Whatcha Haulin'?

We pulled up next to this animal trailer. You might expect to see a horse or a cow, maybe even some goats. Nope.

Take a closer look.

This time of year the trailer turns into a crawfish trap transporter.

Pledge of Allegiances

Fat Tuesday, Carnival, Mardi Gras, Shrove Tuesday

The Boucherie

While we were in church yesterday morning, a block down the road our town was in the midst of Mardi Gras celebration. It was the day for the boucherie.

About the Boucherie
A traditional old time Boucherie (hog butchering) and cochon de lait (a suckling pig, now often used to refer in general to a pig roast) is held downtown. It begins in front of City Hall at 10 a.m. the Sunday before Mardi Gras. Visitors can see and enjoy the products of a Cajun tradition that is still common at many family gatherings. A hog is slaughtered and then made into a variety of dishes such as backbone stew, boudin, gratins (cracklings - pork skin with fat and some meat deep fried), and other delicacies. By 11:30, the first dishes are ready for tasting. Music and fun for the family all day long.

http://www.eunice-la.com/mardigras09sch.html

I tried to take some pictures as we drove by on our way home, but I couldn't quite capture the event from the comfort of my car. You'll have to take my word for it....there are big happenings these days surrounding Mardi Gras.

Merry Mardi Gras (Again)

Hit and Rum

This picture was taken at the Shell station north of town~

With cross-marketing like this, gun control seems highly unlikely in these parts.

King Cakes

The custom of the King Cakes, which has gained tremendous popularity in the last thirty years, has its roots in pre-Medieval Europe. In European countries, the coming of the wisemen bearing gifts to the Christ Child is celebrated twelve days after Christmas. The celebration called the Epiphany calls for a celebration of exchanging gifts and feastings. Early French settlers are said to have baked the first King cake in Louisiana with the city of New Orleans having first offered it to the masses.

Thousands of King Cakes are consumed at parties, office gatherings, family get-togethers, school class parties, boy or girl scout meetings and sometimes simply for breakfast or as a quick and easy dessert. In many Christian Churches The Epiphany, the Twelfth Night or Little Christmas is observed on January 06. This day has come to be known as "KING'S DAY". This is also the day King Cakes become available from your local baker or supermarket and continues until Mardi Gras or "Fat Tuesday", its' English translation.

While the story of King Cakes is open to many interpretations, the simplest form of the tradition consists of someone finding a tiny object hidden inside the cake. That person, the "King", is then responsible for buying the next cake or throwing the next party. The Europeans hide a bean inside their cake and the person receiving the bean portrayed one of the "Three Kings". Latin American people put a small figure inside the cake representing the "Christ Child". It is said that a year of good fortune awaits the lucky person who gets the figure. Over the years the items tucked in a King Cake included coins, beans, peas and pecans. Since many of these items were being swallowed, a tiny baby enamel doll took the place of the items. They too were hidden within the cakes. The person receiving a piece of the cake would use his fork and press down into his slice making sure the baby was not in his piece of cake. Contrary to popular belief, these dolls were not originally intended to represent the infant Jesus. Later on the enamel dolls were replaced with plastic dolls. Unfortunately because of the possible choking hazards, the plastic dolls are no longer hidden by the bakers but placed in the center of the cake where it can easily be seen. The person serving the cake would then be the one to hide the doll and ultimately accept the liability should someone unfortunately swallow the hidden doll.

Traditionally, King Cakes are oval shaped and braided to show the unity of all Christians. Its' taste which is rather rich and unique would be compared to a giant cinnamon doughnut. It is generally deep fat fried as a doughnut would be. The cakes are either plain or filled with such fillings as Bavarian cream, cream cheese, strawberry or any other various fillings of choice. They are topped with sugar granules in the official Carnival colors of purple, green and gold. The colors are symbolic to many Christians. The purple represents the passion of Christ, the green represents hope and the gold the rewards of leading a Christian life. Some bakers also decorate the cakes in red to symbolize the life of Christ.

(Article copied from http://www.realcajunrecipes.com/articles/kingCakes.asp )

The above King Cake was given to us by my Tante Sarah this past week. It was TASTY! Here you can see the plastic baby, and below you can see the warning that was on the side of the box.

I guess this is as opposed to the edible baby figures that so many cakes come with these days!?

Mardi Gras Merchandise

Small Business

This guy was set up across the road from the cows/barn I posted last week. I haven't seen too many shrimp salesmen set up like this around town. My first experience with a shrimp salesman came only a few weeks after moving here. A man with a very thick cajun accent knocked on my door and held up a little container with 3-4 shrimp in it. "You wanna buy some shrimp, chere?" he said. WHAT? Totally caught me off guard.

I passed on that opportunity and then made some phone calls and found out that the door to door shrimp salesman is a real, valid (in most cases) thing. Unfortunately, I've never cooked shrimp myself so it doesn't do a whole lot of good for me to buy it....from a store, from a tent, or from the door to door salesman.

Bumper Sticker Beliefs

Evidently, if you have something you believe, you put it on a bumper sticker.

Like this and this too!

Cajun Condiments

Salt and pepper make cajuns yawn, and ketchup is in the background of the above picture for a reason. Here we rely on the stars of the picture~ gumbo file' and Tabasco.

Gumbo File'~ (Pronounced Fee-Lay). File' powder, made from the dried leaves of sassafras trees that grow wild along the coast of the Gulf Of Mexico, was discovered and used by the Choctaw Indians long before the Acadians (Cajun's) reached Louisiana. When used in a gumbo, it imparts a delicate flavor somewhat similar to that of thyme, and a spoonful or so thickens stock into the kind of rich gravy that a genuine gumbo must have. But the cook must be careful: file' powder will become stringy if it is allowed to boil (the word file' may have come from the French word for "thread") and should be added only at the last possible minute. It's a sin to eat gumbo without file'. (from purecajun.com)

Tabasco Sauce~ made right near here at Avery Island. Check THIS out.

I Love Cows.

I'm not saying I want to own any, or be responsible for any, or feed any, or sell any, or butcher any. Let me be more specific~ I love to look at cows. And old barns.

More Acadiana-specific posts to come. I know the last several posts could be pictures taken anywhere, but it is where I live and I love it!

Remain In Him...

or you might be a dead branch!


John 15:1-8 (NIV)

"I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.
"I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you. This is to my Father's glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.

Merry Christmas Mardi Gras

Remember this~ (original post here)

This is an easy excuse to keep that Christmas tree up a little while longer. Turn it into a Mardi Gras tree. Same alligator works for either season, after all....this is Louisiana!

De-Throned

Quite a collection laying by the side of the road.

Whose idea is the wooden toilet seat anyhow!?!? Yikes.