Turkey Jambalaya (with Scallops too)

I had some scallops in the freezer that had been there for a really long time, so I came up with a way to use a lot of them: jambalaya! I made two separate kinds: non-seafood for me, and scallop for Cookie Monster. Here is how I started things out: some chicken andouille sausage, zucchini, onions, garlic, carrots, bell peppers and a bunch of spices. I think I used oregano, basil, sage and some Texas Heat. I think I might've used some chili powder, cayenne and crushed red pepper flakes, too. This is the peril of cooking the way I do--I can't remember what I put in stuff and sometimes I can't replicate it exactly!

Then I dumped in some chicken stock and tomato sauce to make a soup.

Then I dumped in some sushi rice (the only white rice we have) and leftover turkey from the holidays (a great use for it!) and let it cook up in the soup. It thickened quite a bit, so I added a bit of chicken stock now and again to keep it from getting too thick.

As soon as Cookie Monster got home from work (I usually have dinner almost ready or done when he gets home. How '50s housewife am I?) I dumped in the rest of the packaged of defrosted baby scallops to make it more jambalaya-like (since we didn't have any shrimp). I just cooked the scallops through, which took about 5 minutes, and it was good to go!


To go with the soup, I made Cookie Monster a turkey, cream cheese and cherry preserves sandwich. It was really good! Just like Thanksgiving leftovers, except the cherry made it just a touch sweeter.