Marinara & Cajun Tomato Sauce to Freeze

Posted on by June 7, 2024

7/9/2022 – We have a lot of tomatoes and bell peppers from the garden and decided to put them up prepared into two base dishes for use with meat in the winter.

  • Cut off all the bad places and chopped the tomatoes.
  • Chopped red onions, celery, and carrots for the marinara. About 1:1:1.
  • Chopped yellow onions, celery, and bell pepper for the Cajun sauce. About 3:2:1.
  1. Cooked them in the two large deep pots (marinara in the deep aluminum pot) with bacon grease and olive oil. After partially wilted, added 1/3rd of the garlic.
  2. After it wilted more, added the fresh tomatoes. Added another third of the garlic.
  3. Add salt and fresh coarse ground black pepper to both. Then added our homemade Italian seasoning (which had a lot of red pepper flakes in it) to the marinara and Kip’s Creole Seasoning to the cajun sauce.
  4. Simmered them for about 5 hours until they became a chunky sauce with a deep aroma. The simmering was halted before it was ready so when it is reheated the meat can cook before the sauce becomes mush.

Q: How much of the seasoning blends were used? A: Until it smelled right.

Stirring in the fresh chopped tomatoes
After simmering about 5 hours–ready to feeze

Stuff Jalapeno Peppers & Pork for the 4th, 2022

Posted on by November 13, 2022

We invited family and friends to enjoy a July 4th celebration with us. Lanier, Lanea with Spencer and Peggy with Frank were the family component. Bro. Digger Creel, Carol, and Morita, with Sterling and Helen Hines, plus Ann Gaston, were the friends.* The hit was the smoked, stuffed jalapenos.

Notable food prepared and served by us was:

Smoked Pork shoulders

  1. Two for a total of 20 lbs. after trimming. Dry brined for 36 hours.
  2. Removed from the refrigerator to warm up for about an hour. Slathered with yellow mustard as they were not moist enough to hold the seasoning. Shook on 6POGS moderately.
  3. Smoked in the Recteq at 276° for 6 hours.
  4. Pulled, wrapped in aluminum foil, poured in maybe a cup of ACV, wrapped tightly, and put into the convection oven at 275° until the probe alarmed at 205 in the average size piece.
  5. Pulled that piece and the smaller piece. Moved the probe to the large piece and pulled it when the probe alarmed at 205.°
  6. Put the pieces in the small Igloo cooler. About 2 hours later when removed and served they were still hot, very moist, and falling apart–but not too much.
  7. Comments – Good flavor and not too spicy for this crowd who are wimps.

Smoked, Stuffed Jalapeno Peppers, Bacon Wrapper

These were very popular and many said they were special.

  • Made with fresh, milder Everman Jalapenos grown in our garden.
  • Removed the stems and sliced the large meaty peppers in half and removed seeds and pith.
  • Stuffed them high with Ina’s Spicy Pimento Cheeze with small pieces of last week’s Pork Roast with a lot of bark bits.
  • Wrapped them in Zeigler’s thin-sliced bacon and seasoned with Creole Seasoning.
  • Smoked at 250° for about 1.25 hours until the bacon was crispy. Some of the stuffing had melted and run out of the jalapenos.
  • Put them on a small baking sheet, covered with foil, and put them into the warm oven for about an hour.
  • Pulled them to cool for about 30-45 minutes before serving so the cheese would not be runny.
  • Sliced them into 3/4 to 1″ lengths and served on the wooded cutting board with toothpicks.

.* Becky did not want to drive at night so she did not attend. Tommy Browning just caught Covid so none of them attended. Don’t know where Jack is.

Italian Seasoning

Posted on by July 28, 2022

We did not have any store-bought Italian Seasoning so looked up a recipe and tweaked it to what we would like and had on hand. This is based on the recipe here. This blend was good and made several times in the summer of 2022.

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons dried basil
  • 2 tablespoons dried oregano
  • 2 tablespoons dried rosemary
  • 2 tablespoons dried marjoram
  • 2 tablespoons dried cilantro
  • 2 tablespoons dried thyme
  • 2 tablespoons dried savory
  • 2 tablespoons red pepper flakes from the year before last’s garden. Hotter than store bought.

Smoked-Stuffed Jalapenos with Cheese & Butt, Bacon Wrapped

Posted on by June 30, 2022

6/30/2022 – Inspired by the recipe at ChiliPepperMadness to some extent.

Made this with Everman (mild) jalapenos from the garden.

Ingredients:

  • Jalapenos
  • Creme Cheese
  • Sharp Cheddar cheese grated
  • Diced smoked pork butt with a lot of 6POGS bark
  • Creole Seasoning

Directions:

  1. Cut jalapenos in half and removed the seeds and pith.
  2. shock in some creole seasoning.
  3. Mixed about 1 part creme cheese with about 3 parts cheddar.
  4. To the cheese mixture (call it 2 parts) mixed in 1 part chopped meat.
  5. Mary blended will with her hands.
  6. By hand pressed the stuffing into the halved jalapenos.
  7. Sprinkled with Creole seasoning.
  8. Wrapped with Zeigler’s thin-sliced bacon.

Smoked in the Recteq for ___ minutes at 300°.

Pickled Jalapenos And Carrots ToTry

Posted on by June 28, 2022

Taqueria-Style Pickled Jalapenos And Carrots

  1. First, slice 4-5 jalapeno peppers and 2 medium sized peeled carrots into 1/4 inch slices. Discard the stems. 
  2. Next, heat a bit of olive oil in a large pan to medium heat. Add the jalapeno and carrot slices. Cook them, stirring a bit, for 5 minutes.
  3. Add 2 chopped garlic cloves, 1 teaspoon Mexican oregano and 1 teaspoon black peppercorns. Stir and cook another minute, until you can smell the garlic.
  4. Add 1 cup water, 1 cup white vinegar, 1 bay leaf, 1 tablespoon sea salt, and 1 tablespoon honey or sugar (optional, for a touch of sweet).
  5. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes.
  6. Cool, then transfer to a jar along with the vinegar and water pickling liquid and seal.

From Chilipeppermadness.com

Catfish Creole – Quick & Easy ToTry

Posted on by April 12, 2022

Recipe by Acadiana Table at https://acadianatable.com/2022/04/11/catfish-creole/. Substitute a variety of fish or shellfish such as snapper, flounder, or shrimp. Use this as a guide for our fresh tomatoes, onions, peppers, and bluegill or bass.

INGREDIENTS

  • 4 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 4 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • ¾ cup (half of a 4.2-ounce container) C’est Tout Dried Trinity Mix
  • 1 tablespoon minced garlic
  • 3 cups seafood stock, plus more if needed
  • 1 (28-ounce) can peeled whole tomatoes, crushed
  • 1 (6-ounce) can tomato paste
  • 1 (10-ounce) can mild diced tomatoes and green chiles, such as Rotel
  • ½ tablespoon Acadiana Table Cajun Seasoning Blend, see recipe here
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
  • Hot sauce, to taste
  • 2 pounds catfish fillets, cut into large pieces
  • 4 cups cooked angel hair pasta
  • ½ cup diced green onion tops
  • Lemon wedges

INSTRUCTIONS

  1. In a cast-iron pot or Dutch oven over medium heat, add 4 tablespoons of oil and an equal amount of flour. Stir the roux with a flat-edge spatula until light brown with a nutty aroma, about 5 minutes.
  2. Add the C’est Tout Dried Trinity Mix and the garlic, stir to mix well, scraping the bottom of the pot. Pour in the seafood stock and continue stirring until the vegetables rehydrate, about 3 minutes.
  3. Add the canned tomatoes, crushing them by squeezing them in your hand. Add the tomato paste, Rotel, and the Cajun seasoning. Stir and cook over medium heat for 20 minutes. Check the dish for flavor and thickness; season with salt, pepper, and hot sauce to taste, and add more stock to desired consistency (Note: It should be a stew-like consistency with chunks of tomatoes and diced vegetables).
  4. At this point, you have two choices: you can refrigerate and serve later, or you can add the catfish and continue cooking just until the fillets easily flake and are not overcooked, 10 to 15 minutes. Serve over angel hair pasta (or rice) and garnish with green onion tops and lemon wedges.
  5. Notes
    1. It is essential to serve this dish immediately since the delicate fish fillets will break down in the hot Creole gravy.
    2. serve this dish over pasta for a change, but most Louisianans will opt for rice
    3. always cook with “mild” Rotel so I can control the level of spice.
    4. Feel free to substitute a variety of fish or shellfish such as snapper, flounder, or shrimp. I’ve found that bottled clam juice is a good substitute for seafood stock.

Mary’s Chicken & Sausage Jambalaya

Posted on by November 24, 2023

4/4/2022 – This has been a favorite for years but we just now realized it is not on this website.

[Followup on 11/24/2023 – For Thanksgiving 2023, we made a double batch for Wednesday evening when Hughes and Leonards had arrived. For that cook we measured the ingredients more so than usual; in particular to get the ratio of the Trinity to be 2:1:1. We think that cook was better than past ones but must also acknowledge it included more meat than usual.]

Ingredients

  • Large chicken leg quarters: trim fat and extra skin; separate legs from thighs; dry brined for at least 24 hours.
  • Seasoned the chicken with Kit Whol’s Creole Seasoning and fried it.
  • Large can of Blue Runner Jambalaya Mix
  • 12″ hot pork sausage, cut into 3/4″ lengths
  • Tasso made with 6POGS plus cayenne and smoked for 4 hours
  • 2 medium onions chopped into large pieces
  • 8 ribs of celery, chopped into 1/4 inch lengths
  • four large garlic cloves, chopped small
  • 2 bell peppers chopped into large pieces, min. 1/2″
  • Kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper.
  • Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Directions

  1. Season the chicken liberally with Kit’s Creole Seasoning.
  2. Cook it to 165 in a heavy cast iron pot. Do not overcrowd the chicken. It will require 3-4 batches. Remove from the pot as it is done. Remove from the bone and cut into large bite-size pieces.
  3. Once the chicken is done, add to the pot with the oil and giblets, half of the onions and celery to the pot and stir until it is beginning to wilt. Then add the other half of both.
  4. Add the bell peppers and continue to stir until it is hot and wilted.
  5. Add the garlic, tasso, and sausage. Stir until the sausage is beginning to render.
  6. Add the can of Blue Runner
  7. Add 1-2 T of black pepper and salt to taste.
  8. Simmer for 2-3 hours.

Small Roast on the Recteq

Posted on by April 1, 2022

3/31/2022 – Today bought about a 2 lb. chuck roast at So. Ala. Custom Meats. Salted it to dry brine for a few minutes, added our fresh ground black pepper, and Meat Church’s Garlic & Herb rub.

  1. 3:20 PM – Put it on the Recteq set to Extreme Smoke.
  2. 4:00 – Turned up the temp to 260°.
  3. 5:00 – Turned up the temp to 350° and installed a probe that showed the IT to be 130°.
  4. 5:30 – IT is too high at 186° so pulled and wrapped in aluminum foil to rest for about 30 minutes.

It had good color and was moist. There was some red color to the internal portions despite the high IT. It had a good flavor that should be good as leftovers.

Next Time:

  • Dry brine the day before.
  • Leave the temp set at 260.
  • Watch it closer or set the alarm in the phone app.