Quote

"The good you do today may be forgotten
tomorrow. Do good anyway." - Mother Theresa



Photo by Julie, Dave & Family @ flickr

Recipe - Dennys MINI Louisiana Lyon Oven Pancake

Dennys MINI Louisiana Lyon Oven Pancake - fabulous easy recipe for a quick light meal for two! Add bacon or sausage as a side.

We Believe In Santa

We Believe In Santa - great fun article with loads and loads of Santa photos from the great photography enthusiasts over at flickr. You can join for free the We Believe In Santa worldwide fan club and spread some goodwill this season!

Photo by Weaselmcfee @ flickr

Foods We Love to Hate: Knowing Why

Foods We Love to Hate: Knowing Why - Why do we hate certain foods? Have you ever considered what foods you hate and why you hate them? There may be more to it than finicky tastebuds. This is part one in a series of articles about food dislikes.

Photo by Vin Crosbie @ flickr

Recipe - Dennys Oatmeal Pancakes with Cherries

Dennys Oatmeal Pancakes with Cherries



Heart-healthy, easy to make and vegetarian!


Here is a wonderful and hearty recipe for cold weather days - and lazy Sundays! This recipe is heart-healthy with lots of oatmeal, cherries for the mineral iron and buttermilk as the American version of yogurt.

Photo by Denny Lyon

Note from Denny

Healthy Alternatives

For some time now I've been tweaking all my recipes and any new ones that come along. Too often I find they contain more sweetener than needed or too much refined sugar. Low or no gluten is high on my list but not at the expense of satisfying taste. There is that line that can be crossed where applesauce is a lousy substitute for a quality oil, soy milk ruins chocolate taste and artificial sweeteners are bitter or too intense for the digestion system compared to less of refined sugar.

All you have to do is sit back and relax while I peruse my outrageous cookbook collection, gleaning some great ideas, offering you different ways to think about yesterday's food in today's world!

Recipe - Vegetarian Cornbread

Dennys Low Gluten Southern Cornbread - This is very low-gluten and wonderfully moist and satisfying. White corn meal cornbread is lighter than yellow. Fast and easy for beginner cooks! Vegetarian too!

Photo by Denny Lyon - from my kitchen to yours!

Recipe - Oven Pancake

Dennys Louisiana Lyon Oven Pancake - Vegetarian! Great for a quick supper or brunch with a minimum of fuss mixed in one bowl and baked in one pan - and this pancake is long on presentation! This is a version of the Dutch baby oven pancake. The only sugar in the recipe is if you serve it with powdered sugar. High in protein and very filling, it is about 400 calories if served to only two people - so no need to add sausage or bacon.

Summary:
heat your pan in the oven before you begin mixing,
melt the butter in the pan until bubbling,
pour in the batter and
let the beauty rise to the occasion in the oven,
bake about 20 - 25 minutes.
serve with lemon wedges and powdered sugar.

WARNING: Can be addicting!

Recipe - Chocolate Bread Pudding

Dennys Dark Chocolate Bread Pudding and Sauces

This recipe is not so rich, full of calories or excess sugar so you can savor the chocolate! Easy to mix up by hand. Great for holiday menus or the novice cook. Serves about 8 - 10.

This is my own version developed 9 November 2008.

Less rich version with a lot less sugar, exploding with enough chocolate flavor to drown in it!

Recipe: Crawfish Pie

Can I tell you just how popular crawfish pies are here in Louisiana? Everyone loves them! AND they are easy to make! Don't have crawfish available in your area? Not to worry - substitute a favorite fish or combination of fish and frozen shrimp. Louisiana is all about getting creative and not breaking the bank or emptying the wallet to eat well. Enjoy!

If you don't own any of the editions from I to IV River Road Recipes cookbook series, you can purchase one over at Amazon.com or Barnes & Noble. The first edition still remains popular after decades in print. The cookbooks come from The Junior League and all proceeds go to charities in the community. These cookbooks are practically the local food bibles for comfort cooking here in Louisiana. You won't be disappointed!

Make sure you watch the Scott Hargrove video, link to YouTube posted is at the end of the recipes, as he is easy to follow, a likable instructor and he has yet another version of this delicious easy recipe. He also shows you how to make your own pastry.

***

Crawfish Pie from the Baton Rouge, Louisiana beloved world renown cookbook series: River Road Recipes cookbooks.

This is from River Road Recipes IV: Warm Welcomes.

Makes 3 (9-inch) pies to serve 18.


Ingredients:


1 1/2 cups chopped onions

1 1/2 cups chopped celery

6 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter

1 (10 3/4 oz.) can of cream of mushroom soup

1 (12 oz.) can evaporated milk

2 Tablespoons cold water

2 teaspoons cornstarch

1/2 cup chopped green onions

1 bunch parsley, trimmed and chopped or minced

3 lbs. Louisiana crawfish tails

8 ozx. Parmesand cheese, grated

salt and pepper to taste

6 refrigerator pie pastries


Directions:


Saute onions, celery and garlic in the butter in a large saucepan until the vegetables are tender. Stir in the soup and evaporated milk. Mix the cold water and cornstarch in a small bowl and stir into the soup mixture.

Add the green onions, parsley and crawfish and mix well. Cook over medium heat for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in the cheese, salt and pepper.

Line 3 (9-inch) pie plates with 3 of the pastries. Spoon the crawfish mixture evenly into the 3 pastry-lined pie plates. Top with the remaining pastries, fluting the edges and cutting vents.

Bake in a 350-degree F. oven for 30 minutes or until light brown. Let stand for 15 minutes before serving. You may prepare, bake in advance and freeze for future use. Reheat at 325-degrees F. for 25 minutes or until heated through.


Second version of Crawfish Pie


From the restaurant Oysterella's

Crawfish Pie


1 lb butter

1 red bell pepper

1 green bell pepper

1 onion, diced

1/4 Tasso ham, diced

1 cup white wine

1 lb crawfish tail meat


Add 1/2 cup flour

2 quarts heavy cream

1 Russet potato, peeled and blanched

3/4 cup frozen or fresh peas

1 cup carrots, peeled and blanched

Seasoning:

Cayenne pepper TT (TT = to taste)

Salt TT

Black pepper TT

1 Tablespoon Tabassco

2 Tablespoon Worchestershire Sauce


Melt butter and saute red and green peppers.

Add yellow onion.

Add Taso and crawfish tail meat.

Deglaze with white wine.

Whisk in flour slowly so lumps do not form.

Add in 2 qts. heavy cream.

Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Add two tablespoons Worchestersire sauce and one tablespoon Tabasco. All to thicken. Ladle into oven safe crock or cooking dish.

Lay puff pastry on top of dish. Cut off excess. Brush pastry with egg wash.

Place into 375 convection oven and cook for ten minutes.

***

Two videos:

Scott Hargrove, really great guy, different recipe than here and easy to read superimposed on the screen as he instructs - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cDcP7V2elbM&feature=PlayList&p=58E014BAC3D81DEE&playnext=1&index=6

AND

From WKRG.com is a demonstration for Oysterella's chef - http://www.wkrg.com/recipes/recipe/crawfish_pie/19931/