Sep 09, 2011
I had some challenges for our dinner tonight. I’m in Naples now but I’m going home in another day, so I wanted to come up with something using ingredients I already had. I didn’t want to go to the store for MORE stuff, nor did I want anything wasted. Also, I’ve got limitations, because of Hubs’ sensitive innards, with heat and spice, both of which I generally have to eliminate. With a little research it became apparent that jambalaya, which I’ve never had before, was the way to go. I came across a lot of good recipes for it, but none so simple, so straightforward, so uncomplicated, as Cindy’s. Some reviewers commented her recipe was a little weak on spice – first, that’s a GOOD thing for Hubs' innards and, second, that’s easy enough to fix, right? If you want more spice, add more spice! I decided on this recipe but knew I would make a couple of small changes – I would cook the rice separately, only because I make every attempt to limit the amount of starch I consume. And I used fresh, chopped, red-ripe tomatoes instead of canned. This was, in a word, delicious. Hubs, SO stingy with 5-star ratings, gave this an immediate 5. Weak spice? Maybe a little – but Hubs just sprinkled a little extra Zatarain’s Creole Seasoning on his serving to his liking. I thought it was just right. When you’ve got great flavor, you don’t need to drown a dish in spices and/or “heat.” Except for family favorites I don’t often make the same dish twice. This one will be an exception.
—naples34102
