Blue Runner Red Beans & Rice!

 

This isn’t really much of a recipe, so much as an unpaid advertisement. 

At one point I was planning on featuring Blue Runner canned beans as “Tuesday Timbit” since it’s one of my favorite Louisiana products.  In fact, I usually smuggle at least a can or two of it back with me when I go to Louisiana for work, since it wasn’t available up here.

And then I went to my local WalMart last week, & saw stacks & stacks of Blue Runner beans sitting on an endcap for 92 cents.

I love Blue Runner.  It’s New Orleans in a can!  So if you see them at your local store, GRAB THEM.  Shove 4 or 5 cans in your cart & high-tail it home.  (PS—pick up some smoked sausage while you’re at it.)

For a super fast meal, slice up a package of smoked turkey sausage & brown it in a large skillet.

Reduce the heat, and add 1 large can or two small cans of Blue Runner New Orleans style spicy red beans.  These are already perfectly seasoned.

Steam some brown rice (rather than white rice, for the added health benefits).

Serve the beans & sausage over rice.  Or, if you’re not a huge fan of rice, cornbread also works great.

Garnish with fresh chopped green onions.

Your family/friends/anyone who stuffs this food in their face will thank you for it.  And you did it in less than half an hour (or however long it takes your rice/cornbread to took.  Use Minute Rice—it’ll be done even faster.)

Tuesday Timbits: Pecans, and a Praline Recipe!

Okay, so obviously pecans aren't exclusive to Louisiana--I mean, my husband's mom has one in her back yard. But pecans ARE integral to the state... from the Louisiana Pecan Festival in Colfax each year, to Pecan Island in Vermilion Parish, to the plethora of pecan farmers across the state, you almost can't go to Louisiana without being served something with pecans on it.

NERDY BIT: (I'm a scientist, so bear with me) Pecans are the drupe or "fruit" of the Carya illinoinensis tree, a member of the hickory genus and the Juglandaceae (walnut) family. They're native to south-central North America, as they thrive in areas with long, hot summers, and relatively moderate winters. The US produces approximately 80-95% of the world's commercial supply of pecans. A pecan tree can live & bear edible fruit for more than 300 years.



One of the most well-known Louisiana uses for pecans would be pralines (PRAH-leens), and one of the most famous New Orleanian praline maker is Aunt Sally's, which are available in a variety of fantastic flavors:



However, if you can't get to Louisiana to pick up a praline...you can always make them yourself!

While living in Louisiana, I was taught how to make pralines from scratch by a friend's mom, a wonderfully sweet Cajun lady who I've referred to here previously as Nana D. Nana D shared with me her recipe, which comes from this cookbook:

That she's had since she was 20-something. Well...she has the original--she made me this copy, since her book is rather old & quite delicate. I did a little research, and this cookbook was put out in 1975 by the Louisiana Power & Light Company.

Note: This recipe has not been modified from the original, as it's tough to "health-up" candy without screwing with the chemistry of it.

Ingredients:
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup white sugar
1/2 cup light cream
2 tbsp butter
1 cup Louisiana pecan halves

Directions:
Dissolve sugars in cream and boil to the "thread test" (or 228 degrees Fahrenheit, if you have a candy thermometer), stirring occasionally. Add butter & pecans: cook until syrup reachs soft-ball test (236 F). Cool, and beat until somewhat thickened but not until it loses its gloss, and drop by tablespoonful onto a greased marble slab or double thickness of waxed paper. You need to do this rather quickly, otherwise the "dough" will start to harden. The candy will flatten out into large cakes. Makes about 12 pralines.



Nutrition Facts:
Calories 232.2
Total Fat 10.3 g
Saturated Fat 3.0 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 2.1 g
Monounsaturated Fat 4.7 g
Cholesterol 11.7 mg
Sodium 25.0 mg
Potassium 113.6 mg
Total Carbohydrate 42.7 g
Dietary Fiber 0.9 g
Sugars 41.5 g
Protein 1.1 g

Tuesday Timbits: Beignets

Okay, yes, I know, Timbits have absolutely NOTHING to do with Louisiana, and the nearest Tim Horton's is about 1500 miles north of Baton Rouge (in Thunder Bay, Ontario, just across the national divide--I Googled it--although apparently some lucky folks in Michigan can get some Tim Horton's products in their Coldstone Creamery locations...lucky buggers...) However, Timbits are one of those things that are inherently Canadian. All Canadians know what Timbits are, and so many Americans WISH they knew what Timbits tasted like. I'll be honest--if & when I ever get around to visiting our neighbors to the north, my first stop will be a Tim Horton's, I guar-an-tee.)

So, Tuesdays here will be about discussing products that are just as inherently LOUISIANIAN. The products Louisiana-folk know, love, & grew up with, and probably take for granted, but are a little more challenging to find outside that lovely state.

Given the Timbits reference, it's only appropriate that we start with Louisiana's own version of the Timbit, which of course would be the beignet (bin-yay!)



And the place in New Orleans most famous for these delicious (yet deadly*) treats is the world famous Cafe du Monde, in the French Quarter.

However, if you don't regularly get to visit New Orleans, and you're feeling ambitious, you CAN make your own "authentic" beignets at home, thanks to this box mix.



I have found this at my local Dillon's supermarket before, so there's a good chance it's lurking somewhere inside your own grocery store--probably in the specialty/ethnic food aisle.

The methodology is pretty simple--take the powdered mix, add water, stir, roll out flat(ish), cut into squares, toss into a pan of oil (Cafe du Monde uses cottonseed oil, if you're trying to be authentic), watch for them to puff up (and shake your fist at the pan when some of them don't seem to puff at all--a side effect of only being able to roll your dough flat-ish), flip once, remove when brown, then douse liberally with powdered sugar. Serve with coffee.

(*Deadly, because you have to be VERY cautious not to inhale while the beignet is close to your mouth, because you will snort up copious amounts of powdered sugar and be subjected to coughing and a sugar high. And you'll end up looking like a coke addict.)