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Unplugging to recharge! See you back here in a week.....

Food Revolution Toronto Event - Vegetarian "Mystery Box" Cooking Competition...

What an amazing turnout and successful pre-Food Revolution Day event hosted by fellow Ambassador Dorothy Pang! It was buzzing Saturday at Nella Cucina with her vegetarian culinary competition- a Master Chef-like challenge where teams of 4-5 produced one or more dishes using specific ingredients from a 'mystery box' in one hour! The 'boxes' they were handed were pretty simple containing beets, lemon, garlic, ginger, kale and a Good Food for Good sauce. A huge pantry of ingredients was available for them to choose from to encourage more creativity. Excited resourceful cooks worked together to create a phenomenal meal using only vegetarian ingredients. The winning team produced an impressive array of dishes, including a dessert combining beets and dark chocolate. It was great to see true creativity and the coming together of unexpected flavours from different cultures!

Unfortunately I wasn't able to attend, and the content of this post was made possible with the accounts from Dorothy and Food Rev team mates Carol Harrison and Linda Matarasso! 

Credit: Carol Harrison. The colourful rainbow pantry! 

Carol Harrison and Linda Matarasso helped out with the judging, photo-taking and social media! Twitter and Instagram was a-buzzing with their renditions of the bustling activities.

Credit: Linda Matarasso. Carol checking out the ingredients

After the team huddle on what to make with the ingredients, the kitchen fired up with action!

Credit: Dorothy Pang

Credit: Avra Shayna

Credit: Carol Harrison

21 minutes left... the heat is on!

Credit: Dorothy Pang

The judges looking at the great spread of dishes and making their final decision...

Credit: Dorothy Pang

A beautiful collection of the teams' dish presentations.

Credit: Linda Matarasso

Dorothy says, "The teams were incredible... very impressive dishes!" The winning team created these combination of dishes for a complete meal- a simple pasta with roasted vegetables using red peppers, kale, onions, mushroom and Good Food For Good Chiltomate- a Mexican simmered sauce, a mixed vegetable salad, chocolate covered beets and strawberries, and phyllo wrapped bananas. That sounds amazing and dee-licious! All team photos credited to Dorothy Pang!

Here were the other fabulous teams showcasing their creative dishes!

And of course the night would not be made possible without the wonderful team from left to right- Richa Gupta, Founder of Good Food for Good, a sponsor for the event, Food Revolution Toronto ambassadors Dorothy Pang, Carol Harrison and Linda Matarasso.

Credit: Linda Matarasso

Linda Matarasso says, "Everyone had a great time and made new friends and challenged themselves to think outside of the take out box to support Food Revolution Day."

Carol Harrison had this to say, "Tonight was proof again once more of the power of cooking & eating together to make for a memorable evening. I had folks share with me their cultural food traditions from the Philippines & Iran, watched as people  shared their culinary skills & get fearless cooking with an unfamiliar ingredient. Chanting the "sign it, share it" at the end as a big group was the icing in the cake."

Photo Credit: Linda Matarasso

The winning prize for each team member was some bath products from Detox market and a Sobeys gift card. Raffle prizes were aroma and Sobeys gift cards, gift certificate to Lee Restaurant, chopsticks from Susur Lee and a gift basket with Good Food For Good sauces.

Other sponsors for the evening were some awesome food and beverages for the crowd to enjoy: Amazing Vegan Caesar wraps from Rawlicious and Rise Kombucha's fermented teas were a huge hit- the ginger flavour had a great kick to it and Hibiscus & Rose Hips a hit with everyone! Delicious vegan chocolate cookies from Sweets from the Earth and the fantastic Peruvian coffee from Boxcar Social were perfect for ending the tasty evening. Thank you for the great eats and treats!

Dorothy shares on Facebook- Fantastic turnout and event! SO great to see true creativity and the coming together of unexpected flavours from different cultures. Only made possible by @nellacucina @sobeys @rawyorkville @boxcar_social @aromaespressobar @sftebakery @risekombucha @goodfoodforgood @detoxmartketTO #FoodRevTO #foodrevolutionday @foodrevtoronto #betterfoodforall @DetoxmarketTO @aromaespresso @ifeelrawlicious @RISEmother

Credit: Dorothy Pang

Photos courtesy of Linda Matarasso

Rawlicious

Rise Kombucha

This sweet guy Henry who was part of the winning team is one in a million... he stayed and helped clean up with the girls which took two hours! A true winner of the night in our books! The team loves you!!!

Photo Credit: Carol Harrison

The official Food Revolution Day is May 15th with so much happening. Please sign and share Jamie's petition for better food education around the world www.change.org/jamieoliver. We now have over 720,000 signatures from 182 countries, help us take it to a million!

Fighting for Food Education: Food Revolution Day 2015 Events Update...

Sharing with you a wonderful post by my fellow Jamie Oliver Food Revolution Toronto ambassador Mardi Michels. She captures the many fantastic Food Rev Day events we are all doing around our communities, school and homes. Please scroll down below to see what I have planned with schools on this day!  For Mardi's original post please read it here on her blog Eat Live Travel Write. 

An in-classroom “sprout growing” project. 
A mystery box vegetarian culinary challenge. 
Cooking with less-than-perfect “wonky veg”. 
A hands-on parent-child cooking class. 
A whole school cooking together.
A chance to win a family cooking class with Matt Basile at Lisa Marie Restaurant. 
Parents cooking with their kids and their friends at home and sitting down to enjoy a meal together.

What do all these things have in common? They’re some of the ways Toronto Food Revolution Ambassadors will be marking Food Revolution Day 2015.

Friday May 15th 2015 is the fourth annual Food Revolution Day – a day of global action created by Jamie Oliver and the Jamie Oliver Food Foundation to engage and inspire people of all ages to learn about food and how to cook it.

This year, Food Revolution Day is a global campaign to put compulsory food education back on the school curriculum. Jamie believes that by educating children about food and cooking, we can equip them with the basic skills they need to lead healthier, happier lives, for themselves and their future families.  With overweight and obesity statistics increasing at an alarming rate, and preventable diet-related disease claiming more lives earlier than ever before, it has never been more important to educate children about food, where it comes from and how it affects their bodies. Food Revolution Day is about getting kids food smart and setting them up for a long, healthy life.

How can YOU get involved in Food Revolution Day 2015?

Sign the petition. In late March, Jamie launched a global petition calling on the leaders and governments of G20 countries to make food education a compulsory part of every school curriculum. Sign up and spread the word at change.org/jamieoliver.

Do your bit. Find a local Ambassador to see what’s being organized in your area (see over for more details on what the Toronto Ambassador team is planning)! Cook a meal from scratch with your kids using one of the official recipes. There are lots of ways to get involved!

Register a school. Get your local school to register online where they can download useful teaching materials and get involved in Jamie’s online cooking lesson on Food Revolution Day.

Don’t forget to share your photos and plans on social media #FoodRevolutionDay.

Food Revolution Day 2015 events in Toronto

The Toronto Food Revolution Ambassador team has put together a variety of activities and events to celebrate Food Revolution Day this year:

• Dorothy Pang will host a vegetarian “mystery box” culinary competition for adults at Nella Cucina (Saturday April 25th, 5-6.30pm, free, open to the public, requires registration). 
• Susan Ng and teachers at Northview Heights Secondary School will be preparing the official Food Revolution Day Squash-it Sandwich with 1500 students on Friday May 15th (see more below).
• Linda Matarasso along with Susan Ng will host a healthy cooking demo featuring “wonky veg” at Hendrix Restaurant Equipment and Supplies (Saturday May 16th 2015 12pm – 3pm, free, open to the public, registration required).
• Jen Farr will be hosting a Food Revolution Day Party at home on May 16th where she will teach over 30 children (aged 8- 12) to make Jamie Oliver’s Squash-It Sandwich.
• Carol Harrison (RD) will be cooking with children at Bowmore Road Child Care Centre (Friday, May 15th).
• Mary Hulbert will lead a cooking class for 20 children as part of the after school program at St. Alban’s Boys and Girls Club in west Toronto in the week leading up to Food Revolution Day.
• Christine Barisheff has partnered with the Jean Augustine Centre for Youth Empowerment and Cirillos Culinary Academy for two exciting cook-off challenges in May!  On Food Revolution Day she will be in Ontario farm country educating two primary school classes on the importance of healthy eating!
• Mardi Michels is preparing the official Food Revolution Day Squash-it Sandwich with her Grades 3-6 French classes en français in the week of May 11th using sprouts the boys will be growing in class donated by A.Vogel Canada specifically for use in the sandwiches! She will also be hosting a parent-child cooking classon Friday May 15th 2015, from 5.30 – 7.30pm ($5, open to the public, registration required) with Mary Catherine Anderson where participants will prepare a number of Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution recipes then sit down to enjoy them together.
  
  
  
  
  
  This event is also proudly sponsored by KitchenAid Canada and participants will have the chance to win a 5-Speed Diamond Blender!

A family cooking photo contest for Food Revolution Day 2015

This year, Matt Basile of Lisa Marie restaurant wants to get families back in the kitchen and is offering the chance to win a private family cooking class with him at Lisa Marie restaurant. How cool is that?

To enter:
1. Take a photo of your family cooking together.
2. Share it on Instagram or Twitter mentioning @FoodRevToronto @fidelgastros and #FRDLisaMarie
3. Email a copy of your photo to mardi at eatlivetravelwrite dot com

Contest runs April 22nd – May 13th 2015 at 6pm EST.  Matt Basile and Kyla Zanardi will chose their favourite entry and the winner will be notified by email on May 15th 2015, Food Revolution Day! Prize will be a cooking class at Lisa Marie restaurant with Matt Basile on a date to be determined between both parties.

So what are you waiting for – let’s get cooking!

For more on what Mardi Michels is up to on Food Rev Day check it out on her blog post.

How Susan is fighting for food education – my Food Revolution Day 2015 plans

My mission is to get as many schools to participate as possible and get people to sign our petition to bring food education back into the school curriculum. This year I have three school events going:

1) My youngest son Matias' Montessori school- Forest Grove Montessori will be participating with all three classes- 50 students. The toddler class will be colouring the Food Rev Eat the Rainbow poster, and the two Casa classes will be learning about germination and photosynthesis by growing sprouts with sprouting kits and jars donated by A Vogel. This year A.Vogel Canada has generously offered donations of these sprouting kits to Ambassadors across Canada! I will be baking up Susan's Crispy Chewy Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Raisin Cookies for all the kids and teachers to have add some delicious fun to their day of food activities!

2) My elementary school classmate Ming Won has been a big supporter of mine since reconnecting after so many years. He is a passionate grade 7 teacher at Henry Kelsey's Junior Public School in Scarborough. This year his class of 27 students will be making the official Food Revolution Day Squash-it Sandwich. With his advocacy efforts at the school, he was able to bring in two other classes to join in on the hands-on session, with a total of 84 students, cooking while watching Jamie's on-line lesson on Food Rev day. The classes will work in groups with A Vogel Canada's sprouting jars. Ming tells me learning about growing your own food never grows old, and that the sprouting jar is very cool and a science lesson itself: mechanical separation, filtering, ecosystem with interactions of abiotic and abiotic factors...and nutrients! Chipotle Mexican Grill is a happy sponsor donating their delicious burritos to the participating students after the event for a fun Mexican-inspired school lunch! 

A Vogel Biosnacky Germinating Sprouting Jar

3) I am planning with Northview Heights Secondary School in Bathurst-Finch North York a large-scale hands-on event making the official Food Revolution Day Squash-it Sandwich with the entire school- 1500 students! If you read about Northview in the link provided you will see why they are the poster school for everything Food Revolution stands for. There are so many logistics at play here, but with the generous ingredient sponsorship from Sobeys, we can make it happen! This year Sobeys has offered support and donations to Ambassadors across Canada. I am really excited to work with the great Chef-teacher Dimitra who runs the school's culinary department. More details to come on this much anticipated event so stay tuned....

We are now over 700,000 in petition signatures. Won't you help us sign it and share it to make it a million..? Together we can do it to pave a better future for our children... 

My dream is to make a difference…
for our children now and tomorrow.
Equip them with solid skills, not just borrow
Food education at home, at school
Pass on how-to knowledge, that’s the tool
Important skills that must be taught
Life lessons gained that can't be bought
Too many suffer from not knowing
Cooking is the key to healthy growing
It's now we act to pave the way
To give our children a better day
A future that empowers choice
And it starts with our UNITED ONE voice
Parents, families, teachers, friends, please sign
To put this cause on top of mind
Together we can make a difference…
for our children now and tomorrow!

- Susan Ng

Hot Pot Cookbook Developed by Seniors in Bathurst-Finch... Ukrainian Borsch...

I have been doing some recent work in the Bathurst and Finch Avenue West core in North York, namely with high school Northview Heights Secondary School to get ready for our exciting large-scale hands-on cooking event on Food Revolution Day (more on that in my next post). At the same time, I've been scoping their adjacent community garden at the Bathurst-Finch Community Hub as a spring volunteer to help empower people of all incomes to grow and eat healthy, home-grown local food. I have come to learn that this area embodies a rich mix of diverse cultures, coupled with an ageing population.

I was thrilled to read an article in my local paper about a newly published cookbook titled Hot Pot Cookbook that reflects the plethora of cultures in Bathurst-Finch.  A group of community agencies wanted to celebrate the different heritages by socially engaging local low-income seniors and food was the inspiration. The project of creating a cookbook full of recipes contributed by seniors was embraced by North York Harvest Food Bank (NYHFB), operating the Bathurst and Finch Community Food bank which is the largest food program in the neighbourhood. The food bank serves a large number of Russian-speaking seniors about 700 households a month. The bank is located in the Northview Heights high school as a dignified and inviting space for food assistance. Aside from the great teachers and a wonderfully-run Culinary department, it's another reason why I love Northview so much- their inclusivity and sense of community!

With the following excerpts from the community North York Mirror article, Hot Pot Cookbook Reflects Bathurst-Finch Culture written by Fannie Sunshine, "Once NYHFB was on board, an editorial committee made up of nine people of Iranian, Russian, Italian, Jewish, Caribbean and Indian backgrounds was put together to come up with a vision for the cookbook, how to get the recipes, and how to determine what went into the book.They asked older clients of the food bank to contribute hand-written recipes to be put into a box. Roughly 60 recipes were collected, double what was expected, said Lara McLachlan, director of community engagement for NYHFB, adding recipes contained ingredients supplied by the Bathurst-Finch Community Food Bank."

"A group of 18 taste-tasters was then formed, who cooked and sampled the recipes using Unison Health and Community Services’ kitchen in the nearby Bathurst-Finch Community Hub. Unison provided dieticians to work with community groups to promote good health through focusing on nutritious food and helping to run community kitchen groups. Toronto Public Health offered a dietician to help review and test the recipes. In total, 48 recipes were selected for Hot Pot: A Collection of Bathurst and Finch Recipes. 

The project was funded through the New Horizons for Seniors Program (NHSP) of Human Resources and Skills Development Canada." Scroll to the bottom of post to see how you can order a free copy. It truly captures the vibrancy of a rich culturally diverse neighbourhood.

Photo Credit: Hot Pot Cookbook: A Collection of Bathurst and Finch Recipes

Flipping through the colourful pages, there were many interesting recipes that stood out to make for my family. One in particular was Ukrainian Borsch. I've always loved Borsch and funny enough it is a soup that is often offered in Hong Kong-style Chinese eateries serving comfort food- a bowl of hot borsch before the main meal. However, they use tomatoes as the base rather than beets and the addition of kidney beans here is a first. I also discovered much to my amazement, that the fourth country of my highest blog audience is from Ukraine, preceded by Canada, U.S. and France in that order. As a shout out to my wonderful Ukrainian readers, I'm making your classic beet soup to enjoy with my family! 

Ukrainian Borsch (adapted from the Hot Pot Cookbook recipe serving for 10)

Makes 6 servings

5 cups water

2 beets, thoroughly washed with skin and ends trimmed

1 large or 2 medium potatoes, peeled, diced

1/4 cabbage, thinly shredded

2 Tbsp. oil

1/2 onion, finely chopped

1 carrot, grated

1/2 Tbsp. ketchup

3 cups chicken or vegetable broth

1/2 Tbsp. lemon juice

1 can (540 mL) kidney beans, drained and rinsed well

dill or parsley, chopped

salt and ground black pepper to taste

Fill a large pot with water. Add the beets and cover to simmer on medium for an hour. Beets are ready when beets can be pierced smoothly with a butter knife. Remove and set aside to cool.

Beets are done when a butter knife can pierce them.

Drain beets and rub off skins with hands under cool running water. (Ha, I read about this skin removing trick after I peeled the beets with the peeler). Transfer to a non-porous plate or cutting board such as glass so not to stain; cool, then slice into rounds then cut into match sticks.

Add the potatoes in the same water and boil for 15 minutes. Add the cabbage when potatoes are halfway done. Meanwhile, heat oil in a saucepan on medium high heat and sauté the onions and carrots until they are soft. Stir in the ketchup when the mixture is almost done cooking about three minutes.

Add beets back to the pot with the potatoes and cabbage. Add chicken broth, lemon juice, bay leaves and kidney beans to the pot; then add the onions and carrots along with the dill or parsley. Cook for 10 minutes until the cabbage is done. Season with salt and pepper. Serve with sour cream or mayonnaise.

Tomorrow is earth day so what better way than to celebrate with a dish honouring the many precious treasures from our mother earth.

дуже смачний! (Delicious! in Ukraine). The natural sweetness of beets is divine-tasting!

"Launched March 19 at the Bathurst-Finch Community Hub, the cookbook offers breakfast, dessert, main dishes, salads, side dishes, soup, and vegetarian recipes, all of which are translated into Russian. Five hundred copies of the cookbook have been printed and are available for free at NYHFB, 640 Lawrence Ave.," McLachlan said. Those interested in obtaining a copy can email lara@northyorkharvest.com. Please consider donating $10 to the North York Food Bank as a small token for the great cookbook.

Good Cookin' in Nawlin's Two... Shrimp Beignets...

One of the most enjoyable aspects of New Orleans is being able to sit under the softly whirring ceiling fans at Café du Monde’s large patio in the French Quarter eating a classic morning breakfast of fried beignets and sipping café au lait. Beignets, pronounced (Ben-yeh) are traditional Creole doughnuts made of flat squares of dough that are flash-fried to a golden, puffy glory, then dusted heavily with powdered sugar and served scorching hot. Crazy delicious, and was the first thing I thought of upon waking up everyday I was there! Gotta get my messy but oh-so delectable fix!

The popular horse and carriage rides outside Jackson Square.

Lunch at Cookin’ Cajun Cooking was a popular teaching and lunching show back then- we're talking 15 years ago!! Chef Bang was our host, whipping up various popular dishes of the Crescent City. Once he had gone through the step-by-step preparation in his enthusiastic and comical entertainment style, a full meal was served to the audience seated at dining tables. It’s a fantastic concept, and after people can browse in their adjoining Gourmet Shop to pick up spices, mixes and other exciting New Orleans specialties. This was where I tried their famous Mardi Gras spice mix whipped into a dip with mayo and sour cream. One of the best flavours I ever tasted, and later became an inspiration in a line of dip products I developed for a dip and paté company Summersweet Fine Foods- Mardi Gras with Shrimp Dip, still selling in the US retail market today :). 

Me and Chef Bang. You can visit www.cookincajun.com and order items from
their extensive catalogue, that can be shipped directly to your home. 

Beignets have also transformed into savoury offerings such as with shrimp and spices creating a wonderful appetizer. Clams, smoked chicken, crabmeat and mushrooms are delicious alternatives in Creole beignets. I eagerly made this recipe after my first trip with a New Orlean's-inspired party for my friends and it was a pure hit! I had bought some Mardi Gras spice mix and that went wonderful with the savoury doughnuts. You can also serve these with tartar sauce.

Shrimp Beignets
Makes 15 beignets (double the recipe to serve a crowd)

1 cup flour
1 Tbsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. ground ginger
1-2 Tbsp. chopped pimento or chilies
1/2 tsp. salt
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup cooked shrimps
1 to 2 green onions, chopped
1 Tbsp. chopped parsley
3/4 cup water
a few dashes of hot sauce
canola or peanut oil

Mix the dry ingredients together evenly. Add the remaining ingredients up to parsley and mix well. Add water and hot sauce, but just enough to form a loose dough. Set aside for 15 minutes to rest. Heat the oil in a sauce pot or fryer until a bamboo stick inserted into the centre forms bubbles shooting up its side. Spoon in dough by the Tbsp. and deep fry until golden brown. Remove from oil and drain on paper towels. Serve with mayo spiked with hot sauce or cayenne pepper, or tartar sauce.

If you like savoury seafood doughnuts, try making my whelk fritters which are considered upscale large snails. Very delicious and reminds me of delicious Bahama conch fritters!

Good Cookin' in N'awlin's... Sausage Jambalaya...

New Orleans has a very special place in my heart. It was one of the first places I ventured in the US that intrigued me profoundly, as it looked like no other American city I've ever been or imagined- bar none! So incredibly rich in culture and history, and gifted in celebration and cuisine! I knew I had to return one day and the next time took my husband to rediscover and share all the exciting sights, sounds and tastes the tourist-loved French Quarter had to offer- in the place that never sleeps! Even though it has been a decade ago, the memories still live on. Everyday we were ready to rock and roll, or shall I say “jazz and jam it”, where a Big Easy good time is always accompanied by great eats! 

Strong French and Spanish influences from centuries past have created a truly European city inside the United States. With such a rich and historical background blending the rich French, Spanish and Caribbean heritages emerged a jazzy robust and somewhat complex taste of regional Cajun and Creole cuisines. The question most people often ask or wonder is “What is the difference between Cajun and Creole food?” Most Louisianans claim the answer is simple. Cajun cuisine is the robust food of country people with its one pot meals- pungent with the flavour of seafood and game, cooked in a lot of animal fat with a very spicy flavour. And Creole cuisine is a more refined “city” food with a rich array of courses which has a greater emphasis of cream and butter, indicating its close tie to European aristocracy. From their association with the Indians, the Cajuns learned techniques to best utilize the local products from the swamps, bayous, lakes, rivers and woods. Creole cuisine, then, is that melangé of artistry and talent of cooking, developed and made possible by the people of various nations and cultures who settled in and around New Orleans, and is kept alive by Louisiana sharing it with the rest of the world. 

Having a courtyard brunch at Brennan's- a tourist favourite since opening in 1946.

Most people eat to live, Creoles and Cajuns live to eat! Their very existence is food, more food and still more food! In Louisiana, one can feast on crabs, crawfish pies, crawfish étouffées and crawfish bisques, seafood gumbos, jambalayas, sauce piquantes, grillades and grits, salt pork, boudin, black-eyed peas, red beans and rice, dirty rice, po-boys, smothered chicken, oysters, shrimp, redfish and muffuletta sandwiches. Delicious desserts include but are not limited to pecan and apple pies, pralines, chocolate mousse, crepes suzette, bananas foster, beignets and bread pudding with whiskey sauce.

Horsing around in the many cool and fun novelty shops!

New Orleans is known for their Voodoo and Spiritualistic rituals and tours.

Between New Orleans and Baton Rouge is a small town called Gonzales. It is known as the Jambalaya capital of the world. The Spanish gave Creole food its spices, and the paella, which was the forefather of Louisiana's jambalaya. On the coastline, seafood were often substituted for meats in the jambalaya creating many variations, according to the local ingredients available at different times of the year. The Germans who arrived in Louisiana in 1690 were knowledgeable in all forms of charcuterie (very spicy sausage) and from them came the andouille and other sausages. Their dishes were often pungent, peppery and very practical since it was also all cooked in a single pot. The use of tomatoes from south and central America rounded out the emerging Creole cuisine. Native Indians and other tribes befriended the new settlers and introduced them to local produce, wildlife and cooking methods. New ingredients, such as corn, ground sassafras leaves (or filé powder), and bay leaves from the laurel tree, all contributed to the culinary melting pot. 

Enjoying on one occasion grilled sausage, gumbo soup, a side of red beans and jambalaya.

If you have visited South Louisiana and have fallen in love with the food as I have, then concentrate deeply on one particular dish you enjoyed. Can you bring the taste back in your mouth so sharply that your mouth begins to water? Mine ever so distinctly is the very dish of jambalaya. If so, get your pots and let’s start cooking! This Creole-come-Cajun dish can be prepared from whatever is on hand and meats such as chicken, shrimp or pork. Just follow the basic procedures and raid your refrigerator and freezer for ingredients to prepare a no-frills dinner. Serve with a tossed salad and French bread. Here is an adapted traditional recipe taught to me at the now closed but then popular Cookin’ Cajun Cooking School (with products available only on-line). To kick it up a notch, as Emeril would say :), throw in some red cayenne or serve with Tabasco sauce at the table

Sausage Jambalaya
Makes 8 servings

1-½ lbs. sliced andouille (I used two kinds of mild smoked sausages preferring to spice it up at the table)
4 cloves garlic, minced

1 medium onion, chopped
1 green or coloured pepper, chopped
2 celery stalks, chopped

3 bay leaves
½ tsp. dried thyme

2 cups long grain rice (converted rice works particularly well as it holds up)
1 can (396 mL) diced or crushed tomatoes
3 cups hot chicken stock

2 cups diced cooked or smoked ham
2 green onions, chopped
¼ cup chopped parsley
Salt and ground black pepper to taste

Tabasco sauce and green chilies to serve

Cook's NOTE: Andouille is a spicy Louisiana smoked pork sausage. Hot or mild smoked Italian sausage can be substitute. 

The holy trinity and base of Creole and Cajun cooking are onions, celery and pepper.

Sauté sausages in 1 tsp. oil in pot or skillet over medium-high heat for several minutes until slightly browned. In same pot, add garlic and onions; cook thoroughly, then add pepper and celery. Cook until tender about two to three minutes. 

Add bay leaves and thyme. Then add the rice and stir well. 

Add tomatoes, chicken stock, and ham. Bring mixture to a boil. Cover and let simmer for 30 minutes or until rice is cooked. Remove bay leaves, toss in green onions and parsley or serve at the table.

Lusciously soft and savoury with every bite. Sausages were YUM! Served with crunchy coleslaw, bread and a chili pepper.

Thumbs up by everyone chowing down until there was none!