Crystal Hot Sauce Archives - Cruisin with the Colemans

Recipe of the Week – Cheesy Risotto

Posted on September 24, 2018 by Cruisin Brian

Today’s blog post starts with a picture of Pepe in front of the fireplace because he’s adorable and it brings us to our favorite fall thing… comfort food! Jessica Vu, swing dancer extraordinaire, teacher, and lovely friend, also happens to be an amazing cook! Her blog Purple Leopard Recipes has some wonderful gluten-free cooking and this Cheesy Risotto will make your never want for mac and cheese again. While we were traveling through Wisconsin this summer, the cheese and sausages made me think of this recipe so I made some adjustments in honor of the Cheese State. I hope that Jessica approves!

Dice 6 oz of kielbasa, a red or sweet onion, and two cloves of garlic.

In a large pot, saute the sausage in 1 tablespoon of canola oil over medium high heat until it begins to get crispy. Don’t worry about the brown bits in the bottom of the pot, but don’t let them burn.

Add the onions and garlic and cook until soft.

Add one and a half cups of Arborio rice. Arborio is a short grained rice that is perfect for risotto because of its high starch content. It has a creamy texture and yet remains firm when cooked for longer periods. Do not make risotto with other types of rice, you WILL be disappointed.
Risotto is notorious for home cooks because it needs to be watched non-stop. Now is the time to focus. Toast the rice in the until some grains begin to pop. You will need 4 cups of chicken broth for the remainder of the cooking process. Put it in a sauce pan and warm it to the point of steaming, but not simmering. This will speed up the cooking process over using room temperature broth. Add broth 2/3 of a cup at a time, stirring frequently with a rubber spatula.

Let the rice simmer until the liquid is absorbed. Run the rubber spatula down the center of the pan. If the rice runs back together, it is not time for more liquid.
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When the rice and broth stays in place, add another 2/3 cup of broth.
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Continue this process until you are down to the last 2/3 cup of broth. Rice will absorb moisture from the air. This means that some times you may need more broth than others depending on the relative humidity in your environment, the age of the rice, and other factors. Taste the rice to see if it is done. There should be a little bite and firmness to it, but you may want to add the last of the broth and cook longer. Our rice is kept in an airtight container and I pretty much always use all of the broth.
Remove the pan from the heat and add 1/2 cup of dry white wine or dry sherry. You can leave this step out, but it does add some nice flavor. Stir until absorbed.
Next add 1 1/2 teaspoons of Coleman’s ground mustard (hello, of course it’s Coleman’s), 1/2 cup of FAGE 2% Greek Yogurt, and 1 cup of shredded cheddar cheese. Stir until everything is well incorporated, creamy, and melty (one of my favorite cooking techniques)!

Now to take things over the top, add two slices of plain old Velveeta cheese slices. Based on the name of the recipe, you didn’t think that this was going to be healthy did you? Add salt and pepper if needed. I also like to stir in a little Crystal hot sauce.

Serve with something green so that you don’t feel bad for going in for seconds. The recipe should serve 6, but good luck! I’ve doubled it and taken it to a carry-in in a crock pot and never come home with leftovers.

If you are lucky enough to have leftovers, it is very good reheated the next day, but try this instead: spoon about 1/2 cup into a frying pan with a little olive oil and press down with the back of a spatula.

Cook on medium heat for about 3-5 minutes and carefully flip to cook the other side until brown and crispy (my second favorite cooking technique when it comes to cheese).

Cheesy Risotto (Mock Mac & Cheese)

4 C chicken broth (or one 32 oz carton), heat in a sauce pan until just steaming
1/2 C dry white wine or dry sherry
1 1⁄2 t Coleman’s ground mustard
1 C shredded cheddar cheese
1⁄2 C FAGE 2% Greek yogurt
2 slices Velveeta cheese
6 oz kielbasa
1 T canola oil
1 medium red or sweet onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 1⁄2 C Arborio rice
salt and pepper to taste

Over medium/high heat, fry the kielbasa until crisp in oil.
To the hot oil and sausage, add onion and garlic. Sauté for 3-4 minutes or until soft.
Add Arborio rice and stir until slightly toasted, just 1-2 minutes should do it.
Add 2/3 cup chicken broth. Gently stir and adjust heat to just a simmer, not boiling. Stir gently and frequently (at least once every two minutes).
When to add more broth: Run the rubber spatula down the center of the pan, making a trough. If the risotto runs back together, it is not ready for more broth yet. If the risotto does not run back together and the trough remains, add another 2/3 cup broth.
Keep adding broth in 2/3 cup increments every time the trough is ready, until you have just a bit of broth left (Making sure you are stirring gently and frequently).
Taste the risotto. Is it done to your liking? It should be soft yet firm to the bite. If not, add the remaining broth until the risotto is the tenderness you desire. If it is done, add the white wine and remove from the heat.
Stir until white wine is absorbed and mostly evaporated. (If this is taking too long, you can reintroduce the pan to the heat momentarily).
Add ground mustard, shredded cheese and yogurt. Stir until melty and creamy.
Add two slices of Velveeta. Stir until fully incorporated. Salt and pepper to taste.

Recipe of the Week – One Pan Jambalaya

Posted on August 27, 2018 by Cruisin Brian

We made a decision when we were tent campers that we did not want to create lots of trash so we always use real plates, silverware, and cups to reduce our footprint just a little. Whether you are in a tent or RV, washing dishes is a big bummer so one pot meals are always helpful, especially when we are dry camping. We love this Jambalaya, though it gets toned down a little since Michelle is not a big fan of too much spice. The recipe calls for some time savers such as precooked rice and frozen onion and pepper but we usually use fresh ingredients.
Start out by chopping a small white onion, bell pepper and about 6 oz of andouille sausage. Meanwhile cook rice according to package directions (1 cup of rice to 2 cups of liquid will yield about 3-4 cups of rice needed for this recipe).

Heat a tablespoon oil in a pot, add onion, pepper, and sausage, and sauté until veggies are soft and meat begins to brown.

Dice 12 oz of chicken breast and add it to the pot, cooking until the chicken is lightly browned.

Add 2 cans of diced tomatoes, 2 teaspoons of Tony Chachere’s Cajun Seasoning (we only use about 1/2 teaspoon), and the rice to the pot. Cover, reduce heat to medium, and let simmer until liquid is absorbed. If you really want a one pot dish, add the rice and liquid together before the tomatoes and simmer about 20 minutes then add tomatoes.

Divide into bowls and top with green onions. Add some Crystal hot sauce as desired to give some more heat!

I made several changes to the original recipe from Cooking Light to help tone down the heat a little, but you may want to check out the original. Here’s my version:

One Pan Jambalaya

Chop onion, pepper, and sausage. Heat canola oil in a large skillet over medium-high. Add onion mixture and sausage. Cook until vegetables are tender, stirring occasionally. Add chicken, cooking until lightly browned, stirring occasionally.

Add rice and 2 cups of water and cajon seasoning to pot. Cover, reduce heat to medium and simmer 15 minutes or until liquid is absorbed. Add tomatoes, cover again and simmer 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove pan from heat.
Divide rice mixture evenly among 4 bowls. sprinkle with green onions and serve with lemon wedges and hot sauce, if desired.
Let us know how hot you like your jambalaya in the comments.

Recipe of the Week – Honey Ginger Scallion Chicken

Posted on August 13, 2018 by Cruisin Brian

Ready for another tasty and easy marinade and basting sauce? Our original recipe for Honey Ginger Scallion Chicken is another great marinade that you can throw together in a few minutes and is sure to please everyone at the campsite.
To prepare the marinade, chop 4 green onions, 2 cloves of garlic, and 1 T of fresh ginger. If you’ve never worked with ginger, don’t worry. Look for it in the produce department, often near the garlic and shallots. Ginger comes in “hands” because the large pieces often have several smaller “fingers.” If you’re like us, you don’t need that much at one time, but you can break off a finger to get as much or little as you need (think like breaking a bunch of bananas in half to buy just a few). I cut off the edges and thin skin to end up with a small piece about the size of 2 dice. Cut thin slices, cut again into julienne, and finally mince. In the picture, the ginger is in the center.

Combine with 1 T honey, 2 T soy sauce (or our favorite, San-J Gluten Free Tamari), a few dashes of Crystal hot sauce and mix well. You could marinate for 2 hours to overnight, but I wanted to try something different this night.

We picked up a grilling mat after hearing lots of people talking about how much they liked them. On this evening, after getting a good fire going, we flipped over the grill, and added the mat. Place the chicken on the mat and pour some of the sauce over. Once the chicken is done on the bottom, flip and add some more of the basting sauce. Flip once more just to make sure that everything is cooked through.

We served this with some store-bought coleslaw, but any deli salad would be a great addition. Let us know in the comments what your favorite deli salad is.

Honey Ginger Scallion Chicken

4 green onions
1 T minced ginger (about 2 inches of a ginger finger)
2 cloves minced garlic
1 T honey
2 T soy sauce
Dash hot sauce to taste

This makes enough sauce for 4-6 chicken breasts.
Combine all ingredients in a bowl.
On a hot grill, place chicken on a grill mat and baste with the sauce, turning and basting again as each side cooks.

Recipe of the Week – Ground Turkey Sweet Potato Skillet

Posted on July 9, 2018 by Cruisin Brian

This week we’re making a quick one pot dish that can be made on the stove or over the fire that came from the Primavera Kitchen. Not only is it gluten free, but also healthy and super tasty!

In a pot or iron skillet (especially if working over a campfire) heat 2 T of olive oil and brown 1 lb of ground turkey and a 1 clove of minced garlic. I used 90% lean turkey, if you’re using a fattier ground, reduce the oil a little.

Once most of the liquid is cooked out and the turkey starts to brown, add 1/2 c each of onion and bell pepper (we love the veggies, so I just use a whole onion and pepper since they add almost no calories). Cook until soft and the onions start to brown a little. It’s important to make sure that the liquid evaporates from the turkey before adding the pepper. Sautéing peppers in liquid will make the skins bitter.

Next add 1 1/2 cups of diced sweet potato (that’s about 1 whole decent sized potato), salt and pepper to taste, and a pinch of red pepper flakes (for some reason I don’t have any in the RV so a added a splash of Crystal Hot Sauce, which is my favorite). Stir it all in and put the lid on it. Make sure that you give it a stir once and a while and monitor the heat. If it seems dry add a little water. Cook about ten minutes until the sweet potatoes are soft.
Finally give it a sprinkle of mozzarella cheese and put the lid back on to give it a melt. At home I toss it under the broiler for a minute to give the cheese come color.
If you wanted to vary the recipe a little, you could always use ground beef or pork. Substitute Yukon gold or red potatoes, or even butternut or acorn squash. A nice summer variation would be to throw in some zucchini or summer squash for the last few minutes of cooking (just make sure that things don’t get too wet and mushy).

Don’t forget the beverage pairing! We like Atwater Vineyards Dry Rosé of Cabernet Franc. Rosés go great with turkey at Thanksgiving dinner and they’re especially nice on a hot summer evening when you want something with a little more bite than a white wine.
If you make this recipe, snap a picture and tag #CruisinWithTheColemans on Instagram or post to the comments.

Ground Turkey Sweet Potato Skillet

2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 lbs extra-lean ground turkey
1 tsp garlic clove, minced
½ cup onions, diced
½ cup bell pepper, diced
1 ½ cups sweet potato, diced
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
A pinch of red chili flakes
½ cup shredded mozzarella cheese

Directions:

In an iron cast skillet, heat olive oil over medium-high heat.
Add ground turkey and garlic. Stir occasionally and cook for about 7 minutes.
Add onions and peppers and cook until onions are soft.
Add the sweet potato, chili pepper, salt, and pepper.
Cover the skillet and cook until they are tender. Don’t forget to stir occasionally. If necessary, add a little bit of water to cook the sweet potato.
While the sweet potato is cooking, preheat the broiler.
When the sweet potato is tender, add shredded mozzarella cheese and bring the skillet to the oven to melt the cheese* (see note below).
When the cheese melts, remove from the oven, and serve.

* You can just put the lid on the skillet for 5 minutes. The cheese will melt.