The Story Behind Mallorie's Jambalaya Recipe

For years, I’ve made this recipe for every family function – birthday parties, baby showers, Christmas, and football parties. If I’m invited, I’m bringing jambalaya. It’s my signature dish and, honestly, the one thing I feel super confident in cooking because it’s never failed me. Not even once. We even joke that it’s one of the main reasons Jim asked me to marry him. He’s yet to confirm or deny this.

But the truth is, it’s not my recipe at all. I stole it from my Aunt Betty.

Aunt Betty, my dad’s oldest sister, taught me how to make it when I was in college; I guess she knew that every young single girl needed an ace up her sleeve. So whenever I pull out the ingredients, I’m instantly transported back to her kitchen, deep in South Louisiana. I can hear her voice and see her handwritten ingredient list, which makes me love it all the more after losing her last summer. I miss her fiercely, but I’m so thankful for my little Jambalaya Time Machine; her legacy lives on with every pan we make.

It just goes to prove that every family recipe has a story, family member or tradition behind it. It was this whole thought process that led us to create our Family Recipe and Stories cookbook back in 2017, and Aunt Betty’s Jambalaya recipe was the first one I submitted!  We compiled this little informal field guide of all our family recipes that come out of our ovens the most and the stories that go along with them. It’s not fancy, but we hope our little book proves to be an ace up your sleeve, too…and heck, there may even be a recipe in there that could help you snag a husband if you play your cards just right.  – Mallorie Rasberry  

For more family recipes and stories, check out our Family Recipes and Stories cookbook series.