Red Beans and Rice

I intended for my next post to be of Christmas day, but this recipe must be shared. As you know, I'm expecting and that qualifies me to have cravings! All day I've craved red beans and rice. So, I decided to google a recipe. Let me tell you a little secret, usually I use the Zatarain's box of red beans with rice and add conecuh sausage. And I must say, it's not bad at all. But, I'm trying my best to learn and create a recipe book of meals that we enjoy. So, that means I have to try new things. Some things we eat and vow to never cook again. Others, we add to the list. So, here's one of my new favorites! Austin hasn't tried it yet. I'll let you know his opinion when he tastes it after church tonight.

Ingredients
1 cup uncooked long-grain white rice
2 cups water
2 tablespoons butter
1 onion, chopped
1/2 green bell pepper, chopped
16 ounces smoked sausage, thinly sliced
1 (15 ounce) can kidney beans, drained
1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes, undrained

Directions
1.Bring the rice and water to boil in a pot. Cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer 20 minutes.
2.Melt butter in a skillet over medium heat. Stir in onion and green bell pepper, and cook until tender. Stir in sausage, and cook until evenly browned. Mix in beans and tomatoes, and continue cooking until heated through. Serve skillet mixture over the rice.

I found this recipe at allrecipes.com and added a few indgredients to it. To give it some flavor and spice, I added about a tablespoon of cayenne pepper, thyme, and parsley. Oh, and I used 1/2 of an onion and a whole green pepper. To add some more spice to it, I bought cajun smoked sausage. One more thing, I cooked my rice and added it to the red beans instead of serving seperately. Finally, with a pan of cornbread you'll enjoy a WONDERFUL dinner!