Natchitoches meat pie, the original hot pocket.

Think comfort food to in the 1700's in Louisiana & you might well be dreaming of the Natchitoches Meat Pies; that's pronounced (NACK-uh-tush) for those less familiar with Louisiana names & places. These tasty meat pies are a hold over from the early Spanish settlers in the Louisiana territory. Which is to say they were similar to beef Empanadas & were taken literally across the Spanish empire by early settlers. We often dined on Empanadas in Mexico which were very much like these "north of the border" meat pies, hence my addition of Chohula hot sauce to my meat pies! These days you are likely to find the meat pies at the New Orleans Jazz festival, a football game or at a boucherie deep in the heart of Cajun land. Sometimes they are called Cajun meat pies but whatever one says about them they are a crowd pleasing, taste tempting pastry filled with meat & spices. Natchitoches meat pies are great for a main dish with a salad or as an appetizer. They need nothing other than a napkin to catch any filling which may tumble out however I made an easy Avocado dip we thought was perfect for these treats.



Natchitoches Meat Pies

for meat filling
1 1/2 lb ground beef
1 1/2 lb ground pork
1 c chopped green onions
2-3 cloves garlic
1 tbsp salt
1 tsp red pepper flakes
1 tsp coarse black pepper
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
2 tsp Sherry vinegar
2 tsp hot sauce, Cholula, Tabasco, etc
1/3 c flour
Combine all ingredients except flour & cook till meat breaks up and is no longer red. Sift flour over the meat mixture , mix well, remove from heat. Drain meat into a colander, cool to room temp.
Crust:
2 2/3 c flour
1/3 heaping solid shortening
1 lg egg
3/4 c Milk
Vegetable oil for frying pies
Sift flour, use pastry cutter&cut shortening into flour. Mix in egg & milk. Form dough into a ball. It will be semi sticky.

Flour board and rolling pin. Rolling out about 1/3 of dough at a time roll about 1/8 in thick. Cut into 5in circles (use coffee can or similar size) To assemble pies place heaping spoon of filling dampen edge of pie dough with an *egg wash & seal shut then prick each top twice. These can be frozen or fried in deep fat fryer at 350 degrees. Drain on paper towels, serve warm. *Yolk of 1 egg + 1 tsp H2O, beaten & then brush on the inside edges of dough before pressing edges shut & crimping.

















Avocado Horseradish Dip
2 large ripe avocados, peeled and pits removed
2 Tbsp Milk
16 ounces sour cream
4 Tbsp prepared horseradish*
2 tsp garlic, peeled & coarsely chopped
3 green onions, chopped (or)
*1 small shallot can be used
juice of 1 fresh lime
2 tsp Cholula hot sauce

Place all ingredients in blender or food processor & chill before serving. *I use the prepared horseradish found in the deli, do not use a horseradish spread which is more than horseradish. It is less pungent & has less bite to it for this recipe.

This dip was so good we even tried it with chips & veggies. Oh, the possibilities any dish with an avocado presents...

Uniting & Helping to Stamp out Hunger Day 2

Every community has activists & those particular activists have those they help. The Austin area is full of such people. Anyone who picks up the Austin American Statesman each Wednesday very likely reads the Life & Arts as well as take in the weekly food column Relish Austin by Addie Broyles. Addie is indeed one of those community minded people who brings concerns to the hearts & minds of fellow Texans helping to make Austin a better place. More often than not I find myself jotting down or clipping a recipe out of the Statesman from the Wednesday paper. This week she has extended an invitation for a group of fellow bloggers to come together for the Hunger Awareness Blog Project.

Austin Food Bloggers met this past week to discuss blogging as well as cooking with food the Capital Area Food Bank Recipients would receive if they were a client at a food pantry in an effort to raise awareness of the hunger crisis in Central Texas.

The face of hunger in Central Texas & across America would surprise many. There are many folks out there working, trying to make ends meet & living on a fixed income, elderly or simply needing a stop-gap to fill a short term need. In helping those around us we ultimately help ourselves.
Average Food Bank offerings for a week that we will be cooking with are as follows:
2 cans spaghetti sauce
4 canned veggies
4 canned fruits
1 meat selection example: 1 lb. of ground beef (the Capital Area Food Bank said they receive everything from hams, chickens to pig trotters)
3 drink items (choice of lg. bottle of cranberry apple juice & or powdered milk
1 bag spaghetti or egg noodles
1 bag of beans
1 bag of white rice
1 package of jalapeno slices
1 ready-made dinner (example: Hamburger Helper)
1 bag/container of oats
1 bag of cheerios
5 lb. bag of potatoes
This list can be offset by many of the food bank recipients being able to use Lonestar/WIC to help modestly augment the food at local grocery stores or even the Austin Farmer's Market.

What could you do for your family for a week with this same food? How can you get involved in the Capital Area Food Bank?

My daughter & fellow blogger Bytes from Texas: One Longhorn's Adventures agreed to do this project together since our numbers are the same as a family unit. We shopped the food pantry items & made small Fresh Vegetable/Dairy WIC selections based on the guidelines for the WIC & SNAP food benefits program. We will be posting a weeks worth of Meal choices based on the Hunger Awareness Project list.


Any spice used can be altered or omitted. Spice & flavors can be so individual.

I am posting a main meal made with Rice, Spaghetti Sauce, a Meat portion *I use Ground Turkey, it was served with mashed potatoes. Our family makes potatoes with the skin on for more nutrition. We also used a portion of a large Cabbage & Onions purchased at the Austin Farmer's Market.


















STUFFED CABBAGE ROLLS
1 lb Ground Turkey
1 cup Rice, uncooked
1/2 cup bread crumbs (optional)
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1/2 celery salt
1/4 tsp. paprika
1/4 tsp.cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp. cumin
1/2 Mexican oregano, Italian is fine
2 eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 med. Onion, diced, reserve a few slices for onions
large cabbage leaves***
1 1/4 cups canned Spaghetti Sauce
Grind day-old bread in a blender(or break it up finely with fork before blending into meat), and add seasonings.
Mix bread crumbs, onion, rice & turkey well, combine all ingredients other than the cabbage.
Remove the core of the cabbage & then cut off while carefully removing the outside leaves, approximately 14-18 large leaves
Fill a large stockpot with salted water and bring to a boil & then reduce the water to simmer. Place the cabbage leaves into the Simmer for a few minutes and remove as the outer leaves begin to turn a bright green. (save the liquid as it can be used to thin sauce or add veggies & make stock for another meal.)
The object is to cook the cabbage for as little time as possible, but long enough to tenderize the outer leaves. Remove from the water and allow to cool on a dish until the outer leaves are still hot but are cool enough to handle.
Remove as many outer leaves as you can by cutting them or tearing. Reserve the rest of the leaves for other dishes or lining the pot when cooking.
NOTE: As you remove leaves, some will tear and otherwise not be suitable for using as a wrapper. Do not discard these, as they can be used to line the pot, or you can shred them to add to the filling mixture.
At the bottom of each leaf there will be a thick stem; sliver a slice off this to thin it out (I cut a V-notch to help with the roll process). The purpose is to make the base flexible so that you can roll it up.
Stuff each leaf with a healthy serving spoon of the filling mixture. Starting at the bottom of the leaf, roll up one turn, then turn in the sides of the leaf to cover the filling, then roll up some more until you reach the top of the leaf and have a little bundle.
You can now either place the rolls a slow cooker or dutch oven pan.
Layer the bottom of the Crockpot or pan with broken cabbage leaves (the ones that weren't complete or too small to use for rolling). Stack the filled cabbage leaf bundles on top of the bed of leaves, a single layer at a time. Top each layer with a few spoons of sauce or even tomato paste, and repeat with another layer of leaves, another layer of cabbage rolls, etc.
Stack the bundles in their layers carefully with the end of each leaf underneath (some people fasten with a toothpick but this is not really required). Finish off the final layer with any remaining filling.
Alternatively, you can bake these in the oven. Prior to baking I mixed in an additional pinch of cayenne pepper with my Spaggheti sauce & thinned it out slightly with the liquid I blanched the cabbage leaves in.
To bake, stack bundles over cabbage leaves in a casserole dish, pour on the tomato sauce, cover with foil, and bake in a slow oven, 300 degrees F., for about 2 hours.
Cover and simmer on the low heat setting of your stove top for 2-3 hours or in the slow cooker for 4-5 hours.
Whichever method you use to cook the cabbage rolls, be sure not to overcook, so test often and remove when the cabbage leaves are tender.

***My husband's Grandmother was one of the premiere cooks in a large family of fabulous southern cooks. She always said to buy or ask the produce manager for the leaves from the outside of the Cabbage which people often discard or pulled away from the Cabbage back years ago in order to only pay for a compact head of cabbage. Cabbages are full of Vitamins K & C as well as an excellent source of dietary fiber. Avoid the wilted or limp cabbage leaves. This combined with the nutritional goodness from the protien & the portion of mashed potatoes make up an excellent & healthy meal.

The Parsnip Rutabaga question.

My Saint Patrick's day bit of luck came to me in the local produce section while shopping for our yearly Irish meal. I've always said I did not care for Parsnips. But I decided to make a well known Irish potato dish & it required purchasing some of root vegetables of the unknown type. As a kid I told my mother I hated Parsnips. I was dead certain it was parsnips I had disliked all those years ago. Strange how our minds have a bit of revisionist history at times. The long story short of it is that I found a great recipe for Dublin Parsnip Colcannon & I thought I would give the much maligned Parsnip a try once again. Much to my surprise I found that Parsnips were not the sharp tasting, bitter rootie veggie I remembered. On the contrary, I enjoyed the hint of sweet flavor the fresh Parsnips added to the potato dish. In my mind I remembered hating this vegetable, maybe it was the Rutabaga instead? If this is true then I have to revisit several root veggies I disliked as a kid! Who knew our taste buds would change as we age. Is the Rutabaga next on my list of newly acquired flavors?? No, I doubt it. Lightening cannot strike twice in my culinary world....

The traditional Irish Colcannon has a history of being prepared on All Saints Day. Traditional charms were put in the Colcannon that symbolized different things. A button meant you would remain a bachelor and a thimble meant you would remain a spinster for the coming year. A ring meant you would get married and a coin meant you would come into wealth. We enjoyed our Colcannon even if I left the charms aside this time. Colcannon can be made with a variety of greens mixed within however I opted for the Green Onion & Parsley variety this time around.



















Dublin Parsnip Colcannon
1 lb. Parsnips
2 lb. Yukon Gold Potatoes
1 cup Half & Half or Milk
3 Tbsp. Salt
3 Tbsp. Butter
1/4 cup Scallions or Spring Green Onions, sliced green tops with small amount of white bulb.
1/4 finely chopped flat leaf parsley

Scrub & peel the parsnips & potatoes, cover with cold water then add salt. Bring to a boil in large saucepan, When the potatoes are almost cooked, heat the milk or half & half bring to a simmer, add scallions along with the parsley & remove from heat. Once the potatoes/parsnips are tender, drain water and mash well. Slowly stir in the warm milk & parsley/scallions mixture. Stir just until fluffy & well blended careful not to over beat the potatoes. (I have on occasion used the electric blender to help whip my mashed potatoes however they can get sticky & gummy quickly with this method.) Serve immediately in a hot dish with the Butter placed into the center of the Colcannon. Colcannon might also be prepared ahead & reheated later in the oven at 350* for about 20 minutes.


My Irish Ancestors never had the ease of Corned Beef in a crock pot. With a busy St. Patrick's Day I was thrilled to be able to turn on the crock pot & walk away for several hours. The traditional Corned Beef Easter Sunday meal was eaten after the Lenten fast, with fresh cabbage & some form of potatoes. Now most American born of Irish heritage connect Saint Patrick's day meals with Corned Beef. however I am certain I speak for most when I say that we eat better on St. Patrick's Day than most of our Irish ancestors did. I somehow think my Irish Grandfather would have loved the fact that I cooked my Corned Beef this year with a bottle of Mexican Beer. He lived much of his adult life in San Antonio Texas & loved the cuisines of the culturally diverse town. Buen Provecho, my friends & the luck of the Irish be with you this year. For a peek at what Irish dessert we enjoyed check out the Irish Apple Tart here:
























Crock pot Corned Beef
4-5 lbs Corned Beef Brisket
2 medium Onions, peeled and quartered
1 clove of Garlic, crushed
1 Bay Leaf (or two small ones)
1 packet of Corned Beef spices, usually included with Corned Beef
1 Bottle of Sol, Mexican Beer, of course any beer will do.

Place 1 well trimmed Corned Beef into Crock Pot, sprinkle the Corned Beef with the pickling spices (about 1 Tablespoon), garlic, toss in onion wedges & then cover with beer. Cook on High for 5-6 hours. 5 hours for 4 lbs & 6 for 5 lbs. See crock pot instructions for leaving it at low for a longer time period. Remove from heat, rest & slice in 1/4 inch slices. We served this with our Parsnip/Potato Colcannon & glazed carrots. Chilled this brisket makes excellent sandwiches. FYI, this Crock Pot meal was almost a no show for St. Paddy's Day. My Crock Pot died after a short life of slow cooking at my house & I had to rush next door to borrow my neighbor's crock pot. A big Thank You for the Desselles!! The moral of the story remains do an equipment check when the family is coming for dinner!













An Irish blessing-
May the sound of happy music
and the lilt of Irish laughter
fill your heart with gladness
That stays forever after.

The Toujouse Bar, Treemont House Galveston Texas. In the heart of Galveston Island's Strand Historic District.

Leisure time & a big bowl of Spicy warmth!

He enjoys true leisure who has time to improve his soul's estate.
~Henry David Thoreau


When asked in recent weeks "where I have gone", I could only respond that I had taken time off. The move from Mexico home & subsequent moves of "our life", people & animals had about worn me out. I felt I needed to take the Holidays off to recuperate & regroup. I spend the past few weeks & months getting back into the groove as well as slowing down to enjoy life. We had a slow holiday spent at home with our daughters & enjoyed what is most important. We cooked, relaxed & recharged our spirits. Of course that means Spicy foods at the Texas to Mexico household. If we don't take time to enjoy the everyday we may miss the small but important things around us.


My daughter & I recently enjoyed a day at Austin's Chinatown Shopping Center where we explored the exotic & impressive array of foods at the M.T. Supermarket. Our family enjoys the spicy array of foods & cuisines available at the market. In the past I loaded up a suitcase & hauled spices & teas back to Mexico from this wonderful grocery store. We have long enjoyed the Thai Coconut Soup we find at our favorite local restaurants. My daughter shared a recipe she enjoys & she even helped me locate the elusive Red Curry paste on our trip to the Asian market. This recipe can take more or less heat which is derived from the Curry Paste so use sparingly & taste frequently. I was under the assumption as I made my first pot of this soup that if a little was good more would be great! It was a wonderful but fiery & fierce bowl of soup.

Spicy Thai Chicken & Coconut Soup

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 to 2 stalks lemon grass, outer sheath removed, bottom 3 inches trimmed and minced
2 tablespoons minced fresh ginger
1 large clove garlic, minced
2 to 3 teaspoons Thai red curry paste
6 cups homemade or canned chicken stock
3 tablespoons fish sauce or soy sauce
1 tablespoon sugar
2 (14-ounce) cans unsweetened coconut milk
1 whole boneless, skinless chicken breast (about 12 ounces), cut into 1 by 1/4-inch strips
1 (15-ounce) can straw mushrooms, drained and rinsed
4 oz. of shitake mushrooms, roughly chopped
lime wedges to garnish & squeeze juice over soup.
• Salt
• 1/2 cup loosely packed whole fresh cilantro leaves
• 3 scallions, greens only, sliced
Heat the oil in a large stockpot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the lemon grass, ginger, and garlic and cook, stirring constantly, until aromatic, 30 to 60 seconds. Add the curry paste and cook, stirring constantly, for 30 seconds.
Add 1/2 cup chicken stock to the pot and stir to dissolve the curry paste. Add the remaining stock, fish sauce, and sugar and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to low, partially cover, and simmer to blend flavors, about 20 minutes.
Stir in the coconut milk, chicken, mushrooms, and lime juice. Bring back to a simmer (do not boil as this will cause the coconut milk to curdle) and cook until the stock is hot and the chicken is no longer pink, about 5 minutes. Serve immediately, garnishing each bowl with cilanto, scallions & a lime wedge.


Each Christmas eve our family dines on Tamales & either Chili or some similar kin in the Tex-Mex culinary family. This past Christmas Eve we had Chili & Tamales from Juarez Mexican Bakery. The local Round Rock restaurant & bakery known for the long lines of customers patiently waiting for dozens of savory Juarez Tamales. The owner of Juarez is from Guanajuato, Mexico & so much of the true "Sabor de Mexico" is what keeps locals coming back again & again for the food at Juarez.
My favorite Chili recipe is the Lady Bird Johnson Pedernales River Chili. I use the basic recipe & kick it up a tiny bit with a few extra chili peppers. (somehow I am certain LBJ would have approved of this bit of heat!) This recipe is one of the most widely circulated Chili recipes thanks to her husband's great love of the official "state food" of Texas. Lyndon Baines Johnson was once said: "Chili concocted outside of Texas is usually a weak, apologetic imitation of the real thing. One of the first things I do when I get home to Texas is to have a bowl of Red. There is simply nothing better." Texans are as unapologetic about our foods as our politicians, having said that; this my favorite bowl of Texas Red!




















Pedernales River Chili

4 pounds coarsely ground beef (chili-grind, ask butcher if there is none available)
1 large chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon ground cumin
6 teaspoons chili powder
2 (16-ounce) cans tomatoes
Salt to taste
2 cups hot water
In a large frying pan, brown meat with onion and garlic until meat is lightly browned; transfer ingredients to a large kettle cast-iron Dutch oven.
Add oregano, cumin, chili powder, tomatoes, salt,**2 Soaked, seeded & skinned Chili Anchos and hot water. Bring just to a boil; lower heat and simmer, covered, for approximately 1 hour. Remove from heat. Skim off grease and serve.
Serves 12.
**These are the flat wrinkly Dried Chili Peppers found in the Latin section of most grocery stores. They have to be soaked in hot water 20 minutes then remove seeds, stems & scrape the pulp from the inside of the skin. The dark mahogany color adds a rich color as well as a deep rich flavor. If you are partial to heat you might add Chili Petin peppers threaded onto a toothpick so they can be removed later before serving your bowl of Red!

Our family garnishes this Texas favorite with diced onion & the occasional sprinkling of cheese....of course for the not so faint of heart there is always the liberal toss of locally grown Chili Petins also known as Chili Pequin or Bird Peppers. This native chili is one plant which seemed to thrive in my garden the Summer of 2009. **Take note fellow Texans this plant is beyond hearty if it could survive our drought & lack of rainfall.

Veni, vidi, vici, Cordero?

I came, I saw, I conquered & then there was the Lamb....Of all the things I have fed by hand & I NEVER wanted to eat very much of, top of the list would have to be Lamb! Mr. Texas to Mexico does love a good rack of Lamb & friends of ours in Mexico gave me cause to give it a second thought. True, I can go most Summer months without meat of any form but being the daughter of generations of Texas Ranch folk I would be a bit of a hypocrite to eschew meat or those who eat it. Hope that statement won't get me kicked out of the Veggie establishments I enjoy visiting around in & around Austin~ Having said that I recently brought home a leg of lamb & we had a Roasted Leg of Lamb for dinner. The Earthy flavors of Rosemary & tangy taste of Mustard meld well with the texture & taste of Lamb.
I then conquered our next Lamb related meal by whipping up some Portobello & Lamb Quesadillas. Oven roasted Portobellos sliced thin, shredded Lamb, Black Beans warmed up in a fabulous Central Market Multi-grain Tortilla & served with a mound of fresh Guacamole! The only thing which could have made the meal better would have been an absolute Box Free Existence at our home....Currently we are in Veni, Vidi Vici mode with the hundreds of moving boxes still in our home! Small steps........ seeing & conquering can be very different sides of the coin or moving crate as it might be! I'll be digging out for a while yet trying to mix what came from Mexico back into our Texas lives. In the mean time we continue to settle in, visit Family, Friends & our favorite Farmer's markets on the weekends. The blogging might be slow for a while but slow food, good conversation & enjoyment of life have always been important at our house. ¡Buen Provecho!



Cordero Asado con Mostaza
2 Tbsp. Olive Oil
2 Tbsp Stone Ground Brown Mustard
2 Tbsp chopped Fresh Rosemary
1/3 cup of Honey
1 tsp. each Black Pepper & Salt
1 tsp lime zest
1 Clove Shallots, minced
4 pounds whole leg of lamb, trimmed to remove most fat

Mix the honey, mustard, rosemary, ground black pepper, lime zest and shallots. Mix well and apply to the Lamb. Cover and marinate in the refrigerator 3 to 4 hrs.

Preheat oven to 450*
Place Lamb in a roasting pan after removing some of the marinade with a spatula, reserve for basting purposes.
Bake at medium rare, during this time brush roast with the marinade just keeping moist, meat will gradually glaze & brown. The internal temperature should be at least 145* when taken with a meat thermometer. Rest the Roast for about 10 minutes before carving, slicing into 1/3 inch slices against the grain. t 450* for 20 minutes, then reduce heat to 400* and roast for 1 & 10 hour more minutes for medium rare. The internal temperature should be at least 145* when taken with a meat thermometer. Let the roast rest for about 10 minutes before carving.




















Portobello y Cordero Quesadillas
2 cups Roasted Lamb, shredded
8 oz. shredded Oaxaca Cheese, fine shredded
2 Portobello mushrooms, oven roasted & sliced into 1/4 inch slices
1/2 cup canned Black Beans, drained
1/2 cup chopped fresh Tomatoes
Whole wheat, Flour or Multi-grain Tortillas
Fresh Guacamole

Prep all ingredients & have all filling ingredients ready next to the cooking area. We made these ingredients available & had everyone prepare their own quesadilla once it was set up & ready to go. Over medium high heated gridle or skillet, heat tortilla & layer in cheese, portabella, lamb, few tsp. black beans & tomatoes & top with a little more cheese then layer on one more tortilla. This creates a "sandwich of tortillas with your fillings caught between 2 layers of tortillas. When it starts to slightly brown flip it over, (careful not to drop any ingredients out of the sides & then toast a few more moments till it is slightly browned, cut into wedges & serve with fresh Guacamole.