THE VILLAGE VOICE

"Carnival is a butterfly of winter whose last real flight of Mardi Gras forever ends his glory. Another season is the season of another butterfly, and the tattered, scattered, fragments of rainbow wings are in turn the record of his day." ~ Perry Young ~ Fragile Wings ( my garden and Wings of Mackinac Butterfly Conservatory) ________________ FIERY LEMON CAJUN SHRIMP ~ a delicious real New Orleans, peel & eat, treat _______ 1 1/2 cups unsalted butter 4 cloves minced garlic 2 Tbsp. fresh rosemary 3 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce 1 Tbsp. Tabasco sauce 1/4 cup lemon juice 2 Tbsp. coarse cracked black pepper 1 tsp. sea salt 3 lbs. unpeeled large shrimp 2 thinly sliced lemons French bread Preheat oven to 400-degrees. Melt butter in saucepan over medium heat. Remove from heat and stir in garlic, rosemary, Worcestershire, Tabasco, and lemon juice. Add salt and pepper. Pour half of sauce in bottom of large shallow baking dish. Layer with 1/2 of the shrimp and 1 thinly sliced l...

"There's a thing I've dreamed of all my life, and I'll be damned if it don't look like it's about to come true—to be King of the Zulu's parade. After that, I'll be ready to die." ~ Louis Armstrong ( Time magazine, February 21, 1949) ~ ' Mardi Gras ' orchids* (life ... lives on) ___________________ SHELLFISH GUMBO ~ from a fav source, Legal Sea Foods Cookbook , comes this slightly adapted (with the addition of herbs) peasant dish, perfect for 'Mardi Gras' and the upcoming season of Lent _________ 3 Tbsp. vegetable oil (preferably grape seed ) 2 Tbsp. toasted unbleached, all-purpose flour* 1 1/2 cups peeled and chopped sweet onions 3/4 cup chopped celery 1 lb. (1/4-inch sliced) okra (frozen is fine) 1 1/2 cups peeled, seeded chopped tomatoes 1 tsp. dried thyme 1 bay leaf 6 cups hot fish, shrimp or chicken stock 1-2 tsp. chopped garlic 1-1/1/2 lbs. peeled shrimp 8 oz. fresh (picked over for shells & cartilage) crabmeat 1 pint fr...