Mama Pajama

Cajun Cornbread Dressing

Well, Thanksgiving is tomorrow! Are you ready?  I'm in charge of the dressing this year, so I thought I would share the recipe.  All my husband's family is from Southern Louisiana, so they are very fond of cayenne pepper.  It takes a lot of ingredients, but it's worth the effort.  Honestly, I always loved my mom's stuffing, but this stuff is pretty darn good.

Cajun Cornbread Dressing

Ingredients for cornbread (make the night before to save time): 2 1/2 cups white corn meal, 3/4 cup flour, 1 1/2 tsp. salt, 3 TB baking powder, 1 TB sugar, 3 TB oil, 3 eggs, 3 cups milk (Bake at 425 degrees for about 30 minutes).

Other ingredients: 1 lb. ground pork, 1 lb. ground beef, 3 onions, 1 bell pepper, 3 cloves garlic, 3 stalks of celery, 3 eggs, 2 cans cream of mushroom soup, 1 can French onion soup, 1/4 cup fresh parsley, 1/4 cup green onions, salt, red pepper, black pepper.

Directions:  Make the cornbread the night before, and store it in large ziploc bags.  This makes it easy to break it up into the dressing. 

1. Brown the pork and the beef (drain well). 

2.  Add the chopped onions, bell pepper, garlic, and celery to the meat, as well as red pepper, black pepper, and salt. You'll want to season it well, it is Cajun Dressing.  Cook for about 45 minutes at low-medium heat.

3.  In a separate large pot (that can also be put in the oven) pour in the two cans of cream of mushroom and the one can of French onion soups.  Add the chopped parsley and green onions, and cook on the stove for about 10 minutes.  Now add the meat mixture (in the pan) to the large pot with the soup.  Stir really well.  Now, slowly add in the crumbled corn bread (I only use about 2/3 of the cornbread to keep it more juicy) as well as three eggs.  Make sure you stir this well again.  Put the pot (covered) in the oven and bake for up to 90 minutes at 350 degrees.  (After about one hour into the baking time, I pull it out of the oven to stir it - You'll want to watch it and make sure it doesn't get too dry. I usually bake it for about 80 minutes.)

Enjoy! 

Menu Plan Monday

Monday:  Cajun Shrimp Stew (click here for recipe)

Tuesday: Leftovers

Wednesday: King Crab Legs dipped in butter with French Bread

Thursday: Beef Fajitas

Friday: Leftovers

Saturday: Almost Homemade Pizza

Sunday: Breakfast for Dinner

Head on over to orgjunkie to share your menu plan for the week!

Cajun Recipes #4

Cajun Chicken Salad

Ingredients: 2 chicken breasts, 2 thighs, 3 boiled eggs, 1/2 stalk celery, 1/2 small onion, 1/2 small bell pepper, 2 TB diced pimento, 2 TB parsley flakes, 3/4 cup mayonnaise, 3 TB Miracle Whip, 2 TB mustard, 3 TB sweet relish, salt, pepper, and red (cayenne) pepper to taste.

Directions: Boil the chicken for about an hour. Let it cool,  then cut it into pieces and run it through the food processor. (Some people like it really fine, but I like mine chunky.) Put it in a bowl.  Run the boiled eggs in the food processor, and put them into a separate bowl.  Run the celery, onions, bell pepper, and pimento (all together) until pureed.  Add all the other ingredients, then the chicken in a large mixing bowl.  Season well with salt, pepper, and red pepper.  *Remember to be careful when adding red pepper....you can always add more but you can't take it out.*  Refrigerate and enjoy! 

Cajun Recipes #3

Now here is my favorite Cajun Recipe of the moment.  It is not necessary to have crab shells to make stuffed crabs....although it would be fun to try it that way!

Here we geaux:

Cajun Stuffed Crabs

Ingredients:  1 lb. white crabmeat, 4 stale hamburger buns or 5 slices stale bread (just leave it out for a couple of hours), 1/4 lb. butter, 3 eggs, 1/2 cup chopped green onions, 1/2 cup chopped parsley, 1/2 cup chopped bell pepper, 2 minced cloves garlic, 1 cup chopped onions, 1/2 cup chopped celery, 1 cup evaporated milk, 1/2 tsp.Worcestershire Sauce, plain breadcrumbs, foil (to make "crab shells") or actual crab shells, salt, red pepper, and black pepper to taste.

Directions: 

***In a separate dish, combine the evaporated milk and eggs, and then soak the buns (or bread) in this mixture.

Using a 3 inch deep casserole pan, saute your onions, celery, garlic, and bell pepper in the butter until wilted.  Add in the Worcestershire sauce and the crabmeat, and then season to taste with the salt, red, and black pepper.  Cook over medium heat for about 15 minutes, stirring constantly.  Now, add the green onions and the parsley.  Then, add the buns(or bread) which have been soaking in the milk and eggs.  Mix well.  Stuff the crab shells (or "foil crabs") with this mixture.  Sprinkle the tops with plain bread crumbs (I used packaged bread crumbs).  Bake at 375 degrees for about 15 minutes, or until brown.

Cajun Recipes #2

My Monday Menu Plan includes Cajun Shrimp Stew.  I wanted to also share the recipe. 

Critical ingredient:  Pat's Roux  - You can get it at Pat's Fisherman's Wharf Restaurant in Henderson, Louisiana.  I've tried using other brands, but this is by far the best.

Cajun Shrimp Stew

Ingredients:3 heaping serving spoons of Pat's Roux, 3 cups water, 1 chopped rib of celery, 1 cup chopped onions, 1/2 bell pepper (chopped), 1 lb. peeled and deveined shrimp, salt, pepper, and red (cayenne) pepper to taste.

First: If you are using roux from a jar, pour out the oil which will sit on top.  Then, in a medium pot of your water, add the roux.  You will need to cook the roux at medium heat for about 30 minutes, stirring constantly.  Now, add all the vegetables.  Season to taste.  You will want to add quite a bit of salt and black pepper.  Be careful with the red pepper.  Remember: you can always add more - but you can't take it out!  (I've learned that the hard way LOL) Cook for about 30 more minutes, stirring frequently.  Now you can add your shrimp!  Continue to cook at medium to medium-low for about 30 minutes, stirring often. 

Now just serve over rice and with brown-n-serve rolls.......C'est Ce Bon!

Cajun Recipes #1

I am going to start posting some of my favorite recipes.  I have several Cajun seafood recipes that are so good they'll "make you wanna slap yo' mama."  My husband is the true Cajun, from Southern Louisiana....so I can't take credit for these.  They have been passed down to me by my mother-in-law.  Here is one the best:

CRAWFISH ETOUFFEE

Ingredients:  3 TB oil, 1/2 cup flour, 3 garlic pods, 1 onion, 1 celery rib, 1/2 red bell pepper, 1/2 green bell pepper, 1 lb. crawfish tails, 1/2 cup parsley, 1/2 cup green onions, 2 TB butter, celery salt, salt, black pepper, cayenne pepper.

Directions:     Before you begin, get everything ready to go.  Chop all your vegetables.  I put the garlic, onion, and the green and red bell peppers, all into the food processor at one time.  The parsley can also be run in the food processor, but you will want to keep the parsley separate from the other vegetables.  Finely chop the celery and green onions by hand. 

Heat your frying pan (I use a three inch deep non-stick pan) on medium-high.   Heat the oil for a few minutes, then add the flour.  This is your roux.  Lower the head to medium.  You will need to stir it constantly until it turns the color of a brown paper bag (approx. 3 or 4 minutes).

Now add the garlic, onion, green and red bell peppers, and the celery.  Stir very well for about 4 minutes.

At this time you can go ahead and season your vegetables with salt, celery salt, pepper, and red (Cayenne) pepper.  I use about 4 tsp. salt, 2tsp. black pepper, 1 tsp. red pepper, and 1 tsp. celery salt.  But if you like things that are spicy, you may want to add more red pepper.  It is all a matter of taste.

Now add your crawfish.  Here in Texas, we are able to buy a pound of frozen crawfish already peeled and in a bag.  If you are also able to find this in your local grocery store, you can just poor the thawed crawfish into the pan (including the juice).  Stir well for about five minutes. 

Now add the parsley, green onions, and then the butter.  Continue to stir well. 

This will need to cook uncovered for about 35 minutes.  You will need to continue stirring your etouffee very often.  I usually keep the heat at medium low (3 or 4 on an electric stove).   

Serve over rice and enjoy!   We like to eat brown-n-serve rolls with ours!

This recipe will serve at least four people.  My husband and I usually eat it two nights in a row....and we're big eaters when it comes to Cajun food!