Shrimp & Andouille Pasta... Almost Famous!

Yesterday I had the pleasure to visit with Staci Mandikas of Unique Event Design and learn about how she utilizes both classic and cutting edge designs to make every event and wedding "unique." I had originally met her at the Davis Island Garden Club bridal show a couple of weeks ago and wanted to spend some time getting to know more about her and the services she offers for for her clients in the Tampa Bay region. In the process of checking out her website, I stumbled upon the fact the she hails from New Orleans, which gave us a few fun things to talk about. It also gave me the opportunity to introduce her to my signature dish, Shrimp and Andouille Pasta.

When my wife and I began dating, I probably originally won her over through my cooking and my use of cream sauces, good seafood and of course, sausage. When I was developing some dishes, I combined the three and ended up with one of my signature dishes. It became so popular that it was being requested by many of my friends for every dinner party I threw. And believe it or not, the media came calling.

Many of you know that I moved here as a result of Hurricane Katrina. But you may not know that for many years, I wrote a blog about New Orleans food and culture. It wasn't long after moving to Tampa that I was featured in a story for the New York Times and later the St. Pete Times. A couple of months later I was contacted by a talent agency in New York City and was asked to submit some cooking videos for use on Yahoo Food. I had nothing to lose, so I sent them two videos - one about the New Orleans Style Bloody Mary and the other one? You guessed it, Shrimp and Andouille Pasta.

Real Food Viewer Video! @ Yahoo! Video

The video never made me famous, but I had a lot of fun making it. I can't bring myself to watch the video, but for posterity, it is still found online even today. Fortunately you're still able to see it and can pretty easily re-create my signature dish. And if you are hiring us to cater your next Tampa Bay event or wedding, we'll be happy to serve it for you and your guests. (The only difference is that in our catering operation we use penne pasta instead of the linguine that I would use at home.) You can check out the video above and feel free to email me for a copy of the recipe for our soon-to-be famous Shrimp and Andouille Pasta. Enjoy!

-Kevin