Cinnamon-dusted roasted blueberries. Slivers of ginger crisped by the oven. White peaches just slightly warmed. Sometimes the best recipes are born of the random ingredients one has in hand. My husband has a love of blueberries that always leads him to pick up a pint at the grocery store, but then they end up forgotten, stashed in the produce drawer. I’m not a fan of the remnant bud on them, so they’re the last thing I want to snack on, and thus, they stay in the drawer. Until this week, wanting something light, I decided to make a salad. I figured roasted grapes are good, so why not roasted blueberries? Where on earth I had the idea to dust them with cinnamon I’ll never know. But I’m happy it did. (more…)

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Dairy free, Dinner, Gluten free, Quick and Easy, Salad by Courtney

It’s been a while since we’ve had a rabbit recipe on here, hasn’t it? While many of my rabbit recipes have been heavier meals, this one is versatile. You can make it a bit heavier, or a bit on the lighter side. This evening I made it lighter, on accident, but decided it was the preferred way to serve this dish during the summer months.

I was first attracted to this recipe because of its use of the liver in the sauce. It’s not that I’m gaga for livers, I just like the idea of using all the bits that might otherwise find their way to the trash. The other reason I was attracted to this recipe was the pasta; it looked super simple to make. When doughs are involved, even pasta dough, it’s really 50/50 as to whether or not it will turn out right for me. So let’s take a look at this super-simple recipe. (more…)

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Dinner, Gourmet, Italian by Courtney

As I was reading through the recipe for Smothered Rabbit yesterday, I decided I wanted to go beyond the basic white rice and try making dirty rice. Usually I fry the livers and giblets and serve them as an appetizer with a bit of creole mustard sauce, but since I had made rabbit stock and had 2 cups leftover (just the perfect amount for the dirty rice), I thought I’d try my hand at this Cajun classic.

Here’s a bit of a shocker — as much Cajun and Creole food as I’ve eaten over the years, I’m not sure I’ve ever had a homemade dirty rice made with the giblets. The old standbye was Zatarain’s dirty rice with sausage thrown in.

So back to the rice. If I don’t use parts of an animal, I tend to throw them back into the freezer for later use. (more…)

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Cajun & Creole, Dairy free, Dinner, Gluten free, Lunch by Courtney

Yesterday, I decided we were way overdue for a rabbit dinner. Rabbit is one of my favorite meats, probably because I don’t get it very often. Since we’re coming up on the Mardi Gras grand finale, I decided to pull out a Cajun recipe from Chef Paul Prudhomme’s Louisiana Kitchen, Smothered Rabbit. The recipe was très simple – pan fry the rabbit, make a dark rous with the leftover oil and flour, add a bit of celery and onion, and mix it all into a boiling pot of stock. So off to the store I went to pick up the vegetables, along with a little TurboDog and Dixie beers to round out the perfect Cajun meal.

On the way back from the store, I decided instead of serving this with white rice or mashed potatoes as suggested, I would whip up a bit of dirty rice instead, which was out – of – this – world! (more…)

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Cajun & Creole, Comfort food, Dairy free, Dinner, Gourmet by Courtney