Leftovers and Lights

We were very lucky to have two Thanksgiving get togethers this year; one with friends, my dad, and brother, and one with Don's parents. In the tradition of our holiday meals, there are still PLENTY of leftovers. Therefore, I like to get creative. Yesterday we had turkey omelets for breakfast and turkey/mashed potato sandwiches for lunch. Today it was jambalaya made from the leftover dirty rice. You just can't get any better than this, so I'll include the recipe below.


First you need some kind of sausage. We just happen to have some absolutely fabulous leftover venison sausage in the freezer. It is greasy, gamy goodness.


You will need to cut up the sausage into rounds or cubes and saute in a skillet. Add it in to your dirty rice, and you've got a great leftover meal. Cajun Dirty Rice

Ingredients:
4 teaspoons Tony Chachere's Creole Seasoning
1 stick butter
2 cups converted rice (it is beige, Uncle Ben's makes a bag of it)
1 cup celery, chopped
2 cups onions, chopped
1 cup bell pepper, chopped
2 tablespoons garlic, minced
4 tablespoons parsley, chopped
1 quart water
livers, gizzards, necks

Instructions:

Put the gizzards, livers, wings, and necks in the water, bring to a boil and simmer for about 30 minutes. (Skim off any scum that rises to the surface. yes this is the gross part!) Let cool and remove the meat from the bones. Finely mince the meat, then return to the water; set aside for the moment.

Melt the butter in your cast iron pot (if you don't have one, get one), then add rice and cook until brown. Add onions, garlic, celery, bell pepper and parsley, and cook until transparent.

Heat the guts and broth again, and add to the rice. The water should be about one inch above the rice; if needed add extra water.

Add seasoning, bring to a boil and cook until the water has almost evaporated and is just bubbling on top of the rice. Stir to prevent sticking. Cover and cook over low heat for about 25 minutes. Remove from heat and let rice set for about 10 minutes. When ready to serve, stir rice well.

Not spicy enough for you? Add some tabasco or Louisiana hot sauce (my husband and I always fight about which one is better) and enjoy!


Oh and don't forget you still have some yummy leftover homemade pie from a friend!



We also put up the tree, cranked up the Christmas tunes, and lit up the fire place. Let the holidays begin. Now if I could just get my holiday shopping done!


Randolph the Reindeer makes his yearly appearance.
Don's Aggie wreath is full of spirit, even if we were a bit depressed by the Thanksgiving game.
Happy Holidays!