Simple Shrimp Creole

Ever since I gave up eating red meat, this has been one of my favorite dishes. I love Cajun food … and spicy foods, in general. For the longest time, I looked for a good shrimp creole recipe; I finally found one in one of my mom’s cooking magazines. While the one I found was somewhat mild in flavor, I added my own touches to meet my tastes. That being said, if you don’t particularly like spicy food, you may want to alter this recipe … unless you happen to like the sensation of your lips being on fire.

1 small onion, diced
3/4 cup red or yellow pepper, chopped
3/4 cup celery chopped
2 tsp. Cajun seasoning
2 Tbsp. oil
1 - 10-3/4 oz. can condensed tomato soup
1 - 5.5-oz. can tomato juice
1 - 10 oz. can diced tomatoes with chiles
1/4 cup water
2 Tbsp. lemon juice
2 tsp. chili powder
1-1/2 tsp. garlic powder
2 Tbsp. parsley
1/2 tsp. pepper
1 lb. shrimp
Hot cooked rice

In a skillet, sauté onion, pepper and celery in oil for 6-8 minutes or until crisp-tender. Sprinkle vegetables with Cajun seasoning while cooking. Stir in the soup, tomato juice, tomatoes with chiles, water, lemon juice, chili powder, garlic powder, parsley and pepper. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium and simmer for 6-8 minutes until heated through. Add the shrimp and cook uncovered 5 minutes or until heated through. Serve over rice.