Venison pot pie

                It is equally appealing made with beef. The stew improves as it stands, making it a convenient dish to serve after a day of cross-country skiing. Prepare the filling and the crust ahead, refrigerate them, then assemble and bake the pie as you enjoy appetizers and a sauna.

Makes 8 servings

• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 tablespoon olive oïl
• 2 pounds (1 kg) venison stew meat, cut in ½-inch cubes
• ½ cup al-purpose flour
• 2 cups chopped onions
• 2 cups diced carrots
• 2 cups diced rutabaga or turnip
• 3 cups dry red wine
• 3 cups beef broth
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh sage or 1 tablespoon dried
• 2 bay leaves
• 3 tablespoons Special Spice Mix (see note below)
• 1 large potato, peeled and diced
• Hot Pepper sauce to taste
• Worcestershire sauce to taste
• 1 recipe lemon pastry (click here for recipe)
• 1 egg, lightly beaten with 1 tablespoon water, to glaze

1. Heat the butter and oïl in a large, heavy Dutch oven over medium heat.
2. Dredge the meat in the flour and Brown in batches, transfering in a bowl as you go.
3. Add the onions, carrots, and rutabaga to the pan, then Brown over high heat for 3 minutes, remove and reserve.
4. Add the wine to the pan and boil until reduce by half, return the venison to the pan.
5. Add the beef broth, sage, bay leaves and Special Spice Mix, simmer, covered, for 1 hour.
6. Add the vegetables and the potato and simmer 30 minutes.
7. Add the hot Pepper sauce and Worcestershire sauce.
8. Turn the filling into a 3-quart casserole.
9. Roll the crust out to fit the top of the pan and press the edges to the pan, trim off any excess.
10. Brush the pie with glaze, and pierce 4 or 5 times to make air vents.
11. Bake in 350F oven for 35 to 45 minutes or until the crust is golden.
12. Serve hot.

Note

To make Special Spice Mix, combine

• 3 tablespoons paprika
• 2 tablespoons garlic powder
• 2 tablespoons black Pepper
• 1 tablespoon onion powder
• 1 tablespoon oregano
• 1 tablespoon thyme leaves
• 2 teaspoons salt

Store in a jar with a tight-fitting lid.

BON APPETIT

Apple bavarian torte

Serves 8

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• One-third cup sugar
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
• ½ cup butter, cut in pièces

• 2 x 8-ounce packages cream cheese
• ½ cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 eggs, at room temperature

• Apples, peeled, cored and sliced
• ¼ cup sugar
• ½ teaspoon cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
• One-third cup chopped walnuts

1. In a bowl combine the first 4 ingrédients for a crust and press onto the bottom and sides of a 10-inch springform pan.
2. Bake in a 350F oven until golden, cool.
3. In a medium bowl combine the cream cheese, ½ cup of sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla, beating until smooth.
4. Beat in the eggs one at a time, spoon the filling into the crust.
5. In a medium bowl combine the apples, ¼ cup sugar, cinnamon, ½ teaspoon vanilla and walnuts.
6. Arrange as a topping in a spoke-like design the apples mixture.
7. Bake in a 450F oven for 15 minutes, reduce to 350F and continue baking for 45 minutes or until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean.

BON APPETIT

Les moules farcies

2 portions (40 unités)

• 450 gr moules
• 60 ml vin blanc

Ingrédients pour la farce

• 50 gr chorizo
• 30 ml persil haché (ou coriandre fraîche, selon votre goût)
• 2 gousses d'ail, hachées
• 1 échalote française, hachée
• 30 ml câpres, hachées
• 60 gr beurre, fondu
• 60 ml chapelure

1. Dans une grande casserole, placer le moules et le vin blanc.
2. Couvrir et laisser mijoter 3 à 4 minutes jusqu' ce que toutes les moules soient ouvertes.
3. Retirer la coquille supérieure de chacune des moules et les disposer sur une plaque allant au four (un peu de gros sel sur la plaque vous aideras à stabiliser les coquilles).
4. Au robot culinaire, hacher finement chorizo, persil, ail, échalote et câpres.
5. Dans un bol, mélanger le mélange de chorizo, le beurre fondu et la chapelure.
6. Farcir chacune des moules avec 5 ml de mélange et passer sous le gril du four 1 à 2 minutes afin de dorer la chapelure et servir.

BON APPÉTIT

Shrimp remoulade

                It became a Texas favorite after the good Neighbors in Louisiana transformed it into a premier Gulf shrimp sauce.

Serves 4 as main dish

or 6 as appetizer

• 4 cups water
• 2 tablespoons shrimp- and crab-boil seasonning, such as Zatarain's
• 1½ pounds medium shrimp, unpeeled, with tails

Sauce

• ½ cup mayonnaise
• 2 celeri ribs, chopped
• 5 to 6 green onions, chopped
• ¼ cup minced parsley
• 2 tablespoons prepared Creole mustard (or Dijon mustard)
• 1 tablespoon ketchup
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 2 teaspoons prepared horseradish
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• ½ teaspoon Tabasco sauce or other pepper sauce
• ½ teaspoon salt

1. Put the water and boil seasonning in a saucepan and bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer for 5 to 10 minutes.
2. Add the shrimp, and simmer them until they are just cooked through and pink, a matter of only a couple of minutes.
3. Drain the shrimp and refrigerate until they are cold.
4. Peel the shrimp, leaving the tails on and devein them.
5. Place all the sauce ingrédients in a blender or food processor, and purée them until they are smooth, refrigerate the sauce.
6. Arrange lettuce leaves on plates, top them with the shrimp, and drizzle each plate with a few tablespoons of the sauce.
7. Garnish with lemon wedges.

BON APPETIT

Seafood cocktail sauce

                This sauce is great for fried shrimp, boiled shrimp or almost anything that once lived in the sea. Use the suggested proportions as a guide, mixing spueezing and splashing in the ingrédients until the flavor is right for you. If you want the sauce sassy, though, don't skimp on the horseradish and lime.

Makes about 2 cups

• 1½ cups ketchup (or chili sauce)(Use Heinz products for best result)
• ½ cup prepared horseradish
• Juice of 1 lemon
• Juice of 1 lime
• ½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• Splash or two of Tabasco sauce or other hot pepper sauce

1. Mix all ingrédients in a bowl, and then refrigerate the sauce at least 30 minutes.
2. The sauce keeps for several days.

BON APPETIT

Creamy peanut coleslaw

                Slaw as always been the most popular type of green salad in Texas.

Serves 6

• 1 cup mayonnaise
• ¼ cup cider vinegar
• ¼ cup sugar
• 2 tablespoons milk
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• ½ teaspoon celery salt
• 1 medium cabbage head, shredded
• 2 to 3 carrots, shredded
• 2 tablespoons minced onion
• ½ cup chopped roasted salted peanut.
• Salt to taste

1. In a lidded jar, shake together the mayonnaise, vinegar, sugar, milk, garlic and celery salt until they are well blended.
2. Place the cabbage, carrots, and onion in a large bowl.
3. Pour the dressing over the vegetables and toss them together.
4. Chill the coleslaw at least 1 hour.
5. Just before serving, stir the peanuts into the slaw and add salt as desired.

Note : The slaw keeps well for several days.

BON APPETIT

Fiesta beef pie with cornmeal pastry

                Southwestern ? Tex-Mex ? However you would classify this pie, it has an enticing flavor and festive color. To make it ahead of time, either make the filling and the pastry and refrigerate them separately, then assemble and bake the pie before serving, or assemble the whole pie, then wrap and freeze it. If frozen, add another 25 to 30 minutes to the baking time.

Makes 6 servings

• 1 tablespoon corn oïl
• 1 pound (500 gr) lean boneless beef top round steak, in ½-inch cubes
• ½ cup chopped red bell Pepper
• ½ cup chopped green bell Pepper
• ½ cup chopped onions
• ½ pound (250 gr) fresh mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
• 1½ cups chunky bottled tomato salsa
• 2 cups fresh or frozen corn kernels
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• ½ teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ½ cup sliced pitted black olives
• 1 recipe cornmeal pastry (clik here for recipe)
• 1 egg, beaten, for glaze

1. Heat the oïl in a large, heavy skillet.
2. Add the meat and cook until well browned, remove the meat to a bowl.
3. In the drippings, cook the peppers, onion and mushrooms until tender.
4. Add the salsa, corn, sugar, chilli powder, cumin, salt and cooked beef ; heat to boiling.
5. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer 30 minutes, stirring the mixture occasionally.
6. Remove from heat, and stir in the olives.
7. Preheat the oven to 425F (200C).
8. Divide the pastry into 2 parts and roll out half the dough to fit into a 9- or 10-inch pie or quiche pan.
9. Spoon the filling into the pie shell.
10. Roll the remaining dough out slightly larger than the top of the pie.
11. Brush the edges with beaten egg, place the dough circle on top of the pie, fold the top edge Under the bottom crust, and flute the edges to seal.
12. Brush the top with the remaining egg glaze.
13. Bake for 35 minutes or until the meat filling is hot and crust is golden.

BON APPETIT