Sausage, Mozzarella, and Broccoli Rabe with Shells

Sometimes the cover recipe on a magazine just draws you in and you have to make it.
That is the story with this pasta dish.
It was on the cover of Everyday Food a couple of months ago.
Something about cheesy baked pasta is really appealing. Throwing in something green makes it even better.

I used turkey sausage in this recipe because I use ground turkey and turkey sausage in place of ground beef or pork always. It is a way to cut back on calories and fat, without getting rid of the flavor.

The broccoli rabe was a little much for my kids in this one. It can be bitter, although blanching/steaming it for a few minutes is supposed to help with that.
The recipe suggested subbing in regular broccoli, if preferred, but I think spinach would also be a good alternative. You could also sub another type of cheese, since fresh mozzarella can be expensive.

This turned out to be a recipe that looked better than it tasted for us. We still liked it, but I was expecting more from it, for some reason. I would like to play around with the recipe in the future and make a few changes, to see if I could get better results. It was good, but not as amazing as the photo made me think it would be.

Recipe for Sausage, Mozzarella, and Broccoli Rabe with Shells

Make Ahead Breakfast Casserole with Ruby Grapefruit on the side

Sometimes it is nice to have a delicious breakfast, that you can prepare the night before, that will feed a number of people. All you have to do is pop it in the oven and you have a great breakfast, in a short amount of time. I made this breakfast casserole for a weekend breakfast and it was so, so easy to put together. I made it even easier on myself by using Jimmy Dean's Fully Cooked Turkey Sausage Links, which I buy regularly for my children. I just sliced them and threw them in with the bread cubes we had leftover from making our Thanksgiving stuffing. Since grapefruit is a readily available fruit this time of year, it is a nice addition to any breakfast, but you can jazz it up with this quick and easy raspberry sauce. The raspberry sauce could also be made ahead and kept in the fridge overnight. If you are expecting holiday guests, this would be an easy way to keep everyone happy in the morning!

Make-Ahead Breakfast Casserole from Cooking Light

8 ounces ciabatta bread, cut into 1-inch cubes (I used leftover homemade bread cubes from Thanksgiving)

Cooking spray

1 pound turkey breakfast sausage (I used Jimmy Dean's Fully Cooked Turkey Sausage Links)

1/2 cup chopped green onions

1 1/4 cups fat-free milk

1 cup (4 ounces) reduced-fat shredded sharp cheddar cheese (I used mozzerella)

2 large eggs1 (8-ounce) carton egg substitute

2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

Preheat oven to 400°.
Arrange bread cubes in a single layer on a baking sheet. Bake at 400° for 8 minutes or until toasted.
Heat a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add sausage to pan; cook 6 minutes or until browned, stirring to crumble. Combine sausage, bread, and onions in a large bowl. Combine milk, cheese, eggs, and egg substitute in a medium bowl, stirring with a whisk. Add milk mixture to bread mixture, tossing to coat bread. Spoon mixture into a 2-quart baking dish coated with cooking spray. Cover and refrigerate 8 hours or overnight.
Preheat oven to 350°.
Uncover casserole. Bake at 350° for 50 minutes or until set and lightly browned. Sprinkle with parsley; serve immediately.

Ruby Grapefruit from the Black Book

1- 10 oz pkg. frozen raspberries

1-3 tsps sugar

3-4 grapefruit

In a small dish, thaw raspberries in the microwave, until completely defrosted. Put them in a blender or food processor with 1 tsp of sugar and process, until smooth. Taste and add a little more sugar, if needed. Press this mixture through a sieve and discard the seeds.

Halve the grapefruit and remove the sections. Place the sections in bowl and drizzle the raspberry sauce over top.

Coming Up on Monday- Greek-style Stuffed Pepper and Greek WonTon Cups

Mini Calzones and Italian Roasted Green Beans & Yellow Squash

I am assuming that everyone's family loves pizza as much as my family does. It is the one thing my kids are always asking for! I had quite a bit of leftover spinach-ricotta mixture from last weeks Portobello Roll-ups, since I halved the recipe, so I decided that calzones were in our future. Everything mini is easier for kids, so I made 6 mini calzones and 2 large ones. I used 24 oz. of pizza dough to get that many. So if you just use a lb of dough, you might have some leftover filling ingredients.
I cooked up a little bit of turkey sausage, added a bell pepper and onion, and of course Italian seasoning. I also added turkey pepperoni and we dipped ours in pizza sauce. On the side I roasted some veggies, tossed in Italian seasoning again. I have one of those grinders, so I never measure my Italian seasoning, I just churn it on, until it looks like enough. You could really sub any veggies here, this is just what I had. Enjoy- we sure did!

Mini Calzones by Mary Ann

1 lb. pizza dough (your favorite recipe or refrigerated pizza dough)

pizza sauce (your favorite or try out mine-here, also a great dough recipe)

2 links sweet Italian turkey sausage, casings removed (about 8-9 oz)

1 orange (or green) bell pepper, chopped

1/2 onion, chopped

turkey pepperoni

1 15-oz container skim milk ricotta cheese

1 egg, lightly beaten

1 10-oz pkg. frozen spinach, thawed and drained

Italian seasoning

shredded cheese

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

In an electric skillet, season the sausage, bell pepper, and onion, with Italian seasoning, and saute until sausage is cooked through and veggies are tender. Set aside.

Combine the ricotta cheese, egg,thawed spinach, and season with Italian seasoning. Set aside.

Roll out your pizza dough and cut it into squares. (I made 6)

Spread about 1 Tbls of pizza sauce on one half of your dough square, leaving room around the edges. Spread 1 Tbls or so of the ricotta cheese mixture on top of the pizza sauce. Place 1 piece of turkey pepperoni on top of the ricotta mixture. Next pile some of the sausage, pepper, onion, mixture on top of the pepperoni. Sprinkle with cheese and close the calzone by bringing one half of the dough, up and over, and sealing the sides, by crimping the dough together.

Repeat with remaining dough and filling ingredients.

You can also make this into larger calzones, just cut the dough into larger pieces and put more of the fillings inside. Also bake time would increase. Little ones are easier for the kids.

Place the calzones on a lightly greased baking sheet and bake for 13-16 minutes, until lightly browned on top. Serve with warmed pizza sauce, for dipping, if desired.

Italian Roasted Green Beans and Yellow Squash by Mary Ann

1 lb. fresh green beans, washed and trimmed

1 medium yellow squash, cut in quarters and thinly sliced

Italian seasoning

1 Tbls olive oil

cooking spray

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil and spray the sheet with cooking spray. Combine green beans and squash on the foil and season liberally with Italian Seasoning. Drizzle with 1 Tbls of olive oil and mix with your hands. Roast in the oven for 15-20 minutes, until veggies are tender.

Tomorrow- Craving Ellie in my Belly- Oven Fried Chicken

Polenta Rounds with Turkey Sausage and Vegetables in Marinara

I love polenta. I love that you can buy it in a little tube at the grocery store and it is ready to go. I had some leftover turkey sausage in my fridge and some leftover marinara, so I bought some polenta and came up with this dish. Full of veggies, with just a little meat- it was delicious and with all those colors almost to pretty to eat. But, we did eat it and it was good! Happy November!

Polenta Rounds with Turkey Sausage and Vegetables in Marinara by Mary Ann

1 tube refrigerated polenta, sliced into 1/2-1 inch rounds

4 white mushrooms, cleaned and sliced

1 4-oz link sweet turkey sausage (I use Jenny-O)

1/2 medium zucchini, thinly sliced

1/2 medium yellow or summer squash, thinly sliced

1/2 yellow bell pepper, chopped

3 oz baby spinach

marinara sauce

Squeeze turkey sausage out of casing, into a warm electric skillet. Crumble with a wooden spoon and add mushrooms, zucchini, summer squash, and yellow bell pepper. Saute for 5-7 minutes, until sausage is cooked through and veggies are tender. Stir in spinach, just until wilted. Transfer to a bowl and cover to keep warm.

Spray electric skillet with cooking spray. Layer polenta rounds in skillet and cook until warmed and browned, 2-3 minutes on each side.

Warm marinara sauce and ladle some on a plate. Arrange 3 polenta slices in marinara and spoon sausage-veggie mixture over top of polenta. Serve and enjoy!

Tomorrow- You Want Pies with That? Fashion Edition- Banana Pudding Pie and a Southern Dinner to go along with it- Chicken N Dumplings, Fried Okra.....

Bulgur and Chickpea Stuffed Squash

First of all an apology to my fellow Barefoot Bloggers- I am going to be posting the Vegetable Pot Pie a few days late. I waited until the last minute and then got a surprise opportunity to participate in a pizza cook-off, but had very little notice to get ready. So, as you read this, I am probably throwing my pizza together, hoping the judges like it enough to call it the winner!
I thought I would share this delicious dinner we had the other night. Ever since I tried the Butternut Squash Risotto a few weeks ago- I have decided to give all winter squash another chance. My mom used to make it alot when I was a kid and I wasn't very fond of it. But, now I love it!
This dinner was so good. I reduced the amount of sausage and used turkey sausage instead. I also added a can of chickpeas because I thought it would taste good in this. I added some chicken stock at the end to keep it moist and this was a beautiful all in one dinner. The acorn squash made cute little bowls and the combination of the bulgur filling with the slightly sweet squash was amazing. Please give it a try, even if you don't like squash, you might be surprised. I am now a lover of winter squash!
p.s. I will get the vegetable pot pie up over the weekend, so come on back!




Bulgur-Stuffed Squash adapted from Family Circle Magazine
3 small acorn squash, halved and seeded
3/4 cup bulgur wheat
1 sweet Italian turkey sausages 1- 15 oz can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 small sweet red pepper, seeded and diced
2 tablespoons chili sauce
1/4-1/2 cup chicken stock
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons maple syrup

1. Heat oven to 400°F. Place squash halves, cut-side down, on a 15 x 10 x 1-inch baking pan. Add 2 cups water, and transfer to oven. Bake at 400°F for 35 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, put bulgur in a bowl. Pour 3/4 cup boiling water over bulgur; cover with plastic wrap. Let stand 30 minutes.
3. Once bulgur is softened, heat a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add sausage; cook 2 minutes. Stir in chickpeans,garlic powder, and red pepper; cook 3 minutes. Remove from heat.
4. Stir in bulgur, chili sauce, chicken stock to moisten, and 1/8 teaspoon of the salt. Remove squash from oven; pour off water. Flip over squash; brush with maple syrup. Season with remaining 1/8 teaspoon salt. Spoon filling in squash; return to oven. Bake 10 minutes.

Coming tomorrow- Vanilla Sandwich Cookies with Raspberry Cream and Peanut Butter Bon-Bons!