family tree: Laissez les bon temps rouler! // A Gumbo recipe

Hey y'all!

I'm not sure if it was from hearing about Mardi Gras last week, watching Harry Connick Jr. on American Idol, or maybe just the cold weather, but I had a hankering to make a big ol' pot of gumbo last weekend!

I had never made gumbo before, but I wasn't too worried, as I found a great "easy" recipe after searching the web for "easy gumbo".

Now, was this "easy"? Yeah, pretty easy.

Did it take 30 minutes? No way.

Here's why it took more like an hour (or maybe a little longer) to prepare:

There's a lot of chopping! I actually enjoy chopping, so this was not a problem for me - I just want you to be prepared in case you decide to make this recipe.
On my grocery shopping trip last week, I was trying to stick with my monthly grocery budget (it's always hardest at the end of the month! Eek!), so I went to ALDI. Now, ALDI has great prices on frozen shrimp; however, the only raw shrimp I spotted were not peeled or deveined. Again, not a huge deal, especially at the price I paid, but it takes a bit longer to prep.

So, give yourself a little extra time for chopping and peeling/deveining. And maybe make it for the first time on a weekend, so you're not stressed by how much longer it may take than you originally plan for.

But, alas, it was a great recipe, one that I'll file away for future gumbo-hankerings. Plus, Ryan ate two bowls the night I made it, and the rest was gone in a matter of days. I had originally planned to freeze the leftovers (there were a TON!), but we ate it (it was also great for lunches - quick, simple, delish!). Jett didn't choose to try this meal, though... too "weird". Maybe next time?

Oh, and one other thing... Instead of using quinoa like the recipe calls for I just used some rice I had on hand.

Here are some pics of the gumbo making fun!

Chop to you drop!

Okay, this was part of a set I received for Christmas - Are they the cutest little measuring cups EVER? I'm obsessed. You can find them here if you so desire.