Another Fabulous Cajun Weekend !

It's Friday and that means it's time for the weekend and some good ole Cajun fun! Since getting off from work at noon on Friday's is a tradition in Lafayette, for many, the fun starts with a fabulous Cajun lunch at one of our, over 300 wonderful restaurants, and that number doesn't include fast food. Today's pick was Dwyer's Cafe', in downtown Lafayette. T.G.I.F., cher!

Dwyer's is a landmark in Lafayette and has been serving up delectable Cajun cuisine for over 40  years! Their delicious daily buffet is always tempting , but I was in the mood for a shrimp poboy, after sticking to my veggie diet all week. Oh cest bon, cher!

And for those of you who's mouths are watering over this scrumptious looking poboy, I am re-posting my Shrimp Poboy recipe for those of you who might want to make one of these at home or add it to your Cajun recipe file. And please try my Poboy Spread recipe, too!

Marguerite's Creole Poboy Spread

Combine:

1/2 cup light mayo

1/4 cup creole or dijon mustard

1 tbs. ketchup
1 tbs. pickle relish

1 tbs.. horseradish

few shakes sea salt

few shakes Tabasco

Stir until well blended and chill for 30 minutes, while frying shrimp.

Fried Shrimp Poboys

1 lb. large, peeled and diveined shrimp (24 ct.)
1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper, combined with 1/2 tsp. black pepper
4 eggs
1 cup Pet milk
1/4 tsp. salt
2 cups flour
2 cups fine French bread crumbs
Vegetable oil for frying

2 loaves French bread, 2 tomatoes, sliced, shredded lettuce, Creole poboy spread

Season shrimp with the pepper, rubbing on all sides.
In shallow bowl,whisk the eggs, then add the Pet milk and the salt.
Spread the flour on one cookie sheet and the bread crumbs on another.
Roll shrimp in the flour, then in the egg mixture.
Then roll the shrimp in the breadcrumbs.
Arrange on large platter and chill for 15 minutes.

Place vegetable oil about 3 inches deep in a large, heavy skillet. Heat until oil reaches 375 degrees. Deep fry the shrimp, in batches, turning after 3 minutes, on each side or until golden brown. Drain on paper towels.

Brush inside of each loaf with my Creole Spread, and add lettuce and tomato. Arrange, 12 on each poboy and cut in halves. Serves 4 Enjoy!

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T.G.I.F.

Then tonight I will be joining friends at Downtown Alive for the weekly T.G.I.F Block Party and an awesome concert at Parc International . The infamous Cowboy Mouth will take the stage around 6:00 pm. If you've never seen this hard rockin', high energy band, you're in for a treat!

Tomorrow afternoon, we'll be tailgating at Cajun Field, and rooting for the Ragin' Cajuns when they take on Middle Tennessee. Game time 6:00 pm. Geaux Cajuns! There will be scrumptious food galore, with tons of gumbo, jambalaya, chili, and a whole lotta grilling going on! Woo Hoo!

And on Sunday, we'll be heading over to the Sugarcane Festival in New Iberia for a bon' ton' and MORE delectable Cajun food, great live Cajun and Zydeco music, and lots of festivities! Come on out and get into the festival spirit and enjoy everything that this festival has to offer. For a complete schedule, click here.

What are your plans for the weekend ? Whatever they include, I hope that ya'll have a fantastic, fun-filled time! Cheers and merci beaucoup for stopping by!

An Award + B.P.'s Deadline!

I was recently surprised and honored to receive The Trendy Blog Award. This very special award was passed on to me by January Asia @ The Caffeinated Globe. The blog is co-owned by Steven Hui, and it is a delight to visit! Ya'll really need to stop by and enjoy a cup of coffee and check out their wonderful ideas, recipes, and photos. Merci beaucoup for the great award! Also, be sure to stop by and see Tara, who was the creator of the award, at The Trendy Treehouse , another fabulous, trendy blog!

The rules for accepting the Trendy Blog Award:
- Post about your award in your blog. (Including thanking the person who has passed along the award to you.)
- In the post, pass along the award to 10 other blogs which you think are trendy.
- In the post, place the award logo (or button) with the URL link to Trendy Treehouse.
- Share the news with the 10 blogs. Make sure you tell them that they need to give this award out to 10 other blogs as well.

It is with great pleasure that I pass this award to these 10 trendy bloggers! They're not afraid to think out of the box and they are all fun reads! Please pay them a visit, when you have time, and tell them that I sent you! Congrats to all!

• Angie @ Gumbo Writer

• Alix @Casa Hice
  

• Drick@ Drick's Rambling Cafe'

• Cloudia @ Comfort Spiral

• Dave @ Daily Photos in St. Thomas

• Eddie @ Plato's Procrastinations

• Gypsy @ The Gypsy's Travel Journal
  

• Kittie @ The Block
  

• Joanne@ Whole Latte Life

• Jivago @ Jivago

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Here's the latest on the Coast Guard's deadline for B.P., which is tonight, at midnight. It seems to me that this should have been their deadline a long time ago! What do you think?

Grilled Crab Stuffed Mushrooms + Louisiana Hot Sauce Tour

With all of the requests that I've had for these melt in your mouth mushrooms, I just had to post the recipe. One of my favorite appetizers, these sinfully delicious treats are so divine that you'll want to double the batch! And so quick and easy for those busy days. Bon Appetit!

Grilled Crab Stuffed Mushrooms

1 1/2 cups lump crab meat, picked over
1 tbs. crushed garlic
1 tbs. bread crumbs
1 tbs. Cajun seasonings
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 1/2 pounds large fresh mushrooms, stems removed
1/2 cup seasoned bread crumbs
2 tbsp.'s melted butter
Grated cheddar or Parmesan cheese
 
Combine crab meat and 1/2 cup bread crumbs. Add garlic, parsley, and seasoning and mix well. Stir in egg and blend gently. Fill mushroom caps with crab mixture. Mix 1 tbsp. bread crumbs in melted butter and place a little of this mixture on top of each mushroom. Top with cheese. Grill on medium heat for 15 minutes or bake @ 350 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes. Serves 10 Enjoy!

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Louisiana Hot Sauce Tour

What do you get when you have two master bluesmen playing a gig in one club, packed with Cajuns, in downtown Lafayette? One hellava good time, cher, oh the fun!! Nitetown night club was the scene Friday night, for the Louisiana Hot Sauce Tour, featuring two of the best Southern blues musicians in the country! The place was packed to the gills with happy fans!

One of the greats performing was Kenny Neal, who was born in New Orleans, and is the son of master bluesman, Raful Neal. Kenny has mastered the art of the harmonica, bass, trumpet, piano, and guitar, making him one of the masters of the genre. Kenny and his hotter than hot band were getting down!

 

Born in Baton Rouge, Tab Benoit rocked the packed house with his eclectic style of swamp and soul, blues guitar, mixed up with a little Chicago blues. When I tell you that he is good, cher, you know that I mean it! Tab was letting his hair down at this great show. Let the good times roll, cher!

Here is one of my all time favorite videos of Kenny Neal & the Neal Family Band.
Grab a cold drink and enjoy these fabulous bayou blues! Cheers, ya'll!!

Spicy Cajun Burgers + Bayou Blues

Last night was a blast! The weekend was finally here and I went with a group of friends to the T.G.I.F Downtown Alive block party to celebrate the end of the work week and the beginning of the weekend. Something that Cajuns love to do! We got a great parking space, which is no easy feat, at this event. On our way to Parc Sans Souci, I spotted an old friend on the patio at Stan's Nightclub and Grille. I decided to stop and visit with the table of four, who were ordering some fabulous Cajun cuisine. 

 Suddenly, I was famished and I ordered my favorite item on the menu, Shrimp En Brochette w/ a house salad. Sinfully delicious! Just as we finished dinner, a band was starting to play in the club, so we all decided to move over and listen to some good old bayou blues. Let the good times roll. cher! Hope that all of my bloggie friends are having a fun weekend, too!

Melanie Foreman and Spellbound

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Spicy Cajun Burgers

2 lbs. lean ground chuck 
2 tbs. Cajun seasoning

2 tbs.'s minced garlic
1 or 2 jalapenos, seeded and chopped

1 tbs. Worcestershire sauce
Salt to taste

Place meat and all other ingredients in large bowl and mix gently, but thoroughly. Shape meat mixture into 6 patties and cover with foil and chill for one or more hours. Preheat gas grill on medium- high heat or charcoal grill on medium- high and cook for 7 to 10 minutes on each side, for medium. Baste buns with melted butter and grill to the side for 5 minutes to toast. Garnish with lettuce, tomato, onions, and pickles and enjoy, cher! Ca cest bon!

It's Festival Time in Cajun Country !

After our morning pot of Community Coffee and crawfish omelette, we decided to head out and find some fun. Finding fun on a beautiful spring day in Louisiana is not hard to do. After a short pleasant drive through the country, we arrived at our destination in nearby St. Martinville. There was a very special festival going on, The Acadian Memorial Festival.


The 5th Annual Acadian Memorial Festival was in full swing and celebrating and honoring our Acadian French ancestors. Their bravery, loyalty, and dedication to perserving the Acadian culture has prevailed and the "joie de vivre'', (joy of living) carries on, evident in the unique food, music, and language of the area. Today, our ancestors were honored with a re-creation of the Acadians in exile, arriving on the Bayou Teche in the 1700's.

Descendants of the original settlers were dressed in period dress, as they paddled down the Bayou Teche and came ashore right behind the famed Evangeline oak tree. After this awesome re-inactment, there was a fais do do (street dance) with lots of dancing to the Cajun sounds of Moi-J'aime-ca-Comme -Ca (I Like-It-Like-That).

Oh and did I mention the wonderful food at this festival? Old time Cajun dishes, such as jambalaya, boudin, and bread pudding were served, along with a crawfish boil. Craft demonstrations and an art and antique car exhibition rounded out this great festival. Just the beginning of the 2009' spring festival season in Cajun Country! And you know what that means. Let the Good Times Roll, cher!!

Here We Go Again !

We never thought that it would happen again, much less only 3 years later. Most people who lost everything, to the flood ravaged area during Hurricane Rita, had really just started to get back to normal. It seems that with most of Louisiana's marsh land gone, after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, in 2005', that there is nothing to stop the destructive storm surge from inundating the coastal areas of Louisiana.

Anyone who has seen the pictures of the devastation in Galveston, Texas can see the power of a direct hit with the latest breed of storms that the Gulf Coast has endured, in recent years. We too, must build a seawall, new levees, and replenish our wetlands or face the possibility of flooding again, with each big storm that comes our way. To see photos of storm damage and information on the aftermath of Hurricane Ike, click here

Hurricane News

"Prepare for the worst, but hope for the best," was the mantra in Louisiana prior to Hurricane Gustav making landfall in Houma, La. The Category 2 storm made it's presence known in the entire state of Louisiana, Texas, Mississippi, Alabama, Florida and now Arkansas. Thank God the hurricane lost some of it's strength, along the way and was a fast mover. Until today, that is. Gustav stalled out and continues to pound several states with torrential rain and occasional tornadoes.

We were so blessed, here in Lafayette. Many homes here, did not lose power, and the hub city only had sprinkles, today. But, many of our neighbors were not so lucky and and will take a long while to repair and rebuild. But surely with neighbor helping neighbor and families helping families, they will rebuild and take the lessons learned from Hurricane Gustav and apply them.

New Orleans was spared and the levees held thanks to many brave souls who through teamwork and determination, piled on the sandbags! But, more rain is expected in the cresent city. New Iberia has many flooded areas and St. Mary parish, home to many of my ancestors, bore the brunt of the damage. As anyone living along the gulf coast knows, hurricanes are a part of life, here. But, the strong , courageous people, who call Louisiana their home wouldn't want to live anywhere else.


For a complete review of Hurricane Gustav, Fema phone lines and for the latest news on the storm, Click Here