Food and Fun Friday - Limeade and Étouffée

I am sitting here on Friday morning, in the dark, writing this post. 

Why am I in the dark?

Lady K is spending a couple of nights with me and I let her stay up until midnight last night. I napped while she was at my desk, watching YouTube videos and playing on her Switch. A halt was called  at midnight. But...

She has literally kicked me out of bed this morning. 

So, I am on my second cup of coffee, sitting in the dark with the laptop, and doing 'work' because she will take over my laptop again when she is up.

However...

That's the FUN! 

Now for the FOOD...

I get tagged via Facebook by Savvy and Texter all the time with recipes they see and feel I should give them a try. Read 'could you make so we can try?'

This one is Brazilian Lemonade by Thirty Handmade Days. Made with limes!

What caught my attention is you use sweetened condensed milk in it. I can eat that directly from the can, so the recipe had to be tried.

The recipe calls for 1 cup of lime juice from 5 limes. Well, I must have tiny limes, because 6 limes gave me 2/3 of a cup. That was the only 'glitch' I found in this super simple recipe.

It's good. It tastes like limeade, but there is something there (other than the color) which makes you pause. Savvy says there is a 'texture' to it also. 

I can see this recipe being used for a brunch or afternoon get-together on a hot summer day.

The other thing I made this week (and didn't take a picture of the finished dish) is Étouffée!

I found this on the shelf at the store a couple of weeks ago. I have been wanting to make étouffée, but didn't want to commit the time and ingredients to making it. But in a jar?

I picked up a jar and 3 little pouches of some cocktail shrimp to add to the sauce. While the rice was in the cooker becoming cooked rice, I dumped the jar into a pan, added the shrimp and let it heat.

There must be a note made here I wasn't exactly sure how good it would be. I have very fond memories of going to a restaurant with a friend many years ago and shrimp étouffée was my 'go-to' thing to order. I have to admit I was very pleased with the outcome.

I got the spicy goodness I was looking for and, by making it myself, I can add as much shrimp as I want. However, there are a couple of things I would change.

First, I would only use about a third of the jar and parcel out the rest into baggies and freeze. I am the only one eating it and a whole jar is just too much unless I want a whole week of étouffée.

Second, I would not pour it onto the rice until I am ready to eat it. In fact, I would make fresh rice each time. I put it into plastic bowls to store in the fridge in meal size portions with the rice and when I reheat it, the rice is really 'soft'. Not bad, but not what I really enjoy.

The downside to 'taking requests' is co-workers have joined in. Right now I am on the hunt for a Banana Pudding Cake recipe. The one shown to me was for a bakery to order, so will have to do a bit of a hunt. However, the one at the bakery is $50, so I am wondering how much I should charge?