Emeril Lagasse - Sizzling Skillets and Other One-Pot Wonders

Crawfish pasta is a hugely popular dish in New Orleans, especially in the spring, when crawfish is inexpensive and abundant. Cooked and peeled crawfish tails come packaged in 1-pound bags and can be found both fresh and frozen in almost all of our local grocery stores and fish markets, or they can be found online. Make sure to use Louisiana crawfish; they are far superior in taste and texture to the imported Chinese variety.

3 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 cup finely chopped yellow onion

cup minced red bell pepper

1 tablespoon minced garlic

cup minced smoked ham

2 cups heavy cream

2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 teaspoons salt

teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 pound peeled cooked Louisiana crawfish tails, with fat

1 teaspoons Emerils Original Essence or Creole Seasoning (recipe follows)

cup finely chopped green onion

cup finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley leaves

1 pound fettuccine or linguine, cooked until al dente and drained

Crushed red pepper (optional)

In a large skillet, melt the butter over medium-high heat. Add the onion, bell pepper, and garlic and saut for 3 to 4 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the ham and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Stir in the cream, lemon juice, salt, and pepper.

Bring to a boil and cook until the cream has thickened and reduced by almost half in volume, about 4 minutes. (The sauce should be thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.)

Season the crawfish with the Essence. Add the crawfish to the pan and cook, stirring, until the crawfish are firm and warmed through, about 2 minutes. (Do not overcook or the crawfish will become tough.) Stir in the green onion, cheese, and parsley and toss to combine. Add the cooked pasta and toss until coated with the sauce and warmed through. Remove from the heat. Taste and adjust the seasoning if necessary.

Serve immediately, garnished with crushed red pepper if desired.

4 to 6 servings

2 tablespoons paprika

2 tablespoons salt

2 tablespoons garlic powder

1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper

1 tablespoon onion powder

1 tablespoon cayenne

1 tablespoon dried oregano

1 tablespoon dried thyme

Combine all the ingredients thoroughly and store in an airtight container for up to 1 year.

2/3 cup

This is a rich and indulgent dish with assertive flavors. Blue cheese is a classic complement to beef. Keep in mind that the flavor of the sauce will vary based on the specific type of blue cheese you use because blue cheese can range from mild to pungent. Its easy: choose a blue cheese that you like.

3 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

1 rib-eye or sirloin steak, about 1 inches thick (1 pounds)

1 teaspoon kosher salt

teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 pound cremini mushrooms, stems trimmed, sliced inch thick

1/3 cup minced shallot

1 teaspoons minced garlic

teaspoon minced fresh rosemary leaves

teaspoon minced fresh thyme leaves

cup dry white wine

1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

1 cup canned low-sodium beef broth, plus more if needed

5 ounces crumbled Gorgonzola or other creamy blue cheese

2/3 cup heavy cream

1 pound rigatoni, cooked until al dente, drained, and cup cooking liquid reserved

1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley leaves

1 tablespoon snipped fresh chives

In a large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of the vegetable oil over medium-high heat. When hot, add the butter. Season the steak with the kosher salt and teaspoon of the pepper. Add the steak to the pan and cook, undisturbed, until nicely browned on one side, about 4 minutes. Turn the steak over and cook for another 4 minutes. Remove from the pan, transfer to a paper towellined plate, and tent with foil. Set aside.

Add the mushrooms, the remaining oil, and the remaining black pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms are softened and their liquid has evaporated, about 4 minutes (if the bottom of the pan begins to get too brown, add a little water and stir to release any browned bits). Add the shallot, garlic, rosemary, and thyme and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes.