Pasta with Sausage Broccolini and Garlic A Year Supply of Pasta Giveaway!

The folks over at Golden Grain Pasta generously offered to send me 8 boxes of their new Hidden Veggie Pasta, and also offered to sponsor a giveaway of years supply of pasta (2 boxes of pasta a month -24 boxes total) for one lucky reader!  I couldnt turn down such an opportunity to try pasta, which is one of Familys absolute favorite meals, so I asked them to send me my sample!

Although the pasta does have some vegetables in it (carrots and squash), it isnt enough for me in terms of providing my family an adequate mix of protein, vegetables, and starch.  Time is always short in my house so I wanted to make a one pot pasta.  I decided to make one that used the vegetables that are dark green, broccolini, with some yummy Italian sausage and garlic.  The end result was a meal that everyone enjoyed and gobbled down.  The recipe has a dairy free option, which uses more chicken stock, and a dairy option which uses some heavy cream.  Both versions are very delicious.

Pasta with Sausage and Broccolini
Serves 6

Ingredients
1 box of Golden Grain Hidden Vegetable Pasta (or your choice of another pasta)
1 lb sweet Italian sausage, casing removed, roughly chopped
3 tablespoons olive oil
8 cloves of garlic, minced or through a press
¼ chicken stock
1 lb broccolini, chopped into 1 inch pieces
¼ cup heavy cream or chicken stock (depends if you want it to be dairy free)
3 tablespoons of basil, finely chopped
¼  cup Parmesan cheese (for serving)

Method
Boil water for pasta. Prepare pasta according to package directions. Drain and set aside.

In the same pot, over medium heat, add olive oil and sausages. After sausages are browned, add garlic. Cook for 1 minute until fragrant. Add chicken stock and broccolini. Cover and cook until broccolini is slightly tender and bright green about 5 minutes.

Toss in pasta, and toss together well.  Finish with cream or additional chicken stock.  Add basil and serve.  Pass Parmesan cheese to sprinkle on top.

Printable recipe

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Lentil Sausage Soup Why libraries are life changing

For JC who always makes me laugh and makes me celebrate being a nerd.

My work as a private teacher these days means that I do a lot of different types of things for an incredibly wide range of students.  The work is rarely the same from student to student and most of the time I try to remember that my main goal with many of them is to give them an opportunity to change their impression of themselves.  I have a good number of students who start with me because they dislike school, dislike reading, dislike books, or plain straight up dont like studying.  I get them and the work is hard but always interesting and filled with eye-opening moments.

I have one student who has been with me for nearly four years and Id like to think we have a good relationship.  He relies on me to help him get through some of the tougher assignments from school and I spend a lot of time pushing him to do the best that he can on any given assignment.  Most recently our work  has put him in my car so we can go to our local public library together.  The first time I took him he said, "Man.  This is creepy.  I dont even know how to get around this place."  I had to find him a sports book that he could enjoy, he would read, and be entertained by and so we walked over to the shelves and I began searching for the right book.  He stood off to the side making comments such as, "Man.  You know how to USE a library.  Do you come here a lot?" and "Whoa. How do you know how to find stuff?"  to finally, "Did you go to the library a lot as a kid?"  I answered all the questions as I searched for his book and called out titles to him that he might enjoy.  We settled on sports book that featured crazy and unusual sport contests and we left.

This student knows I know how to use a library. Most recently he wanted to have a book on tape version of a book he needed to read and came to me.  I showed him how to access our online catalog, put the desired book on hold and later on in the week picked it up and gave it to him.  He was grateful and said, "Man.  You know how to use that library."

Just last week, he came with the book that he had to finish, A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier by Ishmael Beah and asked if I could read with him to help him finish as he was about 50 pages from the end.  As I had read only a portion of the book at the beginning and nothing in the middle, I figured Id be reading it simply to help him through it, and not to necessarily being fully engaged in the book.  I knew the basics of the plot, heard the author on a variety of interviews and I figured it would be just some mellow time reading.  The two of us pored over the book, with my student asking various questions for clarification along the way.  Suddenly I was hooked.   I wanted to read the book.  About 10 pages before the end, our time together was over and he stood up and slammed the book.

"Wait.  Ill let you finish.  Come on.  Lets just finish," I said.

"Nope," he replied with finality.

"Come on!  Ill help you finish it!  Lets read!"

"Nope."

"Why wont you just finish here?  I want you to finish here."

"Dont worry.  Im going to finish it at home.  Im stopping the book now so YOU will want to read it.  Go get it at the library."

Huh?  What?  My reluctant reader student is convincing ME to read a book?  Yes.  Yes he is.  And in this moment, I know that he is changed.  He has changed his perception about himself as a reader - he can actually ENJOY a book.  He doesnt enjoy all of them, nor do I expect him to, but this book he enjoyed - enjoyed enough that he wants ME to read it.  And Ill be picking one up at my library at his request.

Now - Ill get a nerdy here and ask that you consider the amazing educational researcher Dr. Stephen Krashens work on the power of the library.  Its a great short video on youtube, and you wont be sorry you watched.  Youll be grateful for your local librarian, thankful your childs school has one, and if not either of those cases, youll be outraged that your town and your school doesnt have one.  I went to Childrens school librarian and local childrens public librarian last week and hugged gratefully each one of them.  Libraries are a gift and something we take for granted, but we shouldnt.  Go, check out 50 books (it raises circulation counts which is a good thing) and sit amidst a pile of books and be transported elsewhere.

In addition to books, this lentil soup transports me somewhere else as well.  Although Im in overly-sunny California, Id rather be curled up by a fire enjoying this soup and a good book.  I want to be locked in so that I dont have to go anywhere and can sit, instead, mulling over the written word and a bowl of this hearty thing.  I use the kale stems leftover from my kale salad  and I think its a great and healthy addition to this bowl of yumminess.  It requires a little bit of patience to build up the flavors and the base of the soup, but the end result, so worth it.  Just like a great book.

Sausage Lentil Soup
4 quarts of soup

Ingredients
1 pound French green lentils (I like Trader Joe’s green lentils)
1/4 cup olive oil
3 large diced onions
3 cups chopped kale stems (if you have available - I always make this after I’ve made my kale salad, so there are stems)
8 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1 ½  teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon minced fresh thyme leaves OR 2 tablespoons dried thyme
1 teaspoon ground cumin
3 cups medium diced celery (8 stalks)
3 cups medium diced carrots (4 to 6 carrots)
½ cup red wine
3 quarts chicken stock
?  cup tomato paste
12 to 16 oz  turkey kielbasa, cut in 1/2 lengthwise and sliced 1/3-inch thick

Method
In a large bowl, cover the lentils with boiling water and allow to sit for 15 minutes. Drain.

In a large stockpot over medium heat, heat the olive oil and saute the onions, kale stems, garlic, salt, pepper, thyme, and cumin for 20 minutes, or until the vegetables are translucent and tender.

Add celery and carrots and saute for another 10 minutes. Add red wine and continue to cook for 5 minutes.
Add the chicken stock, tomato paste, and drained lentils, cover, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer uncovered for 1 hour, or until the lentils are cooked through and tender. Check the seasonings. Add the kielbasa and simmer until the kielbasa is hot.

Printable recipe

There is power in books and power in this soup.

And if youre inspired to read a book that one of my most reluctant readers read and enjoyed, check this one out.

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Polenta with Sausage and Mushrooms

The lovely folks over at Roland Foods sent over a little care package of some of their products, and in this box I found some sundried tomatoes and polenta.  If youve never had polenta, its basically like a silky cornmeal concoction - you either love it or you hate it.  Im a huge fan of polenta because it cooks up easily and leftovers can easily be turned into polenta cakes which can be fried or grilled.  No matter what - I totally dig my polenta.

One of my favorite memories of polenta is eating a restaurant with my best friends over my 40th birthday weekend getaway.  It was cooked under a glass, topped with lots of yumminess and the scooping down to get every delicious last bite of the polenta was hard work but well worth it.  Its a food memory I wont soon forget, mostly because the company and the polenta were both so good.

This dish isnt even a copy of that memorable polenta, but I love it because its easy to make and Son can have it, provided I leave out the butter and cheese for him, which I do.  Its a hearty enough meal for your family and it can be made with very little preparation, aside from having the ingredients.  You can change the sausage if you like, leave out the mushrooms if youre not a fan, or add a different cheese.  Either way you look at it - its an easy dish to fiddle with and improvise upon.

As a warning, polenta is best served piping hot from the pot otherwise it thickens up and becomes something else altogether.  Make the sausage mixture as you bring your polenta water to a boil, and once the sausage mixture is done, actually work on the polenta.  Once the polenta is done, quickly move towards serving it.

Polenta with Sausage and Mushrooms
Serves 4 to 6

Sausage and Mushrooms
Ingredients
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cloves of garlic minced
1 lb sweet italian sausage, casing removed (or if you can find bulk sausage, use that)
8 oz of mushrooms, quartered
3 sundried tomatoes, not in oil, finely chopped
3 tablespoons basil chiffonade, for garnish
parmesan or fontina cheese for grating and sprinkling on top

Method
Heat a fry pan over medium high heat and add olive oil, garlic, and sausage, breaking up sausage with the back of the spoon.  Continue breaking up sausages and when they are almost cooked, add mushrooms and sundried tomatoes.  Continue to cook until mushrooms are browned and warm.  Set aside until polenta is ready.

Once polenta is cooked, ladle polenta into plate and add a hearty spoonful of sausage mushroom mixture, sprinkle with basil and cheese.

Polenta
Ingredients
1 cup cornmeal or polenta
4 ¼  cups water
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons butter

Method
Bring 4 ¼ cups of water to a boil in a heavy saucepan.  Add salt and slowly whisk in cornmeal and reduce heat to low, stirring often until cornmeal is tender, about 15 minutes.  Add butter.

Printable recipe

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Sausage Rigatoni with Kalamata Olives Squashing creativity

Im not sure what it is about Legos, but Son loves them.  And his fierce affection for them involves design, recreation, rebuilds, destruction, and a whole cycle of Lego work.  If youre a mom like me, all those those things actually add up to a big mess and a headache.

I often find myself at odds with Son regarding his Legos.  He loves to build in various corners of the house, bringing pieces to unexpected areas, finding inspiration in a book or in a car, or simply just dumping out all the pieces onto the floor and digging around to find that one unique piece.  Im not bragging when I say I think Son might be kind of a Lego genius, as he can build things out of these tiny little bricks and they look cool, inventive and unique.

His creations dont quite catch my fancy because they create a HUGE MESS!  The Legos get strewn from one end of the house to the other, and sometimes there are days when I dont think there is a single room Lego free.  As it is, I created a wonderful Lego build space for him and he INSISTS on building on the stairs, in the middle of the kitchen, or in the hallway.  Never does he actually use the cool building area I created.

My personal desire for neatness and order and his personal drive to do new and exciting things with his Legos often bump up against each other.  This past weekend, he was inspired by this great Sean Kenney book and decided that he HAD to create a building with a working elevator.  The book outlined the basic mechanisms, and the rest was up to him, and he went at it.  He went nuts for it.  He didnt stop.  It meant he destroyed a series of completed Lego sets that he had, all in the name of finding specific pieces so he could build the building.  Seven different completed projects were destroyed with little bits of Lego shrapnel, all while he attempted to make his masterpiece.

I couldnt stand it.  I couldnt take it.  And I wanted to scream.  I did scream and yell and ask for him to clean up the Legos.  I threatened to vacuum them up, to throw them away, and the look on his face was one of someone who didnt mean to upset me, but just HAD to keep building.  I suddenly wondered how many times have I squelched creativity in the name of neatness and order.  How many times have I interrupted Children in their free play in order to make them clean up?   The answer is probably way more than Id like to admit.  Im pretty darn blessed with Children who can take pieces of recycled paper and create an entire circus or a candy store, or as they demonstrated over Presidents weekend, lots of snow.  This freedom and creativity is something that I should want to foster, and not suppress.  Its just hard allowing them all that freedom when the chaos of the house threatens my own mental well-being.

I bought these boxes in order to help combat the Lego disorder at the house. I just want them put away.  Im not going to emphasize keeping them in their individual sets, but instead try and organize them by pieces, or by structure, or perhaps themes.  Im not sure.  I just want Son to be able to easily see what hes looking for and to easily put things away, should this Mommys temper arise. Im sure this isnt the best solution, but its a simple one that I can live with, and hopefully allow him to be a creative master without destroying my sanity.  I want him to be free to express his Lego creativity, but I also want to be able to walk through the house without the threat of a Lego piece reaching up and stabbing me.

Im trying to remember that a bit of creativity is a good thing, as long as it is harnessed properly and prevented from overflowing into all areas of the house.  In the kitchen, I give myself lots of free rein to do something unusual with food - why shouldnt Children have some measure of that same free rein?  This pasta dish, with the kalamata olives is a bit unusual, but I thought to myself, why not?  I have a jar of olives to use up, why not use it up in this pasta?  Turns out - that bit of creativity was well worth it, because I LOVED it.  Daughters loved it as well, and the only non-lover was Son, who didnt appreciate my creativity the same way I didnt appreciate his.  Karma is a pain it seems.

The dish does use more than one pan (sorry), but the roasting of the tomatoes makes it extra special.  It softens them and intensifies their natural sweetness and so its worth doing.

Sausage Rigatoni with Kalamata Olives 
Serves 6 to 8

Ingredients
1 lb rigatoni
24 oz (1½ lbs) cherry tomatoes
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 lb sweet Italian sausage, casing removed, roughly chopped
8 garlic cloves, chopped
1 cup pitted kalamata olives, quartered
½ cup fresh basil, julienne
1 cup reserved pasta cooking water (before draining pasta, remove hot pasta water from the pot.  Set aside)

Method
Preheat oven to 400.  Cook pasta in salted water, one minute less than package directions.  (12 minute cooking time, cook only 11 minutes.)  Reserve 1 cup of cooking liquid, and drain rest of pasta.  Set aside.

While pasta is cooking, on a cookie sheet, place cherry tomatoes.  Drizzle with 1½  tablespoons of  olive oil, and season with salt and pepper.  Give a quick toss, and roast in oven for 8 to 10 minutes (will vary depending on size of your tomato).  Remove from oven when done and set aside.

Heat on high,  a large heavy bottom pan  (I use the same one I cooked my pasta in).  Add 2  tablespoons of olive oil and sausages.  Cook sausages, breaking with the back of a spoon, until golden, about 5 minutes.  Reduce to medium, and add garlic.  Cook until garlic is golden, then add tomatoes and reserved pasta cooking water.  Stir and cook, until sauce is slightly thickened, about 2 minutes.  Add pasta all at once, and allow sauce to coat rigatoni.  Cook another minute, and then add olives and basil.  Season with salt and pepper if needed.  (Kalamata olives are salty, so beware.)

Serve hot, with a lovely sprinkle of Parmigiano Reggiano cheese.

Printable recipe 

A little messy creativity really doesnt hurt anyone. 

Sean Kenneys book, which was the start of all of the trouble, but a great book of inspirational designs for young kids.  It isnt a lot of step by step instruction, but rather photos and text of inspiration for young, creative builders.


The boxes Im using to try and get SOME sanity.

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