Eat your Gumbo!

There are as many variations of gumbo in Louisiana and further, as there are different types of people that appreciate, and make gumbo. It is indeed a soulful American dish. In my dealings with the dish, variance often is defined by what I had to start with as proteins. The rest of the dish followed with what I think are good pairings with those proteins. The only constant in making gumbo is the roux which is the backbone of the dish. In my opinion, the simple gumbo is the best gumbo. Let the ingredients speak for themselves and not get lost in a crowd.

Shrimp, Duck, & Sausage Gumbo

(8-10 servings)

1 # wild shrimp 16-21 size (raw)

2 medium whole ducks

1 # smoked sausage (like Andouille)

1/2-1 cup of flour

2 large onions (diced)

4 stalks celery (diced)

1 red bell pepper (fine dice)

1 green bell pepper (fine dice)

6 bay leaves

1 cup scallions (chopped)

6-8 cups of vegetable or chicken stock

cayenne pepper to taste

kosher salt and pepper to taste

Technique: Cut the ducks into 8 pieces each, removing the backs. Brown in hot cast iron skillet skin side down for 3 minutes for each piece to brown, and render duck fat. Reserve the duck fat in the skillet. Assemble all the duck pieces in a roasting pan and place in 350 degree oven for about 30-40 minutes until cooked through. Let cool to room temperature. 

In the cast iron skillet, add 1/2 cup to start of flour to the duck fat. Whisk together until a paste formed. You want the texture of the roux to be like slightly runny peanut butter. Add more flour if needed. Saute at low heat, stirring often and allow roux. to brown up. When the roux is at the desired color, ann celery, onion, bell peppers, and diced sausage. Saute for a few moments, and add stock. Add bay leaves, and season with salt and pepper. Allow to simmer at a low temperature, stirring often. 

Shell, and clean the shrimp. Pull duck pieces apart, and separate meat from fat and bone. When you are happy with the seasoning, and the texture of the gumbo, add the shrimp and shredded duck. Simmer just until shrimp are cooked through, and serve over rice or grits topped with scallions. Make available some Louisiana hot sauce as well. Enjoy!

Carnitas!

Pork is the king of meats. That is a certainty. If pork is king, than carnitas is the king's treasure. The humble pork shoulder provides the delicious carnitas, and is without a doubt my favorite way to eat pork. This recipe is stupid-easy, and takes little time and energy. There are many, many ways to prepare different variations of carnitas depending on where you are in Latin America. This is a neo-classic form I would say. Remember to use a heavy bottom pan, and slow simmering is best.

Neo-Classic Carnitas

3 lbs cubed pork butt

2 cups orange juice

2 Tbs. whole black peppercorns

1 Tbs.  whole cumin seed

16 teeth of garlic (minced)

kosher salt and pepper to taste

Technique: Combine all ingredients in a heavy bottom pot. Simmer uncovered, and reduce liquid all the way down. Stir often when liquid is low. 

The Power Cookie

Ok, I am on this strict diet for training, and I have been training hard at the gym, and preparing for road/field work as our anemic winter winds down. I cut out most simple carbohydrates out of my diet as well as sugar. After 2 hours at the gym I could feel the lack of those carbs, and wanted to see if we could come up with a compromise to give my body what it craves, yet not destroy the hard effort I have put in on eating this way these past few weeks. I think this is a pretty good effort!

Two of these cookies, and a glass of organic skim milk and I feel rejuvenated immediately! They are not bad at all either.

Alchemy Power Cookie

 (makes 50 cookies)

3 c. organic whole wheat flour (stone ground)

2 c. raisins

1/2 c. sliced almonds

1/2 cup raw pumpkin seeds

1/2 cup raw sunflower seeds

1/2 cup raw sesame seeds

1 c. chocolate chips (optional)

2 cups rolled oats

2 t. kosher salt

2 t. baking powder

1 c. canola oil

1 c. honey

1 cup water

Technique: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine all dry ingredients and blend well in a large bowl. In a separate bowl mix the oil and honey together. Fold the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and blend. Add the water and form a rather dry dough. Roll into balls and flatten into disks. Bake for 18-20 minutes, or until sides and bottom are slightly brown.

I plan to omit the chocolate chips in the next batch with 1 cup of dried diced apricots. I needed to get this prototype batch passed by my suspecting wife and kids. I worked! Try these, and feel less guilt about a treat after the gym or on the farm. Cheers!

Spanokopita!

The classic Greek spinach and filo (Phyllo) pastry that we have all had at Greek restaurants, or maybe frozen (Noooooooooo!) are surprisingly easy to make. In my years of catering I have made piles of them. In fact they finally made the "Do not make ever again" list of food items that I would have to triple my normal fee to make again. Wait! I said they were easy?! They are, just not by the bloody hundreds. This recipe will make eight entree size pastries. They are low in fat, and very satisfying.

Spanokopita

(serves 8 people)

1 box frozen filo dough

3 boxes frozen chopped spinach

1 medium red onion

1 lb feta cheese

1/2 tsp. nutmeg

olive oil for brushing

Technique: Defrost the spinach overnight. Drain spinach until it's dry, really dry. Add fine dice onion,  crumbled feta, and nutmeg. Unroll filo dough being very gentle not to damage it. Lay out three sheets, brushing olive oil in between each in front of you. You will make two pastries out of each set of three sheets. Cut the filo down the middle and position approx. 1 cup of filling in the corner of the fore end. Fold the dough as you would a flag to form a triangle. Seal the seam at the end with a brush of olive oil. Bake at 350 degrees until honey brown (approx. 20 minutes). Enjoy! They do well with a nice chutney, or yogurt sauce.

Try these out, great for vegetarians or guests. they keep for two days wrapped in the cooler.

A year In the Life

OK, Now here is the deal. I am going to be 50 years old on my next birthday, a significant milestone some would say. I don't really care how old I am, I care about how healthy I can grow each coming year. I have chosen to experiment on myself this year; to eat as cleanly as possible, take a year off consuming alcohol, and train myself in a manner that is usually reserved for elite class athletes.

WTF? Why am I doing this? I have been in really good shape at certain points of my life, and it felt really wonderful. I miss that feeling, and want to try and achieve that again. I have also returned to the rugby world after a very long time. I am training to become an IRB referee, and must be in top shape to keep up with the collage age players I am to work with. I also have young kids that I want to stay healthy with, and live to see them have kids, and grow old. That will take some doing, but I am up to the task indeed.

So what does my life look like? When I said I wanted to be in the best shape of my life, it was more than skin deep. I want to have the best "stats." I have every had, including blood pressure, cholesterol, blood sugar levels, heart rate, stress testing capability, and percentage of body fat (I am shooting for less than 10%). I also want to be at a high level of fitness in order to PLAY rugby once again, "let's keep that a secret from Kate"! So the question that comes to one's mind is, "Narcissistic or smart"? Hell, both in my mind, why not look really healthy at 50?

My diet and the absence of alcohol are the most striking differences in my daily regime. I have cut out all the "Whites", sugar, flour, rice, potatoes, etc. I have tried to eliminate all the high glycemic foods that one finds in daily fare. I am Replacing sugar with nothing, one or two small squares of 90% cacao dark chocolate with my tea at night is it. I am replacing white flour with sprouted, and whole grain flours in very limited amounts, I am pretty much done with bread for now. Starch filled vegetables like potatoes, sweet potatoes, beets, etc. are out. I replace them with "all the other vegetables". Fruit is all good except for bananas. Proteins and dairy are fine, but restricted to lean meats, and nonfat, or low-fat dairy options. For all intent and purpose, I am eating like a type 2 diabetic should eat, while not being diabetic.

The first goal for the meal plan is to stabilize, and de-tox for a month or two, and then start making the diet a little broader in options in certain moderation. The second goal is to make really amazing food that adheres to the actual diet, and provide recipes and photographs on this site of the year long journey (and longer) in re-creating an eating lifestyle.

I cook for a living, and am known for rich, high end cuisine that is usually loaded with fat. There is a time and place for that for me in the future, but a place where reason and intelligence rule the decision process, and not the common gluttony I have relied upon for all of my adult life. I am excited to learn personal limits in regards to consuming rich food and alcohol as to enhance life, but not harm ones self. Tricky posture to hold, but I can do it!

So, the two images in the post are symbolic of my new reality. The de-tox period menu of simple steamed organic brown rice, kale with lemon juice, and herring filets for protein is what I am eating right now, and the tractor tire gets flipped end over end up and down the property, and beat on 100 times on each side with the sledge hammer. Welcome to the machine!

Keeping it real at the homestead

Living in a rural place has many benefits. It was a choice we made to mostly appease my desire to live a simple life of growing food, raising animals, and on occasion freezing my ass off up in a tree stand. My dear wife was less motivated by the lure of the country, and has reminded me many times of her desire to live in closer proximity to the cultural side of existence. I think we have at certain times swapped stances on this divide, me missing opportunities to cook in high end restaurants, and feed people who truly know how to eat. Her comfort has grown in a sense of community she is developing in our small rural community, and our shared sense that we are really doing a good thing in raising our kids in a safe, and educational atmosphere. An atmosphere where I hope they can learn to feed themselves from the earth, and forage for the rest in a future that is filled with uncertainty.

That being said, I really take great joy in bringing home freshly killed game to feed and nurture my family. it is a thrill for me.

The pictures above are of a young 180 pound buck I shot in November, the back straps prepared for dinner, and the finished meal. The meal itself was sublime, and a worthy meal to give thanks to the animal that provided it's flesh to feed my family. Next time you find yourself with a venison back strap, or want to substitute a beef tenderloin, I heartily recommend this dish. Cheers!

Bacon Wrapped Venison Back Strap with Lingonberry Glace

(serves 8 or more)

1 venison back strap (or beef tenderloin) peeled and cleaned

1 # really good bacon (not thick sliced)

2 cups frozen (or fresh) lingonberries

2 cups Syrah

2 cups beef or venison demi-glace

Kosher salt and pepper to taste

Technique: Make sure your venison loin is very clean.  Wrap with bacon tucking edge under the strips. Season with salt and pepper and set aside. In a heavy bottom sauce pan, combine the berries, demi-glace, and wine. Cook at a low simmer until the sauce is reduced to a sec (20% or so of original volume). Whisk often. The berries should dissolve, but you can run this sauce through a sieve at the end if you like. Roast the venison in a hot oven until the internal temperature reaches 140 degrees F. Set on a side board to rest for 15 minutes before carving into medallions. Serve with sauce.

Pumpkin and Sage Risotto

(serves 8 or more)

2 cups Arborio rice

2 cups raw pumpkin (or winter squash) in 1/2 inch cubes

1/4 pound unsalted butter

1 cup dry white wine

1/2 cup heavy cream

1 cup grated Peccorino cheese

10 sage leaves (fine chiffinade)

1/4 cup shallots (fine mince)

at least 8 cups chicken or vegetables stock

kosher salt and black pepper to taste

Technique: Heat a very heavy bottom sauce pan that is big enough to hold 8 cups. Add the raw rice and stir in the pan to toast. Add the shallot and white wine and start stirring with a heavy wooden spoon. Add stock slowly by the cup and stir it in, always scraping the bottom of the pan to prevent burning. After the third or 4th cup, add the pumpkin cubes. Keep doing this until the rice becomes tender, but not mushy, it should still have a bite to it. Add sage, cream, and butter and stir in. Season with salt and pepper. Right before service, fold in the cheese and serve immediately. 

Taco Variations Part VI

Tacos would, and should be considered one of the primary meals I have enjoyed all my life. I grew up on them and eat them on such a regular basis that they could probably replace all other cuisines and I would be OK. In the 35 or so years that I have been preparing food for myself, friends, and my family, I have come up with countless versions, riffs, and various configurations of tacos, almost all of them being delicious. Here is one I have really started to appreciate lately. This meal takes very little time and works well for a day when I work late and have to have dinner on the table fast. Try these!

Chorizo Picadillo Tacos

(serves 4 people)

1 pound pork chorizo sausage (I used homemade Berkshire chorizo)

1 medium red onion (fine dice)

1 large poblano pepper (fine dice)

2 medium zucchini (fine dice)

5 teeth of garlic (fine mince)

1 tsp. canola oil

kosher salt and pepper to taste

Technique: Dice all the vegetables so they are of like size. Heat the oil in a large heavy skillet and add all the ingredients at once. Saute at medium heat for about 10 minutes and season with kosher salt and pepper. 

As you can see in the pictures, I serve these tacos with green cabbage, fresh onion, fresh jalapeno, avocado, cilantro, and lots of lime. Crema (Mexican sour cream), and queso fresca are a nice addition as well. This recipe is surprisingly low in fat if you choose not to deep fry your tortillas. Dab the tortillas in a tiny bit of oil and heat them on a comal, or in a skillet.