Creamy Pumpkin Penne

I keep thinking that this picture looks a little orange and then remembering that it IS orange. I believe that this was my first savory dish using pumpkin, and I am a fan. The richness of the blended cottage cheese makes this sauce seem a lot more indulgent than it actually is. I switched out the chicken sausage for some mild Italian sausage links that I needed to use, so it isn't quite as healthy as the original. If you do this, cook the sausage through before adding the garlic and onions. The spinach is a great addition for color and heft. Plus, this meal came together quickly. It was like eating a gourmet meal at home!

Creamy Pumpkin Penne
source: Cara's Cravings

Ingredients
4 oz whole wheat penne pasta
2 tsp olive oil
1 small onion, thinly sliced
2 cloves of garlic, minced
about 2T chopped fresh sage
2 links cooked chicken sausage, sliced
1/2 cup low fat cottage cheese (1% milk fat)
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
1/2 cup nonfat milk
pinch of nutmeg
5oz torn spinach, thick stems removed
grated parmesan or pecorino romano cheese, optional

Preparation
Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium-low heat. Add onions and cook gently for about 10-15minutes, until softened and beginning to caramelize. Add garlic, sage, and chicken sausage; continue to saute.

Meanwhile, cook pasta according to package directions.

In a blender, combine combine pumpkin, cottage cheese, and milk. Blend until no lumps are present. Add to sausage mixture in skillet and continue to cook over low heat. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground pepper, and a pinch of nutmeg.

Drain pasta and return to pot over low heat. Add sausage mixture and baby spinach, and toss together. Cover for a few minutes to let the spinach wilt. Serve with parmesan cheese, if desired.

Rotini with Ricotta, Sausage, and Broccoli

I'm trying to be better about using up things in the pantry and refrigerator before I buy more. I think at one point, I had three quarter- or half-full boxes of pasta in my pantry. And as finals approach, I'm finding that it seems much more pressing to organize my kitchen than to review Zwinglian theology, so I'll see if I can nip that in the bud.

I loved using the ricotta as a sauce for the pasta. The lemon zest added more flavor. You can substitute a lot in this recipe. Use spinach instead of broccoli. The recipe I based this off of used prosciutto, but I used chicken sausage. Go with what you have!

Rotini with Ricotta, Sausage, and Broccoli
adapted from A Year in the Kitchen

1/2 a box of whole wheat rotini (or penne or rotelle or whatever)
1 cup lowfat ricotta cheese
zest of 1 lemon
2 links pre-cooked chicken sausage, sliced (I used Trader Joe's smoked apple and chardonnay)
1/4 cup vegetable or chicken stock
2 small heads of broccoli, chopped
1 tsp oil
Parmesan cheese
Salt and pepper

Put water on to boil for noodles. When water is at a rolling boil, pour in noodles.

Heat 1 tsp oil in a small skillet and add slices of sausage, turning until browned and heated through.

Mix together stock, zest, and ricotta, stirring to combine.

Add broccoli to the boiling water for the last few minutes of noodle-cooking time. Drain noodles and broccoli when cooked (about 8-10 minutes total).

Toss with sausage and ricotta mixture, sprinkling with Parmesan cheese and adding salt and pepper as desired.

Pasta with Hot Sausage, Peppers, and Broccoli

Somehow I ended up with a bunch of pasta in my pantry, probably from buying it on-sale, but since we don't eat a lot of pasta, it sort of piled up. I was browsing through Mary Ellen's pasta tag for something that would be quick and flavorful for a solo Friday night dinner, and this caught my eye. I multiplied the original recipe by 1.5 so I could use the whole box of pasta and have some left over for weekend lunch.

I also got to go grocery shopping at the brand-new Publix that opened up near my part of town since I was over that way for an interview. I love their produce, their service, and their meat. This turkey sausage was delicious, and this is the kind of meal where you want to use the best ingredients because there aren't very many of them.

Pasta with Hot Sausage, Peppers and Broccoli
source: Mary Ellen's Cooking Creations

Ingredients

• 1/2 lb short pasta
  
• 1/2 lb hot Italian sausage, casings removed and chopped into 2 inch pieces
• 1/2 small onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1/4 c dry white wine
• 1 head broccoli, chopped into small florets
• 1/2 red pepper, chopped
• 3/4 c low sodium chicken broth
• Approximately 1/2 c shredded Parmesan cheese

Preparation

• Put water on to boil for the pasta.
  
• Heat 1 tbsp olive oil over medium-high heat in a large pan
• Add sausage and start to crumble it with your spoon as it cooks; about 10 minutes.
• Add onions and garlic, stir
• Deglaze pan with white wine, scraping up brown bits
• Add broccoli and red peppers; stir
• Add pasta to boiling water and cook until al dente. Drain and let sit.
  
• Add chicken broth and stir; let simmer for about 8 minutes
• Add some of the cheese
• Add pasta and the rest of the cheese; toss to coat

Ale-Braised Sausage & Peppers and Easy Cheesy Beer Bread

I had originally planned to make this dinner last Friday, but Joe and I ended up crashing the Rice Alumni party at the musicology/music theory conference downtown and then going to a terrible Thai place in East Nashville (which is another story for another time). So I postponed this until Monday, when I had the afternoon off, and Joe had the whole day off. We prefaced this delicious fall meal with a walk around Radnor Lake to get a glimpse of the leaves before they fell off the trees. We saw multiple deer, two bucks, and one that came within about 10 feet of me!

Joe loved the bread. It was all he could talk about. I played with the ratios of the sausage and peppers and ended up with a little bit too much sauce, probably because I only used half the sausage in the recipe. It still made for a delicious dinner and great leftovers as well.

Both recipes come from Katie over at Good Things Catered who is a domestic goddess if I've ever seen one.

Ale-Braised Sausage and Peppers
(source: Good Things Catered)

Ingredients:

2 Tbsp olive oil
2 lb. cooked sausages, such as kielbasa, sliced
1 large yellow onion, thinly sliced
1 large red bell pepper, seeded and sliced
3 Tbsp all-purpose flour, divided
1 1/2 c. ale
1 1/2 c. low sodium chicken stock
3 Tbsp fresh thyme, chopped
Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
1 Tbsp fresh parsley, chopped

Mashed potatoes for serving

Directions:

-In a Dutch oven over medium-high heat, warm the olive oil.
-Add the sausages and cook, stirring and turning often, until browned, 4 to 5 minutes.
-Transfer to a plate.
-Add the onion and bell pepper to the pot, reduce the heat to medium, and sauté until tender and golden, about 5 minutes.
-Add 2 Tbsp flour and cook, stirring, until golden, 1 to 2 minutes.
-Whisk in the ale until the mixture is smooth and bubbly.
-Add the thyme and broth, whisking to blend, and bring to a simmer.
-Return the sausages to the pot.
-Cover, reduce the heat to medium-low and cook until the flavors are blended, about 15 minutes.
-Uncover and simmer until the sauce is slightly reduced, about 5 minutes.
-Season with salt and pepper.
-Remove the sausage, peppers, and onions and place on a serving platter.
-With the Dutch oven over medium high heat, whisk in 1 heaping Tbsp of flour, whisking constantly until thickened, about 1-2 minutes.
-Pour thickened sauce over sausages and serve immediately with mashed potatoes.
-Serves 4 to 6.

Easy Cheesy Beer Bread
(source: Good Things Catered)

Ingredients:

2 c. all purpose flour
1 c. whole wheat flour
1/3 c. packed brown sugar
4 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp garlic powder
1 c. shredded sharp cheddar
12 oz. bottle of lager or stout (I used a Michelob Porter, and the bread had a VERY strong beer taste, which we loved.)
2 Tbsp butter, melted

Directions:
-Preheat oven to 350 degrees and prepare loaf pan for baking.
-In large bowl, combine flours, sugar, baking powder, salt, and garlic powder.
-Whisk to combine well.
-Add cheese and whisk to combine.
-Slowly add beer to dry ingredients and stir lightly until combined.
-Knead dough lightly until it just comes together.
-Place into prepared loaf pan and pour melted butter over top.
-Place in oven to bake for 55-60 minutes, or until toothpick inserted into center of loaf comes out clean.