Jumpin Shrimp Jambalaya

Don't know why...I was on a cajun kick this week.  It never hurts to spice it up, right?
I threw together this jambalaya mix pretty easily.

G Free Shrimp Jambalya
1 pound peeled and deveined shrimp
1 large red pepper, diced thickly
1 small onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
2-3 stalks of celery, sliced
2 large carrots, peeled and sliced 1/2 inch thick
2 small russet potatoes, diced
1 28 oz. can of crushed tomatoes with juices
1 cup brown rice, prepared
1 tsp. or so of Frank's Red Hot sauce
1 TBSP of cajun seasoning
salt and pepper

Sautee all veggies. and garlic in 2 TBSP olive oil until soft. Add the crushed tomatoes, with juices, and then add your hot sauce and seasoning. Let it simmer for a few minutes.
Boil your shrimp, adding some cajun seasoning to the water.  Add shrimp and rice to the sauce, toss, and enjoy with a bold, spicy red wine.

Dirty Rice for Mardi Gras

We made some cajun tilapia for Mardi Gras, and I threw this together, last-minute, for an easy GFree side.

Cajun Dirty Rice

1 cup brown jasmine rice
2 cups water
Boil for 30-40 minutes.

While the rice is cooking, prepare the veggies:
1 shallot,diced
3 stalks celery, diced
1 green pepper, diced
2-3 carrots, diced
Sautee the veggies in olive oil until golden and soft.

Add to the veggie saute some frozen peas and corn (about 1/2 cup each)

Mix the rice and veggies and add 1-2 TBSP creole seasoning...depending on how hot you like it.

E.T. Movie and Dinner

It was fun to come up with a movie-themed dinner and to relive a classic from our childhood.
We made:
Alien Fingers
These were cocktail hot dogs from Trader Joe's. They were all beef and nitrate free, so I didn't feel too guilty about feeding them to the kids...and myself.
We simply grilled them for a few minutes on our indoor grill

Bicycle Moon Fries
Slice russet potatoes into thin discs.
Coat with olive oil, sea salt, and garlic salt.
Bake at 425 for about 20 minutes, or until golden brown; you may need to flip 1/2 way through.

Alien Pods
Edamame pods...simple.

Of course....serve Reese's Pieces and popcorn.