OMG make this, make this!!

While I realize that is probably a goofy title for a blog post and no one in the cool and hip blogosphere would ever deign to title their blog post that, I really have to. Last night we made something amazing. Seriously.

Let me set the stage for you. I left work to go to the gym. It was 30 degrees outside at 5:15. After a grueling hour of biking and weights, I left to go home. It was 24 degrees, and dropping rapidly. I packed up basically every item of winter clothing I own, packed up the dog, and made the trek over to B's apartment. 20 degrees.

But when I got there, there was something in the freezer...

Gumbo veggies. And two cans of diced tomatoes. And a chicken breast we baked the night before. Because last night...last night was Weight Watchers gumbo. Yes, Weight Watchers.

About that. I do not do Weight Watchers. We are not on a diet. If I have not yet made this clear, I do not believe in diets. I believe in good food. And yes, occasionally "good food" means Taco Casa and a glass of Cabernet. I just don't make it a habit. I try my hardest to make recipes from whole foods, but when I need French fries, I eat them and I totally don't beat myself up. Food should be fun, not the enemy.

And last night, food was beyond fun. Food was AMAZING. The recipe was so easy I'm fairly certain my 6-year-old flower girl could totally pull this one off, so all you adults who can operate a stove don't have an excuse.

Spray a large skillet generously with nonstick cooking spray (we use the olive oil kind). Dump in a bag of frozen gumbo veggies.

Stir for a couple of minutes, then add a tablespoon of flour and stir a minute or so more. Then add chopped pre-cooked chicken, two cans of diced tomatoes, and 1 teaspoon of Creole seasoning. We decided to call this "the base," because it's from there that we took it to the next level.

It did not have enough seasoning. One teaspoon of seasoning was not even about to do it for B and me. We are spice freaks. We probably doubled, if not tripled the Creole seasoning. I threw in a few red pepper flakes, Kickn' Chicken seasoning, and salt and pepper. B added more pepper, cayenne pepper, and a few twists of my spice obsession, Trader Joe's South African Smoke Blend seasoning (for reference, click here).

We served it over rice, and, not to sound too much like a 16-year-old, ohhhhh emmmm geeeee. It was SO GOOD. Not sure if it was the cold weather, or the amazing combination of spices, the fact that I was starving after the gym or what, but we are going to be keeping this in the winter rotation (and maybe the summer). We may try shrimp in it the next time. We'll play around the with the spices (keeping my favorite, of course). If it's cold where you are (and you probably are, if you're in the US right now), MAKE THIS NOW. You can thank me later.

If you play around with the spices, please let me know what you use and how it turns out. And stay warm and safe this week, and enjoy!

Ingredients:
1 bag frozen gumbo veggies (corn, okra, celery, red peppers)
1 tablespoon flour
Pre-cooked chicken (store bought/packaged or home cooked, doesn't matter)
2 cans diced tomatoes (we used the kind with sweet onions in them)
Creole seasoning
Any and all spices you want to add

Directions:
Spray a large skillet generously with nonstick cooking spray.
Dump in frozen veggies and cook for a couple of minutes, stirring constantly.
Add flour. Cook for another minute or two, still stirring.
Add chicken, tomatoes, and any seasoning combination you like.
Cook for 6-10 minutes until everything is heated through.
Serve over rice or by itself.

Eat. Moan so loud with delight you scare the dog and the neighbors.

OMG Gumbo