Cajun Chef Ryan - Feeling & sharing a world of cooking ~ more than your average Cajun

Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies

October 7th, 2009 · 13 Comments

This is a recipe for wonderful little cookie bites that utilize the simple cookie batter technique of creaming the butter and sugar then adding the cocoa and egg and finishing with the dry ingredients. Tiny scoops of these baked for just 14 minutes and before you know it, you have about 40 tiny cookie morsels with melted chocolate chips inside.

Got milk?

For those following a Weight Watcher plan they are only 1 point each. Monique found this one in the Weight Watchers Annual Recipes for Success 2003 issue on page 54 in the Desserts section. Click on image to view these and the Spice cookies, the recipe for those I will feature tomorrow. These cookies were a part of the dessert treats at the hosted jewelry party Monday evening.

For our particular preparation of this recipe, we used Hershey’s Special Dark cocoa, which really adds a great dimension to the double chocolate treats. In addition, instead of using two egg whites, we used just one whole egg, and not sure if this alters the WW points factor. The original recipe calls for baking of 10 minutes; we found this too short a time and added an additional 4 minutes to our liking. You may need to adjust your baking time depending on your oven too. Ingredient substitutions noted in the ingredients section below.

Ingredients
1	Cup	All-purpose flour
¼	Tsp	Baking soda
1/8	Tsp	Salt
¼	Cup	Butter, softened
½	Cup	Dark brown sugar, firm packed
½	Cup	Granulated sugar
1/3	Cup	Cocoa, unsweetened (Hershey’s Special Dark)
2	Lg	Egg whites (One large egg)
1/3	Cup	Chocolate mini-chips, semisweet
		Cooking spray

Procedure Steps
1.	Preheat oven to 350° F.
2.	Lightly spoon flour into a dry measuring cup then level with a knife; then combine it with the baking soda and salt in a large mixing bowl.
3.	Beat the butter and brown sugar with the whip attachment in a mixer until light and fluffy, then gradually add the granulated sugar and continue to beat well. Add the cocoa and eggs and continue to beat until well incorporated. Gradually add the dry ingredients and beat until blended. Stir in the chocolate chips.
4.	Scoop or spoon teaspoonfuls of the cookie dough onto a baking pan that has been lightly coated with the cooking spray be sure the dough is about 1 ½ inches apart, this will allow room for them to spread while baking.
5.	Bake in the preheated oven at 350° F for 10 – 14 minutes or until done. Allow to cool on pans for a few minutes or until firm and then transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely. Transfer to an airtight storage container.


Click on images for a larger view.

→ 13 CommentsTags: Baking · cookies · Desserts · Recipes · Weight Watchers

Broccoli Bites

October 6th, 2009 · 11 Comments

Yield: 30 large bites, or 60 small bites

These broccoli bites are a standout favorite and have a devoted following at many restaurants, Copeland’s of New Orleans in particular serves what they call their Bayou Broccoli appetizer. This recipe is a close facsimile of the original served since 1983 at the restaurant chain made famous by Al Copeland himself. I made these last night as part of Monique’s hosted Jewelry Party show, everyone loved them and now you can make them at home too! They are the perfect hot appetizer for any occasion, and keep well for pre-service storage in a low temperature warmer cabinet at around 145° F. Click on image.

The recipe ingredients call for finished product weights, for example, the one pound of broccoli florets is the weight after the blanching and chilling, not before the initial cooking steps. Same for the bacon, the one pound of bacon chopped is the specified weight after crisped and chopped, not before cooking. If the weights taken for the broccoli and bacon prior to the blanching for the broccoli or the crisping for the bacon, the resulting yields will be less and will ensure a different outcome in the final product. Just be sure that the broccoli and bacon are weighted just before added them to the cheese mixture in step 4 of the procedures.

Ingredients
1	Lb.	Monterey Jack cheese, finely shredded
½	Lb.	Colby cheese, finely shredded
½	Lb.	Cheddar cheese, finely shredded
1	Lb.	Broccoli florets, (Approx 1 ¼ lb uncooked)
1	Lb.	Crisped bacon, (Approx. 1 ½ lb uncooked)
½	Tsp	Sea salt, fine grind
½	Tsp	White pepper
2	Cups	Seasoned flour ( 2 cups flour, 2 Tbsp Cajun Spice blend)
1 ½	Cups	Egg wash ( 3 to 4 eggs and 1 cup water whipped)
2	Cups	Breadcrumbs
1/2	Gal	Frying oil

Procedure steps
1.	Combine and mix the three finely shredded cheeses into a large bowl.
2.	Blanch broccoli florets in boiling water. Remove from water and chill in ice bath to stop cooking. Drain well and then chop into ¼” pieces. Measure 1 pound of the prepared broccoli.
3.	Cook bacon in oven until crisp. Drain grease well and chop into ¼” pieces. Chill well. Measure 1 pound of chopped bacon.
4.	Combine the cheese, cooled chopped broccoli (1 lb) and cooled chopped bacon (1 lb) in a large container, again, being sure each item is cool to prevent lumping. Add the sea salt and white pepper and mix well.
5.	Larger sized portions will weight 2 ounces, for smaller sized portions weight them to 1 ounce each. Portion tightly using your hands to form golf ball size or smaller balls rolling each portion into a tight ball, then place on a sheet pan, cover and refrigerate for several hours.
6.	When ready for service have fryer ready with the frying oil and set to 350° F. Bread 6 broccoli balls in the flour, egg wash, then breadcrumbs and then deep fry until golden brown, or about 2 – 4 minutes. A small batch ensures they will get an even frying and maintain the fryer temperature for most home fryer models.
7.	Serve on a small round plate or platter with a side of Tiger sauce for dipping.

Tiger Sauce
Yield: 1 ½ cups

Ingredients
1	Tbsp	Cajun Spice Blend
2	Tbsp	White vinegar
6	Tbsp	Horseradish, prepared
1	Cup	Mayonnaise
½	Tsp	Worcestershire sauce

Procedure Steps
1.	In a small bowl, combine the Cajun spice blend with the white vinegar until dissolved.
2.	Fold in the prepared horseradish, mayonnaise and Worcestershire until well mixed.
3.	Cover and store in refrigerator until ready for use.

→ 11 CommentsTags: Appetizers · Recipes

Monkey Bread

October 5th, 2009 · 19 Comments

My friend and associate at work Liz Cheek and I often talk about food and cooking, especially when we recap our weekends at the beginning of the week. One such Monday she mentioned a Monkey Bread that consists of refrigerated biscuit dough rolled into small balls and coated with butter and spices then layered in a Bundt pan and baked until done. (Note: Click on image for a larger view). Her version is served for breakfast or dessert and has cinnamon and sugar mixed with nuts instead of the savory version I have posted.

While reading an old copy of the Taste of Home healthy Cooking magazine in the December/January 2009 issue I found a recipe for a made from scratch Herbed Monkey Bread on page 41, which was submitted to the periodical by Joan Hallford of North Richland Hills, Texas. I took Joan’s recipe and modified it just a bit and this is my version to share with you today. It came out quite good and we are serving as our bread with some Turkey Chili.

Ingredients
3	Cups	All-purpose flour, divided
2	Tbsp	Sugar
1	Tsp	Sea salt, fine grind
1	Package	Active dry yeast (1/4 ounce)
1 ¼	Cup	Milk
2	Tbsp	Olive oil
4	Tbsp	Butter, melted, divided
1	Large	Egg
1/4	Cup	Parmesan cheese, fresh grated
2	Tbsp	Sesame seeds, toasted
2	Tsp	Garlic salt
2	Tsp	Smoky paprika

Procedure Steps
1.	In a large stainless steel bowl, combine 2 cups flour, the sugar, salt and the yeast.
2.	In a small sauce pan combine the milk with the olive oil and ½ of the butter and heat to 130° F.
3.	Add the warm milk mixture to the dry ingredients and mix until just moistened. Add the egg and mix until smooth. Then mix in enough of the remaining flour to form soft but not too wet dough.
4.	Lightly flour a counter top or surface, turn out the dough, and knead until smooth and elastic for 5 – 6 minutes, adding more flour to keep the dough from sticking.
5.	Place the dough into a bowl coated with butter or cooking spray, turn the dough to coat the entire surface. Loosely cover the bowl with a clean kitchen towel and keep in a warm non-drafty location for 1 hour, or until dough doubles in size. Typically, an oven or holding warmer set between 140° to 170° works well.
6.	While the dough is rising, combine the parmesan cheese, sesame seeds, garlic salt and smoky paprika in a small bowl and reserve for later use.
7.	Once dough has double in size punch it down and then cut into 30 small pieces and roll each into a ball shape. Be sure to pre-heat oven now to 350° F.
8.	Coat the inside of a Bundt pan with butter or cooking spray and then gently roll each dough ball in the cheese mixture then add them into the pan in a layered fashion.
9.	Drizzle the remaining melted butter on top of the dough and sprinkle any remaining cheese mixture.
10.	Bake at 350° F for 35 minutes or until golden brown. Cool for a few minutes before removing from the pan and allow continued cooling on a wire rack.

→ 19 CommentsTags: Bread · Recipes

Garlic and Herb Roasted Chicken

October 2nd, 2009 · 1 Comment

Yield: 8 portions

This dish results in a quick, easy and quite tasty chicken breast, the recipe highlights butter and garlic for a “batter” and Panko breadcrumbs with Italian seasonings and three cheeses for a breading, then it is finished in the oven for a perfectly roasted delight. Served with rice and green beans for sides our meal last night was on the table in less than an hour from prep to dining.

Similar to a scaloppini style the chicken breasts cut into thin portions, which allow them to benefit from a shorter cooking time. The preparation techniques are a slight modification from typically prepared pan sautéed chicken or veal scaloppini, which can utilize a combination of flour and or an egg wash coating, or just seasoned flour then seared in a hot pan with either clarified butter or olive oil and then finished in the oven. This recipe uses the butter garlic mixture to coat the chicken breast in place of an egg wash and then roasted in the oven instead of the pan sauté method.

As an option and in addition, for a true scaloppini the meat is pounded even thinner to smaller than a ¼-inch thickness, I’ve omitted this step, however, if you wish the chicken breasts can be gently pounded even thinner after the cutting and then proceed with the recipe. Typically, scaloppini portions are so thin that chefs will say you should be able to see through the slices, of course this is an exaggeration, but the point is for a true scaloppini the portions are to be as thin as possible. Note: Click on images for a larger view.

Ingredients
4	each	Boneless, skinless chicken breasts, 4 ounces each, cut
4	Tbsp	Butter, melted
½	Tbsp	Fresh lemon juice
1	Tsp	Worcestershire sauce
1	Tsp	Garlic powder, divided
½	Tsp	Garlic salt
5	Cloves	Garlic, minced
½	Tsp	Fresh ground black pepper
1 ½	Cups	Panko breadcrumbs
1	Tbsp	Parmesan cheese, fresh grated
2	Tbsp	Sharp cheddar cheese, fresh grated
2	Tbsp	Mozzarella cheese, fresh grated
1	Tbsp	Italian seasoning blend
½	Tsp	Barbecue rub mix, (I used my Finger Lickin’ Rub)
		Non-stick cooking spray

Procedure Steps Note: Preheat oven to 375° F.
1.	Rinse under cool water and pat dry the chicken breasts, then laying flat on a cutting board cut each breast in half to form 8 thin portions. These are similar to scaloppini style portions.
2.	In a small bowl melt the butter in microwave for 20 to 30 seconds, and then add the lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, ½ tsp garlic powder, garlic salt, minced garlic and fresh ground black pepper. Stir well.
3.	In a shallow pan, combine the Panko breadcrumbs with the parmesan cheese, cheddar cheese, mozzarella cheese, Italian seasoning and the rub spice mix. Combine well.
4.	Coat a baking sheet pan with the non-stock cooking spray. Coat the chicken breast in the butter garlic mixture then dredge the chicken breasts in the breadcrumb mixture making sure an even coating adheres well, and then transfer to the baking pan. Top the chicken breasts with the remaining breadcrumb mixture.
5.	Roast in the 375° F oven for 30 minutes or until golden brown and chicken is cooked through.