Turning 35 Sucks...but Shrimp Creole Doesn't

My birthday was yesterday and I wasn't particularly happy about it. To make matters worse, the weather was absolute shit. It was super rainy and just when the sun managed to peak out, another storm rolled in. Plus, I was awoken by some text messages that my father was sending to my brother. Somehow, he accidentally wrote them to me. So much for sleeping in.

Then to make matters worse, I paid good money and took time away from my son to go see a crappy movie. Don't even bother going to see The Time Traveler's Wife. The book was pretty good, but the movie sucked big time even with Rachel McAdams in it.

But, the good news in all of this is that Damien did indeed make me my favorite kind of birthday cake - boxed chocolate cake with vanilla frosting and coconut. And he made me my favorite meal that my mom used to make me for my birthday growing up - Shrimp Creole. I think it is fairly easy to make, but you really need to have a food processor for it to have the right consistency.

And the cake was totally delicious...even though today he dropped it on the floor and smashed a full bottle of Simi Chardonnay on top of it. Luckily the cake was covered in plastic wrap so we could salvage most of it. And it was the morning after anyway, so I had already had a good two or three pieces by then. (Besides, the chance of a few plastic and glass shards aren't going to keep me for devouring a couple more.)

My mother is going to send me a more precise recipe for her shrimp creole, but this is what she sent to Damien so he could make it for me:

Shrimp Creole
1 Green Peppers
1 or 2 Onions depending on size
3 cloves of Garlic
One small can tomato sauce
A jar of Goya pimentos
Tablespoon of vinegar
Teaspoon of Worcestershire sauce (my husband from Worcester had to tell me how to spell this)
Teaspoon salt and pepper
Teaspoon Tabasco sauce (or to taste)
1/4 cup olive oil in pan

In a food processor, combine all of the ingredients except for the olive oil. Blend until finely chopped.

Heat up the olive oil in a pan. Pour the mixture in and cook for 15 minutes over medium heat.

Meanwhile, clean shrimp by deveining and removing the tails. Then add to sauce about 5 minutes before wanting to serve. Serve over white rice.

It was perfect. Not only was the meal great, but the fact that Damien pushed me out the door to go see a movie (even if it sucked) and then went out of his way to make this for me made turning 35 a little less painful.