Food and Creative Love

Well, it’s been about a month since I chimed back in, but a number of things have been going on which have kept me uber busy. Work… of course… while not necessarily ”never a dull moment”, which there are a plenty… the past month and a half has just been hectic… lots of stuff to write and other “things”. 

Referencing my last post, planning for the “trip” next year… the uber-bike showed up… after my patience almost reached it’s end. It was birthed to me from Bob’s BMW on Wednesday, October 29, 2008. It weighed approximately 580 pounds, was just about 6 feet long and was fire engine red (as compared to a “real” fire engine at a stoplight later in the week). I’ve been enjoying it ever since… kind of like driving a large two wheeled couch that you can lean into corners with. I got a Rallye Pro 2 riding suit to go with it, expecting to take advantage of it’s “thermal” properties for this time of the year, but it’s been fuck all “hot” recently, I’ve had to wash it once already due to sweating so much (even with the vents open). May have to do it again this weekend.

Finally, at least for tonight (I still have a lot of SoundtrackNet stuff to do this weekend… paperwork, data entry, etc.)… but I whipped up a quick batch of my Cajun Stew (which is part gumbo and part jambalaya ). I was surprised at how the corner cutting helped make it tasty (I cooked it in the lobster pot I bought to make stews in). Basically, the spices are to taste… but here’s a 1 hour meal with leftovers for two people:

Base:

2 (Dry) Cups Jasmine Rice (in automatic rice cooker)

Stew:

Two Medium Green Peppers - Diced… seeds, and ribs removed.
One Orange (or other non-green) Pepper - Diced… seeds, and ribs removed. 
[I actually only had 1 half of one around]
Two Medium Poblano Peppers - Diced, seeds and a majority of ribs removed

Two 6oz packages of “Southwestern Style” Grilled Chicken Strips (time saver here, didn’t want to cook it)
1lb Pre-Cooked (50/70) Medium Shrimp
1lb “Sweet and Spicy” Bacon
1 Package (4 links = ~ 1 lb) Adoulle Sausage (I picked Ardelle’s) - sliced across diagonally (angled cuts - bigger pieces visually, but thin overall)
One Sweet Onion (Medium) - Diced
Three Stalks of Celery, sliced and an angle, relatively thin
1/2 Can of Tomato Paste
3 Cans of FIre Roasted Diced Tomatoes
Kosher Salt (to taste)
Freshly Ground Black Pepper (to taste)
2-3 Tablespoons (or more) Cajun Seasoning
3 Tablespoons of dried Cilantro (substitute fresh fro stronger taste)
3/4 Tablespoons Oregano
Dash of Dried Basil
2-3 Cloves of Fresh Garlic
3-4 Bay Leaves 

Warm up the bacon in a the pot to brown and throw in all the vegetables (including the garlic, sliced thin) into the pot one the bacon fat starts to separate (yes, the fat stays in there to glaze the veggies), on medium high. Don’t do the tomatoes yet. Add the dry seasonings. Cook for 3-5 minutes. Add the sausage to warm/cook. Add the chicken and shrimp 2-3 minutes after the sausage. Make sure  you’re stirring so nothing burns… there will be a significant amount of steam. Reduce heat… add shrimp. Cover for 3-5 minutes… add tomatoes… reduce heat to low, keep stirring cover for another 5-7 minutes until warm an bubbly. Serve over rice… Enjoy.

Tags: cajun, food, motorcycle