Cooking Cove: Comfort food for the fall
By Barbara Beltrami
Ever since one of my favorite readers suggested I do recipes on sausages, I’ve been combing my files for my favorite and most successful ones. Surely pasta with broccoli rabe and sausage is a staple in my repertoire of easy hearty meals, and kielbasa with potatoes, sauerkraut and apples is another. And for an ever popular sandwich, especially when I’ve got the grill going, there’s the sausage, pepper, onion and tomato hero. None of these recipes is particularly exotic, delicate or light, but each one is a delicious interruption to a string of ho-hum meals.
Orecchiette with Sausage and Broccoli Rabe
YIELD: Makes 6 to 8 servings
INGREDIENTS:
1 pound orecchiette pasta
1 pound sweet Italian sausage
2 bunches broccoli rabe, washed and stems removed
¼ cup olive oil
½ teaspoon or more, or more, if desired, crushed red pepper flakes
6 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced thin
Coarse salt to taste
2/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
DIRECTIONS:
Cook pasta according to package directions; reserve cooking water in pot. Set pasta aside to keep warm. In a large heavy skillet over medium heat, cook sausages until brown on all sides; remove from skillet and when cool enough to handle cut into half-inch slices. Set aside to keep warm. Drain all but one tablespoon sausage fat. In reserved pasta water cook broccoli rabe until bright green and tender, 5 to 10 minutes. Drain and transfer to skillet, add olive oil, red pepper flakes, garlic, salt and sliced sausage; stir and cook over medium heat 5 minutes until garlic is cooked through but not brown. Place pasta in a large bowl, add sausage and broccoli rabe mixture, toss, then sprinkle with grated cheese. Serve with a tomato and mozzarella salad and warm, crusty bread and extra virgin olive oil for dipping.
Kielbasa with Sauerkraut, Potatoes and Apples
YIELD: Makes 6 servings
INGREDIENTS:
1 pound sauerkraut, drained
3 medium potatoes, peeled, cut into 1-inch chunks and boiled in salted water 5 minutes
2 medium apples, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
½ cup flat beer
¼ teaspoon caraway seeds
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1 pound kielbasa, cut into 1-inch slices
DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 375 F. Grease a two-quart casserole. In a large bowl, toss together the sauerkraut, potatoes, apples, beer, caraway seeds and black pepper. Top with kielbasa slices; cover and bake for 10 minutes; uncover and bake for another 20-30 minutes, until kielbasa is brown and other ingredients are heated through and tender. Serve hot with pumpernickel bread and butter, pickled beets and beer.
Sausage, Peppers, Onion and Tomato Hero
YIELD: Makes 6 to 8 servings
INGREDIENTS:
8 sweet or hot Italian sausages, cut into 4 pieces each
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
3 garlic cloves, peeled, mashed and minced
5 red or yellow bell peppers, washed, cleaned and seeded, and cut into 1-inch-wide strips
3 green bell peppers, washed, cleaned and seeded, and cut into 1-inch-wide strips
1 pound fresh tomatoes, coarsely chopped
2 large onions, peeled and sliced
1 handful parsley, washed and chopped
Salt to taste
DIRECTIONS:
In a large skillet over medium heat, brown the sausage pieces on all sides; leave in pan. In same skillet heat the oil and garlic; remove garlic as soon as it starts to brown. Add peppers, cover pan and cook over low heat until they are slightly limp, about 8 minutes. Add tomatoes, onions, parsley and salt. Toss all ingredients together. Return cover to pan, but leave it slightly askew. Cook 30 minutes, until all veggies are soft. Serve hot on crusty Italian bread accompanied by marinated artichokes, olives, eggplant caponata and provolone cheese.