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Archive for the ‘Sausage’ Category

Orzo with Sausage, White Beans, and Spinach

Posted in Main Dish, Pasta, Sausage, tagged , , , , on September 19, 2011 | 31 Comments »

Orzo with Sausage, White Beans, and Spinach

Have you heard of The Secret Recipe Club? Each month, participating bloggers are assigned another blog from the group. You choose a recipe from your assigned blog to make and post about. Until reveal day, you have to keep secret which blog you’re assigned. It’s a great way to find a new blog and try a new recipe. This month I was assigned the blog Mostly Food and Crafts, which has some great easy recipes and fun crafts too.

After reading quite a few recipes, I chose to make Mostly Food and Crafts’ White Bean and Sausage Saute. I love cooking with chicken sausage, and the combination of sausage, white beans, spinach, and tomatoes sounded delicious. I served my sausage and bean mixture on top of some cooked orzo, and we enjoyed a healthy and tasty meal.

One year ago:  Dark Chocolate Truffle Caramel Swirl Ice Cream

Orzo with Sausage, White Beans, and Spinach

Printable Recipe

Makes 4 servings

Ingredients:

  • 4 Italian sausages (I used sweet Italian chicken sausages)
  • 8 oz. orzo pasta
  • 1 tbsp. olive oil
  • 1 cup chopped onion
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1/2 cup low sodium chicken broth
  • 1 can (14.5 oz.) diced tomatoes, with juices
  • 1 can (15 oz.) cannellini (white kidney) beans, drained and rinsed
  • 3 cups baby spinach
  • 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Place sausages in a baking dish and bake until cooked through, about 40 minutes, turning once halfway through baking time. Set aside to cool for a few minutes and then slice into 1/4-inch thick round slices.
  2. Cook orzo according to package directions for al dente. Drain and set aside.
  3. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet and saute onion until soft, about 4 minutes. Add garlic and saute 1 minute more. Add sliced sausage to skillet along with broth and tomatoes. Bring the mixture to a simmer and cook for about 5 minutes, until most of the liquid has evaporated. Add the beans and spinach and cook until the spinach wilts, about 2 minutes. Gently stir in the parsley and season with salt and pepper to taste. Remove from heat.
  4. Serve sausage and bean mixture over the cooked orzo.

Recipe adapted from Mostly Food and Crafts

To see other great recipes from Secret Recipe Club members, follow the links below!


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Italian Sausage Skewers

Posted in Appetizers, Sausage, tagged , , , , on July 28, 2011 | 1 Comment »

Italian Sausage Skewers

Looking for a fun and tasty appetizer that won’t keep you cooking in the kitchen and away from your guests? These Italian Sausage Skewers can be prepared a few hours in advance and then stored in the refrigerator, making them an ideal appetizer for entertaining.

Fresh tomatoes, basil, and mozzarella are a classic combination, and these skewers are made even better with the addition of Italian sausage and kalamata olives. Delicious flavors and a beautiful presentation make these Italian Sausage Skewers a perfect choice for your next celebration.

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Italian Sausage Skewers

Printable Recipe

Makes 24 skewers

Ingredients:

  • 8 ounces Italian-style chicken or turkey sausage
  • 24 boconccini (small fresh mozzarella balls)
  • 8 large fresh basil leaves
  • 24 grape tomatoes
  • 12 pitted kalamata olives, cut in half lengthwise
  • Twenty-four 6-inch wooden skewers

Directions:

  1. Cook the sausage according to the package directions and cut it into 1-inch-thick rounds. Cut the basil leaves lengthwise into thirds.
  2. Place a mozzarella ball about 1/3 the way up a skewer. Place a sausage slice at the end of the skewer behind the mozzarella.
  3. Working from the other end of the skewer, add one strip of basil, folding so it fits nicely on the skewer. Follow with one tomato and an olive half. Repeat with remaining skewers and ingredients. The skewers may be prepared several hours in advance and stored in the refrigerator.

Recipe adapted from The Food You Crave by Ellie Krieger

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Shell Pasta with Sausage and Roasted Peppers

Posted in Main Dish, Meat, Pasta, Sausage, tagged , , , on June 21, 2011 | 2 Comments »

Pasta Shells with Sausage and Roasted Peppers

One of my cooking goals is to work on creating more of my own original recipes. After spending so much time in the kitchen, as well as reading cooking magazines, cookbooks and blogs, and watching the Food Network, I have a pretty good sense of which recipe ideas will work out and which may not. The challenge for me is remembering the variety of ingredients that are available, so that I don’t get stuck using the same ones over and over in my recipes.

This pasta dish is a recipe that I recently created, using what I’ve learned from cooking a variety of pasta dishes over the years. And if I dare to say so myself, it was a huge success. I think the combination of flavors turned out just right, and we were happy to enjoy this for dinner two nights in a row. Aren’t leftovers great?

I used whole wheat shell pasta and sweet Italian turkey sausage, although you can use whatever you like best. Each bite of pasta is coated with flavor thanks to a sauce made from garlic, red pepper flakes, the browned sausage bits (thanks to a quick deglaze of the pan with white wine), some Parmesan, and a little of the pasta cooking water. Roasted red and yellow bell peppers as well as peppery arugula help to finish the dish with a pop of color and flavor.

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Pasta Shells with Sausage and Roasted Peppers

Printable Recipe

Makes 4-5 servings

Ingredients:

  • About 10 oz. whole wheat pasta shells (approximately 3 cups dry pasta shapes)
  • Extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 pound sweet Italian turkey sausage, casings removed
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
  • 1/3 cup white wine
  • 2 roasted bell peppers, thinly sliced (I used one red and one yellow)- see How to Roast Bell Peppers
  • 3 cups arugula
  • 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
  • Salt and pepper

Directions:

  1. Cook pasta according to package directions for al dente. Reserve 1 cup of the pasta cooking water before draining the pasta.
  2. Heat about 1 Tablespoon olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Cook the sausage, crumbling into bite-size pieces, until no longer pink and browned around the edges. Add the garlic and red pepper flakes during the last minute of cooking.
  3. Add in the white wine and continue to cook and stir for about 2-3 minutes, until most of the wine has cooked off, scraping up the browned bits from the bottom of the pan.
  4. Over low heat, add in the roasted peppers, arugula, cooked pasta, and Parmesan. Stir to combine. Add a little of the reserved pasta water as needed to help make the sauce. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Recipe is a Kristine Original

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Chicken Sausage Sandwiches

Posted in Easy Weeknight Meals, Main Dish, Meat, Sandwiches, Sausage, tagged , , on September 27, 2010 | 1 Comment »

Chicken Sausage Sandwiches

This sandwich has the perfect balance of sausage, vegetables, cheese, and bread. This was the first time I made this using ciabatta rolls, and we loved how well the ciabatta worked with the sandwich. It toasted up nicely under the broiler, and there was just the right amount of bread to hold the rest of the sandwich ingredients. (Sometimes we find that other sandwich rolls are too large, so you end up with some bites that are just bread and no filling.)

I like to use sweet Italian chicken sausage for this sandwich, but you could use any kind of sausage that you enjoy. I served a green salad alongside the sandwiches. Fruit salad would be a great side dish as well.

Chicken Sausage Sandwiches

4 Servings

Ingredients:

  • 4 chicken sausages (I like Trader Joe’s Sweet Italian Chicken Sausage)
  • Olive oil
  • 1 red bell pepper, sliced
  • 1 yellow bell pepper, sliced
  • 1/2 red onion, sliced
  • 1-2 tsp. balsamic vinegar
  • Slices of Monterey jack cheese
  • 4 sandwich rolls

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Place sausages on a baking sheet and bake until cooked through, turning once halfway through. (I usually cook them about 40-45 minutes.)
  2. Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Saute bell peppers and red onion until tender, about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add balsamic vinegar to the pan and continue to saute, stirring, about 2 minutes more. Remove veggies from heat.
  3. Slice sandwich rolls in half and place on a baking sheet, with the insides of the rolls facing up. Toast rolls under the broiler for a few minutes until they just begin to brown. Watch them closely so they don’t burn.
  4. Assemble the sandwiches by placing chicken sausages (sliced lengthwise), veggies, and cheese on each sandwich roll.

Kristine’s Kitchen original recipe

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