With the cold weather upon us,there is nothing like a hot and steamy bowl of soup or stew to keep you warm. Being a professional chef, I have many soup recipes in my pocket, but my favorite are definitely the ones I learned from my Southern roots. These delicious soups have numerous ingredients, but the effort is definitely worth it.

My favorite hearty meal is Jambalaya! Nothing like a little bit of spice to warm you up on a blustery evening. This is my own recipe I came up with from trial and error many times. All edible, but just lacking a little bit until I found that "bite" I was looking for in the back of my mouth. Adjust the "heat" to your own taste, starting with half the suggested amount of cayenne in the recipe and adding a little more until you get the taste you want.

Cajun Jambalaya

1. Whole chicken - 1 1/2 to 2 pounds
2. Andouille sausage - 1 pound cut diagonally
3. Ham - 1/2 pound cubed
4. Diced tomatoes - 28 oz can
5. Tomato sauce - 12 oz can
6. Green pepper - 1 large or 2 small diced
7. Onion - 1 large or 2 small diced
8. Celery - 2 ribs and the center leaves sliced
9. Frozen Cut Okra - 14 oz bag
10. Fresh Garlic - 1/2 tablespoon
11. Oregano - 1/2 tablespoon
12. Thyme - 1/4 teaspoon
13. Cumin - 1/2 teaspoon
14. Cayenne - 1 teaspoon
15. Sea salt - 1/2 teaspoon
16. Pepper - 1/2 teaspoon
17. Bay leaves - 4 total
18. Chicken bouillon- 5 cubes
19. Water
20. Cooked Rice

Rinse whole chicken off after removing from package. Place in 6-quart soup pot in about 4-inches of water. Drop in two bay leaves and cover. Cook on medium heat until done, turning over once. Remove chicken from the broth and set aside to cool. Strain the broth in the pan of any foam, discard the bay leaves.

Add to this broth the rest of the ingredients on the list, except the cooked rice. After the chicken is cool enough to handle, pull it from the bones and tear it into medium sized chunks and add to pot. You want to add enough water to the pot to cover all the ingredients by about 1 inch. This will make a 6-quart pot of Jambalaya.

Let simmer for about an hour, stirring occasionally. About 20 minutes before serving, get your rice cooking. Cook according to package directions for how ever many people are going to eat. Scoop servings of rice into bottom of bowls and ladle jambalaya over the top. Add a nice crusty bread or cornbread to the meal to finish it off. Any left over jambalaya will stay good in the refrigerator for a week, or it freezes great for a quick meal at a later time.

Enjoy!! :-)