Seasons {Cajun Pork Roast}

Do you eat "with the season?"

So much is accessible so much of the time.  We can have practically anything we want any time we want.

But when there's a chill in the air as I crawl out of my warm bed...
when there's not much daylight between getting off of work and super time,

slow-cooked, gravy-heavy meals are what I want.

Cajun Pork Roast is Cajun food at it's best.  

Served with another fall favorite: Vegetable Au Gratin

Pork seasoned from the inside out with our usual onion-bell pepper-celery-garlic trinity plus one
Slow cooked in a roux-based, luscious, velvety gravy
All of it set on top of a bed of rice

'Tis the season.

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Cajun Pork Roast
inspired by Donald Link's Smothered Pork Roast

1 7 lb pork roast
1 bell pepper, chopped and divided
2 onions, chopped and divided
1 large rib celery, chopped and divided
8 cloves garlic, chopped and divided
Tony's Creole Seasoning, to taste
salt and black pepper, to taste
2 Tbsp vegetable oil
1 stick butter
1/2 cup flour
3 Tbsp thyme leaves (fresh)
2 Tbsp dried rosemary, crushed
cooked rice

Set aside 1/4 of the chopped bell pepper, about 1/8 of the chopped onion, 1/2 of the chopped celery, and 1/4 of the chopped garlic and place on a cutting board.  Season with Tony's, salt, and black pepper to taste.  Chop the vegetables and seasonings, working your knife through them until they are chopped very finely.  With a paring knife, cut slits in the roast.  Work the vegetable/seasoning mixture into the slits with your fingers.  Let sit for 30 minutes at room temperature.

Meanwhile, heat the vegetable oil on med-high in a large dutch oven.  When hot, sear the roast on all sides until deeply browned.  Remove the roast from the pot.

Lower the heat to med-low and add the butter.  When melted and foamy, sprinkle in the flour.  Cook and stir, making a roux the color of a penny.

Mix the chopped vegetables into the roux.  Cook until they are tender.  Stir in about 4 cups of water and season to taste with salt, black pepper, and Tony's.  Bring to a simmer.  Place the roast back in the pot, cover, and simmer for 3 hours.  Spoon some of the sauce over the roast ever 1/2 hour.

Spoon some of the gravy over a mound of rice.  Top with a spoonful of falling-apart pork roast.

 Cajun & Creole Pork Recipes...

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My Kind of Festival Food {Creamy Shrimp & Grits w/ Andouille}

Spring is "Festival Season" in Louisiana.  The Holidays are done.  Mardi Gras is over.  The temperatures and humidity levels are still bearable.  People have the time and motivation to get out and enjoy festival music and food.

Like one of my favorite festival foods: Shrimp & Grits.

 Of course, Fall is also considered "Festival Season" and we have festivals year round.  When you have a festival for everything under the sun, it's hard to pack everything into just the Spring months.

We don't go to every festival out there, but we try to make a few every year.  Apparently, we've been doing it for a long time.

At the Kolache Festival in Caldwell, Texas, 2002.

That baby is now 12.

~*~*~*~*~*~

Many festivals focus on a certain type of food.  If that's the case, I feel obligated to eat that food item while I'm there.

But I'm always drawn to Shrimp & Grits.  There are many variations--I like trying them all.

Next week, I'll have a Creole version for you.  Today, it's one of my biggest weaknesses: a creamy sauce.

And lots of green onions.
Because that's how I roll.
In piles of green onion.

I could eat grits every day.  The Boy not so much.  If you don't eat grits (and, really, what's wrong with you?), this is also good over pasta.

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Creamy Shrimp & Grits (w/ Andouille)

1/2 TBSP olive oil
8 oz button mushrooms, sliced
1/2 lb andouille sausage, cubed
1/2 medium onion, chopped or sliced
1/2 green bell pepper, chopped or sliced
1 large clove garlic, minced
1 TBSP flour
1/2 lb small-medium shrimp
salt, black pepper, cayenne pepper, to taste
3/4 c half and half
1/2 cup sliced green onion, divided

Add olive oil to a large skillet set on medium high heat.  When the pan and oil are very hot, add the mushrooms and sear until well browned and the mushrooms no longer give off liquid.  Remove from the pan.

Lower the heat to medium and add the andouille.    Saute until the sausage begins to brown in spots, about 5-7 minutes. Then add the onion and bell pepper.  Saute until the vegetables have softened, about 10 minutes.  Add the mushrooms back to the pan along with the garlic.  Cook for about 1 minute.  Sprinkle in the flour and add the shrimp to the pan.  Season to taste with salt, black pepper, and cayenne.  Cook, stirring, for about 6-8 minutes until the shrimp are no longer pink.

Slowly pour in the half and half, stirring to incorporate.  Add half of the green onions.  Simmer for about 10 minutes to thicken.  (Make the grits while the sauce simmers).  Serve over grits and top with the remaining green onions.  Serves 4.

For the grits:

olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 c chicken broth
salt and pepper, to taste
1 c grits
1 c grated cheese

Add a splash of olive oil to a saucepan.  Briefly saute the garlic until fragrant.  Add the chicken broth and season to taste with salt and pepper (grits need a fair amount of salt).  Bring to a boil and whisk in the grits.  Simmer until grits are tender.  Remove from heat and stir in the cheese.



Some June Festivals in Louisiana:
The Buggy Festival of Church Point, LA
French Market Creole Tomato Festival, New Orleans, LA
Louisiana Cajun-Zydeco Festival, New Orleans, LA
Louisiana Catfish Festival, Des Allemands, LA
Le Festival de la Viande Boucanee (Smoked Meat Festival), Ville Platte, LA
Beauregard Watermelon Festival, DeRidder, LA
Louisiana Peach Festival, Ruston, LA

More Grits...

In the Past...

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Breakfast for Dinner {Breakfast Hash}

I plan our meals a week at a time and also shop for the week ahead.  That's about as much as I can handle on one shopping trip, otherwise I get squinky.

And that ain't pretty.

Sometimes even planning a week of meals fries my brain.  You'd think that I'd have a huge, outrageously long list of food to try.

And, well, I do.

But you don't think I actually use it, do you?
Most of the time I have no clue what to cook.

Nights like that usually call for Breakfast for Dinner.
You know, Brinner.

It's easy, cheap, and full of lots of possibilities.
Sweet like pancakes or Pain Perdu.
Or savory like this Breakfast Hash from Nigel Slater.

Served with a fruit salad, this made made a filling and easy (breakfast for) dinner.

Slater uses "herby sausages."  I used 1/2 pound of breakfast sausage.  He cracks eggs over the hash, making them sort of a cross between poached and fried.  Or at least I imagine.  I don't eat runny eggs.  So my hash had scrambled on top.

With hot sauce on top of that.

Here's the original recipe.

My version:

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Breakfast Hash
adapted from Nigel Slater

1 Tbsp olive oil
3 Tbsp butter
1/2 lb breakfast sausage (I used hot)
1/2 tsp ground sage
1 onion, sliced
1 large Irish potato, including skin
2-3 eggs
hot sauce
1 Tbsp chopped parsley

Add the oil and butter to a skillet.  Heat over medium.  When the butter gets foamy, add the sausage and sage.  Brown, breaking the meat up as it cooks.  Add the onion and stir to combine.

Meanwhile, grate the potato onto a clean dishtowel.  Wrap the grated potato in the towel and squeeze the water out over the sink.

When the sausage has completely browned and the onion has softened, add in the potato.  Cook, stirring occasionally, until the potato has softened.

While the potato cooks, scramble the eggs.  Top the hash with the eggs, shake on some hot sauce, sprinkle on the parsley, and serve.



This post is part of I Heart Cooking Clubs Weeknight Favorites.