Dinner | Camellia Brand

Cajun White Beans: Chasing a Flavor at Mosquito Supper Club

Heather Hampton — Fri, 12 Jun 2020 19:57:21 +0000

Authentic Cajun cooking in Uptown New Orleans

The Cajun cuisine of Louisiana is many things. The central Louisiana “Cajun prairie” area is known for its boudin (a spicy sausage typically containing ground pork, rice, onion, parsley, green peppers, and plenty of Cajun spices) and smoked meats, among other inland delicacies.

Coastal South Louisiana Cajun communities, however, are known for their seafood – briny oysters, fat jumbo shrimp, tender soft-shell crab, flavorful redfish. But according to New Orleans chef and restaurateur Melissa Martin’s experience (she grew up in a South Louisiana fishing village) those seafood delights weren’t typically the main course in coastal Cajun homes – they were more like sides, albeit spectacular ones. The main course was, more often than not, a large plate of beans and rice seasoned with salt pork. And lucky for us, just such a plate of Cajun beans and rice is often featured on the menu at Mosquito Supper Club, Martin’s cosy, family-style New Orleans restaurant.

Chasing a flavor…

Housed in a charming, circa 1898 Victorian house on Dryades Street in the Milan neighborhood of Uptown New Orleans, Mosquito Supper Club is a casual, homespun showcase for the exquisite coastal Cajun cooking that Martin learned “by osmosis” from the elder women in her family. Says Martin in her beautifully photographed book of coastal Cajun recipes entitled Mosquito Supper Club: Cajun Recipes From A Disappearing Bayou, “I was inspired by the food that I grew up eating in the tiny fishing village of Chauvin, Louisiana. Women cooked the food and recipes and techniques were passed down as if through an apprenticeship; by watching, learning and doing, and by chasing a flavor. I wanted to share that food with anyone who wanted to take a seat at our tables.” As for chasing a flavor, she explains, “When you have memories from your childhood, of certain tastes and smells, and you try it out and adjust it until it matches your memory and gives you the feeling that those memories bring, and you know it’s right – that’s chasing a flavor.”

White beans the Cajun way

The menu changes daily at Mosquito Supper Club, and it’s always memorable. Guests are seated family style (right next to strangers who soon become friends), at long tables of handcrafted reclaimed wood, as Martin and her staff bring out wine, fresh-baked biscuits, and platters and bowls of authentic coastal Cajun food made with incredibly fresh seafood, meat and produce. Expect to dive into lots of delicious, with menu items like duck gumbo, oyster bisque, crab claws marinated in cane vinegar, fried soft-shell crabs, shrimp jambalaya, stuffed crawfish heads, and, of course, Martin’s Mosquito Supper Club White Beans. Martin uses Camellia Navy Beans and seasons them “the way Cajuns do” with salt pork and both black and cayenne pepper. Martin graciously shares her family’s Monday Red Beans & Rice recipe, too, although it’s not featured on her restaurant’s menu.

“My mother swore by Camellia Beans”

“White beans, red beans, lima beans – beans are a staple in the Cajun pantry,” says Martin. And she adds, “My mother swore by Camellia beans.” From her mother, Martin learned how to measure the quality of a pack of dried beans: “She taught me that when you go to soak beans, if they’re fresh they will wrinkle quickly.”

Five-plus courses of authentic Cajun delicious

Mosquito Supper Club offers a five (or more) course meal plus wine and cocktails for dinner several nights a week, plus a Sunday brunch with the added delight of extra baked goods, brunch menu items such as raw oysters and eggs topped with caviar, and being able to bask in the warm sunlight that filters into the charming, slightly rustic dining area of this 19th century former residence. While the menus change, one thing remains the same: each dish is prepared thoughtfully, with the best and freshest ingredients, inspired by generations of home cooking in the coastal fishing villages of South Louisiana.

The post Cajun White Beans: Chasing a Flavor at Mosquito Supper Club first appeared on Camellia Brand.

Festive Dinner Party Dishes

Julie Koppman — Fri, 08 Dec 2017 16:10:12 +0000

‘Tis the season to celebrate with intention — and hosting a festive dinner party or Reveillon feast for friends, neighbors and family is a great way to pull out all the stops. Invite those whose company you enjoy the most, and plan a menu that includes one or two truly special dishes like the ones featured here — recipes that require a little extra time and effort but are worth all the love you put into them. Set a colorful, glittery table, let the wine and champagne flow freely, and treat yourself and your lucky guests to the kind of delicious mains that are worthy of becoming an annual tradition.

Lamb Shanks with Garlic & Butter Beans

Lamb Shanks with Garlic & Butter Beans is one of those incredibly flavorful entreés that makes a gorgeous presentation and a beautiful meal. A savory recipe from Chef Jennifer Hill Booker’s latest cookbook Dinner Déja Vu, it features slow cooked Camellia Brand Large Lima Beans (also known as butter beans) and fork-tender lamb shanks in a rich, creamy sauce. Made with garlic, shallots, brandy, ripe tomatoes, and copious amounts of white wine, it’s actually an easy-to-follow recipe, and any home cook can tackle it with a little time and patience. You’ll need a large dutch oven (at least an 8-qt.) with a tight-fitting lid because it simmers first on the stovetop, and then gets baked in the oven, and you should plan for about 4 hours of cook time. (Keep in mind that while a dutch oven is doing the work, that’s hands-off cook time that allows you to prep other parts of your menu.) The wonderful smells wafting from your kitchen will be so tempting, everyone will have trouble waiting to sit down at the table before digging in.

And since Lamb Shanks with Garlic & Butter Beans is both a main and side dish all in one pot, you can simply add a green salad, some crusty bread or soft dinner rolls and a few bottles of your favorite red wine. Your guests will be talking about how delicious it was long after the last plate is cleared.

Cassoulet

Another dinner party-worthy recipe for a rich, slow cooked bean casserole is Chef Jennifer Hill Booker’s fabulous Cassoulet, also from her Dinner Déja Vu cookbook. Featuring four different kinds of pork — smoked ham hocks, boneless pork shoulder, salt pork and Andouille sausage — as well as two pounds of Camellia Brand Pinto Beans and fresh herbs and vegetables, this heartiest of dishes will feed a large crowd of party guests.

You’ll need to start prepping the day before you plan to serve it, but the extra time and care involved is worth every bite. Like the Lamb Shanks & Butter Beans recipe, you’ll need a large dutch oven (at least a 6-qt.) with a tight-fitting lid, as well as about 6 hours to cook (plus more for prep time). After simmering the Cassoulet on the stove and then baking it in the oven, a rich brown crust of bread crumbs adds the finishing touch. With unbelievable flavor and the creamiest pintos ever, this dish is a total show-stopper.

Garlicky Shrimp & Blackeye Peas

Our Garlicky Shrimp & Blackeye Peas dish is also perfect for seasonal celebrations and get-togethers — especially New Year’s. Throughout the South, blackeye peas are popular New Year’s fare for the promise of luck and money (and because they taste so good).

In this recipe, we flavored Camellia Brand Blackeye Peas with bacon and Andouille sausage, lots of garlic and chicken stock, and made them extra special by topping with seasoned, sautéed shrimp cooked in butter, more garlic, lemon juice and white wine. Putting these two Southern favorites together in one dish — blackeye peas and Gulf shrimp — makes for a wonderful combination that everyone will love.

Pan-Seared Snapper with Red Bean Sauce

Another elegant choice is Pan-Seared Snapper with Red Bean Sauce. For the sauce, perfectly cooked Creole Red Beans are added to tomatoes, shallots and chicken stock, puréed in a blender, and then simmered on the stove with whipping cream. Seared snapper fillets are drizzled with the sauce and sprinkled with cubed, browned tasso. Talk about decadent! It’s a fabulous new way to enjoy your favorite red beans.

This holiday season, let one or more of these delicious dishes grace your dinner table, and make your festive dinner party a truly memorable occasion. Looking for great appetizers to serve before the special meal? These will create a colorful spread.

The post Festive Dinner Party Dishes first appeared on Camellia Brand.