Sunday, January 3, 2010

My Girl, Paula: Salad



This week's My Girl, Paula! theme is Salads/Healthy Vegetables-- something I thought would be impossible to find in the Butter Queen's arsenal of recipes.  Ms. Deen isn't known for her figure-friendly recipes, but I was able find a recipe for Corn, Avocado, & Tomato Salad online.  It's so good, I've made it twice in the past 4 days.  The second time I made it, I reduced the amount of olive oil (because I was out, but the recipe was just as good with less than half the oil) and added chopped jalapeno peppers for some kick.  Both times I used two avocados instead of one...because I like avocados and they're pretty good for you!

This dish makes an excellent accompaniment for almost anything: chicken, fish, steaks, you name it.  It would especially nice in the summer alongside a grilled burger instead of the usual fries.  Toss some grilled chicken chunks or Krab into the mix for a light main course, or do what I did--serve it up with some:



I found the original recipe here but modified it because it calls for a scary amount of salt-based Cajun/Creole seasoning.  Tony Chachere's Creole Seasoning is the most famous and widely available of this genre of seasonings, but there are OODLES more to choose from if you happen to venture down into South Louisiana.  Out of curiosity, I visited my nearest grocery store to see just how many I could find.  I counted 29.  Twenty. Nine. !!!  And that's not including any of Emeril's or Chef Paul Prudhomme's seasoning blends!  These seasoning blends come in little shake-top canisters and sport fun names such as "Slap Ya Mama" or "Magic Swamp Dust".  For this recipe, however, I opted for a salt-free blend (Benoit's Spicy Salt-Free Cajun Seasoning):


 (Image from eCrater)

Find the recipe here.  My adjustments:  Used 1 Tablespoon salt-free cajun seasoning and ½ teaspoon salt in place of 3 Tablespoons Cajun seasoning, and cooked them on my George "Faux"man grill.  Everything else stayed the same. 

One of the advantages of living in coastal Louisiana is the availability of fresh, quality seafood at very reasonable prices.  Check out this beauty:



And the best part?  It was probably caught the same day I bought it, by a shrimper who lives not more than 30 miles from me!  The only downside is they're sold head-on, so if you're at all squeamish about cleaning seafood you'd be in a bind!  You'll quickly get over it though, once you remember you've paid $2.98 a pound.

11 comments:

  1. That all looks amazing! WOW I love salads with avocado and this one looks delicious!

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  2. Glad you found something heathly!

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  3. That is a fantastic price for fresh shrimp! I could never get that price here. Well, I can't even hardly get fresh shrimp here in KY. It's pretty much almost always frozen when it gets here. Love your salad. I bet it wasn't an easy task finding a healthy Paula recipe. It looks very colorful!

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  4. Dorothy- that salad looks amazing! Those are some of my favorite ingredients. I'll definitely have to try this out. Especially in the Spring and Summer!

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  5. That salad looks delightful! And adding the jalapenos - yum! And with grilled shrimp? I'm now hungry at 8:40 in the morning!
    ***Ally

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  6. i think i'll put this salad on my list of things to try when the weather is nice again, and i can get fresh corn...

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  7. That salad looks phenomenal, I love avocados! It almost reminds me of a guacamole in salad form, and you're right, I bet it's fantastic with pretty much any main dish (or even on tortilla chips!).

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  8. Hi everyone! Thanks for your comments...they made me realize that maybe I picked a seasonally inappropriate dish :D Ice cold, refreshing salad does nothing for ya on a cold winter day!

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  9. We love this salad and dip (we eat it on tortilla chips) year round. I add a little cumin to give it that smokey southwest flavor.
    Mimi

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  10. Bet I've got that shrimp recipe. lol. Just blogged about some shrimp. :)

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  11. When I saw the salad, on My Girl Paula, I knew it was for me. I love that not only has great vegetables but they blend both in taste and look.

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