New Orleans Recipe: Crescent City Shrimp Jambalaya

From Denny:  Not in the mood for the chicken version of jambalaya?  No problem; make it with shrimp and andouille sausage for a change of pace.  Shrimp is ridiculously popular down South that we are forever creating new dishes to keep up with the demand.

Louisiana cooking is based off of French cooking and with the same mindset of employing whatever food sources are at hand.  From the bayous or spillways teeming with yummy crayfish to the gorgeous shrimp and oysters from the Gulf of Mexico we create recipes around our bountiful food.

Kick it up a notch with Louisiana food products like from Zatarain's that help us make our meals cook that much faster and we are all a happy lot.  This recipe employs Zatarain's Jambalaya Mix of rice and seasonings.  You provide the fresh shrimp, sausage, onion, bell pepper, parsley and tomatoes.

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Easy Holiday Dish: Spicy Shrimp With Rice

From Denny:  Are you a fan of rice dishes?  Sure beats the "bread bloat."  Who doesn't love good bread?  But there is only so much of it you can eat without feeling like you have to squeeze into your jeans.  Grains like rice, oatmeal and quinoa are healthier choices if you don't want to invest in new clothes.

Mardi Gras season is upon us in Louisiana where we blow it out on the calories and rich foods.  This casserole dish was developed for the Lenten season that follows afterward when a lot of people swear off eating meat for 40 days.  

The truth is Louisiana people are total carnivores but we love our seafood too, especially when combined with cheese like in this dish.  Somehow, dining on the best seafood Louisiana has to offer does not exactly fit into the "deprivation" category but we continue to delude ourselves every year.  These Lenten season resolutions are a lot like New Year's resolutions that rarely get honored. :)

OK, everyone raise their hands if they love simple and easy recipes.  Yes, this is one of those dishes.  It comes from one of Louisiana's premier rice producers, Falcon Rice Mill in Crowley, Louisiana.  The mill was founded in 1942 by Edward and Evelyn Falcon.  Their rice products are known under these names:  Cajun Country, TORO, Laredo, Home Country and Jackpot.

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Romancing The Chocolate: Christmas Gift Recipe: Peanut Butter Fudge

Romancing The Chocolate: Christmas Gift Recipe: Peanut Butter Fudge: From Denny:  This is an easy unique way to cook fudge - in a slow cooker!  What fun, a super simple fast recipe!  It has our name all over it and think how you can make up many batches of this to give as hostess gifts at Christmas parties or other seasonal gift giving.

It's also a kid friendly recipe it's so easy to do.  You cook the fudge on High in the slow cooker for about 20 minutes total and then pour it out into a pan lined with waxed paper.  Place in fridge to cool and harden.

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Creole Style Avocado Salad

English: Avocados (Persea americana) Français : Avocats (Persea americana) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

From Denny:  Want an easy dip that is quick to make in this summer heat?  Who wants to spend time working in a hot kitchen when you can be out by the pool munching, right?

Try this refreshing dip with avocado.  The creamy concoction is made with two mashed avocados, some finely chopped pecans or walnuts - your choice - and lime juice, a little mayonnaise, a little sour cream, white wine,  cayenne pepper, salt and dill for seasoning.

Serve slathered on your favorite toasted bread or with white corn tortilla chips or even fruit.

Louisiana Seafood Beach Tote

Check out awesome Louisiana eating: oysters, shrimp, crawfish, gumbo, jambalaya

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Jumbo Lump Crab Stuffed Casserole

A Dungeness Crab sits in a bin after being offloaded from a fishing vessel on November 17, 2010 in San Francisco, California. (Image credit: Getty Images via @daylife)

From Denny:  Love seafood as much as we do in Louisiana?  We also love easy to make casseroles.  They are easy to make ahead and easy to take to gatherings.  You will be a huge hit with this simple and tasty recipe.

If you want to make a soup, stew, casserole taste good then load it up with seasoning vegetables like celery, onion (a mild one for seafood) and parsley. Of course, what also goes well with seafood is lemon juice and worchestershire sauce with a bit of mustard.

Then it's time for the spice goodies.  I usually combine my own spices to make up a version of Cajun seasoning with a lot less salt and more garlic and paprika, adding cumin.  Just go easy on the Tony Chachere's Creole seasoning as it tends to have a lot of salt, even the lower salt version.  Using a light hand this brand is delightful. 

I also like to clarify my butter to either skim off the milk solids that create clogs in your arteries for a light oil or brown those milk solids for a darker browned butter that tastes toasted.  It is a heavy oil so you may wish to cut it with a lighter oil like canola for about 40 percent canola to 60 percent clarified butter.

Our local newspaper often prints recipes from readers.  We are also not above printing our grandmothers' recipes either as we respect tradition and our culinary foundation and culture.  One of the food writers included her grandmother's crab casserole.  Check it out.

Louisiana Seafood Beach Tote

Check out awesome Louisiana eating: oysters, shrimp, crawfish, gumbo, jambalaya

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New Orleans The Bombay Club Pasta: Oyster and Tasso Fettuccini

The Bombay Club in New Orleans in the French Quarter

From Denny:  The Bombay Club in New Orleans is a hot spot in the French Quarter, near Bourbon Street, well known and revered by the locals as well as tourists.  It features Nouveau Creole cuisine, receiving many accolades in the food world.

Be sure to check out the incredible martini menu too!  It's a bit decadent with that air of secret romance that carries you worlds away from stress.  Musical entertainment is offered so be sure to check their events schedule on the website before you decide to visit.

Simple Appetizer From Chef Poppy Tooker: Andouille in Creole Mustard Cream Sauce

From Denny: New Orleans food is known for its great tasting creative comfort food. It's also loaded with calories, usually from the sauces. This delectable appetizer qualifies for the High Calorie Club. But that's the beauty of Louisiana food as you can often choose to serve it in smaller portions to help reduce the calorie load while still enjoying great flavor!

Chef Poppy Tooker did just that. She sauced the andouille slices in heavy cream flavored with Creole mustard. If you can't find andouille sausage or Creole mustard in your area just substitute with your favorite sausage and a great deli mustard of full flavor.

Dennys Food and Recipes: Easy Dessert: Blueberry Yum Yum Cake

Dennys Food and Recipes: Easy Dessert: Blueberry Yum Yum Cake: "From Denny: What could better describe a trip to Heaven than fresh blueberries, sugar, real butter and a creamy whipped filling for this delectable cake? A simple recipe that is as easy to make as it is to eat!

We love pecans at our house so you might enjoy sprinkling a few more chopped pecans on top of the blueberries for more crunch. There is nothing like the flavor of a toasted pecan.

After you put this cake together it goes into the fridge for chilling time, about an hour. Make it before you start dinner and it should be properly cool by the time everyone finishes dinner. Try not to cheat and choose the dessert as the first course!"

Dennys Food and Recipes: Easy and Simple: How To Make The Best Key Lime Pie

Flounder's Key Lime Pie, in Pensacola, Florida, a stacked key lime pie

Dennys Food and Recipes: Easy and Simple: How To Make The Best Key Lime Pie: "From Denny: Making your own key lime pie is so simple - and rewarding! It's definitely one of my favorite desserts, especially in the heat of the summer. The tartness really cools you off. FYI, any tart food cools down your liver, which, in turn, cools off your body in hot weather. So, think apples, limes, grapefruit and blackberries if you want to cool off the healthy way.

Florida is known for their key lime pie and there are fans of it all over the country now. The real secret to making this simple and easy famous pie is to purchase real key limes for the recipe. Key limes are very small, very tart and thin-skinned. When ripe they turn from green to yellow.

Most limes in our American grocery stores are those large beautiful, neon green and thicker-skinned Persian limes. Persian limes are also much less tart so they don't deliver that full flavor to the pie cooks, and tasters alike, desire.

How simple is this pie recipe? Really simple: 100 percent key lime juice, sweetened condensed milk and a good graham cracker crust with a little melted butter, brown sugar and chopped nuts. At our house we make the chocolate graham cracker crust while others choose to use traditional pastry crust. It's your preference."