GUMBO

As I was thinking about what to post today I totally had another plan (ive finished another book and was going to review it) but then I made this for dinner tonight and I thought I have to post it before I forget how I made it. Here is the story behind my Gumbo Recipe. Tonight we had the Missionaries over for dinner. I was feeling brave and thought Id test out a new recipe on them. Normally I try to avoid new recipes when Im serving guests and just do something I know is yummy. But today was a brave day for me. They were scheduled to show up at 6pm so at 5pm I decide I should start looking over the recipe to figure out how long it will take. Well I did the math in the book and without prep (chopping, etc) it took a total of 150 minutes to cook! Needless to say I did not have that kind of time, and lets face it even if I did I doubt Id commit that amount of time to soup! So  few teaks here and there and voila My very own Gumbo recipe that was ready by 6pm! I think it was pretty yummy and so does my hubby!

Amanda's Gumbo

2 chicken breasts cubed

3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped

2 celery ribs, chopped

1 med yellow onion, chopped

1/2 green bell pepper, stemmed, seeded and chopped

4-6 bay leaves

1 lb sausage, removed from casing

2 cups beef broth

4 cups chicken broth

1 chipotle pepper

1/2 cup green onions, chopped

cilantro to sprinkle

4 cups cooked white rice

1) heat some oil in a pot. Add chicken and brown slightly. Add garlic and veggies and cook until soft (about 10 minutes)

2) Add broths and pepper, crushing the pepper slightly. Pinch off bite size chunks of the sausage and drop into stock. Stir to combine.

3)Bring to a rolling boil. (you will notice that I didnt use a roux... GASP! I know I felt weird about it too!) All to boil for a good 15-20 minutes. This will help to reduce the stocks and allow it to thicken slightly.

(You could not eat the gumbo... but Its always better to let is simmer that way all the flavors come together nicely)

4) reduce heat to low, cover and allow to simmer for 20 minutes.

5) 5 minutes before serving throw in the green onions.

6) when ready to serve, place a layer of rice in the bottom of the bowl and top with Gumbo.

Pretty darn good!