Date Night Dinners - A Whole Foods Adventure (Jambalaya)
In case you missed the memo, I love Whole Foods. I didn't fully understand what all the hubbub was about when I first heard mention of the store, coming to my area, a few years back. We didn't have one near us and my hatred of driving greatly outweighed my curiosity for exploring a grocery store. I didn't realize what I was missing out on until I had my first, brief experience with the store a year or so ago, when I biked the 20 miles there and back. I instantly fell in love. I don't know with what exactly, just the overall package - the fresh food, the wide variety of products, the sharp look of the store, and of course the creative designs throughout the structure, packaging, and marketing.
Since that first visit, I began counting down the days until the expected Whole Foods was to arrive in my city, a mere seven minutes away from where I live. I was so excited, I even wanted to line up for the opening, but I couldn't justify taking the day off from work. The day of the grand opening, Wednesday, August 20 came and went, and with my hectic schedule, it would be another week until I could get my Whole Foods fill, but that is where the story for this weeks date night begins.
Since returning from nearly two weeks away (don't worry, more on that in another post), I was craving some good ole' homemade food. The problem was we had hardly anything left in the house and I was still in the instant gratification mindset in terms of food. Brenden was in the mood for something light, different from the greasy, heavy subs and barbecue we had stuffed our bellies with on vacation. We both wanted something, but we didn't know what and neither of us were truly digging what the other suggested. That's when it hit me. WHOLE FOODS. It was open now and I still hadn't been. How perfect?! And I could finally convince Brenden, the die hard Wegman's fan that Whole Foods was the best store ever (yes I am sorry other Wegman's fans but it is true, and within five minutes of entering the store, Brenden verbally agreed to the statement as well).
It was set. We figured we would take a look around and grab some things that looked good to us; that way we could each fill our own craving and still get a delicious meal. Within minutes the plan was changed. We found the bulk pasta section, filled with pasta we had never seen before at a great price and we new we had to make something with pasta. Our fingers were itching to fill our bags with all the pasta shapes, like a kid in the candy aisle. So we took a moment to think and decided we would make our own variation of jambalaya - a pasta jambalaya.
Brenden whipped out his nifty smart phone and found a basic jambalaya recipe (never having made something like this before) so we could get inspiration for the ingredients we would need to make it our own. We then headed over to the meat and seafood sections and picked out some fresh chicken sausage along with sea scallops. They wrapped up our proteins (in designed paper that I fell in love with. The meat guy thought I was crazy when I asked for a clean, spare piece to keep in my inspiration box). We continued around the store to see if we had missed anything. Of course we did, okay not really, but my lust to try certain things was too strong. We got some fresh made guacamole and chips, along with a sushi roll for an appetizer that we ate in the store before heading home to prep the meal.
I didn't know what we would have in store for ourselves with the dish as we chose the meal and the basic recipe on a whim, but it ended up suiting us perfectly. Simple, somewhat quick, and not a lot to it. Besides cooking the seafood separately, it was pretty much a one pot meal. We chopped up the veggies and started cooking the sausage.
Once everything was added and cooked, we served ourselves and enjoyed our Whole Foods inspired meal. It was quite delicious and we were so satisfied with our choice and our adventure. I will admit that the jambalaya did become a bit too spicy for me, in the sense that eventually all I could taste was the heat. But after all, jambalaya is supposed to be spicy, so I guess it turned out perfect. Brenden was definitely pleased and already brainstorming for the next time we would be making it. He and I particularly liked the scallops, as their sweetness was a good offset to all of the spice. I said I could taste the nice melody of flavors in my mouth with each bite. Brenden claimed it was a complimenting medley. Either way it was harmonious and tasted excellent.
*Note: I was in no way endorsed or bribed to write any of the above about Whole Foods, this is solely my opinion.
Jambalaya with Pasta
Recipe adapted from foodiesarsenal.com, Basic Sausage Jambalaya
Ingredients
- 1 lb chipotle chicken sausage, casing removed
- 1/2 lb. sea scallops
- 10 oz. pasta
- 3 cups vegetable stock
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced
- 1 bell pepper, diced
- 1 tsp worcestershire sauce
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp parsley
- 1 tsp thyme
- 1 tsp oregano
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp liquid smoke
- salt and pepper to taste
Directions
- In a medium stock pot, brown the sausage over medium heat, crumbling as it cooks.
- Add in the onion and pepper and sauté for about 10 minutes.
- Stir in the dried pasta combining thoroughly.
- Add the vegetable stock and bring to a simmer.
- Sprinkle in the remaining seasonings.
- Cook for about 15-20 minutes until the pasta is soft and has absorbed most of the liquid.
- In the last five minutes of cooking, take a medium skillet and heat with oil.
- Once the skillet is hot, add the scallops.
- Sear on goths sides for about a minute and a half each. Do not overcook or they will become rubbery.
- When the scallops are cooked, add them into the rest of the Jambalaya.
- Serve and enjoy!
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