Cajun Jambalaya Pasta

Cajun Jambalaya Pasta from The Cheesecake Factory

Every once in awhile a recipe or dish comes along that is just toooooo good not to share. This is one of them. My husband and I were at one of our favourte restaurants and he ordered this Jambalaya - it was awesome.

Makes: Two Portions

2 oz. - Olive Oil
1 lb. - Boneless/Skinless Chicken Breasts, cut into 1" pieces
2 Tbls. - Cajun Spice Blend
4 oz. - Red, Yellow, Green Peppers, cut into thin strips
4 oz. - Red Onions, cut into thin strips
6 oz. - Shrimp (shells, tails, and veins removed)
1 Tbl. - Blanched Garlic, minced
2 tsps. - Cajun Spice Blend
1/2 tsp. - Kosher Salt
1/4 tsp. - Ground Black Pepper
4 oz. - Roma Tomatoes, diced 1" pieces
1-1/2 cups - Spicy Chicken-Seafood Broth
1 Tbl. - Chopped Parsley
1 lb. - Linguini Pasta (fresh)

Directions:

1. Heat the olive oil in a large sauté pan.  Place the chicken into a clean mixing bowl.  Sprinkle the Cajun spice over the chicken and into the bowl.  Gently toss the chicken until each piece is evenly coated with the spice.

2. Add the chicken into the sauté pan and cook until it is about half done.  Add the peppers, onions and shrimp into the pan.  Cook until the shrimp are about half done.  Add the garlic into the pan.  Season all of the ingredients with kosher salt, ground black pepper, and a little more Cajun spice.

3. Add the diced tomatoes and chicken-seafood broth into the sauté pan.  Gently stir the ingredients together.  Continue to cook until the chicken and shrimp are done, and the vegetables are tender.

4. Drop the pasta into boiling salted water, and cook until “al dente.”

5. Place the pasta into serving bowls.  Spoon the jambalaya over the pasta.  Garnish with a sprinkle of freshly chopped parsley.

English Toffee Toasted Coconut Chiffon Cake

After years and years of creating and baking cakes I can truly say that this cake is by far my most favourite - save of course my cheesecake, which really goes without saying.

I adore toffee, not that I eat a lot of it, but when I did Heath bars were my "go to" candy, along with Almond Joy. So it seems fitting that I would take these darlings of mine and combine them into a sumptuously moist, towering chiffon cake.

You're going to love this recipe too if you favor those flavours!


FOR THE CAKE:

2 1/4 c flour
1 1/2 c sugar
1 t baking powder
1/2 t salt
1/2 c canola oil*
7 large eggs, separated
2/3 c water
1 t vanilla extract
1/2 t cream of tartar
7 oz. bag coconut, divided

8 oz. bag Heath Bits'o Brickle Toffee (not the milk chocolate covered bits), divided


FOR THE GLAZE:

2 c Confectioners sugar
4-5 T half and half
1 t vanilla extract

Playing with these measurements will give you a thicker or thinner glaze. I usually end up going back and forth adding more sugar and cream to get the perfect consistency and amount of glaze desired. And seriously, who doesn't want more glaze on their cake ;)

Preheat oven to 325°F
Ungreased 10" tube pan  - I actually use an angel food pan which has the cooling legs built right in, makes it super easy.

In a large bowl, mix together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Create a well in the middle and add the oil, egg yolks, water, and vanilla. Beat until smooth, around 3-4 minutes. Stir in half a bag of toffee bits and half the coconut, reserving the rest for decorating the cake.

Whisk egg whites and cream of tartar on medium until the cream of tarter is dissolved and whites are foamy. Increase speed to high and beat the whites until they hold a definite shape but are still smooth and soft. NOTE: Underwhipped whites are just beginning to hold a peak and still look wet. Overwhipped egg whites are clumpy and will be harder to fold into the batter, resulting in a shorter, denser cake. (Underwhipped is better than overwhipped.) And although we're using baking powder, the amazing height of this chiffon cake is due to the leavening power of the egg whites, so don't be unkind.

Fold the egg whites into the batter with a rubber spatula until completely blended; make sure there are no white streaks. Then pour cake mixture evenly into ungreased tube pan.

Bake until you can gently press on top of the cake and it feels firm, around 75 minutes. I usually check my cake at the 60 minute mark and see where it is. My conventional oven takes about 70 minutes. However, in my convection oven I lower the temp to 300°F and bake time to around 60 minutes. If you bake you know ovens vary and altitude matters - revise as necessary for your situation. Remember, you can always add a little more time but there's no bringing a cake back from burnt!

Once your cake is done baking, toast the coconut by spreading it out on a cookie sheet and baking for a few minutes...keep a close eye on the coconut, it can go quick.

Once the cake is completely cooled, (about an hour and a half) use a flat icing spatula to gently loosen the cake from the sides of the pan, then lift the inner core out. Run the spatula across the bottom too, taking care when removing the cake from the inner core. Place on cake stand or large serving plate.

Mix up the glaze to a smooth consistency similar to honey. Alternating the glaze, toffee and coconut in layers; drizzle glaze over cake in a back-and-forth motion, laying down just enough glaze to slightly cover the top with a thin layer. Sprinkle with toasted coconut and then the toffee bits. Drizzle with more glaze. Repeat until the glaze, coconut and toffee pieces are all gone.


*Do not substitute the oil for butter, shortening or some other fat. Why? Well, the remarkable tenderness of this cake is due to the oil. Unlike other fats, the oil tenderizes and moistens the cake. Here's where I'm gonna get all science on you: the oil actually coats the flour proteins, thereby reducing its ability to form gluten. And we all know, less gluten...more moist cake! Don't forget to use the most "tasteless" oil you can. I always check my oil before I bake with it because you don't want an off-flavoured oil taste coming through. To that end I always store my vegetable oils in the fridge, keeps them fresher longer. I blow through olive oil way too fast so I never refrigerate that, however.

Jamiacan Jerk Chicken

The secret to every excellent meal done on the grill is the marinade. And my Jerk chicken is no exception. I like to take a whole chicken and cut it up, place a dry rub on it and let it marinate in the fridge over night.

Once I'm ready to grill, I place the chicken pieces in a big pot, cover with water, add more spices and parboil before grilling.

I now have a really well-marinated chicken that won't get charred black just to cook through. And the liquid reduced down from parboiling is fabulous for basting while grilling. This won't thicken like traditional American bbq sauce, it's still quite thin, but that's what you want. When you baste the chicken, the extra juices flow down to the charcoal and create a wonderful "smoked" aromatic flavour.

So here's what you need to get started:

• 1 whole chicken cut up - rinse and pat dry
• 2 t allspice
• 2-4 scotch bonnet peppers - stemmed & seeded NOTE: this is among the hottest peppers on the Scoville scale you may substitute with red pepper if you don't care for really hot food
• 1 t ground cloves
• 1/2 t fresh *grated nutmeg
• 1 t cinnamon
• 1 T fresh thyme leaves
• sea salt
• pepper
• 2 scallions, chopped
• 2 lg cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 T brown sugar, packed
• 4 limes - reserve for serving

Mix all the marinade ingredients together save the lime. Place chicken and spice blend in large plastic bag(s) and coat with spices, press all the air out and seal. Refrigerate over night, remembering to turn the chicken two or three times.

Once you're ready to grill, pull the chicken out, place in dutch oven, fill bag with water to get all the marinade. Pour that over the chicken and fill just until the chicken is covered - adding additional water if needed. Here's where I think more is actually better, so I usually add some more dry spices; nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, thyme, allspice. I like to really infuse the meat with these flavours. NOTE: I don't normally grill or bake with a lot of salt because it tends to dry the meat out. Plus you know I'm totally into gourmet finishing salts. Cover and bring to a boil. Turn off heat. Let sit for 5-10 minutes while you prepare the grill.

Pull the chicken out of the pot, place on a platter to bring to the grill. I bring up the heat on the pot again and begin to reduce the liquid. You're going to have a lot so don't worry about trying to reduce-down all of it. I just like to bring it to a rolling boil and then simmer the juices/marinade while I'm preparing the grill.

Once your charcoals are grayish-white you're ready to begin. (Or if using gas, heat to medium, sear on both sides, then turn down to low until done.) I like to oil the grill rack slightly before I start. NOTE: it's way easier to clean the rack after the grill is hot. Simply start your grill, let it heat up and burn off any residue, then take your steel scraper/brush and clean the rack.

Place the chicken on the prepared rack (make sure not to crowd the meat, cooking in batches if you need to) and sear on both sides, about 3-4 minutes each side. While this is searing I usually run back into the kitchen and check on the marinade.

I'll put a couple of cups of the broth in something I can pour - for me it's my 2 c glass measuring cup. And while the chicken is cooking I'll pour a bit of the marinade over it. As I mentioned, the "spill-over" is something you want...the aroma and flavour it will add is well worth it. Cook till juices flow clear when you pierce with a skewer, about 20 minutes.

If you want, you can reduce the marinade down even more to thicken it a bit, and I usually add some brown sugar, sea salt and a little lime juice. Use this to serve with the chicken as a dipping sauce, as well as the lime quarters.

This is jamaican-me-crazy good. Now, don't forget the Red Stripe!

Happiest grilling to ya ;)

* I own this vintage Edgar nutmeg grater, circa 1893, which works awesome for grating the nutmeg seeds. But you may want to buy this newer model by Williams and Sonoma.

Banana Chiffon Cake w/ Cinnamon Cayenne Cream Glaze

Apparently Chiffon cakes were big in the 50's, and I think they should make a comeback! Of course I think baking your own baked goods and preparing your own meals should be the norm too - instead of a lost art form! But what do I know.

Most Gen Xers and Millennials don't have a clue what a "stay at home mom" is, let alone a mom that cooks and bakes. Instead of cooking and baking being the rule it has become the exception...and that's very sad. Gone are the days where we as a nation sat down to dinner every night with our families. This too has become the exception instead of the rule.

That's why we've had family night once a week for the last 12 years. And not just for my immediate family - who are grown and on their own - we quite literally have a "thanksgiving" four times a month. Extended family and many friends all come together to celebrate and connect with each other. Each week brings the usual suspects and then some unexpected surprise guests. In all I usually end up cooking for 20+ people, it's kind of like running my own underground supper club! And I love it.

So I suggest we all slow down just long enough to lovingly prepare a meal and share it with those we care about. And, perhaps some desert is in order for this special occasion too! Here's one idea.

When ripe bananas begin to stare at me I start to think about what I can turn them into - I hate to waste anything. There's always the pedestrian banana bread, but I'd like to raise the bar. Yeah, I know this is not as simple as banana bread, but the rewards outweigh the extra effort. NOTE: for times when you just can't get to your ripe bananas quick enough, freeze them. But remember to peel them first, just saying.

FOR THE CAKE:
look kids real measurements

2 1/4 c flour
1 1⁄2 c sugar
1 t cinnamon
3 t baking powder
1 t salt
1⁄2 c canola oil*
7 eggs, separated
1⁄3 c cold water
1 t vanilla
2 large ripe bananas - about 1 c
1⁄2 t cream of tartar

FOR THE GLAZE:
Here's where I kinda wing it, adding ingredients a little at a time.

Confectioners sugar, somewhere around 1-2 cups
cinnamon
cayenne powder
orange juice - I use just a splash
cream - 3 to 4 tablespoons

As you can tell by the ingredients the glaze tastes much like cinnamon red hots mixed with a little creamcicle. You may choose to do one flavour or another, or just dust the cake with confectioners sugar instead. Personally I like the unexpected POW of the cinnamon and cayenne and the cream adds needed depth and richness to the sugar. The orange offers some zest to the overall taste and helps to offset all that "sweet" with a little tart. I suggest you play with what you like. NOTE: in order to achieve a densely glazed cake that still drips, the cake must be cooled completely, otherwise you end up with a thin glaze (think doughnut) over the cake and the rest of the glaze pooling on the bottom of the plate. Obviously the thicker the glaze the less it runs - I like a controlled "drip" giving an untidy fondant look for this cake. You may choose a thinner "drizzled" effect instead, totally up to you.

Preheat oven to 325°F
Ungreased 10" tube pan  - I actually use an angel food pan, has the cooling legs built in, but I still invert on a bottle, habit I guess. If you don't have one of these, don't be afraid to "recycle" by going to your nearest Salvation Army or Goodwill store. You'll be saving money and doing a good thing.

In a large bowl, mix flour, sugar, cinnamon, baking powder and salt. In another large bowl, combine oil, egg yolks, water, vanilla and bananas (I mash these up a bit with the blender blades before blending). Blend until creamy. Make a well in the middle of the dry ingredients and add moist mixture all at once. Beat until smooth.

perfectly whisked whites hold their shape but are not clumpy

If you have a stand mixer now's the time to use it. Whisk egg whites and cream of tartar on medium until the cream of tarter is dissolved and whites are foamy. Increase speed to high and beat the whites until they hold a definite shape but are still smooth and soft. NOTE: Underwhipped whites are just beginning to hold a peak and still look wet. Overwhipped egg whites are clumpy and will be harder to fold into the batter, resulting in a shorter, denser cake. (Underwhipped is better than overwhipped.) My cake measured 4 5/8 inches high and was light and tender.  And although we're using baking powder, the crazy height of this chiffon cake is due to the levening power of the egg whites, so don't be unkind. This cake is the exact opposite of my pound cake ;)

gently fold the egg whites into the cake batter

Now that you have the perfect egg whites, fold them into the batter with a rubber spatula until completely blended; make sure there are no white streaks. Pour mixture evenly into ungreased pan.

Bake until you can gently press on top of the cake and it feels firm, around 75 minutes. I usually check my cake at the 60 minute mark and see where it is. My conventional oven takes about 70 minutes. However, in my convection oven I lower the temp to 300°F and bake time to around 60 minutes. If you bake you know ovens vary and altitude comes into play as well - revise as necessary for your situation. It's been my experience that I can always add on a little more time but have never been able to bring a cake back from burnt! Just keep an eye on things.

cake is almost ready about 7-8 minutes to go

invert cake on a bottle to cool

Once the cake is done, invert on a bottle, or let stand on the legs if you're using the angel food pan, until cool. Once thoroughly cooled (about an hour and a half) use a flat icing spatula to gently loosen the cake from the sides of the pan, then lift the inner core out. I usually have to run the spatula across the bottom too. But take care when removing the cake from the inner core. Normally I end up using the long flat spatula on the bottom of one side and grab a wider one for the opposite side and lift the cake over the tube and onto the serving plate. This cake is so tender I'm afraid that by merely placing my hands on each side and lifting it, I'll pull it in half. If, however, you decide to use the bottom of the cake as the top, all that instruction is a moot point. Tip the bloody cake upside down and lift the tube/bottom away once loosened.

Happy frosting, glazing, drizzling, dusting or whatever you decide to do with your cake! Just make sure you enjoy it with people you love. And a bit of espresso or coffee isn't all bad either.


*Don't mess with the oil!! In other words do not substitute for butter, shortening or some other fat. Why? Well, the remarkable tenderness of this cake is due to the oil. Unlike other fats, the oil tenderizes and moistens the cake. Here's where I'm gonna get all science on you: the oil actually coats the flour proteins, thereby reducing its ability to form gluten. And we all know, less gluten...more moist cake! Don't forget to use the most "tasteless" oil you can. I always check my oil before I bake with it because you don't want an off-flavoured oil taste coming through. To that end I always store my vegetable oils in the fridge, keeps them fresher longer. I blow through olive oil too fast to worry about it, however.

Spicey Chili Shrimp

You'll go crazy over the aromas and flavours of the bok choy (also known as Chinese cabbage) which offers up an exotic blend of anise and fennel that pairs perfectly with the warmth and earthiness of the red chili and paprika.

• 2 lbs raw tiger shrimp - cleaned and deveined
• 1 head of bok choy - slice the stalks 1/4" thick along with about a third of the leaves
• red chilies, chopped, and seeded if you want to remove most of the "heat"
• chili powder
• paprika
• cracked pepper
• sea salt
• sesame seed oil
• jasmine rice

This recipe goes very quickly so you'll want to start your rice ahead of the shrimp. Rule of thumb for rice: for every 1 c of rice add 1 1/2 c water. I throw the rinsed rice into a pot and add water, butter, and for Asian dishes, some sesame seed oil. Bring to a boil for a minute then reduce heat to simmer for 18 minutes. Fluff rice and let stand until you're ready to plate your entree.

Add the sesame oil to your favourite large saute pan and heat on medium high heat. Toss in the prepared shrimp, bok choy and chopped red chilies, stir in the spices and saute for couple of minutes. Watch the shrimp, once they turn pink and curl you're good to go. NOTE: don't over cook the shrimp, they just dry out and become mush.

Because the bok choy holds a lot of water this dish literally creates its own brothy kind of sauce. If you want to thicken it, add a couple of teaspoons of cornstarch to a cup of cold Sake and pour that over the shrimp mixture stirring constantly until it thickens and begins to glaze. If you choose to do this do not add any salt until after you've tasted.

Serve over jasmine rice. Since there aren't a lot of vegetables with this entree you may want to include my Oriental Salad recipe..which I'll add soon.

Happy cooking

Sesame Chicken and Vegetables

I adore Asian food, mainly for its healthy use of fresh vegetables, but their simple, yet flavourful, sauces can't go unnoticed either! Pictured on the right is one great example that's easy to prepare and soooooo good for you. Here's the Spicy Chili Shrimp recipe for the entree pictured on the left.

Let's start with the vegetables, the more the merrier as far as I'm concerned. So, I pack lots of vibrant deeply coloured vegetables into this dish, and not just because it's pretty! NOTE: the more colurful your produce the more packed full of nutrients it will be. And, dark leafy greens like spinach and kale are especially nutritious and beneficial - a good source of antioxidant cancer fighting agents. Notwithstanding the cruciferous vegetables in this dish as well!

• broccoli
• green beans
• sugar snap peas
• carrot
• red bell pepper
• shitake mushroom
• water chesnuts
• baby corn
• yellow onion
• scallions

Other ingredients needed are:

• 10 skinless/boneless chicken breasts sliced into strips
• sesame seed oil
• toasted sesame seeds
• 4 T oyster sauce
• 1/2 c soy sauce
• red pepper, I use dried chilies and throw a couple whole ones in then crumble one or two in my hand and tossed those in. Based on how hot you like/tolerate your food, judge accordingly.
• cracked pepper
• 1 c Sake
• 2 c orange juice
• 4 t cornstarch
• Udon noodles cooked slightly soft - they will continue to cook once they're added to the vegetables

Let's get started. Grab your favourite pan, mine is a 16" Calaphon hard anodized commercial pan which they unfortunately no longer produce. A wok will work or even a paella pan. Heat enough sesame seed oil to coat the bottom of the pan. Once that is heated (but NOT smoking) toss in the chicken and brown, about 4-5 minutes.

Deglaze the pan with the Sake, scraping up any chicken bits that have stuck to the bottom of the pan - deglazing adds fabulous flavour and depth to any dish! Since we're mixing the entree with the sauce (opposed to plating and finishing with the sauce) I deglaze the pan with the meat still in, this adds great flavour to the chicken as well. BTW, this is why I don't use nonstick pans, save for eggs and omelets, there's really nothing that can be deglazed.

Now add all your vegetables and saute for another 2 minutes or so depending on quantity. Check your oil, you may need to add more. NOTE: please don't cook your vegetables to death...they loose colour and nutritional value. Vegetables should still be slightly crisp and very colourful.

While you're cooking the meat and vegetables mix the orange juice, soy sauce, oyster sauce, and cornstarch together until well blended. I cook for an army, so depending on how you've adjusted the chicken and vegetables you'll also need to play with the ingredients for the sauce.

Once the vegetables are cooked add the sauce mixture stirring constantly until it begins to thicken and a glaze develops. Now add the cooked noodles and toss together. Sprinkle with the toasted sesame seeds just before serving.

I like to serve Asian dishes with Peanut Sauce and a concoction of Soy Sauce and freshly diced ginger for dipping. Proving your guests with their own individual dipping dishes is always a treat.

Now, heat up some Sake for yourself and go forth and enjoy!

Pinto Beans and Rice

My husband will also refer to this dish as "chili"...which is a bit of a stretch in my book unless you consider chili made without "chilies" really chili after all. What it is, however, is delicious. So if you like pinto beans and heat, you'll adore this recipe.

What you'll need to get started:

• first thing is time unless you buy "stir fry" beef that's already cut up and canned beans
• you'll need a blender (preferably) or hand mixer
• 8qt (or larger) heavy pot - why bother making anything less then a "big pot of beans"
• 1 lb. bacon sliced in 1" pieces
• 2-3 lbs. top round or sirloin (you could use venison as well) sliced thin, then rough chopped
• 1 1/2-2 lbs. dried pinto beans (or equivalent if you're using canned, please drain and rinse)
• 8-10 cups rich beef stock (may substituted for broth if need be)
• 1 large yellow onion chopped
• 4-5 cloves of garlic crushed and chopped
• can of chipotles en adobo sauce
• 4 large bay leaves
• fresh cilantro chopped
• green serrano chiles chopped (core the peppers if you want to reduce the "heat" factor)
• lime quarters
• sea salt and fresh cracked pepper

Throw your bacon into the pot and brown. Once the bacon begins to crisp toss in the chopped onion. While that has been frying I hope you've been preparing the beef. If you chose to buy the "stir fry" beef make sure to give that a rough chop before you add it to the pot.

If you're cutting up sirloin or beef round make sure to cut away any fat - we have enough with the bacon! Add the garlic just before the beef, but not with the onion, it tends to brown up faster then onion so we don't want to burn it.

While you're frying the beef, pour a cup of beef stock into your blender and add the chipotles en adobo, blend until smooth. Once the meat mixture is browned pour in the chipotles sauce followed by the rest of the stock and bay leaves, salt and pepper. Give that a good stir, then add the pinto beans.

Cook on low for at least 3 hours until the beans are tender. Check occasionally giving the pot a stir and measuring the liquid - add more stock if you need it. If you've opted for the canned beans then your cook time will be significantly less, but bare in mind the longer you do allow the dish to simmer the more infused with flavour the beans and beef will be.

Plate the pinto beans up with white rice, sprinkle with the chopped cilantro and serrano pepper and serve with a wedge or two of lime.

A Corona, Dos Equis or Modelo Especial would go good right about now!