Tater Tot Poutine: Because WE CAN.

Poutine.  POOOOOOO-TEEEEEN.  It's just a really fun word.

And a delicious dish.  I mean, our friends up north have really nailed the comfort food arena.  Tim Horton's, beaver tails, Nanaimo bars, and POUTINE.  No wonder everyone is trying to move up there...I mean, that's the REAL reason, right folks?  Nothing to do with who El Presidente is.  Put on your best holier-than-thou act all you want---you REALLY just want to have unlimited access to Timbits and a double double from T-Ho's.  AND POUTINE.  Which, if you're not hip to it, is french fries, covered in fresh cheese curds, and then doused in rich brown gravy.  Go on, tell me you're not salivating.

Anywho...

I was perusing the cheese case at my local wine purveyor's the other day and found a package of jalapeno cheese curds from Edgewood Creamery in Purdy, Missouri.  They were marked down for quick sale, and I was happy to oblige.

What shall I do with these cheese curds? The only honest, respectable thing one can do with cheese curds-- serve them over potatoes with brown gravy.  It's every cheese curd's dream to go out like that.  
BUT...I didn't have fries at home. And I didn't want to MAKE fries.  But what I did have?

TATER TOTS.

So, like a good Midwestern non-Canadian gal, I baked up some crispy, delicious tots...

...and got to work.

INGREDIENTS: (Makes 2-3 servings)
Approximately 2 handfuls of tater tots (or more. I won't judge.)
4 ounces cheese curds
1 cup prepared brown gravy (I use Tony Chacheres)
1/4 cup thinly sliced onions (you could easily add or do mushrooms instead--I had some sliced onions I needed to use up and they went really well in this dish.)

DIRECTIONS:
Bake the tater tots according to package directions until brown and crisp on the outside (generally about 20 minutes).

While that's going, prepare your gravy.  Add the cool water, gravy mix, and onions to a small pan, and heat to boiling, while whisking.  Let boil for at least a minute, then decrease the temperature and simmer until it reaches your desired consistency (I like the gravy to be slightly thick, and to cling to the back of a spoon.)

Once the tots are done, transfer them into small bowls, then add the cheese curds, and top with onion gravy.  

Pairs well with Dark Star black kolsch from Bur Oak Brewing in CoMo.

What I've Been Cooking Lately

Honestly...I haven't been cooking that much. At least, not trying out new recipes, since we bought the new house.  We've had pizza over the last few weeks more than I care to admit.  I have been able to find time to test out a few new recipes over the last few months---I just haven't had time to blog about them individually.  So here I'll share my results, along with a link to the original recipe I used, and then note any changes I made.

Roasted Asparagus & Mushroom Carbonara

This is probably one of the most delicious things I've made myself in a LONG time.  And it was pretty darn easy to make.  One day, when I have free time again, I WILL be making more of this.  No tinkering with the recipe--original turned out great. I was nervous about using raw egg in a sauce but it was totally amazing.

Roasted Red Pepper Sauce with Zucchini Noodles

I tinkered with this one a lot, but still really liked the results.  The original recipe here is vegan, but we used regular milk. I didn't have tahini or almond butter, so I used peanut butter, and tossed in some grated parmesan to help thicken the sauce.  I also added a few dashes of Tabasco Chipotle Sauce for some heat and smokiness.  Finally, we added smoked sausage for protein.

LOVE my veggie spiralizer.

One Pot Spaghetti

Saw the Video for this on my Facebook feed and thought a) that looks easy, and b) I've got a ton of basil & tomatoes to use up.  It was very easy, and delicious.

Sweet Potato Quinoa Patties

We made these while doing a one week Daniel Fast, and they were super tasty.  I will probably make them again, but use egg as a binder, since they were kind of crumbly (couldn't use egg during the Fast).  We definitely had to let them cook longer than what the recipe calls for to get them crusty enough on one side so that they could be flipped without falling apart (I'd say 4-6 minutes per side, rather than 2 minutes, but if you use egg as a binder that might change the cook time.  Just make one first as a tester to figure out the times, and then fill your pan with patties after that.)

Served with a side of garlic green beans.

French Onion Soup

This was to satisfy a craving, and can only *sorta* qualify as semi-homemade.  I had some canned French Onion soup, but wanted to step it up, so I sauteed some fresh onions first to caramelize them, then added the canned soup and brought it to a boil.  Then I preheated my broiler, and set two ramekins on a cookie sheet.  I cracked open a raw egg into each of the ramekins (a weird trick one of my Louisiana buddies taught me), added a little pepper, and then gently ladled the hot soup over the top of the egg (the heat from the soup & broiler will cook the eggs).  

Next, I placed a 1 inch slice of french bread onto the top of the soup, and topped with 2 slices of Swiss cheese.  Broiled just until the cheese was melted, and then, devour.

Sausage, Peppers & Polenta

So, polenta is probably one of those things I would never have eaten when I was younger. I mean…I don’t even like grits*.  So congealed “cornmeal porridge”???  No thank you.

(*Unless served with bacon and a cheese:grit ratio of 1.5:1)

But now that my palate is a bit more refined, I’ve opened my mind (and mouth) to this gluten-free starch alternative.  A while back, I made some red beans & rice & served it up with some pan-grilled polenta instead of rice:

Note my less-than-subtle nod to the “Crescent” City…

If you haven’t experimented with polenta, I highly recommend it.  Especially since, if you’re busy like me, you can buy these shelf-stable pre-cooked rolls of it in various flavors:

If you get the unflavored kind, it serves the same purpose of rice, noodles, or even mashed potatoes.  It has a mild flavor that compliments just about anything.  It also has twice the protein of rice.  One slice of polenta grilled with a small amount of cooking spray has about 50 calories (comparatively, a 1/2 cup of rice has about 100 calories).

So, this go round, I decided to sauté up some smoked sausage & veggies to go with our grilled polenta.  This is a SUPER fast & delicious dinner, ready in about 20 minutes.

INGREDIENTS:

Pre-cooked polenta (two 1/2 inch slices per person)

1 lb smoked turkey sausage, sliced into 1 inch pieces

1 bell pepper, sliced into strips

1 onion, sliced into strips (NOTE: You could also easily throw some fresh mushrooms in here. T’would be DEELISH. I , alas, did not have any.  And yes, I’ve been watching too much Sleepy Hollow.)

1/2 tsp crumbled dried rosemary

salt & pepper

olive oil

oregano

1 clove garlic, minced

1/2 tsp Cajun seasoning

 

DIRECTIONS:

Lightly spritz a large frying pan with olive oil using a mister.  Heat pan to medium & add the sausage & veggies.  Season the veggies with rosemary, salt & pepper to taste.  Sauté for 5 minutes & add the garlic & Cajun seasoning.  Cook for another 5 minutes or until the veggies are tender. 

 

Transfer the sausage & veggies to a bowl & cover with aluminum foil to keep warm. 

 

Pan-grill your polenta in the same pan, & lightly season the polenta with the oregano.  Let cook for about 2-3 minutes each side, or until lightly browned.  (PS—you can also grill polenta outside to get some tasty smoked flavor)

Top the polenta with your sausage & pepper combo & serve warm!

NUTRIFACTS: (Makes 4 servings) 

Calories 301.0

  Total Fat 10.1 g

  Saturated Fat 3.0 g

  Polyunsaturated Fat 0.1 g

  Monounsaturated Fat 0.0 g

  Cholesterol 60.0 mg

  Sodium 1,001.6 mg

  Potassium 102.2 mg

  Total Carbohydrate 20.9 g

  Dietary Fiber 0.9 g

  Sugars 3.1 g

  Protein 20.7 g

Abita Root Beer Caramelized Onions

Last month I made my quarterly jaunt to Louisiana for work and went to Charcoal’s Gourmet Burger Bar with my cousin Primo.  Charcoal’s has a pretty awesome menu; they specialize in exotic meat burgers and some pretty fun topping/cheese options.  I got an antelope burger with arugula, Midnight Moon gouda, tomato, jalapeno, praline bacon, and Abita  root beer caramelized onions. 

My tall order.

The burger was so-so—a little lean and dry, even with 30% pork mixed into the blend.  C’est la vie.  But the combination of the jalapenos and the caramelized onions was fantastic.  The praline bacon was fairly tasty too, though Primo & I are both fairly sure we can create a better version (stay tuned)…

So when I got back home, I definitely wanted to take a whack at the caramelized onions.  Again, we were grilling (we have a surplus of brats in the house as we got a great deal on a case from our food distributor) and I wanted something a little different to go on top. Like…root beer onions!!!

 

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 bottle Abita root beer (if you don’t have Abita, you can absolutely try it with a different brand)

salt & pepper

1/2 tsp cayenne

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/2 onion, sliced into thin rings

 

DIRECTIONS:

Pretty simple.  Heat your sauce pan over medium-high & add onions.  Season lightly with salt & pepper.  Then add the root beer.  Stir occasionally & cook for 10-15 minutes or until the liquid has evaporated.

And you’ll end up with these beauties!

Serve over brats, burgers, steak, grilled portabellas—whatever floats your fancy.  They’re deliciously sweet, so pair with something that has a little bite to it—spicy mustard, jalapenos, or a tart cheese like goat, blue, or feta.

Oh…and use the rest of that Abita root beer to make yourself a float!!!