Classic Red Beans and Rice

After a bit of a hiatus, I thought I'd drop in with a classic. Remodling the kitchen has taken up my time and it's taking awhile to complete. Older houses come with their own headaches.

This was a great dish to start while the wife and I were applying stucco to the basement walls since it takes about 3 hours to cook. If you own a cast iron dutch oven, use it! It does a great job without burning the finished product.
And while you can go vegetarian on this and/or eat it as a side dish, bacon or andouille sausage go great in red beans and rice. Of course, the wife doesn't like bacon or sausage so I capitulated and added chicken.
It's simplistic, it's easy, and it's tasty. Here's how I did it!

Red Beans and Rice
8 oz. dried kidney beans
2 T. olive oil
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 onion, chopped
1/2 green bell pepper, chopped
1-2 celery stalks, chopped
2 bay leaves
1/2 t. dried thyme
1 t. dried parsley
1/2 t. cayenne pepper (or more if you like)
2 T. softened butter
2 T. all-purpose flour
salt and pepper to taste

Optional:
8 oz. bacon, andouille sausage, pork, or chicken

Rinse the dried beans and soak them in 3 cups of salted water overnight.

Heat the olive oil in your cast iron dutch oven over medium heat. Add in the garlic, onion, bell pepper, and celery until the onions are softened. Add the beans and the water they were soaked in to the pot. Reduce the heat to simmer. Stir in the bay leaves, thyme, parsley, and cayenne pepper and cover. From here, let it cook for 2 1/2 to 3 hours, stirring once an hour or so. The goal is to cook the mixture until the beans soften to your desired texture.

I wanted a thicker, gravy-like consistency, so I used a buerre manie. It's equal parts softened butter and flour, and it does a great job as a thickener for soups and stews. Hand mix the butter and flour into a ball and stir it into the pot.

At this point, add in the cooked meat of your choice. I added a poached and shredded chicken breast.
As a side note, I found the onion, bell pepper, and celery a bit overcooked at this point. Next time I will more likely add them later in the process, but it was still tasty in the end.

Serve over rice and enjoy!

Italian Rice and Peas

     It's about time I focused a bit more on side dishes. I've neglected them a bit in favor of entrees, so I'll try to give a nod to the dishes that compliment something as simple as a grilled pork chop or pan-seared chicken breast.
     I didn't know what to call this. The official name is risi e bisi (rice and peas). The origins seem to go back to 16th century Venice. It is eaten on the feast day for St. Mark. But the more I researched, the more conflicting recipes I found. Some are a rice dish, some are more like a soup, and others are in between.
     I Americanized it by using long grain rice rather than arborio, bacon rather than pancetta, and onion rather than shallot. I followed in the direction of Chef Walter Staib of the City Tavern here in Philadelphia.
     So try this out as a side to a somewhat normal entree. Honestly, I ate a double order of this yesterday - sans the entree. Either way, it tastes great!

Venetian Risi e Bisi: Americanized (serves 2)
3-4 slices of thick bacon, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1/2 c. onion, chopped
1/2 c. green peas
1 c. long grain rice, rinsed
1 1/2-2 c. chicken broth
freshly chopped parsley
kosher salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste
freshly grated Parmesan cheese

     Slice the bacon into 1/2 inch slices and begin heating them in a small saucepan over medium heat. When the natural greases begin to release, add the onion and peas. After a few minutes, add the rice and stir occasionally for 3-5 minutes.

     Pour in the chicken broth (less for crunchier rice, more for softer rice), reduce to simmer, and stir, then cover. When the majority of the liquid is gone, add in the parsley and stir. Continue cooking until the rice is at the desired consistency, then remove from heat.
     Season the rice with salt and pepper. Add the Parmesan cheese and enjoy!

Shrimp Etouffee

     I like the familiarity of a cajun/creole recipe. You see a lot of the same players - onion, bell pepper, celery, garlic, cayenne, etc. This is another one of those tasty and easy one-dish meals. I went with shrimp over crawfish because they're easier to use and easier to find (although working with crawfish is pretty fun).

     While we're talking shrimp, it may be worth noting that you should buy them frozen. The ones behind the glass at the store are just thawed - not "fresh". Unless you're buying them at the docks where the boats come in, go with frozen. And from the USA.
     This works great for two, so make yourself a drink and start cleaning out the fridge!

Shrimp Etoufee
1/4 c. all-purpose flour
1/4 c.(1/2 stick) butter
1/2 c. onion, chopped
1/2 c. celery, chopped
1/2 c. bell pepper, chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 c. chicken broth
1/2 lb. shrimp, peeled and deveined
1/2 t. cayenne
freshly chopped parsley

     Start out by making a roux. Lightly brown the flour in a skillet over medium heat. Add the butter and whisk the mixture until it is well-blended and medium-brown in color. Follow this with the onion, celery, pepper, and garlic until they just begin to soften.
     Pour in the chicken broth and reduce heat to simmer. Stir well and add the shrimp. Cooking them slowly in the liquid mixture will give you a more tender shrimp than if you had sauteed them in a skillet. You may have to add water here and there to keep the sauce at the desired consistency. When the shrimp are done, but still tender, season with cayenne and salt and pepper. Add a little Tabasco sauce if you want, just remember it has vinegar in it. Cayenne and lemon juice might work better.
     Serve over rice and garnish with parsley.

Grilled Pizza Margherita

     Pizza. C'mon, any red-blooded American could bloviate on this topic. From Atlantic to Pacific, just about anyone can point you to their favorite spot for pizza - whether you're just stopping in for a slice or calling in a delivery.
     They can also describe the perfect pie in great detail from crust to topping. For me, it's in the basics. A good pizza should still be good when stripped down to just it's crust, sauce, and cheese. That's why the margherita is my favorite incarnation of the dish.
     Yeah, I love a loaded pizza, even a deep dish from time to time. But in terms of taste, I prefer quality to quantity. In fact, I test a pizza joint's merits based on how their margherita tastes. My friend Sue from church makes pizza on a regular basis. If you stand blindfolded in her kitchen on a Friday afternoon, you'd swear you were in a local pizzeria. She'll even tell you it's fun and easy to do.
     Plus, it's a great springboard for your creativity. So start here and see how often you call for delivery after that.

The Dough
The frozen dough found in the freezer aisle of the grocery store makes a great pizza. But if you want to work from scratch, here's what I used.

1 package of active dry yeast
1 t. sugar
1 c. warm water
1 T. kosher salt (or 1 1/2 t. table salt)
2 T. extra virgin olive oil
3 c. all purpose flour
cornmeal

     Mix the first 3 ingredients together and allow them to sit for 5 to 10 minutes until foamy. In a food processor or mixing bowl, add the salt and olive oil to the mixture and stir. Mix in 2 cups of flour and blend well, adding more flour until a slightly sticky ball of dough can be formed.
     Turn the dough out on a lightly floured surface, kneading a few times. Form into a ball, and place it into a  lightly-oiled bowl. Cover with a towel and allow it to rise in a warm spot for about an hour.
     Whether or not you have a pizza stone, preheat your oven or grill as hot as it can get. Divide your risen dough into 3 pieces and roll out to the desired thickness. Toss a light layer of cornmeal on your stone to prevent sticking and heat the first side. When it is slightly browned, flip and add sauce and toppings.

Sauce and Toppings
canned whole Italian tomatoes, strained
garlic cloves, finely chopped
kosher salt to taste

fresh mozzarella cheese
fresh whole basil leaves, rinsed (easily grown at home)

     I kept this one as basic as possible. You can add other classic flavors like oregano, thyme, basil, etc., but this is the stripped-down version you start from. Personally, I think it's better not to overload this recipe with too many flavors; it's meant to be simple.
     The amounts vary depending on how much sauce you think you need. Another advantage to the simplicity of this sauce is that you can make more on the fly. Puree your tomatoes and garlic. Add salt in small increments until it's just right. If you require a thicker consistency, simmer the mixture in a small saucepan before adding the salt.
     After the first side of the crust is lightly browned, add the sauce and generous chunks of fresh mozzarella cheese, and drizzle a bit of olive oil over the top. If you use the oven, switch to broil to heat the toppings once the bottom is brown. If you use the grill, move the pizza to the top rack until the cheese is melted.
     Remove from heat and add fresh whole basil leaves. After a few minutes of rest time, divide and conquer!

Caprese BLT

     Tomato. Basil. Mozzarella. They just belong together. The caprese salad is a staple antipasto of Italian cuisine, and I wondered what it would be like to try it as the base for a BLT. After I finished it off, I decided to research what others had tried. My recipe was pretty close to the rest except for the pesto. I'll probably tweak it a few more times before I settle in on my favorite version, but here's how today's attempt looked.
   
Caprese BLT (from the bottom up)
sliced Italian bread (focaccia, ciabatta, etc.)
fresh mozzarella
salad spring mix (arugula, spinach, romaine, et al.)
sliced tomato
fresh basil, roughly chopped

bacon slices, cooked

extra virgin olive oil
basil pesto

     I wanted my bread toasted, so it went into the oven while I was finishing up with the other ingredients. A friend of mine convinced me to toast the bread topped with the mozzarella so that it begins to melt when it's time for final assembly.
     Top the slice of bread with the cheese with the remaining ingredients and drizzle with a bit of olive oil. Spread pesto on the second slice and serve with cold pasta salad.

     You'll like this one.