BOILED HERBED SHRIMPMakes 4 servings

• 1 cup dry white wine
• 3 tablespoons salt
• 1 teaspoon cayenne
• 2 lemons, halved
• 2 bay leaves
• Water
• 2 pounds large shrimp, peeled and deveined, with tails left on
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
• 2 teaspoons minced garlic
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped green onions
• 1 1/2 tablespoons Creole mustard
• 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
• 1 cup olive oil
• Salt and black pepper
• 1 large green or red bell pepper, seeded and thinly sliced

Put the wine, salt, cayenne, lemons, and bay leaves in a large pot. Add water to fill the pot about three-fourths full. Heat to boiling. Add the shrimp and cook over high heat for three to four minutes. Remove the pot from the heat and let stand, covered for one minute. Drain and cool.

In a large bowl, combine the parsley, garlic, green onions, mustard, and lemon juice. Mix well. Whisk in the oil and season to taste with salt and black pepper. Add the shrimp and the bell peppers. Toss to coat evenly. Serve at room temperature.

If you can stand some heat, I suggest you order our jalapeno peppers stuffed with crab or shrimp—oh heck, get them both. Cool down the heat and offer cold tartar sauce to spread on them. And the list goes on and on—bite-size Natchitoches meat pies, stuffed mushrooms and delicious seafood balls. Or, be a hit with your friends by serving up any of our stuffed breads—I am partial to the ones with crawfish.

And speaking of crawfish, I encourage you to try one of our new products—crawfish puree. It is packed with flavor and can be used to make dips, spreads, cornbread and casseroles. See the recipes on the website.

SHRIMP AND GARLIC KABOBS

Makes 4 to 6 servings

• 12 to 16 large garlic cloves, peeled
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup tomato sauce
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil or 1 1/2 teaspoons dried basil
• 2 teaspoons minced garlic
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• Pinch of sugar
• 2 pounds large shrimp, peeled and deveined (leave the tails on)

Drop the whole garlic cloves into boiling water and boil for about three minutes. Drain and set aside. Combine the olive oil, tomato sauce, vinegar, basil, minced garlic, salt, cayenne, black pepper and sugar in a bowl and stir to mix well. Add the shrimp and toss to coat evenly. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Remove the shrimp from the marinade and reserve any of the marinade left in the bowl. Thread the shrimp and whole garlic cloves alternately on skewers. Put the skewers on the grill (if you prefer, the kabobs can be arranged in a wire grill rack or basket). Grill, turning them several times and brushing them with the reserved marinade for six to eight minutes or until the shrimp turn pink.