Figs Foster
Figs Foster is my take on the classic Louisiana dish Bananas Foster (using figs instead of bananas…obviously). Ripened figs can be found throughout south Louisiana during the summer months. These small packages of joy work well in desserts as well as served alongside many meat dishes. This is by far and away my favorite use for figs.
Special Equipment
12” Skillet
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 1/2 cups dark brown sugar
- 1 cup rum (I prefer Bayou Rum from Lacassine, LA)
- ½ cup heavy cream
- 1 cup figs (halved)
- Vanilla Ice Cream
Process
- In a large skillet, melt the butter.
- Add cinnamon, sugar, and cream and cook until the sugar is melted.
- Add figs and cook until softened.
- Add rum and flambé
- Spoon hot mixture over ice cream
Chef’s Note:
Chopped pecans can be added at the end for texture.
Confit Squirrel Egg Rolls
Confit is the process of slow cooking at lower temperature over a period of time in grease or fat. This is contrary to deep frying in a much greater temperature for a short period of time. It was originally meant as a preservation for meats and vegetables. Now, you will see this process intended more as a braising process for immediate consumption. The result of confit can be a smooth rich flavor profile. For this recipe, I used rendered duck fat.
Servings: 4-6 servings
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Overall cooking time: 3 hours
Ingredients
- 2 squirrels cleaned and cut into quarters to include the saddle (back)
- 11 ounces rendered duck fat (beef tallow can be used)
- 2 cups shredded cabbage
- ½ cup shredded carrots
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 quart peanut oil
- 6 egg roll wrappers (7 inch)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- Duck sauce or sweet and sour sauce for dipping
- 2 tablespoons of water to seal the egg rolls
Preparation
Confit:
- Preheat oven to 300 degrees Farenheit
- Place squirrel pieces into a disposable meatloaf tin.
- Add rendered duck fat to the squirrel pieces. The fat should cover the squirrel
- Place into the oven and cook for 2 ½ hours.
- Remove from the oven.
- Using a slotted spoon remove the squirrel and let cool enough to handle with your fingers.
- Debone the squirrel pieces and discard the bones.
- Retain 1 tablespoon of the rendered fat.
For the Egg Rolls
- In a large skillet heat oil to 375 degrees F.
- Combine deboned squirrel meat, cabbage, carrots, ginger, salt, pepper, and duck fat into a mixing bowl.
- Place the egg roll wrapper with a corner pointed towards you. Place 2 heaping tablespoons of your squirrel mixture into the center of the wrapper and fold corner over the mixture. Fold the left and right corners towards the center and continue to roll.
- Brush the water on the final corner to seal the egg roll.
- Place egg rolls into the heated oil and fry, flipping occasionally, until the egg rolls are a golden brown. Remove from oil and place on a wire rack to drain.
- Serve hot with your favorite dipping sauce.
Chef’s Note:
Rabbit or duck would be a great substitute for these appetizers.
Brandied Fig Preserves
Ingredients:
- 12 cups of figs (de-stemmed)…I cut my figs in half lengthwise
- 4 cups sugar
- 3 cups water
- 1 cup brandy
- 1 tbsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp vanilla
- Juice from one lemon
Process:
Combine all ingredients into a large stock pot. Cook on low-medium heat for 2 hours. Carefully spoon into sterilized canning jars. Ensure that you leave ¼ inch gap between figs and lid. Place lid and rings onto jars and then into boiling water bath according to the jar manufacturer’s instructions. Yields 5 pints.
Chef’s Note: These figs and goat cheese go well together on toast points or even pizza.
Crawfish Pie
Ingredients
- 2 lbs crawfish tails…from Louisiana
- ¾ cup green onion
- 1 tbs chopped garlic
- ¼ cup chopped bell pepper
- ½ cup stock…chicken or shrimp…even better if you use your own shrimp stock
- ½ cup milk
- ¼ cup chopped parsley
- 1 stick of butter
- 2 tbs corn starch
- 1 dash Zatarain’s crab boil…be careful, a little bit goes a long way
- Seasoning to taste
- 1 dozen miniature pie shells
How to make
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Take miniature pie shells out of the freezer. Take a knife and make 2-3 small slits in bottom of each crust.
- Bake only the pie shells on 350 degrees until crust is lightly brown.
- Take out oven and let cool.
- Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat
- Cook and stir the onion, bell pepper, garlic, seasoning until the vegetables are tender and the onion is translucent about 5 minutes.
- Stir in the crawfish tails, throw in that dash of crab boil, reduce heat to medium-low, and cook for about 3 minutes to blend flavors, stirring occasionally.
- Whisk corn starch into cold milk and stock in a bowl until
the mixture is smooth, and pour the mixture into the skillet.
Bring the filling to a simmer, and cook, stirring constantly, until the
mixture thickens, about 5 minutes. Add chopped parsley. - Remove from heat and allow to stand for 20 to 30 minutes to finish
thickening. - While filling is cooling, preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- Pour the filling into the prepared pie crust, Fill over the base of the rim
of the pie shell. Bake in the preheated oven until the crust is golden brown
and the filling is hot and bubbling 15-20 minutes. - Cool for 10 minutes before serving.
Chef’s Note: The leftover stuffing can be used for eggrolls or wontons.
Blueberry Jam
Ingredients
- 4 cups fresh blueberries
- Juice from one lemon
- 3 cups sugar
- ¼ cup Real Fruit Classic Pectin
Process
- Place blueberries in a dutch oven and crush with a potato masher.
- Stir in lemon juice and pectin
- Bring mixture to a boil, stirring constantly
- Stir in sugar until completely dissolved
- Bring mixture to a hard boil
- Remove from heat and skim foam as needed
- Ladle jam into ½ pint canning jars
- Place lids and bands on jars
- Process for 10 minutes in boiling water
Yields 3 pints
Chef’s Note: Blackberries can be substituted. This also makes a great pie filling.
Crawfish Cheesecake
This savory rendition of cheesecake can be found in fine restaurants across south Louisiana. Some will have a mental hang up with the idea of a non-dessert cake and the name itself will inspire doubt. But, once you taste the savory goodness of this cheesecake, it will erase all doubt.
Special Equipment
9” spring form Pan
Food Processor
Hand Mixer
Ingredients
- 2 full sleeves of Ritz crackers
- 16 ounces unsalted butter (melted)
- Nonstick spray
- 8 ounces cooked crawfish tails (after boil tails are perfect)
- 8 ounces finely chopped Andouille sausage
- 2 jalapenos seeded and chopped (for a spicier cheesecake retain the seeds)
- 3 8 ounce blocks of cream cheese softened
- 1/3 cup mascarpone cheese
- 3 sprigs chopped fresh thyme discarding the stems
- 2 teaspoons Cajun seasoning
- 2 teaspoons black pepper
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 3 eggs
Process
- Preheat oven to 325 Fahrenheit
- Place crackers into food processor and pulse until finely chopped.
- Place cracker crumbs and butter into a large mixing bowl and combine thoroughly. Mixture should have a cookie dough consistency.
- Coat the spring form pan with nonstick spray.
- Press crumbs into the spring form pan and spread throughout.
- Bake for 10 minutes and set aside.
- In a skillet over medium heat, brown sausage. Add crawfish and jalapeno, and cook until the peppers are soft. Remove from heat and let cool.
- In a large mixing bowl, beat cream cheese and mascarpone with a mixer until creamy. Slowly add crawfish mixture, thyme, and all seasoning and mix until combined.
- Add eggs, one at a time, and beat until combined.
- Pour cheese mixture onto crust.
- Bake in a water bath for 50 minutes.
- Let cool on a wire rack.
- Cover and refrigerate overnight.
Chef’s Notes:
- Shrimp can be substituted in this dish.
- Lump crab meat would top this dish well.
Serves: 6
Wild Caught Crawfish Fettuccini
With crawfish season wrapping up and having a relatively good trapping harvest, there are many uses for crawfish. The abundance of crawfish in South Louisiana lend itself to many entrees, side dishes, soups and stews, and the ever present sauces. This recipe is probably one of my favorite dishes of all time. If you are not able to trap your own crawfish, store packaged crawfish are always available. Just make sure that you purchase American crawfish.
Ingredients
- 2 16 oz packages of fettuccine – cooked according to package and drained
- 2 lbs Louisiana crawfish (cooked and peeled)
- 1 32 oz block of Mexican Velveeta – cubed
- 1 can Cream of Chicken soup
- 1 can Rotel
- 1 cup seafood stock
- 12 oz butter
- 1 pint half and half
- 1 onion chopped
- 1 bell pepper chopped
- 1 stalk of celery chopped
- Seasoning to taste
How to prepare
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Sauté onions, bell pepper, and celery in butter until translucent.
- Add Rotel, Cream of Chicken soup, seafood stock, and half and half and incorporate thoroughly.
- Add Velveeta and cook until melted.
- Add crawfish.
- Stir in fettuccine noodles.
- Pour into baking dish, cover, and bake for 30 minutes.
Chef’s Note
Shrimp is a wonderful substitute for this meal
Boiled Crawfish
Living in South Louisiana gives every willing and able outdoorsman plenty of opportunity to catch his own “mud bug” bounty. This adds a certain level of enjoyment to boiling these tasty morsels for your family and friends. This “event” can be found in many yards across Louisiana during the spring and especially during the Catholic Lenten season. Every Cajun in south Louisiana has his/her own preferred way of boiling seafood. Some are very good and some, well, not so much. This is a fool proof way of boiling crawfish that is sure to make you look like a pro. My recipe calls for seasoning that would be described as medium in heat. You can add more or less depending on your heat tolerance. You would be wise to add smoked sausage and a variety of vegetables to your boiling water. These vegetables normally include mushrooms, potatoes, corn, garlic bulbs, asparagus, and fresh green beans.
Special Equipment
42 quart stock pot with basket (this is what I use, a smaller pot can be used. You will need to adjust the measurements if you do so) and capable outdoor jet burner.
Ingredients
- 15 lbs live crawfish
- 3 cups Zatarain’s Crawfish, Shrimp, and Crab Boil
Process
- Thoroughly clean crawfish by rinsing with garden hose. This will help remove excess dirt and grass from the crawfish.
- Add water half way up your stock pot and add the seasoning.
- Bring your water up to a boil.
- Place basket with cleaned crawfish into your boiling water. Allow the water to come back to a boil and continue to cook for 5 minutes. Shut off your heat and allow the crawfish to soak for an additional 15 minutes. Remove the crawfish from the water and serve. Yields approximately 3 servings.
Chef’s Note:
If you find yourself with leftover crawfish and vegetables, it makes for a great breakfast omelet or soup the next day.
Bacon Jam
Bacon jam is a savory sweet condiment that can be used in a variety of ways. I enjoy it on hamburgers, pizza, hot dogs, grilled cheese, mac-n-cheese, on toast, and in omelets. My favorite way to serve it is on a blue cheese venison burger with grilled mushrooms. Your mileage may vary. It’s also a nice compliment to a wine and cheese board or chacuterie board. This recipe doesn’t require any special talents and you are more than likely to have all of the ingredients that you will need already in your house. This recipe yields one pint.
Special Equipment
Food Processor
Ingredients
- 1 ½ lbs bacon (chopped into 1 inch pieces)
- 2 large onions (chopped)
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ cup brown sugar
- ¼ cup cane syrup (I prefer Steens syrup from Abbeville, LA)
- 1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
Process
- In a large skillet, brown bacon until crispy on medium heat.
- Remove bacon and place onto a plate covered with paper towels.
- Reserve 3 tablespoons of the rendered bacon fat and discard the rest.
- Add the onions and cook on medium low heat until the onions are caramelized. This step should take at least 20 minutes. Be careful not to burn the onions by stirring continuously.
- Add the garlic, brown sugar, syrup, cider vinegar, red pepper flakes, and chili powder.
- Add back the bacon to the mixture and cook on low heat until all ingredients are well incorporated and the mixture has thickened.
- Place the thickened mixture into a food processor and pulse for 10 seconds.
- Place jam into a jar. This can be served hot or cold. Keep refrigerated for up to 2 weeks.
Chef’s Note:
Bourbon and/or whiskey can be used as a substitute for the maple syrup. You could also substitute your favorite coffee to add a more savory experience.
Carrot Cake Marmalade
Ingredients
- 2 cups shredded carrots (home grown carrots are best)
- 2 20 ounce cans crushed pineapple
- ½ cup pecan pieces
- ½ cup raisins
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon nutmeg
- 7 tablespoons pectin
- 5 ½ cups sugar
Preparation
- Place the first seven ingredient in a dutch oven and place on medium heat.
- Bring the mixture to a simmer and continue to cook for 15 minutes to incorporate all ingredients.
- Add pectin and continue to simmer for an additional 10 minutes.
- Add sugar and bring to a rolling boil.
- Continue to boil for 10 minutes stirring briskly as not to burn.
- Remove from heat and ladle into ½ pint jars, leaving ½ inch gap at the top.
- Place jars into a water bath for 15 minutes.
Yields 8 ½ pint jars
Chef’s note: This can be served on French toast, waffles, or biscuits. It makes a wonderful gift for Christmas.
