Mardi Gras Celebrating: Jambalaya, Hurricanes & King Cake!

Laissez les bons temps rouler! (Pronounced: Lay say lay bohn tohn roo lay)
It means: Let the Good Times Roll!

Fun Mardi Gras masks and beads!

I did not do any major cooking. Mind you, I can make a mean Gumbo; but Mardi Gras was pulled together with ease this year. 

Menu: Hurricanes, Jambalaya & King Cake

The Hubs made the drinks utilizing this recipe...with a few changes.

The Hubs added more pineapple juice...the reason: well, no one light a match!!!

This is the less flammable drink:

2 ounces of rum, 1 ounce of Grand Marnier, 6 ounces of pineapple juice, and a splash of grenadine in the bottom of the glass

Look! Those Disney glasses did get reused after all!

This is such a fun drink!

Jambalaya with lots of cheese. Hit it hard with some Franks Red Hot and its perfect!

On a Tuesday night after work, I had neither the time nor the inclination to make my own roux for a home-made gumbo, nor tackle jambalaya from scratch.

Instead, I bought a box. Yes- I used Zatarans. (Gasp!) And I added sausage, Chicken and Crab.And you know what, it tasted great and it was ready in 25 minutes! No judging;-)

Remy was enjoying some Mardi Gras! The colors of Mardi Gras are purple, green and gold. I read that they were chosen in 1872 to honor the visiting Russian Grand Duke Alexis Alexis Alexandrovich Romanoff, whose house colors were purple, green and gold (mardigrasneworleans.com).

Purple represents Justice; Green represents Faith; Gold represents Power.

I bought this King Cake at Publix.
It was really delicious!

Ok...they came complete, with creepy baby figures...

Mardigrasneworleans.com says that the traditions of Mardi Gras are connected to the epiphany...or the arrival of the three kings to see the baby Jesus. The king cake is in honor of the three kings.

The baby (in the past it was porcelain or gold), now just a plastic toy, is inserted into the cake.

The "lucky" winner of the baby (meaning the one who finds it in their piece of cake) gets to host the party and/or brings the cake next year.

We did not keep these plastic babies or insert them into the cake. Mostly, we just stared at them and talked about how creepy they looked...

We finished dinner with a slice of our King Cake, a French Press and watched The Princess and the Frog...a movie with "man-catchin' begniets" and a "Mardi Gras weddin'".

The cats showed some interest at King Cake time...

Remy (in the foreground) was very hopeful. Being the eldest, and biggest cat in the Cunningham home he thought I said "King Cat" not "King Cake" and therefore thought the King Cat received the King Cake.

Very hopeful...

We caught him before he helped himself to some cake. 

Other than Remy's disappointment in not receiving his own slice of cake, we had a fun time!

At Party City, I found plastic beads for 29 cents and masks for $1.99. The bakery King Cake (with creepy babies) was only $5.99 at Publix.

This was a very easy and affordable celebration.

I love celebrating! I love finding reasons to celebrate!

There has been such sadness, loss and grief in the news and around the world. I'm sad, and grieve, and pray. I also know that these grievous things do not last forever, and there are sometimes that it is important to celebrate, to remember hope, and goodness, and life!

May the Joy of the Lord be your strength, and may you rest in His (Jesus') Love for you!!!

La Bonne Vie Y'all!!!

Oscar Night is coming! I really care very little about the show, but I'm very excited about the food! Stay tuned!

Chicken and Rice Grande Cassoulet- La Bonne Femme Recipe Win!

It's been a while since I have cracked open my La Bonne Femme Cookbook, but I have been looking forward to making some of these hearty, savory dishes!

I love having this online food diary. I have looked back at some of the things I have made throughout the past year. The ones I really like...I make again.

This is one, I will make again!

I flattened 4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves and seasoned them with salt and pepper.
I browned them over medium-heat heat with 1 Tbsp each of butter and olive oil for 3 minutes per side.

I then transferred the chicken to my greased casserole dish.

I added onion and mushrooms to the same skillet and cooked them until the onions were tender.

I added 1 minced garlic clove and cooked for 30 seconds (until fragrant). I added 1/2 cup of Pinot Grigio...

...and a 1/4 tsp of Herbs De Provence!

I allowed all this to cook for about 1 minute more. I then added 3/4 cup of chicken broth and 1/2 cup of long grain white rice, and brought it to a boil.

I poured the rice mix over the chicken and made sure that the rice was completely submerged.

I covered and let it bake at 375 degrees for 25 minutes.

I let it stand for 5 minutes after baking.

I put the chicken on plates and then stirred 1/4 cup of Parmigiano- Reggiano cheese into the rice mixture.

I placed the cheesy rice mix on top of the chicken and added a side of seasoned mix veggies.

This was a hearty (but not heavy) meal. The Hubs and I really enjoyed this one!

Plus- dinner was one the table in less than 45 minutes!!!!

Happy La Bonne Femme Cooking Y'all!

Coming up: Blueberry Blintz Bake with Farmhouse Scramble...a great Valentines brunch!

Quick & Easy Broccoli Chicken Casserole

Honestly...I'm not sure this could be any easier!

Ingredients:

1/4 cup flour, 2 cups low sodium chicken broth, kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, 3/4 cup shredded Cheddar, 4 cups medium broccoli florets, 3 cups frozen brown rice (thawed), 1 rotisserie chicken (skinned, white and dark meat shredded), 1/2 cup Parmesan

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Whisk flour and broth in a large saucepan over medium heat. Whisk continuously until it comes to a boil. Continue whisking and boiling until mixture is thick and coats the back of a spoon.

Remove from heat and whisk 1 1/2 tsp of salt and 1/2 tsp of pepper. Add the cheddar and whisk until melted.

Add broccoli florets and stir to coat.

Mix shredded chicken and thawed rice in a large bowl. Pour broccoli mixture into chicken mixture and mix well.

Spray a 3 quart casserole dish with cooking spray and pour mixture into dish.
Sprinkle Parmesan cheese over the mixture.
Cover and bake for 25 minutes. Remove foil and bake until browned, 2 to 5 minutes.

Oh My! Look at all of that cheesy goodness!!!

This was so easy to make! It had protein, brown rice and a veggie all in one!

I hope you are all having great year so far.

I think I mentioned that I don't make New Year's resolutions. I keep feeling like I need to stay "present", to stay "with myself"...not running ahead or looking over my shoulder at the way things used to be. The Lord has provision and blessing for today, at this moment. What a joy to receive those gifts in the present.

La Bonne Vie Y'all!

Chicken- Pizziola Panini...and Enjoying Gratitude!

 I love this time of year!

Thanksgiving might be my favorite holiday. I think the idea of dedicating a whole day to reflecting on thanksgiving is an excellent practice!

So to begin, let's start with a dinner idea that will make the kiddos thankful!

Chicken Pizza Flatbread...its a win for everyone!!!

Easy Chicken Pizza Panini

Ingredients: 1 tsp Italian seasoning, 4 boneless chicken cutlets, Cooking spray, 8 tsp sundried tomato spread, 8 slices pepperoni, 4 slices provolone

4 Flatbreads

Season the chicken with Italian seasoning. (I also added a bit of Parmesan.)

I used my table-top grill and cooked the chicken until cooked through.

Spread the sundried tomato spread on the flatbread.

Top with Chicken...

Top with pepperoni...

Top with provolone...

...Fold the flat bread over the meat and cheese.
Spray with cooking spray and grill until heated through and cheese is melted. 

Yummy, cheesy, pizza deliciousness!

The Hubs and I have decided to add something to our current Thanksgiving tradition.

Normally, we leisurely get up, make some cinnamon rolls and coffee and watch the Thanksgiving Day Parade. 

It's a great tradition, but we decided to do something different this year.

The Grateful Gobbler is a 5 k walk on Thanksgiving morning. This year, proceeds go to build and equip a shelter for homeless families in our community.

Did you know that when a young boy turns 10 he is no longer able to stay with his mother at night if they are in a shelter?

This new shelter will enable families to stay together!

I'm so grateful! The Hubs is grateful! So, why not walk with our community to share our gratitude with each other...and out of tremendous gratitude...let's GIVE! Let's help make this shelter a reality!!!

Does your community have a gratitude tradition? Find out! Join the fun!

If you are in "ChattaVegas" here are the details on this awesome event: https://www.gratefulgobblerwalk.org/

Enjoying Gratitude is a Great Way to Live La Bonne Vie Y'all!!!