Mardi Gras…Lent…& Jambalaya

“As you grow older, you will discover that you have two hands, one for helping youself, the other for helping others.”

-Audrey Hepburn

Hello, sweet friend…

How are you today?

In the midst of a pandemic going from Valentine’s Day to Lent with a Mardi Gras thrown in the middle…Love…Pleasure…Penance… all within a few days…has really given me a lot to think about and is quite the “catch up adventure“

That being said today I thought I would focus on love and pleasure… putting off the penance…since I’ll have plenty of time for pondering that…well…at least the next 40 days.🌟

Here’s a delightful recipe that I enjoyed preparing and Joe loved eating!

JAMBALAYA

INGREDIENTS

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 small onions, chopped

1 red bell pepper, chopped

2-3 serrano peppers, chopped (optional)

2-3 jalapeno peppers, chopped (optional)

2 stalks celery, chopped

6 cloves garlic, chopped

1 boneless skinless chicken breast, chopped ( I substituted a plant-based chicken)

½ pound andouille sausage chopped –(I substituted a plant based hot sausage… if you want to get REALLY meaty, add a whole pound!)

3-4 tomatoes chopped – about a pound

1 teaspoon dried Mexican oregano

1 teaspoon dried basil

Salt and pepper to taste

8 ounces tomato sauce

1 cup chicken stock (vegetable stock is good, too)

1 cup white rice 

½ pound shrimp, peeled and deveined

3 teaspoons spicy Cajun seasoning (or more, as desired)

1 teaspoon olive oil

Chopped parsley for garnish

Your favorite hot sauce for serving

DIRECTIONS

First, heat a large pan or Dutch oven to medium high heat. Add oil with onions, peppers and celery. Cook them down about 6-7 minutes, until they soften up.

Add garlic, chicken and andouille sausage. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring often, until the chicken is no longer pink and the sausage starts to cook through.

Add tomatoes and stir to break apart. Crushed tomatoes or diced tomatoes are good here, too. Cook for 3 minutes. Add oregano, basil, salt and pepper, tomato sauce and chicken stock. Stir.

Stir in the white rice. Long grain white rice is good. Bring to a quick boil then reduce heat to a simmer, stirring occasionally. Cover and let simmer for 20 minutes, or until the rice is cooked and tender, to your preference. It could take 25 minutes to 30 minutes. Cooking time can vary, so keep an eye on it and test.

Heat a small pan to medium heat and add oil. For the shrimp, season with salt, black pepper and Cajun seasoning and saute a couple minutes each side, until cooked through. Stir them into the Jambalaya pot and remove from heat.

Serve your amazing Jambalaya into bowls and garnish with parsley or chopped green onions. Add in extra hot sauce if you’d like. Enjoy!