Guests & Gumbo

I got a most welcome but unexpected text message last week. Lee Ann was still in Grenada, Mary Lee had the weekend off and they wanted to come to Jackson on Saturday. Kay decided to come spend the night too.

To my delight the weather was tuning cool and this would be the perfect weekend to cook gumbo. It is an all day affair but well worth the time and effort. The first thing you need to do is cook some bacon, ham and andouille sausage in the pot you are using for the gumbo. Take out of pot when done, save for later. You may need to add some more oil to the pot in order to make your roux. Add plain flour, stirring constantly and cook until dark brown. When the roux reaches the desired color add your chopped vegetables (5-6 small-medium onions, 1 green bell pepper, 3-4 cloves garlic). Cook the vegetables for a few minutes and then add about 2 cups hot water (more if needed), 2 bay leaves, 1 Tbsp Louisiana Hot Sauce, 1Tbsp K's Cajun Seasoning (recipe to follow), 1 tsp thyme, 1 Tbsp Worcestershire, juice & pulp of 1 lemon. Add 2-3 cans fire roasted tomatoes. Add the bacon/ham/sausage back to the pot and a bag of cut okra. Let simmer until

vegetables are tender. While this is cooking peel/devane your shrimp.

Add shrimp to pot - cook until done - serve over rice - and don't forget the garlic bread.

K's Cajun Seasoning: 1(26 oz) box salt; 3 Tbsp black pepper; 2 Tbsp garlic powder; 1 tsp onion powder; 1 tsp nutmeg; 2 Tbsp Accent; 2 Tbsp dried parsley flakes; 4 Tbsp Cayenne pepper; 2 Tbsp chili powder (this makes a lot, store in air tight container and keep in the freezer)