So you wanna cook meat outdoors like a Cajun?
If you go to Crawfish Guy, he has a clear recipe for Cochon de Lait on his website to be cooked in a Cajun Microwave.

RECIPE FOR COCHON DE LAIT (Young Suckling Roast Pig)

Have a butcher clean and dress a young pig, ranging from 35-90 lbs. Make sure all hair and blood is removed. Remove head. Trim feet to fit in microwave. Stuff pig with lots of fresh garlic on both sides. Coat in a seasoning mix (i.e., Tony Chachare’s or some other brand of salt, red and black pepper, onion and garlic salt, and other spices). Place skin side up to start in order to get the skin and grease cooking early. Light a fire of coals or wood on top of microwave (approx 10-20 lbs at a time), being careful not to create too much heat immediately which may burn pig (you may have to keep the lid open or place a piece of tin foil over the pig while fire takes) or may burn the box. Keep good heat—approx. 225 degrees F to 275 degrees F: once you go over 275 you risk burning the box – for about 4-6 hours– total amount of charcoal needed may be 60-70 lbs for 4x2x2 box. Check pig every 45 minutes, turning approx every hour and a half. Pour 1 can of beer on skin 30 minutes before it is done to create a crispy “crackling” skin. Serve with fresh sweet potatoes, garlic bread and other items, many of which may also be cooked inside microwave. Periodically “screen out” ash from lid as you add more charcoal or wood (ash can serve as an “insulator” and prevent enough heat needed for the cooking process).

Advantages Of The Cajun Microwave
Versus the traditional open pit method of cooking
* Cooks Food 25-40% faster than open pit method (A 50lb pig can be roasted in 4-5 hours instead of 6-8 hours)
* Cooks more efficiently – you use 1-2 bags of charcoal vs. 1/2 chord of wood for in-ground pit method
* Can be used in the city and suburbs since it uses charcoal like a bar-be-que pit
* No need to worry should the weather turn bad – just move the Cajun Microwave under your patio or shed, or even under a tree
* Taste of the cooked meat is as close as you can get to meat roasted in an open pit.
* the weather is not an issue (can’t have a fire in the rain)
* legal in cities where fires are prohibited (cook on your porch or courtyard)
* options such as grills mounted on top of lid and lets you cook “double duty” —large pieces of meat inside the box, burgers, hot dogs, bbq chicken and other items on top-at the same time!
* It is also a wonderful conversation piece – center of attention for your party!

St. Edwards Parish in Metairie, Louisiana welcomed me into their annual Cochon De Lait fold and I experienced some of the best teamwork efforts I’ve seen in years. It was all hands, garlic, beer, knives and port butts galore up and down the work tables. We handled 3,200 pounds of pork butts and 2,000 pounds of pork skins to make cracklings (which sold out before I even had a chance to know they were being sold, which should tell you how delicious they are!)

The fundraiser draws astounding numbers of people and nets several hundred thousand dollars for the church.

“Someone brought mojitos last year. MAN! Do you remember how much it slowed production of the butts down?” – Anonymous voice in the crowd, to much laughter

Teamwork: Teamwork is the capability to comprehend and recognize the diverse strengths and abilities in a group setting and then applying them to one final solution.

“What other Catholic Institution can you go to legally and stuff butts?” - Angelo

St. Edwards Parish in Metairie, Louisiana welcomed me into their annual Cochon De Lait fold and I experienced some of the best teamwork efforts I’ve seen in years. It was all hands, garlic, beer, knives and port butts galore up and down the work tables. We handled 3,200 pounds of pork butts and 2,000 pounds of pork skins to make cracklings (which sold out before I even had a chance to know they were being sold, which should tell you how delicious they are!)

The fundraiser draws astounding numbers of people and nets several hundred thousand dollars for the church.

Once you’ve washed your hands, put on gloves and taken a place at the work table you will receive your first butt. You take your knife and give that butt five good prick incisions, then you stuff it with garlic cloves. Flip it over and repeat the action. Your butt will receive a treatment of cajun seasonings and then be passed down the line to the packers. They put 8 butts per box and stack each box on the pallet. Once a full pallet is stacked, the men haul off the pallets to the refrigerated truck.
You, meanwhile are working away on your 7th or 8th butt while all this is happening.
Rinse.
Repeat.

There are 130 kegs on site. “Usually, the Saints are out of town and we can just call Miller if we run out of beer, and they’ll replenish us from kegs at the Superdome. Just to be sure, this year we have 15 extra kegs in the back. They’re secret kegs. So it’s really 145 kegs for 2010.” - Rene

Stay tuned for the story of the Cochon De Lait and the Cajun Microwave. You can see more of last years, Cochon De Lait at Saint Eddy’s by clicking here.

I first met Anna, the younger Boyer sister who had hauled, arranged and prepped everything for our dinner like she was in the cutest cooking show ever produced — at the NOLA Treehouse. Everything she’d put before her on the work table was neat, tidy, old-fashioned and perfectly paid attention to. Her mire poix was a thing of beauty. Her attitude was calming and you could sense what a kind lady with a genuine sense of fun existed beneath her cooking apron. She was like the clean organized eye of a storm (we were cooking in a loud art coop and her beautiful, vivacious sister had yet to arrive).

“I love bureacracy. Haha. I am so organized.” – Anna Boyer

And then Anna’s sister Vaidan had arrived and like the moon rising, the party had started.

Cute. CUTE. Keeeeeew-yuuuute.
The Boyer family is adorable and full of life. They interacted with each other seamlessly and in harmony. A thing of beauty.

The Sisters Boyer and their pop, Arnie, cooked for me on a balmy Sunday Evening in a kitchen filled with windows. They made their mothers chili recipe which they grew up feasting on. They have since modified the original recipe to fit their vegetarian diets. They good-naturedly discussed the various pros and cons of chopping versus dicing. The exact number of beans to use in the recipe and how many teaspoons of a certain spice to add into the pot.

“I usually like white potatoes, but the girls like sweet potatoes.” -Arnie Boyer

Each person had an opinion and a valid reason for wanting to do something a certain way. As I watched them come to a common consensus it struck me how many twists and turns can arise during a recipe. How many choices we are faced in our travels to a specific taste destination.

“This was our mom’s recipe. It used to have beef in it and was a staple in our lives. But we became vegetarians in our ten years so we changed it to have soy. Once my mom tasted it with soy, she never went back to beef.” – Anna and Vaidan, in unison

“Something chemical happens when you crush the garlic. Magic happens. When it cooks it makes everything creamy. And it cooks so evenly.” - Anna Boyer

“You have to achieve the feng shui of garlic.” - Anna Boyer

“Always check the chili powder for its spice levels. Never trust that it’ll always be the same.” – Arnie Boyer

“One time we accidentally put in instant coffee into the chili instead of chili pepper. It was still good, kind mole-like. Not as bad as the time I screwed up the sugar and the salt.” - Anna and Vaidan, in unison

Boyer Family Chili

Ingredients:
2 Cans Black Beans, drained and rinsed
4 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and diced into 1/2″ cubes
3 medium onions, diced into 1/4″ cubes along with EVOO (for simmering)
2 #10 cans of whole peeled tomatoes + juice
4 oz tomato paste
5 cloves of garlic, peeled and crushed in a mortar and pestle until creamy
1/2 LB of textured vegetable protein
1tbsp. cumin
10 whole cloves
3-4 bay leaves
5-10 tsp of New Mexico chili powder (to taste)
Salt & Pepper to taste

Instructions:
1. Simmer onions until clear, about 8 minutes. When clear add the garlic.

2. When onions and garlic are mixed and cooked (about 6 minutes) add in tomatoes and gently crush them by hand as you add them to the saucepan. Add spices.

3. Stir the chili and let bubble away for a few moments. Add sweet potatoes. Cover and let cook for 15 minutes on medium heat.

4. Stir chili. Add beans.

5. Salt and Pepper to taste, after Chili has simmered an additional 10-12 minutes.

6. Remove from heat and let rest for 10 minutes. Serve with toast for dipping.

To learn more about the art gallery scene in New Orleans, visit Vaidan’s PK Gallery website for upcoming art exhibits and projects.

As always, Thank You to the Sip Snap Savor wine sponsor, Murphy-Goode. And a special welcome to Mariah Sinclaire, contributing photographer.

Across the street from The Polidore’s home is a pretty large expanse of sugarcane fields. Jessica Defils took us over to the field and together she and I picked a stalk of sugar cane. Tumbling to the ground from the effort of yanking that fibrous pole from the ground (and there were two of us heaving and pulling). One can begin to imagine what life might be like for a full time cane sugar field worker.
It was purely amazing, though, to stare into that forever expanse of blue, blue skies a few splatters of fluffy clouds and olive-lime green leaves and stalks as far as the eye could see.
Eventually, I tore myself away. I couldn’t help it. My California sense of justice, fairness, compassion, political-correctness and earth fever set in and I vowed to read up on sugarcane and the important role it played and continues to play in The South and in The World.

Sugarcane, is one of the most efficient photosynthesizers in the plant kingdom. It’s a C-4 plant, able to convert up to 2 percent of incident solar energy into biomass.
6CO2 + 6H2O (+ Sunlight) —-> C6H12O6 + 6O2
What does that mean, you ask?

Only perhaps the most dramatic natural event in our planet’s history. Three billion years ago, simple, one-celled forms of life appeared, which we now call procaryotes (bacteria); one family of procaryotes was the first to perform the miracle of photosynthesis . This means that these sun-eating pioneers were able to absorb the sun’s energy and use it to digest water and CO2, releasing the precious atmospheric oxygen that later would allow the entire food chain to sprout and flourish in all its rich diversity. The miracle continues to this day. Read more about photosynethis and the miracle of life, here.

In order to fully understand the history of sugarcane in the United States, start here. Essentially…

Sugar cane, native to Southeast Asia, is a tall grass with sweet sap in its thick, fibrous stalks. It was one of the early crops introduced to the Caribbean area by Spanish and Portuguese explorers, where it flourished.

In 1751, Jesuit missionaries brought sugar cane plants, along with experienced field workers, to what is now downtown New Orleans.
The harvesting and production of sugar cane was labor-intensive, and that fueled the slave trade. By the 1860s, the sugar industry was using 300,000 slaves, according to Richard’s account.

The country’s largest sugar plantation during this period was Houmas House near Baton Rouge, known in its heyday as “The Sugar Palace.”

-Raising Cane

A huge thank you to Jessica for taking the 30 minutes from her day to show us and tell us all about sugarcane. I have learned so much. So incredibly much from this little micro-focus on locality and seasonality. I had no idea how important and culture-steeped sugarcane truly is.
Sometime in my lifetime I would like to experience fresh sugarcane juice.

Sugarcane juice: a combination of fresh juice, extracted by hand or small mills, with a touch of lemon and ice to make a popular drink, known variously as ganne ka rass, guarab, guarapa, guarapo, papelón, aseer asab, Ganna sharbat, mosto and caldo de cana

A sugarcane pole is divided into lengths by it’s nodes, or joints. Jessica started out by peeling off the leaves from the different joints. Then she cut off the root and starting as close to the bottom of the pole as she could, she began peeling off the skin by using a knife. Much like one would peel a carrot with a simple vegetable peeler.
When she’d finished peeling a length of node, she would hand it over to one of us in the house so we could crunch down on it and squirt the inside of our mouths with filmy, dreamy sugar juice.

I miss it so much, right this moment.
mmmmm

This might be the most random intervention of fate, I’ve thus far experienced with this project. I occasionally write articles for Edible East Bay a food magazine in Northern California. My editor sent me a cryptic message, knowing I was going to be in Louisiana in a weeks time. The message said that a woman named Jeanette was looking for tree collards starters, only available in CA — would I be interested in tracking some down and bringing them to her.

When I phoned Jeanette, my ears were greeted with the sweetest, softest voice. She assured me that it would ok if I couldn’t find the collards. And when I broached the subject of this project she said she was willing to host me and share her family’s gumbo recipe. Ten days later, with my friend Mariah Sinclaire in tow, I arrived in Franklin, Louisiana about 2 hours west of New Orleans. Sparsely populated, dotted with cane fields and screaming of beautiful back country.

Franklin and the Polidore Family were everything I was hoping to see and experience.

From the moment we walked in the door, 20 month old Zaré was the center of the universe. A cuter child has never existed. I’m sure of it.
I am still in love with her to this moment. Zaré’s mom, is 25 year old Jessica de Fils who is the daughter of Jeanette Polidore. Both women love to cook and I can see that Zaré and her sister Shay have a long delicious life ahead of them.

“Okra, shrimp, chicken gumbo. We don’t do all that weird chicken feet crap. No alligator here.” – Jessica

Gumbo is very eclectic. It’s a roux based stew and is a simple collection of meats and vegetables that you have readily available. The seasonings are almost usually similar though never exact. The flavors are similar, though never exact. The style can range from red gravy gumbo to white gravy gumbo. From Creole to Cajun.

“Certain families are very secretive. My aunt makes crawfish fettucine that takes first place in the state of Louisiana but she WILL NOT share that recipe with anyone. Maybe when she gets older.” - Jessica

Jeanette comes from a long line of strong women with colorful histories. She has 13 brothers and sisters and it’s rumored her grandfather was struck down by Bonnie and Clyde, in Burwick, LA. Her french lineage keeps her current family stewed in delicious francophile Creole tendencies in the kitchen. It’s a beautiful melding of cultures.

“Creole food is nothing without filé (pronounced Feel-Lay).” – Jeanette

“These sausages are too big. They need to be smaller for my babies.” – Jessica
“They are the perfect size. Why you cutting them?” – Jeanette
“We always argue over the size of the sausage. Always.” - Jessica

And one more thing before we dive into the recipe. The correct way to pronounce the ever present seasoning found all over Louisiana, Tony Chachere is like this …
SAH-Sure-eeE

De Fils Gumbo
Ingredients:
Roux: 1 C. Flour and 3/4 C. Cooking Oil – Cook over medium heat into a thick, creamy gravy-consistency. Keep at the Roux until you have a milk chocolate color. Don’t burn the Roux or you’re gumbo will taste starchy.
1 Bag of Dried Shrimp
1/2 gallon of Water
4 Bouillion cubes
10 Drumsticks
3 lbs Shrimp
2 cups Okra
1 lb of Beef Sausage
2 C. Cooked Rice
Tony Chachere Filé, Cayenne Pepper and Tabasco to taste

“My secret is two pinches of fresh cilantro.” -Jessica

Instructions:
1. Add your finished Roux into a large stockpot with the water and bouillion. Bring to a slow boil on medium-high heat.

2. Toss in the bag of dried shrimp and drumsticks.

3. Meanwhile deslime your okra by heating in 3 TBLSP cooking oil and 2 TSP vinegar and fry it just a few moments, to soften the okra. Then add it to the stockpot, along with pinches to taste of Chachero Filé, Cayenne Pepper, Tabasco, Salt & Pepper.

4. After the Gumbo has cooked for 20 minutes add the sausages and let cook another twenty minutes before adding in your rice. Wait 5 minutes, then add shrimp. Let the gumbo go for another 5-6 minutes and shut off the heat. Let stand for 10 minutes and serve with a big dollop of potato salad, square on top of the gumbo – country style.

Jessica’s Tips
1. Play with your sausages: Use all pork or all beef, or try cajun style sausage which is a blend of the two.
2. Coconut Oil or Olive Oil can be used instead of Cooking Oil, like Vegetable Oil.
3. Be creative when it comes to your seafod. Try crab legs, scallops, almost any kind of seafood can be used to create a more interestingly flavorful dish.
4. Try substituting brown rice for the white rice.
5. Use fresh ingrediants whenever possible to make your gumbo really POP.

As always, Thank You to the Sip Snap Savor wine sponsor, Murphy-Goode. And a special thank you to Mariah Sinclaire, contributing photographer.

One of the most interesting characters I met during my time in NOLA was the flamboyantly practical, Hassan. A singer, a chef and expert in many topics. I enjoyed watching someone else boss everyone (Aymeric and Hunter) around for a change (usually its me doing the bossing). Hassan had Buenos Hermanos wafting deliciously through the sunny kitchen. He expertly opened a chilled bottle of sauvignon blanc and poured it into small jelly jars for everyone working in the kitchen.

The table was littered with fresh ingredients. There were knives, cutting boards and bowls of mustery spices everywhere.
It was a beautiful way to spend the afternoon with three handsome men.

“We’ve only known each other one month. And this was Hunter’s idea to cook once a week.” – Hassan Allen

“I’m old-fashioned, honey. I get indignant with fast food.”- Hassan Allen

“I come from a long line of cooks, most of my family members have cooked in restuarants.”- Hassan Allen

“I mixed collards, kales, mustards, broccoli rabe and turnip greens together. Seven bunches that will cook down, together for a long time on low, to nearly nothing.” – Hassan Allen

“I’m gonna hand mash these chilies and add them into the greens at the 45 minute mark. I know the trick to getting the chile off your fingers. White Vinegar!” – Hassan Allen

“I love to cook in big earthenware cookware, so it goes slow all day so I can puts around and make love to people. Crock pots are ideal for what I love to do. Slow! Slow.” – Hassan Allen

Hassan’s Greens

Ingredients:
7-8 large bunches of assorted greens (kale, mustards, chards, collards)
5 cloves of garlic, smashed/minced
1 medium white onion, finely diced
2-3 chilies, cleaned and minced
1TBLSP apple cider vinegar
2TBLSP red wine vinegar

“I try to stay away from overly sweet greens.” -Hassan Allen

Instructions:
1. Soak and clean the greens in the sink. Discard dirt and sand. Hand rip the greens into manageable pieces.

2. Add greens, along with 2 cups of water and salt & pepper to taste to a large stockpot, set on medium/low heat.

3. At the 45 minute mark, add remaining ingredients, tossing softly into the greens.

4. Cook 3-4 hours on medium low heat.

You may choose to add roasted beets to your greens to sweeten them naturally. Hassan roasted his in a foil pouch on an outdoor grill for about 40 minutes. He then let them cool a bit to the touch and peeled and diced them. You may add them to your greens towards the end of the cooking process.

As always, Thank You to the Sip Snap Savor wine sponsor, Murphy-Goode.

Filed under: Families 2010 - Southern Route, Food Background, Food Photography, Melissa Schilling, People, Recipes, Road Trip, Team S.S.S. Tagged: beets, Food, greens, hassan, pepper ]]>

Though we were in New Orleans, this dinner could have taken place in any health conscience, seasonally-minded home. We feasted on Vegan Enchiladas (the best I’ve ever had) and Apple Crisp. In the next post, we’ll cover the Boyer Sister’s special chili that accompanied the dinner.

“I make these enchiladas at Burning Man. We cook and vacuum seal everything so all you have to do is simply drop a bag in hot water on the playa and then pig out. I’m part of the Black Rock Boutique.” -Margarete Beeson

“You have to serve the apple crisp with ice cream. have to.” – Lizy Hapgood

Margarete Beeson’s Vegan Enchiladas
antigravy@gmail.com

Ingredients:
30 Tortillas (flour or corn)
3 Cans Enchilada Sauce (red)
1 Large Onion, peeled, diced
1 Corn on the cob, cut
1 Can black beans
Vegan Cheese: 1/4 C Ground Cashews, 1/4 C. Brewers Yeast, 1 1/2 C Water, Pinch Black Pepper, 1 Tblsp Lemon Juice, 1 Tblsp Crushed Red Pepper Flakes

Instructions:
1. Combine Vegan Cheese ingredients in a large sauce pan, boil on medium high heat until thick and creamy like melted nacho cheese. Set aside.

2. In a bowl, mix corn, beans and onion. Set aside. Open enchilada sauce and put into large bowl, suitable for dipping tortillas into (make sure it has a wide mouth).

3. Fry tortillas slightly, until soft, limp in a medium skillet.

4. Dip tortillas into enchilada sauce. Fill with spoonfuls of vegan cheese. Add scoops of bean/corn filling. Roll. Place in baking dish.

5. Top rolled, filled tortillas with sauce and any extra toppings you may have leftover.

6. Bake for 45 minutes at 375 degrees, until slightly crispy on top. Serve hot.

The NOLA Treehouse, a communal art and living space, located at 1614 Esplanade Avenue in the 6th Ward of New Orleans, houses roughly 10 artists and creatives.
Although a new NOLA Treehouse is being built, several minutes away, on the corner of Presse and St. Claude. The new Treehouse is churning out to be the central hub of activity: parties, gatherings, projects, idea meetings and potlucks.
These Treehouses are the brainchild of Scott and Kim Pterodactyl and are executed by a small army of individuals dedicated to the arts and exploring the status quo.

To learn more about the art landscape in New Orleans, visit the Life is Art Foundation page for upcoming art exhibits and projects.

As always, Thank You to the Sip Snap Savor wine sponsor, Murphy-Goode. And a special welcome to Mariah Sinclaire, contributing photographer.

I was invited into the Treehouse by Lizy Hapgood, who has lived onsite for a year. Hapgood is a realism muralist and designer. Joining her was a friend of Scott’s, named Bill who has helped around the treehouse for almost 3 years. Both of them stole a few quiet moments away from the hubub to express their appreciation for the house and all the goodness it bestows upon them.

Smile.
It is wonderful to hear words of appreciation for a home.

There was a tenuous period last winter (2009/10), when the city shut down the Treehouse. You can read about that on Twitter.

# we may not have power, but we’re far from being powerless. hard times bring strength. this is a beautiful struggle. (tweeting in the dark) Fri Feb 19 17:33:08 2010 via mobile web

# it’s extremely cold n the basement, about 2 set up the turntables, rock some jams 2 warm up – again, w/ power from next door. thank u conoco Sat Feb 13 15:58:11 2010 via web

# I’m tweeting from a computer at the house, with a router that is powered by an extension cord being run from the conoco next door Sat Feb 13 15:55:58 2010 via web

# The past three days have been a roller coaster like you wouldn’t believe Sat Feb 13 15:54:43 2010 via web

# we will fight this, new orleans!! thank you for all of your support. it means so much. it’s bringing me to tears 3:19 PM Feb 11th via web

“Crime went up in the neighborhood when we were shut down. Yep, it was truly dark outside and people in the neighborhhod were running around more. Something about the lights of the Treehouse are calming and inspiring. As soon as we were allowed to function again, the lights went back on and the neighborhood calmed down. We are a beacon of light.” -Collection of voices in the Arthouse Kitchen

“They are totally my style. My people. Just always creating.” -Margarete Beeson

The front room of the house on Esplanade is a gallery space, and the next show is a Dia De La Muertos exhibit scheduled to open this week. The shed and backyard are open for projects. And while there are no real organized house meeting-type structures in place. Everything is pretty “mellow and lowkey”, explained Beeson. It felt that way, too.

As always, Thank You to the Sip Snap Savor wine sponsor, Murphy-Goode.

Recipes and the actual dinner at the Treehouse, coming next week. Stay tuned.
To learn more about the art landscape in New Orleans, visit the Life is Art Foundation page for upcoming art exhibits and projects.