Chicken Sausage with Carrot, Peppers and English Peas

I had a carrot, a yellow bell pepper and more of those shelled English peas. Yesterday I bought some Chicken Sausage with Jalapeno that they occasionally sell at Spencer's Market here on the Central Coast. Not really in the mood to cook as I've been spreading mulch for the past couple of days and I'm feeling a little weary.
Served over whole brown rice and quinoa by "Seeds of Change" I happened to have in the pantry and a green salad these few ingredients became a pretty tasty and healthful meal.

Chicken Sausage with Carrot, Peppers and English Peas
Ingredients
3/4 lb. Chicken Jalapeno Sausage
1 tbsp Olive Oil
½ cup Chicken Broth
1 whole Carrots, diced into 1/2 inch cubes (about 3/4 c.)
1 whole Yellow Bell Pepper, diced
1 cup Shelled Peas
2 cloves Garlic, chopped
1 can Del Monte Diced Tomatoes in Juice
1 tsp Spanish Smoked Paprika
2 cups Brown Rice, cooked and hot or Seeds of Change Foods, Whole Brown Rice and Quinoa.

Method
Heat heavy saute pan over medium heat and add olive oil. When the olive oil is shimmering add the sausage and brown on all sides.
Add chicken broth and braise until cooked through.
Remove from pan and slice into bite-sized chunks.

Add garlic to pan and saute until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the carrots and simmer for a couple of minutes. Add the peppers and saute another minute or so.
Add the sausage, tomatoes and smoked paprika. Stir to combine, cover and simmer for about 15 minutes or until the carrots are just tender.

Remove the lid, add the peas stirring to combine and simmer uncovered for 1-2 minutes.
Serve over the brown rice with a tossed green salad.

Source: Tracey Adams (about 3 servings)
Note: It's important that you use regular Del Monte Diced Tomatoes in tomato juice. If you use low-sodium tomatoes you'll need to add salt to taste.

Whole Wheat Penne with Shrimp, Tomatoes, Spinach, Peas and Feta

Tonight for dinner I had some shrimp I'd bought at Costco as well as some baby spinach I needed to use up. This is what I came up with and it turned out so delicious I just had to share it.


Ingredients

2 cups whole wheat penne

12 large shrimp, peeled, deveined and cut in half

2 large garlic, clove, chopped

2 tbsp olive oil

1 large tomato, diced (1 cup)

8 ounces fresh baby spinach, put into colander in sink

1 cup fresh peas*, shelled (optional)

1 tsp smoked Spanish paprika, rounded or to taste

1/2 tsp salt, or to taste

1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper, or to taste

1/2 cup feta cheese, crumbled, preferably sheeps milk

1/2 cup fresh parsley, chopped

Method

1. Prep all ingredients  Have all ingredients ready to go before you begin cooking and everything will go much more smoothly. 

Peel and devein shrimp then cut them in half crosswise. Peel and chop garlic, chop tomato, chop parsley. Shell peas and measure out a cup. Dump baby spinach into colander.

2. Fill a 6-quart pot with water Bring to a boil. When boiling add a small handful of salt and the pasta*. Set timer for pasta and begin heating olive oil in a large nonstick wok shaped pan.

3. Season shrimp Dump smoked paprika, salt and pepper into bowl large enough to hold shrimp easily and mix together. Next add the shrimp and mix thoroughly until shrimp is evenly coated with seasoning.

4. Saute garlic in olive oil until fragrant and add shrimp. Saute until shrimp is cooked stirring constantly so that garlic doesn't burn. Add tomato and cook stirring until a sauce begins to form. When it does, turn off the heat and just leave the pan on the burner until you're ready to mix it with the pasta.

5. When there are 2 min. left on the timer for the pasta add the shelled raw peas to the pasta.

When the timer goes off dip a cup of the pasta water out (don't worry if you get some peas) and drain the pasta into the colander with the baby spinach.

6. Tip the colander until most of the water is drained and pour the mixture back into the pasta pot. Stir and break up the spinach (I use a pasta fork). Once it's broken up add the shrimp mixture and toss to distribute evenly. Next add the parsley and crumbled feta. Mix it up and put the lid back on the pot. Let stand for 3 min. and serve.

Servings: 4
Nutritional Values per serving:

Calories: 290kcal
Saturated fatty acids: 3.82g
Monounsaturated fatty acids: 5.86g
Polyunsaturated fatty acids: 1.00g
Total fat: 11.35g
Calories from fat: 102
Cholesterol: 39mg
Carbohydrate, by difference: 35.33g
Total dietary fiber: 2.80g
Protein: 11.22g
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Notes:

I use a gas stove so if you use an electric, do not leave the shrimp mixture on the burner once it is finished cooking.

*I bought shelled English Peas in a bag from Trader Joe's.

*I have found that whole wheat pasta is best if cooked for the lesser amount of time. If the package says 10-12 min. boil it for 10 min. and it will be perfect.

Source: Tracey Adams

Mixed Grains and Lentils Stew with Turkey Kielbasa

It's been raining a lot this winter so I've made a lot of soups and stews. This is one of my favorites. I had a package of "Trader Joe's Brown Rice Medley" and wanted to use it in something healthful and comforting. I decided to make a lentil and turkey kielbasa stew with it since I had all the necessary items on hand.
Here is the recipe I came up with. I think it turned out rather well.
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Mixed Grains and Lentils Stew with Turkey Kielbasa

Photo by Tracey Adams

Trader Joe's Brown Rice Medley is a mixture of parboiled long grain brown rice, black barley and daikon radish seeds. It gives a lovely texture to the stew and tastes great too.

Ingredients
5 cups chicken broth, non-fat, low-sodium
1 can tomato, Del Monte Organic Diced
1 cup green lentils, dried
1/2 cup Trader Joe's Rice Medley, raw
2 cloves garlic, large, chopped
2 medium carrot, chopped
1/2 large red bell pepper, chopped
2 small onions, chopped
1/2 whole turkey kielbasa, sliced in half lengthwise then into 1/2 inch pieces
cooking spray
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste.
Method
1. Prep: Chop all vegetables.
2. Saute: Spray a large 6 quart stockpot with cooking spray and heat over medium heat until just beginning to smoke.
Add onions and sprinkle with salt. Saute until just beginning to sweat and add carrots and peppers. Stir that around for about 5 minutes and add the garlic sauteing until fragrant, about minute.
3. Add: Broth and tomatoes and bring to a simmer. Add the lentils, kielbasa and rice medley.
4. Simmer: Simmer for 30 minutes or until rice medley and lentils are done.
5. Serve

Cincinnati Chili the easy way

One of my husband Chris's favorite meals is Cincinnati Chili 3-way. As we don't live in Ohio I make it here at home. True Cincinnati Chili can only be gotten at Skyline Chili so I mail order the seasoning packets. Just add tomato paste, water and ground meat. I don't eat red meat so I make ours with ground turkey. Simmer it on the stove uncovered for about 3 hours stirring occasionally, boil some spaghetti, grate some cheddar cheese and yum, enjoy.