Mom’s Chicken Gumbo

 

Today is the first day of school for my kids!  It’s been a long fun summer but, even my 7-year old admitted he’s “ready for school to start.”   The night-before-the-first-day-of-school dinner is always important.  It’s become a tradition (started only last year) to reclaim the structure of mealtimes and scheduled days – both seemingly elusive during the fluid summer months.

I wanted to make a hearty dish, one I knew would appeal to both my kid’s tastes and somehow calm their jitters.

I uncovered Mom’s recipe for Chicken Gumbo that sounded perfect.  It’s beyond simple, quick to make and, I knew any rice-based dish would definitely rank high with my kids.

And, I had another cooking first.  I bought, handled, and cooked a keilbasa!

Look at that kielbasa!

I must say, the sweet smells of the sausage cooking with the chicken slices, chicken broth and stewed tomatoes immediately filled my kitchen with warmth.

My favorite chicken broth

After only a couple minutes to simmer and soak in the flavors and cook the rice, I filled the bowls and my kids came barreling in.

“What is this, it smells amazing” said my limited-palate daughter.

“It’s Chicken Gumbo,” I proudly answered.

“What does that mean,” she replied skeptically.

“It means it’s got everything you love, together in one dish,” I barked, a little bit defensive.

That was apparently all I needed to say to get my kids to eat not only one, but two bowls of GUMBO.

As I stashed the leftovers in the freezer, my son asked if he could have the same dish for the next night’s dinner.

I moved the gumbo to the fridge.

I smiled knowing I had nourished my kids both physically and emotionally.

Hello first day of school!