Chicken Andouille & Shrimp Jambalaya

Let me start by saying a couple of things: 1) I've never had Jambalaya (I know, how is that even possible??) and, 2) I cheated on the rice and cooked it in a rice cooker.  This is, after all, a blog from a mom who works full time and still wants to get tasty and interesting food on the table.  All in all, though, this was a really good meal that had the kids and the hubby smiling.

Ingredients:

1 cup long-grain rice (brown or white, your choice)
6 cloves garlic, 3 grated and 3 thinly sliced (I used minced from a jar)
Salt and pepper
1 Tbs extra virgin olive oil
1 Pkg (12 oz) chicken apple Andouille sausages (the original recipe called for spicy chicken, but I have a 4 and 5 year old, they don't quite do spicy), 1 link finely chopped and the rest thinly sliced
2 bunches green onions, white and green parts chopped separately
2 large bell peppers finely chopped
3 ribs of celery finely chopped
1 pt grape tomatoes; half finely chopped and half quartered
1/2 lb peeled and deveined medium shrimp

Preparation:

In a medium saucepan, ring 2 cups water to boil with the rice, grated garlic and 1/2 tsp each salt and pepper.  Lower the heat, partially cover, simmer 25 minutes.  What I did was put 2 cups of water and1 1/2 cups of rice, along with garlic and salt and pepper in the rice cooker and set it to cook.

In a dutch oven, or a large pan with a lid (which is what I used), heat the olive oil on medium-high.  Add the chopped sausage and cook for 1 minute.  Add 2 tbs water, the sliced garlic (or minced garlic), the green onion whites (or just 1 bunch of the chopped green onions), bell peppers, and celery.  Lower heat to medium-low, cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are softened, about 8 minutes.  Add the chopped tomatoes and cook, uncovered, until the tomatoes release their juices, about 3 minutes.  Stir in the rice, bring to a simmer, then cover and cook on low heat, stirring until rice is tender, about 10 minutes.  Here is where I deviate from the plan a little.  The rice, from having cooked in the rice cooker, is already tender.  So I simply added the rice, and cooked, stirring frequently for about 5 minutes.

Stir in the sliced sausage, the shrimp, and the quartered tomatoes; add 1/4 cup of water (or more) if pot is dry.  Cover and cook over low heat until the sausage is heated through and the shrimp are opaque, about 5 minutes.  Sprinkle the scallion greens on top.

Serves 4

*Derived from Every Day