Sausage and Chicken Jambalaya

I did not get a chance to get a picture of this before it was devoured by our Monday night football guests a few weeks ago. I did not even eat anything other than the random bits left in the crock-pot! That was alright though because my mom has made this before so I knew what I was missing out on.

This recipe was passed on to me by my mom, and I have no idea where her photocopy came from. So just to be clear, this is not my original recipe! But this is really good. I have never had jambalaya before this dish, and I am fairly certain this is not "authentic" jambalaya, but it still tastes great and feeds a hungry crowd, which is all good in my book.

My mom has adapted this to be made in the slow-cooker, and it still tastes just as great! The original recipe says it serves 6, so I doubled it for our party, but the original is below.

Sausage and Chicken Jambalaya
Source: unknown
Serves 6

Ingredients:
1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, diced
Mrs. Dash or other seasoning for the chicken
2 Tbls. oil
1 medium onion, diced
1 green bell pepper, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp. Thyme
2 Tbls. parsley, chopped
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
3/4 lb. smoked sausage, sliced
3/4 cup Acini di Pepe noodles
2 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth

Stovetop:
Heat the oil in a large skillet and brown the chicken. Once cooked, remove the chicken and set aside. Add the onion, bell pepper and garlic to the oil and cook until just soft. Add the sausage and herbs; stir for 1 minute. Return the cooked chicken and add chicken broth. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, cover, and simmer 30-40 minutes. Add Acini di Pepe and continue to simmer until pasta is tender. Serve warm.

Crockpot:
Heat the oil in a large skillet and brown chicken. Once cooked, remove the chicken and set aside. Add the onion, bell pepper and garlic to oil and cook until just soft. Transfer chicken, onion, pepper and garlic to airtight container and keep in refridgerator until ready (can be done the day before). Combine chicken, onion, pepper and garlic in crockpot. Add thyme, parsley, cayenne, sausage and chicken broth. Cook on low for 4 hours. Add Acini di Pepe during last 10-15 minutes. Serve warm.