Cajun Bloody Mary With Pickled Vegetables Recipes

SPICY CAJUN PICKLED GREEN BEANS AND CARROTS

Steps:

• Fit as many green beans and carrots as you can into a jar, vertically.
• Add the garlic and bay leaf to the jar, using a chopstick or something similar to slide them down the sides of the jar.
• Add oregano, thyme, cayenne pepper, celery seed, and peppercorns directly to the jar.
• Bring vinegar, water, sugar, and salt to a boil in a small saucepan to make a brine, stirring to make sure sugar and salt are dissolved.
• Pour brine over vegetables in jar, making sure to cover all the vegetables and fill to the top.
• Allow jar to cool, and keep in refrigerator for 6 months. These will taste best if you allow them to sit in the fridge at least overnight, and the flavor will intensify as time goes on.

CAJUN BLOODY MARY WITH PICKLED VEGETABLES

Steps:

• Working in batches, puree the canned tomatoes and their thick puree in a food processor until smooth. You should have a rich liquid with no lumps.
• Combine the puree with the tomato juice in a large bowl, blending well.
• Add the celery salt, sugar, garlic powder, onion powder, black pepper, cayenne, Tabasco, and vodka. Season with salt; you may need more than you expect to bring up the flavor of the mix (canned tomatoes have less salt than tomato juice). Keep the mixture cold.
• For each serving, fill an 8-ounce tumbler with ice cubes. Pour about 4 ounces of the Bloody Mary mixture over the ice, which should almost fill the glass. Garnish with pickled vegetables, at least three pieces per drink.
• Vegetable Garnishes
• Here are a few specific ideas:
• Pickled Okra. This, of course, is the perfect garnish for a Cajun Bloody Mary. Strive to find it! Luckily, a company called Talk 0' Texas makes pickled okra in two varieties (I prefer the "hot"), and distributes the product to supermarkets across the country.
• Pickled String Beans. This is another pickled vegetable you often see in Louisiana Bloodies. A Washington State company called Hogue Farms makes a pickled string bean that is widely distributed.
• Pickled Asparagus Spears. Hogue Farms makes this as well.
• Pepperoncini. Also called "Tuscan peppers," and available in most supermarkets across the U.S.
• Pickled Cocktail Onions. Available everywhere. I like to thread three of them on a fancy toothpick, then assemble dozens of these picks on a plate.
• Pimiento-Stuffed Olives. Choose smaller olives, and arrange on toothpicks like the cocktail onions.

SPICY CAJUN BLOODY MARY MIX

Steps:

• Mix all ingredients together in a pitcher or jug of some sort until the creole seasoning is completely dissolved. I like to use an empty gallon jug or something with a top so I can shake all the ingredients together. You can use right away, but I prefer to let it sit in the fridge and "mingle" for a few hours.
• When making drinks with the mix try rimming your glasses with creole seasoning. Pickled green beans, pickled okra, lemon, lime and of course an olive make for a wonderfully garnished spicy cajun mary.
• You can always add more or less creole seasoning and tabasco to taste.
• Make sure to have extra tomato juice on hand to "dilute" to people's personal taste preference. I sometimes had to add half mix and half juice for my customers who couldn't handle the heat.

PICKLED MARY

Steps:

• Whisk together the tomato juice, vodka, tomatillo sauce, lemon and lime juices, Worcestershire sauce, hot sauce, paprika, celery salt, and cayenne in a pitcher. Cover and refrigerate until very cold, at least 2 hours. Serve with celery stalks.
• Preheat the oven to 400°F.
• Toss the tomatillos, onion, garlic, and jalapeño with the oil on a baking sheet and season with salt and pepper. Roast in the oven until the mixture is soft but not browned, 15 to 20 minutes. Transfer to a food processor and process until smooth. Add the vinegar, honey, horseradish, spinach, and cilantro and pulse just to combine. Season with salt and pepper. Scrape into a bowl, cover, and refrigerate for at least 2 hours and up to 8 hours before serving.