Hearty Sausage and Rice Skillet

It seems as though any dish I make using the Jennie-O Hot Italian Turkey Sausage is one we're sure to love.  This hearty dish is one we decided we loved from the first bite.

I recently received my February/March 2013 issue of Simple and Delicious magazine and this was the first recipe I tried.  I've made it twice now, the second time I changed it slightly to make it even more healthy.  This recipe got all 9's on the Melnarik rating scale.

I began by removing the casings from the sausage and cooked it in a large skillet over medium heat, breaking it up as the meat browned.

Then, I added the oregano, chili powder and garlic salt.  My first cooking teacher in Jr. High taught me to add the dry seasonings directly to the meat, as it gets seared to the meat with the heat of the pan.

Once the seasonings were fully incorporated, I added the sliced mushrooms, yellow bell pepper and diced onion.

The seasonings will turn the mushrooms and onions a pretty orange color.

Next I added the tomato sauce and diced tomatoes with green chilies.

The rough chopped fresh spinach went into the pan next.  The original recipe called for 2 cups, but I doubled it the second time I made this dish to add more nutrients to it.  When the spinach cooks down, it seems to go into nothing, so an additional 2 cups was not too much.  In fact, I think it was just right!

It's hard to tell from the photo above, but it was taken just after I added the water.  I then let it come to a boil and cooked the dish for 2 minutes.

The last ingredient was the instant rice.  The first time I made this I used the normal Minute Rice, but when telling a friend about this amazing new dish I tried, she asked if I had used the brown rice made by Minute Rice.  I admitted I didn't know it even existed.  I figured their rice was so processed to make it cook faster that there was no way they would sell brown rice.  Alas, they do and I tried it the next time I made this dish, figuring the brown rice should be healthier.  The only difference was that it didn't seem to soak up the liquid as well as the traditional Minute Rice.

This is what it looks like when everything is mixed together.  It's pretty colorful and smells terrific at this point.

After adding the rice, I covered the pan for about 7 minutes to let the rice cook.

Once the rice was cooked, there was still a little liquid around the sides, but after stirring it in, the dish was ready to serve.

This healthy dish is quite hearty as well as delicious!  Enjoy!

Hearty Sausage and Rice Skillet

1 pound hot Italian turkey sausage links

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1 teaspoon chili powder

½ teaspoon garlic salt

½ pound sliced fresh mushrooms

1 medium sweet yellow pepper, chopped

1 medium onion, chopped

1 can (8 oz.) tomato sauce

1 can (14 ½ oz.) diced tomatoes with mild green chilies, undrained

4 cups fresh baby spinach, coarsely chopped

1 1/2 cups water

2 cups uncooked instant brown rice

Remove casings from sausage and cook in a Dutch oven over medium heat until no longer pink.  Add the oregano, chili powder and salt; stir to combine.  Add mushrooms, yellow pepper and onion; cook until vegetables are tender.  Stir in the tomatoes and tomato sauce.  Add spinach and stir to combine.  Stir in water.  Bring to a boil and cook for 2 minutes.  Add rice, making sure it is covered by the liquid; remove from the heat, cover and let stand for 5 – 7 minutes or until the rice is tender.  Stir before serving.

Roasted Pepper Tortellini

I like to try a new recipe at least once per week.  Not all of them are good enough to be blog worthy, but this dish is good enough to share.

I tend to think of meals that are cooked solely on the top of the stove as dishes that can be prepared on hot days, as the kitchen doesn't get over heated as it does when using the oven.  I was surprised, then, to find this in my December/January 2013 issue of Taste of Home.  Three of us ate this dish fresh and the other one ate it as leftovers the next day.  The fresh consumers gave this dish 9's and the leftover guy gave it an 8 on the Melnarik rating scale.

I began by placing the roasted red peppers in a colander to drain.  I also started heating some water in a medium pot on the stove to bring it to a boil to cook the tortellini.

Then, in a large, deep skillet (it has to have room for the cooked tortellini later) I browned the Italian sausage and chopped onions over medium heat.  Once the meat was no longer pink, I drained off the excess fat.

After the sausage started cooking and the peppers were fully drained, I placed the peppers in a food processor fitted with the blade and ran it until smooth.

Once the water came to a boil, I added the tortellini and cooked them according to the package directions.

To the sausage and onions I added the processed red peppers and the pizza sauce, mixing thoroughly.

I then added the cooked tortellini to the skillet, tossing gently to combine.

Once everything was combined nicely, I added some shredded mozzarella cheese and put a lid on the pan to let the cheese melt.

The flavor of the roasted bell peppers is what really makes this dish shine and gives it more of an unique flavor than a standard marinara sauce.  Enjoy!

Roasted Pepper Tortellini

1 package (20 oz.) refrigerated cheese tortellini

1 pound bulk Italian sausage

1/2 cup chopped onion

1 (14 oz.) jar roasted sweet red peppers

1 (15 oz.) jar pizza sauce

mozzarella cheese

Cook tortellini according to package directions.  Drain red peppers; process in a food processor until smooth.  In a large skillet, cook sausage and onion until meat is no longer pink; drain.  Add processed peppers, pizza sauce and the drained tortellini to the skillet; stir and heat through.  Sprinkle with mozzarella cheese.

Mexican Chicken and Rice

When it's hot outside, I like to make dishes that don't heat up my kitchen by turning on the oven.  This dish is made entirely in one skillet on top of the stove, and it makes enough for the four of us plus lunch for one of us the next day!

This recipe came enclosed with one of my Quick Cooking magazines years ago.  This hearty dish is served family style where I put the skillet in the center of the table and everyone helps themselves.  The salsa and spices give this dish a Mexican flavor and the melted cheddar is the perfect topping.  This recipe gets 8s and 9s on the Melnarik rating scale.

In a large skillet, I combine the chicken, bell pepper and onion.  I cook them over medium-high heat until the chicken is no longer pink and the vegetables are crisp-tender.

Then I add my seasonings.  My cooking teacher way back in 7th grade said to always add the seasonings directly to the meat as it will adhere to it and therefore will be more evenly distributed in your dishes.  That made sense to me, so I've been doing it that way ever since!

Next, I add the salsa, stirring to make sure it's fully incorporated.

The corn gets added next, followed by the chicken stock.  I stir until everything is well combined.

Once everything comes up to a boil, I add the Minute Rice.

It's important, that all of the rice is submerged in the liquids of this dish to ensure it cooks properly.  

I cover the skillet and remove it from the heat for 5 minutes to let the rice cook.  Then I remove the lid and "fluff" the rice by stirring gently.  You can see that the rice has absorbed all of the liquid.

While the rice was cooking, I was shredding the cheese so I could sprinkle it on top as soon as the rice was cooked.  I replaced the lid to trap in the heat, so the cheese would melt more quickly, and brought the skillet to the table for serving.

There aren't too many ingredients or steps to this dish, so I can have it on the table in about 30 minutes. No, I'm not trying to compete with Rachel Ray.  I just wanted you to know how quickly this complete meal can be put together.  Enjoy!

Mexican Chicken and Rice

2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch pieces

1 medium green pepper, diced

1 small onion, diced

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 can (8-3/4 oz.) whole kernel corn, drained

1 cup chicken broth

1 cup salsa

½ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon chili powder

¼ teaspoon pepper

1-1/2 cups uncooked instant rice

1-1/2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese

In a large skillet, sauté chicken, green pepper and onion in oil until chicken is no longer pink and vegetables are crisp-tender.  Add corn, broth, salsa, salt, chili powder, and pepper; bring to a boil.  Stir in the rice; cover and remove from the heat.  Let stand for 5 minutes.  Fluff with a fork.  Sprinkle with cheese.  Cover and let stand for 3 minutes or until cheese is melted.

Kansas City Steak Strips

My sister passed this recipe along to me years ago when I told her that my husband loves green beans.  He also loves beef, so this was sure to be a hit with him.  It was and it continues to be one of his favorite dishes.  What I love about this dish, other than how good it tastes, is that it can be prepared and on the table in about half an hour!

This dish is easy to prepare and is quite flavorful, plus it doesn't heat up the kitchen in the hot summer months.  My guys give it 8's and 9's on the Melnarik rating scale.

I always serve this over rice, and since it takes about 20 minutes to cook, I get that going in the rice cooker first.  If you don't have a rice cooker, the rice can be prepared in a medium saucepan on the stove.  Rice, when cooked, doubles in size so keep that in mind when determining how much to make.  I usually use about 2 1/2 to 3 cups of raw rice so that I have enough to go with any leftover meat.

I like to use my wok for this dish because it gives me plenty of stirring space, but a large skillet may also be used.  To begin, I melt half of the butter in the wok.

I add the steak, which I've cut into strips, cooking over medium-high heat until no longer pink and slightly browned on the edges.

I remove the cooked beef to a board.  It does not need to be kept warm as it will be returned to the pan to reheat with the rest of the ingredients.

The remaining butter goes into the wok, where I let it melt.

Then I add the green onions to the wok, stirring and cooking over medium-high heat until they are wilted, but before they begin to brown.  They get removed from the pan to the steak, which was previously removed.

The beef broth gets added to the wok and as it heats, I scrape the pan to get any of the tasty bits that the meat or onions left behind.  

Then I add the chili sauce and stir to combine.

To that, I add the frozen green beans.  That's right, you don't even have to thaw them!  They defrost quickly and they cook in about 3 minutes as I stir occasionally.  The original recipe indicated that the green beans could be substituted with frozen mixed vegetables, but I've never tried it that way as we like it so much this way.

Once the beans are cooked, I add back in the steak and green onions, stirring to combine the ingredients and making sure the meat and beans are covered in the sauce.  I stir making sure everything is heated through.  Salt and pepper is added at this point according to our taste.

The last step is to serve it over the hot, fluffy rice.  Simple and tasty, it doesn't get much better than that!  Enjoy!

Kansas City Steak Strips

2 sirloin strip steaks (12 oz. ea.) or 1 lb. of sirloin beef tips

3 tablespoons butter

1 cup thinly sliced green onions

1/2 cup beef broth

1/2 cup chili sauce

1 (9 oz.) package frozen green beans

salt and pepper to taste

cooked long grain rice

Cut meat into even strips or bite-size pieces.  Heat half of butter (1.5 tablespoons) in large skillet.  Add meat and saute over medium-high heat until meat is brown.  Do not overcook.  Remove meat.  Add remaining butter to pan and add green onions; saute over medium-high heat 4 - 5 minutes until onions are soft, but not brown. Remove to beef.  Add broth to pan; heat and scrape pan brownings.  Add chili sauce, stirring to combine.  Add green beans to pan and cook for 3 minutes.  Add meat and onions back into pan; stir to combine.  Cook over high heat for a few minutes until hot.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Serve immediately over hot, fluffy rice.

Tex-Mex Pasta

This dish is fairly easy to prepare, tastes great and can be on the table in under 45 minutes!  I found this recipe in one of those small pamphlets you see at the checkout stand while waiting to pay for your groceries.  Yes, the pamphlet was an impulse buy, but I got a couple of good recipes out of it and this was one of them.  Credit for the recipe was given to Karen Wetch of Santa Rosa, CA.  I thank you Karen for submitting this recipe for publication!

This colorful pasta dish is as appealing to the eye as it is to the taste buds!

After getting a pot of water on to boil, making sure I use a pot big enough to cook 1 pound of pasta, I begin preparing the rest of the dish.  This is another recipe where I like to use the Jenni-O Hot Italian Sausage.  The original recipe just called for Italian turkey sausage.  The Jenni-O sweet sausage is also good, I just prefer the hot sausage because it kicks up the flavor of any dish I use it in.  It comes in links, so I take the sausage out of the casings and put them in my large wok.  If you don't have a large wok or frying pan, a Dutch oven would be the best thing to use, because once you add the pasta, there is a lot of food in the pan!

I cook the sausage over medium-high heat, breaking it apart frequently while I prepare the rest of the ingredients.  I also keep watch on the water so I can add the pasta as soon as the water is at a full boil.

In the meantime, I chop the onion and red bell pepper.  The original recipe called for 1 zucchini, chopped, but my guys decided some time ago that they don't like zucchini, so now I use my cheese grater and grate it so it isn't recognizable as zucchini.  None of them have asked yet what that "green stuff" is in this dish.  I think I have them fooled!

I stir in the fresh veggies that I just prepared, then add the frozen corn, salsa, canned tomatoes, and oregano.  You can use the salsa your family likes best and the heat level you prefer.  We like the Cha Chi's Pico de Gallo Salsa medium heat.  

It's already looking as good as it smells!  All of this gets cooked another 5 minutes, stirring often.

By this time, the pasta is completely cooked (according to package directions) and drained.  The pasta is then added to the mixture in the pan.

I sprinkle on the cheese and let it sit a couple of minutes to melt.

Fresh cilantro gets added to the top just before serving.  My youngest son's friend joined us for dinner, so there were five of us and there still was plenty left over.  I'd say this serves 8 people, but it's also great reheated the next day.  Enjoy!

Tex-Mex Pasta

16 oz. uncooked penne pasta

1 pkg. Jenni-O Hot Italian turkey sausage, casings removed

1 medium onion, chopped

1 medium red bell pepper, chopped

1 small zucchini, grated

2 cups frozen corn

1 cup salsa

1 (14.5 oz.) can diced tomatoes, undrained

3/4 teaspoon dried oregano leaves

8 oz. cheddar cheese, shredded

1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped

Cook penne pasta to desired doneness as directed on package.  Drain; cover to keep warm.  Meanwhile, spray nonstick wok or large skillet with nonstick cooking spray.  Heat over medium-high heat until hot.  Add sausage; cook 5 minutes or until no longer pink and thoroughly cooked, stirring frequently and breaking up meat as it cooks. Drain.  Add onion, bell pepper, zucchini, corn, salsa, tomatoes and oregano; mix well.  Bring to a boil; cook 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add cooked penne pasta; toss to mix.  Top with cheese; let sit until cheese is melted.  Sprinkle with cilantro and serve.