Clam Pasta

Ingredients:
4 Tbsp olive oil
2-3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 (6.5 oz) canned clams
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
1 Tbsp parsley flakes
1 pound of thin spaghetti (or less)

Directions:
Sautee garlic in the olive oil until lightly browned.  Add parsley to sautéed garlic then add the juice from the clams.  Boil to reduce liquid until half then add clams.  Add cooked spaghetti and mix to coat well.  Add cheese.

Recipe from Ann Burton.

Mexican Shrimp Bisque

Note this recipe only yields 3 cups, so when I made it I multiplied it by 4.

Ingredients:
1 small onion
1 Tbsp olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 Tbsp all purpose flour
1 cup water
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
1 Tbsp chili powder
2 tsp sodium free chicken bouillon granules
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp ground coriander
1/2 pound uncooked medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
1/2 sour cream
Fresh cilantro and cubed avocado, optional

Directions:
In a small saucepan, sauté onion in oil until tender.  Add garlic; cook for 1 minute longer.  Stir in flour until blended.  Stir in the water, cream, chili powder, bouillon, cumin, and coriander; bring to a boil.  Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 5 minutes.  Cut shrimp into bite size pieces; add to soup.  Simmer 5 minutes longer or until shrimp turn pink.  Gradually stir 1/2 cup hot soup into sour cream; return all to the pan, stirring constantly.  Heat through (do not boil).  Garnish with cilantro and avocado.  (I also put corn tortilla chips in mine.)

Recipe from Taste of Home Cooking School.

Easy Fish Tacos

6-7 small corn or flour tortilla shells
8-10 battered fish fillets, fully cooked
1 c. shredded cabbage
pico de gallo (see below)
sauce (see below)
Cotija or feta cheese (to taste)
cilantro (to taste)

Put a piece of fish in each tortilla shell, top with cabbage, sauce, pico, feta, and fresh cilantro.

Sauce:
1/2 c. mayo
1/2 c. sour cream
1/2 bunch cilantro, chopped
2 tsp. diced jalapeno
1/2 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. cayenne
1 Tbsp. lime juice
salt & pepper to taste

For sauce: Mix all ingredients together until well blended.

Pico:
2 plum tomatoes, diced
2 Tbsp. FRESH cilantro, chopped
1 avocado, diced
dash salt
dash pepper
1 Tbsp. lime juice

For pico: Toss all ingredients together and let sit in the fridge for about 30 minutes.


Recipe from www.favfamilyrecipes.com

Lemon Caper Sauce for Salmon or Chicken

Ingredients:

2 tsp capers, drained and rinsed
4 Tbsp butter
1 clove garlic, minced
2 Tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp lemon zest
1 tsp flour
1/4 cup chicken broth

Directions:
In a small pan or skillet, melt butter.  Add garlic, lemon juice, zest, and capers.  Simmer over low for a few minutes.  Stir in flour then chicken broth.  Remove from heat and stir in parsley if desired.  Makes enough sauce for 4 salmon fillets or 4 chicken breast.

Recipe from www.buzzle.com/articles/lemon-caper-sauce-recipes.html

Creole Shrimp Casserole

Ingredients:
1 cup each of chopped onion, celery, and green pepper
3 cloves minced garlic
1 stick butter or margarine
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can cheddar cheese soup
1 jar pimento and juice
2 cups cooked rice (use water from boiled shrimp)
3 cups cooked shrimp
3/4 cups bread crumbs (2 slices of bread)
1/3 cup parsley
1 cup green onion tops
2 Tbsp Tabasco
1 tsp salt

Directions:
Saute onions, pepper, celery, garlic in butter until tender.  Add the soups, parsley, green onions, shrimp, and pimento.  Stir gently while adding ingredients.  Stir in rice and 1/2 cup of bread crumbs.  Add seasonings and pour into casserole dish.  Sprinkle remaining 1/4 cup of bread crumbs on top.  Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.  Can be frozen before baking.

Recipe from Betty Chapman.

Shrimp Fondue

Ingredients:
8 oz cream cheese
1 can Campbell's cream of shrimp soup*
1 Tbsp sour cream
1 tsp horseradish sauce
1/4 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1 loaf of French bread, cut into bite size pieces

Directions:
Mix all the ingredients and warm in a fondue pot or on the stove top.  Dip french bread into shrimp fondu and eat.

Recipe from my sister, Phyllis Lacaze  (*Campbell's usually sells this soup around Christmas time)

Easy Gumbo

You can make just chicken, just shrimp, or chicken, shrimp and sausage as pictured above.  Any combination works.

My mom and my grandmother, Mawmaw Mary, made their roux without measuring.  However, I like to be a little more precise.

To make a Roux:
Whisk 1/2 cup of flour into 1/3 to 1/2 cup oil in a Dutch oven or stock pot over medium heat.  Stir constantly.  Remove from heat if it starts to smoke as you don't want to burn your roux.  You just want to continue to cook and stir it until you get a rich dark caramel or chocolate color.  Mine was pretty light so next time I'll cook it longer.

***For just shrimp or chicken gumbo, season cleaned shrimp or chicken with salt, pepper, and garlic salt.  My grandma's recipe says 3 pounds of shrimp.  My mom's recipe says a whole chicken cut-up.  Put your meat in your roux and cook while stirring for about 5-6 minutes.  Then add your water and vegetables.  Simmer for an hour or more.***

I put in about 7-8 cups of water.  You can use broth for half of the water if desired.  And I used a cooked rotisserie chicken that I stripped the meat off of, cut up beef sausage links, and a 1 pound bag of cleaned un-cooked shrimp.  For the vegetables, you can have your pick or all of (1 large or 1 cup) chopped onions, (1/2 cup) green onions, (4 stalks or 1/2 cup) celery, (2-3) cloves minced garlic, and 1 green bell pepper.  I don't put okra in mine, but you can use a frozen bag or 1 pound of sliced okra.  Add 1/2-3/4 tsp dried thyme, 1 tsp hot sauce, and 1 Tbsp-1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce.  Feel free to take out any ingredients you don't like or add any you like.  That's what I do.  Let simmer and serve over rice.  We put a seasoning called Gumbo File on ours, but it's great without it too.

Recipe is a combination from my Mawmaw, Mary Lanclos, my Mom, Margie Lanclos, and my Southern Living Cookbook