Jambalaya

Jambalaya is a fantastic meal.  It's cheap, easy, and makes massive portions that can be eaten all week, or frozen.  I've made this before, but it's so good, I wanted to share it.  I got the initial recipe from SparkPeople.com (yes, that's one of my best sources of recipes, along with foodnetwork.com).  I usually make some minor changes, such as substituting andouille for the turkey sausage and eliminating the celery (I hate celery).  This time, I forgot the tomato paste, but it turned out wonderful, just the same.  I always end up with 8 servings, instead of 5, as I consider 1 cup a serving. 

Boeuff Bourginon and Risotto

When I was home for Christmas, we watched Julie & Julia.  Like I'm sure many people did, I immediately thought, "Boeuff Bourginon sounds delicious!"  Last week, I tried it.  For my red wine, I used my favorite, port.  I'm a huge fan of port.  Especially port and cranberry juice.  You should try it sometime. 

Anyway, back to the topic at hand.  I made the boeuff bourginon from a recipe I found on SparkPeople.com. 
Boeuf Bourginon
It turned out a bit runny, but I attribute that to the fact that I used 1.38 lbs of beef instead of 1.75.  It was still delicious.

My side dish for the meal was risotto.  I've always wanted to try risotto, considering it's a staple on nearly any Food Network show, but it seems really complicated when you're watching them on television.  This recipe made it insanely easy to make, and it tasted delicious.  I added a half cup of  mushrooms and a half cup of shredded Parmesan cheese, right at the end.  I will definitely be making both of these dishes again.