Jambalaya is a Creole dish out of the Louisiana Bayou that epitomizes the art of deep Southern cooking. Traditionally, it's made with shrimp, but there are endless variations of the basic repice.

I just whipped this up with some things I had on hand and it came out awesome.

Chop up some red onion and green pepper, about 1/2 cup of each.

Cut up a ripe tomato (about 3 inch in diameter) into small chunks, larger than the onions and peppers.

2 tablespoons of olive oil

2 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar

teaspoon of garlic pepper

1/2 teaspoon of celery seed

Take those ingredients, mix them all together in a 9 x 13 pan, put that on the grill at low heat, saute the mix.

Toss in a can of your favorite baked beans. 12-16 ounces, keeping heat constant, about 6 minutes.

Then add in 2 cups of chicken broth (you will need more) and a package of store bought Jambayala, 8 ounces, (doesn't really matter which brand as long as it contains rice and some spices), you'll keep adding chicken broth or water until the rice is done.

Add some pre-cooked chicken breast (or any meat you have as a leftover, it will be fine) chopped into 1/4 inch pieces.

Keep heating, about 25 minutes at a slow boil, adding chicken broth or water as it is needed. You don't want this to dry out at all. The beans and the rice will soak up most of the water or broth you throw in, so don't worry about adding too much.

I suggest while that's going, if you have a two or more burner grill, start grilling up some sausage (any kind you like). I used a gruyere and spinach chicken sausage, pack of five. I put two in the beans and rice mix and three right on the grill. You can do this whatever way you like.

This is a great recipe to play around with as suits your taste. I love baked beans, rice, chicken, sausage and all kinds of vegetables and spices, so I'll definitely make this one again on the grill.

I had a thermometer on the grill at the time and the temperature seemed to stay in a range around 250 degrees F.

Let the whole thing rest about 3-4 minutes and enjoy!

You can do this with an open grill or closed. You'll want to stir often early on, and less as the mixture coagulates.

Now it can feel like Mardi Gras every day.

- Fearless Rick