The Mardi Gras
Dinner
Saturday, February 5, 2005
18 guests
arrive at 6:00
Big Easy Tarts
Place Alligator Balls in Tart Cups, top each with ¼ tsp of sauce. Heat in 300 F oven 4 minutes. Serve hot.
Alligator Balls
3 lbs Fresh Alligator Tail Meat Chopped
3 Eggs
½ cup Finely Chopped Vidalia Onions
½ cup Finely Chopped Celery Hearts
½ cup Finely Chopped Shallots
¼ cup Finely Chopped Red Bell Peppers
3 tbs. Lemon Pepper
¾ cup Bread Crumbs
4 cups Vegetable oil
Combine all ingredients mixing well. Roll into 1" diameter balls, allow to set 1 hour. Heat vegetable oil to 350 F in deep fryer. Dredge balls in flour and fry until brown.
Tart Cups
2 sticks of Butter
2 cups All purpose Flour
6 ozs. Cream Cheese
Mix cream cheese, butter and flour in a glass bowl. Chill 30 minutes. Roll into walnut size balls. Using a 24 miniature muffin pan, press and shape dough balls into tiny pie crusts. Bake in 325 F oven for for 15 to 20 minutes or until golden brown.
Garlic Sauce
¼ stick of Butter
½ cup Heavy Cream
1 clove Finely Chopped Garlic
Pinch of White Pepper
Melt butter in pan adding cream slowly once butter bubbles. Sauté garlic in cream and butter, add pepper, cook over medium heat whisking slowly until smooth and garlic reduces.
2 ½ lbs Fresh Alligator Tail Meat
1 quart of Warm Beer
3 Eggs
½ cup Milk
¾ cup Cornmeal
¾ cup All purpose Flour
4 tbs Cajun Spice Blend
1 tbs Salt
1 quart Corn Oil
Puff Pastry Dough
Trim meat and remove sinew and slice in ½' wide pieces 2½' long. Marinate in beer 4 hours then drain juices. Grill meat quickly to seal in juices. And let drain and cool. Heat corn oil to 325 F. Mix flour, salt, cornmeal, and spices in one bowl. Beat eggs and milk 30 second with whisk in second bowl. Dip meat in egg mix then dredge in flour. Carefully drop in hot oil, cooking to light brown. Roll up in small squares of puff pastry or fillo dough. Bake at 360 F until Golden Brown. Serve hot.
2 ounces light rum
1 ounces lemon juice
4 ounces red passion fruit juice
Serve in a Hurricane glass filled with crushed ice and sippy straw. Garnish with orange slice and a cherry. Another pitcher of just the juice for the nondrinkers.
8 Chicken Leg and Thigh quarters
5 lbs Smoked Andouille Sausage
3 cups All Purpose Flour
3 cups Vegetable Oil
4 cups Finely Chopped Vidalia Onions
4 cups Finely Chopped Green Bell Peppers
3 cups Finely Chopped Celery Hearts
6 Garlic Toes Finely Chopped
1 Cup Cabernet Sauvignon
1 quart Tomato Sauce
¾ gallon Chicken Stock
¼ cup Cajun Seasoning Blend
¼ cup Louisiana Hot Sauce
4 tbs File Powder (Ground Sassafras)
Remove back portion from leg quarters, season with ½ Cajun blend, roast on double sided grill until skin is dark golden brown and crispy. Let cool, remove ½ of skin and discard. De-bone chicken and cut in 1" square pieces, set aside. Slice sausage into ¼" cuts, brown both sides in skillet, drain and combine with chicken meat. Heat oil in cast iron pot with sides at least 4" high until hot, not smoking. Carefully add in flour little at a time stirring with whisk slowly but constantly. Cook oil and flour to a peanut butter color roux. Reduce heat to medium high and continue stirring roux being careful not to burn roux or yourself. As roux gets medium reddish brown turn off heat and remove from burner and continue stirring for 5 minutes until roux is dark brown. Add onions, peppers and celery cooking until tender. Add wine and garlic stirring until blended well and let simmer 10 minutes. Add ½ gallon chicken stock stirring for 5 minutes. Add chicken and sausage and simmer in medium low heat for 2½ hours, stirring often. Add hot sauce, and file powder, stir and simmer 30 minutes. Serve hot as a soup or with steamed rice as an entrée.
1¼ cups Unsalted Butter, Chilled & Cubed
2½ cups Chopped Mayan Onions
4¼ cups Corn Meal
3 cups All Purpose Flour
½ cup White Sugar
2 tbs & 1½ tsp Baking Powder
1 tbs & ¾ tsp Salt
1¼ tsp Baking Soda
3¾ cups Buttermilk
7½ Eggs
3¾ cups Shredded Cheddar Jack Cheese
3¼ cups Canned Corn Drained
5 ozs Roasted Red Sweet Peppers
¼ cup Louisiana Pepper Sauce
Preheat oven to 400 F , butter muffin pans. Saute onion in 1 tsp butter 10 minutes, cool. Mix cornmeal, flour, baking powder, sugar, salt, baking soda, in large bowl. Add 7 tbs of butter and rub with fingertips until it’s like coarse meal. Whisk buttermilk & eggs in medium bowl to blend. Add this mixture to dry ingredients and stir until blended. Add buttermilk mixture to dry ingredients and stir until blended. Mix in cheese, corn, peppers and onions. Pour into muffin pans and bake for 20 minutes. Let cool on wire rack, remove with spatula and serve.
Whip 2 cups of butter, then incorporate 1 cup of honey
Torn Romaine Lettuce leaves
2 cups seasoned croutons
1 cup diced bacon
1 cup freshly grated parmesan
6 cups sliced ham
1 cup cooked red beans
3 egg yolks, beaten
lemon juice
1 cup olive oil
1 minced clove of garlic
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
2 tbsp Dijon mustard
2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
2 tbsp lemon juice
1 small tin anchovies in oil
On Friday:
Slice ham into small strips.
To make Caesar dressing, combine in a screw top jar; 3 egg yolks, 1 cup
of olive oil, 1 clove of garlic, 1/2 cup of balsamic vinegar, 2 tablespoons
of Dijon mustard, 2 tablespoon of Worcestershire sauce, anchovies and
their oil, and 2 table spoons of lemon juice. Shake well, and refrigerate
until needed.
On Saturday:
In a large salad bowl, mix the lettuce, croutons, beans, bacon and parmesan cheese, then dish out each serving on to the serving plates. Place the ham on top. Whiz in blender, then pour on the salad dressing and serve straight away so the lettuce stays crisp. Serves 9.
1 cup Vegetable Oil
1 cup All Purpose Flour
3 Finely Chopped Vadalia Onions
1 each Yellow, Red, Orange Bell Peppers
Cored and Julianne Cut.
1 bulb Garlic, Peeled and Crushed
2 cups Tomato Sauce
1 quart Shrimp Stock
3 cups White Zinfandel
6 Bay Leaves
1½ tbs Whole Thyme Leaves
¼ cup Louisiana Hot Sauce
1½ tbs Ground White Pepper
2 Bunches Green Onions Chopped
5 lbs Fresh Uncooked Peeled
25-30 Count Gulf Shrimp
(Reserve Shells for Stock)
¾ cup Fresh Chopped Parsley
1 quart Heavy Whipping Cream
Heat oil in cast iron pot and add flour. Whisk slowly but constantly so not to burn until the roux is the color of peanut butter. Take pot off burner and continue stirring with whisk for 5 minutes to relax roux cooking. Transfer roux to large stock pot, add vegetables and sauté on medium heat for about 10 minutes until tender. Stir in tomato sauce, wine and shrimp stock and stir constantly until mixture thickens. Add the remaining ingredients except shrimp and parsley and simmer covered for 45 minutes. Add shrimp and parsley, blend well and simmer uncovered for 20 minutes or until shrimp are just done. Serve over steaming rice.
5 lbs. Louisiana Yams
½ cup Bourbon
1lb Unsalted Butter
2 Large Oranges
1 ½ cups Brown Sugar
1 tbs Ground Cinnamon
1tbs Nutmeg
1 tbs Sorghum Molasses
3 tbs Honey
1 lb Roasted Pecans, Chopped
Boil potatoes until 3/4 done, let cool then remove skins. Dice into 1" cubes. Melt ½ stick of butter in two shallow baking pans. Put diced potatoes in pan single layered and coat them with butter. Liberally cover potatoes using 3/4 cup brown sugar. Sprinkle all of nutmeg and cinnamon evenly over potatoes put in 400F oven for 25 minutes. Take remainder of butter & brown sugar, add molasses, ¼ cup of bourbon and honey put in large pan on high heat stir until caramelized. Turn heat lower, squeeze in juice of orange into caramel and let bubble slowly and watching oven timer for potatoes. Take potatoes out and sprinkle pecans evenly over them, put remainder of bourbon and 1/4 cup of water in squeeze bottle. Drizzle bourbon water over potatoes. Working quickly, take a large warmed metal spoon and drizzle caramel over potatoes. Caramel will harden into glaze. Return to 350 F oven for 25 minutes. Serve on plate with entrée.
1 pkg. Active Dry Yeast
1½ cup Warm Water
½ cup Sugar
2 Eggs Beaten
1 cup Evaporated Milk (undiluted)
7 cups All Purpose Flour
¼ cup Soft Shortening
1 gallon Vegetable Oil for Frying
In a large mixing bowl sprinkle yeast over water, stir to dissolve. Add sugar eggs salt and milk. Blend with blender. Add 4 cups of flour, beat smooth. Add shortening and beat in remaining flour. Cover with plastic wrap and chill overnight. Roll out dough on floured board to 1/8" thick. Cut into 2½" squares. Deep fry at 360 F for 2-3 minutes until lightly browned on both sides. Drain on towel. Dust well on both side with powdered sugar and serve hot. To keep warm keep in oven in covered metal pan at 200 F.
4 ripe bananas -- chopped
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg
juice of 1 lemon
1/2 cup banana liqueur
1/2 cup good brandy
Melt butter in a skillet and add the brown sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg, stirring until the sugar is completely melted. Add the ripe bananas and cook until they are hot and well coated, but not mushy. Carefully pour in the banana liqueur and brandy. If the butter is very hot, they will flame on their own. If not, either: Cook over medium heat stirring until the alcohol cooks out. (Lowering the heat and stirring, it will not flame up, and the alcohol will cook out.) OR: Flame the liqueur and brandy in the pan with the bananas with a match and cook until the flame dies out and the alcohol is thus cooked out. Add the juice from the lemon and stir to incorporate. You can do ahead to this point and heat it later.
4 cups hot New Orleans Chicory Coffee
1-1/2 cups whole milk
1/2 cup heavy cream
Mix milk and cream together. Heat in a saucepan, bringing it just to a boil. Remove pan from heat. Using large coffee cups, fill 1/3 full with hot coffee. Add the hot milk and cream mixture until cups are two-thirds full. Serve immediately.