Jambalaya

Okay, so first off I'll confess I don't always make jambalaya from scratch. Most of the time I use a premade mix. Jordan and I had Jambalaya at our wedding from a chef in Louisiana whose son was a roommate to my brother in college. Name is Chef Hans. https://www.chefhansgourmetfoods.com/
There is the link if you'd like some of his mix. Anyways, we had plenty of left over mix from it (3 years ago). So, we continue to use it. THE BEST THING about a mix is that all you need to add is the meat. So, first if you were to make it from scratch use rice (probably better to use brown), and then make sure you got your cajun trinity (celery, onion, bell pepper, and add garlic in there too). Then you can follow these steps I used with the mix...

okay, so get out all your ingredients beforehand. You'll need whatever mix you use or if you make it yourself (the rice and cajun trinity) andouille sausage, and chicken (maybe even some cajun spice like tony chacheries or benoit's. I use Benoit's cause it's salt free.

 for the next part you'll need to cook and season the chicken and then brown the sausage a bit (make sure everything is chopped into smaller pieces.) After you cook and brown and all that jazz you can stick them into a bowl and set aside.

 now, this is the beginning of where I have the most fun. You can use the pot that you used to brown the meat and put some water and oil. About two cups of water per one cup of rice... IT will all come off don't worry. Then you bring the oil and water to a boil. Once it's at a boil you add the rice... (As seen below)

 Once your pot is boiling a bit more add the meat back in and stir like crazy! You don't want anything to stick to the bottom. I like to use a wooden spatula or spoon ,or in this case a spoonula (It had a spoon shape on the other side inside of the spatula).

After a few minutes or so take it off the boil and cover it and let it simmer on a low heat (you gotta keep checking on it every so often so it doesn't burn). 

Once all of the water has come off of it (sorry forgot that pic) you can serve it. Have it with salad and bread or just the jambalaya!

Now, enjoy the pics of my husky begging for some because it smells so good. 

 HAPPY EATING YA'LL!!!!!!!

Chicken Salad, Egg Salad, Potato Salad

Each of the these salads include the same spices, and they all have mayonnaise. Parsley, Paprika, Cumin, Garlic, Salt and Pepper to taste. 

Let's Start with the Chicken Salad. Cook the chicken, and and shred it. (I shred my chicken in my kitchen aid and it's fast!!!! Also, you can add all the seasonings to the chicken as you're cooking it). Then add the mayo stir, and add seasonings again. Then you can chill it or eat it right away! It's yummy! 

 

 So, boil some eggs (For the egg salad I used four and for the potato salad I used six). Then you need to put the eggs in some cold water after they have been boiled and are now hard boiled. Then, peel the eggs, and mash them. After you're done mashing them add mayonnaise and spices. Doing all this while boiling CUBED potatoes.

 okay, so you're egg salad is done after you add the spices and the mayonnaise! :)

When your potatoes are done drain them, and then add them to the egg salad mixture (Not the egg salad mixture you're using as just egg salad LOL!) DO NOT MASH THE POTATOES! ( I once mashed the potatoes and my husband didn't like it as much!) So, blend it all together and then put it in the fridge. 

 Okay, so I've been wanting to get good on every single one of these for a while, and I kept trying and failing... BUT THAT'S OKAY because failure always leads to success! And boy did I ever succeed. I love eating the chicken salad with crackers or in a sandwich, and the egg salad also makes a very yummy sandwich. I only tried a little bit of the potato salad, but that's only because Jordan ate it all! I love when he loves my food because he'll either get a second and third helping the first time, or he'll eat it over and over and over again. He's also has gotten good at helping me learn what I can do better and what is good or not. I am so glad I've got a guy like him who likes food and likes to cook, or is okay if I cook and we help each other on what is good or not. Anyways, as always HAPPY EATING! :)

Taco Mac

Ingredients: Bow tie pasta, prego low sodium sauce, cream cheese, cheddar cheese, ground beef, and taco seasoning (Mrs. Dash).

Yep, it's that simple.

Here comes the step by step process: you need to shred the cheese beforehand. (I have this handy cheese shredding thing where I can just stick it in and use until later. I use cheddar (You can probably also probably buy pre-shredded cheddar, but you will use the whole bag.

I also get out the ground beef beforehand (because I usually freeze mine after I buy it), and the cream cheese. (this way they are softer and can cook easier.

You can really use any kind of traditional spaghetti sauce I just tend to buy lower sodium because it's better for my heart. 

 Okay, so boil the water and add the pasta after it's boiling. 

 while the pasta is boiling brown the meat.

After the meat is browned add the taco seasoning. As stated before I use Mrs. Dash salt free seasoning. The meat and the cheese have enough salt you don't need to add more.  

 So, I took this picture after I transferred the pasta... HAHA, but drain your pasta, and then add it to the meat. and stir like crazy because you don't want anything to burn. (Sometimes I turn off the heat or make it lower to help a bit). 

 next add the cream cheese and continue to stir. This is the harder part because if you didn't take out the cream cheese earlier it can get tough to stir and you have to really watch to make sure nothing burns. (I have burned some before. :()

 Now, add the spaghetti sauce. I usually add however much I think I might need. You don't want it too soupy, but you also don't want the consistency to be like rubber. (Always remember to stir after adding an ingredient.

Next, add the shredded cheddar cheese. I usually add half, stir, and then add the other half. 

And then your done and can serve it. For some reason I can't get that picture to come up, but that's okay! This is soooo yummy and can be so good for anyone. Now, Jordan doesn't love spaghetti (not really) and I can't eat regular mac and cheese (too much salt). I came up with this recipe and immediately Jordan wanted me to write it down. It's one of his favorites that I make. :) I'm so glad I finally go it up on here because I love making this because it's super simple. And total it might take 30 minutes to cook (mostly the pasta and browning the meat takes the longest), but it's fast. Also, the amounts of everything depends on family size. I probably make a serving size of four each time maybe 5. :) HAPPY EATING!!!!