What Is A Cajun Smoked Dessert?
A Cajun smoked dessert is a dessert that is cooked in a smoker with added Cajun seasonings. You can Cajun smoke a dessert the same as you would a meat, a vegetable, or a casserole. A smoked dessert can be anything ranging from a roasted marshmallow to a blackberry cobbler.
Cajun Smoked Dessert
Dessert is a staple for any meal and has been for an extremely long time. Whether you’re a chef or a home cook; you are always looking for ways to test your taste buds. What better way than to spice it up with some mouth-watering smoky goodness and Cajun spices.
Barbeque competitions have recently added this delectable goodness to their categories. This method has wowed judges recently. You could say it’s added a ‘wow’ factor and upped the level of competitions. Bread pudding has proven to be a favorite among the judges; add some chocolate to the recipe with a pinch of Cajun spices like cayenne pepper and man-o-man you have a winner. Cobblers of any flavor are also among the judge’s favorites.
Show Stopper
Your smoked desserts can be a real showstopper, the star of the show. Yes, it can steal the limelight away from your most perfectly smoked meat.
Your entire smoking area can be taken up by appetizers to dessert. And people are going to flock toward your smoker trying to get a whiff of your dessert. There’s just something sexy about a Cajun smoked dessert.
However, there are a few things you might want to keep in consideration such as: simplicity, preparation, favoritism, accessories, and cooking time.
Simplicity
Keep it simple! Choose a Cajun smoked dessert that is easy-to-prepare. Cajun smoked desserts can be as simple as smoking sliced pineapples. Sprinkle the pineapples with some paprika and chipotle seasoning to add a Cajun kick. These are quite yummy, by the way, if you’ve never tried one you should.
Keep the complicated desserts for the inside oven until you’ve perfected them first. Nothing’s worse than a flop. So, choose something that you’ve cooked before and can pull it off with your eyes closed; not literally though.
Preparation
Prepare your dessert ahead of time. You can set it in the fridge for a couple of hours before you cook it. I don’t know about you, but I find myself having to run to the store to make a last-minute purchase. I’m always forgetting to replenish items that I’ve ran out of.
Favoritism
The best tip I know is to follow your favorite recipe making this Cajun smoked dessert easy-to-cook. This will help ensure that you, your family, and guest are going to love it.
What’s the reasoning behind smoking your favorite recipe?
- You know how to cook it.
- You know what temperature it’s supposed to be cooked at.
- You know when it’s done.
- You know how it’s supposed to look and taste.
Accessories
Most people don’t think about accessories when smoking a dessert. But, you will use them the same as smoking meats and vegetables. You will need accessories that are similar to what you will use when smoking meats and vegetables. I recommend that you use heat resistant BBQ gloves, a meat thermometer, and a sturdy baking dish.
Heat Resistant BBQ Gloves
Your primary goal when doing any kind of cooking is to not get burned. You also want to make sure that the gloves fit your hands. You need to make sure that there isn’t much extra in the length and width of the glove. If there’s any cloth material on the gloves whatsoever, you’re going to want to make sure that you don’t spill any extremely hot liquid. Be cautious and ensure that no liquid seeps through. Spend a little extra money to get a high-quality pair so that the heat protection level is high. Also, you will want your gloves to have silicone strips for a superb grip.
Meat Thermometer
You’ll want a meat thermometer to check the temperature of the interior of your dessert. While you can smoke meat at a lower temperature, your Cajun smoked dessert will require a higher smoking heat. Just the same as your meat doneness, your Cajun smoked dessert will need to reach a certain internal temperature. You can have one that you insert in the middle of your dessert, wait for it to heat up and check the temp. Or you can have one that inserts just the same but has a probe with a transmitter and receiver. This probe type is super-fast and accurate; therefore, you can trust that the reading is exactly what it should be. Buy one that’s incredibly sturdy and will keep track of the desired heat.
Baking Dish
You can’t put just any dish or container onto or into your smoker. You need something that’s going to hold up to the heat and the long cooking process. It’s recommended to use a heavy-duty aluminum roasting pan, cast iron skillet, or a high-quality stainless-steel pan.
How do you know which one to choose?
- Are you taking the dessert somewhere else like a friend’s house? So many times, I’ve needed or wanted to leave before my friend’s party was over. I didn’t want to leave my nice dish. I’ve started using the heavy-duty disposable aluminum pans. That way I can leave it and it’s an easy clean-up.
- Is there a lot of liquid in your recipe? If you are baking something like bread pudding, you are going to have a lot of liquid in your pan. A flimsy pan will tilt and warp. It’s okay if that’s all you have, just make sure you put it on a good sturdy baking sheet. But, you really need to buy the heavy-duty pans because they are much sturdier than the cheap flimsy ones.
- Are you going to re-use this pan in the smoker? If you are going to use the pan for a one-time occasion, I highly suggest you use something disposable. If you are going to be doing a lot of Cajun smoked desserts then by all means use something that is durable such as cast iron or high-quality stainless-steel.
- How big is your dessert? You don’t want to smoke your dessert in a pan that is too shallow or too small. Remember, a cake will rise whereas a cobbler will not. However, a cobbler will bubble over which could make a mess in the bottom of your smoker. In this case, just simply use a heavy-duty baking pan or cookie sheet underneath to catch the drippings.
How-To Steps
For the most part, your How-To steps will be pre-determined by the Cajuns smoked dessert that you are choosing to prepare.
- Fuel – if your fuel source is electric or gas then you are going to want to add some of wood chips or chunks to add that wonderful smoky goodness. For a fruity flavor, maple, apple, or cherry woods are recommended. For woodsier flavor, mesquite, hickory, oak, and alder are recommended.
- Smoker – prepare your smoker. If it isn’t already heated from smoking meats and vegetables, then heat the interior to the desired temperature. Obviously, this will be determined by your recipe.
- Recipe – combine all ingredients as directed by your desired recipe. Place into the appropriate baking dish.
- Drip pan – use a drip pan to catch any liquid that may bubble and boil over, especially if your smoking a pie. The drip pan may be on the bottom of your smoker or you may place your baking dish directly on top.
- Temperature – when the desired amount of cooking time has passed, you will want to check the internal temperature to ensure correct doneness.
- Remove – using your heat resistant gloves, remove your Cajun smoked dessert.
- Cool – you will want your dessert to cool a bit just the same as you would if it had been cooked in a regular oven.
Easy-to-Love
Cajun smoked desserts are definitely easy-to-prepare, easy-to-cook and easy-to-love. If you’ve wanted to try smoking desserts in your smoker, you’re in for a melt-in-your-mouth, smoky sweet treat.
The overall flavor of a dessert cooked in a smoker will add a beautiful richness to your already favorite recipe.