the last noodle

as you know, we are three days away from being packed up and shipped out. instead of making the wonderful people who come to pack all of my stuff pack a bunch of food, i have decided to eat it all before they come. we had some friends come over for dinner thursday night. we had caramel popcorn for dessert. now all the popcorn is gone. i am pretty sure that i have one good meal left in the house. it is hamburger soup, emma's favorite. the only down side to that is that it is 100000 degrees here. we might have to eat it chilled.

A Cajun Classic!

...at least that's what the recipe says!

Crawfish Etoufee
You can serve it on fine china at formal gatherings or down-home style right from the pot on the stove. When Makenzie and David were in town we went to The Big Easy restaurant in downtown Raleigh and this is what I had to eat. This recipe sounds even better than what I had. I can't wait to try it. Caution: celery ahead.

1/4 cup butter
2 TBS olive oil
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1 med. onion, chopped
2 celery ribs, chopped
1 med green pepper, chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 large shallot, chopped
2 tsp Cajun seasoning
1/2 tsp ground red pepper
1 (14 oz) can low-sodium chicken broth
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/4 cup chopped fresh chives
2 lbs cooked, peeled crawfish tails *
Hot cooked rice


1. Melt butter with oil in large Dutch oven over medium -high heat; stir in flour and cook, stirring constantly, 5 minutes or until caramel colored. Add onion and next 6 ingredients; saute 5 minutes or until vegetables are tender.
2. Add chicken broth, parsely, and chives; cook, stirring constantly, 5 minutes or until mixture is thick and bubbly.
3. Stir in crawfish; cook 5 minutes or until thoroughly cooked. Serve with hot cooked rice. Makes 4-6 servings.
* Substitute 2 lbs frozen cooked crawfish tails, thawed and drained, for fresh if desired.