In This Menu:

• Chicken Gumbo
• James’ Shrimp Creole
• Banana Pudding Cake

I, like most people, love Cajun food. My only trip to New Orleans really opened my eyes to the complexities of Cajun cooking as well as the myriad of subtle differences from other similar cuisines. My dad and I made the shrimp Creole, one of our favorite dishes, a million times which was inspired originally by a recipe called “Major Hollander’s Shrimp Creole”. I no longer know what cookbook it came out of or who Major Hollander was. I have recreated the dish from memory and I doubt it is exactly the same, but it certainly is tasty! The main thing I remembered about the original recipe is that it called for the zest and juice of one whole lemon. The lemon zest gives this version the signature taste I have come to love.

I want to thank Chef William Mauk from New Orleans for first making me true Gumbo and showing me how to make the best, dark, roux. I hope you like it. AAAIIIIEEEEEE!!!

INGREDIENTS

• ¼ cup vegetable oil
• 1 large chicken (young hen preferred), cut into pieces
• 1 pound andouille or smoked sausage, cut into ½” pieces
• ½ cup flour
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 bell pepper, chopped
• 2 ribs celery, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 quarts chicken stock
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 teaspoons Creole seasoning, or to taste
• ½ teaspoon dried thyme leaves
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• ½ cup fresh chopped parsley
• Filé powder to taste
• ½ bunch scallions (green onions), tops only, chopped

PREPARATION

Season the chicken with salt, pepper and Creole seasoning and brown thoroughly on both sides. Make sure that the fat is cooked out of the skin on the chicken and that it is crispy. Remove chicken to baking dish and place in oven at 350° for 30 minutes. While chicken is cooking, brown the sausage then remove from pan and set aside. Pour all excess fat but 2 tablespoons from skillet into a small, heavy bottomed, saucepan. Set skillet aside.

Add the flour to the oil, blending with a whisk. Cook the flour in the oil over medium to high heat (depending on your roux-making skill), stirring constantly, until the roux is almost the color of coffee or milk chocolate for a Cajun-style roux. If you want to save time, or prefer a more New Orleans-style roux, cook it to a medium, peanut-butter color, over lower heat if you’re nervous about burning it.

Add the vegetables to skillet and cook over medium heat, scraping bottom of skillet as vegetables cook to get all of the brown bits of flavor off pan. Remove chicken, let cool, and cut the meat off of the chicken into ½ inch pieces. Add the chicken along with the sausage to the pan.

Add the stock, seasonings, and parsley to pan. Bring to a boil, add the roux, then cook for about one hour, skimming fat off the top as needed.

Serve over rice in large shallow bowls. Top with chopped green onions. Accompany with a good beer and lots of hot, crispy French bread.

YIELD: About 12 appetizer-sized servings.

INGREDIENTS

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• ½ cup diced green bell peppers
• ½ cup diced onions (reserve ends and skins)
• ½ cup diced celery (reserve ends, hearts, leaves)
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1 tablespoon Cajun seasoning*
• 1 (14-ounce) can tomatoes
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 8 oz. shrimp stock
• 1 tablespoon hot sauce
• Zest of one lemon
• Juice of one lemon
• 2 teaspoons white sugar
• Salt and pepper
• 1½ pounds peeled and deveined shrimp (reserve shells)
• Green onions, for garnish

*Available in our spice aisle

PREPARATION

Place shrimp shells and reserved vegetable peelings on a cookie sheet and bake in a 400° oven until light brown. Place shells and veggies in a medium sauce pan, add 2 teaspoon Kosher salt and 4 cups of water to pan. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium low and simmer for 20 minutes. Pour stock into another saucepan through a fine, metal strainer. Place stock back on high heat, bring to a boil and continue to boil until the stock is reduced by 2/3.

In fry pan, heat olive oil. Add peppers, onions and celery and garlic. Cook until softened. Add Cajun spice and sauté until caramelized. Add tomatoes, tomato paste, shrimp stock, hot sauce, lemon zest, lemon juice, and white sugar.

Cook for 3 hours. Add shrimp and cook for about 3 minutes. Serve over rice. Top with chopped green onions.

I decided to do an easy dessert for you since cooking in this heat can be tiring! I created this recipe very recently and originally did it with a homemade custard and cake from scratch. I don’t think that using the pre-made mixes will hurt the integrity of the dish much. If you would rather use from scratch products, feel free!

INGREDIENTS

• 3 bananas
• 1 box yellow cake mix
• 1 box vanilla pudding mix
• Whipped cream
• Mint for garnish

PREPARATION

Slice bananas into ¼ inch slices. Prepare cake per package directions. Bake, let cool, and cut into pieces. Prepare pudding according to package directions and set aside. In several large ramekins or wine glasses layer the dessert in this order:

1. Pudding
2. Bananas
3. Cake
4. Whipped Cream
5. Bananas

The last and top layer should be whipped cream with banana slices around edge. Top with mint for garnish. Chill and serve.

When I was thinking about what menu I was going to do for Father’s Day, I thought about simple food that I, and most dads, like. Steak. Shrimp. Simple salad. Cheesecake. Easy, huh? Well, here is the menu that I want to have on Father’s Day (hint, hint). I don’t mind doing the grilling if someone else does the dishes!

In This Menu:

• Wedge Lettuce Salad
• Shrimp Skewers and Rib Eye Steaks with Red Wine Mushroom Sauce
• Cheesecake with Blueberry Sauce

I think I like this salad because it is simple and that it also has a big piece of iceberg lettuce! I know, I know, iceberg is not as healthy as some other lettuces, but this is for Father’s Day! Sometimes we dads just want a big, old, crunchy piece of iceberg. It may not be the healthiest, but it sure is tasty!

INGREDIENTS

• 1 head iceberg lettuce cut into 4, wedge-shaped pieces
• 2 hard boiled eggs, cut in half vertically
• 1 large, fresh tomato, cut into quarters
• Dressing of choice
• 1 cup sliced black olives
• 1 cup crumbled blue cheese
• ¼ cup fresh chives

PREPARATION

Lay wedge out on plate. Put ½ egg on one side of wedge and 1 tomato quarter on other side. Drizzle dressing over the top of wedge lettuce then top with blue cheese, olives, and chives.

INGREDIENTS

For the Steaks:

• Four, 12 oz. rib eye steaks
• Olive oil
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• Kosher salt
• Black pepper

Drizzle oil on both sides of steaks and rub with garlic, salt, and pepper.

For the Shrimp:

• 16 large shrimp, peeled except for tail and de-veined
• Olive oil
• Kosher salt and pepper

Drizzle oil on shrimp and lightly sprinkle with salt and pepper. Skewer 4 shrimp on a bamboo skewer and set aside.

For the Sauce:

• 3 cups dry, red wine
• 1 cup strong beef bouillon
• ½ cup diced onion
• ½ cup diced celery
• ½ cup diced carrot
• 1 bay leaf

2 cups fresh, sliced mushrooms, sautéed in butter.

PREPARATION

Place all ingredients in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil and reduce for 20 to 30 minutes. Strain through a mesh strainer and place back on heat. Mix 3 tablespoons cornstarch with 3 tablespoons water. Slowly add to boiling sauce until desired thickness is reached. You do not have to add all of the cornstarch mixture. Add cooked mushrooms to sauce.

To Finish:

Grill steak to desired temperature, about 6 minutes per side for medium to medium rare. When steaks are almost done, place shrimp on hot grill. The shrimp will cook in about 2 minutes per side. Serve steaks with shrimp and top steak with mushroom sauce and serve with bicolor corn and your favorite potato.

For the Crust:

• ½ lb. butter-softened
• ½ cup sugar
• ½ t. salt
• Flour as needed

Mix butter, sugar, and salt in mixer. Add flour until pea-sized balls are formed. Form crust into 10 inch spring form pan two inches up the side.

For the Batter:

• 1 and ½ block cream cheese (this is 1 and ½ lb.) – softened
• 4 eggs
• 1 t. vanilla extract
• ½ cup sugar

Mix cream cheese, vanilla, sugar, and eggs in mixer until smooth. Pour into crust and bake in low oven at 200° for about 4 hours. Remove from oven and let cool completely. Run a warm knife around sides before removing side of spring form pan.

For the Sauce:

• 2 pints fresh blueberries
• 2 tablespoons butter
• Juice of one lemon
• ¾ cup sugar
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch mixed with 2 tablespoons cold water

Place blueberries in a small sauce pan with butter, sugar, and lemon over medium heat and cook until berries begin to burst and release their juice. Turn heat to low and simmer for 15 minutes. Add ½ of the cornstarch mixture and bring to a boil. Add more of the cornstarch mixture as necessary to reach desired thickness. Let cool and serve over cheesecake.

In This Menu:

• Cioppino
• James’ Crab Dip a la the “Temp”
• Raspberries with Cream and Sugar

I first heard of this dish (the French version is called Bouillabaisse) when I was managing an excellent restaurant in Tulsa called LaCuisine. Basically, this is a fish soup or stew depending on how thick you make it. At LaCuisine we used to serve it with a thick piece of toasted French bread covered with red pepper aioli (garlic mayonnaise) and floated the bread on top. I liked the addition of the bread because it thickened the sauce which then made me think about serving the dish over a bed of pasta. I’m sure the “true” Italians would skin me alive for doing so, but I really like the way the angel’s hair soaks up the broth and gives one a feeling of having had a meal rather than a bowl of soup.

INGREDIENTS

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 large fennel bulb, thinly sliced
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 medium tomato, chopped
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 tablespoon gremolata*
• Juice of one lemon
• 2 tablespoons basil pesto
• 3 tablespoons sun-dried tomato paste
• 1 (12-ounce) can whole tomatoes
• ½ cup dry white wine
• 2 cups fish stock**
• 1 bay leaf
• ½ pound cherrystone clams, scrubbed
• ½ pound sea scallops
• ½ pound uncooked large shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 1 pound tilapia or salmon, cut into 2-inch chunks
• 1 lb. angel hair pasta, cooked
• Parmesan cheese

PREPARATION

*Gremolata is simply a mixture of very finely minced lemon zest, parsley, and garlic. The Italians use it liberally boosting up the flavor of any dish they are making. Most Cioppino recipes call for garlic alone. I added the gremolata because the parsley and lemon zest give you a nice flavor “pop”. To make, remove the zest from one lemon using a zester, knife, or grater. Peel 3 garlic cloves. Pick 3 or 4 big sprigs of parsley from a bunch. Chop the three ingredients together on a cutting board until very fine.

**A light chicken broth can be substituted

Heat the oil in a very large pot over medium heat. Add the fennel, onion, tomatoes, and salt and sautè until the onion is translucent, about 10 minutes. Stir in the gremolata, pesto and sun-dried tomato paste. Crush the tomatoes then add them with their juices, wine, fish stock and bay leaf. Cover and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat to medium-low. Cover and simmer until the flavors blend, about 30 minutes.

Add the clams and mussels to the cooking liquid. Cover and cook until the clams and mussels begin to open, about 5 minutes. Add the shrimp and fish. Simmer gently until the fish and shrimp are just cooked through, and the clams are completely open, stirring gently, about 5 minutes longer (discard any clams and mussels that do not open). Season the soup, to taste, with more salt and pepper.

Divide pasta into 4 bowls and ladle the soup over the pasta into bowls. Top with Parmesan and a sprinkle of gremolata and serve.

My wife’s parents own a condo in Southwest Florida on a beautiful and quaint island. There is a restaurant that has been there since the 1930s called the Temptation or the “Temp” as the locals call it. The first time I went to the Temp, I ordered the hot crab dip, which in turn started a tradition of visiting the Temp every time we go to Florida and it always includes an order of their famous crab dip! I have tried to recreate the dip, and mine is good, but it seems like I’m still missing something. I think it is the salty air and the view of the sandy beaches!

INGREDIENTS

• 12 oz. crab meat from King Crab legs
• ½ cup minced onion
• ½ cup Hellman’s Mayonnaise
• ½ cup Daisy sour cream
• Juice of one lemon
• 3 tablespoons chili sauce
• 2 tablespoons brown mustard
• 1 heaping tablespoon horseradish
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 2 tablespoons plus 1 tablespoon finely grated Parmesan cheese
• Bread crumbs

PREPARATION

Mix the first 8 ingredients together in a large bowl. Stir in the 2 tablespoons Parmesan. Pour dip into an oven proof, shallow, baking dish. Lightly sprinkle top with some bread crumbs and remaining Parmesan. Bake at 375° for 15 to 20 minutes until lightly brown on top and bubbling. Serve with toast points.

My grandmother had a house on Fremont Avenue in the middle of Springfield and I used to love to go there for the weekend. One thing I could count on in the summer was fresh raspberries. She had a big vine in her backyard and we would pick them in the morning, then she would wash them and serve in china bowls with sugar and cream. This maybe kind of old school, but heavenly!

INGREDIENTS

• 1 pint of fresh raspberries
• ¼ cup of half-and-half
• 2 tablespoons sugar

PREPARATION

Split raspberries between two small bowls or glasses and pour some cream and sugar on top of each one. If desired, garnish with fresh mint.

I love tuna and the tuna we get at Food Pyramid is really wonderful. Some people may be concerned if a piece of fish has been previously frozen. With the technology available today, I think most of the best fish available is frozen; when thawed it tastes incredibly fresh. This recipe is a much healthier variation of a cream sauce I used to do and I actually like this one better.

Tuna should be cooked rare, medium rare tops. Cooking fresh tuna at anything over medium rare causes it to be dry and tough. If you have a difficult time eating rare fish I recommend substituting another fish instead, like grouper.

Serve fish with the grilled pineapple and the sauce. The combination of the sweet pineapple, tangy sauce and savory tuna is extraordinary!

In This Menu:

• Tuna with Grilled Pineapple
• Shrimp Cocktail
• Individual Caramel Pineapple Cake

Serves four

INGREDIENTS

• Four, 6 oz. portions of Ahi Tuna
• Juice of 3 oranges
• Juice of 2 limes
• 1 tablespoon minced, fresh ginger
• ½ teaspoon minced garlic
• 2 teaspoons dark, sesame oil
• ¼ cup Sweet Thai Chile Sauce (available in Asian section)
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 fresh pineapple
• Olive oil
• Salt and pepper

PREPARATION

Mix first seven ingredients in a small mixing bowl. Put tuna in a shallow dish and pour marinade over fish. Let fish marinate for one hour at room temperature.

While fish is marinating, cut the pineapple into ¾” thick slices. Brush pineapple with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill pineapple slices until they begin to caramelize and turn so that they have nice grill marks. Set aside.

When tuna is done, remove from marinade and pour the remaining marinade into a small saucepan and place on stove over medium heat. Bring to a boil and continue to boil until sauce begins to thicken, about 5 minutes. Grill tuna over a very hot fire for about 60 seconds per side or cook to desired temperature.

You have probably seen shrimp cocktails served this way, in a wine glass. The usual technique is to fill glass with a chiffonade (thin strips) of lettuce, topped with cocktail sauce and then to arrange the shrimp around the glass by hanging them on the rim. What I don’t like about this is that the lettuce goes to waste. With my version, after the shrimp is eaten, you can mix up the remaining cocktail sauce with the ranch coated lettuce and it tastes like Thousand Island dressing! Your kids might actually eat it.

Serves four

INGREDIENTS

• 24 shrimp, 35 to 40 size; cooked and de-veined
• 1 head of iceberg or red leaf lettuce
• 1/3 cup ranch dressing
• 1 lemon
• 4 large wine glasses

PREPARATION

Remove 24 shrimp from bag, place remaining shrimp back in freezer. Thaw shrimp under running, cold water. Cut the lettuce into very fine, thin strips and place in a large bowl. Toss lettuce with the ranch dressing. Divide lettuce among the glasses, filling to ½ inch from top. Pour about 2 tablespoons of the cocktail sauce over the lettuce in the glasses. Arrange the shrimp ¾ of the way around glass. Cut the lemon into quarters and make a little slice into each quarter. Place a lemon slice onto portion of glass not covered with shrimp. Serve immediately.

Individual desserts are all the rage, from cupcakes to soufflés, everyone likes having their “own” dessert. Here is my version of the classic using fresh (not canned) pineapple that is on sale this week. This is the first time I have made this and it was exceptional!

Makes 6 to 10 individual cakes

INGREDIENTS

• 1½ cup sugar
• ¼ cup water
• ¼ teaspoon lemon juice
• 1 box pineapple cake mix
• ½ cup toasted coconut
• 1 ripe pineapple, skin removed and cored
• Butter and sugar for ramekin
• Powdered sugar and mint for garnish (optional)

PREPARATION

Mix cake: Mix according to package directions. Add coconut and stir to blend well. Choose a ramekin or individual baking pan to do your cakes. I used a 10 oz. soufflé cup. If you don’t have individual baking dishes, you can use muffin tins or even a coffee cup.

Cut pineapple into ½” slices. Turn container over onto a pineapple slice. With a sharp knife, cut any excess pineapple off of the slice so that the round slice fits your container perfectly. Rub butter all over inside of pans. Put about a tablespoon of sugar inside pan and roll pan to cover sides with sugar, adding more sugar if needed.

Make the caramel: Place sugar in a small, heavy-bottomed saucepan. Stir in water and lemon juice and place over high heat. Bring to a boil and continue to boil until sugar just begins to turn brown.

Pour about 3 tablespoons of caramel into bottom of each pan. Add pineapple slice and add another tablespoon or so of the caramel to cover pineapple. If your caramel begins to harden, place back on heat until it is liquid again.

Fill pans to ¼” inch from top and bake at 350° for 30 to 45 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean. Let cake cool until easy to handle. Invert cake onto middle of a dessert plate. You can serve warm, cold, or room temperature. Garnish with powdered sugar and mint sprigs.