Chicken and Sausage Jambalaya

This one-pan dinner will be enough to feed an army (if your army consists of 4-6 very hungry people).  Corn bread (or the Jiffy brand corn muffins, I don't judge) makes a great side dish.

Ingredients:
1 lb chicken breast, cut into bite size pieces
1.5 lb sausage or bratwurst (I use Johnsonville Beer Brats)
½ teaspoon each of salt and pepper
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 onion, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
1 cup celery, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups uncooked white rice
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper (more if you like it spicy)
2 cups (small can) chicken stock
15 oz (small can) diced tomatoes

1. Season chicken with salt and pepper, brown in hot oil in large saucepan.
2. While chicken is browning, heat sausage in microwave until cooked through, let cool and slice.
3. Add sausage to pan and cook another 2 minutes. Remove meat and set aside, leaving grease in pan.
4. Add onions, green pepper, celery and garlic to pan. Cook on medium-high heat until slightly softened.
5. Stir in rice, cayenne pepper, chicken broth, tomatoes, and meat. Bring to a boil, then cover and reduce heat to medium. Simmer, covered, for 30 minutes or until rice is done. Stir the mix every 5 minutes to ensure even cooking.

Mac n Beer Cheese

We all know that macaroni and cheese is the epitome of awesome comfort food.  But there is a way to make it even tastier, by adding one of man's greatest inventions- beer!  The equation goes something like this:

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups macaroni noodles
2 teaspoons salt
2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
3 tablespoons flour
2 cups milk
8 ounces shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 cup dark beer (I have used Newcastle and Killian's, whatever tastes good to you)
3 links of beer bratwurst (I use Johnsonville Beer Brats)
2 teaspoons ground mustard
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon black pepper

Instructions:
1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Fill a pot with two quarts of water and a pinch of salt, bring to a rolling boil.  Add macaroni and boil 15 minutes or until tender. Drain and set aside.
2.  Heat bratwurst in the microwave for a few minutes, until fully cooked.  Slice and cut into bite sized pieces.
3.  While pasta is cooking, melt butter and olive oil in a large saucepan.  Add flour to the pan and stir until a smooth paste forms.  Gradually add the milk while stirring the mixture.  Continue cooking until the mixture is thick and bubbly.  Add six ounces of cheese and stir until completely melted.  Remove from heat and add beer, bratwurst, mustard, garlic powder, pepper and remaining salt.  Stir until well combined.
4.  Spray a glass baking dish (9x13 or 9x9) with non-stick cooking spray.  Use the pot from earlier to combine the drained pasta and cheese sauce.  Pour the mixture into the baking dish and cover with aluminum foil.  Bake for 15 minutes, then remove foil and sprinkle the remaining 2 ounces of cheese on top.  Continue cooking for another 15 minutes.  Remove from oven and let cool for 5 minutes before serving.