COOK OF THE WEEK: Guntown teacher enjoys cooking outdoors
Apr. 21—GUNTOWN — Right after Noah Bass graduated from college, his great uncle built him a grill from a 55-gallon drum. He used it for about 25 years, until the bottom of it rusted out.
"I got to know it so well I could put pork or chicken on it and walk away and come back and know when to take it off," Bass said. "Grilling is 85 percent of the cooking I do, I'd say."
Today, Bass uses a 250-gallon gas tank that was cut and made into a grill.
"It's pretty massive," Bass said. "That's where I do my big cooking. I've done as many as eight Boston butts at a time on it."
Some of Bass' earliest memories are of grilling. His family was all about outdoor cooking, whether it was a big barbecue or a fish fry.
"Early on I just participated in the eating and playing," he said. "As I got older, I spent time standing around the grill with my parents or grandparents."
Bass, 47, teaches eighth-grade science at Guntown Middle School. He and his wife, Lorie, live in the Palmetto community and share three children. Before he became a teacher, he was a lineman at At&T for 18 years.
"I got a neck injury that pretty much put me out of that job," Bass said. "Being a lineman is a rough-on-the-body job. I have a degree in ag economics from MSU and one in forestry technology from ICC. I was fortunate to have enough science credits to be able to be endorsed in science."
Bass also teaches CrossFit at GMS and helps coach football, so he and Lorie try to eat healthfully as much as they can. A weeknight dinner might be grilled chicken tenders and steamed green vegetables, or a shrimp boil made with potatoes, corn, mushrooms and Brussel sprouts.
"I enjoy cooking. That's my time," Bass said. "After I leave school, I go to the store and get whatever we're having, then go home and put it together. I come up with some weird things sometimes."
His recipe for Potato Surprise started out as ranch potatoes. Then he added sausage and pepperoncinis. Next, he threw in mushrooms and bacon bits.
"I think I've got about all I need in it now," he said. "It may even be a bit over the top. I try new recipes, but I start making changes right off the bat. I guess I can't leave well enough alone. I have to tweak it, leave things out, add things to it."
The Basses entertain a lot on the weekends, especially during the summer and in football season.
"Three to four times a year, we do a big crawfish boil, which is always a huge success," he said. "I have a pot that will cook 40 pounds of crawfish at a time. I love to cook for other people. If I see somebody go back for seconds, that's better than them paying me for it."
DO YOU KNOW A GOOD COOK? Send your nominations to Ginna Parsons, Cook of the Week, P.O. Box 909, Tupelo, MS 38802. Or you can call (662) 678-1581 or email them to ginna.parsons@journalinc.com.
PASTALAYA
20 ounces fettuccine
Juice of 4 lemons
2 tablespoons butter
32 ounces frozen peeled, cooked shrimp
Blackening seasoning
2 pounds smoked sausage, sliced
2 red bell peppers, diced
2 green bell peppers, diced
1 medium yellow onion, diced
1 rib celery, diced
2 bunches green onions, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 teaspoon garlic powder
2 teaspoons paprika
9 Roma tomatoes, diced
1 (6-ounce) can tomato paste
1 cup chicken broth
1 quart heavy whipping cream
Cook fettuccine according to package directions until almost done. Drain and set aside.
In a large pot or pan, combine lemon juice and butter and let butter melt. Sprinkle shrimp with blackening seasoning, add to pan and cook until heated through and blackened. Don't overcook — the shrimp are already cooked.
Remove shrimp from pan; add sausage, bell peppers, onion, celery, green onions and garlic and stir well. Add garlic powder and paprika. Add tomatoes, tomato paste and chicken broth. Cook until all vegetables are soft and sausage is done.
Add heavy cream. Return shrimp to the pan. Add the cooked, drained pasta. Simmer on low heat for 5 to 10 minutes. Good served with Hawaiian sweet rolls.
Note: If desired, omit the sausage, and serve this dish as a side to filet mignon.
AIR FRYER WINGS
6 chicken wings
Olive oil
Tony Chachere's Creole seasoning
Buffalo wing sauce
Cut the wing tips off; lightly brush the wings with oil. Sprinkle with Tony's. Place in air fryer and cook to a 180-degree inside temperature. Coat wings with buffalo wing sauce and place back in air fryer for 2 minutes.
CHILI
1 pound ground beef
1 pound ground sage sausage
1/2 red bell pepper, diced
1/2 green bell pepper, diced
1/2 small yellow onion, chopped
2 cans ranch-style beans
2 cans Ro-tel tomatoes
1 (6-ounce) can tomato paste
1 Three-Alarm Chili kit
Cook meats, peppers and onion in a skillet; drain grease, then place meat mixture in a Crock-Pot. Add beans, tomatoes, tomato paste and chili kit, and cook on low until chili is warm. The longer it cooks, the better.
POTATO SURPRISE
8 to 10 Yukon gold potatoes, cubed
1 pound smoked sausage, sliced
3/4 cup canola oil
3 ounces dry ranch dressing seasoning
1 (16-ounce) jar pepperoncini peppers, drained
16 ounces baby portobello mushrooms
2 ounces real bacon bits
Sea salt
Place potatoes and sausage in a large ziptop bag. Add oil, a little at a time, and shake until potatoes and sausage are lightly coated. Add ranch seasoning, a little at a time, shaking the bag periodically until potatoes and sausage are lightly coated.
Empty bag onto a large baking sheet. Evenly spread peppers, mushrooms and bacon bits over the top. Sprinkle lightly with sea salt. Cover and bake at 400 degrees until potatoes are soft, 1 hour or more.
JALAPEÑO POPPER DIP
1 (8-ounce) block cream cheese, softened
1/3 cup sour cream
1/3 cup mayonnaise
1 1/2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese
1 1/2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese
10 slices bacon, chopped and cooked
4 jalapeños, minced
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
In a bowl, combine cream cheese, sour cream and mayonnaise. Add most of the cheeses, bacon and jalapeños.
Spoon mixture into a small skillet and spread evenly. Top with reserved cheeses, bacon and jalapeños. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. Serve with toasted bread crisps.
THIGH POPPERS
Boneless, skinless chicken thighs
Jalapeños
Cream cheese, softened
Greek seasoning
Thinly sliced bacon
Barbecue sauce
Roll the thighs out flat. Clip the ends off the jalapeños, then slice them lengthwise and remove seeds.
Smear some cream cheese in each half of the jalapeños, then place one half of the jalapeño on each thigh. Roll the thighs up and coat with Greek seasoning. Wrap the thighs with bacon and place a toothpick through to hold everything together, if desired.
Grill to 180 degrees, then coat with barbecue sauce. Continue to cook about 2 minutes.
SIMPLE COMEBACK SAUCE
1/4 cup cream-style horseradish
1/2 cup Thousand Island dressing
1/2 cup ketchup
Combine horseradish, dressing and ketchup (the ratio is one part horseradish to 2 parts dressing and ketchup, if you want to make a larger batch). The sauce is good for crawfish boils. It pairs well with crawfish, shrimp and potatoes.
