Modified Smothered Pork

Great Variation

3 pork shoulder blades or any cut pork with bone--seasoned well with cajun spice and browned in olive oil.

add 4 chopped onions to pan after removing pork. add two bell peppers. add three dried chiles. handful quartered button mushrooms. handful cherry tomatoes whole. 6 smashed cloves garlic. Let vegetables sweat a little, add back pork in small pieces and half cup flour. Yes--no roux on this one--leaner version without the oil. Just the flour. Mix thoroughly and add quart chicken stock. Some more spice, pepper, mix, and simmer for 2.5-3 hrs. I added a chopped onion after 1.5 hrs.

Stuffed Leg Quarters

Title of this post sounds almost like a medieval torture procedure. I doubt anyone reads this anymore. I do when I forget a recipe. That's about it.

Bought two stuffed leg quarters from Hebert's grocery (stuffed with onions, peppers, and chicken sausage--cajun seasoned). I added some konriko, placed in a pan with olive oil and red wine. Halved handful of mushrooms, tomatoes, a few slivers bell peppers and onion and fresh slices of garlic. Cooked on low for about 35-45 minutes. Removed leg quarters and crisped em up in broiler while I added some leaves of fresh spinach to sauce and reduced a little. Great meal. Would be good over rice.

The News

Today I read headlines:

North Korea asserts it will make more nukes
Ahmadinejad is elected--albeit suspiciously
Obama pledges to sign anti-smoking bill

Does anything seem a bit out of the ordinary here or is just me? I mean--holy shit. Who gives a crap about the war on tobacco right now--which is a bullshit war anyway--but still--what the hell.

Far Away and All Above

Too long. It has been a long long night's dream of fish and clear crystal waters too long. Will be home in the good place shortly. Too long in the dark and narrow mud. Here is good, very good, and been better in last few months than I ever imagined--more music, dancing, drinking, friends, and making more friends, and good times than I ever imagined possible. Good music. How often can you go out to a place, eat, drink, hear good Cajun music going all night, and dance, and enjoy yourself without any self-consciousness or feeling of self at all because we're all in this together and enjoying ourselves. I truly have never had that in any other country or state. Maybe a little in Kentucky, but not in all of it. Not like all of it here. Not like everywhere I go and finding it in all people, their Cajun eyes, dark and behind something, but there to dance and drink and sing and smile when the music plays and the food is served. Not like every weekend here.

But home tomorrow. I think there may be about 3 people that ever read this damn blog, so for all of you, I'm going home after the longest dark night I dont ever want to revisit. Let us just hope the trout are rising into sunlight and the mountain air clears the heart like good angels drinking the cup of salvation from streams of tomorrow.

The richest Braised Spare Ribs you'll ever eat

Tonight was whatever I had left on the counter night. So that was some frozen pork spare ribs, half a bottle of left-over wine (about 2 weeks old but not yet vinegar), mushrooms, and garlic. That seemed easy enough. So I browned spareribs after dousing them heavily with cajun spice. Removed and scraped brown particles from pan--added about 8 cloves garlic whole and 10-15 whole button mushrooms. Let them sizzle in pan with some butter till browned. Added more cajun spice and some dried chile peppers. Then added back the meat and spices. Then wine. Then a little chicken broth. Cooked it about 2 hours and added some tobasco and Worcestershire and a little bbq sauce. Once the sauce was significantly reduced and the pork pulled apart it was done. And a great meal for a cool evening.

You could easily substitute pork ribs for Beef Short Ribs and get same result (with a little beef broth in place of chicken).

A Long Dark Spring of the Soul

A living word moves upward like dove wings
Breaking morning sunshine in feather bejeweled
Tongues of flames that fall back to earth
And are tilled into dumb clods like autumn leaves

The Word leaves the earth in legs and arms
Intersecting with a smile or a kiss or even
Holding hands underneath a bridge
While the sound of cars pass by above

Words turn in wheels that move unmoving
Around moments of love that leave
Us waiting for the sun so we can fall asleep
Into moments of fire that purge us of desire

Newt and Smothered Rabbit

So, the Newt Gingrich stuff follows the recipe. This was one of the best damn meals I've ever cooked and it is soul food through the bone. It could only have been perfected if I had real rabbit stock--but homemade chicken stock worked wonders.

One rabbit cut up (between 1-2 lbs.)
4 onions
1 bell pepper
2 ribs celery
5 cloves garlic
cajun spice
3-4 cups chicken (or rabbit) stock
bay leaf
salt pepper to taste and cajun/creole spice
and flour

One rabbit cut up--this one was small (a little over a pound). Season generously with cajun/creole spice. Then dredge in flour and cajun spice mixed until all pieces are thoroughly coated in flour/spice. Place each piece in cast iron skillet filled 1/4 inch with vegetable oil almost smoking. Brown both sides (about 2-3 minutes each side) and remove as each piece is done. If it starts to burn, discard and use new oil. After the pieces are browned, set aside on paper towel for later use.

Reduce remaining oil slightly till there's about 1/2-3/4 cup of oil in pan, but keep brown particles left over from rabbit. Make sure nothing is stuck to pan and add 3/4 cup flour to oil to make a roux. Roux making is ok if you keep heat about 1/2 high. Be sure to stir continually with whisk and keep particles from sticking to pan--keep it moving. Once the roux is nut-brown color, add a chopped onion, chopped celery and chopped pepper to skillet and mix thoroughly until roux quiets down.

I eventually cooked the whole thing in cast iron dutch oven--you could do the whole thing in the same oven, and after you have roux, add remaining vegetables to sweat for about 5-10 minutes until liquid released. Then I added rabbit pieces and stock and bay leaf. Brought to boil and let simmer 50-60 minutes. Then finished. Adjust cajun spice as needed. (Usually this is a mix of cayenne, paprika, garlic power, onion powder, thyme, black pepper, etc.) Serve over generous portions of rice.

________________________________________________________

This is a link to Newt Gingrich's recent speech given at Colgate University. It is well worth watching the whole hour of it. He nails it in the first thirty minutes and gets it straight in the question and answer final thirty minutes. Though I am not sure Newt's take on Smothered Rabbit--I'm sure he'd dig it.

And congratulations Mr Speaker for your conversion and all those converting this coming weekend. Good luck on the long dark holy week and watch The Passion as much as possible.

And, as my priest told us today, it is only by realizing our own complicity in the story of the passion that we come to feel the gospel tragedy and eventual glory.

A What If to Consider

If Satan were coming to speak at your Christian University for commencement, would you be for or against such a thing? (Could prove interesting, if the audience has a strong foundation in the Truth--if it werent for a simple and insignificant thing called temptation.)

But still...
I mean, he is the all powerful adversary of Good in the world, he was there in the Garden as the serpent, he was there when the temple and sky were twisted and split in two, and he's watched over Auschwitz--he's even been at the cold and calculating hands of ever doctor who has bent life to draw out death from the womb--therefore, wouldnt it be quite an honor to have someone so Grand and Old and Eloquent--my how he can speak and sound so intellectual--someone who has been around and has been so influential in all things of the world, a figure who stands for so much, to give the commencement speech?

First Things Blog
NRO Reports
The Scandal and Petition Here

For the good news I heard this week: Newt Gingrich will be converting into the Church this Easter. Congratulations Mr. Speaker and I wish you much luck. It is a great joy that more than 200,000 adults each year become Catholics. They don't want you to know that, because if they can convince us all that Catholicism is outmoded and dying, they have us--to put it vulgarly--by the balls.

Resister: It is our lot, our portion, and our joy.

Lentil Soup

This Lentil Soup was out of this world--or as a friend of mine says--off the hook.

Here it is:

6 cans chicken stock (or homemade stock--I used half duck stock and it was fantastic)
3 carrots
3 ribs celery
4 onions
one head of garlic
ham bone or diced ham (obviously works best if you've had spiral ham and have frozen the bone for soup--but you can substitute diced ham or smoked ham hocks if you can find them--bones do add a particular dynamic)

Easy as heck--in big pot, saute most of the onions for 5 minutes on high (I say most, because I don't like to sweat it all)--then add the rest of the vegetables--to really kick it up a notch, add two halved shallots. crush some of the garlic, smash the rest. Use the whole head. Let mix and add ham bone whatever. Let mix and go to town for about 5 minutes. Then add stock. Bay leaf, salt, pepper, spices--which ought to consist of thyme, rosemary, sage, oregano what-have-you. Mostly thyme. If you dont have the rest, dont sweat it. Bring to boil and reduce to simmer for 45 min-1 hour.

After 45-1 hour, add Lentils. A whole package. Let her mix in and simmer and let it go about another 2 hours. Finis. Check spices and adjust accordingly. If you find about 30 minutes before it should be done that it is too soupy and not enough flavor, add 5 more smashed garlic cloves and take off the loosely covered lid. Let it simmer away like that.

A new take on Bruschetta

Been making this since before I can remember. Bruschetta--pronounced with a hard "c"--contains tomatoes and garlic. For this recipe I added a few black olives mashed up and basil leaves. It's easier to chop garlic finely--adjust for your own enjoyment of garlic/tomatoes. Just remember, the more olives, the more salt taste, so when you adjust pepper and basil, dont add too much salt without tasting.

Clams Shrimp Scallops Bianco

This is an easy to make Italian meal. Buy scallops, clams and shrimp. For one person, 4-6 clams, 6 shrimp and dozen bay scallops are perfect, and if you serve over pasta, you dont need as many scallops.

Crush 8-10 cloves garlic. add 3/4 of it to bowl with shrimp and scallops, douse with olive oil, salt pepper and oregano. Mix thoroughly. Then slice 2 cloves garlic, add to hot oil in skillet, brown slightly, add clams and cup white wine. cover and let er go till clams open up.

While clams are going, heat another skillet with olive oil and remaining garlic. After garlic slightly browned, add shrimp and scallops. Cook till almost done. By this time, clams should be opened--add clams and juice they cooked in to shrimp and scallops, let finish. Voila. The more white wine you add to clams in beginning, the more sauce you will have in the end. Perfect over pasta or with good bread to soak it up. If you want to make sauce a little more rich, add slab of butter at end.

Joy in Steak

I like meat. I love steak. I've always been able to grill a steak easily, and without a grill, I have had to discover new and newer ways to prepare a great steak.

Tonight I opted for a steak au poivre with my own twists. Last night, a friend of mine told me that all my dishes have a particular flavor so that he always knows it was my invention. I think this steak recipe has same:

I used grass-fed rib-eye, but you could use any cut.

I crushed lots of pepper on both sides, sea salt, packed it in and some crushed garlic and dashes of cane vinegar.

I let it sit for few hours like that, then scraped off garlic, more pepper, pat dry with paper towel and into skillet with hot butter/oil.

Let brown, add garlic when turned over, garlic browns with steak, remove steak after browned.

Deglazed with bourbon and added slices leeks and some beef broth. More pepper. bring to simmer add back steak. I put in a few leaves of basil here too (experiment) Cook through to desired temp. Remove steak, add two tblsp butter, reduce sauce by half and serve.

It has just the right amount of pepper without too much (normally steak au poivre takes away from the meat with too much pepper). If I had a little cream, I might have added that to the sauce in the end--but, it was perfect as was.

Red Beans

Today decided to make a real authentic scratch red beans and sausage. Soaked 2 lbs of beans last night. Strained and rinsed. drop beans into boiling water--let them cook 1 hour like that.

Everything else:
3 onions
2 heads garlic
3 ribs celery
1 bell pepper
2 dried chile peppers
4 cans chicken stock
2 lbs andouille
2-3 smoked ham hocks

First I browned the andouille in the dutch oven, removed and added 2/3 vegetables to simmer in fat from sausage (chopped onions, peppers, celery and crushed half the garlic). I think I added a little bacon fat here too (though not much, because the hocks have tons of fat). After vegetables softened, I threw back in sausage. Threw in ham hocks and let cook a little while until the vegetables released more liquid. Then I sprinkled on liberal amounts of creole spice (always Konriko and my own blend), and fresh ground pepper--added 4 bay leaves here. Then 4 cans chicken stock. This should cover everything. I brought this to boil and simmered on low for 30-45 minutes while beans were finishing. Then add beans to pot and enough bean liquid to make sure the beans are covered completely. A few dashes Worcestershire and Tabasco (to taste).

Let her cook for 1.5 hours. Add in remaining vegetables. Adjust seasonings.

After 3 hours, some of the beans did not cream--I think this was an old bag of beans--so I smashed some, mixed, let her go a little longer and turned off. Now let it sit overnight and Mondays are Red Beans and Rice day.

Gumbo Pages suggests to add pickled onion next day to each dish--sounds great. (By the way--Gumbo Pages is by far the best online source for Louisiana/New Orleans recipes. And as soon as I sell enough of this red beans, I'll send them a donation--you should too.)

Aioulade

This is an easy recipe for my make-shift remoulade. I'm calling it an aioulade, because it is derived from aioli (and I know most remoulades have aioli as base--I just wanted to invent a new name). This is a minimalist recipe for those days when you're craving a dipping sauce for your fried shrimp or fried jambalaya cakes.

Two tbls spoons mayonnaise. crush 1-2 cloves garlic. 4 dashes worst-ista-shire. 3 dashes tabasco. paprika for color. cayenne for heat. secret: strong french moutarde. about 1/2 tsp. (I guess there is no more secret to it now I've let it all out). Mix all thoroughly. Voila. An Aioulade.

Mushroom Wrap

Mushrooms are perfect. Bought Baby Bellas yesterday--decided to cook em up last night. Squeezed individual mushrooms in paper towel to release juices and plopped em in hot skillet with butter and olive oil. Salt Pepper. Let brown and added 3-5 cloves crushed garlic. Let garlic simmer and added herbes de provence. Then when garlic thoroughly browned, added 1/2 cup vodka. This has the benefit of adding a flavor enhancer without imparting a fruity or grape-wine flavor. let cook covered in vodka for 15-20 minutes until tender. I ate them last night out of the bowl with crackers. Could do anything with them, in pasta, add to steak, mix with vegetables, etc.

Then today I used the few left-overs--heated them up, placed on wrap with cheddar cheese and heated wrap up to melt cheese a little. Then sprinkled a little cajun spice and smeared mayonnaise over it, wrapped it and ate it. Damn good.

Bon Mardi Gras!

In the spirit of Carnival, we Mardi Gras before we Mecredi Des Cendres.

A new Version of Smothered Pork Shoulder Blades

I made up a version of Pork Shoulder Blades the other day. Great stuff. Seasoned pork with cajun spice and let sit over night. Browned hard the next day in sizzling oil. Removed when sufficiently browned--almost blackened. Then added a little more oil and some of the crispy cracklin from shoulder blade to pan, scraped up brown bits and threw in 5 sliced onions, 5 whole cloves garlic. Let cook until soft and liquid released. Added a can of corn and some fresh spinach for color. More cajun spice and pepper. Then added pork back to pan and let cook through and soak up juices. That's it. All under $7. You provide the wine.

Poem for Father Richard John Neuhaus

First Thoughts: On Hearing that Fr. Richard John Neuhaus Passed Away


Wretched I crossed the street at glory point
to find the pavement steaming hot
barefeet, bare soul, stinking with original sin
in the zero gravity of noon

It’s not easy being catholic most days
but at least you wrote the rules straight
cut down rhetoric with a flaming sword
showed us sin was ordinary as a goodnight kiss

And now you’re gone and I’ll keep walking
hoping some sad priest stops by offers a sign
at least I’ll have your words for a time
and they’ll get me by for now.

Fried Jambalaya

When I make Jambalaya, I make a pot-full. And I rarely can eat the whole potful. So I freeze some of it. This time, defrosting, the rice stayed intact and still tasted good. But I got sick of it after three days, so I decided to try something else. Fried Jambalaya cakes.

Make a cake of jamabalaya, any size (hockey-puck size good for me), dip in egg and then coat flour/cornmeal salt pepper. Fry in hot oil until well-browned. Voila. Not much of a recipe, but great when you eat it--I made a little remoulade to dip in. Perfect.

RIP Fr. Richard John Neuhaus

Father Richard John Neuhaus, perhaps the most important priestly voice in my life, passed away this morning. A sad day indeed. I agree with Joseph Bottum at First Things that it is a truly sad day not so much for the man but for the rest of us.

Smoking Rooms Eliminated Following Erection

Headline of the Month:

Smoking Rooms Eliminated Following Erection.

Article is here--not worth reading, but what a great headline. The comments are worth reading though.