These days at The French Press in Lafayette, Chef Justin Girouard offers Cajun versions of traditional dishes, such as his boudin sliders and Cajun Benedict, which uses French bread instead of English muffins, boudin instead of Canadian bacon, and is topped with chicken and andouille gumbo instead of hollandaise. “Our goal is to serve Cajun dishes in which the ingredients are just elements of the dish as a whole, rather than the main focus,” he says.
Sweet Baby Breesus
2014-07-12 02:50:29
Serves 6
Ingredients
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 9 tablespoons cold unsalted butter
- 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons cold whole buttermilk
- 3 teaspoons baking powder
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- Tabasco-Honey Butter, recipe follows
- Vegetable oil, for frying
- 18 frozen Boudin Balls, thawed for 10 minutes, recipe follows
- ½ cup Steen’s cane syrup
- 12 slices cooked bacon, cut crosswise into 3 pieces
Instructions
- In the work bowl of a food processor, add flour and butter; pulse 1 to 2 times until butter resembles peas. In a large bowl, combine flour mixture, buttermilk, baking powder, and salt. Mix until the dough just comes together, being careful not to overmix.
- On a heavily floured cutting board, roll out dough until 1 inch thick. Cut into 18 (2-inch) circles with a round cutter, and place on a parchment-lined baking pan. Freeze pan with biscuits for 20 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 375°.
- Bake biscuits for 12 minutes, rotate pan, and cook until golden brown, about 12 minutes more. Remove from oven and brush heavily with Tabasco-Honey Butter.
- In a large Dutch oven or stockpot, pour oil to a depth of 3 inches, and heat over medium heat until it reads 350° on a candy or deep-fry thermometer. Fry slightly thawed Boudin Balls in batches of three for 8 minutes. Transfer onto a paper towel–lined baking sheet to drain. Sprinkle lightly with salt. Repeat with remaining Boudin Balls.
- Cut biscuits in half and heavily drizzle 1 teaspoon cane syrup over top and bottom of each piece. Place a piece of bacon on each of the bottom halves.
- Place a Boudin Ball on the bottom half of each biscuit and drizzle with cane syrup. Add a piece of bacon, top with biscuit top and gently smash. Repeat with remaining Boudin Balls and biscuits. Divide biscuits between 6 plates and serve with additional cane syrup, if desired.
Louisiana Cookin' https://louisianacookin.com/
Tabasco-Honey Butter
2014-07-12 02:51:14
Yields 1
Ingredients
- ⅓ cup unsalted butter
- 2½ tablespoons honey
- 2 teaspoons Tabasco sauce
Instructions
- In a small saucepan, melt butter. Add honey and Tabasco and whisk to combine; remove from heat and reserve. Unused portion can be kept in an airtight container in the refrigerator up to 1 week. Stir well before use.
Louisiana Cookin' https://louisianacookin.com/
Boudin Balls
2014-07-12 02:52:16
Yields 36
Ingredients
- 1¼ pounds pork butt, chopped
- ½ pound pork liver, chopped
- 2⅛ teaspoons salt, divided
- 1¼ teaspoons ground black pepper, divided
- 1 cup chicken broth
- ½ cup finely chopped yellow onion
- ¼ cup finely chopped bell pepper
- ¼ cup finely chopped celery
- ¼ cup chopped fresh thyme
- ½ teaspoon finely minced garlic
- 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ½ cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
- ½ cup chopped green onion, green part only
- 3 cups cooked medium-grain rice
- 2 large eggs
- ½ cup water
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine pork and liver; season with 1 teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon black pepper. In a large pot, combine meat and chicken broth; bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer until tender, about 1 to 1½ hours. Remove meat with slotted spoon and let cool, reserving broth. Grind pork and liver with a coarse grinding disk and reserve.
- In a large pot, combine reserved broth, onion, bell pepper, celery, thyme, garlic, cayenne pepper, remaining ¾ teaspoon black pepper, and remaining 1⅛ teaspoons salt; bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat and simmer until vegetables are tender.
- Add cooked rice and reserved meat to broth mixture and cook gently until liquid is absorbed, about 10 to 15 minutes. Add parsley and green onion, stirring as little as possible. Overworked rice will become gummy. Let boudin mixture cool to room temperature.
- Form boudin into 36 balls (about 1½ inches in diameter) and place on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Cover and freeze until firm, 30 to 60 minutes.
- In a shallow dish, lightly whisk eggs with ½ cup water. In another shallow dish, place flour. Dredge each boudin ball in flour, coat with egg, and then dredge in flour again. Place each on a parchment-lined baking sheet, cover with plastic wrap, and freeze completely.
Louisiana Cookin' https://louisianacookin.com/
