One Fat Tuesday

Before I get to my Fat Tuesday dinner, I have to share this find!!  I found the new lemon Chobani at Harris Teeter today!!

Ok this was pretty tasty. If you love lemon you will like this.

If you don’t, well then more for me 🙂

Just kidding.

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I wanted to make something that celebrated Mardi Gras for dinner tonight.   After consulting my amazing friends on Facebook, I had the answer.

Jambalaya!  Or at least my version of jambalaya. I’m not from the South.  I’ve never been to New Orleans.  So I really have absolutely nothing to compare this to other than my palate.

First I sear off a chicken breast that I cubed in some olive oil and cajun seasoning.

Then I removed the chicken and reserved it on the side.

In the same pot I added some andouille sausage that I chunked.  I left it in till it browned on all sides.

Then like the chicken, I took it out of the pan and reserved it on the side.

Next I added some chopped celery, green bell pepper and white onion into the pot.

I added a bit more cajun seasoning and cooked them until they started to get tender.

Once somewhat tender, I added a big dollop of tomato paste and a sprinkling of sugar, stirring it into the vegetables.

I let that caramelize a bit to develop some flavor up in there.

Then I added some diced tomatoes and deglazed the pot with chicken stock.

I made sure I scraped all of the delicious brown goodies off the bottom!

I let the mixture simmer for a little and gave it a quick taste test.

Then I put the seared chicken pieces back into the pot and gave them a stir, letting the heat finish cooking the chicken.

Then I added a few shrimp to the mix and did the same thing.  These babies cook pretty fast!

And just because I have a surplus of frozen peas and corn in my freezer, I added a little bit of each in the pot too. The more the merrier.

Now from what I do know about jambalaya, I know it is traditionally served with rice.

Well I just wasn’t in a rice kind of mood.

So I made a quick batch of grits with plenty of butter and cheese to go around.

Dinner is served!

Like I said before, I’ve never been to New Orleans.  But this tasted awesome!

I really loved how the grits sopped up all of the amazing flavor of the jambalaya.

I now have a huge tub of this in my fridge.  Any one want some?

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I also should mention that I have this dough rising as we speak.

Who starts baking at 9pm ??

Me apparently.

Successful Fat Tuesday indeed.

Game day tomorrow! Expect a late post!

Goodnight!

Vanessa 🙂

P.S.  Is it Saturday yet?!