New Orleans Sabbatical

As an Executive Chef/Owner I have noticed that if I am not rested and refreshed, my food suffers.  I hate that.  No, I HATE that.  As I’m sure you do too…. I decided, for many reasons to make Blue House Bistro a seasonal endeavor.  Some of the reasons include the seasonality of the Holland area, the high costs of running the bistro during the slowest season, and my own needs of a break from 14-hour days.  


I closed up & went to New Orleans.
  
My trip to New Orleans was so wonderful this year.  I treated the whole time I was there as one part sabbatical and one part rejuvenation.  I ate out a bunch, I met up with some chef & bartender friends a bunch, and I listened to and played some music.  It was wonderful.  


Some highlights---


• My discovery of The Three Muses restaurant on Frenchmen Street.  They have a delightful and delicious menu that is set to the tune of live music nightly.  If I could have afforded it, I would have eaten there every day! 

Angie K & Noelle Link

• I got to play some music with my good friend Noelle Link. 


• My tattoo was worked on by Rain of World Famous Forbidden Art during a special late night session.  

Rain of Forbidden Art Tattoo

• I also took a side trip to visit some family in Savannah.  I love Savannah.   


• I spent a bunch of quality time with my dog.  We went to dog parks, on walks, and to bars.  Yes, bars.  I love New Orleans.  There is even a website that lists what hotels, bars, and restaurants are dog friendly.

Chef Angie K & Sylvia at Igor's Lounge

• The promotion of my dear friend MaryJane to the Executive Chef position at The Country Club.  Being as this is the only restaurant in New Orleans that features a pool & hot tub (or would it be a pool and hot tub that feature a restaurant?!?!) I spent most of my time here.  


• While I was there it was also Mardi Gras.  Need I say more?  

Bourbon Street during Mardi Gras

Overall I had a great time & am ready to get back to work.  There is a lot to do at Blue House Bistro.  A LOT! Sometimes it is overwhelming, but (to be cliché’) Rome wasn’t built in a day!  I have a bunch of fresh and exciting things planned from some inspirations, so I hope that you will join me!  

My quest for green tomatoes

I have been trying to make a Layered Crab Cakes with Fried Green Tomatoes topped with Hollandaise Sauce for a little while now to no avail. Green tomatoes are not the kind of item that you can purchase in normal supermarkets, and my food vendors (if they even have them) would sell them to me by the case (which I definitely do not need). My trip to the Holland Farmer's Market on Saturday was disappointing at best. Out of a dozen or so stands that were set up, only a couple were selling vegetables at all. Neither of them had green tomatoes, although one of the vendors tentatively promised me some on Wednesday. There were a few stands selling tomato plants, but they were only blooming. If they had fruit growing, I might have felt brave enough to buy either just the green fruit or the whole plant.

Green Tomatoes

My search continues. In the meantime, here is a recipe that will go on the features menu at Blue House Bistro as soon as I find green tomatoes. If you have some in the Holland, Michigan area send me an email or come by Blue House Bistro; there are hungry people waiting!

Crab Cakes

1/4 cup chopped onion

1/8 cup chopped celery

1/4 cup diced bell peppers (I like red the best because of the color mixture)

2 tbsp butter

3 eggs

2/3 cup breadcrumbs

1/3 Parmesan cheese

2 tsp Worcestershire sauce

1 tsp mustard

Tabasco to taste

Two 10 oz cans of crab meat (unless you have access to fresh!)

1/4 cup cooking oil (use more or less depending on the size of your pan)

Sautee the onion, celery and peppers in butter until it onions turns clear. Whisk the eggs and combine with breadcrumbs, cheese, and seasonings. Stir in onion mixture and crab meat. Shape into patties. Heat oil in a skillet. Place crab cakes in hot skillet. Sear on each side until golden brown; about 2-3 min.

Fried Green Tomatoes

3 medium size green tomatoes

1 cup milk

1 cup flour

1 cup breadcrumbs

pepper to taste

1/4 cup cooking oil (use more or less depending on the size of your pan)

Slice tomatoes in 1/4 inch slices. Dip in milk. Dredge in combined flour, pepper, breadcrumb mixture. Heat oil in a skillet. Place tomatoes in hot skillet. Sear on each side until golden brown; about 2-3 min.

Layer the crab cakes and tomatoes into towers.

Hollandaise Sauce

1/2 cup softened butter (in pieces)

3 egg yolks

1 tbsp red wine vinegar

Tabasco to taste

dash of salt

In the top section of a double boiler (because this sauce goes wrong FAST!) combine egg yolks, vinegar, and Tabasco. Whisk constantly over boiling water while slowly adding butter until it reaches desired thickness. Spoon over crab and tomato towers. Serve immediately.

Chicken & Andouille Sausage Gumbo

This is a variation of the seafood gumbo that I make at Blue House Bistro for the features menu.  If you wanted to make a seafood instead, just substitute shrimp, crawfish, and/or crab for the chicken and sausage.  Personally, I like this version better because, being allergic to seafood, it is the one I can eat. 

1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup flour
2 med onions
2 bell peppers
3 stalks of celery
2 cups sliced okra
1lb cut-up chicken pieces
1/2 lb Andouille sausage
1 tablespoon thyme
1 teaspoon file' powder
1 teaspoon of oregano
6 bay leaves
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
hot sauce to taste
4 minced garlic cloves
2 cups of white wine
2 teaspoons vinegar— white or balsamic
6 cups of chicken stock
1/2 cup scallions
cooked white rice

Make a Roux:
Heat 1/2 cup oil in cast iron skillet or heavy bottomed pot over medium heat until almost smoking. Add flour and whisk constantly until roux turns a deep brown color, about 10-14 minutes.


Combine:
Add vegetables. Reduce heat to low, cook for about 5 minutes. Stir in chicken and Andouille sausage, cook for about 5 more minutes. Stir in thyme, file' powder, oregano, bay leaves, Worcestershire sauce, and hot sauce. Add garlic and white wine. Make sure to keep stirring. Add vinegar.


Boil & Simmer:
Slowly add chicken stock, 2 cups at a time. Stirring constantly, increase heat to bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer until chicken is cooked and vegetables are soft.


Enjoy:
Serve with white rice & garnish with scallions.

Bananas Foster was created in 1951 by Paul Blangé at Brennans Restaurant in New Orleans. It has become not only a local favorite, but a global classic in the time since its invention.  I serve it on the feature menu at my restaurant from time to time.  Although intimidating in appearance it is relatively easy to prepare; requiring only a small sense of adventure, patience for the slow melting process, ability to move quickly, and a not so sensitive fire alarm.

Bananas Foster
Serves 6

6 Ripe Bananas
2Tbsp Unsalted Butter
2Tbsp Ground Cinnamon
2 Cups Brown Sugar (Firmly Packed)
1 Cup Rum
2qts Vanilla Ice Cream

Cut peeled bananas lengthwise into two sections each.

Add sugar, cinnamon and butter to a frying pan. Cook over low heat (I absolutely cannot stress LOW heat enough!) and stir constantly until butter and sugar have melted and blended.

Quickly add sectioned bananas and rum to melted sauce mixture.

Immediately remove from heat and using a long lighter, ignite the top of sauce mixture.

Let the flame naturally extinguish, and serve immediately over ice cream.

Enjoy!