Shrimp and Sausage with Polenta

Recipe from http://www.realsimple.com/food-recipes/browse-all-recipes/shrimp-with-polenta-00100000076771/index.html

Serves 4| Hands-On Time: 20m| Total Time: 20m

Ingredients

• 3  tablespoons  olive oil
• 1/2  pound  andouille sausage, sliced
• 1  pound  peeled and deveined medium shrimp
• 1  bell pepper, sliced
• kosher salt and black pepper
• 4  tablespoons  unsalted butter
• 1  cup  instant polenta (just use cornmeal)
• 1/2  teaspoon  chopped fresh oregano

Directions

1. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook the sausage until browned, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the shrimp, bell pepper, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper and cook until the shrimp are opaque, 3 to 4 minutes more. Add 2 tablespoons of the butter and cook until melted.
2. Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, bring 3 cups of water to a boil. Whisk in the polenta and cook, whisking, until thickened, 3 to 4 minutes. Whisk in the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter, ½ teaspoon salt, and ⅛ teaspoon pepper. Serve with the shrimp mixture and sprinkle with the oregano.

By Sue Li , March, 2012

"Minestrone" Soup

I got this recipe from my History of Food professor, Jim Faulconer, in London 2005. He calls it minestrone, but it is nothing like any other minestrone I've ever had and everything like every Italian wedding soup I've ever had. Either way, it's really good. You could substitute some kale for the spinach if you wanted.

serves 4-6

2 T olive oil
1/4 lb Italian sausage, diced
1 medium onion, diced
2 ribs celery, diced
3 large cloves garlic, crushed and minced
1 medium zucchini, diced
1 bay leaf
1 can white beans
1 can garbanzo beans/chick peas
salt and pepper
8 C chicken stock
1 C small shell pasta
1/2 lb green beans, trimmed and cut into 1 inch pieces
10 oz spinach, clean and coarsely chopped (any dark greens work)
1/2 C freshly grated Parmigiano-reggiano or romano cheese, plus extra for topping
12-16 leaves fresh basil, cut into a chiffonade-- substitute 1/4 C chopped parsley if necessary (don't tell Jim, but we used dried basil. just know fresh is way better)

Heat a soup pot over medium high heat. When the bottom of the pot is hot, add the olive oil and turn the pan to distribute the oil.

Saute the sausage for two minutes.

Add the onions, celery, garlic, zucchini, and bay leaf.
Season with salt and pepper to taste and saute for 5 minutes, stirring frequently.

Add white beans, garbanzo beans, and chicken broth.
Cover and bring to a boil.

Add pasta and green beans to the boiling broth, and cook 8 minutes or until pasta is barely tender.

Stir in the spinach. When it is wilted-- about 1 minute-- stir in the grated cheese.

Ladle soup into bowls and top each bowl with a bunch of basil chiffonade or chopped parsley.

Autumn Sausage Casserole

I found a link to a blog of someone who used her slow cooker for one year. She had this recipe on there. We loved it. It's just what fall tastes like. I think it even looks like an autumn dish.

1 lb. sausage
1 large or 2 small apples, chopped (no need to peel)
1 yellow onion, chopped
1/2 cup chopped carrot
3 cups already cooked long grain rice
1/2 cup raisins
1 tbl. parsley
1 tbl. brown sugar
1/2 tsp allspice
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/3 cup chicken broth or water (I used water)

Use a 4 quart crock pot. If using uncooked sausage, brown and drain before putting it into the crock pot. Put all the ingredients in the crock pot, stir well. Cover and cook on low 5-7 hours or on high 3-4.

We thought it would be good with potatoes added to it.

Toscana Soup

Prep time: 1 hr

2 3/4 cups chicken stock or broth
1/4 cup heavy cream
1 medium russet potato
2 cups chopped kale
1/2 lb spicy Italian sausage
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

Combine the stock and cream in a saucepan over medium heat.

Slice the unpeeled potato into 1/4 in. slices, then quarter the slices and add them to the soup.

Add the kale.

Grill or sauté the sausage. When cooked and cooled, cut the sausage at an angle into slices about 1/2 in. thick. Add the sausage to the soup.

Add the spices and let the soup simmer for about 1 hour. Stir occasionally.

Serves 4 as an appetizer, 2 as an entree

Kielbasa and Lentil Stew

Prep time: 30 min.

1 lb. kielbasa or smoked sausage, cut into small cubes
1/2 head green cabbage, shredded (8 cups)
1 large onion, chopped
4 carrots, shredded
2 cans lentil soup (19 oz. each OR 10 oz. each condensed [and add 10 oz. water])
1 can (16 oz) crushed tomatoes in puree, undrained
3 Tbs cayenne hot sauce

Cook and stir sausage in 5 quart saucepot over medium-high heat 3 minutes or until lightly browned. Add vegetables; cook and stir 5 min. or until tender.

Stir in soup, tomatoes and hot sauce. Heat to boiling. Reduce heat to medium-low. Cook, partially covered, 10 minutes or until heated through and flavors are blended.

Rice and Sausage

1 lb of sausage
1 cup celery and 1 cup onion cooked with sausage
1 box both packs of dry chicken noodle soup (delete or replace with GF noodles)
1-2 cups of rice
chicken bouillon/ soup base to taste (NO MSG!)
enough boiling water to cover
some pepper
bake at 350 until water is absorbed (about 40 min if water is boiling, 60 min if not)