I'm not even going to think about what is in sausage.

I should preface this post by explaining that we live half a block away from one of the best butcher shops in town. And we live in Meat City, so that's saying something.

Hubby brought home some sausage the other day, some Kickin' Chicken and some Sweet Italian. Told me he knew I'd only asked for steaks, but we could find "something" to do with it. Then helpfully added that Sausages and Peppers would be good.

Sigh. 

Sausages and Peppers? What? I'm questionable on bell peppers, and the idea of a Meat Lovers pizza makes me want to make immature icky-poo faces ( I don't actually know anything else sausage is good for, other than sliced up and served with hot mustard as appetizers).

And so to the internet I went. I found a couple of recipes that seemed simple enough (I didn't want to get crazy here), and hubs asked if we could add pasta to it (no, I don't know why he didn't just make it himself), so I dug around and found some small elbow macaroni to add to this business.

Turns out it smelled delicious (especially once the basil was in), and it looked gorgeous. Here was the finished recipe that actually made it to the table. And yes, it was delicious. Even for a non meat/pepper lover. Seriously.

Sausages and Peppers with Pasta
Spray oil
4 uncooked sausages (about 1 lb), your choice of flavor, but mild is best
1 tbsp olive oil
1 red onion, halved and sliced
6 garlic cloves, minced
1 orange bell pepper, halved and sliced (or green or red)
1 yellow bell pepper, halved and sliced (or green or red)
1 tsp dried oregano
about 1/4 cup thinly sliced basil
1/4 cup white wine (I used pinot grigio)
About 3 servings cooked pasta (al dente; any shape you like)
1/4 tsp salt
good pinch fresh pepper
Parmesan (optional)

Coat a large pan with cooking spray and heat over medium high heat. Add sausages and brown each side around 3 minutes (let them rest against each other if it makes it easier to get each side.)

Remove sausages to large cutting board or plate.

Add onion and garlic to pan. Sauté about 3 minutes. Add bell pepper, wine, and oregano. Stir occasionally, about 5 minutes.

In the meantime, slice sausages.

Add sausage and basil to mix and cook about 3-4 minutes or until sausage is hot and no longer pink. Add cooked, drained pasta, toss well, and cook until everything is heated through.

Season with salt and pepper as needed and Parmesan if desired.

Jamie's Spicy Meat Gumbo

I know I teased more Jamie recipes last week than I actually posted about...but that was for your own good. Beer Butt Chicken was fine (and very juicy, even though I was worried my prehistoric oven over-cooked it), but nothing earth shattering...although Hubby has since insisted it was worth posting about. Maybe if I use a better rub next time. I'll keep you posted. As is, my favorite part is that it looked more than slightly inappropriate before and after cooking:


Heh.

I also made Zucchini and Couscous Salad...it made a ton and, over the course of a couple days, I ate a ton...but to be honest, it's pretty similar to my Greek Chicken and Quinoa Salad, and I prefer the latter. It was good, but something was missing for me.

Yesterday, however, I attempted one of his Gumbo recipes...and it's worth sharing. There were a few changes I had to make: his version calls for sweet potato and fresh herbs, all of which I was out of, but omitting the potato was fine, and dried thyme and bay leaves worked just as well. I also added the hot sauce, since my cayenne pepper seemed a little questionable, and used beef broth instead of chicken. Served over some white rice and we pretty much destroyed it. It was hard to just have one serving. (But I did. It's not exactly low-fat.)



I'm not going to lie and say this is an easy one...I mean, it's not difficult, but it does take time (About 2.5 hours, AKA way more than I anticipated—otherwise I would have done it on a weekend). Just pay attention to it and, as Jamie says, 'dedicate a bit of love' to it.

Also, and this is gross...I'm recommending you take the skin off the chicken either from the start or after you brown it. Between that and the bacon and sausage, I skimmed off a good 1/2+ cup of fat/attached broth while it cooked. It took forever to do, and liquid fat is just nasty to deal with.



Meat Gumbo
olive oil
1 package bone-in chicken thighs (about 6)
S&P
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp cayenne pepper (or about 2 tsp Frank's or other cayenne sauce)
3 spicy sausages, thickly sliced (I used the Spicy Louisiana flavor)
4 slices of smoked bacon, chopped roughly
Large onion, chopped
1 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 yellow bell pepper, seeded and chopped
4 stalks celery, trimmed and diced
3 tbsp flour
6 cloves garlic
leaves of 6 thyme leaves, or a little less than a tsp dried
4 bay leaves
6 cups broth
green onion to top

Season chicken with salt, pepper, paprika and cayenne. In a large pan (You need a big one), heat a bit of olive oil (I'm sure spray would have worked fine), and add the chicken, sausage and bacon. Let brown a few minutes over high heat, then flip and stir fry it all around for about 10-15 minutes or until everything is a little golden. Reduce heat to medium high and remove chicken from pan and place on a large plate. Cover with foil to keep warm.

The pan should have a bunch of drippings in it by now, so just add the veggies (onion, bell peppers, celery) and saute about 10 minutes (move it around a bit occasionally).

In the meantime, pour yourself a drink, grab a book, tune the station to something you like. Cause you're about to be stuck at the stove for awhile. Add the flour, and start stirring; slowly but very often is good. Jamie says it should be at least peanut-butter dark by about 10-15 minutes, but mine never got that dark, and I cooked it about 25 minutes. So...aim for darker than lighter, and cook between 10 and 30 minutes.

Stir in the broth, bay leaves, thyme, garlic, and a bit more pepper. When it comes to boil, reduce to a low boil (medium low heat or so), and cook about 45-60 minutes, stirring once in awhile. When it's ready, the chicken will easily pull off the bone.

When you're ready, remove the chicken from the pot, pull off all the meat, and return just the meat to the gumbo. Season to taste with S&P and hot sauce.


He says this serves 6-8...I say closer to 8. But Jamie loves his fat-kid portions. About 245 cals (plus rice) if you aim for 8 servings.