Sausage and Peppers

I made this dish for a Memorial Day party earlier this year – everyone loved it and there were no leftovers to be had. Thank you to Simply Recipes, the original can be found here: link

Ingredients

• 1 pound sweet Italian sausage – sliced 1 inch thick
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 3 bell peppers (red, green, yellow) – sliced
• 1 large yellow onion – sliced
• 1 – 15 oz. can crushed tomatoes
• 4 cloves garlic – minced
• 1 tablespoon dried oregano
• 1 bottle of beer (optional)
• ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
• Salt to taste

Directions

Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a large stock pot. Add the sliced sausage and stir occasionally until browned on all sides. Add in peppers and onion and sauté until they begin to get tender.

Add the tomatoes, and remaining ingredients and bring the mixture up a simmer. Then turn the heat to low, stirring occasionally until the flavors have melded to taste – about 30- 40 minutes.

Serve over your favorite pasta or by itself.

Ratatouille

This recipe is a simplified version of the classic French method.

Ingredients

• 2 medium eggplants – sliced ¼ inch thick medallions
• 2 medium yellow onions – chopped
• 4 bell peppers (2 each green and red) - chopped
• 3 zucchini – sliced ¼ inch thick medallions
• 4 cloves garlic – minced
• 4 large tomatoes – seeded and chopped
• Fresh basil – approximately 20 leaves
• ½ cup fresh parsley – chopped
• Olive oil
• Salt and pepper

Directions

Peel the eggplant and cut into ¼ inch thick medallions. Place in a bowl and toss with salt. Let stand for 30 minutes (allowing the bitter oils to be released), rinse, and pat dry. Then 2 or 3 at a time, depending on your size of pan so that each one lays flat, sauté the eggplant, on medium-high, in hot olive oil about 1-2 minutes each side to brown lightly. Remove to a dish with paper towels (to absorb the oil). Continue until all of the eggplant slices have been browned. Eggplant is very absorbent, you will need to add oil throughout the frying process.

In a large stock pot, heat a little olive oil on medium heat. Add the onions and peppers and sauté until tender. While heating, chop and add the zucchini and stir. At this point the eggplant should be cool enough to handle. Chop the eggplant into large pieces and add to the pot. Continue to add the remaining ingredients.

Turn your heat to low, and cover the pot. Stirring occasionally, allow the ingredients to simmer and the flavors to meld together – approximately 40 minutes.

To add heartiness to the meal, serve over your favorite pasta.

Jambalaya

This recipe is from the Barefoot Contessa – all I did to modify was to remove the butter. With so many fresh favors in this dish, I promise you won’t miss a thing. The original can be found here: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/shrimp-and-sausage-jambalaya-recipe2/index.html

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 pound kielbasa or andouille sausage – sliced
• 1 pound smoked ham – cubed
• 1 medium onion – diced
• 1 cup celery – diced
• 1 green bell pepper – diced
• 1 red bell pepper – diced
• 1 cup tomato – seeded and diced
• 3 garlic cloves – minced
• 1 jalapeno pepper – seeded and minced
• 2 teaspoons fresh oregano
• 1 teaspoon fresh thyme – chopped
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 6 cups chicken stock
• 3 cups long-grain rice – rinsed
• 3 bay leaves
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 6 to 8 dashes hot sauce (i.e. Tabasco)
• ½ cup scallions – chopped  
• ¾ cup fresh parsley – chopped
• ¼  cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1 pound uncooked medium shrimp – cleaned with tails removed

Directions

Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven or black iron pot over medium heat, add the kielbasa and sauté for 8 to 10 minutes, until browned. Remove the kielbasa to a bowl, and set aside. Add the ham to the same pot and cook 8 to 10 minutes, until lightly browned. Remove to the bowl with the kielbasa, and set aside. Add the onion, celery and peppers to the same pot and sauté for 8 to 10 minutes, until the onion is translucent. Add the tomato, garlic, jalapeno, oregano, thyme, and tomato paste and cook until all the vegetables and herbs are blended well. Add the stock and bring to a rolling boil. Stir in the rice, and add the sausage, ham, bay leaves, salt, pepper and hot sauce. Return to a boil, reduce the heat to low and simmer, covered, for 20 minutes. Add the scallions, parsley, lemon juice and shrimp, and stir well. Cover the pot, remove it from the heat and allow the jambalaya steam, for 15 minutes, before serving.