Sausage and Chicken Gumbo Recipe

Sausage and Chicken Gumbo Recipe

Recipe


4 green onions, sliced, white and green parts 
Chopped fresh parsley 
1 Tbsp Gumbo File
1 14 ounce can stewed tomatoes with juice 
5 beef bouillon cubes 
1/4 bunch flat leaf parsley, stems and leaves 
3 stalks celery chopped 
8 cloves garlic minced 
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce 
1 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped 
1 large onion, chopped  
1/2 cup all-purpose flour 
1/4 cup vegetable oil 
2 lb smoked sausage, cut into 1/4 inch slices
Salt and pepper 
4 large boneless chicken breast halves 
4 cup hot water 

Directions

Prepare roux in a cast iron dutch oven. 

While the roux is cooking in the oven, season the chicken with salt and pepper. Pan fry the chicken until browned on both sides and remove. Add the sausage and cook until browned, then remove.

Once the roux is complete, remove the pot from the oven. 

Add the onion, garlic, green pepper and celery and cook for 10 minutes. 

Add Worcestershire sauce, salt and pepper, to taste and the 1/4 bunch parsley. Cook, while stirring frequently, for 10 minutes. 

Add 4 cups hot water and bouillon cubes, whisking constantly. 

Add the chicken and sausage. 

Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat, cover, and simmer for 45 minutes. Add tomatoes and Gumbo file. 

Cover and simmer for 1 hour.

Serve over rice. 

Paella - paˈeʎa

Paella 

(Valencian: [paˈeʎa], Spanish: [paˈeʎa]) 

Though I had heard of this dish, I honestly could not recall ever having it. Just my luck, when it came to pick dishes from Mandy's menu I didn't have much of a choice...two of the dishes involved phyllo which I am an old pro at working with (the pain in the rear that it can be) from many years of helping my mother and grandmother make Baklava. What is the challenge in that? Yes, you read that correctly, the Rookie makes a mean Baklava. And I am not talking about the layered version either. This mama bakes the fancy rolled kind (because until the age of 15 or so, I didn't realize it even came in another shape!) But for those craving that recipe....you'll have to wait. Tonight we cook Paella!

Ingredients

2 1/2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - cut into bite-size pieces
all-purpose flour
salt and pepper to taste (to taste what? Things like this are not help to The Rookie)
 Olive oil
1 pound chorizo sausage, chopped (I used 2 10 oz. packages with is a bit more than 16 oz or 1 lb, depending on your geographic location this could be a challenge to find. )
1 onion, chopped
4 cloves crushed garlic
2 cups chopped tomatoes (when buying a tomato I do not know how many cups it will equate when chopped...so I bought three and hoped for the best)
2 cups white rice
2 (6.5 ounce) cans minced clams (drained)
2 cups frozen green peas
1 pinch saffron (if you have never used saffron before, ask a Foodie or Gourmet if they have some you can use...this stuff is not cheap. I am not sure I am willing to spend $18 on a "pinch" of anything)
5 cups boiling chicken broth

 Many of the recipes call for shrimp. As this month's host is allergic, I added more sausage and chicken vice a trip to the emergency room.

 Let's get cooking!

Recipe

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
Place the chicken pieces in a large ziplock bag with some flour, salt, and pepper. Close bag (VERY IMPORTANT!). Shake to coat chicken (or give to your four year to do).

In a large skillet, fry the chicken in olive oil until brown and crispy. Set aside.

 Brown the sausage in a skillet and set aside. 
 Place about 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet and fry onion and garlic until onions are tender. 

To the same skillet, add chopped tomatoes and saute for 3 to 4 minutes. 

 

Add rice to the skillet and mix well.
Put rice mixture, chicken, and sausage in casserole dish.
Add can of clams, peas, saffron, and chicken broth. 

 

Cover casserole dish.
Bake until all the liquid is absorbed and rice is tender. You may need to add more broth if rice is not done.
 

I am not sure if this tasted as desired or not, however I left for Supper Club with two 9x13 dishes and came back with less than enough for the next day's lunch. I think it was a hit (even the kids liked it which is always a plus!).

 
 

Buffalo Chicken Pizza Recipe

Buffalo Chicken Pizza Recipe

Many years ago I visited my friends in Pittsburgh for a long weekend. It was in the fall, and so, the guys had to watch football (well, the guys and some of the gals also). DeLeah brought this outstanding buffalo chicken dip that I could not get enough of. I remember the dip clear as day, I don't have any idea who was playing ball that day (a college in the Midwest, maybe?). I have been making it every holiday since. This pizza reminded me of that dip.

Ingredients

6 fresh or frozen chicken tenders (the Rookie used frozen)
1 pizza dough, store bought or from your favorite pizzeria ( or have the Foodie made a batch for you)
Cornmeal or flour, to handle dough
2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce, eyeball it
Some hot sauce (I didn't measure, it depends on your perchance for spice. Frank's Wing Hot Sauce is my go-to sauce when making DeLeah's buffalo chicken dip. However the store did not have it, we are trying a different brand tonight.)
1 can of diced fire roasted tomatoes (You could roast them yourself. I didn't.)
1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese, a few generous handfuls
1/2 cup blue cheese crumbles
3 scallions, thinly sliced

 

Ready? Let's get cooking!

 Directions

Preparing the chicken:
Place chicken tenders in a large ziploc bag, and hot sauce, and smoosh chicken and hot sauce until the chicken is coated in hot sauce. (My 4 year old loved this step.)
Place in fridge to marinate for 3-4 hours.
         Note: If you are using frozen tenders, toss them into the bag while frozen. While the marinate in the fridge they will defrost. Once defrosted, you will be ready to cook them.

Once marinating is complete, remove the chicken from the bag and toss the icky sauce and chicken juice (keep the chicken). Grill the chicken tenders until cooked. Remove the chicken from grill and thinly slice it.

Preparing the sauce:
In a medium skillet over medium heat, melt butter and stir in Worcestershire, hot sauce, and tomato sauce.
Add chicken to sauce and coat.

Topping the pizza:  Cover the pizza dough with the saucy Buffalo chicken, cheeses, and scallions.

Cook: Bake 18 minutes or until crisp. (The out of comfort zone element of this month's supper club was cooking the pizza on the BBQ - more on that on the behind-the-scenes-post)


Eat: Enjoy!

 The kids LOVED making their own mini pizzas tonight.