I am so excited for a new year. It is always strange to think about what a new year will entail but I am really anxious and excited for this year. There will be a LOT of big changes with Deals to Meals, and I can hardly stand to wait until it’s done. My husband, our programmer and our designer have been working tirelesly for months to help make Deals to Meals more user-friendly site, and super cute and fun! Please be patient with us as we finalize many of the last minute details and we will reveal the new site soon 😉 Stay tuned.
 
In the mean time, it is a New Year and that generally means we are all trying to eat a little healthier and shed some of those unwanted holiday pounds we gained. I gained my fair share–to me that means the holiday’s were full of lots of food, friends and fun. So, it’s not all bad 😉 But, the splurging sadly has come to an end and so I am determined (and elated) to share with you some new recipes I have tried to keep things a little ‘lighter’ around here these past couple weeks.
 
Copycat Recipes, The Cheesecake Factory Jambalaya, Deals to Meals, Recipe: Chicken, Recipe: Pork, Recipe: Rice, Recipe: Main Dish, Recipe: Healthy, Healthy, lower calorie jambalaya
I am practically jumping out of my skin to share this next recipe with you. It is a copy-cat recipe from The Cheesecake Factory and is full of flavor. For those of you who have been there, and have tried their Jambalaya, know it totally rocks! It is chuck-full of Cajun flavor and is the perfect blend of spices, vegetables and meat. They serve this dish over pasta, but since I am trying to cut back on my white-flour consumption, I actually much preferred this dish on some organic brown rice (from Costco–love it!).  In a humongous pot of this jambalaya there is only 4 tablespoons of butter. If you use chicken or turkey sausage, this recipe is actually very low in fat and a ‘healthy’ way to start your New Year 😉 Enjoy!
 

 

 
Chicken and Sausage Jambalaya
Ingredients
  1. 1 white onion, diced
  2. 2 Tbls. butter
  3. 1 green bell pepper, diced
  4. 1 red bell pepper, diced
  5. 1 yellow bell pepper, diced
  6. 2 cups (or four links) loop sausage (I love the Chicken Sausage from Costco--it's awesome and a lot fewer calories and fat than regular pork sausage), cut the sausage into thin, round slices
  7. 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts, fat removed and cut into 1 inch pieces
  8. 2 Tbls. butter
  9. 2 Tbls. cornstarch
  10. 2-3 Tbls. cajun seasoning (I love Weber's New Orleans Cajun Seasoning)
  11. 1 tsp. cumin powder
  12. 1/2 tsp. turmeric
  13. Dash of red pepper flakes (optional if you like more spice)
  14. 6 cloves of garlic, minced
  15. 2 cans of petite diced tomatoes, slightly drained
  16. 1 cup chicken broth
  17. Salt and pepper to taste
  18. Fresh parsley, chopped (for garnish)
  19. Cooked rice or pasta
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Instructions
  1. Cut and chop the vegetables. Slice the sausage and cut the chicken into one inch pieces. In a large saute pan, heat two tablespoons of butter on medium-high heat until the butter begins to slightly turn brown. Add the onions to the hot skillet and turn the heat down to medium heat. Saute the onions until tender, about 4-5 minutes. Add the diced peppers into the pan with the onions.  Saute the peppers until tender but not mushy. Put the peppers and onions in a separate bowl and set aside.  Keep the pan on medium heat and add the sausage slices to the pan. Saute until nicely golden brown. The sausage is already cooked, so you really just need to brown it and heat it up. Once the sausage is browned, add the sausage to the peppers and onions and set aside. In the same pan, add the rest of the butter and bring back up to medium heat. Add the chicken pieces to the butter and saute until lightly golden brown. Add 2 Tbls. of cornstarch and the seasonings to the chicken and saute until the chicken is golden brown and you can begin to smell the spices. Turn the heat down to medium-low heat and then add the chicken broth, garlic and diced tomatoes. Let the mixture simmer until it begins to thicken and the chicken is cooked through, about 5-8 minutes. Once it is cooked, add the peppers, onions and sausage back to the pan and simmer the entire dish until you are ready to serve. When serving, serve over hot rice (or cooked pasta) and then garnish with fresh parsley.
Notes
  1. *You could also add cooked shrimp to this dish too if you want
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