The Jan Ririe Collections- Sausage & Pasta

 

Orecchiette with Sausage and Broccoli

Servings: 4-6

Total Time: 30 Minutes

• 1 pound orecchiette
• 5 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, divided
• 1 pound sweet or spicy Italian sausage, removed from casings
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 1 pound broccoli florets
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• ½ cup freshly grated pecorino Romano
• 
  
• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the orecchiette and cook according to package instructions.
• Meanwhile, in a large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil over medium high heat. Crumble the sausage into the skillet and cook, breaking apart with a spoon, until lightly browned, 5 to 6 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium and add the garlic; cook for 1 minute more.
• Add the remaining 4 tablespoons of olive oil, chicken broth, broccoli, salt and red pepper flakes. Cook, stirring frequently and scraping the bottom of the pan to release the flavorful brown bits, until the broccoli is tender-crisp, 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in the butter until melted and simmer for a few minutes to reduce and concentrate the sauce.
• Drain the pasta well and place back in the pasta pot. Add the sausage and broccoli mixture, along with half of the cheese, and toss to blend. Taste and adjust seasoning. Transfer to a serving platter or individual bowls and pass the remaining grated cheese at the table.
• Freezer-Friendly Instructions: This dish can be frozen for up to 3 months and reheated on the stovetop. If the dish has dried out a bit in the freezer, add a little water or broth while reheating. Just take care only to reheat it and not continue to cook it.

Two versions of Baked Ziti

Kay made this for our family. Initially I just thought "Ohhh another casserole, not my favorite." But once we started eating we couldn't stop. I think it was the combination of the white sauce and red sauce that gave it more depth of flavor and made it more delicious than other casseroles. This recipe is definitely a WINNER!

Easier Baked Ziti (quicker), preparing and cooking 40 min
1-2lbs ground hamburger (optional half could be sausage)
16oz favortie pasta
1 chopped onion (Sauteed)
2 jars Classico spaghetti sauce
1 jar Classico alfredo sauce
1/4-1/2 c milk
1 t garlic powder
1/2t onion powder
1 t season salt
1/2t Italian Seasoning
2c shredded mozzarella

-Prepare noodles.
-Brown and drain ground meat, saute onion.
-Dump sauces into 9x13 pan, use milk in the jars to get out extra sauce
-Add meat and noodles to 9x13 pan, Mix everything together.
-Sprinkle cheese on top.
-Bake 350 for 20 minutes



Original Baked Ziti,  preparing and cooking 60 min
16oz favortie pasta
1 lb jimmy dean sausage
1 chopped onion (Sauteed)
1/2t garlic
2c shredded mozzarella

1 jar Classico Spaghetti Sauce (24 Oz)

White sauce-

8oz cream cheese

1/2 cube butter

1 c whipping cream or heavy cream

1/2c Parmesan

1/2t garlic

-Cook pasta

-Brown sausage, garlic, and onion. Add spaghetti sauce and simmer 30 min, low heat.

-White sauce- put ingredients in sauce pan and heat gently.

-Use 9x13 pan, layer pasta, white sauce, red sauce and top with mozzarella.

Bake 350 for 20 min covered and 10 min uncovered.

Easy Noodle Stirfry

Oil
1/2-1 lb sausage and or ground beef
2 c cooked spaghetti noodles
1/4 head of sliced cabbage
3 sliced carrots
1 chopped onion
2t- 2T soy sauce
1 garlic clove
salt and pepper
Could serve with freshly squeezed lemon and/or chopped green onion or cilantro.

I cooked this all up in the morning. Then reheated it for dinner at 4pm
I used my iron pan and Brown the onion first.
Then add the meat cook till done.
Add the spaghetti noodles till they get toasted and browned. The noodles did start to stick to the bottom of the pan but I added a little more oil and that loosened them up. Also you can put the lid on the pan and that loosens the noodles on the pan.
Add carrots for 7 min, then add cabbage cook for 3 min.
Add soy sauce, garlic, and salt and pepper.
Way easy and tasty.

Serve with fruit salad, veggie salad and slices of french bread.

Chunky Spaghetti Sauce

Jamie brought some most delicious spaghetti sauce, spaghetti squash, and noodles to us after Luke was born.  It was so extremely delicious. I CRAZY loved this sauce. A couple reasons why it was successful: 1.  It was the first time I used sausage in spaghetti sauce and 2. the first time i roasted the tomatoes and onions. I think those things made it awesome!!!

1 lb Turkey or beef
1 lb of any type of sausage (no spicy, I took off the outter thin skin)
1 T basil, 1 T oregano, salt and pepper
garlic
2 sliced onions
chopped mushroooms (saute)
Zucchini
Butternut squash (peel and roast in oil, garlic, salt and pepper)
spaghetti squash for the noodles instead of pasta (cook whole squash, uncut at 400 degrees for one hour)
2 options for spaghetti sauce:
    1.  Sauce- garden combination Ragu or Prego
    2.  4 cans of diced tomatoes 
Pasta noodles


1. Cook ground turkey/beef and sausage with chopped mushrooms.  While I'm cooking the meat, In the past I have chopped it up so small b/c thats what my mom did growing up.  But this time I left the meat in bigger chunks and I really liked the texture in the final product. 
2. Roast onions and tomatoes  in oven at 400 for 45-60 min till browned. Then I pureed 2 cans of the tomatoes in the blender and left 2 cans in their diced chunks.  roasting is suppose to help give a more full flavor 
3. Peel and cube butternut squash, toss with oil, salt, and pepper 400 for 20-30 min. I put it in the sauce and i loved it but logan didn't love it.
4. cook whole spaghetti squash, uncut at 400 degrees for one hour. I liked this squash instead of pasta noodles but the rest of the family liked the pasta.


This fed 2 families of 10 people with still having leftovers. I thought it'd be good to freeze in smaller portions in sandwich ziplock bags for quick meals.

One pot Lasagna

Dang delicious

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 3 Italian sausage links, casing removed
• 1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes
• 1 (8-ounce) can tomato sauce
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, optional
• 8 ounces farfalle pasta
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan
• 1 cup ricotta cheese (cottage cheese)
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves

DIRECTIONS:

1. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add Italian sausage and cook until browned, about 3-5 minutes, making sure to crumble the sausage as it cooks; drain excess fat.
2. Stir in diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, oregano, basil, garlic powder and red pepper flakes; season with salt and pepper, to taste.
3. Bring to a simmer and stir in pasta and 2 cups water. Bring to a boil; cover, reduce heat and simmer until pasta is cooked through, about 13-15 minutes.
4. Remove from heat. Stir in mozzarella and Parmesan until well combined. Using a small cookie scoop, top with dollops of ricotta and cover until heated through, about 2-4 minutes.
5. Serve immediately, garnished with parsley, if desired.

Lauren's Minestrone

1 lb bulk italian sausage
1 large onion chopped
2 large carrots, chopped
2 celery ribs, chopped
1 medium leek, chopped
3 garlic cloves
1 medium zucchini, cut into 1/2 pieces
1/4 fresh green beans, cut into 1/2 pieces
6 c broth
2 can diced tomatoes, with basil, oregano and garlic
2 c shredded cabbage
1 t dried basil
1 t dried oregano
1/2t pepper
2 T parsley
1 can garbonzo beans drained
1/3c parmesan
1/2 c uncooked small pasts shells



Option #1 cooking- quicker, cooking with in 30min
Cook sausage and onions. Stir in carrots, celery, leek, garlic cook 3 min. 

Add Everything else except pasta shells till 20 min before serving.

Option #2 cooking- longer term crockpot cooking
In the morning- Brown sausage, garlic, and onions put in crockpot or large soup pot on low. Add diced tomatoes, broth,  garlic, cabbage, basil, oregano, pepper, parsley. Let cook in crockpot for a couple of hours.  

Cook pasta shells separately and store in fridge till soup is ready.

20 min before you serve- add: 

carrots, celery, leek, zucchini, green beans.

add  noodles and parmesan right when you eat 

Swedish Meatballs and Gravy

• D Delicious
• Meatballs- I've used this Delicious Meatball Recipe from Food Network that Im so in love with

2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 onion, diced
1 stalk chopped celery
2 teaspoons of minced garlic or 1/2t garlic powder
1 pound ground beef
didn't have- 1 pound ground pork
1/2 cup Panko (or chopped up leftover bread)
2 large egg yolks
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
didnt have- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

FOR THE GRAVY-

1 onion chopped

5-10 garlic cloves minced (you choose how many- depending how big the cloves are)
3 celery stalks chopped
handful of mushrooms

(I used the drippings from browning the meatballs)

1/4 cup unsalted butter (meatball drippings)
1/3 cup whole wheat flour
2 cups beef/chicken broth

1/4-1/2 c milk (milk alternative)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves

For the Meatballs---------

1. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion, and cook, stirring frequently, until onions have become translucent, about 7-10 minutes.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together Panko, egg yolks, allspice, nutmeg and cooked onion; season with salt and pepper, to taste, then combine ground beef, ground pork. Using a wooden spoon or clean hands, stir until well combined. Roll the mixture into 1 1/4-to-1 1/2-inch meatballs, forming about 24 meatballs.
3. Add remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil to the skillet. Add meatballs, in batches, and cook until all sides are browned, about 4-5 minutes. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate.

For the Gravy------

1. To make the gravy, melt butter and/or use the drippings from  browning the meatballs. Saute in the skillet.- chopped onion till brown, then add garlic, celery, mushrooms. Add this onion, celery, mushroom garlic mixture to the blender and puree. Then add the mixture to a pot and  Whisk in flour until lightly browned, about 1 minute. Gradually whisk in beef broth and cook, whisking constantly, until slightly thickened, about 1-2 minutes.  season with salt and pepper, to taste.
2. Stir in meatballs and cook, stirring occasionally, until heated through and thickened, about 8-10 minutes.
3. Serve immediately, garnished with parsley, if desired

Serve with noodles or rice, and a side veggie (we had carrots and cucumbers).

Can make extra and freeze for a future meal.

4/21/25 this gravy was a wonderful RIDICULOUS SUCCESS!!! 

Best gravy I've EVER made for swedish meatballs!!

Lasagna

Makes 2 (9x13) baking dishes of lasagna.  Bake one and freeze one
Recipe from Western Family brand Lasagna noodles package.

16 oz lasagna noodles

Red Sauce---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------1 lb ground sausage
1 lb ground beef
2 chopped onions
2 T minced garlic
1 T dried basil
2 t dried oregano
3 Tablespoons Dried Parsley
3 jars of Hunts spaghetti sauce (24 oz each) (I did add some refried beans b/c I wanted some more fiber and 1 can of stewed tomatoes)

Ricotta/cottage cheese mixture-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

4 eggs
1/2-1c parmesan
2- 24 oz cottage cheese (one time I used the 48oz cottage cheese, another time I used half cream cheese)

2 lbs shredded mozzarella cheese or just slice it (I used only one pound and I sliced it b/c it was previously frozen cheese (which falls apart) and cutting it is easier)


On stove top- Saute onions till brown, put in crockpot. On stove cook sausage and beef, put in crockpot.  Add to the crockpot: Spaghetti sauce, garlic, basil, and oregano. Put the crockpot on high for 4 hours, to let all the flavors combine.
On stove top boil noodles.
In a bowl- Mix eggs, parsley, parmesan, and cottage cheese.

Preheat oven at 375

Spray one 9x13 pan with oil, the other pan line with aluminum foil (to make the lasagna easier to pull out of the pan when frozen) and spray with oil too.  Layer the bottom of pans with sauce., layer 1/3 of the lasagna noodles, spread 1/3 of ricotta mixture, top with 1/3 of mozzarella.  Repeat two additional layers.  Bake with foil for 20 min, then remove foil for 20 min till cheese is melted.

Prepare this 2-3 days before you need it and let it sit in the fridge.

I made the SAUCE in the morning and put in the crockpot.  Then I mixed the cottage, eggs, parsley and parmesan in a bowl and set in the fridge. Shredded or slice the cheese.

The girls will assemble the ingredients in a 9x13pan.

4/9/19
 after putting 2 lasagna layers down I began to run out of the ricotta cheese mixture. So there was about 1/2-1 c left. I melted a block of cream cheese and added one more egg with salt and pepper, parsley and parmesan and finished one more layer of noodle, red sauce, ricotta/cream cheese, and topped with mozzarella. Turned out great.

9/22/23

Made this and it was so ridiculously yummy. I used one jar of hunts, one jar of canned whole tomatoes and lastly one jar of prego, let it book for 1-2 hours.

This time I didnt boil the noodles, it just put them in hard. I added 1/2c water toward the lasagna edges and bubbled up aluminum foil on top (so the cheese doesnt stick to the foil). I also put a good amount of aluminum foil under the pan b/c the liquid can boil out into the oven which can make more mess to clean up. I did cook for 1 and 1/2 hour. So delicious

Whole Wheat Biscuits and Gravy

The nite before, I can mix the biscuit ingredients, roll out the biscuits and leave in the fridge.  Also brown the meat and/or make the gravy, then just reheat it in the morning.
BISCUITS
100 Days of Real Food

• 2 cups whole wheat flour (I used King Arthur’s white whole wheat organic flour) or whole-wheat pastry flour
• 4 teaspoons baking powder
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 4 tablespoons cold unsalted butter (or coconut oil)
• 1 cup milk (any kind)

INSTRUCTIONS

1. In a medium sized bowl combine flour, baking powder, and salt. Mix well with whisk or fork.
2. Cut the ½ stick butter into little pea sized pieces and then mix the pieces into the flour mixture.
3. Using a fork, try to mash the butter pieces as you mix it together with the flour until it resembles coarse crumbs. It is okay if the outcome just looks like the same pea sized pieces of butter covered with flour.
4. Then pour in the milk and mix it all together. Knead the dough with your hands 8 to 10 times and then turn out onto a counter or cutting board.
5. Pat it out flat with your hands until the dough is a somewhat even ¾-inch thickness (sprinkle with a little flour if necessary).
6. Turn a drinking glass upside down and cut out biscuit rounds. I have also used shaped cookie cutters (like a heart or star) if you have little ones helping you!
7. Then put them on an ungreased cookie sheet and bake at 450 degrees for 10 – 12 minutes or until lightly browned. 
   Enjoy!

for each of my girls to make their own biscuits in their own individual small bowl- #1 recipe makes 2 biscuits and #2 Makes about 4 biscuits
#1       #2

1/2c    1c whole wheat flour

1t        2t baking powder

dash   1/4t salt

1T       2T cold  butter

1/4c    1/2c milk

Pioneer Woman

Gravy

• finely chopped onion
• 1 pound Breakfast Sausage
• 1 can (16 Oz.) Canned Biscuits or homemade biscuits
• 2 Tablespoons Flour
• 1 cup Milk
• Salt
• Pepper

I do like a finely chopped onion to saute while the meat is cooking, it adds so much flavor. Slice the breakfast sausage and place in a warm pan. Cook the sausage according to the instruction (thoroughly cooked inside). Remove them to a paper towel to drain.

Place your biscuits into the oven to cook according to the instructions on the can. 

Pour grease out of the skillet/pan you used for the sausage, adding back in only what you want to use to make the gravy. For one to two people, use about 2 to 3 tbsp. of grease. Over low to medium-low heat, add about 2 tbsp of flour to the grease and whisk immediately. If you add in a little more grease so it’s smooth and stirrable. You want to find a good balance between the flour and the grease.

Once you find it, just keep stirring with the whisk and allow the mixture to brown for a few minutes. As you whisk, scrape in the anything from the bottom of the pan as you go.

After 2-3 minutes, whisking constantly, pour in about a cup of milk. IF the mixture is dry, lumpy or pasty, add in more milk – again, drawing a balanced mixture. Add salt to taste. Let the gravy warm up over low heat, stirring occasionally. Cut prepared biscuits in half pour gravy atop them

Delicious Meatballs

Foodnetwork

Lily made these with spaghetti sauce, noodles for sunday dinner. Everything turned out delicious!!! Everyone loved it!!!

Dbl    Original- makes 30-50 meatballs
4        1 lb ground beef
1- 2    1 lb sausage (one time I used ground turkey)
1- 2    1 thinly chopped onion (sauteed)
5       cloves (or 1 T minced garlic (sauteed)
3        1 tablespoons mustard
3        1 t Worcestershire
3        1 teaspoon salt
1        1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
4         2 large eggs
1- 2      1/4-/12 cup grated Parmigiano (one time I didn't have and they still turned out great)
5         2 T parsley leaves
2         1 cup breadcrumbs (cheese it crackers, old crusty rolls and some croutons, saltines, crushed up tortilla chips)
             One time I needed to make it gluten free, so i used (2T flax, 2 T cornmeal and 1/2c quinoa)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Place them on a GREASED cookie sheet and bake them in the preheated oven for about 15 minutes, then flip the meatballs to the opposite side to brown for 8 more min.

They are delicious!!!!  I Made 50 meatballs. I cooked all of them and we'll freeze half of them for a future dinner. For about a family of 5 we eat about 10-14 meatballs at each meal.  So there ends up being enough meatballs for 3-4 dinners for the month.


OR 
Cook the meatballs with the sauce inside of crockpot for 4-6 hours on low. I first oil the inside of the crockpot, then pour in sauce and place the meatballs inside. SOOoooooo easy!!!

I made the double version and froze the raw meatballs and put into ziplock bags.

5/3/13 Next time I could just add one more pound of sausage or beef to have a little extra/

2/21/19. 9/6/20 I added all these ingredients to the doubled version- Used the doubled version, Loved it again, even with the gluten free options. I actually tasted the raw meat mixture to make sure I liked the flavor. I could tell it needed more of everything- so I just put some amounts of (1t mustard, 1 t Worcestershire, 1/2t salt, pepper, 1 T parsley, garlic. After adding more of everything the raw meat tasted and smelled better.

Taco Soup

All Recipes

1lb sausage
1 can black beans *
1 can white beans *
1 can corn
1 can kidney beans *
2 cans (15oz) diced tomatoes
2t garlic powder
1 chopped onion
2 stalks chopped celery (all I had was a spice celery seed 1 t)
1 chopped red pepper
1 rounded Tbs Cumin
1 1/4 tsp salt
1 1/4 Tbs Chili Powder
1 tsp Oregano
1 tsp basil

cooked sausage, then added everything to crock pot.
* I rehydrated dry beans and used them for the soup. (Black, Garbonzo, kidney beans)

Sausage, Kale, and Noodle Soup

Saute
1 lb sausage (after cook, then put in pot of water)
1 sauted chopped onion

Boil
1 pot of water
1lb finely diced mushrooms
5 garlic cloves (1T minced garlic)
3 bay leaves
Optional (potatoes or noodles) Bought Home style Noodles or wide egg noodles (or can put diced potatoes instead)
1-2T chicken bouillon

Put in last 10min
1 1/2c chopped kale (or could use spinach)



Put everything in a pot.

Delicious!!!  So much so that when we went camping a racoon opened up our cooler and grabbed this soup container and downed it all!!!! Stinker.  True story.