Butternut Squash Mac & Cheese

Following the crazed cooking bonanza of the Great Cooking Streak of '14 and Cafaux TH, I found myself in the ultimate groove. I was spitting out words almost as quickly as I was knocking out dishes, but then a work trip and lots of eating out forced an end to all that (until I finally figure out how to cook things in the hotel coffee pot). Tonight, the itch to cook became too great, and I decided to rectify things. Since autumn is finally upon us, I decided to celebrate it with not one, but three kinds of squash in a comfort food dinner featuring Butternut Squash Mac & Cheese, as well as, roasted zucchini and yellow squash.

Butternut Squash Mac & Cheese
Adapted from Pinch of Yum
Servings: 6
Time: 40 minutes

One of these was a lot harder to chop than the other

2 cups uncooked elbow macaroni
1 tbsp butter
Olive oil
1 small yellow onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 small butternut squash, peeled, seeded, & cubed
1 jalapeno, seeded and diced
1 red bell pepper, seeded and diced
5 cups vegetable broth
3/4 cup milk
1 tsp salt
2/3-1 cup shredded cheese (I used Gruyére)
Scallions, chopped for garnish
Salt, pepper, and sriracha to taste

So boring and cheeseless. It looks like the lamest pasta ever, but it has a bright future.

Sauce that is practically a bisque

1. Get water boiling and cook your macaroni according to the package instructions. Drain and set aside.
2. While boiling your macaroni, sauté the onion with butter in a pan over medium heat until soft and translucent (about 10 minutes). When almost done, add the garlic and let cook for 1 minute.
3. In a separate large pan, sauté the jalapeno and red bell pepper with olive oil over medium heat until tender (about 10 minutes).
4. In a large pot, bring the vegetable broth to a boil. Add the butternut squash and let simmer until tender (about 7 minutes).
5. Drain the squash, reserving ~ 1/2 cup of the broth.
6. Combine the broth, butternut squash, milk, onion, garlic, and salt together in a blender and puree until smooth. Add additional milk to control the desired level of creaminess.  Adjust the flavor with salt, pepper, and sriracha.
7. Add the macaroni to the large pan with the peppers. Stir in the sauce and cheese until melted and well distributed.
8. Top with scallions and serve.

Much, much better.

Now this was a mac & cheese experience unlike any other. The butternut squash sauce added a richness, creaminess, and fullness that was seriously bisque-esque (fun new word!), while the peppers brought a little kick and delicate crunch. This might not be everyone's idea of a proper Kraftian adventure since the cheese itself is actually somewhat understated (although this is easily remedied by seriously upping the cheese quotient), but it doesn't have to be the star of the dish since the sauce is just that good. If you want to keep the semi-healthy nature intact but add a little more flavor and protein, I'd recommend crumbling in some tempeh "bacon" (which my store was sadly out of). After tonight, I am a lot more excited about the many delicious prospects of the fall season.

The full meal- complete with 2 more kinds of squash and Gardein "chicken"

Cafaux TH: Dessert- Café du Monde Cake

By this point, my picture taking and staging abilities had greatly deteriorated with tiredness and fullness.

Back in the original days of Cafe TH dinner specials before Minh hired a pastry chef, two desserts were frequently rotated in and out- Fried Bananas and Café du Monde Cake. These two brilliantly executed sweet treats actually managed to prove that you can never have too much of a good thing, as we never found ourselves tired of either. When it came time to choose the hammer to our evening of gluttony there was no discussion. Cafe TH's greatest, and longest lived dessert (which just so happened to callback to my New Orleans roots) was the clear choice.

Café du Monde Cake
Heavily Modified from Frappuccino Cucpcakes
Servings: 2- 9" cakes

Hazelnutty and coffeey batter

Cakes
2 1/4 cups all-purpose gluten free flour (or cake flour if not going GF)
1/2 cup toasted hazelnuts, peeled and chopped well
1 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp Cafe du Monde coffee powder
1 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
3 large eggs
1 tbsp vanilla extract

The greatest frosting in the history of fat

2/3 cup strongly brewed Cafe du Monde coffee

Chocolate Hazelnut Frosting
16 oz cream cheese, softened to room temp
6-8 tbsp chocolate hazelnut spread (I used Justin's Chocolate Hazelnut Butter)
2-4 cups powdered sugar
2 splashes of heavy cream
1 tbsp vanilla extract
Toasted hazelnuts, coarsely chopped

And now you can peel all of them!

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F.
2. Whisk the flour (use cake flour if possible), chopped hazelnuts, baking powder, salt and coffee powder together in a large bowl). Set aside.
3. Beat the butter and sugar together in an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment until light and fluffy.
4. Add in the eggs one at a time until well incorporated.
5. Mix in the vanilla extract.
6. Alternate adding in the dry ingredients and brewed coffee in 3 portions until just mixed.
7. Fill two, greased, lightly floured 9" rounds with batter. Bake for 16-20 minutes or until the toothpick test comes back clean.
8. Let cool on a wire rack.
9. Fail at removing the cakes from their pans and have 2, single layer cakes instead of a majestic double layer one.
10. Make the frosting in an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat the cream cheese well. Then add the chocolate hazelnut spread and mix well.
11. Add in the vanilla extract and powdered sugar (I used 4 cups because my hippie spread was lower in sugar than your usual Nutella, so adjust accordingly). Smooth out the frosting with a couple of splashes of heavy cream. Realize you have just created the world's greatest frosting and make up for the fact that you've been too busy baking to eat all day.
12. Frost the cakes and sprinkle on chopped toasted hazelnuts. Serve slices on top of a smear of extra frosting.

One lovely cake stuck to the pan!

Flavor-wise, this cake hit all the fondly remembered Cafe TH notes, and was, in my mind, the dish that most resembled its inspiration. The coffee and hazelnut melded together with perfect harmony in the cake, while the chocolate hazelnut frosting should have a patch to combat the addiction to it that you will develop. The only downfall of the cake was its overly crumbly nature resulting from the gluten-free flour (easily fixed by using super gluteny cake flour for those of you who want to try this at home). My inability to separate the cakes from their pans to make a two-tiered dessert behemoth turned out to be a blessing as there is no way that structure would have survived cutting.

The next iteration might just be a giant bowl filled with frosting

I don't know that Kevin and I have ever put more into a night of cooking than we did for this ode to Cafe TH (and that's saying something), but it was absolutely worth it as we had a night we'll never forget (and not just because we were too busy cooking non-stop to drink). As amazing as the night was, we sure are glad that next time it'll be coming out of Minh's kitchen.

After a long day of cooking, Kevin and I were able to enjoy the fruits of our efforts and look damn good doing it.

Cafaux TH: Entremet- Mango Peach Smoothie Shot

Between the main course and dessert lies the most refreshing part of any Cafe TH Prix Fixe menu- the entremet. This lightly sweet fruit shot (or amazing hot chocolate during the winter months) is anxiously awaited each week as we see what new wonderful combo Minh has come up with. For this incredibly complex evening, it also represented a welcome respite from the rigors of the hard labor and hot kitchen.

Mango Peach Smoothie Shot
Servings: 6-9 shots
Time: 5 minutes

1 ripe mango, peeled, seeded, and chopped
1 peach, peeled and seeded
Milk
Honey to taste
Pomegranate seeds

It's key that you convince some sucker one else to get all the seeds for you (and that you do it in water, so your kitchen doesn't resemble the elevator scene from The Shining).

1. Combine the mango, peach, milk, and honey together in a blender. Blend until smooth. Adjust the amount of milk to reach your desired level of smoothitude.
2. Pour into shot glasses and top with pomegranate seeds.
3. Enjoy the refreshing break.

For her efforts seeding the pomegranate and judging our test night, Michaela got the lone actual shot glass.

We decided on an entirely unique creation for our version of the entremet. Between two grocery stores, I was finally able to find one ripe mango for my subtly sweet and silky shot. The mango and peach really shined, while the milk provided a little creaminess to help it go down even smoother, and the pomegranate seeds added texture and that lovely burst of juiciness they're known for. While everyone used this rare moment where their mouths weren't full to enjoy great conversation, the final course had to be quickly on the horizon before their brains had a chance to realize just how grossly full they were.

Coming up next, the fifth and final dish- Café du Monde Cake!

Cafaux TH: Entree 2- Stir-fried Flat Rice Noodles with Beef and Baby Bok Choy

Stir-fried flat rice noodles make any dish better. Once, in an attempt to have his very own dish named after him, Kevin tried to alter Minh's Stir-fried Tofu Delight with flat rice noodles, egg rolls and baby bok choy. While we certainly enjoyed his new take, "The Kevin Special" never caught on with the masses, and his search continued. Following up my Ground Pork and String Beans was not going to be an easy task, but Kevin and his steaming hot wok were up to the challenge. By combining his lost dream with Cafe TH's most valuable vegetable, baby bok choy, he was gonna try to reach such rarefied air and leave us all with a Kevin Special we would not soon forget.

Kevin: Master of his kitchen and proud wok owner

Stir-fried Flat Rice Noodles with Beef and Baby Bok Choy
Servings: 6-8
Time: 30 minutes

1/2 package flat rice noodles (about 8 oz)

So much green it seemed like a mistake

1/2 lb thinly sliced beef (ok to have marbling but trim fat from 1 side)
2 tbsp corn starch
1/2 cup brown sugar
High smoke point oil (Peanut or sesame, not olive)
1 cup soy sauce or (soy substitute)
1-2 baby bok choy roughly chopped
1/4 chopped lemon grass
1/2 onion, diced
2-3 cups spinach
1 8 oz can straw mushrooms
10-12 cherry tomatoes, halved
3-4 jalapenos, diced
1 tbsp garlic, minced
1 tbsp ginger, minced
1 tsp red chili flakes
1 tsp garlic powder
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste
Lime
Peanuts, crushed
Sriracha

Fortunately the greens cook down quite a bit, so you can forget all about their healthiness.

1. Mix the corn starch and brown sugar and liberally coat the sliced beef in a plastic bag. Let marinade in the fridge for 30-60 minutes while prepping everything else.
2. Chop the bok choy, onion, spinach, straw mushrooms, jalapenos, garlic, and ginger. You'll want to have all this done before the cooking begins because once it gets going it moves pretty quickly.
3. Start a pot of boiling water while you start the sautéing in the next step . Boil the flat rice noodles for about 4-5 minutes. Drain and rinse with cold water to keep them from sticking.
4. Heat the oil in a large wok over medium-high heat.  Avoid oils such as olive oil that will smoke quickly. Feel free to mix a few such as peanut and sesame to add to the flavor.
5. Toss in the chopped veggies, red chili flakes, garlic powder, and salt/pepper. Toss or stir frequently until softened (tongs might come in handy here).
6. Remove the veggies from the heat and set aside with the noodles.
7. Get a couple of tbsp of oil heated up over medium-high heat again in the wok. Toss in some more of the garlic and ginger along with the sliced beef and sauté until cooked through.
8. After a few minutes, throw in the soy sauce and stir. The corn starch from the marinade should quickly thicken the mixture. Feel free to augment the starch depending on the desired thickness of the sauce, but remember that it thickens when it cools.
9. Throw the veggies and noodles back into the mix and stir until there is a good coating of the sauce.
10. Serve with crushed peanuts, a lime wedge, and as much sriracha as your heart desires.

Pre-mixing, the noodles really stick out

While I won't go as far as to say that Kevin won the entree cook-off (since writing this blog has only served to grossly inflate my ego, and because I keep telling myself the entire dinner was a "team effort" and thus take credit for this too), I will compliment him on a job well done. The all encompassing sauce was masterfully executed (who knew sugar was so versatile), and the beef was absolutely succulent. Baby bok choy, the crazy love-child of a drunken night involving romaine lettuce, cabbage, and spinach, continued to show its versatility in Vietnamese dishes as it provided both additional slippery yet crunchy and fresh (along with the lime) notes to the dish.  To top it all off, the crushed peanuts, while simple, added a nice extra layer that saved us from the added complexity of trying to throw in some fried egg rolls to the mix. Put it all together with just the right wet noodle transport medium, and Kevin had something worthy of both a restaurant's menu and his name.

Perfectly sauced and edibly garnished

Coming up next- we get a breather from carbs and meat with the Mango and Peach Entremet.

Cafaux TH: Entree 1: Ground Pork with String Beans

Dinner specials at Cafe TH always feature two options, so Kevin and I each took charge of one. For my entree, I decided to go with everyone's favorite (and Christina's enthusiastic request) Ground Pork with String Beans. I knew that there was no way I could hope to duplicate Minh's version because I was never going to figure out the impeccable blend of spices he used, so I decided to put my own spin on the dish . Minh is well known for his superior fusion abilities (be sure to try his fusion Viet tacos or sliders), so I decided to turn this into a Mexican-Vietnamese dish.

Ground Pork with String Beans
Servings: 7-10
Time: 40 minutes (counting prep)

2-3 tbsp olive oil
1 1/2 -2 lbs string beans, ends removed
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 green bell pepper, diced
2 jalapenos, seeded and diced
1 large onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
Lemongrass, minced and lots of it
Ginger, minced and lots of it
Cilantro, chopped
Sriracha to taste
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste
3 lbs ground pork 
Red Chili flakes to taste
Soy sauce substitute or soy sauce
Jasmine Rice

1. Steam the string beans for 15-20 minutes. Set aside.
2. In another pan, brown the ground pork with a healthy amount of lemon grass and ginger, red chili flakes, sriracha, and soy sauce subsitute.
3. Saute the bell peppers, jalapenos, and onion with olive oil in a large pan over medium heat until tender.
4. Add the string beans, garlic, lemongrass, ginger, cilantro, salt, pepper, red chili flakes, and soy sauce substitute to the veggie mix and let the string beans cook for another 5-10 minutes.
5. Combine the browned pork with the veggies and serve over jasmine rice.

Christina was quite pleased with her requested dish and made sure to acquire the leftovers exclaiming, "Chef Terrence is amazing! The ground pork was simply delicious!"

This definitely veered into far different territory than the original, but it was a dish that I was incredibly proud of. The bell peppers, jalapeno, and cilantro added a new Mexican sensation to the meal, while the powerful punch of lemongrass and ginger (seriously, you can't put too much of those two) kept it true to its Asian origin and played nicely off the heat from the sriracha and chili flakes. The pork added a rich, saltiness to the dish, while the string beans provided freshness and a welcome crispy crunch. My only regret was not having enough pork to keep the rice to pork ratio in check (stupid cooking for 9 people!).

Coming up next, see Kevin try to follow-up what was essentially a cooking mic drop with Stir-fried Flat Rice Noodles with Beef and Baby Bok Choy.

Cafaux TH: Appetizer- Bánh Bột Chiên the Trey Way

The Cafaux TH experience began the same way every Thursday night does with an appetizer unlike anything else you have ever had- The Trey Way (whoever makes it to the restaurant first is required by friend law to put in the order). Bánh Bột Chiên was already absurdly good on its own, but one fateful day, our friend Trey (who sadly was out of town for a wedding and could not partake in the gloriousness), in his infinite wisdom, decided it would be even better topped with the single greatest creation in Minh's house of awesome- char-grilled pork. One reprinted menu later, an unstoppable force of deliciousness was officially born. If the night had any chance of being a success we had to nail this dish.

The Trey Way

Servings: 2-4

Time: 25-30 minutes (active)

Proper batter consistency

Rice Flour Cake

10-12 tbsp rice flour

3 tbsp tapioca startch

Salt to taste

White Pepper to taste

Red chili flakes to taste

Sriracha to taste

Soda water

Char-grilled Pork

Baked just right

Soy sauce substitute or Soy sauce

Brown sugar

1 lb Pork belly

The Rest

1-2 tbsp Olive oil

1 small red or yellow potato, diced

Pickled radish, sliced thin

2 eggs, yolks broken and lightly mixed in

Sriracha to taste

White pepper to taste

Salt to taste

Garlic powder

Pickled carrots

Scallions, chopped

1. Marinade the pork belly in a mix of soy sauce substitute and brown sugar in the fridge for at least an hour (but we'd recommend 2-4).
2. Grill the pork belly for about 3-4 minutes per side (you want it a little charred).
3. Now make the rice flour cake. Preheat the oven to 350 F. 
4. Whisk the rice flour, tapioca starch, salt, white pepper, chili flakes and sriracha together. Add in soda water until you have a slightly thick batter (you don't want too runny, but you don't want solid either). 
5. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until just solidified. Let cool then cut into ~1inch pieces.
6. Heat the olive oil in a frying pan over medium heat. 
7. Fry the rice flour cakes (use ~6 per batch), diced potatoes, and pickled radish. Flip once they start to brown. 
8. Lightly mix the sriracha, white pepper, salt and garlic powder with the eggs (you don't want to scramble the eggs).
9. When both sides of the rice flour and potatoes are crispy, pour in the egg mixture, making sure to distribute it all around the contents of the pan, and let cook for 1-2 minutes until it is mostly done.
10. Flip like a boss and let the other side finish cooking for 30-60 seconds.
11. Transfer to a plate and top with pickled carrots, scallions, and char-grilled pork to serve.

Looking good, but could it (and Kevin's floor) survive the upcoming flip?!!?

At first, I was extremely intimidated by the prospect of replicating the Trey Way (and super nervous about the night in general), and our trial attempts with food guru Michaela the night before left much to be desired. The authentic version requires preserved turnips, and, given all the other dishes we were planning, we did not have a chance to make or find such mythical creatures. Instead we'd have to settle for pickled radishes (which you may recall gave us earlier heartbreak with these Fail Fries). Many online recipes also involved complicated, lengthy procedures with the rice flour, which only added to the worry. But then I realized that it was just batter that I could bake and then fry (because nothing is better than fried dough). By combining the fried rice flour cakes, thinly sliced radishes (so if they failed they'd at least barely be there!), and last minute potatoes (because fried potatoes are pretty much a given to win), we were able to pretty closely approximate the unmistakable taste and texture.

The naked, perfectly flipped Trey Way

As soon as I somehow managed to flip the first order perfectly, I knew we were in for a special night. When the second helping was flipped just as effortlessly, I knew far greater forces were at work here. Everything came together beautifully. The fried/lightly scrambled egg hybrid created the perfect fluffy flavor blanket to go with the crunchy fried goodness and sweet pickled carrots, while Kevin's expertly char-grilled pork belly made us feel like we were sitting at our favorite table at TH. We did have to skip out on the ridiculous, practically maple-y sauce that accompanies the Trey Way, but it was so delectable that people were too busy devouring it like human vacuum cleaners to notice.

Here's a picture of Trey dressed as a ninja turtle. He's married and has a kid!

Early reviews were in, and the appetizer was a success. "The Bánh Bột Chiên was equally as good as the original at nonfaux TH. Chunkier, and with a sweeter taste to the char-grilled pork--stellar," declared Scotty, namesake of the amazing Gluttonous Ellis bánh mì.

The night was just beginning, but we were off to an even better start than we could have imagined. Up next Round 1 of my entree dance off with Kevin- Ground Pork with String Beans.

Cafaux TH

Vacationing Cafe TH owner Minh seen here enjoying a Bananas Foster Cookie

This past week, the unthinkable happened. Superstar Cafe TH owner/world's nicest man, Minh Nguyen, decided it was time for a much needed vacation. Immediately, my circle of friends fell into a wicked tailspin. How were we supposed to spend our Thursday night? Where would we quell our stomachs' insatiable desires for the best Vietnamese fusion food and atmosphere out there?

Simply finding another Vietnamese restaurant was akin to cheating and completely out of the question. This left us with only one option. Kevin and I would have to channel our inner Minh spirit animals and hope that we could even end up in the same galaxy as his superior culinary delights. What started as a simple idea quickly exploded into an elaborate operation. While Minh might make the tastiest bánh mì in all of Houston (seriously, the Heart Throb and Gluttonous Ellis deserve a spot in the Smithsonian), the only way to truly honor the legend would be with one of his epic Prix Fixe dinner menus being served to a large group of our friends (who just may happen to have gluten and soy allergies among them). And with that, Kevin and I were on a quest to make four courses and five dishes to help all our hearts ache just a little less.

Cafaux TH Prix Fixe Menu

Appetizer:

Báhn Bột Chiên- Cantonese-styled fried eggs over pickled radish, rice flour cakes and potatoes served the "Trey Way" with char-grilled pork belly

Entrees:

Jasmine Ginger String Beans with Ground Pork and sauteed vegetables over white Jasmine rice

& (not or)

Stir-Fried Flat Rice Noodles with Thinly Sliced Beef, sauteed straw mushrooms, and baby bok choy

Entremet: 

Mango Peach Smoothie Shot with Pomegranate Seeds

Dessert:

Café du Monde Cake- Chickory coffee and hazelnut cake topped with chocolate hazelnut frosting and toasted hazelnuts.

Hugs and Kisses,

Your Distinguished Guest Chefs- Terry & Kevin