Celebrate with Jambalaya!

So now we're wrapping up our anniversary week celebration - I'm totally full of food and booze, so I guess it's about time. Last night we celebrated with jambalaya in honor of our rehearsal dinner that we had at a Cajun restaurant. If you've never made jambalaya, you totally should. It's so easy and tastey! It's also great as we usually have most of these ingredients on hand, so it's a great last-minute dinner when we're in pinch - with the exception of andouille...I mean seriously, who has that "on hand"?




 


 Ingredients:

• 3 tablespoons butter
• 1-2 celery stalks chopped
• 1 small onion chopped
• 1 green sweet pepper chopped
• 1 can diced tomatoes
• 1/12 cups chicken broth
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed dried basil
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed dried thyme
• dash or two of garlic powder
• 1 bayleaf
• ground black pepper
• A few splashes of hot sauce
• 2/3 cup long grain rice
• 1-2 andouille sausages diced*
• 2 cups cooked chicken, cubed**
• 2-3 green onions, chopped

First, melt your butter in a large saucepan, and add the celery, onions, and pepper. Saute until the vegetables are soft, but not brown. Then add your tomatoes, broth, spices, hot sauce, rice, and sausage. Stir it all up, and bring it to a simmer. Turn the heat on low, cover, and simmer for about 20 minutes. Once it's done, remove it from the heat, and stir in the chicken. Spoon it out onto your plate, and top it with some green onions. Be sure to have more of that hot sauce on hand, it's great to add later!

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*If you can't get your hands on the sausage, that's fine - it comes out great with just chicken.
** We often get chicken breasts or thighs (whatever's on sale), salt and pepper it, then grill it on the BBQ. You can also bake it in the over, or poach it in water or broth.
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This yummy dish brought us right back to the rehearsal dinner. I remember being so excited and nervous that the wedding was actually coming together. It was the first taste we had of the wedding festivities, and we had a blast. I don't remember what I ordered, but I recall getting an eclair swan with our names in chocolate for dessert. I know it sounds cheesey, but we had a blast!