RECIPES: Crawfish Bonanza

Crawfish Chowder

1/4 cup butter

1/2 bunch green onions, chopped

1/2 cup butter

2 lbs. frozen crawfish, cleaned

2 (10.75 oz.) cans condensed cream of potato soup

1 (10.75 oz.) can condensed cream of mushroom soup

1 (15.25 oz.) can whole kernel corn, drained

4 oz. cream cheese, softened

2 cups half-and-half cream

1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

Melt 1/4 cup of butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Saute green onions in butter until tender. Remove from pan, and set aside. In the same skillet, melt 1/2 cup of butter, and saute the crawfish for 5 minutes; set aside.

In a large pot over medium heat, combine potato soup, mushroom soup, corn, and cream cheese. Mix well, and bring to a slow boil. Stir in half-and-half, sauteed green onions, and crawfish. Season with cayenne pepper. Bring to a low boil, and simmer 5 minutes to blend flavors.

-- Nancy Porter

Crawfish Linguine

1 (8 oz.) package linguine pasta

1/2 cup butter

1/4 cup olive oil

1 clove garlic, crushed

1 cup sliced mushrooms

1 lb. crawfish tails

1/2 cup chopped green onions

1 cup half-and-half cream

1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

salt and pepper to taste

Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook pasta for 8 to 10 minutes, or until al dente; drain.

Melt butter with olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Saute garlic and mushrooms until tender. Stir in crawfish and green onions; reduce heat to low, and cook 5 minutes. Stir in half and half, Parmesan cheese, and parsley. Simmer for 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, and serve over hot linguine.

-- Juan Guadalupe

Crawfish Thermidor

1/4 cup butter

1/2 cup sliced fresh mushrooms

1/2 cup white wine

1 lb. peeled crawfish

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp red pepper flakes

2 cups milk

paprika, for garnish

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Lightly grease 4 small to medium sized ramekins.

In a skillet, melt the butter and add mushrooms and white wine; simmer for about 8 minutes. Add the crawfish tails and simmer for another 5 minutes.

Gradually blend in flour, salt, and red pepper flakes. Slowly drizzle in the milk, stirring constantly and cook until mixture thickens.

Pour mixture into the prepared ramekins. Sprinkle the top of each with a pinch of paprika.

Bake in preheated oven for 10 to 15 minutes or until heated through.

-- Kathleen Burton

Crawfish Etoufee

1/2 cup butter

1/4 cup olive oil

1 tbsp garlic powder

1 cup sliced fresh mushrooms

1 lb. frozen raw crawfish

1 cup chopped green onion

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1/4 cup minced fresh parsley

1 cup half-and-half

1 tsp crushed red pepper

1 tsp Creole-style seasoning

salt to taste

ground black pepper to taste

In a large skillet over medium heat, heat butter and olive oil together. Saute garlic powder and mushrooms until mushrooms are tender; about 3 to 5 minutes.

Add crawfish and onions. Reduce heat to low and cook for 5 minutes.

Stir in Parmesan cheese, parsley, and half and half. Simmer for 5 minutes and stir in crushed red pepper and Creole seasoning. Salt and pepper to taste.

-- Tammi Roberts

Crawfish Pie

1 (9-in.) prepared deep-dish pie crust

1/4 cup butter

1 cup chopped onion

1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper

1/2 cup chopped celery

1 1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp ground cayenne pepper

1/8 tsp white pepper

1 cup diced tomatoes

12 oz. peeled crawfish tails

2 tbsp all-purpose flour

1 cup water

Place the pie crust into a deep-dish pie plate.

Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat, and cook and stir the onion, green pepper, celery, salt, cayenne pepper, and white pepper until the vegetables are tender and the onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes and crawfish tails, reduce heat to medium-low, and cook for about 3 minutes to blend flavors, stirring occasionally.

Whisk flour and water together in a bowl until the mixture is smooth, and pour the flour mixture into the skillet. Bring the filling to a simmer, and cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to stand for 20 to 30 minutes to finish thickening.

While filling is cooling, preheat oven to 400 degrees. Pour the filling into the prepared pie crust, and bake in the preheated oven until the crust is golden brown and the filling is hot and bubbling, 30 to 40 minutes. Cool for 10 minutes before serving.

-- Randy Brown