Hoppin' John

I got a Hoppin' John recipe from a viewer who swears that you have to use leftover holiday ham in it. Since I tried this when I didn't have any leftovers, I replaced the ham with turkey sausage and ended up with quite a satisfying dish. Try it either way.

Serves: 6

Cooking Time: 25 min

Ingredients

• 1 pound turkey sausage, casings removed
• 5 medium-sized carrots, peeled and chopped
• 1 medium-sized onion, chopped
• 1 medium-sized red bell pepper, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, chopped
• 5 1/4 cups ready-to-use chicken broth
• 2 cans (15½ ounces each) black-eyed peas, rinsed and drained
• 3/4 teaspoon dried rosemary
• 1/2 teaspoon ground dried thyme
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 3 cups instant white or brown rice

Instructions

1. Coat a large soup pot with nonstick vegetable spray. Add the sausage, carrots, onion, bell pepper, and garlic. Cook over medium-high heat for 7 to 8 minutes, or until the sausage is no longer pink. Remove from the heat and drain the excess liquid.
   
   
2. Add the broth, black-eyed peas, rosemary, thyme, and cayenne pepper. Bring to a boil, cover, and reduce the heat to low; simmer for 5 to 6 minutes, or until the carrots are tender. Add the rice, increase the heat to medium-high, and return the mixture to a boil. Cover and remove from the heat; let stand for 5 minutes before serving.