Cajun Bloody Mary With Pickled Vegetables Food

QUICK PICKLED VEGETABLES

Steps:

• Blanch 1/3 pound each halved baby carrots, green beans and yellow beans, 2 to 4 minutes. Cool in ice water, then put in a glass bowl with 1/2 sliced red onion. Make the brine: Boil 2 cups each white vinegar and water, 1/4 cup kosher salt, 2 bay leaves, 3/4 cup sugar, the zest and juice of 1 lemon, and 1 teaspoon each peppercorns and coriander seeds; pour over the vegetables, then let cool. Chill at least 4 hours.

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.