Chicken Sausage with Peppers & Onions

Back from the beach into the cold & wet.  What satisfies a man better than this.  


Chicken Sausage with Peppers & Onions served over Brown Rice.

Ingredients

• 2 large Chicken Sausage (preferably w/Sage & Apples)
• 1 large sweet onion sliced medium
• 1 Yellow pepper sliced in strips
• 1 Red Bell pepper sliced in strips
• Salt & Pepper
• Canola Oil
• 2 Cups of Brown Rice
• Sweet Chili Sauce

Grill Sausage over medium high heat in a cast iron pan.  Once cooked through set aside and cut into 1/2 inch slices.  In the same pan add peppers and onions salt & pepper and continue to cook.  Once peppers and onions are sizzling and cooked through add back sausage.  

Serve over brown rice and Enjoy!

Homemade Turkey Baked Ziti

The "Snow-i-cane" of 2010 seems to be coming to an end and once again the weathermen of New York have failed to impress.   I made the strong attempt of walking home from work this evening, attempting to avoid every slush puddle that Manhattan seems to endure on nights like this.   As most would agree there are two main challenges one has to deal with tonight; 1) Staying dry from knee down on your stroll home, 2) As this is Friday evening in the city, what to do for dinner?  

So as most Friday nights have come to be a trek to the supermarket is where I be.  Comfort food is the meal of choice.  Homemade Baked Ziti is where we shall rejoice!

Homemade Turkey Baked Ziti

Ingredients

• 1 lb of 93% ground turkey
• 1 28 oz can of crushed tomatoes
• 2 garlic cloves chopped
• 1 medium sweet onion chopped
• 1 lb of whole wheat ziti
• 1/4 cup of tomato paste
• 1/2 cup of water
• 1 package of part skim ricotta
• 1 package of shredded mozzarella
• 1/4 cup of grated parmigiana cheese
• 1 egg - beaten
• Pinch of dried basil, red pepper flakes, dried sage
• Handful of chopped Italian parsley
• 2 tablespoons of EVOO

Preparation

Heat oil over medium heat.  Add garlic and onion and cook until translucent. About 10 minutes.  Add turkey meat and cook until done.  Add Salt & Pepper to season.  Add tomato paste, crushed tomatoes, water and red pepper flakes, Basil & Sage.  Bring to a boil and then simmer to reduce. Cooke for 10 minutes.  

In a separate bowl combine egg, parsley, ricotta, and 3/4 package of mozzarella.  Mix well to combine.  

In a large pot bring salted water to a boil.  Add pasta and cook for 10-12 minutes or desired texture.  Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

In a deep baking dish (preferably a half lasagna pan) layer sauce than cheese than pasta. 

Repeat twice and top final layer with shredded mozzarella and parmigiana cheese.  Cover and bake for 40 minutes.

Serve and Enjoy!

Baked Eggplant & Zucchini Parmigiana

I woke up this morning with no voice. Thought the night was going to end in celebratory fashion, yet unfortunately as usual my Spartan's end up coming up on the short end in last night's Valero Alamo bowl. Can't really complain too much...14 players suspended including our two stud wide receivers, a home crowd of 57,000 plus in Texas, and all fate on the side of the red & black as their highly touted coach gets fired for what some would call sticking their bench player in the "execution" room! (seriously - What on earth is an electric closet??).

Well..it's now noon on a frigid Sunday in New York and I'm just rolling out of bed. I'm in need of a good grocery run as I have to cook dinner for 4 tonight. I was going through the pantry making a list of what I need for tonight's meal when I realized I've got some items leftover from the week that if I don't use quick I'm going to lose.

So in honor of this weekends final "no pride" game for the G-men, I decided to try whipping something up real quick.

BTW- I love chicken parm....in fact I love any kind of parm, so if you a similar foodie to me you'll really enjoy this recipe.

Baked Eggplant & Zucchini Parmigiana

Ingredients

• 1 large eggplants sliced lengthwise
• 1-2 large Zucchini's sliced lengthwise
• 1 cup of tomato sauce (recipe below)
• Part Skim Ricotta Cheese
• Shredded Mozzarella
• Grated Parmigiana cheese
• 2 tablespoons of panko bread crumbs

Preparation

Using a deep casserole or lasagna dish spread a couple tablespoons of tomato sauce on bottom of dish. Layer two slices of eggplant followed by 2-3 slices of zucchini. Next add a good amount of the ricotta cheese topped with shredded mozzarella. Repeat this process three times or til the dish is topped off. On the last layer end with a healthy sprinkling of Parmigiana cheese and some panko bread crumbs

Cover and bake at 350 degrees for 45-60 minutes or until dish begins to bubble over. When dish begins to bubble, remove cover and broil for additional 5 minutes to brown bread crumbs and create a crispy top.

Serve and enjoy!

Homemade Tomato Sauce

• 16 oz. can of crushed San Marzano tomatoes
• 3 cloves of garlic minced
• 1 medium white onion diced
• 2 tablespoons of good olive oil
• 1 cup of chicken or vegetable broth
• Fresh Italian parsley
• Fresh or Dried basil
• Dried Oregano
• Salt & Pepper
• Red Pepper Flakes

Heat Olive oil over medium heat. Add chopped garlic and simmer (if the garlic begins to brown your heat is turned up to high). Add onions and let sweat (onions should become translucent). Add tomatoes and herbs and stir together well. Add chicken broth and bring to a boil. Once sauce begins to boil reduce heat to a simmer and let reduce for about 30-40 minutes. Extra sauce can be frozen or kept in a refrigerator for up to a week.

Whole Wheat Pasta w/grilled chicken & eggplant

Tonight we dine in tribute to Italy. It's not often I cook a meal that requires me never to leave my apartment, but after a dismal outing of my boys today I wasn't really in the mood. And truthfully I might as well toast tonight's dinner to Steve Spagnuolo, a man with an Italian name who single handily cost the giants their season this year (not 100% accurate but his replacement sure did!). Sorry Steve..I'm bitter!

Ingredients

• Half of a box of Whole Wheat spaghetti
• 1 lb of chicken breast (2 halves or prepackaged strips)
• 1 large eggplant sliced in rings
• Olive Oil
• 2 cloves of garlic
• Tomato Sauce (homemade or store bought)
• Italian Parsley
• Red Pepper Flakes
• Parmesan Cheese
• Fresh Mozzarella

Preparation

• Grill chicken breasts over medium high heat until completely done. Set aside to cool
• Remove chicken and immediately grill eggplants on both sides until you obtain grill marks on both sides. Remove eggplant and cool
• Once cool slice chicken lengthwise and cube eggplant
• While chicken and eggplant are cooling boil a pot of salted water. Once water reaches boil cook a handful or so of whole wheat pasta (6-7 minutes for al dente)
• Heat a non stick skillet with a tablespoon of olive oil and a clove of chopped garlic.
• Add tomato sauce to skillet and heat over medium-low flame
• Add chicken and eggplant to skillet
• Add pasta and mix well

To plate

• Take a couple slices of fresh mozzarella and top over pasta
• Sprinkle with Red Pepper flakes and Parmigiana cheese
• Top with parsley and serve!

Chicken Milanese

Chicken Milanese is one of my all time favorite meals. It's all about Italian cooking without the heavy pasta and sauce. As a current New Yorker living blocks from the famous Union Square Farmers Market one can only imagine the vast types of tomatoes and vegetables that you can gather in a single walk. Trust me when I say if it wasn't for my fellow farmers this meal wouldn't be as nearly as complete.

Chicken Milanese

2 large pieces of chicken breast - B.S.S (Boned, split, skinned)

1 egg beaten

cup of breadcrumbs (I prefer Panko for this recipe)

S&P

Salad

Arugula

Cherry Tomatoes - all different colors halved

Good Olive Oil

Good Balsamic Vinegar

Lemon

Pound out two extra large pieces of chicken breast. Dip into beaten egg and then coat in bread crumbs. Make sure you drain off the extra egg! Bake at 375 degrees for 20-25 minutes. Take out of oven, top with Arugula & tomato mixture. Top with freshly squeezed lemon juice, olive oil & some balsamic vinegar.

Serve with a side of roasted potatoes & garlic.