Chicken and Sausage Jambalaya

This past weekend, we got our first snow of the season in the Philadelphia area.  Yes, you read that right…snow!  There is something strange about looking out the window and seeing snow in the foreground and vibrant orange and yellow leaves still on the trees in the background.  The sound of the chilly wind and sharp ice particles hitting my window prompted me to reach for a one pot dish like Chicken and Sausage Jambalaya.  I made this recipe early on Saturday morning while it was still slightly dark out and my house smelled like warm comfort food all morning long.  Smoked sausage is cooked with onion, green pepper, and celery before being simmered with long-grain rice, chicken broth and thyme.  Once the rice is cooked and the liquid is absorbed, diced tomatoes, cayenne pepper, and cooked chicken are added.  I used smoked turkey sausage with pepper jack cheese in this dish which added another level of heat with the cayenne pepper and was very tasty.  I also used precooked chicken which has become one of my favorite time savers.  I grabbed a warm bowl of this and ate it while I cozied up on the couch with a blanket and watched the unseasonal slushy snow fall.  Hopefully you’ll try this too, only without the snow!

The ingredients:

Cook chopped sausage in canola oil until browned.

Add in celery, onion, green pepper, and garlic. 

Once vegetables are tender, add in rice, water, broth, cayenne, salt, and thyme sprigs.  Bring to a boil and let simmer for 20 minutes until rice is cooked.

When rice is cooked and all the liquid is absorbed, remove the thyme springs and stir in cooked chicken and undrained diced tomatoes.  Cook a few minutes more until chicken and tomatoes are warm.

Additions:  None

Omissions:  None

Substitutions:

  • Smoked turkey sausage
  • Precooked chicken strips

Overall Rating:  Love It

Source:  Cooking Light Magazine

Chocolate Cupcakes with Fluffy Frosting

I wanted to make cupcakes to take into work for Halloween but found myself not being satisfied with the chocolate cupcake recipes I was finding. So I decided to combine two recipes, one for the cupcakes and one for the frosting, to come up with these Chocolate Cupcakes with Fluffy Frosting. The cupcake recipe comes from Shape Magazine and is lighter in calories than normal cupcakes but you would never know it. The cake, which includes a wee-bit of coffee, is light and chocolately, just what I wanted. And the frosting (which I colored orange), while not lighter in calories, is thick and sweet. I made these cupcakes while The Rocky Horror Picture Show blared on my television in the background and the whole scenario got me into the Halloween spirit. Happy Halloween!

The cake ingredients:

Cream butter together with the sugars (I forgot brown sugar in my ingredients picture).

Slowly add in the dry ingredients, alternating with buttermilk.

Pour into cupcake pan lines with paper liners and back at 350°F for 20 minutes.

The frosting ingredients:

Cream together the butter and combine with the powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla.

Drop in food coloring, if desired.

Additions: None

Omissions:

  • Almond extract

Substitutions: None

Overall Rating: Like It

Source: Shape Magazine and Coastal Living Magazine

Candy Corn Cheesecake Mousse

I’m forgoing a Friday cocktail this week and opting instead for this deliciously seasonal Halloween gem, Candy Corn Cheesecake Mousse. You don’t have to like candy corn to like this dessert. In fact, if you like cheesecake or cream cheese frosting, you will be in sweet, fluffy, creamy heaven. Cream cheese is mixed with powdered sugar, vanilla, milk, and whipped topping to make a sinful yet light treat. The layers of yellow, orange, and white make for a cute-as-a-button presentation but, like any Halloween costume, this is just a facade: they are all the same flavor. Leave the food coloring out to make these desserts any time of the year. Make these this weekend and you’ll impress kids and adults alike. Get a spoon and dig in!

The ingredients:

Beat cream cheese until smooth and add in powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla.

Fold in whipped topping and separate into three different bowls.

Add yellow food coloring to one bowl and orange food coloring to another bowl. Scoop each color of mousse into freezer or storage bags for easy layering into glasses.

Carefully pipe yellow mousse into the bottom of 4 glasses. Tap the bottom of the glass with your palm to help even out the mousse, if necessary. Repeat with the orange mousse and then the white mousse. Refrigerate until ready to serve, then top with a piece of candy corn.

Additions: None

Omissions: None

Substitutions: None

Overall Rating: Love It

Source: Glorious Treats blog

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