RED HOT MAMMACITA

You won't believe the day I had!

This morning, I woke up early.  I slicked my hair back and put on my most intimidating spring ensemble.  OK, well, you can't be too scary in crinkly gauze with hot pink toenails but I didn't let that stop me!  You see, today was the day the Tree Butchers were coming to 'trim' my crepe myrtles away from the power lines. 

Maybe you've seen their work?  They've systematically turned the metro area into a Killing Fields of half-dead and mangled trees.  There's formerly mighty oaks, whacked halfway up.  Cypress trees whose familiar triangular shapes are left looking like half a toddler's puzzle.  Tree BUTCHERS. Not in my yard!!

So, I set myself up on the patio with a tall iced tea and my laptop and waited.  With a squint that would rival Dirty Harry, I greeted them at the gate and laid down 'the rules' for how this trimming would go down.  I discovered that Tree Butchers don't take direction very well.  And by their constant chattering, totally in Spanish, they were not at all happy with "La Gringa" (read: me). 

They went on and on, in Espanol, referring to "the whore" who "doesn't understand Spanish" who they "don't give a ..." what I thought.  You get the idea.  But, unknown to The Butchers, La Gringa studied Spanish for four years and, therefore, got every word they said.  I stood by, smirking on the inside,  monitoring them while they laughed at my expense (or so they thought).  And then, it was my turn.  When I said it was time to stop trimming with, "No mas. Esta bien." (No more. That's good.) They just about left a load of fertilizer in their pantalones.  Victory!!

And so.....fresh on the wings of that victory over the Tree Butchers, I celebrated with a romp in my kitchen.  The best parties happen in the kitchen, after all!

RED PEPPERS WITH FETA STUFFING
9 red peppers, caps and seeds removed, rinsed inside & out
3 cups cooked rice
1/2 cup crumbled feta
1/2 cup grated parmesan
1/2 cup cooked, chopped broccoli
1 large egg, slightly beaten
1 tbsp fresh chopped mint
1 tbsp fresh chopped basil
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried thyme
Seasoning - your favorite blend
After preparing the peppers, mix rice with all the other ingredients.  Stuff the peppers with this mixture and replace the 'caps' on the peppers.  Place the peppers on a greased cookie sheet, spray them with canola oil spray, sprinkle the exteriors with more seasoning.  Place them in a pre-heated 375 degree oven and bake for 30 minutes until the peppers are soft.  Enjoy! These are great as a vegetarian entree or side dish. Try spinach instead of broccoli and add some chopped black olives.

You know, it's the small victories that mean the most to me anymore.  I've given up on conquering the world - that's for kids.  For now: my floor is mopped, I worked on my cookbook, folded some clothes, cooked a great meal for my family.  And, as I do the dinner dishes, I gaze out my window to three healthy, happy crepe myrtles that are NOT butchered.  Not bad for a 'puta.' ;o)

Questions? Comments? Please email me at aintjuliachild@gmail.com. And please share my address with your friends: http://www.thisaintjuliachild.com/.
Hello to my new friends in Canada and Algeria. Please pray for those affected by the Mississippi River floods.

PIMP MY SHRIMP

Oh, I have missed y'all so!  Been crazy shooting movies, nursing sick kids and dealing with end-of-school events.  NUTS!  But, through it all, I have managed to eat a decent meal or two.  And now I want to share!

Nothing says "summer's coming" like a mess of shrimp!  And nobody loved shrimp more than my Mamma.  That little Cajun gal could whip through a pound of peelings faster than a nine year old chasing an ice cream truck in August.  And, oh, the magic she could do then...etouffees, gumbos, bisques, or breaded and fried.  In fact, my Mamma bought an extra, full-sized freezer just so she could fill every shelf with seafood.

When I was a kid, we spent our summers at our little camp in Clermont Harbor, Mississippi. (Think "ground zero" of Katrina.  I HAD a little purple house there.  Now I have a driveway with a beach view.) In fact, half of New Orleans would move over there for the summer and the dads would commute back to the city for work.  Those were simple, golden days pulled straight from an episode of Andy Griffith.

At the end of the summer, while we packed up to head home.  My Mamma would head to the Bayou Caddy pier where all the fishermen sold their bounty.  She'd get the biggest ice chest she could fit in the huge trunk of our circa 1967 gas-guzzler, and fill it to the brim with shrimp and ice.  We'd get back to New Orleans, and everyone, big and small, would prepare the shrimp for The Big Sleep in our Frigidaire Freezer.  We'd pull off the heads, rinse them clean and cram as many shrimp as possible into every piece of Tupperware and used margarine tubs that we could fine.  Finally, all the shelves would be filled and we'd be 'set' for a winter filled with gumbos and other goodies that Yankees only dream about!

So, last year when the BP oil spill threatened the Gulf, I ran out to every store within reach of my house and bought up as much shrimp as I could.  There was no way of knowing what that disaster would do to the seafood population and I wasn't taking ANY chances.  Like my Mamma taught me, I came home, took off the heads, washed the shrimp and filled every Tupperware and butter container I had with shrimp.  Filled TWO freezers!  My Mamma would be so proud!  But now, I feel the need to use my hoarded shrimp and so, to wit, I created a dish that my Mamma never imagined!

PIMP MY SHRIMP
3 pounds of tiny salad style shrimp - peeled and washed
1 large white onion
2 roasted red peppers, julienne sliced
1 stick of butter
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup white wine
2 tbsp thyme
2 cups of cooked rice
1 cup steamed, chopped broccoli
1 can cream of shrimp soup, condensed
1 cup of grated cheddar cheese
This is one of those casseroles that's a whole meal - got every major food group covered. Well, except chocolate! Preheat your oven to 350. First, cook the rice and steam the broccoli and set those aside.  Now, in a large, heavy pan, melt the butter and olive oil.  Add the chopped onion and let it wilt.  Add the red pepper and let that wilt.  Now add the shrimp and some wine.  Stir and let that simmer until the shrimp turn pink and start to smell good.  Trust your nose!  Now add the cream of shrimp soup and the thyme.  Stir and let it start to bubble.  Turn it off.  Grease a 9 x 12 casserole dish.  Now fill it half way up with rice.  Cover the rice with steamed broccoli.   Sprinkle with cheese.  Now pour the shrimp mixture over it all.  Cover the shrimp with more cheese.  Now slide that in the oven and cook for 10 minutes or so until the whole thing is bubbly.

You can serve this with a green salad and crusty french bread.  Pour some wine and you'll be eatin' like royalty!

Now, honestly, my Mamma just rolled in her grave at the thought of me coming anywhere NEAR some shrimp with a can of condensed soup.  But, hey, in these fast times, a girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do!  So, all you hard-core 'foodies' go ahead and make a shrimp stock, then a white cream sauce and marry the two, and let them reduce and reduce and reduce.  I'll be busy eatin'.  Sorry, Mamma.

Questions? Comments? Please email me at aintjuliachild@gmail.com.  And please share my web address: www.thisaintjuliachild.com
P.S. Please pray for our brave troops everywhere.