Sausage | I Can Cook That

Clams with Spicy Sausage

I (like most people, I’m sure) cook mostly things I want to eat. Every now and then, I will get a special request and will go outside my comfort zone (like this Meatloaf recipe, or this Sriracha Deviled Eggs recipe) but when it comes to a weeknight dinner, I’m really selfish about what I cook. So I thought it might be nice if I finally made something that was up my boyfriend’s alley more so than mine.

Don’t get me wrong, I still like what’s going on in this recipe. I just don’t usually make meals with sausage. But I was reminded of this recipe for Clams with Spicy Sausage as a suggestion to make on World Oceans Day as a Perfect Protein blogger (more information on that in my post on Thai Coconut Mussels), which was June 8. So. Um. I’m a little late. But this recipe is too tasty not to share!

This recipe can be found in the book The Perfect Protein: The Fish Lovers Guide to Saving the Oceans and Feeding the World and is from the ultimate seafood chef, Eric Ripert. This man knows his fish; one of his restaurants, Le Bernardin is known as a seafood mecca. But this recipe is really easy to make and cooks quickly, making it perfect for weeknight meals. I altered the recipe slightly but the gist is still the same.

Ingredients:

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1 white onion, thinly sliced
1 teaspoon curry powder
the zest of 1 lemon
1 andouille sausage, thinly sliced
1 cup low sodium chicken stock
2 dozen littleneck clams, well scrubbed
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
lemon wedges, for serving

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Biscuits and Gravy

To my readers who come to my page looking for quick and health(ier) cooking options, I apologize for this post. I am making Biscuits and Gravy, and I can’t even pretend that there are any health benefits to this, except perhaps a feeling of pure joy as you consume it. Healthy readers, maybe we can pretend that this recipe for a Southern favorite never happened? For the rest of my readers, I hope you enjoy this recipe. Because I sure did, it was fantastic.

So why the sudden move into southern cooking? Biscuits, of course! I was sent a few boxes of Robinhood Meetinghouse‘s frozen biscuits, including their original Cream Cheese Biscuit. The Maine-based biscuiteers (yes, I just really wanted to write the word biscuiteer) also make pull apart cinnamon bread, sticky buns, and mini pies. The company’s products contain no artificial flavors, colors, corn syrup, or genetically modified ingredients (GMOs). And the best part? The frozen biscuits are ready in the oven in only 25 minutes time.

There are plenty of ways to use their original biscuits, but a friend mentioned one of her favorite recipes from the South, Biscuits and Gravy, and I had to try it. This recipe is really out of my comfort zone. It even uses sausage, eep (I’m really not the biggest fan of pork products… you’ll notice that there are very few of my blog, with the exception of bacon and proscuitto.) I used a Paula Deen recipe as the base for the gravy because, well, it’s Paula Deen.

Ingredients (Serves 3):
1 box of Robinhood Meetinghouse’s frozen original cream cheese biscuits
1/2 to 1 pound sausage (I went with garlic sausage from Martin’s in Reading Terminal)
1/4 pound bacon (4-6 slices), chopped
3 tablespoons flour
2 cups whole milk
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons butter
a dash of hot sauce

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Garlicky Meatball Pasta with Avocado-Butter Lettuce Salad

Despite having an Italian mother, I have never made meatballs before. I’m almost embarrassed to admit it. Whelp, at the age of 26, I believe it is time to finally get my hands dirty and make some meatballs. One of Cooking Light’s 40 Fast Menus in Under 40 Minutes had a recipe for meatballs, so I used it as my base for this recipe.

For the Pasta:

9 ounces refrigerated fettuccine
12 ounces ground sirloin

2 sausages, removed from their casings
1/2 cup panko
1/3 cup chopped fresh basil
2 garlic cloves, minced
3/8 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 large egg, lightly beaten
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 3/4 cups lower-sodium marinara sauce
1 ounce Parmesan cheese, grated

For the Salad:

1 cup chopped red onion
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
3 cups torn butter lettuce
1 cup sliced avocado

Because this is a very simple sauce, I’d suggest going for a premium high-quality marinara sauce.

Bring a pot of water to a boil. While waiting for the water to boil, combine the beef, sausage meat, panko, basil, garlic, salt, pepper, and egg in a medium sized bowl. The original recipe did not have the sausage included, but I thought it would add some extra flavor (I used these awesome sausages from Martin‘s in Reading Terminal- Mozzarella and Basil Sausages, amazing right?)

Shape the mixture into small meatballs. The recipe says to make 16. I ended up with 10. I wasn’t very good at the whole eyeballing-the-right-size-thing.

By now the water should be boiling. Cook the pasta according to directions. Drain over a bowl to reserve 1/3 cup pasta water.

Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add the meatballs and cook until browned on all sides, about 5 minutes. (stir to flip the meatballs so they brown evenly)

Reduce the heat to medium low and add the sauce and 1/3 cup pasta water.

Cover and cook for 11 minutes or until the meatballs are cooked through.

While waiting for the sauce to cook, combine the red onion, olive oil, lime juice, salt and pepper in a bowl. Let stand for 10 minutes.

Add lettuce and avocado; toss gently.

When the sauce is finished cooking, mix in the pasta and cook until heated through, about 2 minutes.

Serve the pasta topped with some Parmesan cheese and the salad on the side.

I love how simple this recipe is but still packs a bunch of flavor! My normal tomato sauce takes forever to make, so I’m pretty excited to have a quick sauce when I need it.

Oh. And the meatballs? Fan-tastic. I could eat these all day.

The salad was really delicious as well! There was a bit too many onions for my liking, so I might limit the amount next time I make this.

I seem to forget how yummy simple recipes can be, something I need to remember as vegetables and fruits come back in season.

Thirty Minute “Paella”

I absolutely love paella: rice, saffron, seafood… what isn’t to like? If I could, I’d eat this amazing dish once a week. Traditional paella takes a good hour at least to make, so it would be quite the task to make it all the time. However, I found a paella-like dish from Cooking Light that can be made in 30 minutes! My parents and sister recently went to Spain and brought me back some amazing, but vague, spices. One was just labeled as “paella spice” and I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to try it out.

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

1/2 a white onion, chopped

2 chicken sausages, cut into pieces
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 pound large shrimp
2 cups uncooked rice
1 cup water
1 tablespoon oregano
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon “paella spice” (sub in 1/2 teaspoon crushed saffron for this)
1/4 teaspoon paprika, smoked would be ideal
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 cups chicken broth
1 cup frozen green peas
the juice of 1/2 a lemon juice

Using a Dutch oven or a heavy bottomed pan, head the olive oil over medium-high heat. Chop your onion and sausage.

Add to the pot and cook, stirring, for three minutes.

Add the minced garlic and cook, stirring, for about 30 seconds. Add the shrimp and stir in to the other ingredients.

Add the rice, water, oregano, salt, paella spice (or saffron), paprika, black pepper, and chicken broth.

Mix so that the rice is coated in the liquid.

Bring to a boil and cover. Reduce the heat and simmer for 20 minutes.

Remove from heat, stir in the peas, and squeeze with the juice of 1/2 a lemon.

So, traditional paella has that nice crispy bottom where the rice has started to stick to the pan. Twenty minutes obviously won’t give you that result. But the rice turns out fluffy and has the flavoring of not only the saffron/paella spice, but also the smokiness of the chicken sausage and a subtle fresh seafood flavor of the shrimp.

The little bit of citrus really enhances the dish. It brings out all of the flavors and adds such brightness to the rice.

I am so impressed and pleased with how this turned out. For just thirty minutes of your time, you can have a paella-type dinner prepared!

I kept the tails and shell on the shrimp so that they could soak in the liquid while cooking the rice. It helped so that the shrimp wouldn’t overcook. Also, I think it makes the paella look a bit more authentic. 🙂

If you are a bit squeamish about it, feel free to use deveined shrimp. I’d suggest not adding them to the pot until the rice is about half way cooked, so as to not overcook the shrimp.

I wish I could figure out what exactly was in the “paella spice” I had because the flavor was really amazing. Saffron, tumeric, spanish paprika? Sigh. Who knows. But if you come across any pre-made paella mix, be sure to buy it and try this dish! However, I do think that using saffron would make a really solid substitute.

Sausage, Pepper & Onion Sandwiches

I love making sausage and peppers. It is such a simple meal to make and is always well received. Sausage and peppers are a hearty meal and work well in both hot summer months as a sandwich, and also during the fall and winter as a chunky stew or over pasta. I purchased sweet Italian sausage to make a soup (which I have yet to actually make) that only required one sausage. I also had some peppers from my CSA share this week so this was a great option for dinner without having to purchase a bunch of new ingredients.

Ingredients:

4 sausages (I used sweet Italian. feel free to use hot sausages instead)

2 green peppers, chopped

1 red pepper, chopped

1 onion, chopped

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 1/2 cups crushed tomatoes

1 tablespoon tomato paste

1 teaspoon dried parsley

1 teaspoon dried basil

1 teaspoon dried oregano

Salt and pepper to taste

1 tablespoon olive oil

4 rolls

1 teaspoon fresh parsley, chopped (optional)

1 teaspoon grated Parmesan cheese (optional)

Add 1 tablespoon olive oil to a saute pan over medium-high heat. When heated, add the sausages and cook until browned, turning the sausages so they cook evenly.

While the sausages are cooking (about 10 minutes), chop your garlic, onion, and peppers.

Remove the sausages from the pan and set aside.

Using the same saute pan, lower the hear to medium. Add the garlic, onions, and peppers to the pan and cook until fragrant, about 5 minutes.

Add the 1.5 cups of crushed tomatoes. Feel free to add a bit more if you’d prefer yours a little more “saucy.” Add in the tomato paste, basil, dried parsley, and dried oregano.

Stir to combine. Bring to a simmer and add in the sausages. Season with salt and pepper.

Cook for 3-5 more minutes or until the sausages are warm. Cut the rolls almost in half, but not fully. You want the sauce to be able to settle at the bottom of the bun.

To serve, add 1 sausage to each bun. Spoon the onions, peppers, and tomato mixture over the sausage. Add some Parmesan cheese and/or parsley if you prefer.

If you have an outdoor grill, you can alter this recipe to grill the sausages and add to the pan at the end. This recipe can also be used over pasta, just chop up the sausage into bit sized pieces. This is a pretty messy meal so be sure to have plenty of napkins on hand. Enjoy!