lazy-bones jambalaya

Jambalaya is a slow cooking dish, so if you're in a hurry to eat before the night's festivities, look no further than this super quick version

Ingredients:

• 1 tsp. olive oil
• 1/2 onion chopped
• 1 garlic clove chopped
• 1/2 red bell pepper chopped

• 1/3 block firm tofu squeezed
• 1/2 can diced tomatoes drained
• 1/2 cup rice- already cooked
• 1 tsp. cajun seasoning

1. In a skillet on medium heat, sauté the onion, garlic & carrot in the olive oil, about 2 minutes
2. Throw the red bell pepper into the mixture, and cook until all the veggies are starting to get tender
3. Add the diced tomatoes, tofu & cajun seasoning and let simmer until all the flavors are well-encorporated and the vegetables are as soft as you'd like them
4. Stir in the cooked rice & give everything a good dash of ground black pepper & maybe some cayenne if you like a little heat
5. When the rice is heated through, slice up the king cake & dig in!

Happy Fat Tuesday, everyone!

roasted brussels sprouts

Brussel sprouts may have been your childhood nightmare, but now that you know how to roast them properly, you'll have to change your ways!

Ingredients:

• approx. 1 1/2 lb brussels sprouts
• 2 1/2 Tbl. olive oil

• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. ground black pepper

1. While the oven is heating up to 400° F cut the brussels sprouts in half & place them in a single layer on a baking sheet
2. Sprinkle the sprouts with the olive oil, salt & pepper, & and toss them with your hands so they're evenly coated
3. When the oven is hot, pop the baking sheet into the oven for 10 minutes
4. After 10 minutes, stir the brussels sprouts around & place them back in the oven for another 10 minutes, or until they're tender & slightly blackened 

fried pickles

Are you hungover? Is it the Super Bowl? Maybe a combination of both? Fried pickles are the answer.

Ingredients:

• Your favorite kind of pickle- chip cut
• 1 cup flour
• 1/2 cup rice milk

• 1 cup Panko bread crumbs
• 1 cup canola oil

1. Start by placing the flour, rice milk and bread crumbs all in separate dishes

2. Pour the oil into a large skillet or wok, and heat on high

3. Coat the pickles by dunking them in the flour, then the rice milk, and finally the bread crumbs

4. Toss the breaded pickles into the hot oil and fry approximately 1 minute on either side, or until they're golden brown

5. Serve with ranch dressing, and gobble them down- nom nom nommm