A Stirfry of Sorts

I love fast, one-pot meals.

In my travels through cookbooks and other recipe sites I've often come accross recipes for sausages and peppers. Now, I'm not a big fan of most Italian sausage (*Taneasha cringes*) because there's usually too much fennel for my taste. But there's a great Italian market on my way home from work that makes a spicy pork sausage with no fennel!

And spicy pork sausage can satisfy my cravings, fast! (*Taneasha rolls her eyes*)

Sausage Stir Fry

• 2 spicy Italian pork sausages
• 1 tsp olive oil
• 1 red bell pepper
• 1/2 zucchini
• 4 mushrooms
• 1 small onion
• 4 cloves garlic
• 4 small tomatoes (2 Romas would also work)
• 2 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 1/4 c Italian flat leaf parsley

Heat the olive oil in a large pan over medium heat. Break the sausage up into the pan.

While the sausage browns, chop your veggies. Leave them a little chunky so they'll have some substance once they're cooked.

Add the onions, garlic, mushrooms, peppers, and zucchini. Shove this around in the pan for a few minutes.

Once the onion starts to look a bit transluscent, add the tomatoes and the vinegar. 

I hadn't been planning on the vinegar when I put together the ingredients pic, but I was feeling like this was going to need a bit more zip to it so I spalshed some in with the tomatoes. It worked. A bit of wine would work here too, but I'm kinda out of wine.

After a few minutes the tomatoes will be mostly obliterated.

Throw in the parsley.

There are a few different ways you can serve this. I had mine over a wild and brown rice mixture. Rice totally works. You could also toss some cooked pasta shapes, like farfalle or rotini, into the pan with the stir fry. This would make a great sub sammich filling as well, especially if you topped it with cheese and put it under the broiler. I'm also thinking it would be fun to put onto some pizza dough. Or into the dough! Calzone anyone??

Whatever you do though, make sure there's some cheese involved. On mine, I used some freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano.

Which makes me realize that a scoop or two of this stir fry on a plate next to Taneasha's Potato Parmesan Pie would be freaking tasty.

What do you like to top with cheese?

Ham and Beans

Last week I told you I’d show you a fabulous way to use your leftover ham from the holiday weekend. My favorite way to make use of it is ham and beans.  Heck, I’ve even been known to make a ham with the driving motivation being the subsequent pot o’ beans.  Although, I’ve also been known to make a roast just for the ‘leftovers’ French dip, so it’s possible my judgment is a little faulty.  Regardless, these beans are to die for.  In fact, my house smelled so good while making them that Otto was sure to keep his nose unobstructed so he wouldn’t miss one whiff.

Here’s what you’ll need:

Beans
Celery
Onion
Garlic
Ham stock
Ham bone
Ham
Salt & Pepper
Water

I know there are no measurements listed there.  This is one thing where measurements just don’t really apply, but don’t be scared, I’ll show you how it’s done.  The first thing you need to do is sort through your beans and make sure there aren’t any pebbles or anything in there. 

You can use any kind of bean you like.  I decided to go with this lovely 13 bean mix, my thought being, ‘Look at all those pretty colors.  That will make a beautiful soup!’.

After checking them over, rinse them and cover them with plenty of water, then leave them overnight. 

The next day, drain and rinse them.

Then put them into a pan and cover with about 1 inch of water. Bring them to a boil, stirring occasionally.  After about an hour, I was starting to question my logic in choosing colorful beans.  The whole pot had just turned a kind of grayish brown color. 

When they’ve simmered for about an hour, they should be mostly tender.  This is a good time to add your ham bone.  If you haven’t recently made a ham, you could use a couple of ham hocks instead. 

Simmer for another hour, stirring occasionally to make sure the beans don’t start to stick to the bottom of the pan.  Add the celery, onion, and garlic to the mix and continue stirring and simmering.  If it gets too thick at any point, go ahead and add more water. 

After another hour, it should be getting thick, and the beans should be starting to fall apart. 

Time for the secret ingredient that makes these absolutely amazing.  Ham stock. 

What is ham stock?  It’s the liquid that cooks off of your ham.  In my case, that usually also includes pineapple juice, brown sugar, and spices.  Anytime you make a ham, always save the liquid and bone.  If you’re not going to use them right away, freeze them.  So, once the ham stock is in, dice up some ham. 

Stir it into the pot and cook it for about 20 minutes. At this point, the beans should be thick, creamy, and delicious.  Check for seasoning, adding salt and pepper if necessary. 

So much for my theory of colorful beans being pretty. 

The whole pot ended up brown, but oh well.  After smelling these all day, color hardly matters.  I still like the bean mix anyway.  It brings different sizes and textures to the mix, and the lentils and split peas totally break down and help thicken it. 

I don’t really have any serving suggestions… perhaps pair it with bread?  Personally, just give me a bowlful and a spoon, and I’m happy. 

What food do you make just for the leftovers?