraut in the middle. (My skillet was too small so I removed it and tented it to keep it warm)

Flip your Bread and add cheese to 1 slice, then cover to foster melting.

Heat sauerkraut thoroughly, this will steam off some of the excess juices and dry it out a little so your bread will not become soggy half way through your sandwich.

Remove bread from skillet and apply dressing to the un-cheesed side.

Lay Sauerkraut on the cheese covered slice.

Lay down the Corned Beef next,

then the dressed slice of bread on top.

Press down lightly and slice with your knife on the bias…
Move to a plate and serve immediately with a chilled Harp or Guinness….

Mmmmmmm..... Happiness IS a well made Reuben.... and a Cold beer.
Yeah, the final pictures weren't great, but after smelling this thing cooking, I could not wait, so I only took two in hopes that they would come out, then I began eating with great exhuberance...

Mangia!!!
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