Jambalaya

 Jambalaya is one of those things that you pretty much need rice for.  I'd tried making a paleo jambalaya recipe, but without rice it was more like jambalaya soup.  So, I thought I'd have to give up this tasty Cajun dish, until I discovered that Jovial (who makes pasta noodles based on cassava flour) makes an orzo (pasta in the size and shape of rice grains).  It turns out that this does a pretty good job of soaking up the liquid, so I've started keeping a couple of boxes of their orzo on-hand.  (As always, any name brands, links, or other such information are only provided for informational purposes, and I do not receive any money or other consideration for such endorsements or mentions.)

Ingredients

• 1 to 2 pounds of cooked meat (I often use a mix of ham, chicken, and andouille sausage - I tried making it with shrimp, and it was good, but the leftovers were overwhelmingly "shrimpy")
• 2 Tbsp cooking oil
• 3/4 cup diced onion
• 3/4 cup diced celery
• 3/4 cup diced green pepper (try to make the onion, celery, and green pepper pieces all about the same size)
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 small (14oz.) can crushed tomatoes (about a cup and a half)
• 3 to 4 cups chicken broth
• 1 box Jovial grain-free orzo
• 2 Tbsp Cajun seasoning
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 2 bay leaves
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (or more or less, depending on how you like the heat)

Instructions

1. Make sure all your meat is cooked beforehand (unless you're using shrimp).
2. In a large pot, heat the cooking oil on medium heat.
3. Add the onion, celery, and green pepper and heat, stirring, until the onions are waxy/translucent and the other vegetables are "tender-crisp".
4. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, for about 30 seconds.
5. Add the crushed tomatoes, 2 cups of the broth, orzo, and spices.
6. Cook for 25 minutes, stirring every five minutes, and adding more broth as necessary.  If you're going to add shrimp, add it about 5-10 minutes before the end of this time.
7. Add the meat, stir in, and cook another 5 minutes or so.
8. Remove the bay leaves before serving.

This jambalaya should be fairly thick at the end.  Leftovers will thicken up in the fridge even more overnight.