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Recipes From Sarah Savoy And The Francadians

Jambalaya

When teaching a French restaurant to make jambalaya, one of the cooks stated the obvious, which had been escaping me for a while. "It's like paella! Easy!" Actually, that probably explains where this dish came from-Louisiana's Spanish settlers-as well as why Louisiana's most popular Jambalaya Cooking Championship takes place in a little town called Gonzales. The only trick to making this is to really take the time to glaze and deglaze the pot repeatedly. You can cook the meat for an hour this way if you really want the best texture, most flavor, and richest color for your jambalaya. You do, don't you?

Ingredients:

• 1 whole chicken, cut up (legs, thighs, wings, breasts halved)
• 2 Tbsp peanut or vegetable oil
• 1 kilo spicy smoked pork sausage, sliced (or 3/4 kilo sausage and 1/4 kilo tasso or smoked, very lean bacon)
• 2 onions, chopped
• 1 green bell pepper, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, diced
• 2 cups of rice
• 1 tsp salt
• black pepper
• cayenne pepper
• 1 small bunch of green onions, sliced

Method:
In a heavy pot with a lid, over a medium-high flame, brown the chicken in the oil. When golden, add the sausage (and tasso, if using) and cook anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour, regularly pouring a small amount of cold water into the pot and scraping the bottom of the pot well.
Once the meat has cooked down and the drippings have reached a deep brown color, pour off the fat and keep the drippings.
Add the vegetables and cook until soft.
Add the rice. Add water until the rice is approximately two centimeters under the water level. Stir well.
Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low when the water cooks off enough to expose the top of the rice.
Cover and cook until rice is soft, about 17 minutes.
Top each serving with green onions.

Tasso is a seasoned, smoked piece of beef common in Louisiana. Smoked, chopped bacon can be substituted and works nicely, although you may want to reduce the amount of salt used in this recipe.

Shrimp Etouffee

Many people make shrimp etouffee with a roux, which makes it a much heavier meal. Dad likes to make it without, allowing the flavor of the shrimp to really dominate the dish. This is his recipe.

Ingredients:

• 100 ml vegetable oil
• 1 kg 36/40 shrimp, peeled and deveined (preferably fresh, never frozen)
• 1 tbsp flour
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1/2 green bell pepper, chopped
• 3 tbsp minced garlic
• 1 tbsp butter
• 240 ml tomato sauce
• 140 ml water
• 1/ small bunch green onion tops, thinly sliced
• 3 tbsp parsley, minced
• Salt, black pepper, cayenne pepper

Method:
Heat the oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium-high heat.
Add the shrimp and season well.
Cook, stirring frequently, for 10 minutes or until the shrimp reach a nicely browned color.
Add flour and mix in thoroughly.
Add the onion, bell pepper, garlic, green onions, parsley, and butter. Cook for 10 minutes, stirring frequently.
Add the tomato sauce and cook 5 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer 5 minutes.

Serve over steamed white, long grain rice.

Sweet Potato Pie

Ingredients:

• One 450g sweet potato
• 115g butter, softened
• 225g white sugar
• 120ml milk
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• Dash of allspice
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Method:
Preheat oven to 175°C
Boil the sweet potato whole, unpeeled, for 40-50 minutes or until very tender. Put it under cold water and remove the skin.
In a mixing bowl, mash the potato with a fork or potato masher. Add butter and mix well with a mixer. Stir in sugar, milk, eggs, nutmeg, cinnamon, allspice, and vanilla extract. Mix until smooth.
Pour the filling into an unbaked 23cm piecrust.
Bake for 50-60 minutes or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. The pie will rise as it bakes, but settle again as it cools.

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