So the other day I had one of those moments. You know, one of those moments when you think you have more time on your hands than you actually do. I had company coming over and I planned on making some food for all of us to enjoy during the visit, but as fortune would have it, I simply ran out of time. I thought they were coming at noon (which normally means 1 or 2pm) but in this case it actually meant 11:45 am. Luckily I had enough laying around the house to make a quick, but memorable meal for us...
On the menu today: Red Beans & Rice w/ Spiced Cornbread
There's a trick to doctoring canned products, I call it layering flavors by adding texture to the ingredients that you are cooking with. Here's an example; adding a crust to the meat that you are placing in your canned red beans. Something as simple as this 3 minute trick completely changes the nature and outcome of the dish. It's simple, it's easy and it's time saving.
This is a recipe that is both fail-proof and easy to make if you are pressed for time. Is it better to make the beans fresh rather than using the canned beans, you might ask? I'd have to say yes it is, but I can also tell you that by layering the flavors of what you are cooking, you will be hard pressed to know the difference in flavor yourself, let alone any of your guest.
Red Beans & Rice Ingredients
Process
Start off by slicing both types of sausage into coins and sauteing until a slight crust forms before taking them out of the soup pot and placing them to the side for later use. Now add the diced onions to the same pot and allow to brown slightly before adding the diced bell peppers and finally the garlic. Next add the diced tomatoes and both cans of beans (1 drained) to the pot before returning the sausage and adding the bay leaves, thyme and cayenne pepper. Add the chicken stock and allow to cook for 1 to 2 hours on medium. Once cooked, taste and then add salt and pepper to taste (TT). When plating add a healthy portion of cooked rice to a bowl and pour the beans over them. Finally, add the green onion as a garnish...
Spiced Cornbread Ingredients
Start off by mixing the cornbread as directed by the instructions on the box. Next, dice the bacon and allow it to render until crisp before reserving both the bacon and the grease for later use. Dice the jalapenos and add them to the cornbread mixture along with the jalapeno juice. Finally, add 3/4 of the cheese and the bacon to the mixture and bake as directed (be sure to add the bacon grease to the baking dish). Once the cornbread is set (about 3 minutes before it's done cooking) add the remainder of the cheese to the top of the cornbread.
Do you really need a recipe for rice??? I'll just add this, replace the water with vegetable or chicken stock for your rice preparation.
On the menu today: Red Beans & Rice w/ Spiced Cornbread
There's a trick to doctoring canned products, I call it layering flavors by adding texture to the ingredients that you are cooking with. Here's an example; adding a crust to the meat that you are placing in your canned red beans. Something as simple as this 3 minute trick completely changes the nature and outcome of the dish. It's simple, it's easy and it's time saving.
This is a recipe that is both fail-proof and easy to make if you are pressed for time. Is it better to make the beans fresh rather than using the canned beans, you might ask? I'd have to say yes it is, but I can also tell you that by layering the flavors of what you are cooking, you will be hard pressed to know the difference in flavor yourself, let alone any of your guest.
Red Beans & Rice Ingredients
- Light Kidney Beans (1- 26oz can)
- Dark Kidney Beans (1-26 oz can)
- Diced Tomatoes (1-8oz can)
- Minced Garlic (2 Tbs)
- Sweet Onion (1 each)
- Sweet Bell Pepper (2 each)
- Kielbasa Sausage (1 each)
- Andouille Sausage (1 each)
- Bay Leaf (3-5)
- Fresh Thyme (3 twigs)
- Cayenne Pepper (dash)
- Salt & Pepper (TT)
- Green Onions (as garnish)
- Chicken Stock (32 oz)
Process
Start off by slicing both types of sausage into coins and sauteing until a slight crust forms before taking them out of the soup pot and placing them to the side for later use. Now add the diced onions to the same pot and allow to brown slightly before adding the diced bell peppers and finally the garlic. Next add the diced tomatoes and both cans of beans (1 drained) to the pot before returning the sausage and adding the bay leaves, thyme and cayenne pepper. Add the chicken stock and allow to cook for 1 to 2 hours on medium. Once cooked, taste and then add salt and pepper to taste (TT). When plating add a healthy portion of cooked rice to a bowl and pour the beans over them. Finally, add the green onion as a garnish...
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| Spiced Cornbread |
Spiced Cornbread Ingredients
- Krusteaz Cornbread Mix (1 box)
- Bacon (3 slices)
- Cheddar Cheese (1 cup)
- Jalapeno (3 each)
- Jalapeno Juice (1/2 cup)
Start off by mixing the cornbread as directed by the instructions on the box. Next, dice the bacon and allow it to render until crisp before reserving both the bacon and the grease for later use. Dice the jalapenos and add them to the cornbread mixture along with the jalapeno juice. Finally, add 3/4 of the cheese and the bacon to the mixture and bake as directed (be sure to add the bacon grease to the baking dish). Once the cornbread is set (about 3 minutes before it's done cooking) add the remainder of the cheese to the top of the cornbread.
Do you really need a recipe for rice??? I'll just add this, replace the water with vegetable or chicken stock for your rice preparation.
