World Cup Salute to the USA

I did not do an American recipe as I didn't want to jinx our men. But now that their World Cup 2010 appearance has entered into the history books, it's time to salute them. Great job men. You rocked it right up to the last second. This dish is for you!

What is a truly American dish? This is a much more difficult question to answer than I originally thought. Being a nation of immigrants, most of our traditional foods have roots in another country. If you don't believe me, check out the American cooking suggestions at Epicurious and read the comments. 

After some searching, I settled on making Jambalaya and corn bread. Is this a truly American dinner? Heck, I don't know. But it sounds good so I'm operating under the threat of a potential yellow card.

Andouille and Chicken Jambalaya

If you're looking for a Jambalaya recipe who would you turn to but Emeril. I found this recipe at emerils.com. Emeril's recipe serves 12. I cut it in half. I don't need 10 servings of Jambalaya lurking in the back of the refridgerator planning my demise.

The ingredients: rice, chicken, andouille sausage, chicken, onion, pepper, cayenne and bay leaves. Yes, I know those aren't andouille sausages. Due to a run on andouille at Whole Foods, I settled for spicy Italian sausage.

First heat a splash of vegetable oil in a dutch oven. Then add onions, bell peppers, a teaspoon of salt and a half of teaspoon of cayenne. Emeril says to use a cast iron dutch oven. I think what he really means is a Le Creuset dutch oven. He has one in every color. I bet the people at Le Creuset give him one every time he uses one on t.v. I would love a Le Creuset dutch oven. But I'd have to make the choice of buying the oven or buying food. Food wins every time. I used my good old aluminum dutch oven that my Mom gave me years ago. 

Yes, this is more than a half teaspoon of cayenne. I wanted it a little hotter. 

Brown the onions and peppers until they are carmamelized. The add the sliced sausage and cook for about 10 minutes.

Cut the chicken into 1 inch pieces, season with some salt and cayenne and add to the pot.

Brown the chicken for 10 minutes. Then stir in the rice. Add water and cover. Cook over medium heat for 30-35 minutes. Remove from heat and let sit in the covered pan for another 2-3 minutes. The lift the lid and let that spicy sweet steam greet your nose. It smells divine. Toss some chopped green onions on top and dinner is served.

The original recipe is at the bottom of this page.

Jalapeño Cornbread

I love cornbread. I would eat it at every meal if I could. My recipe file contains a number of different recipes. I use whatever one fits my mood at the moment. Today was definitely a jalapeño cornbread day. I have no idea where I originally got this recipe. If it is from you, let me know so I can give you credit. You deserve it. This stuff is ridiculous.

Ingredients: Corn meal, whole wheat flour, white flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, eggs, pepper, frozen corn, creamed corn, sour cream, eggs and diced jalapeños.

Mix the wet ingredients, corn, creamed corn and the jalapeños and the dry ingredients separately.

Then slowly add the wet mixture to the dry mixture. My t-shirt is not dirty. I can't seem to wash a measuring cup without splashing water all over myself.

Stir ingredients until just moist. Don't over stir. Pour into a greased 9X9 baking dish.

Bake for 30-35 minutes at 400 until a knife comes out clean.This cornbread is very moist. It's almost like eating a muffin. One that's loaded with jalapeños.

And here's our finished American meal.

Ok, that doesn't look all that appetizing. I have to work on the lighting in my kitchen. And my garnishing. And my choice of plates. But I don't have to work on my cooking. This was fabulous!

Andouille and Chicken Jambalaya

1/2 cup vegetable oil

3 cups chopped onions

1 cup chopped bell peppers

3 teaspoons salt

1 1/4 teaspoons cayenne

1 pound andouille, chorizo, or other smoked sausage, cut crosswise into 1/4-inch slices

1 1/2 pounds boneless white and dark chicken meat, cut into 1-inch cubes

3 bay leaves

3 cups medium-grain white rice

6 cups water

1 cup chopped green onions

Heat the oil in a large cast-iron Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onions, bell peppers, 2 teaspoons of the salt, and 1 teaspoon of the cayenne. Stirring often, brown the vegetables for about 20 minutes, or until they are caramelized and dark brown in color. Scrape the bottom and sides of the pot to loosen any browned particles. Add the sausage and cook, stirring often for 10 to 15 minutes, scraping the bottom and sides of the pot to loosen any browned particles.
 
Season the chicken with the remaining 1 teaspoon salt and remaining 1/4 teaspoon cayenne. Add the chicken and the bay leaves to the pot. Brown the chicken for 8 to 10 minutes, scraping the bottom of the pot to loosen any browned particles.
 
Add the rice and stir for 2 to 3 minutes to coat evenly. Add the water, stir to combine, and cover. Cook over medium heat for 30 to 35 minutes, without stirring, or until the rice is tender and the liquid has been absorbed. Remove the pot from the heat and let stand, covered, for 2 to 3 minutes. Remove the bay leaves.
 
Stir in the green onions and serve.
 
Yield: 10 to 12 servings

Jalapeño Corn Bread 

1 c. yellow cornmeal

¾ c. all purpose flour

¼ c. whole wheat four

1 t. baking powder

¾ t. salt

½ t. baking soda

Black pepper to taste

1 c. cream style corn

½ c. corn kernels

½ c. sour lean

½ c. milk

2 eggs, slightly beaten

1 t.  packed brown sugar

2 minced jalapeno peppers

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Butter an 8-inch square baking pan.
2. Toss dry ingredients together in a mixing bowl
3. In another bowl, stir the creamed corn and remaining ingredients together until smooth. 
4. Add half the liquid mixture to the dry mixture stirring until just blended. Add remaining liquid mixture, stirring again until just blended.
5. Poor batter into prepared pan.
6. Bake until top is golden brown and knife inserted in center comes out clean.  About 25 minutes.
7. Cools slightly in pan before cutting into squares.

Your reward for reading all the way to the end.

Dutch Oven Porn.