TOO DELICIOUS FOR WORDS: BAKED MACARONI AND CHEESE CUSTARD

(c) 2008, Judy Barnes Baker

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The word “custard” doesn’t prepare you for the beautiful, brown, cheesy crust. I could have called this Macaroni and Cheese Soufflé (it tastes like one, but that makes it sound much harder to make than it is), or Crustless Macaroni and Cheese Quiche (no improvement over the first title), or Cheese Puff (sounds too much like Cheetos®). Whatever you call it, I know you are going to love this versatile macaroni and cheese dish: it can be served for breakfast; as the main course for brunch or luncheon; as an appetizer; or the one I like best, as a delicious, low-carb side dish.

2 ounces Dreamfields™ elbows (1/2 cup dry)
1 cup of heavy cream
3 eggs
1 cup grated Gruyère cheese
¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon cayenne

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Stir in macaroni and cook until just done, stirring once or twice. (Check for doneness two minutes before the time given in the directions on the pasta box. It should be slightly firm since it will be cooked again.) Drain immediately and rinse with cold water. Place on paper toweling to cool.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Butter 4 (eight-ounce capacity) ramekins. Stir together the cheese and place ¼ of the cheese and ¼ of the pasta in each buttered baking cup.

Heat the cream until just warm. Whisk together cream, eggs, salt, and pepper until smooth. Pour the custard mixture over cheese and pasta, filling the cups almost to the top.

Put ramekins on a baking sheet and place on middle rack in preheated oven. Bake for 30 minutes or until puffed and well browned. (Check progress by looking through oven window; do not open oven door until custards are well risen.) Remove to a rack and let cool for about 5 minutes. Custards will sink a bit as they cool. Serve warm.

Makes 4 Servings.

Total Carb: 10.25g, Protected Carbs: 7.75g, Fiber: 1.75g, Net Carb: 1.75g*

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* Dreamfields pasta is made of regular semolina flour (that’s why it tastes so good), but it contains a fiber blend that protects most of the starch from being digested. It has 5 digestible grams of carbohydrate per each 2-ounce serving and a low glycemic index of 13. It should be cooked only to the al dente stage, which means it should feel slightly firm “to the tooth.” If it is overcooked, it will become more digestible. It is also important that if it is reheated, it should be done gently and only until warm.

Those with diabetes are advised to test for blood glucose spikes after eating Dreamfields. Their Website states, “Results do vary by person, so try Dreamfields and see what your glycemic results show.”

Tips for using Dreamfields:
- Use plenty of water. One pound of pasta requires at least 4 quarts of water.
- Bring water to a full, rolling boil. Add one tablespoon of salt per pound of pasta
- Add pasta to boiling water gradually.
- Stir pasta gently to keep pasta from clumping.
- Leave the pot uncovered and keep water at a constant boil. Stir occasionally.
- Test the pasta 2 minutes before end of cooking time to check tenderness.

Still Here

I'm still here, just working on a number of things that are taking longer than I expected. In the meantime, here are a few terrific articles that you can check out from other blogs:

I loved Regina Wilshire's post called "The Solar Powered Plate." in which she explains why vegetarians actually use more of the Earth's resources than meat eaters. http://weightoftheevidence.blogspot.com/search?q=solar

Dr. McCleary's Website has been given a make-over and he is posting more often. His site is a treasure trove of wisdom and science. His article titled, Anticholinergics ... by any other name is about medications that cause a "rapid decline in cognitive ability" that can mimic Alzheimer-type dementia. The list includes some very common over-the-counter drugs. Two of them are sitting on my bathroom shelf as I write this. (But not for long!)

Although Dr. Eades has been under the gun with a deadline for the new book he and Dr. Mary Dan are working on, he continues to put up links to health-related studies. Here are two about the importance of vitamin D:
http://www.naturalnews.com/023184.html
http://www.newswise.com/articles/view/540426/?sc=mwhn

We can also thank Dr. Eades for alerting us about a product called Umcka that he says really does shorten the symptoms of the common cold: http://www.proteinpower.com/drmike/miscellaneous/a-cure-for-the-common-cold/

I'll be back shortly with a new recipe from the New Orleans series and several more things that I've been working on, so please do check in occasionally.

(C) 2008, Judy Barnes Baker
http://www.carbwars.blogspot.com/

MORE N'AWLINS FOOD: CREOLE GUMBO

(C) 2008 Judy Barnes Baker

Gumbo is the perfect metaphor for New Orleans: a rich, steamy, spicy, mélange of diverse ingredients that combine into an experience that is unique to this place. A place that feels distinctly foreign, while at the same time epitomizing the melting pot that is America. French, Italian, Native American, Creole, Cajun, and African—all share a part in the history of the Louisiana bayou region, intersecting, interacting, and blending into a one-of-a-kind, savory stew.

Gumbo may contain a variety of local meats and seafood: shrimp, crab, oysters, crawfish, red snapper, turtle and alligator; whatever is fresh and available. It often includes Andouille sausage and Tasso ham, local specialties, and chicken. It will always have the trio of aromatic vegetables so essential to the regional cuisines that it is called “the trinity:” onion, bell pepper, and celery.

Photos: (C) 2008, Denise Caballero

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Liuzza’s

The sign out front says “Liuzza’s,” but it is also known as “Liuzza’s by the Track,” because it is adjacent to the fairground racetrack and also to differentiate it from another place by the same name. Everything is local, fresh, and made from scratch in this Mid-city neighborhood eatery. Even the sausage for Liuzza’s famous chicken, shrimp, crab, and sausage gumbo is made locally. Fresh shrimp is sautéed and added just before your order leaves the kitchen. The menu at Liuzza’s says, “taste before you season,” a lesson learned quickly in New Orleans. Disregard it at your peril!

Creole Gumbo

A traditional gumbo always starts with a dark roux made of flour and fat. Most recipes say to use either okra or filé powder to further thicken the stew, but I used both in order to get the rich, thick texture of an authentic gumbo without using a floury roux. (At Liuzza’s, no two batches are ever alike, so we can take some liberties too.)

Gumbo would normally be served over rice. I opted to keep the carb count as low as possible, but it could be served over my Hominy Rice made from chopped Mexican-style hominy (one of the recipes in Carb Wars) for only 4 more net carbs.

½ pound of raw, shell-on shrimp (small or medium)
¼ cup bacon fat or lard, more or less as needed
1 pound of chicken pieces, including skin and bones
4 cups of water or chicken broth
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon salt plus an additional 1 teaspoon
1 teaspoon of cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 cup chopped onion (about 5 ounces)
2 cloves garlic (5/8 ounce), peeled and minced
2/3 cup chopped red or green bell pepper (4 ounces)
3 cups fresh okra, rinsed, caps removed, and sliced (about 8 ounces)*
2/3 cup celery, chopped (about 4 ounces)
2 cups fresh or canned, chopped tomatoes
10 to 12 ounces andouille or other spicy, smoked sausage, sliced
6 ounces ham, cubed
3 green onions, green tops only, chopped
3 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
- filé powder to taste

*frozen, thawed okra can be used instead of fresh.

Peel the shrimp. Put the shells in a large pot and add water or chicken broth, 1 teaspoon salt, and bay leaf, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer while preparing chicken.

Mix together the additional 1 teaspoon of salt and the cayenne and black pepper. Heat fat in a skillet. Coat chicken with some of salt and pepper mixture and brown on all sides in the hot fat. Add chicken to pot with stock. Reduce heat to low, cover pot, and simmer for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, sauté the onion, bell pepper, and celery in the fat left in the skillet until softened. Add garlic and sauté for a minute or two longer. Remove vegetables with a slotted spoon and reserve. Put half the okra in the skillet, turn the heat to low, and cook and stir until it starts to brown, about 10 minutes, adding more fat as needed. Add the rest of the okra, increase the heat to medium-high, and continue to cook, uncovered, until the first okra is well browned but the second batch is still partly green. Reserve.

Remove chicken from pot, take meat off bones, discard skin and bones, and chop meat into bite-sized pieces. Dip out the shrimp shells with a slotted spoon or strain the broth. Return the chicken meat to strained broth in the pot. Add reserved onion, bell pepper, and celery mixture, okra, and tomatoes to the pot. Add sausage and ham and any remaining salt and pepper mixture. Simmer for 15 minutes. Just before serving, heat fat in a skillet and sauté shrimp. Add shrimp, green onions, and parsley to gumbo and ladle into serving bowls. Stir filé powder into the gumbo after it is removed from the heat or pass at the table. The gumbo will thicken after a few minutes.
Makes 8 or 9 servings.

Per Each of 9 Servings: Total Carb: 6.9g, Fiber: 2.0g, Net Carb: 4.9

Note: File is the dried and ground young leaves of the sassafras tree. It has a mild, sweet flavor similar to thyme. It will become stringy and tough if boiled, so add it to individual servings after the pot is removed from the heat.

NEW ORLEANS BARBECUED SHRIMP

(c) 2008, Judy Barnes Baker

My sister treated me to a taste of the real New Orleans, the places preferred by the locals; many were just blocks from her apartment. (She lives in the neighborhood that hosts the annual Jazz Festival, which, unfortunately, I missed by just a few days). You would never suspect that some of the unpretentious buildings and cottages scattered around the city house the top spots where creative, young chefs find a following among the food-loving populace. I’ve been working on recipes inspired by the dishes we sampled, starting with those that are most amenable to low-carb interpretation. New Orleans Barbecued Shrimp—huge shrimp, swimming in a bowl of peppery butter sauce— was a natural.

Photo: (C) 2008, Denise Caballero

Jacques-Imo’s
“Real N’awlins Food” is promised and delivered at Jacques-Imo’s, a raucous, crazy, happy confusion of a place in the area called Uptown. The main entry opens into a dark, smoky bar and leads through the messy, frenetic kitchen, but this is New Orleans where nothing matters but food and music and good times. Tables spill out onto the sidewalk and one party was being served at a table in the bed of a pickup truck parked on the street when we arrived. The dining rooms are decked with a jumble of Christmas lights, Mardi Gras beads, and colorful debris; the walls and ceilings are covered with slap-dash paintings of trees, flowers, frogs, and alligators and hung with paintings of local musicians and Louisiana memorabilia. The enthusiastic wait staff seemed to be enjoying the party as much as the rest of us. An assortment of waiters took care of us; one had a bubble gun and was blowing streams of bubbles at a crying toddler at an adjacent table.

I requested their most popular and most authentically New Orleans dishes. The waiter returned with a slice of shrimp and alligator sausage cheesecake—a savory, spicy, quiche-sort-of- thing—that was creamy inside with a crust that seemed to have formed as it baked. (I’m trying to keep that taste memory in my head until I have time to figure it out.) A pool of melted butter, sprinkled with chopped parsley, floated on the indented top of the crispy-crusted corn muffins served alongside. The house salad was spinach with vinaigrette dressing, garnished with a New Orleans crouton: a plump, fried oyster. My main dish was New Orleans-style barbecued shrimp, a messy, spicy, orgy of shrimp and butter and pepper and garlic and spices. My sister had pan-fried drum with pecan meuniere sauce. We shared side dishes of mashed sweet potatoes, red beans and rice, corn maque chaux, and country greens. (This low-carb research is a hard job, but somebody has to do it!)

We didn’t see the chef and owner, Jacques Leonardi, who usually presides over the circus, sometimes jumping up on the bar to shout orders and throw things and generally put on a show. I had to laugh when I was told that Leonardi’s other eatery, Crabby Jack’s, serves the same food at half the price, but that it doesn’t have the up-scale ambiance of Jacques-Imo’s; this is the fancy place.

The day after I got back home to Washington, I set off to find fresh, raw, head-on shrimp to see if I could come close to duplicating Jacgues-Imo’s shrimp. It wasn’t as hard as I expected; I found the shrimp at my local Central Market and my first try was successful. As you can see from the pictures, I left the shells on. Jacques-Imo’s shrimp were served with the heads and tails on but with the center part of the shell removed. Not a bad idea, I concluded, after splattering hot butter down my shirt. But all in all, a tasty success, if a messy one.

Note: New Orleans Barbecued Shrimp was invented at Manales restaurant in the ‘50s and it has become one of the city’s signature dishes. It is cooked in the oven rather than over a pit or on a grill; there’s no smoke involved, and it isn’t basted with a sweet, tomato sauce. So why is it “barbecued?” Good question. The only reason that makes any sense is that it might be better to eat it outside. For a more sedate setting, I’d suggest removing the heads and shells after cooking and putting the peeled shrimp back into the sauce before serving. Either way, be sure to provide some low-carb bread on the side for dipping or serve over low-carb pasta so you don’t waste any of that scrumptious butter sauce.

New Orleans Barbecued Shrimp
1 pound fresh, raw shrimp, extra large or larger, heads-on if possible
1 cup butter (2 sticks)
2 cloves garlic, chopped
½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 teaspoons black pepper
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
¼ cup white wine
1 tablespoon lemon juice or one half a lemon, sliced
1/8 teaspoon of salt or to taste

Wash the shrimp in cold water and shake off the excess. Remove the center shell, leaving head and tail intact or leave whole. Spread in a baking dish just large enough to hold the shrimp.

Melt the butter in a skillet and add cayenne, black pepper, and garlic. Cook over low heat for a minute or two. Add Worcestershire, white wine, lemon juice or sliced lemon, and salt and bring to a boil. Pour over shrimp. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours, turning every 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until shrimp are pink, stirring and turning shrimp once or twice. Divide shrimp into bowls and pour the butter sauce over them.

Allow ½ pound of whole shrimp per person.

Per Serving: Total Carb: 2.7, Fiber: 0.1, Net Carb: 2.6*

*Shrimp have only a trace of carbohydrate, but the wine, lemon juice, and garlic have a little. This count includes all the sauce.