Monday Night Jambalaya

Monday Night Jambalaya

Last weekend was the third weekend since the flood. Many houses are vacant still today! It wasn't pretty.

Five feet deep in my front yard on April 18th!
Notice my pole lamp by my driveway.

For most of this Sunday I had the whole house to myself. My housemates went to visit their relatives in Wisconsin for the day. 

I woke up, did my newsletter and went for my run. Next I made breakfast and took my shower. All of a sudden, I was all alone in my house. After a couple of weeks, it seemed a little weird.

Well, I had a list of chores I wanted to accomplish. I took my new mower and mowed the grass. I had a bunch of other plans as well, but I ended up sitting by the fire, reading a book and sipping beer all afternoon. As soon as I’m not supervised, my old habits return.

The dogs and I did take a walk and we stopped to talk to one of my neighbors down the block. I asked how they made out in the flood, and she said as well as could be expected. 

She mentioned the condemned houses with red seals on the doors and said it was a shame. I asked about her house (I knew it had 8 feet of water in the basement) and she said they didn't allow the authorities in. Her husband was about to let the village in to inspect their house until she put her foot down. She said, nope, not without a court order. She didn’t allow either the county or village into their house. They weren’t asking for government money, so the government wasn't allowed in. She was taking no chances.

I think some of the people in houses with red tags wish they had taken the same approach. Once the inspectors got in, it was too late. 

I know what you are thinking. What does this have to do with Monday Night Jambalaya? Actually nothing. I couldn’t think of any other way to introduce the recipe, so I just rambled on about my weekend. Well, here is Monday’s jambalaya recipe. I didn't make it too hot. I kept it within reason.

Olive oil

1 lb. of smoked sausage, chopped

3 cups of ham, sliced off the bone and chopped

1 large onion, chopped

2 large bell pepper, chopped

2 jalapeños, chopped

3 stalks of celery, chopped

4 cloves of garlic, chopped

1 tsp. onion powder

1 tsp. cumin

1 tsp. Hot paprika

1 tsp. thyme

1 tsp. fresh ground white pepper

1/2 tsp. salt

2 bay leaves

1 can Ro*Tel tomatoes

1-1/2 cups converted rice

3 cups of beer

Tabasco

Preparation

Heat a large dutch oven and add enough olive oil to coat the bottom. Add the smoked sausage and stir. After a couple of minutes, add the ham and stir. Let that cook until everything is sizzling. Add half the onions, then the celery and the peppers. Stir and let that cook until the vegetables have softened.

Add the seasonings and then add the remaining onion and the garlic. Stir well. After a couple of minutes add the Ro*Tel tomatoes and stir. Add the rice and stir. Add the beer and several shakes of Tabasco. Bring everything to a boil. Reduce to a simmer, cover and cook until all the liquid is absorbed.

Serving

Our typical vegetable and fruit trays.

Serve this jambalaya as a side dish to grilled brats and polish. Add in a large tray of cut up vegetables, a big fruit salad, pasta salad and a cooler full of beer. Have a bottle of Tabasco on the table to kick things up a bit.