"MustGo" Gumbo

I am really going to date myself with this post…but I am OK with that.

  

When I was a little girl, on Friday nights we would pack up after my Dad got home from work and travel about an hour to one or the other Grandparents home for the weekend.  If we went to Grandmother and Granddaddy Gleason’s in Minden, Grandmother would have supper ready for us upon arrival, consisting usually of spaghetti or fried chicken.  After dinner, we would watch television shows like “Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.” or “The Brady Bunch”.  The next morning after cartoons and French toast, we would often buy fabric and sew a new outfit, play outside with cousins climbing trees, or walk to the duck pond.  My Grandparents loved “The Lawrence Welk Show” so Saturday night; it was appointment television for the entire family.  An idea has stuck with me all of these years that I remember from what the Lennon Sisters (singing group appearing regularly on the show) said about their family one night on Lawrence Welk.  They shared that every Sunday whatever food was leftover from the week in the refrigerator was placed in one pot, heated through and was called… “MustGo”.  It was their favorite meal. 

Here in Louisiana the word “Gumbo” is often used as a metaphor for our mix of cultures.  As a dish, Gumbo is a heavily seasoned stew-like concoction, combining several varieties of meats or seafood with the texture of gravy made from a Roux. 

Remembering the Lennon Sisters, plus having most of the ingredients to make a Gumbo (in one form or another); I decided to make a “MustGo” Gumbo.  It was delicious!  What’s in your fridge/freezer/pantry?  You too can make one of your own… after all it is Sunday!

“MustGo” Gumbo

Ingredients

1 cup Roux (leftover)

2 onions, chopped medium (last of bulk)

3 quarts liquid - stock, water, etc (I had leftover vegetable stock and added water to make 3 quarts)

4 cloves garlic, minced fine

1 tablespoon salt

1 teaspoon ground pepper

1 teaspoon dried thyme

“MustGo”: (You may have other “MustGo” ingredients, use what you have)

Giardiniera  – about 1 cup (leftovers from 2 open jars in fridge, minus spent herbs and peppercorns, drained, rinsed and rough chopped

10 pork sausage links – sliced, cooked

4 boneless/skinless chicken thighs – seasoned with salt pepper and garlic powder, cooked and cubed

1 pound frozen cut okra (leftover from another recipe)

1 pound frozen stew vegetables (leftover from another recipe)

Beef bouillon – about 1 tablespoon (leftover from previous recipes in 2 almost empty jars)

Method

• In a stock pot, place Roux and onions and sauté for about 3 minutes until soft.
• Add Giardiniera and garlic , continue to sautéing for another 2 to 3 minutes.  
• Add liquid, salt, pepper thyme and bouillon continuing to stir until thoroughly combined.  
• Cook over medium for an hour stirring occasionally.  
• Add sausage, chicken, okra and stew vegetables continuing to cook for another 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• Season to taste. 

Serve over rice.  Enjoy!  

~CGJ

Purpose Salad (for Meatless Monday)

The home gardens, Farmers’ Markets and Grocery Stores are laden with options aplenty
for fresh salads and assuredly they’re not always consistently the same items.  If you
make a habit of growing/selecting a multiplicity of ingredients to keep on hand from the
six categories below…you will have a tasty, balanced formula for making interesting
salad combinations that you may not have thought of before.  I am always concerned
when one or more daughters changes their diet to vegetarian (no meat) and do want
to make sure that they consume adequate protein.  With this formula, it’s there…
it’s all there on purpose stocked and ready to mix and match to make salad magic. 
Thus the name “Purpose Salad”, plus I would like to think that by being purposeful
about eating healthy with local, sustainable ingredients that my/our purpose gets
a little clearer.        

Purpose Salad (for Meatless Monday)

Ingredients

Base – Iceberg, Spinach, Arugula, Mesclun, Romaine, Kale

Protein – Tofu, Cheese, Nuts, Seeds  
Veggies and Fruit (fresh, steamed, roasted, pickled, dried) – Carrots, Potatoes, Broccoli, Cauliflower, Cucumbers, Radishes, Celery, Tomatoes, Onion, Squash, Brussel Sprouts, Green Beans, Peppers, Cabbage, Mushrooms, Strawberries, Blueberries, Grapes, Orange, Grapefruit, Apple, Pear, Melon, Cranberries, Apricots, Pineapple, Peaches
Dressing – too many choices to mention…I prefer homemade Vinaigrette
Other – Sprouts (various), Croutons, etc.

Method

Procure ingredients, wash veggies, fruit and prepare each item to advance to the state
desired for salad readiness.  Ex: if roasting veggies, slicing/grating cheese.  Begin to
layer in a visually appealing way starting with base and the next items go from largest to
smallest, ending with nuts cheese and other small item toppings.  Tip:  Pre-moisten Base
with dressing in a bowl before plating.

The salad I prepared in the photograph was made with, Arugula, Carrots, Red Onion,
Peppers, Steamed Small Purple Potatoes, Radishes, Steamed Green Beans, Orange, Pan

Sautéed Tofu, Clover Sprouts,

Sunflower Seeds, an Irish Cheddar Cheese and dressed with a homemade Orange Vinaigrette (see recipe below).

Orange Vinaigrette:

1/2 c freshly squeezed Orange Juice, strained

1/2 c White Wine Vinegar
1/2 c Canola Oil
1 T Granulated Sugar
2 t Yellow Mustard
1/4 t salt
1/4 t white pepper

Place all ingredients in a jar with tight fitting lid and shake until combined. 
Store in the refrigerator until needed.

Enjoy

~CGJ

Cheesyroni with Ham

Friday nights and comfort food just go together... and you don't get much more comforting than mac and cheese.  Tangystringycheesydeliciousness!  Add a salad and you have a complete meal.  One of our favorite movies is on..."Shawshank Redemption", so I better go.  Y'all have a great one! 

Cheesyroni with Ham

Yield: 8 servings

Ingredients

1 13.25 oz. box whole grain elbow macaroni

4 T unsalted butter
¼ c all-purpose flour
2 ½ c milk (I used 2%)
¾ t salt, plus 1 t extra for pasta water
¾ t garlic powder
½ t white pepper
½ t paprika
½ dried thyme
4 c grated cheese (I used a combination of cheddar and mozzarella)
3 c cubed ham

Method

·         Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 

·         Prepare macaroni as directed adding salt to the recommended amount of water, drain and hold until needed.  

·         Heat milk in a pan or microwave and have ready to the side. 

·         Melt butter in another pan, add flour and stir until thoroughly combined. 

·         Add milk stirring with a whisk until smooth and thickened. 

·         Add salt, white pepper, garlic powder, paprika and thyme and stir until combined. 

·         Add 3 c cheese and stir until smooth. 

·         Add prepared macaroni and ham and stir until combined. 

·         Pour into a baking pan that has been sprayed with cooking spray. 

·         Sprinkle remaining 1 c of cheese on top and bake in a preheated oven for 30 minutes.

·         Cut into portions, serve and enjoy!           

~CGJ

 

Veggie Pad Thai for Meatless Monday and Earth Day

Today is Earth Day.  A day to reflect on Mother Earth and how we can improve our stewardship...hopefully not just today, but make meaningful changes and habits that will make a difference beyond today.  I have been trying to make meatless meals on Mondays believing it to be good for my health and hopefully make my footprint more positive here on Earth.  Planting a tree once a year is nice and without preaching...there's so much more each of us can do today and everyday. 

We love Thai food.  Having limited restaurant options locally, I wanted to experiment using as many fresh ingredients as possible to create this recipe.  Also, wanting to know more about beverage pairings for this dish, I spoke with a friend and neighbor who lived in Thailand for 5 years. 
Pamela Brown is a former U.S. Diplomat and is still very passionate about her experiences there... with the people, food and culture.  Her recommendation pairings for spicy Thai food are Sauvignon Blanc or Chenin Blanc for wine or Singha or Chang if your leanings are toward beer, noting that Thais drink their beer with ice in the hottest months.

We have come through quite a week with Boston and West in our prayers... I also lift you up and our home, we call it Earth... and know that together we can make a difference.  Enjoy!  

Veggie Pad Thai
Yield: 4 Servings

Ingredients

14.2 oz. package Stir-Fry Noodles

1/2 c Tamari
1/4 c fresh lime juice
1/4 c creamy peanut butter
1/4 c brown sugar
1 t chili oil
1 block firm tofu, cut into ½ inch cubes
4 c shredded bok choy
6 green onions (scallions), sliced keeping white and green separated
5 cloves garlic, minced
1 t grated ginger
1 T sesame oil
2 carrots, shredded
8 oz. cup bean sprouts
1/2 c chopped peanuts
1/4 c chopped cilantro

Method
 

·         Cook noodles according to package instructions. 

·         Combine Tamari, lime juice, peanut butter, brown sugar and chili oil in a microwave safe bowl, Heat in 2 1 minute intervals stirring in-between until thoroughly combined…set aside. 

·         Heat wok, add 1 t sesame oil.  When shimmering add cubed tofu and sauté until light and golden brown.  Remove from pan and hold to the side. 

·         To wok add 1 t sesame oil and when shimmering add the shredded  bok choy and sauté until there is no more liquid.  Remove from the pan and hold to the side. 

·         To wok add 1 t sesame oil.  When shimmering add white part of sliced scallion, ginger and garlic…sauté for about a minute.  

·         Add noodles and 1/3 of the sauce, stir until all combined. 

·         Add carrots, reserved bok choy and 1/3 of the sauce, stir until combined. 

·         Add bean sprouts, reserved tofu, green part of sliced scallions and last 1/3 of sauce, stir until combined all heated through.  Turn off heat. 

·         Plate and garnish with cilantro and chopped peanuts.

Lyrics for the Earth Day Anthem set to "Ode to Joy"

Joyful joyful we adore our Earth in all its wonderment
Simple gifts of nature that all join into a paradise
Now we must resolve to protect her
Show her our love throughout all time
With our gentle hand and touch
We make our home a newborn world
Now we must resolve to protect her
Show her our love throughout all time
With our gentle hand and touch
We make our home a newborn world

~CGJ