Pregnant Women Beware…It’s SPICY, Y’all!

When I was pregnant, I had this overwhelming fear that I’d eat something spicy and baby boy would come flyin’ out. Okay…TERRIFIED was more like it. As much as I wanted to meet my boys, I was NEVER ready…with either of them! HA! SO…for the last 3 months of both my pregnancies, I steered clear of any and all spicy foods. I didn’t need anything to encourage spontaneous labor. Thank heavens I wasn’t tempted to make this dish while the kiddos were in utero. I think I’d have given birth in between bites sitting right at my dining room table. As Paula would say, “It’s spicy, y’all!”

PAULA DEEN’S SHRIMP CREOLE

2 tbsp. olive oil

1 green bell pepper, diced

1 medium onion, diced

2-3 stalks of celery, diced

1 tsp. chili powder

1 {14 oz.} can diced tomatoes

1 {8 oz.} can tomato sauce

1 tbsp. hot sauce {I used Tobasco}

1 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce

1 tsp. {white} sugar

Salt & pepper {to taste}

1 1/2 lbs. shrimp, peeled & deveined {I used cooked frozen shrimp, thawed ‘em out, and peeled off the tails}

Green onions, optional

Now, this is definitely a crock pot dinner. You can check out Paula’s recipe HERE. I forgot to prep everything when I got home from work, so I cooked this meal on the stovetop and it was still delish!

Cut up your veggies and toss into a large skillet with olive oil. Heat until veggies are soft and tender, stirring often. I seriously think there’s nothing better than the scent of the “Trinity” sauteing on my stovetop! I wish these pictures were scratch-and-sniff!!

Once the veggies are tender, toss in the chili powder and cook until carmelized. Mmmm.

At this point in the recipe, you could toss the veggies into the crock pot with the other ingredients {except the shrimp} and cook on HIGH for 3 hours. Like I said, I was pressed for time, so my only option was stovetop. Add the tomatoes, tomato sauce, hot sauce, worcestershire, sugar, salt, and pepper. Bring to a boil and simmer on low for 20-25 minutes. Add shrimp for the last 3-5 minutes of simmering.

While your shrimp creole is simmering, boil your rice. I’m still a boil-in-a-bag kinda girl because I need a “Cooking Rice For Dummies” manual before I venture out on my own. Once the creole is ready to serve, fix yourself a bowl of rice and {generously} spoon the shrimp creole on top.

C’mon y’all. You can’t tell me that doesn’t make your mouth water. Mix it around pretty good and top with green onions {if you like that sorta thing. I obviously REALLY do.}.

HEAVEN in a bowl. That Paula Deen is a little angel in the kitchen. She knows how to do it right!

Surprisingly enough, I followed this recipe to a T…minus the crock pot! In my opinion, Paula NEVER fails!!! This has got to be one of my new favorites. I’m IN LOVE with any and everything seafood, and Creole flavored dishes make me swoon…so it’s no wonder I have some serious affection toward this dish. All that aside, this is seriously flippin’ YUM. Even Mr. Spouse said so and he’s an expert ;) I mean, we’re talkin’ about a guy who would NEVER go back for seconds when I used to cook for him during our dating days. Let’s just say he wasn’t afraid to hurt the cook’s feelings. But this was a winner, winner creole dinner in BOTH our books! Just be super cautious if you’re serving this to the whole fam. You might wanna make some mac & cheese for the kids instead…this little dish packs a punch for sure!