Holidays based around eating are ones we would never dream of skipping. Number one on our list this month is Mardi Gras. Here is an updated version of last year's celebratory round-up, with a few tantalizing additions that will really make you hungry:
You wouldn't know it from the sloppy tourists hurling beads from French Quarter balconies, but Mardi Gras is, fundamentally, a religious holiday. Indeed, it is the best kind of religious holiday: one based on divinely sanctioned binge eating. Mardi Gras, or Fat Tuesday, is so called because it's the last day before Lent -- in other words, a last hoorah to have the meats, booze, and sweets that are verboten during the following 40 days of penitence.
If we can't be in New Orleans -- dancing in the streets, competing with strangers for plastic beads, skipping a week of work in favor of public drinking and weird costumes -- we can, at least, feast like we are. Put on some music, pour yourself a drink, and invite some friends over. We're gonna party like Catholics before Lent.
Barbecue Shrimp: A Down-Home, Messy, Good Meal by Waverly
Waiting for Bonaparte Muffaletta (The Remix Edition) by pierino
These Oysters ROCK! Oysters Rockefeller by lorigoldsby
Grilled Okra with Sriracha Lime Salt by Beth Kirby | {local milk}
Pork Boudin Balls by inpatskitchen
Brown Rice Jambalaya-ish by healthierkitchen
Puffy Pillow Beignets by Mandy @ Lady and pups
Andouille Sausage and Cornbread Stuffing by carbonarasuz
Alton Brown's Shrimp Gumbo by Genius Recipes
Lemony Gumbo Z'herbes by drbabs
Edna Lewis & Scott Peacock's Shrimp Grits by Genius Recipes
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