Four weeks of King cakes lead up to a Mardi Gras luncheon on Fat Tuesday IF everyone plast the who got the baby game!
Swamp Soup
Ingredients
• 2 can(s) pinto beans, including liquid
• 2 can(s) great northern beans, including liquid
• 2 can(s) mixed greens, including liquid
• 2 can(s) turnip greens, including liquid
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 large green pepper, chopped
• 1 c celery, chopped
• 2 large potatoes, peeled & cubed
• 3 beef bouillon cubes
• 3 chicken bouillon cubes
• 1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 Tbsp hot sauce
• 1 lb. skinless smoked sausage, cut into qtrs.
• 1 lb. cubed ham (I used frozen beef meatballs for a non-pork alternative)
Instructions
Saute onion, green pepper, celery, add all the bouillon cubes together with 6 c. hot water. Add
remaining ingredients. Simmer on medium heat for 1- 1 1/2 hours.
Slow Cooker Red Beans and Rice
Ingredients
½ cup finely chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
½ lb andouille sausage, cut into pieces
2 C dried red beans, soaked overnight and drained
1 quart water
Salt and freshly ground black pepper (to taste)
3 – 4 cups cooked rice
Instructions
In a slow cooker, combine the onion, garlic and sausage. Stir in the beans and water and
season to taste with salt and pepper. Cover and cook on low heat until the beans are tender,
about 7.5 hours (or 3.5 – 4 hours on high). Remove ¼ C of beans from slow cooker, mash until
smooth then stir them back into the slow cooker. Cook another 30 minutes on low or 15 minutes
on high. Serve over cooked rice.
Slow-Cooker Chicken Gumbo
Ingredients
• 1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 2 inch pieces
• 1 (10 ounce) package frozen okra, thawed
• 2 links andouille sausage, diced
• 1 C chopped onions
• 2 celery stalks, chopped
• 1 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• ½ tsp salt
• 2 bay leaves
• ½ tsp onion powder
• ½ tsp garlic powder
• ½ tsp mustard powder
• ¼ tsp cayenne pepper (I added a little more)
• ¼ tsp ground black pepper
• 2 C. reduced sodium chicken broth
• 2 C. reduce sodium tomato juice
Instructions
In a slow cooker, combine the chicken and all remaining ingredients except the rice. Mix well to
combine. Cover and cook on low for 6 to 8 hours or high for 3 to 4 hours. Remove bay leaves and
serve over rice.
Slow Cooker Jambalaya
Ingredients
• 1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1 inch cubes
• ½ lb. andouille sausage, diced
• 1 (28 ounce) can diced tomatoes
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 green pepper, seeded and chopped
• 1 stalk celery, chopped
• 1 cup reduced sodium chicken broth
• 2 tsp dried oregano
• 2 tsp Cajun or Creole seasoning
• 1 tsp hot sauce (I used a bit more)
• 2 bay leaves
• ½ tsp dried thyme
• 1 lb. frozen peeled and cooked shrimp, thawed
Instructions
In a slow cooker, combine chicken, sausage, tomatoes, onion, green pepper, celery and
chicken broth. Stir in oregano, Cajun seasoning, hot sauce, bay leaves and thyme.
Cover and cook on LOW for 7 hours or on HIGH for 3 hours. Stir in the thawed shrimp, cover
and cook until the shrimp is heated through, about 5 minutes. Discard bay leaves and serve
over cooked rice.
Crock Pot Cajun Dirty Rice
Ingredients
• 6 slices of thick bacon (pancetta)
• 12 ounces chicken livers
• 8 ounces fresh ground pork
• 1 onion, peeled and chopped fine
• 2 -4 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
• 2 celery ribs, trimmed and chopped fine
• 1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
• 3 3/4 cups chicken broth
• 1 -2 teaspoon cajun seasoning
• salt & freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (to taste)
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1 1/4 cups quick-cooking long-grain rice
• 6 green onions, as garnish (optional)
Instructions
Preheat the cooker on high, while you perform the next steps.
Prepare chicken livers, removing any gristle, and chop fine.
Cut bacon into bite size pieces. Lightly cook bacon, until fat begins to run.
Add veggies, and cook for no more than a few minutes, stirring frequently.
Add livers and ground pork to pan and cook gently – DO NOT Overcook!
Pour broth, spices, and rice, in with the livers and ground pork, and bring to a boil, then add ALL
to crock pot.
Cook on HIGH for 2 to four hours.
Easy King Cake
Ingredients
Filling:
4 ounces cream cheese
½ C brown sugar, packed
½ tsp ground cinnamon
½ C pecan halves (we sometimes omit these for the nut challenged)
Cake:
2 rolls (12 individual crescent rolls) refrigerated crescent rolls in the can
Icing:
1-1/2 C confectioners’ sugar
3 – 4 T milk or cream
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
Purple, green and yellow colored sugar crystals
Place filling ingredients (except pecans) in the bowl of a food processor with a metal blade.
Process until combined. Add pecan halves and pulse until pecans are chopped to about ¼ inch
pieces. Set aside.
Preheat oven to 350 F. Spray a pizza pan or baking sheet with butter flavored vegetable oil.
Unroll crescent roll dough and separate into triangles. Position triangles next to each other with
the points toward the center, overlapping the long ides about ¼ inch, forming a large round
(there are photos on the internet at various sites). Where the pieces overlap, press the seams
together only in the center of each seam (where the filling will be spread), leaving the ends of
the seams unsealed so you can fold them up over the filling.
Spread the filling around in a ring covering the center sealed seam of each triangle.
Place a small plastic baby somewhere in the filling. Don’t worry, it won’t melt.
Fold the short side of each triangle toward the center just to the edge of the filling to cover.
Then pull the point end of the triangles toward the outer rim of the pan to fully enclose the
filling, Gtucking under the points. Lightly press the seams.
Bake 20 to 25 minutes until golden brown. Let cool to room temperature.
Whisk together the confectioners’ sugar, milk or cream and vanilla until smooth. The
consistency should be fairly thick, but still thin enough to slowly drip down the sides. Add more
milk as necessary. Spoon the icing over the top of the King Cake and allow it to slowly drip
down the sides.
To decorate for Mardi Gras, sprinkle wide stripes of purple, green and yellow colored sugar
crystals.
Microwave Pralines
Ingredients
• 1.5 C brown sugar
• 2/3 C heavy cream
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 2 T margarine
• 1.5 C pecan halves
• 1 Tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
In a large, microwave safe bowl, combine sugar, cream, salt, margarine and pecans. Microwave 9
minutes on high, stirring once. Let rest 1 minute. Stir in vanilla and continue to stir 3 minutes
more. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto buttered waxed paper. (If mixture is runny, allow to cool 30
seconds more and try again.)
