Ary Jean’s Red Beans and Rice

Today a group of food bloggers are celebrating the birthday of one of our most famous story tellers and cooks, none other than the witty and ever generous Michael Lee West of Rattlebridge Farm, whose blog features recipes and style for exhausted people. Michael Lee is first and foremost a Southerner who grew up on the Gulf coast and descended from generations of scratch cooks. She is the author of nine books, including Consuming Passions, a delightfully charming and hilarious food memoir, filled with quirky aunts and secret family recipes.

In an easy, talkative style, you’ll soon think you’re chatting about family with a close friend. Characters such as Aunt Tempe, Aunt Dell, Aunt Hettie, Uncle Bun, and her marvelous Mama seem to leap off of the page. They are all old fashioned southern cooks whose greatest pleasure came from cooking for their family and friends, but often they kept their secrets close to their heart.

Photo courtesy of Amazon 

In a family ruled by food that dominated their holidays and get-togethers, Michael Lee’s Aunt Hettie soon realized that with each death their culinary history was vanishing. At one funeral Aunt Hettie pulled her aside and said, “This is a shame. What a loss.” Thinking she was speaking of the relative about to be buried, Michael Lee was shocked when Aunt Hettie moaned, “She’s taken her gingerbread recipe to the grave.”

"Every Sunday, the whole family gathered at Mama Hughes's house in Amite County, Mississippi. They were ferocious eaters and talkers, devouring rumors and innuendo with gusto. Food was their common language, and everyone understood the dialects." -- Aunt Tempe, reminiscing about family dinners

Aunt Dell is an eccentric Southern character and the source of many juicy tales. “Some women are just prone to grease fires. They attract them the way other gals attract men. Both types eventually go up in smoke.” – Aunt Dell, chocolate connoisseur and crazy woman, talking about an insurance adjuster, 1990.

In the chapter titled “Funeral Food,” Michael Lee notes that funeral dishes must be easy to transport as well as appealing to the bereaved. Some foods are simply inappropriate. “I myself have never seen appetizers at a funeral,” she writes. “This is not a time to bring Better than Sex cake of Death by Chocolate.”

Mama is my favorite character in the book. “Just don’t ask her for a recipe,” Michael Lee says. “She likes to be the family’s sole source of perfect food. Mama doesn’t like rivals in the kitchen. Her motto is never share men or recipes because something is bound to get stolen.”

Well, luckily for us, her Mama did share many of her recipes, including her red beans and rice that I’ve featured today. As a southerner, I’ve eaten my share of red beans and rice through the years, but Ary Jean’s is by far THE best I’ve ever tasted. It has a very nice depth of flavor, yet it’s not overpowered by too much of a smoky flavor. I took the liberty of replacing the green bell pepper with some colorful red, yellow, and orange peppers and added some kielbasa for my husband who thinks red beans and rice aren’t complete without some sausage. And whatever you do, don’t forget the rice.

Happy birthday Michael Lee!

Ary Jean’s Red Beans and Rice
From Consuming Passions by Michael Lee West – serves 6 - 8

2 cups dried red beans
Bacon or country ham
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cups chopped onion (I used a yellow onion)
1 cup chopped celery
4 green onions, green tops and bottoms, chopped
1 green bell pepper, chopped (I substituted a cup of chopped red, yellow, & orange peppers)
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded & ribs removed, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 cup red wine
1 smoked ham hock, optional but highly recommended
1 ½ cups chopped in chunks and sautéed kielbasa or other smoked sausage such as andouille, optional
Your favite white recipe to serve 6
Hot sauce for passing at the table

Wash 2 cups of dried red beans. Soak in water overnight. The next morning, rinse the beans in a colander and drain well. If you forget to soak your beans the night before as I sometimes do, here’s a link to the “quick soak method” that will rescue you.

In a Dutch oven, fry the bacon or country ham in the olive oil. Sauté the chopped vegetables, stirring, until the onions are clear. Add the flour and stir, making a sort of roux. Let it brown, taking care not to burn. ! A ham bone is a nice complement (and I highly recommend), giving depth and smoke to your beans. Add the drained beans, 1 quart water, and the wine. Put on a lid and cook the beans over a very low flame for 4 to 5 hours (mine were done in 3 hours). Stir occasionally. Serve with hot cooked white rice. Pass the hot sauce for those who like their beans on the spicy side.

Printable recipe

Consuming Passions is a combination of what I love best – food and reading about people who love food. It’s the kind of book you’ll treasure and read again and again. If you love the South, don’t miss Consuming Passions. You’ll find that all of Michael Lee West’s books are as addicting as her Key Lime Pie.

Join the others as we wish Michael Lee a very Happy Birthday. 

Jain - A Quiet Life

Kitty - Kitty's Kozy Kitchen

Sarah - Hyacinths for the Soul

Rett - The Gazebo House

Jenna - The Painted Apron

Lynn - Happier Than A Pig in Mud

Linda- More Fun Less Laundry

Debbie - Mountain Breaths

Jacqueline - Purple Chocolat House

Pattie - Olla-Podrida

Pam - Sidewalk Shoes
Susan - Between Naps on the Porch

Mary - Home is Where the Boat Is 

* * *

This will be shared with Foodie Friday at Rattlebridge Farms, Miz Helen’s Country Kitchen Full Plate Thursday, Foodie Friday at Simple Recipes, Foodtastic Friday at Not Your Ordinary Recipes, and Seasonal Sunday at the Tablescaper.  

Have a great weekend everyone.

Marcella Hazan’s Spaghetti Frittata

The food world lost one of its greats on September 29, 2013, when Marcella Hazan passed away at her home in Longboat Key, Florida. It was Marcella Hazan who first introduced Americans to authentic Italian cuisine and forever changed the way we as Americans cook and perceive Italian food today.

An Italian newlywed, Marcella arrived in America in New York in 1955, speaking no English. When she encountered American Italian restaurants serving what tasted to her like overly spiced ketchup on spaghetti, culture shock settled in. With no cooking skills of her own, she was determined, as all of us are as newlyweds, to cook a proper meal for her husband. She learned English from watching television and, quite by accident, began to teach cooking classes after a course in Chinese food. The rest, as they say, is history. For more about her fascinating life and how she influenced Italian cuisine in America, I highly recommend this article in the New York Times, link here. Included in the article is a video of Mark Bittman’s visit with Marcella in her home where she relates her story of how she first started to write cookbooks. In the same article, Mario Batali is quoted as saying, “I didn’t pay attention to Julia Child like everyone else said they did. I paid attention to Marcella Hazan.” Lidia Bastianich calls Marcella “the first mother of Italian cooking in America.” High praise coming from some of our finest Italian cooks don’t you think.

Marcella’s recipes represent her love for simplicity and precision.  For that reason, I chose to remember her with this recipe for a simple spaghetti frittata from her cookbook Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking. In the forward to this recipe, Marcella advises, “If you are making a pasta frittata for the first time, you will find this a good with to start with, to get the feeling, look and taste of the finished dish.”

Frittatas are very versatile and can be served sliced into wedges like a pie, or cut into pieces for an appetizer. Either way, they are delicious served warm or at room temperature, making them ideal for a buffet or party.

In this recipe, Marcella starts with freshly cooked spaghetti, slightly undercooked because it will undergo further cooking. We’ve been making spaghetti frittatas for years and often use left-over cooked spaghetti as the base of the our frittatas, but they require a bit more liquid than this recipe. If this is your first time to use pasta in a frittata, I suggest you follow her recipe to a T. Although the recipe calls for only Parmesan cheese and parsley as flavoring, I couldn’t help but improvise by adding a big handful of colorful sautéed sweet peppers for appearance. Once you get the hang of pasta frittatas, you’ll think of all sorts of ways to incorporate different ingredients from your favorite pasta dishes.

Marcella Hazan’s Spaghetti Frittata 
Adapted slightly from Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking by Marella Hazan – serves 4

1/2 pound spaghetti, we like to use thin spaghetti
Kosher salt
3 tablespoons butter
1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
3 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley
3 large eggs, beaten to blend and placed in a bowl large enough to hold the cooked spaghetti
Freshly ground black pepper to taste

Added for color and flavor if desired:
½ cup finely chopped, sautéed red, orange, and yellow sweet bell peppers

Drop the spaghetti into 3 to 4 quarts of boiling, salted water and cook until firm to the bite. It should be a bit more al dente – more underdone – than you usually cook it because it will undergo further cooking. Drain and toss immediately into a large bowl.  Add 2 tablespoons of butter, grated cheese, and chopped parsley, sautéed peppers if desired, and toss well. Set the mixture aside to briefly cool to avoid cooking the eggs in the next step. In the meantime, preheat the broiler.

When the spaghetti mixture has cooled for a few minutes, add it to the bowl of beaten eggs and mix thoroughly, distributing the eggs evenly throughout the pasta.

Heat 1 tablespoon of butter over medium heat in a nonstick skillet with a broiler proof handle. Before the butter starts to color, add the spaghetti/egg frittata mixture to the skillet. Cook the frittata on top of the stove for 3 to 4 minutes without disturbing the pan. Then tilt the pan slightly, bringing its edge closer to the flame of the burner. Keep the pan in this position for about 1 minute, then rotate it at a shade less than a full quarter turn, always keeping it tilted so that its edge is close to the flame. Repeat until you have come around full circle. Take a look at the underside of the frittata, lifting the edge gently with a spatula, to make sure it has formed a lightly golden crust all around. If it has not, cook a little longer where needed.

Run the pan under the broiler until the top has formed a lightly colored crust. Remove and loosen with a spatula. Slide onto a cutting board and cut into serving wedges as you would a pie. Alternately, cut into pieces or squares and serve as an appetizer. Good either warm or at room temperature.

Printable recipe

This will be shared with Foodie Friday at Rattlebridge Farms, Miz Helen’s Country Kitchen Full Plate Thursday, Foodie Friday at Simple Recipes, Foodtastic Friday at Not Your Ordinary Recipes, and Seasonal Sunday at the Tablescaper.

Have a great weekend everyone.

Dark Chocolate Mousse topped with cassis flavored whipped cream

Chocolate mousse is one of the all time favorite French classic desserts. If its decadent and richness doesn’t lure you in, surely its silky smooth, light texture will. Even thought chocolate mousse sounds sophisticated, it’s really quite simple to make. Because it can be made in advance, it’s perfect for dinner parties, plus your guests will love the fact that they get their very own serving.    

Our recipe calls for dark or bittersweet chocolate. Perhaps you are as confused as I am by the percentages of cocoa found in different chocolates. I found this guide in Better Homes & Gardens to be very helpful, link here. If dark chocolate isn’t your thing, by all means substitute semi-sweet chocolate or a combination of bittersweet and semi-sweet.

The chocolate can be spiked with all sorts of spirits such dark rum, bourbon, amaretto, or whatever suits your fancy. For a twist of tastes, instead of flavoring the chocolate, we spiked the whip cream with a dash of crème de cassis, a sweet French liqueur made from black currants. As you can see from the color of the whipped cream in the photos, the cassis’s dark red color turns the white whipped cream into a luscious creamy beige. You probably recognize the name cassis from the popular French aperitif the Kir or a Kir Royale. A Kir is made with a dash of crème de cassis topped with white wine and the Kir Royale is made in the same way but topped with bubbling champagne.

Although chocolate mousse can be made in advance, it’s best to make it not more than a day or two before you plan to serve it. The whipped cream can be refrigerated, covered, for up to two hours before serving.
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Dark Chocolate Mousse topped with cassis flavored whipped cream
Adapted from How to Cook Everything by Mark Bittman – serves 6

4 ounces bittersweet chocolate (not unsweetened), chopped into chunks
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 large eggs, separated
4 tablespoons sugar
½ cup heavy cream
½ teaspoon good vanilla extract

Melt the chocolate chunks and the butter in the top of a double boiler over low heat. Just before the chocolate mixture finishes melting, remove it from the stove and beat with a wooden spoon until smooth, then transfer to a clean bowl and set aside and let cool.

Separate the eggs and set the whites aside. Add the egg yolks to the bowl with the chocolate and beat in the yokes with a whisk. Beat the egg whites with 2 tablespoons of the sugar until the whites hold stiff peaks, but are not dry. Beat the cream with the remaining 2 tablespoons of sugar and vanilla until it holds soft peaks.

Stir in a couple of spoonfuls of the whites into the chocolate mixture to lighten it a bit, and then gently but thoroughly fold in the remaining whites. Fold the cream into the mousse.  Divide the mouse into six individual cups or ramekins and refrigerate. Serve within a day or two of making.

When ready to serve, top with your favorite whipped cream recipe, spiked with a dash or two of crème de cassis. Martha Stewart has an easy to follow recipe, link here, with excellent tips. Whipped cream can be made in advance and refrigerated, covered, for up to two hours before serving.

Printable recipe

This recipe will be shared with Foodie Friday at Rattlebridge Farms, Miz Helen’s Country Kitchen Full Plate Thursday, Foodie Friday at Simple Recipes, Foodtastic Friday at Not Your Ordinary Recipes, Food of Friday at Carol's Chatter, and Seasonal Sunday at the Tablescaper.

Have a great weekend everyone.

Bread Salad with Charred Tomatoes, Cucumbers & Kalamata Olives

This is an interesting bread salad. At first glance it looks a panzanella salad, but as you get into the preparation of the tomatoes, you’ll find that it isn’t a typical panzanella salad at all. In this salad the tomatoes are broiled in the oven until their skins begin to char and blacken. The smoky flavor of the tomatoes adds a nice dimension to the salad and the kalamata olives contribute a bitter briny, salty note that offsets the crunchiness of the cucumber and croutons.

Another thing that makes this different from a panzanella salad is that the components of the salad do not marinate with the crispy bread croutons for their flavors to meld as they do in a typical panzanella. Here the croutons are tossed in at the last minute.

Take care when you are charring the tomatoes in the broiler that you’ve preheated your broiler and it is very hot before you add the tomatoes. If the tomatoes stay in the hot oven for too long before they char, they will begin to cook through and stew and you definitely do not want stewed tomatoes here.

In the original recipe we found the 3 to 2 ratio of olive oil to vinegar in the vinaigrette to be a bit too vinegary for our tastes, so in the recipe below we’ve cut back to a three to one ratio to solve the problem. It is very important that after the tomatoes have marinated in the vinaigrette with the cucumber and olives for a while that you drain the mixture very well by using a slotted spoon and adding it to a clean bowl tossing with the crusty croutons. Otherwise you will drown the croutons and they will lose all of their crunchiness and turn to mush.

Add the fresh basil at the very last minute to help retain its color and freshness and serve the salad immediately, again because the bread will absorb too much of the vinaigrette if you let it sit and your salad will turn into a soggy mess.

This is a great way to enjoy end-of-season tomatoes.

Bread Salad with Charred Tomatoes, Cucumbers & Olives
Adapted from Williams Sonoma’s Vegetable of the Day by Kate McMillan – serves 4

Croutons:

8 oz coarse country bread, about ½ a loaf, cut into 1” cubes, we used sourdough
Extra virgin olive oil
Kosher salt

Heat a couple of tablespoons of olive oil in a large non-stick skillet. When the oil is hot, add the bread cubes & sprinkle with salt. Cook the croutons over medium heat, tossing frequently, for about 10 minutes, or until croutons are nicely browned. Add more oil as needed. Remove the croutons from skillet and set aside while you prepare the salad.

Salad:

3 to 4 large ripe tomatoes, about 2 ½ lbs, several colors make it pretty
1 small English cucumber
½ of a red onion, peeled and diced
¾ cup pitted kalamata olives, sliced in half lenthwise
6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
Crunchy sea salt, such as Maldon
Freshly ground black pepper
½ bunch of basil leaves, torn in pieces

Preheat the broiler. Line the baking sheet with aluminum foil and place the tomatoes on the prepared sheet, stem side up. Broil until the skins begin to char and blacken, 2 to 3 minutes. Turn the tomatoes over with tongs and broil for 2 to 3 minutes more. It may take longer depending on the size of the tomatoes or the heat of your broiler. Take care not to let the tomatoes cook through and begin to stew. When charred, remove from oven and let cool enough to handle. With tongs, transfer the tomatoes to a cutting board and cut in half horizontally, then coarsely chop. Remove and discard any of the stem and any loose skin from the tomatoes, but it is fine if a few bits of charred skin remain. Transfer the chopped tomatoes to a large bowl.

Cut the cucumber in half lengthwise and scrape out the seeds. Cut the halves crosswise into slices about 1/2 inch thick. Add the cucumber to the tomatoes along with the onion, olives, olive oil, and vinegar. Season with salt and pepper and stir to mix. Let the salad stand at room temperature for up to 1 hour for the flavors to blend.

Just before serving, using a slotted spoon transfer the tomato salad to a clean bowl, leaving behind the accumulated juices for a moment. Toss in the toasted bread cubes and gently stir with a wooden spoon. If the salad needs more juice, add some of the liquid, a little bit at a time, from the other bowl, taking care not to soak the croutons. The croutons should remain a bit crispy. When you are happy with the salad, taste for seasonings, add the basil and toss gently again. Serve immediately.

Printable recipe

This will be shared with Foodie Friday at Rattlebridge Farms, Miz Helen’s Country Kitchen Full Plate Thursday, Foodie Friday at Simple Recipes, Foodtastic Friday at Not Your Ordinary Recipes, and Seasonal Sunday at the Tablescaper.

Have a great weekend everyone.

Manhattan Fish Chowder – jazzed up with a little shellfish

Manhattan fish chowder is perfect for any season, but I particularly like to serve it during the transitional time of the year. I wanted something colorful and “fall-ish” to remind me that cool weather is around the corner, but I’m not quite ready for a heavy soup yet.

Fresh thyme is an absolute must in this chowder. Thyme is found in Provencal & Mediterranean cuisines and pairs well with the tomatoes. The flavors of the fresh thyme really sing in this chowder. The bacon flavor also comes through, so be careful not to choose an overly smoky bacon such as hickory. It will end up dominating the chowder. A French baguette or toasty slices of bread are perfect to dunk in the chowder.

The base of the chowder can be made in advance and held for several hours until you are ready to serve. Simply heat, add the fish and let it heat through, and you’re good to go. We’ve tossed in a few grilled shrimp and sea scallops to jazz it up a bit, but it’s equally good on its own.

Manhattan Fish Chowder – spiffed up with a shellfish garnish
Adapted from Everyday Food’s Fresh Flavor Fast – serves 6

4 slices bacon, cut crosswise into ¼” pieces (we used a mild apple wood smoked bacon)
1 large onion, peeled & finely chopped
2 medium carrots, peeled & halved lengthwise, then thinly sliced crosswise, yielding 1 cup
1 28-ounce can of whole tomatoes in juice
2 8-ounce bottles clam juice
2 medium baking potatoes, about 1 ½ pounds, peeled and cut into 1” chunks
2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves, chopped (less if you don't like thyme)
1 pound skinless tilapia fillets, or other firm white fish, such as flounder, sole or halibut
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Shellfish optional:
6 large shrimp, peeled and grilled & 3 large dry pack sea scallops, sautéed briefly on both sides in a little canola oil, then cut in half horizontally.

In a large 5-quart pot or Dutch oven, cook bacon over medium-low heat until browned and crisp, 8 to 10 minutes. Remove bacon and set aside. Spoon off and discard all but 1 tablespoon of fat. Add the onions and carrots. Cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 10 minutes. Break up the tomatoes either with your hands or with kitchen shears, then add tomatoes along with their juices, clam juice, 1 ½ cups of water, and the reserved bacon. Bring the mixture to a boil. Add the potatoes and thyme; reduce heat to simmer, and cook uncovered, until the potatoes are tender, but not falling apart, 15 to 20 minutes. At this point, the chowder can be covered for an hour or two before proceeding with the recipe.

Tilapia fillets have one thick side and one thinner side. To cut, halve the fillets along the center line before cutting them into chunks. Add the tilapia chunks to the chowder, cover, and cook until the fish is opaque and flaky, about 3 minutes. Season chowder with salt and freshly ground black pepper. With a ladle, spoon solids into six soup bowls, then add the liquid around the solids. Garnish with the shellfish if desired Serve immediately.

This will be shared with Foodie Friday at Rattlebridge Farms, Miz Helen’s Country Kitchen Full Plate Thursday, Foodie Friday at Simple Recipes, Foodtastic Friday at Not Your Ordinary Recipes, and Seasonal Sunday at the Tablescaper.

Have a great weekend everyone.