Saturday, October 23, 2010

A Great Dinner Salad + Cajun Fun on the Bayou !

Since we are still having very warm weather, here in Cajun country, I like to grill several chicken breasts and a few pounds of shrimp every week and keep them in the freezer for use in dinner salads. What could be easier and more delicious than a nice big flavorful, healthy salad! Here is one of my faves.  Cest bon, cher!

Cobb Salad w/ Jalapeno Ranch Dressing

 1 head of bibb lettuce, torn
2 grilled chicken breasts, cut into bite sized pieces or 1/2 lb. grilled shrimp
1 large avocado, peeled and chopped
1 onion, chopped
2 hard boiled eggs, chopped 
1 large tomato, seeded and chopped
1/2 cup blue cheese, crumbled
5 strips bacon, fried crisp and crumbled, optional



Arrange ingredients in layers in a large salad bowl. Serve with Jalapeno Ranch Dressing. 

Jalapeno Ranch Dressing 
1 (1/4) cups, no-fat buttermilk 
3/4 cup light mayo
1 tsp. Creole mustard
2 tsp.'s white vinegar
2 tbs.'s  lime or lemon juice 
1 tsp. crushed garlic
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped
1 tbs. fresh parsley, minced
1 tsp. Cajun seasoning
Salt to taste

Whisk ingredients together in the order given, in a mixing bowl. Store in a sealed glass container in refrigerator, for up to one week. Shake well before each use.

^^^^^^
Cajun Fun on the Bayou
 
We jump started our weekend a little early, on Thursday evening, at the weekly "Rhythms on the River" concert in Town Square at River Ranch. Gorgeous, summer-like weather really brought out a huge crowd that was enjoying an evening of great Cajun fun!


Some were having a cold drink to unwind, after a stressful work week. Others were having a bite to eat, on the patio at the City Club Bar and Grille. Cajuns love to eat, drink, and be merry, cher, and spend time with family and friends! It's called the Cajun  joie de vivre!



And they LOVE to dance, more than anything,  and pass a good time! The fantastic Fifth Avenue band was entertaining the crowd and there was a whole lotta dancin' going on! 


Then on Friday evening, we went to Happy Hour at Agave' Mexican Restaurant and Cantina and had a round of Margarita's, before heading across the street to this week's T.G.I.F. block party, at Parc Sans Souci, in downtown Lafayette. It was a blast and Louisiana Red was rockin' the crowd!





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I've had a few more requests for some more festival clips so here's a little clip that I took of a Zydeco number, with Horace Trahan and the Ossun Express, movin' the crowd at Festival Acadiens. Crank it up and let the good times roll, cher!
Horace Trahan and the Ossun Express


I am heading out to the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, Ragin' Cajuns,  Homecoming tailgating party, and you know what that means! Woohoo! Lots of wonderful Cajun food, music, and fun! What are your plans for the weekend? Whatever you have planned, hope that ya'll have a fun, fabulous time! Cheers! Merci for stopping by!

27 comments:

Rosaria Williams said...

Marguerite, do tell us that these kinds of parties occurr all the time in Bayou Country!

Love this salad!

Velva said...

Grilling up chicken and shrimp for weeknight salads is a great idea. The weather has been quite pleasant.

Enjoy your weekend. No doubt, it will be filled with good food, friends, family and music.

Kittie Howard said...

Have all the fixin's for your salad in a little bit...LSU got intercepted, Auburn scored; LSU, field goal. I'm off to pop a beer!

Have a great weekend!

Susanna Powers said...

Thanks Marguerite! I'll have to try the salad, it sounds delicious. When will we get come cool weather, so we can start making soup? sp

Laura said...

Marguerite- you have so much fun.
It all sounds wonderful.
I can't wait to make that salad dressing.

Marguerite-
how do you stay so slim?

Laura
White Spray Paint

Cloudia said...

"Cajuns love to eat, drink, and be merry, cher, and spend time with family and friends! It's called the Cajun joie de vivre!"

Funny, we call it Hawaiian Style!



Aloha to you, Sistah
from Hawaii

Comfort Spiral

><}}(°>

Joanne said...

That fresh salad is making me miss summer already! It looks divine. Enjoy the football game, and the weekend too :)

Eddie Bluelights said...

I bet all Cujun people are fit! Crumbs, all that dancing - no wonder you all eat so much!! LOL
Looked at the video and could not see you there but I might need the services of Specsavers LOL
Have a great weekend and as someone I know quite well says, "Let the good times roll". LOL

A Kitchen Witch said...

You always make the best sounding food! I think I'm gonna move in just so you can cook for me : )

I made a little dedication to all things Loozeeann.. You'll have to check it out. I know there are a ton more products out there so you'll have to share some of your cajun favs someday!

Pooch Purple Reign said...

well its not a wonder... listen to that music!!
its not possible to keep your feet still i would imagine
~laura x

Linda Starr said...

I've never knew someone who partied so much, truly amazing and a little peppers to spice it up is a good thing.

Karen Jones Gowen said...

Anyone who grills a few pounds of shrimp every week is a friend of mine.

Eddie Bluelights said...

For Cujuns please read Cajuns.
My typing again!!
Too much gin LOL

Kat said...

Oh, how I LOVE salads! I have to try your Jalapeno Ranch Dressing, it sounds delish.
Can't wait for the tailgating photos and food!! You are such a joy to read!

Drick said...

the thought of grilled chicken and shrimp sitting in your freezer made me wonder what other goodies are in there... bet it would be a blast going through it, could eat well for a month.... love that dressing and great take on the cobb salad

ellen abbott said...

more fun on the bayou!

Marguerite said...

lakeviewer- They certainly DO OCCUR ALL THE TIME! lol Merci, so glad you like it! Be sure and try the dressing, too!

Velva- So good to hear from you! It is such a time saver and so handy for all sorts of dishes. Thanks for stopping by!

Kittie- Thanks so much for coming over during the L.S.U. game! Wow, what a compliment! Make that a few beers! Cheers, cher!

sussah- Thanks, so glad you like it and hope you try it! As much as I would like it to be a little cooler, I'm not complaining, after last winter. :)

Laura- Great to hear from you! I do have a lot of fun and it is! Thanks, the dressing is fab and I hope that you will try it! Lots of salads, my friend, and dancing! lol

Cloudia- I would love to see your Hawaiian Style of fun, first hand! I might just pop up on your boat, one of these days! Aloha, cher!

Pooch Purple Reign said...

im curious what is the difference with creole mustard?
~laura

Talli Roland said...

That looks like a fantastic party, and now I'm starving! :)

Hope you're having a great weekend!

Eddie Bluelights said...

Is there any left? I'm starving!! LOL

aslan said...

Hello to you and Cajun country,enjoy
the weekend.

Salad seems one1 number!

California Girl said...

Hi Marguerite! Forgive my absence for a time, I seem to be too tired at night to read blogs and comments. It's all I can do to get a post up once a week. Isn't that pathetic? Work gets in the way, hahahaha!

I did go to a party last night and had some wonderful food--not Cajun tho'. One thing they did was take large grapes, the deep purple kind w/o seeds. They left in the stem & marinated in olve oil w/ a hint of garlic. It was a sweet savory taste all at once. Yum.

Mehmet Osman Çağlar said...

It's again a great post dear Marguerite . Thanks for sharing.. Have a good week full of joy.

Love and hugs, Zhivago

Marguerite said...

Joanne- Thanks, I love fresh salads, year round! Still very summery, here. It was a fun weekend and I hope yours was too!

Eddie- The ones who are active, are fit, and the ones who are not active, are not. lol Gotta exercise to stay in shape, cher! You're right, I wasn't! lol Thanks, I did!

KW- Thanks, so glad you like it! You'd be welcome to move in anytime, but I don't cook every night! lol Loved your post!

Pooch- So glad you enjoyed it! It's the kind of music that just makes you want to dance. Thanks for coming by!

Linda- Cajuns do love a good party! Life is never boring, here, that's for sure! Thanks, the peppers do give it a zip! Hope you try it!

Karen- lol- I am a shrimp-o-holic and always have shrimp in my freezer! Wish you lived closer, so I could share them with you! Cheers!

John said...

I've been in Namibia for a couple of weeks, so I have some catching up to do on cajun recipes. Keep having fun.

Magic of Spice said...

That is definitely an unwind :)
Great salad, loads of flavor...love that you grill and load up for such delights :)
I know I'm too old for it, but if you adopt me, I promise to help cook and I can cook meats as well :)

Martha said...

Jalapeno ranch dressing and another great party - I am so there! I love that your blog is one big party all the time :-)