Hey, We Eat Anything

Proud to be a native of Louisiana. Louisana has many native cuisines. The French, the Acadians (the French who got kicked out of Canada - the "Cajuns", Africans, Italians, Germans, Scots-Irish, English- and we're all obsessed with food. It is part of who we are. I live to cook and eat, not doubt about it. Been busy of late, starting a new business. But still, I try new recipes, and celebrate old favorites. The following are some I have cooked up of late:

This is easy, but oh, so good. I modified for weight-watcher purposes. No need for heavy cream and heavy spice in the same recipe.

Note: A chipolte pepper is a dried, smoked jalapeno and is very hot. It is sold in cans in the Hispanic section of most any grocery store.

Chipolte Crawfish Pasta

8 to 10 sun-dried tomatoes (not packed in oil)
2 chipolte peppers (1 if you are timid with heat)
hot water
1 Tablespoon olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup tequila
1 10 oz. bag crawfish tails
1/2 cup evaporated skim milk
Your favorite pasta



Soak dried tomatoes and chipolte peppers in a bowl of hot water for 20 minutes. Heat oil in large skillet over medium heat and add garlic. Do not brown. Drain tomatoes and peppers. Chop finely and add to skillet, sauteing a few minutes over medium heat. Add tequila and reduce mixture to about one third by cooking about 5 minutes. Add crawfish tails and cook until opaque and reddish, about 5 minutes.
Meanwhile, heat water for pasta. When water boils, add pasta and cook according to package directions.
Add evaporated skim to skillet, reduce heat and cook until the sauce is heated through. Do not boil. Season with salt and pepper. Drain pasta and top with crawfish sauce.


Just when you can't do anything else with chicken....

I had 1/2 can of artichoke hearts leftover and going through my recipe clippings came upon this:

Greeky Kind of Chicken in the Oven

Ever how many chicken thighs you need to feed your family, skin removed
1 1lb. small red potatoes, halved
4 minced garlic cloves
2 Tablespoons olive oil
1/2 cup chicken broth
1/2 white wine
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 can artichoke hearts, drained
Greek olives, optional
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Heat oil in large oven-proof pot over high heat. Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper. working in as many batches as necessary, cook the chicken in the pot until brown on all sides. Transfer chicken to plate. Add the potatoes to the pot and cook for about 10 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for about 1 minute. Add the wine and broth, oregano and thyme. Add olives if desired. Return chicken to pot and bring to a boil. Stir to combine.
Cover and bake in oven until chicken is cooked through, about 20 minutes. Add artichoke hearts and heat until hot. Serve.

Craig and Charlaine

I learned to cook at 12 yrs with Betty Crocker and I still recommend it as a first book. But in 1990 I discovered Craig Claiborne's New York Times Cookbook. Craig is my go-to man when faced with a new to me situation. His is my favorite Hot and Sour Soup and I cooked it this weekend, with lots of additions and ooga-booga that would not reproducible. I suggest you get his cookbook at the library. My favorite chinese soup is from his cookbook?  Yes, it is.  He has many "ethnic' recipes in his cookbook. It is where I go when cooking a brand-new to me item. Where I learned to cook lamb chops. What I would take to a desert island. Big words from a cook who owns over 125 cookbooks. Craig knew his stuff.

I have written once about Quorn before. Recently, Quorn was heavily discountly at the health food store and I bought a package of the "chicken" quorn patties. This weekend they were featured as "chicken' parmesan topped with Conrad's eggplant sauce that was put in the freezer from the garden. Yummy. With steamed spinach. Quorn patties were only 80 calories. And fiber, no cholesterol, little fat, etc., ect. I thinked we are hooked on this stuff.