Etouffee Anyone?? More Mardi Gras Scrummliness!!

You can't just go through a Fat Tuesday without at LEAST trying to get a LITTLE more fat.  I thought of all the things I love MOST about Mardi Gras and that is how the King Cake recipe from yesterday came about.  But, for dinner, it simply wouldn't be Mardi Gras without a gumbo, jambalaya or an etouffee on the table.  I've already done jambalaya on my site and the Sprout is a bit soured on soups these days, what with all the winter comfort cooking I have done in the past couple of months.  But, something with rice...heck yeah!  He'll go for rice any time, any day, any where...just like the old days!

I didn't have to think hard about what my favorite etouffee was it has TWO of my favorite creole meats in it...shrimp and crab!!  As luck would have it, Southern Living magazine had a wonderful recipe for it that I could EASILY turn into an organic, dairy free delight!  Let's get started, shall we?

Crab & Shrimp Etouffee
2 lbs peeled, deveined, medium-size raw shrimp
1/4 c. vegan butter
2 T. olive oil
1/3 c. flour 
2/3 c. onion, finely chopped or grated
1/4 c. green bell pepper, chopped
1/4 c. celery, finely chopped or pulverized 
3 garlic cloves, minced
14-oz unsalted chicken broth
1/3 c. dry white wine
1/4 c. green onions, chopped
1 T. Creole seasoning (I used Wildtree Cajun seasoning)
1 T. tomato paste
1 T. fresh flat leafed parsley, chopped
2 tsp. worcestershire sauce
1/2 tsp. hot sauce
16-oz. fresh crab meat, flaked
5 c. hot cooked long-grain rice
garnish with more chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Melt butter with oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat; stir in flour, and cook, stirring constantly, 5 minutes or until caramel colored. Add chopped onion, green pepper, and celery; cook, stirring constantly, 4 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Add minced garlic, and sauté 1 minute.

Stir in chicken broth, white wine, and next 6 ingredients, and cook, stirring occasionally, 10 minutes. Add shrimp. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer, stirring occasionally, 5 minutes.

Stir in crab meat; cook, stirring often, until thoroughly heated.

Spoon shrimp mixture into individual serving bowls. Spoon hot cooked rice on top of shrimp mixture. Garnish, if desired.

The consistency of etouffee is supposed to be near to a stew, and this recipe takes you there.  You taste EVERYthing that was on the ingredient list and the tiny bit of heat from the hot sauce and the cajun seasoning doesn't overpower the dish.  Even the Sprout was diggin' this dinner.  It is no surprise after seeing how he attacks his jambalaya when I serve that.  It is a crowd pleaser and sure to make your Mardi Gras feast guests ask for more!  Laissez les bons temps rouller!!!