Blake Makes

I love cheese enchiladas- they are my most favorite food ever, ever. Well, actually, cheese is my most favorite food. But, when you stuff it inside corn tortillas and bake it to bubbly perfection, it doesn’t get much better.

I stumbled across this recipe for veggie and cheese enchiladas when I was skimming through Susan Spicer’s Crescent City Cooking, and the photograph looked so mouth-watering, I had to try to make them myself.

I will warn you that the enchiladas do take a while to make, but you can make the sauce a day ahead and save yourself some time later. Having made these before, you would think that I would do that, but, alas, I am a procrastinator. (Blake, don’t you and my mom always say the Johnson motto is “Why do today what you can do tomorrow?”; Guess it’s in my blood.)

The time it takes to make these, however, is totally worth it. They are so yummy and satisfy all my Tex-Mex cravings. Plus, the veggies actually add nutrition to my favorite meal! Yay!

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This past Christmas, I was super excited to get Blake an autographed copy of Chef John Folse’s The Encyclopedia of Cajun and Creole Cuisine. Since we both grew up in North Louisiana, we didn’t have a lot of exposure to this type of cooking, so I was looking forward to learning a thing or two from Folse (who’s also an old favorite on Saturday morning PBS). He certainly didn’t disappoint - this cookbook is truly an encyclopedia of everything anyone would want to know about the cuisine of South Louisiana.

His recipe for Chicken and Sausage Gumbo was a little different than other gumbos I’ve had in the past (mushrooms??), but it was wonderfully rich and delicious (and the mushrooms were great).

Ingredients:

• 1 (5lb) stewing hen
• 1 lb smoked sausage or andouille (I like to use both and prefer Manda brand if you can find it.)
• 1 cup oil
• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 2 cups diced onions
• 2 cups diced celery
• 1 cup diced bell peppers
• 1/4 cup minced garlic
• 3 quarts chicken stock
• 24 button mushrooms
• 2 cups sliced green onions
• 1 bay leaf
• sprig of thyme
• 1 tbsp chopped basil
• salt and cracked black pepper to taste
• Louisiana hot sauce to taste
• 1/2 cup chopped parsley
• cooked white rice (we will use brown if going more healthy)

Directions:

Using a sharp boning knife, cut hen into 8-10 serving pieces. Remove as much fat as possible. Cut smoked sausage or andouille into 1/2 inch slices and set aside.

In a 2 gallon stockpot, heat oil over medium high heat. Whisk in flour, stirring constantly until golden brown roux is achieved. (Do not walk away during this process unless your kids are bleeding.) Stir in onions, celery, bell peppers and garlic. Saute 3-5 minutes or until vegetables are wilted. Blend chicken and sausage into vegetable mixture, and saute approximately 15 minutes. Add chicken stock, one ladle at a time, stirring constantly. Bring to a rolling boil, reduce to simmer and cook approximately 1 hour.

Skim any fat or oil that rises to top of pot. Stir in mushrooms, green onions, bay leaf, thyme and basil. Season to taste using salt, pepper and hot sauce. Cook an additional 1-2 hours, if necessary, until chicken is tender and falling apart. Stir in parsley and adjust seasonings. Serve over hot white rice.

NOTE: You may wish to boil chicken 1-2 hours before beginning gumbo. Reserve stock, bone chicken and use meat and stock in gumbo.

We were sans-garnish tonight, but I still loved this soup plain (like I always do)!

It’s super easy to make.

Soak the beans overnight, or boil them in 6 cups of water for 5 minutes then cover and remove from heat for an hour. It’s 1 cup of dry black beans.

Throw the following into a pot:

• The prepped black beans
• 1 yellow onion chopped
• 2 stalks of celery chopped
• 4 garlic cloves minced
• 1 tsp. Ground Coriander
• 1/4 tsp. Red pepper
• 2 cups Chicken stock
• 2 cups water
• S&P to taste

Bring all that to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer away the afternoon (about 2 hours).

I add some diced turkey sausage at the end for added heft and protein. You could go completely veg if you wanted (replace the Chicken stock with Veg stock).

Garnish with a dollop of sour cream, grated Colby-Jack and fresh Cilantro leaves. I ate 3 bowls of this stuff tonight. I’m sick with delight.

Risotto is a nice, warm blanket.

This risotto was smokey, almost beefy from the Porcini mushrooms.

I boiled 6 cups of low sodium chicken broth, and once it came to the boil, I added 1/2 cup dried Porcini mushrooms and reduced the heat to a simmer.

In my heavy bottom stock pot, I add 1/4 cup unsalted butter and 2 tblsp. olive oil.

To that add 2 cups chopped yellow onion and cook until translucent (about 8 minutes).

When the onions are ready, add 10 oz. finely chopped white button mushrooms, 2 finely chopped cloves of garlic and the rehydrated Porcini’s, again, finely chooped (spoon them out of the broth).

Cook this for about 5 minutes.

Next, add 1 1/2 cups arborio  rice to toast for a bit. The kernels will start to go ghostly.

Add 2/3 cup dry white wine and stir constantly until the mixture goes dry (about 2 minutes).

Then start adding the broth in 1 cup ladles. Add a ladle and stir, stir, stir until the mixture starts to dry out. The rice is absorbing the broth.

Keep adding broth and taste after the third ladle. I like the rice firm but not mushy.

I stop adding when the rice is just al dente (it will keep cooking and softening).

At the end I add 3/4 peas and 2/3 grated Parmesan.

I’ve been making meatloaf for years. It was always my favorite growing up, but until now I’ve always made my meatloaf in the oven. Never again. Before I tell you how I made it, I’ll share with you my inspiration. Back in March, I tried Herbsaint for the first time. I’ve been back twice (with Bridget), and both times we ordered the meatloaf (partly because it’s delicious, but to also figure out what was in it and how to make it ourselves). We got close.

Herbsaint Meatloaf is different from my traditional meatloaf in that it’s cooked on the grill (at least I’m assuming that’s how they do it), and to do it right, you need to burn it. Go for the char! Here’s my recipe:

• 1/2 lb. Ground chuck
• 1/2 lb. Ground pork
• 1/2 lb. Ground veal
• 2 slices (about 1/4 inch thick) Pancetta diced
• 2 cups Chopped onions
• 2 Carrots (chopped)
• 1 cup Bread crumbs
• 2 tbsp. Tomato paste
• 1 Egg
• 3 tbsp. Worcestershire
• Salt, pepper, Tony’s

I throw all of this in a large bowl, and mix it with my hands until well combined. The pancetta adds a baconiness that brings me back to my childhood, and the carrots sweeten the entire dish.

I needed to cook this on the grill, so I form it into a loaf and placed it in my vegetable grill tray. Next, I lit the grill and tossed some smoke chips on top of the coals. The loaf went in and the lid went on for about 2 hours.

The secret to my meatloaf has always been its glaze. To make it, mix:

• 2 cups Ketchup
• 2 tsp. Mustard
• 2 tsp. Worcestershire
• 1 tbsp. Brown sugar
• 2 tsp. Red pepper flakes
• Tony’s

Heat the sauce on top of the stove until it darkens and looks like BBQ sauce. Pour it over the meatloaf and put it back on the grill or under the broiler until the glaze looks set.

I serve it with roasted garlic and chives mashed potatoes. Make more than you need because this meatloaf is great the next day eaten cold or on a sandwich.