Idea for fun! Let's challenge the Cookin' folks to a "recipe-off!"

[Maddy McCall]

Let's come up with our best recipe. Let's make it a main dish--ought to be no problem for us, since we Southerners can make a silk purse from a sow's ear. While we are compiling our recipes, I'll go over to the cooking forum and challenge them to do the same.

We vote on our best recipe here.

They vote on their best recipe there.

Then, tonight or tomorrow, we'll post both--the winning recipe from here and the winning one from the Cooking forum--in the lounge and let everyone there vote on the best.

We have to come up with some sort of prize or concession--like, they must admit that Southerners are the best cooks and no matter the culinary training they undergo, they can never be as great as us. Or we must admit that we don't hold superior authority in matters of epicurian delights, that they are truly the gods of the hearth fire.

How's dat sound?

[Tweed]

1. That sounds like an AWESOME idea

As the creator of the Cooking & Baking group, I say please do that. What a great idea to get these groups started as well. We can get a post started in the Lounge too and people will see what fun the groups can be. This is a genius idea. Please make the challenege in the C&B forum.

[Maddy McCall]

2. Ok! Let's go until 5:00 eastern tomorrow evening...

At 5:00 eastern, you and I will get together and start a thread in the lounge with the top two recipes, and then let everyone vote.

I'm headed over to your group now to challenge you all! Hope you don't mind if I pick on y'all a little bit.

:-)

[Maddy McCall]

3. Hehehe! I just went over there and challenged them. Here's the post:

We Southerners challenge you to a "recipe-off!"


Get out your garlic extractors and mezzalunas all that other fancy equipment you guys use as crutches to prepare those meals that can't hold a candle to ours. Get out your cake flour and fish broth and chick peas and all those other extravagant ingredients--all that stuff that we find so unnecessary--and try to beat us!

Here's the deal. You designate a team leader, and then he or she will open a thread, to which you all will submit those frilly Yankee recipes.

Only entrees, main dishes--no deserts or stuff like that. (I know it's killing you that you can't submit your grandmother's nasty baklava recipe, but life goes on.)

Tomorrow afternoon, after everyone has submitted their favorite recipe, your team leader will post a poll in here, and you guys will vote on your favorite recipe. (I can just imagine the winner--sauteed salmon pate mousse or some such garbage.)

We'll select our winner over in the Southern group. At this point, you guys should probably just fold and agree to concede to us, but we know your pride won't let you, so let's go on.

(If you guys won't come into our forum and vote on the lowliest recipe--the hotdogs and franks or whatever--we won't come to yours and vote on yours--probably some sort of clam omelette or something. Let's work on the honor system, which I know will be a challenge for all you yankees here seeing as to how you haven't been raised to know good morals and family values, but just try, ok?)

At five o'clock eastern tomorrow afternoon, your team leader and I will get together and start a poll in the lounge with both recipes. All DUers will get to vote on the best.

Here's the prize:
If the Southerners' group wins the lounge poll, you must admit that Southerners are the best cooks in the world, and that no matter the culinary training you Cooks undergo, you can never dominate the kitchen with as much authority as we do.

If the Cooking group wins the lounge poll, Southerners must admit that the cooking group is without peer in the culinary arena and that we don't hold superior authority in matters of epicurian delights. We will ced that you are truly the gods of the hearth fire.


So, whatcha say? Is the game on?

If your team leader wishes to extend the gauntlet by coming over to our neck of the woods and taunting us, that's ok--you know how we Southerners are--we're already used to challenges. Look where we live!



And EDIT: Let me add that any Southern group member who submits a recipe to the Cooks risks being shot on spot for the worst form of treachery we Southerners can think of! Pow Pow. Just remember that!

(Disclaimer: I hope everyone realizes that this is just fun ribbing and meant to make the game more fun. I love all y'all, and you know it. So kiss my grits! )

[finecraft]

4. How do you want my crawfish recipe posted?

You want the recipe name on the subject line, or do you want it posted some other way? Is crawfish an acceptable ingredient, or should I go with a recipe that has a more widely available ingredient for the benefit of our Northern DU friends...like squirrel? And I really think you need to reconsider the "no deserts" stipulation, because I have a killer recipe for Bananas Foster Bread Puddin'. :evilgrin:

[Syrinx]

5. not much of a cook (though I enjoy cooking)

So I'll post a recipe that doesn't include cooking. :)

Ladies and gentlemen, I introduce the greatest sandwich in the world, the pride of New Orleans, heaven in a length of butcher paper, the Muffaletta!!!

3 large garlic cloves, crushed
1 cup chopped green olives stuffed with pimientos
1 cup pitted and chopped "black-ripe" olives or Calamatas
1/2 cup roasted sweet red peppers, chopped
1 cup olive oil
3 Tbsp. chopped fresh parsley
2 Tbsp. white wine vinegar
1/3 lb. salami
1/2 lb. provolone cheese
1/2 lb. mild cheese
1/3 lb. mortadella cheese
1/3 lb. prosciutto

Take one loaf fresh Italian bread (one big round for a traditional Muffaletta or individual sub loaves will do fine for smaller sandwiches). Cut the loaf ( or loaves) in half, and scoop out a little of the inside to make some room. Make the olive salad by combining the olives and roasted perrer, garlic and vinegar. Drizzle some of the olive oil and juice from the olive salad on each side of the open loaf -- use plenty. On the bottom, place some salami, olive salad, provolone, mild cheese, and mortadella. Top with the other half loaf. Slice into wedges (or eat the individual loaves).

[Longhorn]

8. How do you do that text box with the blue background?

It looks great! Thanks!

[Syrinx]

11. like this

<div class="excerpt">
text here
</div>

Replace < and > with the corresponding square brackets.

[Longhorn]

12. Thanks!

Looks good, huh?

[Syrinx]

19. you're welcome!!! n/t

[Syrinx]

21. mortadella cheese?

Just noticed that in my post. Mortadella isn't a cheese at all. It's meat. Kind of a fancy bologna. (Oxymoron alert?) Don't know how that slipped in there. :shrug:

[Rowdyboy]

6. How do we submit recipes, Jill?....I've narrowed mine down to three

and I think I know the one I'll probably want to submit. Let us know details.

If this works, we can do a "dessert" cook-off, a soup, grill, side-dish etc. We could really share a lot of very good dishes. Hope we can get some friendly rivalry going.

[Maddy McCall]

7. Just submit them in this thread.

Then we can pick our faves...I am digging through my cookbook this morning, so I'll have one, too.

Yes, we will do other categories later. :-)

[finecraft]

9. Here we go: Cajun Seafood and Garlic Grits

Garlic Grits:
4 cups water
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup Quick grits (not instant)
4 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup grated mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
2 eggs slightly beaten
1 teaspoon Worcestershire Sauce

Preheat oven to 350°. Grease large saucepan with cooking spray, add water and bring to a boil over high heat. Stir in salt and grits. Lower heat and cook, stirring occasionally, until water is absorbed and grits thicken. Add butter, cheeses, garlic powder, Worcestershire sauce and eggs. Pour in a greased casserole dish and bake for about 30 minutes to set.

Seafood:
1/2 cup butter or margarine
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 onion, thinly sliced
1/2 green pepper, cut into strips
2 pounds raw medium shrimp, peeled
1 pound (pre-cooked or frozen) crawfish tails, peeled
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 cup chopped green onion
1 cup sliced mushrooms
1/2 cup chopped parsley
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1/8 teaspoon basil, thyme and oregano
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1/4 cup white wine

In a large saucepan, melt butter and oil over medium heat. Add sliced onions and green pepper strips and sauté until tender.Add shrimp and sauté until pink. Stir in all other ingredients and seasonings. Simmer about 10 minutes. Mixture will be very saucy.

Serve a scoop of grits surrounded with seafood and sauce.
Serve with hot French (ack!! I mean "Freedom ")bread for dipping.

Serves 8.

[Rowdyboy]

10. Here's one of my favorites...

BARBECUED SHRIMP

1 1/2 lb fresh gulf shrimp, unpeeled
3 stalks celery with leaves, chopped coarsely
2 cloves garlic, chopped
2 lemons, cut in half
1/2 cup butter, cut into cubes
2 tbs black pepper
1 tbs Worcestershire sauce
2 tsp salt
hot sauce to taste
lemon wedges

Wash shrimp and place in a large, shallow pan with celery and garlic. Squeeze juice from lemon over shrimp and dot with butter. Add remaining ingredients (except for lemon wedges).

Broil 5 minutes, until butter melts and shrimp start to turn pink, stirring frequently. When all shrimp are slightly pink, lower temp to 350 and bake for 15-20 minutes until done, stirring often.

garnish with lemon wedges.

This is ALWAYS better when reheated because the flavors have a chance to meld, but be care not to overcook.

(peel before eating...very messy but very good!)

[Maddy McCall]

20. I was going to submit that! It's an EXCELLENT recipe!

Yummy!!

[doni_georgia]

13. I have two recipes - here's the first

Doni's Fried Chicken:
This is my grandmother's recipe that I adapted and made my own.

4 boneless chicken breasts torn in small pieces (strips, nuggets, don't matter)
3 eggs
1/4 milk (whole milk)
self rising unbleached flour
salt and pepper
Canola Oil for deep frying


Mix eggs and milk well in a bowl, soak chicken pieces

Mix flour and salt and pepper together in another bowl well with a fork (you're basically sifting the flour with a fork). Heat canola oil in deep fryer, or Dutch oven. Dredge chicken well in flour mixture. Check oil with a pinch of flour, when it bubbles good it is ready. Drop chicken in the hot oil. Stir chicken ocassionally to get all sides golden brown. Cook until each piece is a good golden color. Drain chicken on paper towels on a baking sheet.

This is a very crispy chicken that manages to stay crispy even after being in the fridge.

[doni_georgia]

14. Mama Grace's Chicken and Dumplings

This recipe will make you slap your mama!

1 whole hen
2 cups self rising flour
1 tablespoon vegetable shortening
butter milk
salt and pepper

Boil your hen in a Dutch oven in water until it is done (falling from the bones). Remove hen from pot, pull off meat. Put in a separate bowl. While hen is cooking, make your dumplings. This is the exact same as making biscuits. Pour flour in a bowl, create a well in the middle, cut in your shortening, add buttermilk stiring to get a good damp dough consistency. Cover cutting board (or cookie sheet) with lots of extra flour, pour dough out on flour and coat well, flattening dough across the surface about 1/4 inch thick. Cut dough in strips. After you remove hen from the liquid, add salt and pepper to taste (you just have to taste the broth until it suits you - I measure salt in my hand, so I have no idea exactly how much my guess is a little over a teaspoon). Add dough strips one at a time. When they float to the top and you no longer can see raw flour, remove dumplings to a separate bowl. Repeat until all the dumplings are cooked. Add chicken meat back to the pot and add dumplings back to the pot. It is ready to eat once everything has been added back to the pot.

[Longhorn]

15. I just printed both recipes and can't wait to try them.

I love simple recipes like this. I can actually see myself making them! Thanks!

[doni_georgia]

18. Hope you enjoy.

My family is like a pack of wolves when I cook fried chicken. I have to cook extra for their nibbling while I'm cooking.

[morningglory]

16. Stuffed Collar Leaves

STUFFED COLLARDS

Serves: 4 to 5
10 big collard leaves
1/2 cup brown rice
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 medium onion, finely chopped
2 minced garlic cloves
1 pound lean ground beef
1 large egg, lightly beaten
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 (15-ounce) can peeled , diced Italian tomatoes, undrained
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons lemon juice
Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Boil collard leaves until they are tender enough to work with. Trim down the thick rib in the center of each leaf.
In a medium saucepan of lightly salted boiling water, cook the rice for 5 minutes. Drain, rinse under cold running water, and drain again.
In a medium skillet, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring often, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring often, for 1 minute. Transfer to a medium bowl, and mix in the precooked rice, the ground beef, egg, savory, salt, and pepper.
Place about 1/3 cup of the filling in the center of a collard leaf, fold over the sides, and roll up into a cylinder. Place the roll on a plate, seam side down, and repeat with remaining leaves and filling.
In a blender, process the tomatoes with their juice, the brown sugar, and lemon juice to a puree. Pour the sauce into a dutch oven with broth from boiled down beef or chicken, and layer the cabbage rolls in the sauce. Cover and slow-cook until the rolls are tender, 1-to 1 ½ hours on low (300 degrees F).

[Maddy McCall]

17. EVERYONE! WE ARE EXTENDING DEADLINE TO MON.

Try to get your recipes in by tomorrow; we'll do the lounge competition tomorrow night on entrees and then we'll move on to other categories next week.

[GumboYaYa]

22. Smothered Pork Chops - Ruston Style

Smothered Pork Chops Ruston Style (this is a recipr from John Folse)

Smoking of pork was a natural thing in the early days of Louisiana cooking. Often there was no time to allow for smoking when meals were needed in a rush, so the innovative cooks of North Louisiana did the next best thing. Smothering the chops with slices of heavy smoked sausage imported the smoked flavor and the addition of Ruston peaches, made an ordinary dish spectacular.

The Ingredients
6 3/4-inch, center cut loin chops
flour for dusting
1/4 cup vegetable oil
salt and black pepper to taste
1 cup chopped onions
1 cup chopped celery 1/4 cup chopped red bell pepper
1/4 cup chopped yellow bell pepper
1 tbsp. diced garlic
1 link heavy, smoked sausage
3 peaches, sliced
1 cup sliced mushrooms
1/2 cup s1iced green onions
1/2 cup chopped parsley
dash of Louisiana Gold Pepper Sauce
dried thyme and basil to taste

The Method: Have your butcher cut 3/4-inch chops from the center of a pork loin. The heavy chops wil1 hold up under the long braisng period. Season the chops with salt and pepper and dust lightly in flour. In a large black iron skillet, with lid, heat oil over medium high heat. Saute chops on both sides until golden brown. Add onions, celery, bell peppers and garlic, saute until vegetables are wilted. Slice the smoked sausage and add to the chops. Add sliced peaches and mushrooms, reduce heat to simmer, cover and allow to cook until chops are tender. Add a little water or chicken stock as needed to keep from sticking or drying out. Add green onions, parsley and season to taste using Louisiana Gold, thyme and basil. Once chops are tender, remove to a serving platter and top with the sausage and peach sauce. You may wish to serve with pasta or seasoned rice.

[franmarz]

23. Achallenge for cook-off's from the south

Any red blodded cook worth their salt in the kitchen better have a SOUTHERN LIVING MAGAZINE at their fingertips. Having said that, I would also like to say that being raised in the south, I have watched the rise of my beloved TEX-MEX catagory enter the cook books. I have recipes from the ancectors in Spain and the South. I will watch this contest eagerly.

[Rowdyboy]

24. I have a 25 year compilation of Southern Living books without which

I would be lost inthe kitchen. I trust their recipes implicitly.

[Nicole]

25. deleted

missed that this is for entrees & I posted dessert. OOPS!

[ronzo]

26. New Orleans Red Gravy (Garlic Heaven)

New Orleans Red Gravy
(Marinara Sauce to those of you who don't live in the swamps!)

Makes about 12 cups. It's great over pastas, chicken, fish, just about anything! But... if you don't like garlic, don't even bother!

Ingredient List
3/4 Cup olive oil
2 Cups finely chopped onions
20 toes of garlic, minced (about 3 tablespoons)
4 bay leaves
4 (10 1/2oz) cans double-strength chicken broth
6 oz water
6 cups good-quality canned tomato sauce
3 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons dried sweet basil leaves
2 teaspoons dried thyme leaves
1 teaspoon white pepper
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon cayenne
2 bay leaves (additional)


Saute' onion and garlic with 4 of the bay leaves, until onions are wilted. Add remaining ingredients and bring to a simmer; reduce heat to maintain simmer, and cook for an hour, stirring occasionally. Remove bay leaves before serving. Freeze or store unused portion in refrigerator... it's even better the day after!


ed: if you're vegetarian, substitute vegetarian vegetable bouillon broth for the chicken broth. It's also quite excellent.

[Nicole]

27. kick

[Maddy McCall]

28. Myrt's Chicken and Dumplins with Hot Water Cornbread

Myrt's Chicken and Dumplins

This is the recipe my grandmother gave me when I got married. I have modernized it by bringing in dumplins that you can buy off the shelf at the grocer's which are every bit as good as grandma's dumplins.

Ingredients:

One large hen
1 toe of garlic, cleaned
1 medium size Vidalia onion, cut in half, deskinned
1 large carrot
5 stalks celery
Liberally salt and pepper

4 cans Sweet Sue Chicken Broth
3 Packs Frozen Ma Kettle's Iron Pot Dumplins
1/2 cup of milk plus some extra to adjust thickness
1/4 cup corn starch
1 stick butter
Season to your taste. I use:
Pepper
Salt
Tony's
Nutmeg (my secret ingredient)

Place first seven ingredients in a pressure cooker with enough water to cover. Bring to a boil for thirty minutes.

After your stock is done, strain it through a collander into a large bowl, and then place it in a large stock pot. Add:

4 cans of Sweet Sue unsalted chicken broth

Bring to boil again. While the stock is being brought to boil, debone your chicken, and discard the bones. Fido will probably enjoy the chicken skin, so allow him to have a little treat, but don't give him the bones. Place the deboned chicken aside, and cover with a wet paper towel so that the chicken doesn't dry out.

By now, your stock should be boiling. You can either make your dumplins yourself, but I advice using Ma Kettles frozen dumplins. They are inexpensive and are as fluffy and light as any dumplins I have ever eaten, so add:

Three packages of Ma Kettles' Frozen Dumplins
1 Stick of Butter

Add dumplins one at a time and stir constantly to keep the dumplins from sticking. Let dumplins cook until very tender--usually about forty minutes. Reduce your heat to very low.

Next, take several teaspoons of the broth, mix with a half cup of milk, and add a quarter cup of corn starch. Stir well to remove lumps, and then add to your broth and dumplins. This will thicken your dumplins.

Add your deboned chicken to the dumplins, stir well, and now let's season:

1/2 teaspoon of nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon of Tony's
1/2 teaspoon of freshly ground pepper
1/2 teaspoon of salt.

Let your chicken and dumplins sit for several hours...the dumplins will absorb the flavorings.

Serve with hotwater cornbread: Recipe below:


Hotwater Cornbread:

1 cup cornmeal
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon white sugar
1 tablespoon shortening
3/4 cup boiling water

In a medium bowl, combine cornmeal, salt, and sugar. Add boiling water and shortening; stir until shortening melts.

Pour oil or bacon fat to a depth of 1/2 inch in a large skillet and heat to 375 degrees F

Shape cornmeal mixture into flattened balls using a heaping tablespoon as a measuring guide. Fry each in hot oil, turning once, until crisp and golden brown, about 5 minutes. Drain on paper towels. Serve at once with Chicken and Dumplins.