Sweet Italian Sausage - uses

Southwestern Pumpkin and Sausage Soup
Italian Chicken and Sausage

Italian Chicken and Sausage - Slow Cooker

This is slightly altered from Slow Cooker Basalmic Chicken and Sausage from Popular Paleo.

Creamy Southwestern Pumpkin and Sausage Soup - DAIRY FREE

This is by far my most popular pumpkin recipe to date.

1 lb sweet Italian sausages
1 small onion - finely diced
1 jalepeño pepper - de-seeded and finely diced
4 cloves garlic - minced
1 TBS extra virgin olive oil
3 TBS flour
2 cups homemade pumpkin puree
4 cups homemade chicken stock
3 tsp dried oregano
3 tsp ground cumin
3/4 tsp salt
3/4 tsp black pepper
2 bay leaves
13.5 oz can unsweetened coconut milk.
1 tsp lime juice
Fresh cilantro (optional) - garnish

1. In soup pot: brown sausages. Remove from pan and slice in fourths lengthways and dice.
2. Add olive oil to sausage grease. Sauté onion, jalapeño, and garlic. Add flour to make a roux.
3. Add spices, chicken stock and pumpkin.
4. Cover and simmer 25 minutes stirring occasionally
5. Remove bay leaves.
6. Blend soup with immersion blender.
7. Add sausage, coconut milk and lime juice.
8. Cover and simmer 15 minutes.

Adapted from Jan's sushi bar  and A Spicy Perspective's recipes.

The Best Beef Stew: Altered from "Crock Pot Best Loved Slow Cooker Recipes"

Here's the book the stew recipe is from:
Crock-Pot Best-Loved Slow Cooker Recipes



I have altered the amount of meat in this recipe. The original called for 3 lbs of stew meat in standard size and 1lb smoked sausage sliced. I've found that dicing the reduced amount of meat still have meat in every bite but it's much more manageable.

The Best Beef Stew:

1/3 cup flour + 2 tablespoons divided

2 tsp Salt

2 tsp pepper

1 lb beef stew meet diced (I use med-rare cooked roast which I freeze in 1lb ziploc bags alread diced)

1 can (15-16 oz) diced tomatoes, undrained

3 red potatoes (I've used yellow too) peeled and diced

1/2 smoked sausage (I used turkey smoked kilbasa)

1 cup chopped leek (I used 1-2 leeks, whatever looks good) 

1 cup chopped onion (I used 1 medium and didnt measure)
4 sticks celery diced

1/2 cup chicken broth

4 cloves garlic minced

1 tsp dried thyme

3 TBS water

1. Combine 1/2 cup flour, salt & pepper in bag. Shake meet to cover. Dump in Crock.

2.Add remaining ingredients except 2TBS flour and the water. Stir. Cover. Cook on low 8-12 hours or on high 4-6 hours. 

3. One hour before serving turn to high. Combine 2 TBS flour and cold water (I shake it well in a plastic container). Add to crock and stir into stew. 

I serve with Beer Bread

Loaded Baked Potato Casserole

 

This was taken with my dumb-phone. The next time I make this dish I promise to hold back the troops long enough to get a decent picture. (Pictured with Kielbasa)