Fat Tuesday.. How we celebrated!

Being the good Catholic girl that I am I take Lent VERY seriously.  Having said that I LOVE to celebrate Fat Tuesday.. it's like one last big celebration before this celiac has to be even more serious about food.  Lent is hard to begin with, but try it with Celiac Disease... it's serious business... and proof that I could never survive as a vegetarian... sorry but I just love meat too much!  Over the course of Lent I will try to share with you guys some of the meatless dishes that I will be eating, but for now let's just chat about Fat Tuesday!

We had quite the Fat Tuesday celebration at the Red Roof Inn!  A lot of our friends came over to share some yummy Cajun food and of course  Mardi Gras cocktails! I made drinks by the pitcher, and I did the food in the crockpot so I could spend more time socializing with my friends and less time in the kitchen.  Here's how it all went down...
 

Cajun Pot Roast with Maque Choux (from Better Homes & Gardens)

Ingredients

• 1  2 - 2 1/2 pound boneless beef chuck roast
• 1 tablespoon Cajun seasoning (recipe below)
• 1 10 ounce package frozen whole kernel corn
• 1 large green sweet pepper, chopped
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon bottled hot pepper sauce
• 1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 14 1/2 ounce can diced tomatoes, undrained

 

Directions

1. Trim fat from meat. Sprinkle Cajun seasoning evenly over all sides of the meat; rub in with your fingers. If necessary, cut meat to fit into a 3-1/2 to 4-1/2 quart slow cooker.  I wrapped the meat in plastic wrap after I put the rub on and refrigerated it overnights so it was extra yummy!

2. Place meat in the slow cooker. Add frozen corn, sweet pepper, onion, sugar, hot pepper sauce, and black pepper. Pour tomatoes over mixture in cooker.

3. Cover; cook on low-heat setting for 8 to 10 hours or on high-heat setting for 4 to 5 hours.

4. Remove meat from cooker. Drain vegetables, discarding cooking liquid. Serve meat with vegetables. Makes: 6 servings  I doubled this for all our friends, and it was just enough!

DIY Cajun Seasoning (kinda from Traditional Foods)

2 1/2 T Paprika

1 1/2 T Sea Salt

2 T Garlic Powder

1 T Black Pepper

1 T Onion Powder

1 T Cayenne Pepper

1 T Dried Oregano

1 T Dried Thyme

1/2 t Red Pepper Flakes

1/2 t Celery Flakes

1/4 t Dill

Mix everything together and store in a cute little mason jar!

 

Spicy Crock Pot Jambalaya  (from Cajun Delights)

1 cup cooked chicken, cubed

1 lb. Andouille sausage, sliced thin
1 onion, chopped
1 cup bell peppers, any color, coarsely chopped
2 stalks celery, sliced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1  (14 1/2 oz.) can diced tomatoes, drained
1 (8 oz.) can tomato sauce
1 bunch green onions, sliced thin
1 or 2 jalapenos, seeded and chopped, (optional)
1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
1 tbs. Worcestershire sauce
Few shakes Tabasco
1 tbs. or more Cajun seasoning
Salt to taste
1 tsp. dried thyme
2 bay leaves
2 cups chicken stock
2 cups raw rice

First chop the veggies, slice the sausage,  and chop the chicken.  Combine chicken, sausage, trinity (onions, celery, & peppers), rice, garlic, chicken stock, tomatoes, tomato sauce, Worcestershire sauce, bay leaves, jalapenos, and seasonings,  in 5 quart slow cooker. Mix well, cover,  and cook on low for 5 hours.  Stir well and add shrimp, parsley, half of green onions, and Tabasco, and cook on high for 30 to 40 more minutes. Discard bay leaves and garnish with remaining green onions before serving.

I doubled this recipe as well... and it made a lot... but this dish makes for very good leftovers!

 

Katrina's Hurricane

Everyone else still feels the need to joke with me about "my" hurricane... so I thought that I would really make my very own Hurricane :).. Fortunately this one is much more pleasant that the previous one!  Enjoy!

1 1/2 oz Bacardi Select- or another dark rum you like
1 1/2 oz Bacardi- or another white rum
2 oz Pineapple Juice
2 oz Mango Passion Fruit Juice
1/2 oz Grenadine
Juice from 1/2 a lime
Fresh Pineapple
Cuties
Key Limes

Fill a hurricane glass with ice.  Pour all of the liquids into a shaker.  Shake well and strain over ice.  Garnish with pineapple, cutie wedges, and key limes.

This recipe is for one drink.  I multiplied it by about ten and put it in a big pitcher along with a lot of pineapple and cuties.  I made this the night before the party and let the fruit make it all yummy overnight!  It was definitely a hit at the Fat Tuesday party!

Having just shared with you all that delicious hurricane recipe I have got to tell you..I gave up alcohol for Lent.... like seriously this year.  In the past I have said no drinks during the week, but on the weekends it is ok.  But this year I'm seriously giving up alcohol!  Let's see how this goes.  What are your plans for Lent??