Baked Macaroni & Cheese

     If you love baked macaroni and cheese,  Rocky & Carlos’ Restaurant & Bar is the place to go.  This family restaurant, located in Chalmette, Louisiana has been making this dish since the restaurant opened in 1965. Many orders are drenched in flavorful  roast-beef or tomato gravy. It is believed this tradition of pouring gravy over the pasta came from customers.

     This dish inspired Alphonse to create his own Mexican style variation on this bake macaroni and cheese dish.

Alphonse’s Mexican Style Baked Macaroni & Cheese

1 pound elbow macaroni

½ stick unsalted butter

1 - 14.5 oz can – Fire Roasted diced tomatoes, drained

1 - 4.5 oz can – Green Chiles, drained and chopped

1 cup milk, warmed with 3 tablespoons unsalted butter

2 cups shredded Mexican Style Cheddar Pepper Jack Cheese

2 cups finely shredded Mild Cheddar Cheese

2 cups shredded Sharp Cheddar Cheese

1 1/2  cups of Panko Crispy Bread Crumbs Italian Style

2 tsp. salt or sea salt

1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

1tsp. olive oil

 

1.      Boil macaroni in covered pot for 10 minutes (water must be at rolling boil before you add macaroni). Season water with salt & olive oil.

2.      In a small bowl mixed all the cups of cheese.

3.      Strain off water from macaroni. Place macaroni back into pot

4.      Stir in butter, milk and pepper. Stir in 4 cups of mixed cheese. This should all melt and produce a creamy sauce. Season to taste.

5.      Add Green Chiles and tomatoes to macaroni, mix well.

6.      Place macaroni mixture in a 9 x 13 baking pan.

7.      Cover generously with remaining 2 cups of cheese.

8.      Top with Panko for browning.

Bake at 300° for 45 minutes, then brown top under broiler until golden brown.

Number of Servings 4 to 6

Roasted Pork and Butternut Squash

Roasted Pork with Butternut Squash

Roasted Pork:

1 pork tenderloin (about 1 ½ pound)

1 Tbsp olive oil
3 Tbsp packed light brown sugar
½ tsp lemon pepper
½ tsp smoked paprika

 1.      Preheat the oven to 400°.

2.      Mix brown sugar, lemon pepper and smoked paprika in a small bowl.
3.      Rub both sides of the pork with this mixture.
4.      Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat.
5.      Add the pork and sear until browned on all sides, about 2 to 3 minutes (brown sugar tends to burn quickly so watch closely while searing pork).
6.      Place seared pork in a roasting pan.
7.      Transfer to the oven and roast until a thermometer inserted into the thickest part registers 145°, about 18 minutes.
8.      Transfer the pork to a cutting board and let rest 5 minutes before slicing.

Butternut Squash:

 2 tsp paprika

1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 Tbsp parmesan & Romano cheese, grated
1 Tbsp olive oil
2 Tbsp green onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 14 ½ oz can diced tomatoes with zesty mild green chilies, drained
3 cups butternut squash, peeled and cubed
1 cup chicken broth

1. In a medium mixing bowl, combine first 3 ingredients.
2. In a medium skillet heat the oil and add the garlic and green onions and cook until garlic is tender.
3. Add the chicken broth, mixed ingredients and diced tomatoes. Bring to a boil. Cover and simmer until squash is tender.

 

Number of Servings 4

Shrimp Mold and Shrimp Dip

Louisiana Brown Shrimp from the Gulf of Mexico

     The next time you buy shrimp, take a closer look at the label and you’ll notice a set of numbers divided by a slash, like this: 21/25.  This number, called the “count”, tells you the size of the shrimp.  The count refers to the number of individual shrimp in 1 pound. For instance, when you but 1 pound of 21/25 count shrimp, that means you can expect to get 21 to 25 shrimp. The smaller the numbers, the bigger the shrimp. Sometimes on big shrimp you’ll see a count that looks like this: U/15 to U/10. This means there are fewer than 15 or fewer than 10 shrimp per pound.

Two of my favorite recipes for parties are my Shrimp Mold and mom’s Shrimp Dip.

Shrimp Mold 

1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed tomato soup

2 envelopes Knox brand unflavored gelatine

½ cup cool water

½ cup green onions chopped fine

1 cup celery chopped fine

1 pound cooked shrimp chopped

2 (10oz) packages of  cream cheese, softened

1 cup of mayonnaise

¼ teaspoon lemon pepper 

1. Heat soup in a small saucepan
2. In a medium bowl stir gelatine into cool water until dissolved. Mix hot soup into the gelatine liquid.  
3. In a medium mixing bowl, combine cream cheese and mayonnaise together. 
4. Add soup mixture to the cream cheese and mayonnaise. Mix well.
5. Add green onions, celery, shrimp, and lemon pepper.
6. After mixing, place in greased mold and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or preferably refrigerate overernight.

Shrimp Dip

 3 bricks of cream cheese (softened)

1/3 cup of cream (or milk)

1 teaspoon of lemon juice

1/4 teaspoon of garlic powder

Dash or two of Worcestershire sauce

3/4 cup of cooked shrimp chopped up

1.      In a blender add the cream cheese and gradually add the cream and blend until smooth.

2.      Add all remaining ingredients and mix well.

3.      Chill for about an hour (Best served next day). 

Tip: Substitute crab or lobster meat in place of shrimp.

Italian Herb Crusted Chicken Rolls

Italian Herb Crusted Chicken Rolls

1 can (14 ½ ounces) Basil, Garlic and Oregano diced tomatoes, drained

1 cup shredded Italian cheese blend or mozzarella cheese

1 tablespoon Basil Pesto

2 pound thinly-slices boneless, skinless chicken

2 tablespoons olive oil

Pinch of salt and pepper

1 1/3 cup Panko Crispy Bread Crumbs Italian Style

Preheat oven to 375°F. Mix tomatoes, cheese, basil pesto and pinch of salt and pepper in a medium-size bowl. Place about 2 tablespoons of the tomato mixture in the center of each piece of chicken. Roll up chicken to enclose filling and brush with oil. Coat with Panko. Place chicken rolls seam side down in a foil-lined shallow baking pan. Sprinkle any remaining Panko on top of chicken rolls.

Bake 30 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Serves 8

Vegetarian Mexican Casserole

½ medium yellow onion chopped fine

1 package of Taco Seasoning Mix dissolved into 2/3 cup of water
2 - 15 oz cans of Black Beans (DRAINED)
1 TBS of cumin or to your taste

1 can of yellow corn (DRAINED)
1 can of Del Monte chopped tomatoes with green chilies (DRAINED)
1 bag of 10 minute Brown Rice (cook rice as directed on box)
1 box of frozen spinach (cook as directed and drained)
1 cup of shredded carrots (Tip: buy packaged pre- shredded carrots)
8 to 10 Mozzarella sticks diced into 1-inch pieces
2 eggs beaten

TOPPING:

 2 Roma tomatoes sliced

 1 cup of shredded Mexican 4 cheese mix

1. In a large frying pan, sauté chopped onion over low heat until transparent.
2. Add drained black beans to above pan. Add the Taco seasoning and water mixture.
3. Add cumin into the beans
4. Cover beans and let cook on low heat for about 10 minutes
5. Stir beans once or twice while heating
6. In a large bowl mix black beans mixture, yellow corn, Del Monte tomatoes, brown rice, spinach, carrots, mozzarella sticks, and the eggs.

Place mixture in a 2 QT glass casserole dish.  Cover top of mixture with the sliced tomatoes and the Mexican 4 cheese mix. 

Bake in 350 degrees oven for about 20 – 25 minutes.

Serving suggestions:

Casserole may be served as entrée in a bowl or wrapped in a tortilla, burrito style.

Shrimp Mystique

Shrimp Mystique

1 (10 ounce) bag Mahatma Saffron Yellow Rice

½ cup of butter

2 cups of olive oil

¼ teaspoon of McCormick Lemon & Herb Seasonings

2 bay leaves

1 tablespoon of Italian seasoning

2 garlic pods minced

Juice of ½ lemon

2 tablespoons of Worcestershire Sauce

1 pound of shrimp peeled

¼ pound of asparagus

COOK rice according to package directions; set aside.

To prepare shrimp:  Melt butter in a 12-inch skillet medium heat; add olive oil, lemon pepper, bay leaves, Italian seasoning, garlic, lemon juice and Worcestershire sauce.  Stir for one minute. Simmer on low heat covered for ten minutes.

After ten minutes uncover and turn up heat to medium high.  Add shrimp.  Turn shrimp till both sides are pink.  Lower heat to simmer for five minutes covered. 

To prepare asparagus:  Hold base of stalks firmly. Cut off and discard tough ends. In a large skillet over medium heat in ½ inch boiling, salted water, heat stalks to boiling;  reduce heat to low, cover and simmer until tender-crisp and vivid green;  about 8 to 10 minutes.  Drain the asparagus and rinse briefly under cold running water to stop the cooking.

To assemble dish:  Place 1 cup of yellow rice in the center of the plate; Add several cooked shrimp forming a circle around the rice.  Lay several asparagus around the outside of the shrimp.  Drizzle 2 tablespoons of cooked shrimp mixture over rice, shrimp and asparagus.

Makes 5 servings

 Cooking Time:  20 – 25 minutes

Maw-Maw Olga's Seafood & Okra Gumbo

Gumbo comes from the African word gombo, referring to okra, a favorite vegetable of African tribes used as a thickening method for stews. The Choctaw Indians that came from a reservation on Bayou Lacombe, near Mandeville, Louisiana used ground sassafras leaves (filé) as a thickener for their stews instead of okra. Indian squaws would gather the leaves and spread them out on a stone mortar to dry. When thoroughly dried, they would pound them into a fine powder. Then the squaws would bring the filé to New Orleans to sell in the French Market. It was the Creoles who discovered the many uses of filé in cooking and originated the well-known dish “Gumbo Filé”.

I remember when mom would make seafood and okra gumbo for our Thursday night family get- together. Her gumbo with okra was the highlight of the meal. I learned how make her gumbo by watching her while I peeled shrimp and cut up seasoning.

One evening a friend of my brother wrote down mom’s gumbo recipe as she prepared it for one of our Thursday night dinners. Maw-Maw, as the grand kids called mom, never used measuring spoons only the palm of her hand. It was a pinch of this or a pinch of that with a little help from her iced down Dixie beer.

Maw-Maw Olga’s Seafood & Okra Gumbo

Making a quick Roux:

1 stick of butter

½ cup onions chopped

½ cup celery chopped

½ cup of green pepper chopped

1/2 tablespoon garlic minced

4 cups okra sliced

Melt butter and add above ingredients in a large pot that can be covered. Cook on medium low heat stirring constantly until the onions and celery are transparent.

8 cups of chicken stock

1 can tomatoes diced (do not drain)

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

½  lemon sliced in pieces

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon of sugar

½ cup shallots, chopped

½ cup parsley chopped

2 teaspoons of ground red pepper (spice to taste)

½ tablespoon lemon pepper (spice to taste)

2 pounds medium shrimp, peeled and deveined

1 dozen boiled crabs peeled separate white meat from body and break claws into gumbo

2 Bay leaves

1 tablespoon of filé ** (Note: Only use filé if you don’t have Okra)

1. Make the Roux.
2. Add the first 10 (ten) ingredients above in the large pot and bring to a boil.
3. Simmer on low heat covered and stir occasionally for 30 minutes
4. Add crab meat and claws and cook 10 minutes
5. Add shrimp and cook for another 5 minutes
6. Remove from heat and add filé (Note: Only add filé if you don’t have Okra

Serve with white rice. Makes approximately 4 to 6 servings

TIP:

Substitute 2 cans of crab meat if boiled crabs are not available.

** Filé is crushed sassafras leaves used as a thickening agent