Vegetables – Hungry for Louisiana

Cajun, Corn, Local, Louisiana, Shrimp, Southern, Vegetables

Corn macque choux inspired by my pal Jay on The Next Food Network Star

June 24, 2015

We’re rooting hard in Baton Rouge for our own Jay Ducote to take top honors on The Next Food Network Star, and one of his recipes on the show inspired dinner at my house this week. Jay is a friend and fellow blogger/food writer (among other talents), and it’s been fun to watch him soar on a national level on both Cutthroat Kitchen and now possibly as Food Network’s next big thing. A few episodes into the annual series, he’s showing his natural ability to gab and connect, and he’s playing to his strengths as a chef who favors big Southern flavors. The Cajun tasso macque choux he prepared for a large crowd during the first episode earned kudos – and it prompted me to make my own version.

Cucumbers, Farmers Markets, Fresh produce, Vegetables

5 fast and easy uses for summer cucumbers

June 22, 2015

I’ve always been a fan of cucumbers. As a picky kid who had an attitude about most vegetables, I loved cucumbers for their crunchy texture and mild taste. Now as a grown-up, I appreciate their versatility. Cucumbers are as comfortable in a tea sandwich with watercress as they are in a Vietnamese sub or a marinated Southern salad.

Backyard gardens are awash in cucumbers right now, and local farmers are harvesting them like crazy. Here are some fast and easy ways to enjoy the bounty.

Canapés with fresh dill and goat cheese

So simple. On toasted slices of French bread, spread mayo or herbed goat cheese and top with a thin disc of cucumber and a sprig of fresh dill. Tomatoes work great here as well.

Tuna sashimi salad

Toss cubes of fresh yellowfin tuna with avocado, cucumber and watermelon and a dressing of soy sauce, olive oil, wasabi powder and lime juice. Top with fresh mint.

Classic tomato-cucumber salad

This is the stuff of Southern potlucks and church suppers, and it never tastes better than when made in mid-summer. Whisk 1/4 cup each cider vinegar and canola oil, 2 tablespoons sugar and 1 teaspoon Kosher salt. Slice 3 medium tomatoes and 1 large or 2 small cucumbers into a bowl, pour in marinade and gently toss. Cover and marinate in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours.

Sautéed with butter and fresh herbs

Julia Child was a big fan of sauteed cucumbers and detailed instructions for preparing them exist in her famed Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Vol. 1. Here, I sauteed 1 cup of peeled, thinly sliced cucumbers in a pat of melted butter over medium high heat for 3 minutes. Remove and toss with slivers of fresh mint and basil, a squirt of lemon juice and Kosher salt to taste. Serve as a side dish with grilled shrimp or roast chicken. Prepared like this, they taste like mild squash.

Tzatziki

Combine 1 cup Greek yogurt with 1 teaspoon lemon juice, 1 teaspoon red wine vinegar, 1/2 cup peeled and diced cucumbers, 1/2 teaspoon fresh minced garlic, 1 teaspoon fresh chopped dill and 1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt. Serve with grilled lamb, chicken, shrimp tucked in fresh pita. Enough for 2-4 servings.

Enjoy!

Asian, Chicken, Healthy, Louisiana, Soups, Vegetables, Weeknight

Pollen got you down? Chicken & vegetable soup with wontons

March 29, 2015

The sinister underside to Louisiana’s otherwise perfect spring is pollen — and that stuff is about to kill me! Recently sprouted leaves on our neighborhood’s famed oak trees are now layered with fuzzy clumps of oak pollen that give the trees a yellowish sheen. Stand near one long enough and you see pollen dust falling like evil snow. It’s all over our cars and streets. There. Is. No. Escape.

Most years, this isn’t a big deal to me, but I must be getting old and intolerant because being outside makes my head feel like an oversized melon.

Only one thing to do – make a spring soup.

Asian, Sweet Potatoes, Vegetables

Sweet potato chick pea curry in three easy steps

March 4, 2015

The up-and-down damp weather we’ve been having lately has had me craving something stew-ish, but not something so heavy that it feels like fall or winter. I found myself dreaming about a one pot curry with fresh sweet potatoes, chickpeas and veggies over couscous, the kind of stuff I used to eat way back, when I was single grad student on a budget who didn’t have four other sets of taste buds to appease. But I figured, why not? My kids like Thai flavors, and they love sweet potatoes, so I foisted this yummy veggie curry on them. There are elements of creaminess, sweetness and tang thanks to the base of green curry paste and coconut milk. Hard not to like.

This is a pleasing spring dish that places Louisiana sweet potatoes – seasonal year-round – front and center. They might be harvested in the fall, but their long shelf life makes them enjoyable 12 months out of the year. Modify the other veggies as you see fit. Add different spices or some heat if you like. Or try it over brown rice or quinoa.

Serves 6

Ingredients:

For sauce:
1 can light coconut milk
2 tablespoons green curry paste
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 tablespoon fish sauce
1 one-inch piece peeled garlic

For veggies:
2 sweet potatoes, peeled and diced
½ cup chicken broth
1 red pepper, cut into medium chunks
2 cups broccoli florets
1 cup fresh spinach
1 can chickpeas, drained

For couscous:
2 cups chicken or vegetable broth
1 10 oz. box plain couscous

Steps:
1. In a small saucepan, heat coconut milk gently, then add next four ingredients. Simmer for about three minutes and turn off heat.

2. To a Dutch oven or large pot with a lid, add about a half-inch of water and bring to a simmer. Add sweet potatoes, cover and cook for 4 minutes. Add broth, return to simmer, and next five ingredients. Simmer for 5 minutes. Pour curry sauce over veggie mixture and cook another 4-5 minutes, or until vegetables are cooked to you liking and the sauce is hot. Turn off heat.

3. To make couscous, bring broth to boil in a small to medium lidded saucepan. Add couscous, stir and turn off heat. Cover and remove from burner. After five minutes, fluff with fork.

To serve, remove ginger. Mound curry on top of couscous and garnish with fresh cilantro.

Louisiana, Sweet Potatoes, Vegetables

Truly, madly, dirty…sweet potato myths revealed

March 4, 2015

My mother-in-law, Nan, likes to buy Louisiana sweet potatoes direct from a local farmer, resulting in a large box of spuds that get passed around among my husband’s large extended family. We’ve been well-plied with Beauregard variety sweet potatoes for several weeks now, and each time I go back to the till for more, she repeats the same directive: Keep the dirt on them until you cook them.

Is this true, or just rural myth? I recently asked LSU AgCenter Associate Professor Tara Smith, who studies the Louisiana sweet potato at the state’s research station in Chase, Louisiana, southeast of Monroe. The dirt, Smith says, keeps the sweet potatoes from bruising before use.

“Sweet potatoes are stored with the dirt on them after harvest. They’re not washed until they’re packed and shipped to market,” she says. “If you buy direct from a producer with the dirt on them you can store them in that manner until you’re ready to use them. Really, it is the handling component. They are susceptible to bruising and the more they are handled the more likely you are to encounter losses due to shriveling, bruising and subsequent breakdown.”

So there you go.

The dirt is a sort of protective layer for Louisiana’s favorite vegetable.

And what about curing?

Unlike other fresh picked produce, sweet potatoes have to “set up” before they’re ready to consume, or so they say. True? Yep. Consumers never really see this stage, though. Smith says that sweet potatoes are cured immediately following harvest, a process that involves bringing them into the storage shed and subjecting them to 85-90 degrees F and 90% humidity for 5-7 days. Potato sauna! Afterwards they’re stored at 55-60 degrees also with high humidity. After about 6 weeks they’re ready to be packed and shipped. The curing process quickens the conversion of starches into sugar and makes the spud tastes sweeter. It also begins the healing process of any bruises and skinning that occurred during the harvest operation, and “sets” the skin, allowing the sweet potatoes to be washed and packed with less damage to the outer surface.

As for shelf life?

Sweet potatoes can be stored for a year or longer under the right conditions, making them seasonal in Louisiana year round.

Fresh from a Hessmer, La. farmer, Beauregard sweet potatoes

Latin American Cuisine, Local, Vegetables

5 great finds….in a Latin American market

February 10, 2015

I’m always blown away by the number and variety of affordably priced gems at Latin American supermarkets. These spots are perfect for browsing, learning, getting inspired and grabbing lunch on the go. Here are 5 of my favorite items from La Morenita Meat Market in Baton Rouge, one of my go-to spots. Scroll through, and if you’re a fan of the mercado, tell me what inspires you.

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