Fall is here

Today is such a beautiful day. It's cold, but sunny. These are my favorites. So I wanted to make something comforty and typical fall. So what better than Jambalaya and pumpkin pie ! and it was a hit!



JAMBALYA

In a big dutch oven put in the following ingredients

- 1 cup long-grain rice
- 3 tablespoons dried minced onion
- 1 tablespoon dried parsley flakes
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- salt and pepper

- 2 1/2 cups water
- 1 (14-ounce) can diced tomatoes
- 1 (8-ounce) can tomato sauce
- 1/2 pound fully cooked smoked sausage, cut into 1/4-inch slices
- 1/2 to 3/4 pound medium, fresh shrimp, peeled and deveined

Bring everything to a boil. Cover, reduce heat and let simmer for 20 minutes. Add shrimp and cook for an additional 5 to 7 minutes, or until shrimp are pink.



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Pumpkin Pie

Ingredients

* 1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
* 2 cups canned pumpkin, mashed
* 1 cup sugar
* 1/4 teaspoon salt
* 1 egg plus 2 egg yolks, slightly beaten
* 1 cup half-and-half
* 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) melted butter
* 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
* 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
* 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger, optional
* 1 piece pre-made pie dough

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Place 1 piece of pre-made pie dough down into a (9-inch) pie pan and press down along the bottom and all sides. Put the pie shell back into the freezer for 1 hour to firm up. Fit a piece of aluminum foil to cover the inside of the shell completely. Fill the shell up to the edges with pie weights or dried beans (about 2 pounds) and place it in the oven. Bake for 10 minutes, remove the foil and pie weights and bake for another 10 minutes or until the crust is dried out and beginning to color.



For the filling, in a large mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese with a hand mixer. Add the pumpkin and beat until combined. Add the sugar and salt, and beat until combined. Add the eggs mixed with the yolks, half-and-half, and melted butter, and beat until combined. Finally, add the vanilla, cinnamon, and ginger, if using, and beat until incorporated.



Pour the filling into the warm prepared pie crust and bake for 1 hour 15 minutes, or until the center is set.