Wednesday 30-07-14 – Celebrate National Cheesecake Day

Morning all! ….. made the most amazing gumbo last night (yes, from scratch starting with the roux) ….. lots of fresh veggies and turkey sausage for the protein! it was yummy!!

…. busy day today, checking in early to wish everyone a happy ‘hump’ day!

Good Morning KJ, BB, ECB & AV. Cheesecake sure is delicious, can’t have much of it though, it’s rich. Which is probably why it’s so delicious!
And Bumblebee, that lemon blueberry cake looks absolutely fabulous!

Oh I love cheese cake my favourite is Baileys cheese cake!!

AV can you pose your gumbo recipe I’d live to make gumbo.. I’m assuming it’s got rice mixed in ? Won’t be able to get okra in Ireland though ( think I spelt that wrong)

How’s everyone doing 🙂

Just back from work and having so green beans , roast spuds and garlic chicken Kiev .. Mr B’s dinner is homemade chips and Spice Lamb burgers 🙂

Yay for Mac slowly settling in! 😀
Luck was the same…took a while but now there’s no place like home. (Psst…has new hobby of sitting in doorways as fun/NOT esp middle nite on on way to take a powder 😉 )
Today’s furry fun for your fave neighbors:

Gotta luv a cow kit’s humor…”Moo ning” neighbors/LOL

Moi…heading out to purrfect patio w/slice of cheesecake…hey Tux, any cheesecake left…yup – yum…to the lounge chair w/tall iced coffee & sweet creamy treat! 😀

Oh, KZ I’m so sorry on the passing of Jakie to the Meadow today. RIP special pup – run free with our furry family members ’til heaven meets earth!

Afternoon all! This is the gumbo recipe I use:

Ingredients
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
3 stalks celery, diced
1 medium onion, finely diced
1 green pepper, cored, seeded and diced
2 tablespoons bourbon (or apple cider vinegar
6 cups lower-sodium chicken broth
1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes
2 pounds chicken boneless, skinless, cut into 1-inch pieces (I use thighs, but you can use whatever you like)
2 cups sliced okra
2 bay leaves
1 tablespoon hot sauce
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 pound (16 to 20-count) shrimp, peeled and deveined
1/2 cup fresh cilantro leaves, roughly chopped
2 cups cooked white rice, recipe follows
Directions
Combine the oil and the flour in a heavy stockpot or Dutch oven over medium heat. With a wooden spoon stir the mixture slowly and constantly. After about 5 minutes the mixture will begin to foam. Keep stirring. As the roux cooks, the color will darken and the flour will have a nice nutty aroma. It should take about 15 minutes to fully develop a nice dark brown roux.
When the roux is ready add the celery, onions and peppers (the Trinity) and cook for about 10 to 15 minutes. Once the vegetables have softened, add the bourbon and stir for 2 minutes (you can leave this out if you want to and just a 2 tlb. chicken stock), then add the rest of the chicken broth a little at a time to make sure the roux mixes well and is incorporated. Add the remaining ingredients, diced tomatoes, chicken, okra, bay leaves, sm.paprika, hot sauce and season with salt and pepper.
Bring to a boil then lower heat and simmer uncovered for 1 1/2 hours, skimming off any fat that rises to the surface and stirring occasionally. In the last 7 minutes, add the shrimp and cook until no longer pink (about 7 min). At the very last minute add the fresh cilantro. Season with more salt and pepper, if necessary. Remove bay leaves and serve with over white rice with crusty flat bread.

Buttons, I don’t know, but I imagine you might find okra in the frozen food section.

Thank you AV 🙂 looks like something I will definitely make!! Mr B would love it!!

I might be able to get okra in a specialist African store they are in cork city .. I know okra is big in African and India cooking.. I will try and get some frozen cause I know okra is so important in gumbos.. Have no clue what it would taste like though.. I know it has a slimy consistence when topped up..