In honor of hard work - crock pot jambalaya

Living in a converted barn really leaves a lot of room for improvement. There is always something that can been updated, fixed or remodeled. Always.



Unfortunately, my husband and I don't exactly have the motivation to bust all of the projects out in a timely manner. Both of us have been struck by a terrible case of project ADHD, easily distracted by more exciting endeavors, for him beach volleyball usually and for me cooking or baking. On rare occasions we get crazy and start working on the barn again. This time around we were lucky enough to get a helping hand from a good friend who is the ideal project cheerleader and hard, intelligent worker. Let the fire pit and paver project begin.



It's busy days like this that scream for an easy crock pot recipe. Jambalaya is an easy to make, delicious and hearty meal, a perfect way to full empty hungry bellies after working outside all day.



Jambalaya is a Louisiana Creole dish consisting of essentially, meat, veggies, rice, seasonings and stock. For this jambalaya, I used some key Creole ingredients including the holy trinity of celery, peppers and onions, andouille sausage, rice, tomatoes, shrimp and chicken. And the best part is that it takes about 10 minutes to throw it all together at the beginning of the day and ready by dinner time with no fuss. Love it! Oh and did I mention that your house will smell fabulous?!

Crock Pot Jambalaya

Serves 4 generous portions



Adapted from Robin Miller, Food Network



Ingredients:

1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch cubes

8 ounces andouille sausages, diced

1 28-ounce can tomatoes

1 medium to large onion diced

1 red pepper, 1 yellow pepper seeded and chopped

3 stalks celery, chopped

1 jalapeno, diced

6 gloves of garlic, smashed and chopped

1 cup chicken stock, preferably homemade

2 teaspoons oregano

2 teaspoons Cajun seasoning

Several shakes of hot sauce

3 bay leaves

1 teaspoon thyme

Salt and pepper to taste

1 lb. peeled and deveined shrimp (here's a video on how to devein shrimp)

2 cups brown rice, cooked



Directions:

In a crock pot, combine chicken, sausage, tomatoes, onions, garlic, peppers, celery and chicken broth. Stir in hot sauce, spices and seasonings, cover and cook on low for eight hours. At the eight hour mark, stir in the shrimp and cook until pink and cooked through, about five minutes. Discard bay leaves and ladle mixture over cooked rice. Enjoy!



Sorry, no finished product picture, we were too hungry and the jambalaya smelled way too good to stop for a photo session!

Roasted Chicken

Tonight I cut my finger. I thought I could have all of the dishes done before it was time to eat. The food processor was broken down into several pieces, my chef’s knife laid out next to the items with beads of water still dripping off. The kitchen towel was underneath doing it’s best to keep up but failing miserably. The bamboo cutting board, still dripping sat in waiting, carefully balanced over the sink.

I started to wipe down the counter to make space for the cutting board and that’s when it happened. My finger caught the edge of the brand large food processor blade. It’s quite sharp. I could feel the blade opening my skin and inviting the blood to rush out. Usually when you cut yourself on something sharp you don’t notice it right that second. For whatever reason tonight it happened in slow-mo and I noticed every part of it.

It was especially a bummer because Rees is sick today. I was making this dinner to encourage him to feel better. Suddenly I was bleeding all over the place, which was of course the same time the oven timer was annoyingly beeping at me. Frustration!

I have lovely visions of me being Suzy Homemaker, wearing pearls 24/7, a fluffy skirt and heels and pulling beautifully cooked birds and roasts out of the oven. All awhile, the dishes are already done and sparkling and the house is cleaner than a hospital. Oh and, there is a photographer in my tiny kitchen taking gorgeous photos of my food throughout the entire cooking process. And he uploads them for me too. (Not sure why he’s a he but I can say that he definitely doesn’t talk or throw in any unnecessary feedback.)



In reality I wear stained sweats with Crocs (the Balarina Crocs of course!), I live and cook in what used to be a horse barn and my kitchen is extremely tiny. Like really tiny. Somehow I manage to cook in that same small space every night - quite well if I do say so myself. And my husband is one happy man, pearls and perfect chicken or not. I may be shooting for an unattainable goal but I have no plans on stopping, it gives me something to work towards.



Tonight my chicken turned out perfectly, even if it took two rounds of having sick Rees pull it out so I could stick the thermometer in to check the temperature. And no one cared that I microwaved Trader Joe’s three minute rice because in the process of focusing on the dishes and slicing open my finger, I forgot to make rice or any other side dish to accompany our lonely chicken. Everything doesn’t have to be perfect, not all the time at least. The best compliment I could have received was Rees looking for more. Despite being sick, he still wanted seconds.

This recipe is a take on a chimichurri sauce. This happened by accident so I really can’t say it’s a chimichurri recipe but it does have a lot of the same elements.



Roasted Chicken





5 lb. whole chicken (insides removed)



8 garlic cloves



half an onion, quartered



several sprigs of fresh thyme, oregano and rosemary



2/3 of one bunch of flat leaf parsley



lemon zest from one small lemon



a few clugs of extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)



a pinch of red pepper flakes



a splash of red wine vinegar



20 cherry tomatoes, halved



20 baby carrots



2 tbl. butter



salt and pepper





Preheat the oven to 375 F



Prep the chicken. Remove the insides. (Warning! This will require you to stick your hand into the cavity of the chicken.) Place the gutted chicken into a baking dish and pat it dry with a paper towel. With your fingers, separate the skin from the meat, leaving the skin still attached.



In a food processor combine the garlic, onion, parsley, thyme, oregano, rosemary, lemon zest, EVOO, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper and red wine vinegar and crank it on. After about 45 seconds stop the processor and take a look at the mixture. It should look like a bright green runny paste and not be too watery or oily. Taste it to make sure you like it. This is important. It’s always important.

Rub the chicken with the green paste and tuck some in between the skin and meat. Season with salt and pepper. Add the carrots and tomatoes to the baking dish, scattering them around the chicken. Dot the chicken with butter. Bake for 1 hour, 20 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 165 F. Let the chicken rest for 10 minutes before carving. Enjoy!