Sunday Gumbo

I had never made any sort of gumbo before this and the teacher's at school got to be my guinea pigs! I made this for Tuesday Soup day and served it up with Baked Hush Puppies. I got lots of great feedback, so I will save it to use again! To make it even better...it is gluten free! The recipe comes from my Taste of Home: Best Church Supper Recipes book (p.157).

Sunday Gumbo

Ingredients:

* 1 lb. italian sausage links, cut into 1/4-inch pieces

* 1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cubed

* 3 Tbsp vegetable oil (next time I will leave this out because the sausage makes plenty of oil)

* 1 medium red pepper, chopped

* 1 medium onion, chopped

* 3 celery ribs, chopped

* 1 tsp. dried thyme

* 1 tsp. dried marjoram (I replaced this with more thyme)

* 1/2 tsp. garlic powder

* 1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper

* 3 (14.5oz) cans chicken broth (I make my own broth)

* 2/3 cup uncooked brown rice

* 1 (14.5oz) can diced tomatoes, undrained

* 1 lb. uncooked medium shrimp, peeled and deveined

*2 cups frozen sliced okra

Directions:

1. In a dutch oven, brown sausage and chicken (do not completely cook) in oil. Remove meat with a slotted spoon and keep warm.

2. In the drippings, saute red pepper, onion and celery until tender. Stir in seasonings; cook for 5 minutes.

3. Stir in the broth, rice and sausage mixture; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer 20-25 minutes or until rice is tender and sausage/chicken are cooked thoroughly.

4. Stir in the tomatoes, shrimp and okra; cook for 10 minutes or until the shrimp turn pink. Stir occasionally.

5. Enjoy!!

Yield: 16 servings (~4 quarts)