My birthday dinner

Mmmmmm. Shrimp etouffee'. :-)

For my birthday, we had another couple over for dinner and I decided to tackle this recipe for the first time. The husband also really likes to cook, so the two of us started chopping while his wife and my husband enjoyed the h'ordeuvres (I refuse to look it up but I'm sure I spelled it wrong!). The meal turned out UNBELIEVABLE! Here's the recipe, it actually came attached to the creole seasoning I purchased recently at a yummy organic/whole foods store.

1/2 stick of salted butter

3 tblsp olive oil (or more if you like)

about 1/4 cup of flour

2 to 3 cups of good vegetable stock

one bell pepper, chopped (I used yellow)

one large onion chopped

1/2 to 1 cup chopped celery

2 tblsp (or more if you like a little kick) of your favorite creole seasoning

1 or 2 bay leaves

a little lemon juice

2 tblsp of chopped parsley, if you like

2 lbs. rock shrimp, or your favorite kind

Heat the vegetable stock in a small pot over medium heat. In a large pot, heat the olive oil and butter, then whisk in the flour to make a rue. Let this simmer a little while to get the flour nice and browned . . . it should look about like peanut butter in the bottom of your pot.

Stir in the chopped veggies and stir them around until they are soft. Add the creole seasoning now, too. (You may have to add a little of the stock at this point to keep things from burning.)

Once the veggies are as soft as you like, add the rest of your stock. Remember it will continue to thicken as it cooks, so make it pretty soupy. Add the bay leaves as well. Let this all simmer (and make your whole house smell like heaven) for a little while so all the flavors mix together well and things thicken up just a tiny bit.

In the last 5 minutes or so of cooking, add the shrimp and a little lemon juice. Let the shrimp cook just until they're pink and done. You DON'T want to overcook them, because they will get a little tough. Go ahead and throw some parsley in there if you like, too. I thought it made it look prettier. :-)

NOW, serve this up on top of some white rice. I like jasmine basmati rice, myself, but you can use whatever you like. Have some bread handy for sopping it up, or you and your guests might end up licking the bowl.

Stay tuned for dessert!