Monday, November 15, 2010

One Pan Meal- Spicy Broccolini with Basil Chicken Sausage

Sometimes, time just isn't as plentiful as we all might want it to be.  Sometimes there are those weeks that slip past and my kitchen stands empty- used only to throw together my lunch in the morning, or to heat up a fast dinner of a frozen leftover, or a veggie burger when time is really short.  Though these weeks happen only sometimes, when they do they make me all the way sad.  A longing glance at my whisk, or at a pan sitting neatly on the drying wrack still waiting to find it's way back home to it's friends in the cabinet.  It is a sad state of affairs when time goes by without using my favorite kitchen supplies.  After a period of about a week and a half of this type of kitchen neglect, I finally charged back into my favorite room in the house yesterday afternoon to take it by storm.  I had some serious cooking to do, and not a lot of time to do it.  So in the short time I spent, I whipped up three and a half dishes, the half being one I made the base for but am still working on it's finishing touches.

The best part of the afternoon though was making a simple, delicious meal for me to enjoy right then and there since much of the rest of the dishes were for other purposes.  I had found some beautiful looking broccolini in the grocery store earlier yesterday and had found one of those delightful packages of chicken and turkey sausage flavored with basil.  When I purchased them I figured they would be an easy meal during the upcoming busy week, but last night as I looked at the broccolini, and I heard my tummy rumble I thought it might be best to break them open.  The result- an easy, spicy almost stir fry of broccolini and the sausages with a LOT of garlic.

1 tbsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tsp to 1 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper (to your taste)
salt and pepper
1 bunch broccolini, stems trimmed
1 1/2 tbsp red wine- preferably dry
1 package chicken sausage- I used basil flavored, any flavor will do probably
Parmesan Cheese


Heat the olive oil in a large skillet pan (I used a small one- it worked but it was not as easy).  Add garlic, crushed red pepper flakes, salt and pepper.  When the garlic becomes soft, add the broccolini and saute until the stems are fork tender, at the last 2-3 minutes add the red win to the pan.  Remove the broccolini from the pan, set aside.  Add the chicken sausage and cook until heated through.  These are super easy to use since they are already fully cooked.  Add the chicken sausage to the broccolini platter, sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and viola!  Dinner (and lunch the next day) is served!


I love broccolini.  The smaller stems make them easier to cook than the mammoth trunks on typical broccoli.  I find that they soak up more flavor as well- which makes them a great vehicle for spicy crushed red peppers and that wonderful garlic.  Just be careful that you don't stand too close to anyone after consuming.  You may not be very popular :-).

5 comments:

Emily said...

Many of my go-to easy meals look like this. Chicken sausage is just perfect for a healthy and quick dinner. Looks yummy!

Delicious Dishings said...

This sounds tasty! I don't think I've seen basil flavored chicken sausage -- I'll have to keep an eye out for it!

Tina said...

Looks amazing! Reminds me a bit of a great Mark Bittman recipe (in _How to Cook Everything_), which I could only find reproduced in blogs: http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2010/10/healthy-delicious-broccoli-rabe-turkey-sausage-grapes-recipe.html

If you can fathom the grapes (and even if you can't), I highly recommend it.

bknowles67 said...

We LOVE broccolini in our house and are always looking for new ways to cook it! This is definitely in the lineup for this week. Trader Joes has great turkey pest sausage.

Alicia said...

I agree - Chicken sausage is a great thing to have on hand for a quick meal! they're tasty and satisfying.

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