Jambalaya!

I took this recipe from Budget Bytes, adapted from Joy of Cooking.  It was delicious. I made a few changes, but nothing substantial. It's so good - and mine was certainly spicy!  Husband and toddler did not eat it, but I'm going to attempt freezing it to see how well that works.  I ended up omitting the celery (not a fan), and replacing peppers and tomatoes with diced tomatoes with chiles.  Hot, hot, hot!

INGREDIENTS COST
1 lb. cooked chicken
1 lb. smoked sausage (I used turkey sausage)
4 cloves garlic
12 oz. seasoning mix
(onion, bell pepper, celery) - I only used onion that I had in the freezer
2 cups long grain rice
1/2 to 1 tsp cayenne pepper
2 Tbsp tomato paste
3.5 cups water
1 can (15 oz) diced tomatoes - I used tomatoes with chiles
2 whole bay leaves - oops, didn't have
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/2 bunch parsley
to taste salt and pepper

STEP 1: Slice the sausage and cook in a large pot over medium heat until thoroughly cooked (about 5 minutes). Don't worry if the drippings begin to stick and coat the bottom of the pan, it will be deglazed later. Remove the cooked meat (leaving the fat/drippings in the pan) and set it aside for later.

STEP 2: Add the chopped onion, bell pepper, celery and garlic to the pot with the meat drippings and cook until soft (about 3-5 minutes). The moisture from the vegetables should loosen anything stuck to the bottom of the pan from the meat (all of that flavorful good stuff).

STEP 3: Once the vegetables have softened, add the dry rice, cayenne pepper and tomato paste. Stir it all together and cook for approximately 1 minute more. This will allow the tomato paste to caramelize and the rice to toast just slightly.

STEP 4: Add 3.5 cups of water, diced tomatoes, bay leaves, thyme, fresh cracked pepper (about 20 cranks) and salt (about 1/2 tsp). Stir it together, then add the meat back into the pot. Bring it up to a simmer, add a lid and reduce the heat to low. Allow the pot to simmer on low until all of the moisture has been absorbed by the rice (about 30 minutes). Stir in the chopped parsley and serve.